[shamanth]

Originally Posted by vkhandelwal

what price you are being quoted for XAV-AX7000? the price of pioneer
DMH-Z6350BT should be around 38K.
resolution of sony is 800X 480 while pioneer is 1920 X 1080 . both are capacitive
Pioneer supports wireless android auto and apple car play and alexa is inbuilt

I do not see mention of DSP or advanced sound tuning capabilities in Sony. It might be there in the manual but I feel they would be highlighting it if it was there

Please check.

Pioneer i checked with local accessories shop it was around 39k, it comes with wireless Android Auto/Apple Car play.
Sony haven't checked yet but shows as 25k in flipkart, it even says can connect subwoofer without amp in Sony.

Yes, i think I think advanced sound tuning capability is what differentiate between Pioneer and Sony.

[vkhandelwal]

Originally Posted by shamanth

Pioneer i checked with local accessories shop it was around 39k, it comes with wireless Android Auto/Apple Car play.
Sony haven't checked yet but shows as 25k in flipkart, it even says can connect subwoofer without amp in Sony.

Yes, i think I think advanced sound tuning capability is what differentiate between Pioneer and Sony.

And there is pioneer 5290 for 19k as well if only sound is the main reason. it still has time alignment advanced sound tweaking and better resolution screen.

[cryptarchy]

Originally Posted by NTO

VWs OE head unit - RCD 340

Where can one buy it? I’m looking to get one for my 2019 Polo.

[kkashwin]

Originally Posted by NTO

1. The sound tuning capability is poor compared to Pioneer.

Whoa! Extremely useful response! Thanks a ton! You seem to have tried out everything that I was looking out

When you say poorer sounding tuning, is it related to the Sound Stage and Timing? I can see that Sony has a 10 band equalizer while the Pioneer has a 13band one - anything else?

The RCD340 option is extremely interesting as a 3rd option! How is the feature set? Say compared to the sony? I can see that the screen is pretty small though. Any idea if it too has a Capacitive screen?

[NTO]

Originally Posted by kkashwin

When you say poorer sounding tuning, is it related to the Sound Stage and Timing? I can see that Sony has a 10 band equalizer while the Pioneer has a 13band one - anything else?

The pioneer has crossover setting, similar to how you tune using a digital signal processor. You can configure which speaker (components, tweeters, coaxials, woofers) should play which frequency of the audio using crossover settings. This is extremely useful and the desired audio output can be extracted.

Originally Posted by kkashwin

The RCD340 option is extremely interesting as a 3rd option! How is the feature set? Say compared to the sony? I can see that the screen is pretty small though. Any idea if it too has a Capacitive screen?

The tuning capability is pretty minimal. It just has the base, mid and treble equalizer settings. However, the best part is how easily it integrates with the car and how classy and modern it makes the dashboard look. Yes, 340 has a capacitive touch and among the best responsive units I've experienced. Can be compared to any modern day smartphone. Yes, the screen is only 6.5" but, you can see the multi screen configurations supported by carplay in this screen itself without any compromise on readability.

[lxskllr]

Originally Posted by vkhandelwal

what price you are being quoted for XAV-AX7000? the price of pioneer
DMH-Z6350BT should be around 38K.
resolution of sony is 800X 480 while pioneer is 1920 X 1080 . both are capacitive
Pioneer supports wireless android auto and apple car play and alexa is inbuilt

I do not see mention of DSP or advanced sound tuning capabilities in Sony. It might be there in the manual but I feel they would be highlighting it if it was there

Please check.

Hey, both have 800*480 resolution. The FHD you mentioned is playback capability

Regards

[vkhandelwal]

Originally Posted by lxskllr

Hey, both have 800*480 resolution. The FHD you mentioned is playback capability

Regards

yes you are correct. .
the screen display looks neat and beautiful and touch is good too ( a lot better than stock unit ) . I am not missing capacitive touch with pioneer 5290 ,which I think will be useful only when you interact with screen in higher resolution such as browsing or app multitouch gestures etc.

