[jjhmed90]

Whats a good car stereo receiver? im looking to buy a new one and Im not trying to spend a fortune. Whats something good to look for in the price range of about...100-120 bucks?

 

[jfrolang]

I was going to recommend Alpine, but their cheapest model is $150. Then I was going to recommend Kenwood, but their website strangely does not list prices.

 

[Ragnaarok]

I've always liked Pioneer, a few friends swear by Kenwood.

I had an Alpine in the CRX when I bought it, and it was awful. Low power, menus that where anything but easy to use, and it was butt-ugly to boot.

If you stick with a known brand name, such as most things sold by Crutchfield, you should be fine, just pick anything that catches your eye & has the features you need. 8)

 

[jfrolang]

I had an Alpine in the CRX when I bought it, and it was awful. Low power, menus that where anything but easy to use, and it was butt-ugly to boot.

Was it a cheap model? How long ago was that? I consider Alpine to be one of the best brands in head units, but I've only experienced them in the last 3 years or so, and it's always been higher-end models.

 

[Baker]

Best bang for the buck, IMHO, is JVC.

Good quality units.
I have had quite a few recievers, Alpine, Kenwood, Eclipse, Clarion, JVC.....Out of all of them, my favorites were teh Eclipse and JVC. I have owned 3 JVC's and was happy with all of them.

 

[Ragnaarok]

I had an Alpine in the CRX when I bought it, and it was awful. Low power, menus that where anything but easy to use, and it was butt-ugly to boot.

Was it a cheap model? How long ago was that? I consider Alpine to be one of the best brands in head units, but I've only experienced them in the last 3 years or so, and it's always been higher-end models.

It was a cheaper model, such as what jjhmed90 was asking about, and I think it was a 2003 year Alpine model. I wouldn't recommend it.

Jfro, I was basically taking aim at Alpine's low end. If you want a sweet Alpine unit, you gotta pay some buck$, and jj already said he wants to save $.

But as I said before, any brand should be decent, it's all personal preference.

 

[Neil]

I've always used Pioneer for my low budget, reliabilty stuff. I save the fortune for my show cars!!!

I've had ALpine, and they aren't bad. They just don't like burned CD's and don't like heat much either.

 

[jjhmed90]

cool thanks for all the input. i was scrolling around through Circuit City and found this

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Sony-CD- ... tDetail.do

$106 total in the cart if I order it and pick it up in-store, which isnt a problem. what do you all think about this one?

 

[jfish360]

looks alright for the price?

 

[bobski]

Eh. I used to have a Sony head unit. The subwoofer outputs worked normally for about 6 months. After that, if I turned the volume down, the sub would make this sort of crunching sound with the beat of the music and fade out. Turning the volume up a bit would bring it back in a similar manner.
No such issues with my current JVC receiver (same amp & sub), though the contacts for the face plate are a bit loose - it blanks out if you wiggle the face around. :rolleyes1:

 

[jjhmed90]

Edit: after browsing and thinking for quite a while, I have just decided to upgrade only my head unit and the fronts. With that said, what can you guys recommend me buying with a pocket of about 250?

Edit2: and off Crutchfield.com. There are so many $99.99 ones up to 149.99. Do you guys think its worth 149.99 if its free shipping + better quality. I can't choose which to lean towards. Any thoughts?

 

[jjhmed90]

just a thought...

whats the difference between paying 149.99
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YwdAU6Tl0t ... I=109P652S

versus 89.99?
http://cgi.ebay.com/JBL-P652s-6-1-2-TWO ... dZViewItem

I'm thinking of buying them. How good are they?

 

[jfrolang]

Yeah eBay is a great place for deals on stereo equipment. You can usually find what you want for about half the MSRP.

 

[Charlie]

www.cbrstereo.com

thats where i ordered my last peice of car audio. they have really good prices...