What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

Heavy duty stereo ?

The big buttons are nice - like an OEM radio. A lot of aftermarket takes a minute to figure out and look out-of-place. But $280 for a radio with the same features as a $40 Jensen? Says the circuit board is conformal coated, but I don't see anything that makes it better than a standard 1-DIN marine radio (other than not being white). Probably the most heavy-duty thing about it is the lack of optical drive. That's the most sensitive part and eliminating the size and weight should make the unit hold up better. BUT.... mech-less head units are super common and should make the unit very cheap. Only has 2 channels out, too.
 
Keitha said:
Head units are very inexpensive now days. Just install one at a third the price and replace it when it dies in 5 years.
Click to expand...
Best suggestion I’ve heard so far lol
 
Beware of the super cheap head units, though. You expect lower build quality and probably higher distortion, but some of the features aren't what you expect. Here's some examples:
  • What looks like a VU/Spectrum display, but it actually just moves in the same pattern all the time, regardless of what is playing or if anything is playing at all.
  • USB drive playback that doesn't allow search or playback by album or folder. Basically all files are treated like they're in the root directory and the only way to navigate is to skip by 10 tracks at at time. Super sucky when you have thousands of mp3 files on it.
  • Shuffle mode that isn't actually random, but plays the same sequence everytime, sometimes never playing 1/2 or more of the tracks. I've seen one that starts over on this same sequence every time it's powered on.
  • Bluetooth that doesn't automatically pair. Sure it does bluetooth streaming (eventually), but you have to manually pair it everytime you start the car. When it stops accepting the pairing you have to disconnect power to the unit.
  • FM tuner can only grab the strongest stations. Will not have AM.
  • I've heard of some that are super quiet - like at max volume you can't hear the music.
If you go for a Pioneer, Kenwood, Sony or other real brand, these features are generally implemented as you would expect and therefore you can actually use them.
 
Dude do not buy that thing. I have not been into car audio for years, but that deck would have been considered a joke 15 years ago. You got only a pair of RCA outputs, and they don't even tell you how many volts at the pre-outs. I wouldn't put that deck in any of my cars for free.

Jensen is the company that sells cheap decks at AutoZone and Pep Boys, they work just good enough to play some music and that's it.

Like the other suggested, you can get Kenwood Pioneer Alpine Etc for cheap as hell, and if dirt and water is an issue than just go for a marine version. My oldest car still has a sound system in it and it's a 15 year old Pioneer deck that I've seen used in jacuzzis, these things are bulletproof
 
Blue85 said:
Beware of the super cheap head units, though. You expect lower build quality and probably higher distortion, but some of the features aren't what you expect. Here's some examples:
  • What looks like a VU/Spectrum display, but it actually just moves in the same pattern all the time, regardless of what is playing or if anything is playing at all.
  • USB drive playback that doesn't allow search or playback by album or folder. Basically all files are treated like they're in the root directory and the only way to navigate is to skip by 10 tracks at at time. Super sucky when you have thousands of mp3 files on it.
  • Shuffle mode that isn't actually random, but plays the same sequence everytime, sometimes never playing 1/2 or more of the tracks. I've seen one that starts over on this same sequence every time it's powered on.
  • Bluetooth that doesn't automatically pair. Sure it does bluetooth streaming (eventually), but you have to manually pair it everytime you start the car. When it stops accepting the pairing you have to disconnect power to the unit.
  • FM tuner can only grab the strongest stations. Will not have AM.
  • I've heard of some that are super quiet - like at max volume you can't hear the music.
If you go for a Pioneer, Kenwood, Sony or other real brand, these features are generally implemented as you would expect and therefore you can actually use them.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for the feed back guys much appreciated.
 
The company I work for had a fleet of tractors that were equipped with that radio. I really liked them. They were very easy to use even while bouncing through a field, they got good reception and they even told you the song that was playing. I don't know the power output, but they sounded great to my ears in a tractor cab with four 6.5 inch speakers.
 
The "super cheap" I was talking about above is no-name generic China stuff that's even worse than Jensen.
 
USSkoval said:
The company I work for had a fleet of tractors that were equipped with that radio. I really liked them. They were very easy to use even while bouncing through a field, they got good reception and they even told you the song that was playing. I don't know the power output, but they sounded great to my ears in a tractor cab with four 6.5 inch speakers.
Click to expand...
Been around a bunch of the Jenson truck/tractor radios myself. Good, tough radio for people who don’t care about pre-amps (whatever they do) etc, etc.
 
I put a "media" head unit in the crew cab, it is one that doesn't play CDs just am/FM, usb, aux, and bluetooth. It was less than $100, made by JVC. It has held up fine for 5 or 6 years now with a good but of trail use. I mostly play thru bluetooth on the phone so I rarely touch the stereo anyway.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom