Help a newbie pick a CD player please!

[lifesnotfair]

Ok, I'm a young engineer and should know about this stuff.. or not, but still, I'm ashamed to admit it: I know nothing about stereos and how it all works.

The thing is, I've never had a car that can play MP3's, and I really want to. I bought my '88 Supra not so long ago. The car came with a Pioneer unit (CD-RW but not MP3), an equzlizer (which I removed yesterday, making space for my already-ordered factory pocket which goes under the radio), and two Xplod speakers in the back, with a... how do you call it? Well, with this:

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/11/web/791000-791999/791249_119_full.jpg

So.. I like my music not so loud. Yes, I wanna be able to pump up the volume from time to time, but not THAT loud. I'm already seeking for those mounting brackets for 6" in the front, because I've heard with the 4.5" speakers there's not much one can do. I guess the speakers in the back are already nice.

Anyways, I see in crutchfield.com all this units that specify RMS and stuff I don't know about. I just want a good looking, economic MP3 player. Any advice or suggestion?

[trd88supra]

thats a amp that puts more power to the speakes. RMS is how much contunious power it will push.

[supraman7mgte]

i have a kenwood excelon,and love it,comes with its own software so you can make custom music files,and holds a grip of songs on a cd. add a music keg,and you have enough room on its 20g transportable hard drive to hold up to 1200 songs

[csr ma71]

For mp3 players, no Sony, Panasonic and no name brands.
Stick with Pioneer, Eclipse, Kenwood and Alpine.

IF you're going to continue using that amp, you can store it underneath the wooden board in your trunk, to the right of the spare with no overheating problems.

[lifesnotfair]

Yeah, previous owner placed it there. I guess it would be kindof an obstacle if I'm ever putting something big in my trunk. Gonna see if i can relocate it, but it's not one of my priorities right now :P .. Gonna check those brands you mentioned, I didn't even know if "Eclipse". What about JVC, any good?

And nobody has answered about what RMS I should look for, and how many Wx4 (45x4, 50x4, etc) I should look for either...

[Fuzz420]

RMS= Roo mean squared. This is your conitnues power rating the speaker can sustain at all times. Example 1000 watts peak power and 500 watts rms speaker.
Peake power is refering to how much power the speaker can take at a brief second, a 1000 watt burst.The daily continues power shouldnt exceed the factory specified RMS rating.In our example its 500 watts. As a rule of thumb for longevity of speakers and subwoofers i wouldnt suggest running over 70% the rated RMS spec. What i mean by this if its 500watts rms, then run about 400watts.Theres always variables involved with power ratings so i always tune on the conswervative side

To answer your question on which cd player its a matter of opinion. Pioneer is prolly the best bang for the buck cd player.Eclipse is on the priceyer side but are excellectn units. And JVC are ok as well, closer to pioneer type quality, but i believe when u compare price model price model between the JVC'S and pioneer, the pioneer always has more features.

When i bought my supra it a had a old pioneer it, since then ive upgrade to the 9500 series, with ease cause all pioneers use the same harnes.Makes life easier when all u have to is unplugg the old and plug in the new.

[lifesnotfair]

Damn, I didn't think about that, the wiring. I like an Eclipse CD1000 I saw. But now I kinda want to find a Pioneer that I like :P

Btw, your example is 500rms... But all players I see have from 16 to 22... Is this huge difference just because you were only setting an example?

And what do you mean by "run 70% of the rms".. Run what? Sorry for being such a fool.

[Fuzz420]

Damn, I didn't think about that, the wiring. I like an Eclipse CD1000 I saw. But now I kinda want to find a Pioneer that I like :P

Btw, your example is 500rms... But all players I see have from 16 to 22... Is this huge difference just because you were only setting an example?

And what do you mean by "run 70% of the rms".. Run what? Sorry for being such a fool.


For cd players to, speakers its not a big deal on the power rating.Your right most cd's players are 16 to 23 watts. Pioneers are in 22 range, most aftemarket speaks you put in should be able to handle it.

As far as running 70% of the rms, i put that in as i wasnt sure if u were dropping in a amp on the small speakers. Pretty much if your speaker is a 100 watts rms and u plug a 100watt rms amp, it wont last long.So idealy u u want to run 70w to 80w. I hope im not confusing you. But as i said if your just hooking up a cd player with some new speakers just make sure the RMS of the speaker exceeds the RMS of the cd player. Something like a 30 watts rms speaker,your brand of choice, will do.

