[k149in]

For 5 years I used the Pioneer HU that didnt have the USB. Considering that I may not be having my Swift for more than 2 years from now, so last week, I decided again to get a basic player that has just the USB slot and without CD player. Having known Nakamichi ever since their CD players and headphones were used in Planet M some 10 years ago, I decided to try Nakamichi this time.

The model number is NA80, its a basic HU. It has a USB, AUX-IN and SD card slot. It costed me Rs. 5000 in Radioware House, AnnaNagar, Chennai.

The front speakers are Polk Component and rear speaker are 3 way Blaupunkt Coaxial.

Since this is a very basic model of Nakamichi and considering that I am no music expert, I can just share a very short review. Music is very good in the mid-range, but very bad at low and high frequency. In addition, you do not have Mid adjustments that you would normally find in a Pioneer deck. It has just Treble and Bass settings just like the Ford Figo OEM music system.

If you are person like me who makes V kind of adjustments in a equalizer (from low to high frequency), this model is not for you.

Ofcourse you have 10 preset equalizer modes, Dynamic Bass Boost (DBB) and XBASS (another Bass booster), but it does not make a music that suits my taste. When you enable DBB and XBASS, the system automatically sets the Bass to its maximum limit which is +7. At this level, Polk in the front starts making lot of vibrations and hence it feels annoying.

Since I have experience only with Pioneer, I can make a comparison only with a Pioneer. Even if you raise the bass to +7 or Treble to +7, it can offer no match to the extent Pioneer can offer Bass and Treble. Bass of Nakamichi at bass level +6 is much lower than a Pioneer at +3 (max is +6). Pioneer makes up for much sensible buy in my opinion.

However, if you are a mid-range lover, voice particularly, this Nakamichi model may suit you. Another positive is that the buttons and functions are very user friendly, no complications. The fonts in the display unit, though a very minor issue, looks like Japanese and big enough that a person driving XUV from behind you will know what song you are listening to.

In addition, though I have loaded mp3s to just a volume of 1GB on 8GB Sony Pendrive, occasionally, the system hangs reading certain songs.

You have a similar model that has Bluetooth that costs 2k more.

Incase you are keen on getting this HU from me, you are most welcome. Just PM me.

I am sorry if its too much negative than positive, but that is the way I see it. But, as I said before, I am no expert of Music or car HUs, so please research and decide on how you want to see this Nakamichi piece of system.

[GTO]

Mod Note : Representative Pic added to the opening post. Thanks for sharing!

[HighOctane]

Nakamichi, a japanese highed audio company since 1950s are not so popular in India. They were popular for their innovative 3 head cassette audio system. In fact, in 90's they had tied up with Pioneer for Lexus O.E.M Head Unit.

I had seen on a Nakamichi H.U in Ford Ikon long time ago and loved the set for its virgin like audio quality.

It should be a good value for money at 5k, though I have not seen this H.U.

[Blue Thunder]

Thanks for the review, k149in ! I did not know that Nakamichi had entry level ICE equipment; somehow, it seems to go against the "high-end audio brand" image of Nakamichi ?

Originally Posted by k149in

...The fonts in the display unit, though a very minor issue, looks like Japanese and big enough that a person driving XUV from behind you will know what song you are listening to....

[greenhorn]

After lusting after their High end Tape decks for the better part of my youth, It seems sad to see their name on such sad equipment

[dkaile]

Really sad to see the Nakamichi brand name on such chinese junk. I presume Nakamichi has sold off its brand name to some chinese company for such ad horribilis to occur.

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by k149in

The model number is NA80, its a basic HU. It has a USB, AUX-IN and SD card slot. It costed me Rs. 5000 in Radioware House, AnnaNagar, Chennai.

Are you sure it is a genuine Nakamichi ? I cant see that model in their website here http://www.nakamichi.com/home.html

Radiowarehouse are known to push silly systems/speakers to their customers.

