Need opinion...

edbert

Alright, so I plan on upgrading the radio in our 2005 Altima. It is just the stock non-Bose system right now. It has a double-din opening and the car has steering wheel controls.

I was looking at the Pioneer AVH-3200BT as a replacement. It has built-in iPod control, BlueTooth, DVD player, blah blah blah. This is currently my wife's car but will be mine when I upgrade her. What it currently does will work for my wife's needs but I wondered how it will work when I get the car and decide to upgrade the system a bit. My budget is right around $300-350 and I want to keep the double din size, iPod control and steering wheel controls. If anyone has any other suggestions that would be great!

Pioneer AVH-3200BT

Thanks!

blueboxer

I have always been an Alpine fan, I have seen some of their units at 6ave.com for great deals from time to time. However, I hate that you almost have to add everything to the unit, i.e. the navigation, bluetooth, XM, etc... With that being said, I have used and heard some of the newer Pioneer decks and will say that bang for the buck they sound great. I loved the old Eclipse, but their new stuff just sucks. I think that is a great start. Check out woofersetc.com or 6ave.com for good deals as well, both are reputable.

Vital

Another great alternative when it comes to double dins in Kenwood. Just throwing it out there for you to have more options.

decal

It seems to me that replacing the stock speaker system first would reap more sound quality benefits.Just my opinion

pentoncm

I agree that that pioneer headunit would be a great addition. One of the biggest perks is the 8 band eq which you can use to really help with the sound quality. I would look around and pick out a headunit with the most eq bands and has flexible HPF and LPF settings (if you plan on adding amps and a sub). I don't think that many of the dvd receivers have time alignment built in.

edbert

Update!!!

So I got some unexpected cash this Christmas which means I have the funds needed to upgrade the speakers in my wife's car as well. I will have components up front and coaxials in the rear(I am well aware of what this does to the soundstage and don't care). Which is the better choice in overall quality, the Mobile Monitor series or dB series? Obviously I can get the dB series for a lot less money, but I wasn't sure if it would be worth it in the long run to get the Mobile Monitor ones. I also plan on getting some type of amp but I have no idea what kind to get. If you could point me in the right direction of a good quality amp for a reasonable price as well that would be great.

The point of the whole system is to upgrade the overall system. This will not be entered into any type of competition ever. I just want it to sound good. The overall budget is right around $300 or so. Used amps are not out of the question and may be the only way I can get there. Thanks for the help and let me know if there is something else I have left out.

Vital

+ 1 for MM over dbs be it comps or coax.

And here some shameless selfpromotion - all the amps u'd need

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=110136

edbert

Thanks! I was kind of leaning towards the MM line and since I won't be doing a sub I will definitely head this direction. That may mean I only do comps up front with an amp for now and replace the rears later, but I am okay with that for better overall sound. With two small kids and this being the family car I need all the space I can get in the trunk. I know that I will need an amp install kit but those are fairly inexpensive and I factored that in. I will be doing the install myself so there aren't any cost related with that other than time.

As far as amps go, I was looking at an Alpine MRP-F300 and yes, possibly Vital's used PA200.4. Any thoughts on either of these amps or other options? I really have no idea on what to get or where to even start.