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Ultimate OEM & After-Market Head Unit Review

196K views 401 replies 121 participants last post by  Bryan621  
#1 · (Edited)
There are plenty of scattered threads around the forum about various different aftermarket units and often people ask and the odd one is suggested without any further information. 📚

So everybody - time to contribute 🤓 - write a review of your aftermarket head unit and post it here, or even on another thread. I (or a mod) can periodically update this thread with links to the relevant post.

Reviews
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Guides

Writing your review
Try and cover these points on your review
  • Manufacturer, Model, the year you bought it and the approximate retail price at the time
  • A photo powered on, a photo powered off
  • Steering wheel integration - how much works
  • DIS integration - how much works
  • Interface, how is media sorted and interacted with?
  • Sat-nav, who provides it, are there map updates available, can custom POI be added, speed camera alerts?
  • If Android etc, what version, and does it appear to be up-datable?
  • Media support (DAB, MP3, CD, DVD, FLAC, 3.5mm socket, AMI, whatever)
  • Connectivity (Bluetooth (just streaming, or other functions?), screen sharing, wifi, 3/4G, carrier pigeon)
  • Ease of installation (we don't need a guide, just if there are any gotchas specific for this model)
  • Most important of all: what does it sound like? Is there any EQ or adjustment available to the sound?

Fun Facts - DIN stands for Deutsches Institut für Normung, a German group that sets industry standards and which once set the standard for all car radios. The term “double DIN” simply refers to the size of your head unit, which means it is twice as tall as a single DIN.

The original standard DIN is 180 mm wide by 50 mm tall which is the dimension of most radio chassis. The double-DIN (also called 2-DIN) standard implies that a unit has double the height of a standard DIN radio at 180 by 100 mm, or roughly 7 by 4 inches.

The DIN standard does not include a maximum or minimum depth and as such, not every radio fits in every vehicle.
 
Discussion starter · #5 ·
Thanks for kicking this off Anth, great review. It's really handy to know how people get on with these things in real life so much better than just reading a spec sheet!
 
Discussion starter · #15 ·
I'd like to swap out my RNS-e at some point, to something that has a better satnav (CoPilot has been a favourite of mine for ages), but most importantly one with a better amp/equaliser in it. If you don't have Bose the output of the HU isn't fantastic.
 
Discussion starter · #27 ·
Thanks for the review, seems like the XTRONS units are popular.
 
Discussion starter · #96 ·
Please please review this, I'd be very interested to find out what it's like.
 
Discussion starter · #115 ·
What does it sound like? Does it do satnav and support MP3s etc?
 
Discussion starter · #134 ·
Feel free to add a review of the Pioneer :)
 
Discussion starter · #143 ·
So with Android Auto, how much can you hand over to your phone? e.g. if I want to use a random app on my phone on the HU, is that possible?
 
Discussion starter · #166 ·
That looks pretty nifty. Good way to keep your head-unit up-to-date at a lower cost, just upgrade your phone!
 
Discussion starter · #168 ·
Buy a better phone or get rid of your my-little-pony case :lol: ;)
 
Discussion starter · #179 ·
Looking forward to a more in-depth review once you got it up and running! Looks smart.
 
Discussion starter · #185 ·
Can't answer all your questions, there are some links on the first page on how tos which might go into more detail.

1. It doesn't. You'll lose the radio and sat nav link to the DIS.

2. I think Audi Bluetooth stuff is standalone to the head unit, can somebody confirm?

3. I don't think there is anything different when connecting to a Bose or non-bose, you just need to ensure you get the correct adapter harnesses for your car. They all use an external amp so you don't need a powerful head unit as the amplification is done externally.
 
Discussion starter · #283 ·
pashkito, what's it like in terms of audio performance? Any improvement on OEM/Bose etc? Primary function of a head unit after all! :D
 
Discussion starter · #295 ·
How does it sound?