Want to know what members here feel about the Double-Din screened units available in the marketplace. My criteria is as follows:

-Sound Quality (SQ)
-Ease of Use
-Features
-Cost

I don't need/want a navigation system unit mainly because I feel those units tend to sacrifice SQ and increase complexity.

I'm looking at a couple of units. The Alpine IVA-W200 was just released. I've talked to a couple of installers and they cited that it was easy to use, much faster touchscreen response than the IVA-D300 (They hated the D300), and a nice resolution screen. The drawbacks were the 2V preouts and the lack of EQ flexibility to fine tune the audio characteristics. They said all those shortcomings can be fixed with the PXA-H701 multi-media manager to augment the EQ features and have 4V preouts.

The other unit I am looking at is the Kenwood DDX-8017 which has 4V preouts and some EQ customization. The screen resolution is lower than the Alpine and I've heard there is a steeper learning curve to use this unit. However, I've read positive reviews on my searches of this forum and the installers like this unit as well.

Now I want to hear from you all on what you think between these two units:

-Alpine IVA-W200 with PXA-H701 multi-media manager
IVA-W200
PXA-H701

OR

-Kenwood DDX-8017
DDX-8017


Thanks!!!

I have the eclipse 5500. It does have navigation; but is a pretty good unit when it comes to tuning. It has a 9 band EQ and 5 volt preamp outputs. This was important to me; as I have a SQ setup consisting of DLS amps; DLS components, and Image Dynamic IDQ 10"s. My shop used the 5500 to tune and it sounds excellent. Hope this helps. Good luck~

Sorry im not helping... but do you know if you can still use your steering wheel button/switches with the Alpine IVA-W200 ?

i have the kenwood, what an amazing piece! i got the nav and tv tuner also with it though. For the price i think this unit is well worth it and sounds incredible with the stock bose speakers. here is what it looks like installed.

I am using the W200/H701 combo and cannot be happier. I am running a fully active 8 channel system. Here's what sold me on the W200:

1. I already had the H701.
2. Optical Output
3. Fullscreen control of H701
4. DVD
5. iPod fullspeed.
6. Easy upgrade path to Nav (Via Blackbird)

I am preparing an update thread and will post pics and reviews soon... in the meantime these should hold you over.

Yes. Requires PAC SWI-ALP.

Nice!!! How are the touchscreen response times? Ease of use? I am planning on going to a shop this weeekend to demo the W200 and the 8017. What are the tuning capabilities with the H701 with the W200? About how much did you pay for the unit? I"m seeing about $900-1000 for street price and another $500 for the H701.

Thanks!

Nice pics!!! How is the screen under sunlight? Touchscreen response? I'm prolly gonna go insane with the decision. :P

Hope to see more reviews!!!

one is made in japan, and the other in China.

Milliseconds? No perceptable delay. Certainly under sub second.

Jury is still out as I am just now starting to play with it. I will tell you that I do find myself reaching for the RUX-C701 controller when I want to change presets. The direct access buttons on the controller are much faster than navigating to SETUP>IPERSONALIZE>A.PROCESSOR. But for the other functions such as XOVER and EQ I use the touchscreen.

For the rest of the unit, navigation is a breeze, and the fullspeed iPod connection kicks ***.

• 5 way (FR1L, FR1R, FR2L, FR2R, R, C, S) active crossover. 6dB/12dB/18dB/24dB/30dB adjustable slope.
• 11-Band Digital Parametric EQ 4 Bands Front, 4 Bands Rear, 2 Bands Center, 1 Band Subwoofer
• 17 Band Digital Parametric Equalizer
• 31-Band Graphic Equalizer
• 4 Volt PreOut
• 8 PreOuts
• 6 User Programmable Presets
• Adjustable Center Delay
• Ai-NET or RCA Inputs
• Auto Time Correction
• Digital Time Correction
• Dolby Digital®, Dolby Pro-Logic® and DTS® Decoding
• Gold Plated RCA Jacks
• Independently Adjustable Channel Level
• MDAC Digital to Analog Converter
• Manual Time Correction
• MediaXpander™
• Navaigation Mix Input
• Rear Mix Capibility
• Selectable Listening Modes Standard/Maximum/Late Night
• Speaker Selection Mode
-Front: Large/Small
-Center: Large/Small/Off
-Rear: Large/Small/Off
• Subwoofer Level Control
• 8Ch Independent phase control



Not really at liberty to say, but those numbers seem about right for street price BNIB from an authorized dealer.

Thanks!

Is the Alpine made in China and the Kenwood in Japan????

That is correct.

The Alpine is designed in Japan and built in China.

The Kenwood is designed and built in Japan.

Still not sure who has better QC. From what I understand the new Kenwood pieces are fantastic. In the end, I think it comes down to what you want.

Are you a tweak freak? Get the Alpine combo.

Want a great AIO (Not *really* AIO as you have to buy the nav piece separately... but it is the same deal with the Alpine) unit with an absolutely gorgeous screen? Get the Kenwood.

Just spent some time and read the specs on the screens. The Kenwood DDX-8017 has a 360k pixel screen while the Alpine has a 280k pixel screen. I'm assuming the Kenwood screen looks much nicer for DVD video.

Gonna try out the interfaces and talk with the installers again this weekend.

That W200 looks SICK !!!

Are there premade dashes where 6.5 or 7 HU's fit into it or is your current dash having to be cut into?