• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Car stereo recommendations

S

spiritof67

Recently I purchased a 2001 Toyota Camry CE and would like to update the stock radio/CD player/tape deck. What I like about the Toyota radio is the sound quality on AM, and would like to maintain that. I would like to add an aux jack, HD, and Sirius/XM, with as few compromises to the existing radio as possible. While I do like to DX signals, I would also like to know about stereos with the best overall sound quality as well. Your suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
 
spiritof67 said:
Recently I purchased a 2001 Toyota Camry CE and would like to update the stock radio/CD player/tape deck. What I like about the Toyota radio is the sound quality on AM, and would like to maintain that. I would like to add an aux jack, HD, and Sirius/XM, with as few compromises to the existing radio as possible. While I do like to DX signals, I would also like to know about stereos with the best overall sound quality as well. Your suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

There are some good ones out there, but I've never been disappointed with Pioneer products. Recently bought two different ones, and both have great receivers, RDS, HD w/ Artist experience, etc. One went in our work shop to let us monitor RDS & Artist experience on our stations, and the other went into my work truck. That one has the best bluetooth phone setup I have ever used. I would recommend Crutchfield to purchase. You can look up by your car what will fit, and also get the correct wiring harness adapter to match the factory wiring. They also include install instructions specific to your car model. Just my 2 bits worth... dave
 
Dave, the Pioneer stereos are in the running for me--one of the models I see has CD, HD, bluetooth, SiriusXM ready, USB and aux connects. I have also spoken with Crutchfield and they do sound knowledgeable as well. What I am also looking for is how the audio on the AM section is as well. The current stock model in the Toyota has a very pleasant sounding AM section. What does the AM portion of the stereos sound like to your ears on these radios? It has been difficult to determine with the stores that I have shopped.
 
If I had a complaint, it might be that there could be a bit more high end in the AM audio, as compared to other sources. I really don't want to readjust the EQ just for AM. Other than that, my ears adjust to it fairly quickly. I do listen to AM quite a bit.
 
A follow up: I purchased a Kenwood DPX793BH which runs in the $180-200 range. While the audio quality on AM is not quite as rich as the stock Toyota, it does sound pleasant, and has the sensitivity of a Dan Fogelberg song (high). The unit overall has great features--HD on AM and FM (with the HD working poorly on AM as I expected, and the FM HD performing well keeping subchannels locked). The HD subchannels can be saved separately in the presets. The XM tuner works well and stores 18 presets for its section. There are USB ports for the front and rear (good for flash drives), and bluetooth audio for streaming from your phones. For me the Pioneer looked good, but the Kenwood edged it out slightly. Would love to hear other experiences with car audio users. If I cannot find music or programming I like on this thing, well that is my own fault. 73
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom