Turbogus

Years ago when I had a '77 CJ5 I had one of these 'bulletproof' Pioneer KP500's to augment the stock AM radio that those years came with;



This thing lasted through countless hours of off road rattling, shuffling and general abuse and when I sold that Jeep it went into the Blazer I got a few years later. I thing it's still lurking in a tool box somewhere. I really liked the Pioneer Supertuner tech as the area I live in didn't have stations I liked so was listening to KGON up in Portland (90 miles distant).

I've stuck with Pioneer since those days and have an old AM/FM Cassette still in my van.

Most recently driving over icy wintry roads I encountered several miles of chop, washboard like vibrations on account of LaGrande's of trucks chewing up the road. This heavy vibration knocked the bobblehead 'Rat Fink' from my dash and zilched the radio Pioneer KEH P3700



to where even at steady state cuts in and out with static. So I reckon it's time to find another single DIN radio that'll fit in that tight space (6 1/2") behind the CJ's dash that is vibration resistant. Anyone know of the latest generation of Pioneer (or other maker) of AM/FM Cassette or CD that can work in these rigs?

luke99

Pioneer makes some really nice stuff , at one time they held the world record for loudest vehicle on the planet

Turbogus

Yep, I can dig that. Over the years I tried some others like Jensen and such but I've kept returning to Pioneer for head units and their superior tuners. Although I've read of detractors of their speakers and amps, while running a Pyle amp my primary speakers are Pioneer 6x9 4 ways mounted to the front of my tool box, works great for enhancing the bass.

luke99

thats neat

Turbogus

Thanks Luke, Originally when I had my first Jeep the '77 with no tailgate, the spare tire mounted just to the sheet metal of the back panel. After so much vibration the corner welds would start to give way (that is the sheet metal next to the welds). To resolve this I first though of a large L bracket bolted to the floor to support the load, but then thinking on it some more a tool box made logical sense. So the local HVAC company welded up a 16 gauge box for $40 and i butted it up against the back panel and bolted it to the floor where the useless rear seat mounted. I then bolted the spare tire carrier through the body metal and to the box. Problem fixed! This was I can store my tools and winch equipment and it make for great bass too.
So when I got my '78 this was the first mod I did.

Turbogus

From what I've seen I like the features of the Pioneer DEH models (DEH 7500 - DEH 3600) but today I stopped by 'The Stereo Store' (a local shop) and on their wall of sound they had a Kenwood KBC X697



that was on sale for $127 clams and a feature I really liked about that Kenwood was the flap shelf for the CD opening, keep dust and debris out, lacking in the Pioneer. If my resetting of my old KEH brings it back to life (so far so good on a brief drive yesterday) I may hold off on this purchase as money is tight. At least it gives me more time to research and come to a decision.

luke99

probably not bad for the price , ive always been a huge alpine fan , their not bad for the price , and are easy to use , alot have a pause button as well which is huge for spl

Turbogus

I once subscribed to audio magazines and relied on their reviews, but that was back in the '70's and audio has come a long way since. I seem to recall that Alpine made excellent equipment but I don't really know how they're faring these days. My primary concerns are (as this is going in my Jeep CJ) Far reaching oversampling to prevent CD skipping, means of sealing out dust and other crud, by means of door or other chassis design (some in the Jeep community put their head units in plastic bags when they intstall) and audio quality. While the light show features of those Pioneers are fun to look at but given the view angle it's better to keep my eyes on the road or trail. Also Bluetooth, Pandora or other services are not anything I'd like to subscribe to so these type of features are superfluous in my case.

bobby1970

Hi, am new here from the Philippines, do you know of a thread or forum where a Pioneer KP500 was the topic for refurbishing or restoration, please help if you know of any, thanks very much..