[lifesnotfair]

I think I get it, kinda. But the RMS of the unit will be something around 22W, yes, but the amp I have have must be 200 or 300 something W.... so the speakers would need to be a bit more than that, right?

[Loki]

I have a Kenwood Deck, can't remember the model # at the moment but I really like it and it wasn't super expensive.

[Fuzz420]

I think I get it, kinda. But the RMS of the unit will be something around 22W, yes, but the amp I have have must be 200 or 300 something W.... so the speakers would need to be a bit more than that, right?


If your amp is 300watts yours still ok to choose the speaker of your liking, but when setting the amp up start with the gain on 0(all the way turned down) and just ease up on the volume.Make sure your the cd player your using is at full listening volume meaning the volume u would ride around listening to, then set the gain on the amp accordingly.Turn it up untill sound quality its slightly affected and then back it down a few notches

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

Umm no fuzz. Myself being an audiophile, I can tell you that you're wrong. When choosing RMS wattage, it's actually better to slightly OVER power a speaker than to under power it. When you underpower a speaker, it tries to draw more power from the amp than it's putting out, thus resulting in a clipped signal. Bad news.

Personally, I've always favored Alpine decks. They aren't too pricey, they're VERY user friendly, and their features are great. JVC is a definate no-no. Cheap, wal*mart pieces of shit. Pioneer decks are alright, never really found one that I like too much. As far as speakers go, best bang for your buck is going to be Infinity. They have GREAT speakers.

Those speakers in your hatch are...well, put nicely, rigged. I would never recommend external boxes with speakers--nor ANYTHING sony for that matter.

[lifesnotfair]

I didn't put them in there, previous owner did. And I thought the Sony Xplod series was pretty good (??).

I like the Eclipse CD1000 unit. But now I don't know about the wiring.. do I need another harness or something? As someone mentioned, it'd be cooler to just plug n play with another Pioneer... gonna check if I like one, coz last time I did, my last 5 choices...... none was a Pioneer :(

[92turbo4life]

i have a alpine deck... a 1200 watt amp by jl audio and a alpine type r 12". it was like 750 with instalation. the amp is on the back seat and the speaker in the box is int he hatch. thing bumps extremely hard..... me cay bumps more than a car with 2 15's:)

[lifesnotfair]

Heh, there's just no way in hell I'm spending that much in music. I'm not a music freak, just wanna listen to some MP3's nicely while driving. :-)

[92turbo4life]

agareed^ that is the biggest waste oif money i dropped in my car.... i have listened to it 3 times. i listen to the turbo i swear no lie.. its sad.

[Fuzz420]

Umm no fuzz. Myself being an audiophile, I can tell you that you're wrong. When choosing RMS wattage, it's actually better to slightly OVER power a speaker than to under power it. When you underpower a speaker, it tries to draw more power from the amp than it's putting out, thus resulting in a clipped signal. Bad news.

Personally, I've always favored Alpine decks. They aren't too pricey, they're VERY user friendly, and their features are great. JVC is a definate no-no. Cheap, wal*mart pieces of shit. Pioneer decks are alright, never really found one that I like too much. As far as speakers go, best bang for your buck is going to be Infinity. They have GREAT speakers.

Those speakers in your hatch are...well, put nicely, rigged. I would never recommend external boxes with speakers--nor ANYTHING sony for that matter.


Ha, you sir are correct. I thought something was missing in my explinations or didnt look right.

Alpines are nice deck, im not a fan ive always had trouble working there "top end" stuff with there many feature. My vote is still for pioneer, thats about the only thing half decent u can buy from walmart.Some people are skeptical of the walmart series pioneers.