[theexperthand]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

Are you sure it is a genuine Nakamichi ? I cant see that model in their website here http://www.nakamichi.com/home.html

Radiowarehouse are known to push silly systems/speakers to their customers.

The product is indeed genuine - http://www.nakamichiasia.com/en_prod...eyword=&page=8 - but I do wonder why Nakamichi started to cater the low end market.

[sandeepmohan]

Sorry to ruin it for you but this is just another cheap head unit sourced from some big time OEM in China. From the looks of it, they have sourced it from the same OEM for JBL cause there are similarities to the JBL head unit.

The real Nakamichi stereos are no more.

[saket77]

Shocked to read this! Nakamichi were one of the most sought after tape decks for audiophiles & purists. Still used/ preowned vintage tape decks of Nakamichi command good prices. It's sad to see such a brand image going down the drain.
However, there is not much recognition of the brand in India, as it never was a mass market product. Catered to a niche category unlike Technics (by Panasonic) which were great audiophile's Hi-Fi systems when launched in the 70s and for quite sometime, but later they ended up offering a complete top to mid-level range of HI-FIs during the 80s.

Regards,
Saket

[maxbhp]

Originally Posted by Blue Thunder

Thanks for the review, k149in ! I did not know that Nakamichi had entry level ICE equipment; somehow, it seems to go against the "high-end audio brand" image of Nakamichi ?

Nakamichi was acquired by the Grande Holdings, a Chinese company which also owns Sansui and Akai. Its repositioned itself in 2011 to reach the masses. So in effect Nakamichi is no longer what it was. Its just the name. Nothing else remains true w.r.t its heritage.

[Blue Thunder]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

...The real Nakamichi stereos are no more.

This is so unfortunate.

Originally Posted by maxbhp

Nakamichi was acquired by the Grande Holdings, a Chinese company which also owns Sansui and Akai. Its repositioned itself in 2011 to reach the masses. So in effect Nakamichi is no longer what it was. Its just the name. Nothing else remains true w.r.t its heritage.

Thanks for the details, maxbhp !

This is such an unfortunate development....really sad to know that Nakamichi is not the same anymore.

Right from the late 80s , I have always had a desire to own a Nakamichi stereo cassette tape deck. I had developed such a fascination for the brand, after seeing many pics of their tape decks and having read lot of overwhelmingly positive reviews about them.

[rajeshsundaram]

Some years ago, I have seen the Nakamichi Car Audio CD player once. The styling was understated, but the sound quality was truly top-notch.

And recently, in Erode I saw a box of 4" speakers with the name "Nakamichi" on it. I was surprised and asked the shop owner to open the box. All my enthusiasm drained away, as the speakers looked like some cheap chinese OEM.

I do not think, Nakamichi products that are marketed now has some serious quality in it. They are just mass-market like the Pioneers and Sonys.

[sandeepmdas]

Originally Posted by Blue Thunder

This is such an unfortunate development....really sad to know that Nakamichi is not the same anymore.

Right from the late 80s , I have always had a desire to own a Nakamichi stereo cassette tape deck...

Same here. I was also very much fascinated by the Sansui micro-component cassette stereo systems which had too many buttons, bells & whistles for that time and an Akai product, the Akai PJ-11; I was a schoolkid and I still vividly remember the day I saw (heard) the Akai and Sansui in action.

Alas! all are gone kaput with the advent of digital audio, all three of them.

Niro Nakamichi, the designer / engineer and the son of Etsuro Nakamichi, the founder is no more associated with the company as expected. He has started his own lineup and this is where you can still buy audio systems with true Nakamichi DNA.

http://us.niro1.com/aboutus2.php

Edit: the Sansui I heard on that day looked somewhat like this one. Note the old Sansui logo, the grey rectangle. Class!:

[chbpreddy]

I got the same model + JBL front speakers for my Alto K10 today from SPRocket, Ameerpet. More than satisfied with the sound with both FM and USB. Glad to see it is already discussed here.