ALPOC Message Board

FelipeT · Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 10:49 am Post subject: Factory Headunit Musings...

If it isn't one thing, it's another...

The factory cassette headunit on my '95 has started it's long ascent to the big highway in the sky. The other day I was driving around in a the Probe (not that common of a thing these days) and my radio reception was cutting out... Or so I thought. When I looked down, I realized that what was really happening is that it was switching between tape and radio.

So, I guess that I have a few options... One of my parts cars has a factory CD headunit, but the little lens over the vacuum fluorescent display is missing. If they are the same size, I guess that I could remove the lens from my cassette unit and swap it over. Does anyone know how well this CD player works? is it prone to a lot of skipping?

On the other hand, I could use another headunit. I have a Kenwood that was earmarked for the 626, but I suppose that I could change those plans. Then, I have a JVC in the MR2, but I really don't want to take that out since that would mean that I would just have to buy another one for that car later.

Then, I could go really crazy and just buy a new headunit for the Probe. Nutty, I know! Honestly, however, I just don't want to spend the money. Can you tell how cheap I am?

If I did go this route, any recommendations? I'd really like to get something that can play audio files straight from a USB flash drive. Honestly, I probably wouldn't even care if I couldn't play CDs or tapes if I could just play from a memory card or a flash drive. Anybody have any suggestions on this front?

Who knows, maybe I'll try blowing out the original cassette unit with compressed air or otherwise cleaning out the internals of it to see if that gets it to stop thinking that there is a cassette in there when there isn't.
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BarryG · Posted: Mon May 18, 2009 10:50 pm Post subject:

The factory CD unit skips badly when you play a home-burned CD past track 12 or so. Other than that it's fine. When they get some age on them they do like your cassette unit is doing now. Currently I'm anxious to put something else in mine.

I cannot find the link just now but I swear I had a web page up recently for a company selling HUs with no CD or Cassette sections. Just radio and slots for flash memory.

Barry
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FelipeT · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 5:45 am Post subject:

I've seen this guy, but it's for classic cars, not for the Probe:

http://www.retrosoundusa.com/

Still, I'd love to have one of those for my truck. I'm sure that I've seen some before that fit in a 1-din slot, I just didn't know if anyone had any experience with them.

The funny thing about it is that several months ago it occurred to me that something like this should exist, so I did a little bit of searching. I found that hard-core off-road guys were looking for the same thing years before. Makes sense, right?
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BarryG · Posted: Tue May 19, 2009 6:38 am Post subject:

Not the one I was thinking of though it may do for the Capri.

B
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FelipeT · Posted: Wed May 20, 2009 12:17 am Post subject:

Maybe I should consider something like that for the Celica, but since the dash on the Celica is rather modular, I can (and did) swap in a standard 1-din radio without any cutting. I just have to make a new trim surround for it.

In case I want to go crazy and actually spend money on car stereo (something I almost never do) I did a quick search on the Crutchfield site and found some contenders:

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_105KDHDR50/JVC-KD-HDR50.html

Decent price, and I like the front USB connection. The adjustable backlight color is kind of a plus, as is the fact that I already have a JVC in the Celica, so I'm used to the remote control functions. I don't particularly care about having a CD player, but the HD radio tuner is a big draw. The lack of preset buttons could be a deal breaker, though. Overall, I like it and I'd call it a front runner... If I wanted to actually spend money.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_113HD942U/Kenwood-KDC-HD942U.html

First off, $200 is way more than I really want to spend (can you tell that I don't get that excited about car stereo?) That being said, I can't tell you how much I prefer traditional two-knob tuning and volume control to stupid, unintuitive buttons. That, alone, may be worth the higher price. Feature-wise, very similar to the JVC. The rear-mounted USB connection is a downer, however. But, then again, with two knobs on the front, where would you put it?

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_070XHD7714/Dual-XHD7714.html

I'd call this a dark-horse contender since I don't know anything about the Dual brand other than it's cheap, so I naturally don't trust it. Yes, I'm cheap, but I don't like false economies. However, the features of an HD tuner, front USB, and Bluetooth connectivity are hard to beat at this price. If it doesn't suck...

So, those are some ideas I'm kicking around, even though, honestly, I think that I will just pull the CD player out of my other '95 and see what happens.

You'll notice that all of the headunits I listed have CD players. I'm a little disappointed in the solid-state only media receivers that I found. It seems that most of the non-CD units are geared towards people with i-Pods, or, not me. I guess that it's not really a big deal, since I only use USB flash drives anyway, and at the moment, don't have anything else that uses SD memory cards.

I will say this: I am rather surprised that I didn't see any headunits that have internal memory that could be written to from a USB drive or a computer. I'm sure that they're out there, but I just didn't see any. I mean, come on, how hard can it be? It would just be an MP3 player that runs off of your car battery!
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BarryG · Posted: Wed May 20, 2009 6:37 am Post subject:

They do make USB extension cables so you could go with that one and have a cable flopping around, meaning you have the choice of positioning.

The Dual brand used to mean something in turntables I think.

Barry
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FelipeT · Posted: Wed May 20, 2009 11:10 pm Post subject:

BarryG · Posted: Thu May 21, 2009 7:32 am Post subject:

It's probably a "new" offshoot of an "old" company trying to re-invent itself.

Barry
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FelipeT · Posted: Thu May 21, 2009 11:50 am Post subject:

BarryG · Posted: Thu May 21, 2009 11:15 pm Post subject:

Yes, unlike the 1st gen. In the 2nd gen the main amp makes the low pass filter decision.

Barry
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FelipeT · Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 8:05 am Post subject:

Well past update time...

I tried the factory CD that I had laying around. It was completely DOA. Nothing, nada, zip. Didn't even give me a clock.

Bummer.

Then, I tried to switch back to the cassette deck. Now it seems to be permanently stuck in phantom tape mode. At best, it's a clock.

Double bummer.

Right now, I'm thinking about being cheap again, and just taking the Kenwood I had saved for the 626 out of storage and putting it in the Probe. I figure that when I get around to the 626, then, I can get a nicer radio for it.

So, basically, I've been driving around with no radio in the PGT for the past... four or five months?

I love being me!
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ntruder · Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:37 am Post subject:

Given that we are only physically capable of driving 1 car at a time, I've been trying to come up with a portable 1 DIN solution that can easily be moved between cars.

And if I ever come up with one I will be sure to post it.

:D
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FelipeT · Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:25 am Post subject:

ntruder · Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:33 pm Post subject:

Actually what I'm thinking of doing right now is using cheap head units with auxillary jacks and then hauling my PSP (short trips) or laptop (long trips) between vehicles. It's the most flexibility for the least money but not as cool as it could be I suppose.
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BarryG · Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:53 pm Post subject:

Having a '93 requires having one airbag. Installing a '94 dash and using the 2nd airbag space for a docking station or something is an idea I've had for a while. I have the dash, just don't have the time or fiberglass skills to get it done.

Barry
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FelipeT · Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2009 7:27 am Post subject:

BarryG · Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2009 1:18 pm Post subject:

Then there is all that open space in the middle of the dash, right?
And who carries passengers?

B
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FelipeT · Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 9:45 am Post subject:

ntruder · Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 12:18 pm Post subject:

FelipeT · Posted: Tue Aug 25, 2009 8:54 pm Post subject:

I love the idea of a mini-ITX approach, but I think that is something that I would consider for the 626. For some reason, it just doesn't seem worth it on the Probe. Perhaps if I did a lot of work to my car to make it so that I really like driving it, but I don't really like driving anything.

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