Something that i know turbotarga and i will agree on, is in the audio world u get what u payfor.Dont go too cheap cause end up like many of my friends, when there wondering why there music doenst sound right

[mkiiSupraMan18]

Geez, people get into radios huh? Just go to Best Buy/Circuit City/Wal-Mart, whatever, listen to a few of their set ups and pick out a combo in your price range that sounds good to you. I never really thought there was a science to it (but knew it was out there). Or buy whatever is on sale. I got a Jensen MP3 CD player for like... $120, motorized face (which I wouldn't recommend, no bad experiences, YET), 2 RCS outs, Changer control (not using) and it works awesome. Takes a little time to load when you first start the car but other than that it sounds good and I thought I got a hell of a deal. Visuals are ghey, but I just leave it on the song title/info anyway. I don't listen to anything w/ bass or any techno, but damn Country music sounds good through it. :biglaugh:

[esc]

I have 2 Pioneers. The one in my BMW has built in EQ and everything, great sound (just no MP3 playability). The one in my Supra is a little less on quality but plays MP3s (which is fine because the sound system in the Supra sucks anyways). I've owned 1 Sony CD player my whole life and it was total junk. Pioneer forever

[lifesnotfair]

I'm looking at crutchfield.com, looking for something under 160 bucks. I liked the Eclipse CD1000 a lot, but I'm gonna search for a Pioneer right now, as I have a Pioneer harness (for actual cd player).

[lifesnotfair]

Pioneer DEH-P3800MP, 149.99 with free shipping. Comes with harness and instructions.

It has remote control, detachable face (but one doesn't need to lift the face to insert the CDs, I hate that!), a wheel for the volume (I hate the Up and Down buttons, love the little rotary wheels), the lights are green (great!), the display is black and has like 16 characters for it, 6 EQ lines, MP3 player of course.. I think it was a good choice. Now I need those speaker mounts to hold the 6" in the front, damn! :)

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

Ha, you sir are correct. I thought something was missing in my explinations or didnt look right.

Alpines are nice deck, im not a fan ive always had trouble working there "top end" stuff with there many feature. My vote is still for pioneer, thats about the only thing half decent u can buy from walmart.Some people are skeptical of the walmart series pioneers.

Something that i know turbotarga and i will agree on, is in the audio world u get what u payfor.Dont go too cheap cause end up like many of my friends, when there wondering why there music doenst sound right

Oh thank god, thought I was about to end up in a flame war. Wouldn't have ended well. You'd of been badly burned--lol. I'm actually going to school for car audio stuff in June. Yay me.

Indeed you do get what you paid for. I wouldn't have gone the crutchfield route by ANY means...but that's your choice.

As far as speakers, I'd definately go Infinity Kappas.(DO NOT BUY REFERENCE SERIES SPEAKERS...I WILL HAVE TO SHOOT YOU!!!) If you're looking to spend about $1g on speakers, I'd say go with Rainbow or Nakamichi (spelling?)--but it doesn't seem like you're into all that. Infinity Kappa 6" are about $150, Kappa perfects are about $200. Thats for a component set, including a 3/4" or 1" (don't remember exactly) silk-dome tweeter.

[lifesnotfair]

Nice. For now I might use the current speakers I have.. I haven't even checked what they are, but the sound is not all that bad. Once I get the 91 mounting for 6" speakers, I'll buy those Infinity Kappa then, they don't sound too expensive.

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

Good bang for yoru buck definately. They don't have real heavy bass too them, but the bass they do have is very clear and defined. The highs aren't real super high to where it's ear-piercing either. All around a VERY nice "value" speaker.

After hearing a $1200 a PAIR (not for 4...for 2) Rainbows, though--nothing sounds the same anymore *sighs*--I hate being broke lol

[bluemax]

Going on reputation, I'd recommend MB Quart speakers. I've never heard their car speakers, but the home speakers are very good for the money.
http://www.millionbuy.com/caudio-speak-mbq.html

Audiobahn's are suppose to be good. A guy at work said Audiobahn wins all out car stereo competitions all the time.
http://www.millionbuy.com/caudio-speak-adb.html

But I've got Infinity Kappa's. They're a good buy. Not a lot of bass, but clear sounding and good upper end.
http://www.millionbuy.com/caudio-speak-inf.html

Turbo.Targa.Life., you're an audiophile too? And you like Kappas too..........may be there's somthing about those Kappas???

But seriously, I haven't heard a lot of different car stereo speakers in a controlled setup and environment, so I can't say I'm an expert. Besides, I personally use home speakers in the rear of my every day ride, along with the Kappas up front, an Audiobahn amp and Fostgate head unit, to get decent sound.

In a car set-up, I've found speakers definately make the biggest difference on sound.

[Topher E]

i have a kenwood excelon,and love it,comes with its own software so you can make custom music files,and holds a grip of songs on a cd. add a music keg,and you have enough room on its 20g transportable hard drive to hold up to 1200 songs
Pics??

