[hellstar]

ICE Gurus,


I plan to upgrade my current Sony MEXR1 DVD HU to a more feature loaded JVC KDAVX33 DVD HU . This unit has a very impressive feature list and the reviews are also pretty good . I am pasting below the feature list for your reference.


Built-in Bluetooth® Wireless Technology

• Built-in 3.5-Inch Wide Monitor
• USB Port (Portable HDD Compatible)
• GIGA MP3 MULTI
• AAC/WAV/MP3/WMA Compatible (DVD/CD/USB)
• DivX®/JPEG/MPEG1,2 Compatible (DVD/CD/USB)
• DVD Audio Compatible
• 5.1-Channel DTS/5.1-Channel Dolby Digital/Dolby Pro Logic II/MPEG Audio
• 192kHz/24-bit Audio DAC
• 7-Band iEQ
• Time Alignment (5.1ch)
• 5V Line/Subwoofer Output Level
• Gold-Plated AV Output Terminals (Front / Rear / Center / Subwoofer / Video)
• Gold-Plated Second Audio Output Terminals

There are two primary questions that i want clarification / assistance on i am listing the questions below

1. I want to make complete use of the 5.1 capability of this unit , is there a centre speaker that i can use ? If yes what would the costing be ?
2. Is there a 5.1 amplifier that i can buy off the shelf , or will i have to go for a 4 channel amp and then a two channel amp to cater to all the six channels? Please note that the JVC unit does NOT have an optical out.
3. What a would be the cost of a 5.1 amp ?, If available

The HU is already brought and on it way to India, brought if off AMAZON for 400 USD.

[hellstar]

I was expecting Gunbir , Navin , Hydrashok or any of the ICE gurus to respond to my query ...

[tsk1979]

you can use any good 6" loudspeaker for the center channel.
The question is where will you mount it.
One location could be on the dash, where it will be ugly, other location will be in between the rear 2 coax, but then where will the sub go.
Tricky tricky.
Apart from mounting getting a 6" loudspeaker is not an issue, JBL has one in kitty.

Now coming to amplifiers.
5.1 channel amplifiers will be frightfully expensive.
So the best way is to get a 4ch amp for the 4 speakers, and a 42ch bridged amp for the sub and the center speaker.

Also do note that unless you are watching a 5.1ch DVD or a Divx video, you won't get much benefit out of your 5 channels.


The Guru's will post later, but from what I know of music formats available(audio CD/mp3 etc.,) there won't be much difference even if you don't use the 5.1 channels.

If you are driving yourself, why not get a JVC HU with same features but no screen.
Such a small screen is useless anyways.

Guru's must be coming soon to shoot your budget through the roof, but if you follow my suggestion you can save around 6-7K(if you buy a separate screen with a screen less JVC DVD hu).

That money can go towards a better amp or components.

[aZa]

How much is this HU costing u ???

[jkdas]

tsk, since Hellstar is in bangy he is lucky as he can drive down to some good installers we have in South India.


About the centre, well, saw the work by Anwar on a Swift?

5.1s are costly. Think Audison and Alpine has one.

[speedzak]

Wow! How did I miss this one?
Congrats on your new HU. It's a good one.

Now, the questions.
1. Are you going to watch a lot of movies in car?
2. If yes, do you plan to use dedicated lcd displays for it?
3. If yes again, that means this is going to be a rear seat video system. Right? Because, you cannot watch lots of movies from the front seats unless you want to put yourself in trouble.

I've got some more to be asked. But I need answers for these first.

[tsk1979]

jkdas, its not about a good or bad installer. Hellstar has a verna. So I am wondering where will the mid speaker go. I don't have much idea as to where should the center speaker be when using a 5.1 system in the car.
In case of home audio its usually in front of the listener. In a car thats not possible unless he plans to mount it on the dashboard.

[Rodeo]

I know this unit has video in... so can we put reverse camera to it directly or any other thing is also required??

[tsk1979]

If it has standard video in jack, then reverse camera can be fitted in directly.

[hellstar]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

If you are driving yourself, why not get a JVC HU with same features but no screen. Such a small screen is useless anyways.

Guru's must be coming soon to shoot your budget through the roof, but if you follow my suggestion you can save around 6-7K(if you buy a separate screen with a screen less JVC DVD hu).

That money can go towards a better amp or components.

I already have a flip down LCD Monitor installed for using with my existing Sony MEXR1. And there are no other JVC HUs with similar feature lists without the display. Anyways i do not intend to watch while i am driving, its only for use when i am being chauffeured or stuck in traffic jams. More over the HU is already brought and paid for.

Originally Posted by aZa

How much is this HU costing u ???

