cheap car stereos

[Blacktank]

yea,your right,stick to my guns,batteries be damn,my starter will be seperate

i'm over analyzing cheap stereos,i'm just not right

the contestants are all about equal,it's the speakers that come with them that i am analyzing

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Pioneer-6-5-3Wa...58f96682c0

https://www.ebay.com/itm/JVC-KD-R480-USB...58f9635415

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Kenwood-KDC118-...58f965101a

https://www.ebay.com/itm/JVC-Car-CD-USB-...SwnVZau6rc

https://www.ebay.com/itm/PACKAGE-JVC-KD-...1744611094

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Pioneer-DXT-S40....l4275.c10

https://www.ebay.com/itm/JVC-Car-Radio-S...Sw8D1axq8n

for the cab i like the one tex posted,the modern vintage looking ones or an older tape deck,if i get one with knobs i wont have to cut the dash

[American Nomad Patriot]

My 2 cents, Every year around Christmas WalMart comes out with a car stereo package that has a radio and 4 speakers with all the wiring etc. I bought one last year that was a pioneer brand with a USB input etc. The price was $89 plus tax. I have several used vehicles and every year I usually will wait until that time to buy one of the package deals for any of them that do not have one. I think the sound quality is great. But usually lack a lot of power. I think the wattage of the speakers and stereo were rather low. But they were loud enough for be. I guess I'm getting too old. lol.

[rvpopeye]

There are powered speakers made for pro audio , some are pretty inexpensive.
All you need is a couple of RCA outputs on an any power stereo.
(with a little extra wire , they would work great out on the ground somewhere too)

I don't have any specific recc's , haven't been keeping up with developments .

Can be added later ?

[Blacktank]

for the cab the decision was made for me with an uncut dash so i went with the retro stereo and paired it with 4 rockford fosgate 3 way 90 watt 6.5, have holes in the door for two,the other two,dont know yet

https://www.ebay.com/itm/RetroSound-Lagu...2749.l2649

https://www.ebay.com/itm/4-New-Rockford-...itleDesc=0


yea,i blew right by my budget,could of got a kit with stereo and 4 speakers for $150 but would of had to cut the dash and really didnt want 1001 options and 10 colors a flashing,all had reviews of small buttons and hard to navigate options

have the doors apart replacing seals and lubing up the window mechanisms so now is the time to run wires

[American Nomad Patriot]

I plan to use an RV stereo for the rear on my bus. Then a one of the car stereo kits (w/speakers) for the front. The neat thing about the RV stereos is that they are rated for higher output with satelllite speakers and base speaker for theater sound. And has a button where someone can switch from one rook (or area ) to another...or all at same time. And the one I got recently fro my camper even has remote, bluetooth, aux input, and a usb input outlet. I'll be hooking my tv up to it as well. Then I can do music or tv sound from same head unit.

[sternwake]

Earlier in this thread I said i was not replacing my existing head unit until mine failed.

It is a Sony, I bought Mid 2012, and now will turn itself both on and off, as if possessed.

When off it will make a series of beeps and turn itself on. I always have the beep function turned off, and this stereo cannot be turned on Via the remote. The very first time I noticed this behavior, it turned on, and to an FM classic rock channel playing 'Dead Flowers' by the stones, a song that I have recently been enjoying, but the 'the new riders of the purple sage' version. This song reminds me of a friend who regularly plays it, when he plays lead guitar and sings with some cover bands. He's been going through some crap with an unfaithful wife, so having my stereo turn itself on and tune to a radio station playing this song, freaked me out more than a bit. I almost never listen to FM radio.

i received a text back from him quickly.

I found the owners manual online. No reset button, so i turned my load switch to off for a half hour, hoping for the same result, bu it still turns itself on then off, off then on, changes from CD to FM radio to Aux to usb and generally acts possessed.

So time to get a new stereo.

