[Bill Riel]

Hello,

I am a car audio newbie and I'm looking to replace the CD player in my
95 Ford Ranger. I originally changed the stock radio with a panasonic
tape deck, then without knowing anything about things replaced that with
a Prestige (Audiovox) 953 CD player some years ago.

Which was fine, until one of the stock front speakers went and I
replaced those with some Boston Acoustics separates - which I found to
be a *world* of difference! I'm guessing that the speakers are good
enough now that I'm hearing some noise from the deck, and I've found
that a couple of other things are annoying me seriously:

1) it really skips badly - this might be true of most CD players though
as the suspension does cause the truck to bounce around more than a car

2) when I shut down, the cd player always reverts to the start of a song
- the stock player in my wife's car will pause where you were at and I
would much prefer that.

I'm not really interested in going whole hog and adding separate amps,
sub and so on, but I suspect that I can get better sound quality and
hopefully relieve some of the other annoyances by going to a better
deck.

So far I've been considering the following:

Nakamichi CD-400 (or maybe 500, but it's a bit more than I want to
spend)
- the little I've been able to find on this unit indicates that the
sound quality is great but there are concerns about reliability.

One of the Pioneers, say something like the DEH-P4800 or 5800

or

An Alpine unit, something like the 9852.

Any thoughts on these? They are primarily on my list because these are
available locally, but I could broaden my horizons if something from
another manufacturer is clearly better (without costing a lot more).

Thanks for any info!

--
Bill

[brianlanning]

Bill Riel wrote:
Which was fine, until one of the stock front speakers went and I
replaced those with some Boston Acoustics separates - which I found to
be a *world* of difference!

lol

I'm guessing that the speakers are good
enough now that I'm hearing some noise from the deck,

yep. is it hiss or whine that follows engine rpm?

and I've found
that a couple of other things are annoying me seriously:
1) it really skips badly - this might be true of most CD players though
as the suspension does cause the truck to bounce around more than a car

It's the deck. Although it may also be the installation. Sometimes if
the back of the deck isn't supported, you can skip more. But it's
probably just the deck.


2) when I shut down, the cd player always reverts to the start of a song
- the stock player in my wife's car will pause where you were at and I
would much prefer that.

Yeah, that's annoying especially with audio books. I think nearly all
the decent models do what you want now. Although a lot of them still
reset to the beginning when playing mp3s. This greatly irritates me.


I'm not really interested in going whole hog and adding separate amps,
sub and so on,

Why not? Remember the world of difference? You'll get another one
with the addition of an outboard amp and a pair of 10s.

but I suspect that I can get better sound quality and
hopefully relieve some of the other annoyances by going to a better
deck.

That's a good place to start. You could add a powered sub, like a
bazooka, later and keep your current speakers running through your
deck.

So far I've been considering the following:

Nakamichi CD-400 (or maybe 500, but it's a bit more than I want to
spend)
- the little I've been able to find on this unit indicates that the
sound quality is great but there are concerns about reliability.

One of the Pioneers, say something like the DEH-P4800 or 5800

or

An Alpine unit, something like the 9852.

Any thoughts on these? They are primarily on my list because these are
available locally, but I could broaden my horizons if something from
another manufacturer is clearly better (without costing a lot more).

I can't make a brand recommendation as I'm still in the early stages of
shopping for a head unit also. Look at reviews online. I would visit
as many stores as possible and play with their sound board. If you
really like the service at a store and want it installed, you can buy
it from them. Otherwise, just mail-order it. I would suggest paying
attention to features and ergonomics. For the ones you mention, you
may not even be able to tell the difference between sound quality.

brian

[Troy T.]

Bill Riel wrote:
Hello,

I am a car audio newbie and I'm looking to replace the CD player in my
95 Ford Ranger. I originally changed the stock radio with a panasonic
tape deck, then without knowing anything about things replaced that with
a Prestige (Audiovox) 953 CD player some years ago.

Which was fine, until one of the stock front speakers went and I
replaced those with some Boston Acoustics separates - which I found to
be a *world* of difference! I'm guessing that the speakers are good
enough now that I'm hearing some noise from the deck, and I've found
that a couple of other things are annoying me seriously:

1) it really skips badly - this might be true of most CD players though
as the suspension does cause the truck to bounce around more than a car

2) when I shut down, the cd player always reverts to the start of a song
- the stock player in my wife's car will pause where you were at and I
would much prefer that.