That would be 400 USD ( from amazon) + Priority Shipping charges

Originally Posted by jkdas

About the centre, well, saw the work by Anwar on a Swift?.

Is there a thread on TBHP , i couldn't find one.....

Well talking about car center channel speakers , what tsk1979 said did make me think and just did a search for car centre channel speakers on google and viola its turn up a few results, interesting indeed but now how to source them....because the picture of mounting a 6 inch speaker on the dashboard is quite revolting ....

Alpine SBS-05DC - car center channel speaker - Single DIN
Pioneer TS CX7 - car center channel speaker - Dashboard Mount
JVC CS-CN100 Center Channel Speaker - Dashboard Mount
Clarion SRK604 Center Channel Speaker w/amp - Single DIN

Now to see how to source these speakers....i would prefer the single DIN ones as the HU is single din and the second DIN can be filled up with the centre channel speaker very comfortably.

[hellstar]

Originally Posted by speedzak

Wow! How did I miss this one?
Congrats on your new HU. It's a good one.

Now, the questions.
1. Are you going to watch a lot of movies in car?
2. If yes, do you plan to use dedicated lcd displays for it?
3. If yes again, that means this is going to be a rear seat video system. Right? Because, you cannot watch lots of movies from the front seats unless you want to put yourself in trouble.

I've got some more to be asked. But I need answers for these first.

hi ZAK thnx for your concurrence on my choice of HU ... here goes my answers to your questions

1. Yes, i do watch a lot of movies , song videos in my car mostly when i am being chauffeured or when i am driving and get stuck in traffic jams.

2. Yes , already have a dedicated Flip down LCD display which is located almost at the face level of the driver so that during night time the light intensity variations do not distract the driver. The front passenger may chose to recline his seat and push it back a little so that he can also watch without disturbing the drivers concentration.

3. Exactly, and nor do i intend to watch the movies while driving myself.

[speedzak]

Good! That gives us all a correct idea of what you want from your ICE.

You'll have to get a centre speaker for proper 5.1 sound to play in your car. As you'd like to watch lots of movies in your car, it's worth getting one. Verna has a dual din slot for HU. If your JVC hu can fit in one slot, then there's one single din centre speaker available from Alpine. It has it's own built in amp too. So, you just have to take the centre out from the HU and plug it into the speaker and you're set!
Another option is to buy a dedicated centre channel speaker. Most of the manufacturers has one model atleast. You'll have to connect this to your amp/hu speaker out. You'll have to mount it near the RVM for a perfect imaging as you have a roof mounted display. The vocals will come directly from the screen if positioned correctly. You can check my MONSTER gets ICEd thread to see how the centre channel speaker was installed near the RVM.

Regarding the amplifier. I have some questions again.
1. Do you have an amp in your car right now?
2. If yes, what kind? 2ch? 4ch?
3. Brand and model?

I'll wait for your answers.

[hellstar]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

If it has standard video in jack, then reverse camera can be fitted in directly.

Yes , the video is standard and any reversing camera can be fitted it , The reversing cam display is will be put on the HUs display and on any connected display when the reverse gear is engaged.I am looking out for a reversing cam also but these are relatively easier to source.

The Reversing camera is turned on by a separate control lead which is highlighted in the attached wiring diagram from the installation manual.As shown below

[hellstar]

Originally Posted by speedzak

Regarding the amplifier. I have some questions again.
1. Do you have an amp in your car right now?
2. If yes, what kind? 2ch? 4ch?
3. Brand and model?

I'll wait for your answers.

No i don't have an amp right now but intend to change status in the next two months, primarily due to budget constraints. The HU goes in by another week. So suggestion are welcome but remember that budget is of importance .

I also am not looking at a very loud system but the but the speakers shouldnt be crackling at any time during normal hearing volumes ( provided the Cds/ DVDs are original, also read normal hearing volumes as not heard outside the car when the windows are rolled up) Right now the front speakers are JBL GTO607c and the rear ones are PIO 3-way co axials ( these will be upgraded to JBL GT5 series 6x9 coaxials while the new HU is being put in)

You were referring to an Alpine Centre channel speaker , where can i source it from ? and any idea how much it might cost ?

And no i dont wanna clutter the area around the RVM, for no specific reason., even for the center channel speaker. It might be ok in a monster but not not in my Verna !

[kvish]

In the receiver, if you specify that there is no center channel, the center channel gets distributed among L&R (not sure what its called in technical terms, Phantom center or something like that ). I think most of the home audio receivers have this feature. You can check if such a config exists in the JVC HU. That way the 4 channel amp will do the job. Its not the best of solutions, I am using this config in my home system (till I get myself a decent center channel) and its not bad at all. Atleast it will match the performance of some tiny speaker mounted on the dashboard just for the heck of it.