23 replies to this topic

[pstall]

Going to upgrade my old 4runner's sound system. I just want a good solid radio that is SAT ready, can let me play Pandora and doesn't take a Physics degree to operate.

Don't want to spend over 120 for the radio and about the same for speakers.

[Kevin Greene]

Just a heads up on Pandora.
Did you get the email saying if you listen more than 40 hours per month free you must pay to continue?

.

A note to our listeners

This week we will begin communicating directly with a small number of our listeners as we introduce a 40-hour-per-month limit on free mobile listening.
Most of you reading this will never hit the limit. In fact, it will affect less than 4% of our total monthly active listeners. For perspective, the average listener spends approximately 20 hours listening to Pandora across all devices in any given month.
That said, limiting listening is a very unusual thing to do, and very contrary to our mission so we wanted to share a quick explanation. Pandora's per-track royalty rates have increased more than 25% over the last 3 years, including 9% in 2013 alone and are scheduled to increase an additional 16% over the next two years. After a close look at our overall listening, a 40-hour-per-month mobile listening limit allows us to manage these escalating costs with minimal listener disruption.
For listeners who do hit the limit, we have a variety of options available to keep the music you love flowing. Listen for free for as many hours as desired on desktop and laptop computers; pay $0.99 for unlimited listening for the remainder of that month, or subscribe to Pandora One for unlimited listening and no advertising.
In short, this is an effort to balance the reality of increasing royalty costs with our desire to maximize access to free listening on Pandora. We will be sure to alert any of our listeners that start getting close to the 40 hour limit. As always, your feedback is welcome.
Thanks for listening,

[Kevin Greene]

That being said....

http://www.bestbuy.c...3&skuId=4769506

Considering it for the wife's CRV as she wont exceed 40 like I would.

[KSpan]

Single-DIN or double? If you want to get the best bang for your buck, I would recommend spending a bit more on a head unit with at least some crossovers and maybe time alignment. Some basic controls can make a huge difference in sound quality even at your budget level.

[pstall]

should i get blue tooth for quality sound? or is that overrated?

and the pandora 40 a month thing i thought was a few years ago?

[Kevin Greene]

should i get blue tooth for quality sound? or is that overrated?

and the pandora 40 a month thing i thought was a few years ago?

http://blog.pandora....e-to-our-l.html

[KSpan]

should i get blue tooth for quality sound? or is that overrated?

and the pandora 40 a month thing i thought was a few years ago?

Bluetooth is an okay method of connecting to the head unit, but your biggest limiting factor will be the quality of the streaming audio itself - I know that when I put my system in, the streaming Pnadora sounded terrible because my speakers were so much more detailed. Honestly, if Pandora is what you're mainly thinking about using as source material you could consider just replacing the head unit only and seeing if you're happy with that improvement in sound.

Do you know if it's a single-DIN or double-DIN? The link that Kevin Greene posted is a single-DIN size, and double-DIN has a face that is twice that size.

[pstall]

Single

[KSpan]

Single

Cool. I'll link up a unit or two this afternoon/evening when I'm not at work.

[Darth Biscuit]

I want to do the same thing... the radio in my explorer works, but the CD player died. Problem is, Ford is a bitch and they make their radios hard to deal with and it's double din. So it's freaking expensive to do what I want.

I'm looking at one of these instead... anybody used one?

http://www.walmart.c...etooth/20681148


FWIW I used to listen to Pandora a good bit... but now that they play a commercial every other song or so I say fug that. I listen to Spotify at work and my own mp3's elsewhere.

[KSpan]

I want to do the same thing... the radio in my explorer works, but the CD player died. Problem is, Ford is a bitch and they make their radios hard to deal with and it's double din. So it's freaking expensive to do what I want.

I'm looking at one of these instead... anybody used one?

http://www.walmart.c...etooth/20681148


FWIW I used to listen to Pandora a good bit... but now that they play a commercial every other song or so I say fug that. I listen to Spotify at work and my own mp3's elsewhere.

What year Explorer and what options?

[Darth Biscuit]

What year Explorer and what options?

'03 Eddie Bauer with the 6 disc in dash changer (that no longer works)

[KSpan]

Personally, I'm a fan of JVC head units - they for some reason have a bit of a rep for being cheap, but I've used them for years in a number of different car audio builds and have never had a hiccup or been dissatisfied with the sound quality. Plus, they have a built-in Pandora app that allows you to change songs/stations from the radio while connected via Bluetooth. There are some other units out there with similar functionality but they're usually more expensive, which makes the JVCs a good value for me.

For the sake of time, I'm just going to post a couple of JVC radios. I'm also linking to Crutchfield because of the extra stuff they send; it's nice to get the antenna adapter, wiring harness, mounting kit, and installation directions all from one place and not have to hunt around for it. Their service has always been top-notch for me as well.

Pstall: How do your stock speakers sound? Most/all factory head units come with some baked-in EQ curves, so changing the head oftentimes makes the biggest different in the entire system. If your stock speakers aren't blown, you can spend a bit more money to get a radio with some crossovers and TA and may very well be happy with the sounds. Also, replacing stock speakers in stock locations negates a lot of the gain in a more expensive set of drivers, so I tend to put more money into a radio for this reason.

JVC unit with 3-band parametric EQ and crossovers.
http://www.crutchfie...KDR80BT&tp=5684

JVC unit with 5-band EQ, better crossovers, and time alignment. Time alignment adjusts the speakers to make them sound like they're the same distance from you and makes a world of difference in sound quality and imaging. The TA in my head unit really made my stock Subaru POS speakers sound pretty good. IMO definitely worth the $50.
http://www.crutchfie...684#details-tab


Biscuit: I did a buddy's stereo in his 03 Explorer a couple of years back and the radio is a piece of cake to swap out. The bezel around your center dash just pops off with a little bit of prying force and the radio comes out with a couple of screws... literally a 5 minute removal. Here's a YT video showing it in action:

As far as radios go, I'll make the same recommendation to grab one with sound advanced features and see if you're happy with the stock speakers. For double-din, I am pleased as all get out with this one - I have had it in my car for over a year now and haven't regretted it for a moment. Crossovers, Pandora app control, time alignment, and 5-band EQ. If you go to the reviews, my review is actually 4th from the bottom on the last page (I'm Brian from Kansas City), and I still fully support those comments.
http://www.crutchfie...dr#overview-tab

[pstall]

stock speakers are pretty good k. can't complain.

[Jim Harbaugh]

Just shop around a bit first if you go with the JVC.

http://www.amazon.co...T/dp/B0079LGMYG