I'm not really interested in going whole hog and adding separate amps,
sub and so on, but I suspect that I can get better sound quality and
hopefully relieve some of the other annoyances by going to a better
deck.

So far I've been considering the following:

Nakamichi CD-400 (or maybe 500, but it's a bit more than I want to
spend)
- the little I've been able to find on this unit indicates that the
sound quality is great but there are concerns about reliability.

One of the Pioneers, say something like the DEH-P4800 or 5800

or

An Alpine unit, something like the 9852.

Any thoughts on these? They are primarily on my list because these are
available locally, but I could broaden my horizons if something from
another manufacturer is clearly better (without costing a lot more).

Thanks for any info!

--
Bill

Bill,
I havent heard much about Nakamichi so i can't help on that. I have
heard and used the Pioneer HeadUnits and they are awsome,Im actually
going to buy buying the DEH-P4800MP.My friend has it and it is really
nice,good sound quality,cool features.I don't think there is realy that
big of a differnence between the DEH-P4800 and the DEH-P5800 exept for
a few little things,I personaly perfer the 4800 because its less
expensive and it has an auxiliary input.But the are both really good
HU.

As for the Alpine,they are amazing.They have the clearest output.I have
one of them right now and its about 5-8 years old and still working
good.They will last forever.The only problem with them is they are more
expensive and they dont have some of the features that the Pioneer
does.Also they only have one preamp out and no sub preamp out.but as
you soid your not intrested in that so it doesnt matter.the 9852 is a
very good HU it as the fullspeed connection if you have an iPod

So over all the sound quality is alomost the same but, alpines might be
alittle better if they have better speakers hooked up but, the pioneer
has more features and they are less expensive.

Online sites are alot cheaper then stores i dont know f youv looked on
some of them or if your only lookin at stores. Cruthfield is an awsome
site they give you everything you need.Onlinecarstereo is very
inexpensive they have the best deals you can find.

www.crutchfield.com
www.onlinecarstereo.com

I hope this helped,

TroyT.

[Mister.Lull]

If you replaced one set of speakers, then you still have another pair
that are stock, right? I would recommend replacing the stock pair you
have left along with the head unit. Once upon a time (10 years ago or
so), I had a 'Rampage (by Audiovox)' CD player, and it came with the
exact same problems you're describing. Out of the brands you
mentioned, I would suggest Alpine. They're quite consistant, and even
with their bottom-of-the-line models you'll be VERY impressed since you
are used to what you have. I would also say that you might consider
getting a deck with 3 pairs if pre-amp outputs (Front, Rear,
Subwoofer). You may not want to use them now, but it will be nice if
you ever DO decide to upgrade; that way you won't have to buy a whole
new deck if you decide to put in a sub and/or amp the internal
speakers. Something else to look for in a new deck is whether or not
it has an auxiliary input. If you own an Mp3 player and think you
might want to start listening to those tunes in your car - you'll be
sadly disappointed with an FM modulator. Think of the difference
between listening to a song you really like on CD compared to on the
radio - that's the difference between and FM modulated Mp3 player and
one that has a direct line in to the back (or front) of your deck. You
have a ****-load of options, and at first it can be quite staggering -
but if you take the time to find a deck that has everything you want
now and everything you may want soon, then you save yourself the time
of shopping for this item all over again later.

~Mister.Lull
Bill Riel wrote:
Hello,

I am a car audio newbie and I'm looking to replace the CD player in my
95 Ford Ranger. I originally changed the stock radio with a panasonic
tape deck, then without knowing anything about things replaced that with
a Prestige (Audiovox) 953 CD player some years ago.

Which was fine, until one of the stock front speakers went and I
replaced those with some Boston Acoustics separates - which I found to
be a *world* of difference! I'm guessing that the speakers are good
enough now that I'm hearing some noise from the deck, and I've found
that a couple of other things are annoying me seriously:

1) it really skips badly - this might be true of most CD players though
as the suspension does cause the truck to bounce around more than a car

2) when I shut down, the cd player always reverts to the start of a song
- the stock player in my wife's car will pause where you were at and I
would much prefer that.

I'm not really interested in going whole hog and adding separate amps,
sub and so on, but I suspect that I can get better sound quality and
hopefully relieve some of the other annoyances by going to a better
deck.

