New ICE set up for Zen - suggestions required

scorpio_fan · 29th June 2010, 22:54

Dear Fellow BHPians,
I plan to upgrade the HU in my Zen (currently it has a cassette player). I do have the speakers (rear Alpine and Front Sony xPlod). I would be upgrading my car by year end (mostly to Scorpio SLE) and would like to use the HU there also. I did some research and now I need the expert opinion on choosing the HU. My budge is ~12k.

1.HU without CD drive (USB / SD only) – No good options available other than Alpine X305S.
2.HU with CD with USB and or SD (Pioneer DEH 7250SD seems to be good)
3.HU with DVD & USB (Pioneer DVH P4190UB seems ok)

As of now I shortlisted Pioneer DVH-P4190UB (DVD, USB & IPod) and DEH-7250SD (USB, SD connectivity; IPod connectivity). Could the experts give me some advice on the following.

1.Is there better HU with the similar options (ready to spend say couple of 1000s more)
2.Is the above models worth buying now (I would use it for a longer period)
3.What is your opinion on Alpine iDA-X305S? Does it worth the price (> 15k)?
4. If there are better HUs available, please tell me approximate market price also.
5. At last a good dealer in Bangalore (good rate) would also be helpful.

Thanks in advance,
Scorpio Fan

scorpio_fan · 1st July 2010, 21:29

Dear Gurus,
Could anyone reply to my queries? It would be a great help if some of the experts can comment on the above queries.
Thanks,
Scorpio Fan

navin · 2nd July 2010, 10:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by scorpio_fan

1.HU without CD drive (USB / SD only) – No good options available other than Alpine X305S.
2.HU with CD with USB and or SD (Pioneer DEH 7250SD seems to be good)
3.HU with DVD & USB (Pioneer DVH P4190UB seems ok)

1.Is there better HU with the similar options (ready to spend say couple of 1000s more)
2.Is the above models worth buying now (I would use it for a longer period)
3.What is your opinion on Alpine iDA-X305S? Does it worth the price (> 15k)?
4. If there are better HUs available, please tell me approximate market price also.
5. At last a good dealer in Bangalore (good rate) would also be helpful.

I would suggest you look at Kenwood HUs as well.

The Pioneer HUs are quite good. One of our Mods (GTO) recently got one for his Civic (check out the sound off section for his install).

The Alpine HUs are excellent. For anyone whose mobile music source is only an ipod (like me) this is the way to go. I moved to exclusively using ipods in cars in 2002-3 and have not looked back since. Do CDs sound better? Yes they do but they get scrtached (ipods do not), you have to remember to change the CDs (on a 160GB ipod you can carry about half your collection), and in traffic with auto richshaws and other distractions music is not something you can concentrate on anyway. I would look at the Kenwood 700 or BT900 as well.

thelightening · 2nd July 2010, 11:08

@Scorpio_Fan. Really if you see, if you prefer SQ setup, then you need to consider the HU brands in the below order.

1. Eclipse
2. Alpine
3. Kenwood
4. Blaupunkt
5. Pioneer

Then the rest. Better try in the above order and among two models you mentioned, 7250 will be better model. is it a Grey stuff?

DerAlte · 2nd July 2010, 11:12

1. There are a couple of other disk-less models available from Alpine, as well as models from Kenwood and Blaupunkt
2. Alpine 305 does not seem to have distinct advantages over others. The IDA100 is more VFM if you don't want Time Alignment
3. You could check out other brands of HUs (with CD/DVD and USB) as well in the 12K bracket - Kenwood, Clarion, JVC (their DVD models are VFM), Blaupunkt. Read up the Products as well as the Sound off & Show Off sections for what other people have been putting in
4. Good rate is all about research and bargaining, and your willingness for grey or with b&w. Some installers may not bargain too much, but they know what to do and do a very good job of it

scorpio_fan · 2nd July 2010, 11:52

Thanks Navin & DerAlte, I will check Kenwood and Clarion too.

