HUs: Kenwood vs. Pioneer

[Dean]

Foreword: Everything I know about car stereo systems I learned in the last 3 days, so I don't know much.

The antiquated CD changer died in my car, and after some thought I decided it would be best to replacing everything, but funds won't allow me to do it all in one shot, so first a CD HU (I'll get another CD changer later) to replace the 10 y.o. Panasonic cassette. There is an equally antiquated amp'ed 8 speaker system (2 6x9 woofers, 2 4" woofers, 2 satellite mids, 2 1" tweters) that I'll use for now. BTW, the amp/speaker system is from 1986 and is unimpressive.

I've narrowed down my options to these HU's so far based on MY criteria:

Kenwood EZ-500
Kenwood KDC-MP4028
Kenwood KDC-MP5028
Kenwood KDC-MP628
Kenwood Excelon KDC-X589
Pioneer DEH-P7700MP
Pioneer DEH-P3700MP
Pioneer DEH-P4700MP
Pioneer DEH-P6700MP

BTW, my criteria:
- Under $250
- Has CD changer controls
- Receiver Amp RMS of 20x4 minimum (to possibly get away from an amp all together)
- Minimum of 2 preamp outputs, just in case
- CD, CDR/W, & MP3 playback
- At least 3 Eq bands and multiple preset curves
- CD SNR of 95dB or or more (Pioneers are 94dB)... shootin' for the highest my $250 can buy.
- FM Sensitivity of 11 dBf or less (The JVCs are 11.3)... again, shootin' for the lowest my $250 can buy.

I realize a lot of folks prefer other manufacturers, but these are the ones that meet my req's.

Got an opinion? One of my friends does not think highly of Kenwood ("cr@p", was his term).

TIA!!

[Dean]

Nevermind. Selection is done.

Dean

[John Larkin]

What did you buy? I'm looking at an Alpine CDA-9847.

[Dean]

Sorry for the delay. For some reason I no longer get email notifications.

Anyhoot, funny you should mention the Alpine CDA-9847, as that is what I bought.

The Kenwoods were knocked out due to reliability history, and I REALLY didn't like the displays of the Pioneer DEH-P6700MP & 7700MP, which left the Pioneer DEH-P3700MP, Pioneer DEH-P4700MP, and the (discovered after this thread started) Alpine CDA-9847.

TO MY EARS, the 4700 sounded better than the 3700, but the Alpine sounded better than both. This was with all units compared "flat" with the volume set @ 50% on a set of basic $100 6x9s, and I had brought a selection of CD to listen to different frequency ranges. The Alpine just sounded fuller and richer overall.

The final comparo was with the 4700 vs. the 9847 tuned to my liking, and the Alpine really shined, IMO.

$200 shipped at Crutchfield with installation harnesses and full MFG warranty. I probably could have saved ~$20-30 elsewhere online, but I felt I owed them my business from all the infoI got from their website.

IMO, for my application, the Alpine-9847 is the best choice. If you like motorized faceplates or can live with other displays (LCD, flourescent, etc.), there are others out there with higher pre-out Vs. I definitely recommend listening to headunits, though.

Dean