new MP3 head unit
 

i was just wondering what are some good options for an mp3 head unit for my 2002 protege ES. i don't have alot of $ to spend so i was curious as to other people's opinions. right now i'm looking at the aiwa cdc-mp32 which looks like it's going for about $200.

also...are there potential problems with the size of the HU fitting in the dash of the protege?

thanks

G

I can not provide too much detail... but at the same time I bought my Kenwood Z919 (it lived in the car I had before my P5) my buddy bought an Aiwa MP3 player (their first gen mp3 capable unit). Within a year the unit was toast... apparently this was common, some sort of thermal issue. Make sure you do good research on-line if you do consider the Aiwa unit.

Does anyone have specs on the MP3's HU, and will it fit into a P5?

Stocker

I wouldn't go with the Aiwa. This is just personal preference, but a few big factors (to me) led to my decision to go with a Kenwood - which, BTW, I have had for almost a year, and it has performed flawlessly the whole time. Anyway:

The Aiwa has NO dimmer control at all, and a VERY bright display. This would annoy me to no end, as I think my Kenwood is still a bit bright and it does have a step-down dimmer when the headlights are on. I'm a dim-dash-at-night-no-bling-bling-factor-so-I-don't-get-tons-of-glare kind of guy. Translation: I HATE bright dash lights at night.

The Aiwa has only the "flip face" for security. I like a removeable faceplate. My Kenwood MP8017 has BOTH - flip around (non-motorized, but who cares) or detatch. Dunno if it matters to you, but my lady has the same Kenwood, and had the face just flipped and her Jeep got busted into one night. Assholes didn't get the radio, but if the face was off, they probably wouldn't have tried. I use the flip for parking lots and daytime security, and the face comes off for long parking or overnight. If it didn't flip, I'd probably take it out all the time. Theives know when a faceplate is just flipped over - don't you? Nothing is 100% secure, but a flip-only face is a better target than a stereo with no faceplate on it. Just my opinion. Onward:

The Aiwa is supposed to have a rather long "seek" time on MP3 discs - all players require a certain amount of time to "file check" an MP3 CD before it starts to play - the time this takes depends on the number of folders, folder "levels" (folders within folders), and tracks on the disc. The Aiwa is supposed to take its sweet ass time starting, as well as going from track to track. The Kenny is always reasonable, if not nearly as fast as a regular CD.

Here's a nasty one: If you shut the car down in the middle of an MP3 track on the Aiwa, when you start up again, it starts the track over! It DOES NOT pick up where it left off! So you could potentially listen to the same track over and over again, and never hear the end. No thanks.

The Aiwas also have a known history of skipping problems over bumpy roads - like highway expansion joints, speed bumps at 3 MPH, etc. You get my point, I think - they skip like hell.

On the plus side, the Aiwa has a nice display, and a better-looking layout than my Kenwood. And the steering-wheel remote is something I have always wanted. But not at the expense of the other features.

It's not the best deck on the market, and it doesn't have the greatest EQ section. And it only has 2 pair of 2 volt preouts and no dedicated subwoofer output. But the Kenwood MP8017 is a solid bargain for an MP3 CD player. They can be had for less than $200 (sometimes) on eBay. Most of the right features are there, and some of the annoyances of other players are not - even the $500+ Pioneer MP9400 is supposd to have a long seek time, one of the longest, in fact.
My MP8017 has probably skipped twice since I've had it, and that was on some REAL tough roads. It routinely takes a solid beating, with no problems. It also plays some of my really hacked up discs without complaint - it seems to take a deeply scratched disc to upset it. And usuallly, my regular CDs are the ones that skip - the fragile MP3 CDR's I burn seem to play better when scratched, if you can believe that.

Not the best, but definitely a solid performer at a decent price. I would recommend any of the Kenwood MP3 CD players, because mine is probably the cheapest from last year's (or maybe the year before?) models - the newer ones and higher models can only improve on an already solid unit. Other than my listed complaints about it, the only other is a weak power section that doesn't power speakers too well. MUCH better than stock Mazda crap, but admittedly not-so-hot compared to some other units. .

~HH

I just bought a Pioneer DEH-7400 that plays MP3s, but it was $250, so I guess that's more than you wanted to spend. I love my deck, though. I've only played MP3 CDs in it twice, but the initial scanning of the CD didn't take more than 5 seconds, and switching between tracks isn't any more than 1 or 2 seconds, which is fine with me. I haven't tried to see if it will remember what time it was at turning off the car, though.

Anyways, I hear Blaupunkt make really good HUs, and I know they have an MP3 player. I forget the name of it, but they are good quality HUs, with a rather high RMS wattage (which is good). I was going to buy a Blau, but I found a good deal on my Pioneer, and I really liked the Pioneer I owned before.

Let us know what you choose. Check out Crutchfield.com, they have quite a few MP3 players listed... Just don't buy from them! :D