I wanted bluetooth, rather than having to hook up my phone using a 3.5mm stereo mini plug, but I of course want that option too. Another Sony would be nice as the connector would likely be the same and no wire splicing necessary, but I did not like the front design of the sony stereos which had my required features. The 3.5mm plug entry was rigt next to the song advance or return buttons. I would smack it every time I went to fast forward a track playing on the CD, or perhaps change radio stations. Dumb design in my opinion.

I narrowed it down to 5 stereos, the most expensive being 110$, a Pioneer DEH-S6000BS. There are some non name brand stereos with all the features i wanted for well less than half of this, but the negative reviews were much more convincing than those praising the product

I was about to click place order on Amazon, but copied and pasted that into the amazon search, and the same exact stereo was 84$. I had been product shopping on Amazon and the 84$ option, did not show up at all, I had to plug in that part number to see it. i thought perhaps it did not come with the remote control or something. I need the remote control. I do not want to have to use the a smartphone APP to control the stereo from distant, which took many stereos out of the running.

Anyway, it is a reminder, when online shopping to not click place order without searching the product model number.

The connector on teh back loooks very similar to the plug on my Sony. The last sony was basically plug and play as the head unit before this latest one was also, was also a sony. But that previous Sony one was likely wired in 2004. I have seen some of my wiring from that era. Certainly not upto SW standards of today. It might even just be copper wires twisted together and covered with eletrical tape.

Anyway, it is due to arrive tuesday, and it will be nice to not have to plug the phone into a 3.5mm stereo mini plug each time I get in the drivers seat. That was one reason i would make my own CD's. And one reason why I also wanted a new steeo capable of playing CD's too, as sometimes post surf session it is nice to just press a button and have music, rather than unlock the cabinet into which I locked my phone, search out te 3.5 stereo mini plug cable with salty fingers, curse, throw things....you get the idea.

I hope the sound quality is pretty good. My speakers will still not have enough power driving them, which is only obvious to me at higher volumes, which i cannot reallly do anymore with my Dog in the car anyway.

[Blacktank]

i guess i could update

in the cab i went with the aforementioned retrosound stereo for $180  it's a basic stereo receiver with aux and fit the dash,paired with 2 6.5's down low on the door pointing at the step and 2 6x9's between the seats pointing at the doghouse,while at 18 rms it has plenty of power the crappy speaker placement results in a muddy no definition sound but plenty good enough for listening to the radio while driving


in the house i went with a JVC KD-R490 i got off ebay for $62,modern stereo with options within options,same speakers as the cab but with excellent speaker placement and sounds absolutely great and with 22 rms has more power than i will use

the 6x9's are KENWOOD KFC-6966S i got 4 off ebay for $60
the 6.5's are Rockford Fosgate R165X3 for $73


the speaker boxes are tilted inward about and inch so the sound focuses in the middle of the room and sound great


so in conclusion,modern cheapie brand name stereos are better than anything from the 70's-80's but are cheap thus disposable,speakers and speaker placement are going to make more of a difference than the stereo

[sternwake]

I lined my front doors interiors with peal and seal, and moved my 2001 purchased kenwood 6x9's up 2.5 inches so less of them was pointing at the step, and was amazed how much better it sounded afterwards.

I think about making an angked wooden insert to aim the 6x9 upwards so even less of them is aimed at the step.

I was pretty impressed with sound quality of my latest sony head unit, which is now possessed. it was almost too adjustable

[Blacktank]

they sell angled speaker pods but are spendy,someday maybe the 6.5's will end up in the dash where they only have to echo a couple times before they get to my ears,not many options in a van cab,my house stereo rocks hard,the nephews now understand why Steely Dan is great

[sternwake]

When I moved my speakers up, I used a 1/2 inch thick wood ,~2 inches wide trim ring spreading the load over a larger portion of the door which the previous owner, or perhaps conversion company, had partially mutilated around the speaker.

It really was an astounding improvement in sound quality