[eRajesh]

Both the Sony and Pioneer units have the same WVGA resolution. Main difference is capacitive vs resistive display.

[sriharsha_m87]

Originally Posted by NTO

I believe I have the contact from whom I sourced this HU. Please DM me for more details.

Tried to DM you, but the forum is throwing an error.
Could you please share the source details for RCD340 and the price please.

[kkashwin]

Originally Posted by lxskllr

Hey, both have 800*480 resolution. The FHD you mentioned is playback capability

Are you sure? I thought the screens generally don't switch resolutions. So, if the playback is 1080p capable, it should mean that the general interface also runs at 1080p right? - with everything scaled up or down to maintain the sizes.

[lxskllr]

Originally Posted by kkashwin

Are you sure? I thought the screens generally don't switch resolutions. So, if the playback is 1080p capable, it should mean that the general interface also runs at 1080p right? - with everything scaled up or down to maintain the sizes.

Yes, I'm sure. Please look at the technical specifications for both of them. 1080p is the decoding capability of the processor and nothing to do with screen resolution.

[vkhandelwal]

capcitive vs ressistive should not be a huge difference for this kind of resolution and usage.
I mean there are large icons and menu text. users are not supposed to be dealing with the advanced gestures and response in the headunit screen. unless one plans to browse or play games in your headunit.( which you cannot anyway ��)

As shared the touch of pioneer is far better than what stock unit offers.

Also, in pioneer there is video out to which one can connect a full HD screen for passengers.

For me the biggest differentiator was sound and tweaking capability . Have a look at what pioneer offers in a 19k priced unit.

a. Time alignment and preset for each listening position.
b. Crossover with slope of 12db/ 24 db and even 36 db per octace.
c. Calibration using external microphone is also an option.
d. 13 band eq.

and more ..

[suhas_raj]

Such dilemma! Isn’t it

I was in a similar dilemma for my Rapid ICE HU until last week & finally ended up getting the Pioneer DMH-5290BT. If you’re someone who likes to have your ICE sound in a specific way for each genre of music then the pioneer one gives you that flexibility. You can fiddle around with crossover settings, time alignment/delay from each speaker & 13 band equaliser to find that sweet spot for your music. If SQ is your priority no.1 then pioneer is the one you should go for without a second thought.

I was worried about its resistive touch too, but I can tell you that you’ll be surprised to know that resistive touch has evolved a lot from when I can remember using it in low end tablets in the last decade. Touch response is more than adequate for navigating music apps & google maps on the HU via apple car play. Display is bright & the interface is intuitive too.

However there seems to be supply glut in the market possibly due to import curbs by the government, you might not find it easily available everywhere. I couldn’t find it online on Flipkart or Amazon, but the local installers should be able to procure one. This seems to have pushed the prices as the demand is higher than supply, I got mine for about 22k in Bangalore, a couple of months ago this was available for about 19-20k.

Good luck with your install & let us know how it all went

[SA-G13B]

Having used both in each of my cars, I’d strongly suggest the Sony. The superb build quality and interface gives it a polished or how should I say it, ‘iPhone-Ish’ kind of feel to it.

However, one BIG drawback of all Sony HUs, only one Bluetooth device memory. So if you want to use a new phone device via Bluetooth, it forgets the older one. Might not be a deal breaker for you, but since my car is a family car, it does become irritating at times.

Sound quality wise, it’s top notch. Running the following setup (which has gained compliments from almost everyone):

1) Sony CAV-AX5500
2) Infinity 9004A 4 Channel Amp
3) 4x Vibe Slick Components ()
4) Cadence 650.1 2 channel amp (bridged)
5) Pioneer Champion Series Subwoofer (Sealed Box)

Hope this helps
Cheers

[vkhandelwal]

Originally Posted by SA-G13B

Having used both in each of my cars, I’d strongly suggest the Sony.

What setup do you have in your other car with pioneer head unit ?