Quote:

Originally Posted by thelightening

Better try in the above order and among two models you mentioned, 7250 will be better model. is it a Grey stuff?

My preference will be with B & W. I enquired in a shop for few models and I got a feel of the price. My idea is to shortlist few models (say 4 to 5) and then approach the dealer & bargain on the price.

I will come back again with some more querios once I verify some other models too.

Thanks Everyone,
Scorpio Fan

scorpio_fan · 3rd July 2010, 18:26

Hi,
Today I prchased Kenwood KDV-MP5343U with B&W. It can play DVDs and has front USB and AUX IN feature.
Thanks everyone for the valuable guidance,
Scorpio Fan.

29th June 2010, 22:54	#1
scorpio_fan BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 186 Thanked: 242 Times View My Garage	New ICE set up for Zen - suggestions required Dear Fellow BHPians, I plan to upgrade the HU in my Zen (currently it has a cassette player). I do have the speakers (rear Alpine and Front Sony xPlod). I would be upgrading my car by year end (mostly to Scorpio SLE) and would like to use the HU there also. I did some research and now I need the expert opinion on choosing the HU. My budge is ~12k. 1.HU without CD drive (USB / SD only) – No good options available other than Alpine X305S. 2.HU with CD with USB and or SD (Pioneer DEH 7250SD seems to be good) 3.HU with DVD & USB (Pioneer DVH P4190UB seems ok) As of now I shortlisted Pioneer DVH-P4190UB (DVD, USB & IPod) and DEH-7250SD (USB, SD connectivity; IPod connectivity). Could the experts give me some advice on the following. 1.Is there better HU with the similar options (ready to spend say couple of 1000s more) 2.Is the above models worth buying now (I would use it for a longer period) 3.What is your opinion on Alpine iDA-X305S? Does it worth the price (> 15k)? 4. If there are better HUs available, please tell me approximate market price also. 5. At last a good dealer in Bangalore (good rate) would also be helpful. Thanks in advance, Scorpio Fan Last edited by scorpio_fan : 29th June 2010 at 23:01.
	() Thanks

1st July 2010, 21:29	#2
scorpio_fan BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 186 Thanked: 242 Times View My Garage	Dear Gurus, Could anyone reply to my queries? It would be a great help if some of the experts can comment on the above queries. Thanks, Scorpio Fan
	() Thanks

2nd July 2010, 11:08	#4
thelightening BHPian Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 262 Thanked: 3 Times View My Garage	@Scorpio_Fan. Really if you see, if you prefer SQ setup, then you need to consider the HU brands in the below order. 1. Eclipse 2. Alpine 3. Kenwood 4. Blaupunkt 5. Pioneer Then the rest. Better try in the above order and among two models you mentioned, 7250 will be better model. is it a Grey stuff?
	() Thanks

2nd July 2010, 11:12	#5
DerAlte Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 8,069 Thanked: 2,919 Times	1. There are a couple of other disk-less models available from Alpine, as well as models from Kenwood and Blaupunkt 2. Alpine 305 does not seem to have distinct advantages over others. The IDA100 is more VFM if you don't want Time Alignment 3. You could check out other brands of HUs (with CD/DVD and USB) as well in the 12K bracket - Kenwood, Clarion, JVC (their DVD models are VFM), Blaupunkt. Read up the Products as well as the Sound off & Show Off sections for what other people have been putting in 4. Good rate is all about research and bargaining, and your willingness for grey or with b&w. Some installers may not bargain too much, but they know what to do and do a very good job of it
	() Thanks

3rd July 2010, 18:26	#7
scorpio_fan BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 186 Thanked: 242 Times View My Garage	Hi, Today I prchased Kenwood KDV-MP5343U with B&W. It can play DVDs and has front USB and AUX IN feature. Thanks everyone for the valuable guidance, Scorpio Fan.
	() Thanks