[NJinsight]

Im looking for a replacement for the standard honda Insight deck and already have the eclipse speakers on order. I read the reviews and linked webpages for the JVC LX-100 and the Kenwood stereo which both have faceplates which hide and/or pull off. I'd prefer one which just hid and turned around when off, and I know the risk of motor failure on one of these models. Can someone suggest another model which can play CDRs (MP3) which they've fit into an Insight? Thanks, much thanks!

Michael

 

[Insighter]

Alpine...

Alpine's CDA 7998 and CDA 7897 both have motorized faces and play CDR, CDRW and MP3. The problem is the lip of the A/C controls in the Insight. It is right above the stereo. Even if the stereo fit, it probably wouldn't look too good.

Panasonic and Sony (maybe others) make units with touch screens that just appear black and smooth when the stereo is off, but I don't know how well the touch screens work and you have to figure that stereo thieves can recognize these (especially the Sony as they put their emblem on the surface so you can see it even when the unit is off).

I don't even know if the motorized faces are good enough. Thieves can probably recognize those, too. With the Kenwood you could put a Honda logo, or better yet an Audiovox label. Of course, putting a Kenwood logo on there might accomplish the same thing.

I had a very expensive Alpine head unit in an '89 Civic SI. The shop that put it in took the cover for the stereo hole that came with the car (there was no radio in the car when I bought it...the cover said "Honda") and fashioned a cover plate for the entire recessed area where the stereo mounted. The only thing I didn't like about it was that I had to pull it off and put it on every time. They said they could motorize it, but I didn't want to spend the additional money and figured it wouldn't be a big deal to put it on every time I left the car.

It did work fine. When I sold the car to a friend I told him to be very careful about using the cover. The 2nd or 3rd day he had it he left the cover off and thieves took not only the stereo, but also the ADS amps and the ADS separates I had up front (which they wouldn't have even seen if they hadn't broken in to get the stereo).

My del Sol, every del Sol, came with a cover that hid the radio. It was a door that you could just flip up and flip down. That was a really good idea as nobody would presume that you had anything special just because you had a cover. I wish they had done that in the Insight, but I guess they only did in the del Sol because it was a pop top.

 

[NJinsight]

Thanks for the quick reply. I'll have to take a look at the dash and see what might look ok. The Kenwood MP-822 might be an option for $399 Im sure I could find it cheaper than Crutchfield. Has anyone obtained any wiring harnesses other than from a Crutchfield? I was wondering if it was a direct plug in from Kenwood-Honda, or if you had to solder/strip and connect. I can do it, was just wondering before I buy. I have the link for the speaker plugs, and will be replacing the speakers with the Eclipse 8263s. This is the link for the Kenwood mp-822.

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S-hQ ... 113MP822++

Anyone else with some ideas, recommendations?

michael

 

[Insighter]

Kenwood...

You will always find a lower price than Crutchfield on eBay, but you have to look at the seller's feedback and be sure it isn't refurbished (unless that's what you want). Most of the units I've seen on eBay are new.

I like that stereo, but I had really bad luck with a Kenwood CD player once and am really wary of them. Maybe others could post their experiences with Kenwood.

 

[sajego]

I got my wiring harness from Best Buy. I had to solder the harness to the JVC power cord.. but then everything was a direct plug in.

Check http://www.etronics.com for lower prices. They are in NY so shipping was Really fast. Don't forget to add the harnesses to wherever you order from.

Has anyone obtained any wiring harnesses other than from a Crutchfield? I was wondering if it was a direct plug in from Kenwood-Honda, or if you had to solder/strip and connect.

 

[glitch]

What's wrong w/ the KDC-X969 ? It's motorized but I don't think it'll wear out to bad. It's an interesting deck, it's one I am seriously considering. I like Kenwood and their accessories as well. I heard something bad about their reception but it may be on older models or the Distance mode wasn't engaged, the default is for local reception.

The other decks I'm considering are by various brands, the one I'm thinking of right now is by BlauPunkt. They implement this very interesting credit-card-like security in their decks. Whenever you take off, just take the card out and the deck becomes useless, most thieves would realize this. The face plate is removeable also if you so chose, but even if they ordered an official replacement face plate, w/o the card it wouldn't work. I also like Blaupunkt's steering wheel remote, looks nice. They're supposed to be good on radio reception also. Especially their San Francisco model.

 

[NJinsight]

I wound up buying a refurbed unit, a Kenwood mp-919 which will hide the faceplate or detatch if you want to take it with you. I found one for $259 refurbished with a 90 day warranty, so it beat the new cost of $500-600 which some of the stores in the area wanted. Here is a pic:

Kind of fuzzy, but....anyways, will install it this weekend coming up weather permitting and the Eclipse 8263 speakers. Ill get some pics for the site, too.

Thanks for all the input on a model. I needed mp3 playback and hideaway and the choices were limited, but I found one!

Michael

 

[uvman]

NJ Where

Njinsight, where did you get it?