I have a credit at a local shop and he deals with these brands, Help me choose my deck below:

CLARION DXZ745MP
ALPINE CDA9831
PANASONIC CQ-C8400U

They are all priced equally from $349-$399.
Which do you think has the better features and reliablity. Clarion comes w/2yr Warranty while Alpine and Panasonic come w/1yr. Panasonic has 5V Pre-outs while Clarion & Alpine have 4V outs. Clarion has dual 24 bit convertors Pansonic Doesn't etc... By the way I'm using a PG PLD1 8V line driver and 2 PG XS2300 amps.

Any help would be greatly appeciated.

[ May 01, 2004, 12:07 AM: Message edited by: StereoBoy ]

 

Alpine and Clarion. Wouldn't even put the Panaphonics in the same grouping. Clarion has the dual 24bit D/A's, triple beam laser, and the Pro Audio 2 year warranty(If installed by dealer), and the Alpine has the bass engine functions and Alpine build and sound quality. Flip a coin.

 

I have the CDA9833 and the tunability is awesome. Plus the V-Drive system gives you 26watts RMS per channel. If your not running an amp to your front and rears then it's a bonus. Although I still have not ascertained the problem with my install. I know it's not the HU but something, somewhere....

The i=Personalize website will let you set up your 6-channel time correction as well as you x-overs and eq, burn em on a disk and download it into the HU. You don't have to use the coversion chart in the manual. Also by doing a few setups and having them on discs it will let you set up your vehicle differently by the switch of a disc. Ie.... SQ, SPL, driver only, driver w/passengers (if you like them [img]tongue.gif[/img] ).

 

I would try the Clarion first, then the Alpine, as their preouts seem to be a bit overrated. I played with the 745 yesterday, I found the mechanism for the motorized face to be a bit smoother than my Alpine one, and the dual 24 bit D/A converters are a nice touch also. The Alpine has more of an EQ/Xover/Time Alignment section in it though, it depends more on what your priorities are. Whatever deck you buy, I would definitely get extra warranty. [img]smile.gif[/img]

 

For having had the Clarion 835, I say go with the Alpine. The mp3 track delay on the 835 was terrible. I've had an alpine 9815 for about 2 weeks now, and I'm pretty sure I'll be keeping this unit for a long time.

 

Of all the decks I have tried and played with, I like Alpines the best..

Although I have heard the new clarions are pretty nice too..