[lifesnotfair]

Crutchfield.com was asking too many questions for international buyers, heh, so I bought it from cardomain's store, and saved 10 bucks. 140.9 with shipping included, comes with harness. Nice.

[GotToyota?]

I have a Kenwood Deck, can't remember the model # at the moment but I really like it and it wasn't super expensive.
Werd, same here. Here is a pic of it in the car:

http://gottoyota.7mpwr.com/GotToyota/Pictures/For%20sale/install%20001.jpg

[NDBoost]

Panasonic Ghost FTW!
Although not made anymore, its full touch screen and when you turn it off it looks completely black. Only 3 buttons that exist on the face are Eject CD, flip face down, and remove face.

The ejct button is behind the face plate making it only accessible after face is down.

[Fuzz420]

Going on reputation, I'd recommend MB Quart speakers. I've never heard their car speakers, but the home speakers are very good for the money.
http://www.millionbuy.com/caudio-speak-mbq.html

Audiobahn's are suppose to be good. A guy at work said Audiobahn wins all out car stereo competitions all the time.
http://www.millionbuy.com/caudio-speak-adb.html

But I've got Infinity Kappa's. They're a good buy. Not a lot of bass, but clear sounding and good upper end.
http://www.millionbuy.com/caudio-speak-inf.html

Turbo.Targa.Life., you're an audiophile too? And you like Kappas too..........may be there's somthing about those Kappas???

But seriously, I haven't heard a lot of different car stereo speakers in a controlled setup and environment, so I can't say I'm an expert. Besides, I personally use home speakers in the rear of my every day ride, along with the Kappas up front, an Audiobahn amp and Fostgate head unit, to get decent sound.

In a car set-up, I've found speakers definately make the biggest difference on sound.
Interesting, you would put the audiobahns.They are complete crap. Horrible. My buddy filled is 2000 s-10 withaudiobahn mids and highs, and he blew all of them on his Alipne deck. What was sad its that the cones were fine but the rest of the speaker came unglued.To also degrade audiobahn i have yet to see them hold there own in SPL or SQ competitions. My buddy ran there subs, :nono: :icon_conf , Blew up quickly to say the least. Mb quarts are pricey but they are one of the best. Go with the kappa's. Ima agree best bang for the buck.

My personall setup is pioneer deh 9500 on stock speakers. The sound great. For speakers being 16 years old they definely hold there own.The Sound system is top notch for back in the day, and still holds in own today.

Turbotarga, i as well am a audiophile.Self taught mostlly. Ive been in the scene and took a electricty class witch really is all the concepts. Any ways, last summer i eneted the soop in spl drag, i hit a personal best of 142.8.With stock alt. and extemely leaky box, and Orion xtr 2250 amp.

Back on topic, if im not mistaken, dont our cars come with infinity's stock.If theres any brand i recomend dont buy its audiobahn CONSUMER BEWARE. Buying audiobahn is like buying the S.S. Autorcrome manifold

[MKIIITrbo89]

I recently bought a pioneer cause my old Kenwood unit which I loved was stolen out of my supra. To tell you the truth the Pioneer doesnt even compare to the Kenwood unit. A lot of my cds that didnt skip with the Kenwood now skip with the Pioneer. I also hate the fact that the unit does not put down the antenna when I am playing a cd. The old Kenwood unit used to do that. When I purchase another head unit it will be either Alpine or Kenwood.

[lifesnotfair]

Oh, I have that question too... My current Pioneer DEH-1500 does NOT put down the antenna while playing a CD... Why? How do I know if my new DEH-3800MP I ordered will do it?

[MKIIITrbo89]

I think that it is a must have feature for head units. However, that is something that is built in to the unit and can't be changed. Not actually sure what the the name of it is. Basiclly the unit can recognize the difference between you playing a cd and the radio so it puts the antenna down. If it can't recognize that then it just stays up all the time. I know almost all sony units have it, at least most higher end models. When I bought by Pioneer at Best Buy the salesman told me the head unit had that feature. Next time I will make sure before I make a purchase.

[hot dayam mk3]

Kenwood all they way.... i have the kdc-mp928 and it rocks. Pioneer is good to but it lags too much on reading mp3 cds. Eclipse is too high for my price range. but i would say the best head unit money can buy.