So far I've been considering the following:

Nakamichi CD-400 (or maybe 500, but it's a bit more than I want to
spend)
- the little I've been able to find on this unit indicates that the
sound quality is great but there are concerns about reliability.

One of the Pioneers, say something like the DEH-P4800 or 5800

or

An Alpine unit, something like the 9852.

Any thoughts on these? They are primarily on my list because these are
available locally, but I could broaden my horizons if something from
another manufacturer is clearly better (without costing a lot more).

Thanks for any info!

--
Bill

[Bill Riel]

In article .com,
says...

Bill Riel wrote:
Which was fine, until one of the stock front speakers went and I
replaced those with some Boston Acoustics separates - which I found to
be a *world* of difference!

lol

Yeah, I didn't realize how poor the stock speakers were till I made this
change :-) I expected the bostons to be pretty good because I've heard
their home speakers (I own a pair of boston bookshelves as well), but I
really had no expectation that the change would be this dramatic!

I'm not really interested in going whole hog and adding separate amps,
sub and so on,

Why not? Remember the world of difference? You'll get another one
with the addition of an outboard amp and a pair of 10s.

I totally believe you - in fact I know that a sub (or pair) would
provide a dramatic difference. As nice as the bostons are, those are
pretty small woofers and I'm not getting much at all at the bottom end.
Having said that, I don't actually drive all that much so I'm trying to
keep my expenditures as small as I can and still get good sound.

I will keep my options open though...


but I suspect that I can get better sound quality and
hopefully relieve some of the other annoyances by going to a better
deck.

That's a good place to start. You could add a powered sub, like a
bazooka, later and keep your current speakers running through your
deck.

Are most car subs passive? This is the reverse of home subs where
powered subs are the norm.

[...]


I can't make a brand recommendation as I'm still in the early stages of
shopping for a head unit also. Look at reviews online. I would visit
as many stores as possible and play with their sound board. If you
really like the service at a store and want it installed, you can buy
it from them. Otherwise, just mail-order it. I would suggest paying
attention to features and ergonomics. For the ones you mention, you
may not even be able to tell the difference between sound quality.

brian

Brian, thanks a ton for your advice! I'm going to spend some time in a
few shops and do some auditioning before I make any move.

--
Bill

[Bill Riel]

In article . com,
says...

Bill,
I havent heard much about Nakamichi so i can't help on that. I have
heard and used the Pioneer HeadUnits and they are awsome,Im actually
going to buy buying the DEH-P4800MP.My friend has it and it is really
nice,good sound quality,cool features.I don't think there is realy that
big of a differnence between the DEH-P4800 and the DEH-P5800 exept for
a few little things,I personaly perfer the 4800 because its less
expensive and it has an auxiliary input.But the are both really good
HU.

As for the Alpine,they are amazing.They have the clearest output.I have
one of them right now and its about 5-8 years old and still working
good.They will last forever.The only problem with them is they are more
expensive and they dont have some of the features that the Pioneer
does.Also they only have one preamp out and no sub preamp out.but as
you soid your not intrested in that so it doesnt matter.the 9852 is a
very good HU it as the fullspeed connection if you have an iPod

So over all the sound quality is alomost the same but, alpines might be
alittle better if they have better speakers hooked up but, the pioneer
has more features and they are less expensive.

Online sites are alot cheaper then stores i dont know f youv looked on
some of them or if your only lookin at stores. Cruthfield is an awsome
site they give you everything you need.Onlinecarstereo is very
inexpensive they have the best deals you can find.

www.crutchfield.com
www.onlinecarstereo.com

I hope this helped,

TroyT.

Troy,

thanks a lot for your response!

I'm getting the feeling that Alpine units are pretty highly regarded.
I'll do some checking for myself but it's a big help to narrow the field
a bit.

Cheers,

Bill

[Bill Riel]

In article .com,
says...
If you replaced one set of speakers, then you still have another pair
that are stock, right? I would recommend replacing the stock pair you
have left along with the head unit.

That is undoubtedly a great idea - I have been thinking of going with a
slightly lower end pair of Bostons in the back. That wouldn't cost me
too much and I'd be free of those crappy stock speakers!

