Good head unit with good CD and FM radio performance

[arkitek]

Looking to upgrade the HU on my MSP.
I'll be using an external amp so the HU power is irrelevant.
I am looking for good clean CD and FM sound basically. Good MP3 playback would be nice too though not crucial.

The Pioneer FM tuner seems really good on my old DEH-6000 though I haven't had any experience with other HUs except the stock Kenwood which blows chunks in my opinion. What's even better the Pioneer FM tuner?

I'm leaning toward the Alpine 7998 but unsure about its FM tuner performance compared to a Pioneer unit.

Thanks a bunch.

 

[N1XRR]

FM tuner on the Alpine HU's are weak compared to others. Pioneer is actually one of the best.

The CD quality of the Alpine's, from what I can hear, is superior. They use a higher-rate DAC from what I can tell(at least on the new HU's). Alpine MP3 playback is AWSOME. There is VERY little delay between changing tracks (about 1/4 of a second). If you let it play from one track to the next, then its about 1/10th of a second.

The Alpine HU's have a much higher quality feel than most brands on the market, with the exception of the very high-end Sony's and Eclipses.

Personally, I'd say go with the Alpine. Though, you will probably need an external EQ as the built in one is very limited.

By the way: You can make, for example, an Alpine CD player sound a LOT better by replacing the stock DAC's to 24-bit DAC's.

 

[arkitek]

Thanx N1XRR.

I'm leaning toward the Pioneer now for it's sweet Supertuner 4 and blue laser technology which will read anything and everything. It's EQ is pretty decent and you can't beat it for value for your $$$.
I'm hesitant on the Alpine 7998 due to it's weak sub pre-out (1.8v instead of rated 4v). It's stealth face design probably isn't a good idea either as good thieves would recognize it right away making it easy targets.

Ideally, it sounds like I should get a HU with 24bit DAC with good FM tuner then. Does one exists for cheap? Anyone?
Any one know of some good car stereo forums I can search for this info?
Greatly appreciated for your help.

 

[DSMConvert]

pioneer fan here...ive had the 6000, 7200, 7400 and the 9200....sound is superior to the majority of other decks in the price range....kicks the s*** out of the pos kenwood unit in the msp....supertuner was rated as the top fm reception device on the market...didnt do so hot on am but who the hell listens to am anyways...the biggest thing though is I have yet to break a pioneer deck, even after sinking my jeep with it running....def high quality products...

 

[1sty]

The alpine CDA-7998 is a POS in my opinion. The damn thing broke on us so much at tweeter that the repair shops now stock its commonly broken parts and can turn it around in no time. Its not a normal day if a repair tec doesn't have to repair an alpine 1.5 din unit

Also Sony and Eclipse should not be loosly mixed with the term reliable. When they are good, they are great but often its model to model between good and craptastic in the reliability department.

Pioneer is the way to go for you in my opinion. The tuner is the best, its CD transport will read the worse, scratched up disks out there and they sound pretty good. They were also one of the more reliable brands for us.

 

[r0cknMSP]

hey

I just got my mazdaspeed... my headunit is missing, if you upgrade from your stock one I'd be interested in it for the right price! Msg me.

 

[Mark-MsP]

What are you looking to spend? I'm selling a practically brand new (used 2 weeks) KILLER deck for 2/3 the price I bought it to help my finacial situation right now.