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

I agree, fuzz. Audiobahns are "big floppy donky dick" to say the least. They're a "Pontificating, bigantic worthless STEAMING pile of cow dung...figuratively speaking".

[GotToyota?]

I've got a Kenwood KDC-MP228, I paid $160 for it including tax at a local car toys, does WMA's and MP3's, awesome display at night, doesn't skip, reads discs quick, for the $ Kenwoods are definently worth it.

-Matt

[GotToyota?]

Oh, I have that question too... My current Pioneer DEH-1500 does NOT put down the antenna while playing a CD... Why? How do I know if my new DEH-3800MP I ordered will do it?
It has nothing to do with the radio, it has to do with how you hooked up your radio harness. I hooked up mine so that whenever the radio turns on the antenna automatically raises, you have to hook up certain wires to do it. Find a wiring diagram for the radio, and you can see.

-Matt

[lifesnotfair]

Great, thanks.

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

Kenwood all they way.... i have the kdc-mp928 and it rocks. Pioneer is good to but it lags too much on reading mp3 cds. Eclipse is too high for my price range. but i would say the best head unit money can buy.

Eclipse? Best you can buy? Nehh. Look into the alpine F1--now THAT's a head unit :D

[supra_stephe]

id did not feel like reading the post so some one probelly already said this, get a sick jdm double din head unit (like me) and mb quarts with phynix gold amps and if you want subs jl w7's and you'll be the coolest dumb kid on the block with a bang'n system

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

JL W7's are nice, but they're pretty pricey and REALLY heavy. Do you have W7's set up in yoru car stephe?

[MKIIITrbo89]

GotToyota, so your saying it doesnt matter what head unit you have, as far as the antenna going up when you play a cd just has to do with how its wired. I don't know much about wiring, but if this is true, then the people as best buy don't know anything. I'm glad I know for future reference.

[GotToyota?]

GotToyota, so your saying it doesnt matter what head unit you have, as far as the antenna going up when you play a cd just has to do with how its wired. I don't know much about wiring, but if this is true, then the people as best buy don't know anything. I'm glad I know for future reference.
Yep, I believe so. Check out the wiring diagrams for our cars and match it with your radio harness, easy as that. I just know that mine had it because my harness had an antenna up wire, maybe ALL don't have them, but I know it's more common in the newer headunits.

-Matt

[lifesnotfair]

"The coolest dumb kid on the block" <-- all I've ever wanted to be! I sure will take your advise Mr.!

[bluemax]

I think all the current head units these days would be compatable with the Mk III antenna. But beware, there are two methods of getting a signal to the anetnna motor. My brother's '85 Celica antenna had to have a push button 12V momentary switch put in because the antenna didn't go up or may be it was down. It had something to do with a pulse signal required instead of a steady current. I forget.
My newer Fosgate doesn't have any problems.

To make wiring easy, use a prefabricated wire harness that goes between the car wire harness and the radio. You splice all the wires from the radio to the prefab harness then its plug and play and will let you go back to the factory setup, not that you ever will, without cutting and splicing. The instructions are pretty simple and its easy to do.
http://www.millionbuy.com/a-itwh950.html

You will need to install crimp connectors or you could do like I did. I soldered mine and used heat shrink. You could use pliers on the crimp connectors. I've done that before when I was young and didn't have the right equipment.

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

Umm no you can't use pliers on crimp connectors...unless you're trying to start a fire. Goddamn I'm sick of this. Crimp connecter clamps are like $10 at ANY home improvement store. Invest in a set with an inside crimp (between the handles) and a cutter up top. Best tool you'll ever buy for wiring. While soldering is a MUCH better method, it takes some level of skill.

[bluemax]

I agree with you T.T.L.- But when you're young, 10 bucks goes a long way. Heck, that's almost half a tank of gas.
You can use pliers if you're careful. Just don't break the outer insulation and make sure you get it crimped down good.

I like to use solder connections. I've had crimp connectors come off when you tug on the wires.

[Turbo. Targa. Life.]

Sorry for snapping bluemax. Lately, everywhere I go, everyone thinks they know something about stereos and starts talking about turning the gain all the way up to get more bass...it's fuckin' killin me. Oh well--like the shirt said "Those of you who think you know everything, annoy those of us who do" lol

BTW, I'm still a "kid", I'm only 17.