Once upon a time (10 years ago or
so), I had a 'Rampage (by Audiovox)' CD player, and it came with the
exact same problems you're describing. Out of the brands you
mentioned, I would suggest Alpine. They're quite consistant, and even
with their bottom-of-the-line models you'll be VERY impressed since you
are used to what you have. I would also say that you might consider
getting a deck with 3 pairs if pre-amp outputs (Front, Rear,
Subwoofer). You may not want to use them now, but it will be nice if
you ever DO decide to upgrade; that way you won't have to buy a whole
new deck if you decide to put in a sub and/or amp the internal
speakers.

That is an excellent suggestion, and one I hadn't thought of.


Something else to look for in a new deck is whether or not
it has an auxiliary input. If you own an Mp3 player and think you
might want to start listening to those tunes in your car - you'll be
sadly disappointed with an FM modulator. Think of the difference
between listening to a song you really like on CD compared to on the
radio - that's the difference between and FM modulated Mp3 player and
one that has a direct line in to the back (or front) of your deck.

Funny enough, prior to upgrading my front speakers there was little
difference between FM and CD playback. Now, I find the FM playback
apallingly poor in comparision!

You
have a ****-load of options, and at first it can be quite staggering -
but if you take the time to find a deck that has everything you want
now and everything you may want soon, then you save yourself the time
of shopping for this item all over again later.

Very sound advice, and much appreciated Mister.Lull

Cheers,

Bill

[MOSFET]

My $.02:

I agree with Mr. Lull, I would go with Alpine. I have owned three of their
decks and have ALWAYS been impressed with the sound quality, construction,
rugedness, etc. Some people are nervous about those Alpine units with
motorized faceplates (another thing that might break they say), but my last
HU (the 7863) had a motorized face and it worked PERFECTLY for 6 years. I
recently replaced it with the FANTASTIC 9853 (which I LOVE). The only
reason I replaced the 7863, however, was becuase I wanted MP3 capability (it
was working perfectly the day I removed it). Anyway, IMHO, Alpine units
tend to last the longest and have the fewest problems of any manufacturer.

MOSFET

[brianlanning]

Bill Riel wrote:
Yeah, I didn't realize how poor the stock speakers were till I made this
change :-) I expected the bostons to be pretty good because I've heard
their home speakers (I own a pair of boston bookshelves as well), but I
really had no expectation that the change would be this dramatic!

This happens all the time. If you buy something good (the bostons) it
has a way of revealing all the weaker components. This sends you down
the slippery slope. Next thing you know you have $2000 in your car
stereo.

Are most car subs passive? This is the reverse of home subs where
powered subs are the norm.

Both are available. Generally, you can go three ways. You can buy
loose speakers and makey our own box. This gives the most flexability
and arguably the best bass and best box design for your car. But it's
a pain because you have to build a box and make it look pretty. And
you'll need to buy an amp seperately. You can buy subs without an amp,
but already mounted in a box. This is good because you can't screw up
the interior volume of the box. And it's quick and easy and generally
looks good. This is what I did. I have a 5 channel amp to drive the
whole system. It has a mono channel just for the sub box. That
pre-made box may or may not come with an amp. Which one depends on
what you're looking for. The bazookas are the bass tube varity and
come with or without an amp.


Brian, thanks a ton for your advice! I'm going to spend some time in a
few shops and do some auditioning before I make any move.

That's the best thing to do. Listen to everything first.

brian

[mfreak]

Mister.Lull wrote:
Out of the brands you
mentioned, I would suggest Alpine. They're quite consistant, and even
with their bottom-of-the-line models you'll be VERY impressed since you
are used to what you have.

I second that, they don't cost a lot and they sound fantastic imo.. I
have an older model Alpine right now, and I love it. My next HU will
likely be another.

Sorry about your car Mr L, I just saw that thead.. What a ****er,
lotta work... At least you were able to salvage your system out of it.

[Mister.Lull]

Thank you for your condolences...
~Mister.Lull
mfreak wrote:
Mister.Lull wrote:
Out of the brands you
mentioned, I would suggest Alpine. They're quite consistant, and even
with their bottom-of-the-line models you'll be VERY impressed since you
are used to what you have.

I second that, they don't cost a lot and they sound fantastic imo.. I
have an older model Alpine right now, and I love it. My next HU will
likely be another.

Sorry about your car Mr L, I just saw that thead.. What a ****er,
lotta work... At least you were able to salvage your system out of it.