Panasonic CQ-DP383U Car CD / MP3 Player
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Similar in In Dash Receivers
- MP3 / WMA Playback: MP3 Playback
- Player Type: CD
- Controlled Devices: CD Changer Sirius Ready
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great buy if you have lots of mp3s
Pros
price, compatibility, mp3 AND wmv playback, numerous display options
Cons
cheap remote
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
If you are already an MP3 enthusiast, and you like the idea of having your entire music collection in your car visor, this is for you.
I can't tell you enough how much I love this thing! I've had for about 6 months now, and I use it every day. I was looking for a car CD player that would play MP3 CD's because all of my music is archived on CD-R discs. I didn't want to waste CDs on short audio discs and I definitely didn't like the idea of a bulky CD book under my seat, but most of the players on the market were over $300.
A friend recommended that I check out Crutchfield.com, since I am an absolute beginner at installing audio equipment, so I did and they not only had the best price, but they included a complete installation kit and I found a nice coupon for first-time buyers. This model was on special, so I picked it up and I couldn't be happier.
The manual is well organized and it's easy to find out how to use the features on a quick read through. One of the big issues with any (cheap) MP3 CD player is the delay that happens when skipping or when you first insert the disc. This model takes about 5 seconds to initially read a CD, and only 1 second to skip. Another issue is the organization of files and folders, and how easy it is to find tracks, since you can store over 100 songs on a single disc (depending on quality). If you have the remote, and you have songs organized into 8 or less folders, this is very easy.
If you have more than 8 folders on the CD, it causes the CD to take up to 12 seconds to load. If you don't have any folders at all you can just name them alphabetically to make skipping through them easier. My method is to put albums in folders, and not to use folders for compilation CDs. I would also caution against using subfolders, as this drastically increases loading and seeking time.
If you lose the remote, it will take a VERY long time to skip around (I still don't know how to switch folders without the remote). This brings me to the remote's design -it is a flimsy plastic thing with buttons that are all exactly the same shape. This can be a problem when you are trying to change songs or folders without looking. It feels the same upside-down as it does right-side up so you have to look every time.
If you can live with the minor annoyances the remote brings, you will love this player. I have never had a single problem with disc playback - it plays regular audio CDs, CD-R's and CD-RW's, the cheap ones and the expensive ones - it doesn't matter. It can play MP3s with any bitrate (I've found that 192Kbps sounds the best, and 128Kbps will sound like the radio), and it can also play WMV files. WMV files are Windows Media audio files, which most players will choke on. You can even use CDs with both data and MP3 files; the player just ignores the data files. If my computer can play it, so can this. If your disc has some small scratches on it, that's no problem. Severe scratches will cause some skipping, but that's to be expected.
I guess I should also mention that it plays normal audio CD's just fine, but if that's all you need you're probably better off with a cheapie player.
One quick of this player is the random feature, which I almost exclusively use with my MP3 CDs. After playing about 20 songs without being powered down, the "randomizer" will keep flipping through the numbers and never quite decide on a track. When this happens all you need to do is eject the CD and re-insert it and everything is OK again. The random setting will choose songs from all of the folders on the CD.
There are several display modes to choose from, including clock with track number, file name/folder name (for MP3 CDs), and track title/disc title (for audio CDs). The track titles won't show up on older commercial audio CDs or ones you've burned yourself. The text scrolls from right to left on the illuminated display and then stops to show the first few characters. You can push the display button again to get it to scroll a second time. You never have to wonder what you're listening to.
Incidentally, this player is also enabled for satellite radio, which I know nothing about. There is a removable faceplate too, which is easy to operate.
This is a great all-around buy. If somebody broke into my car and stole it I'd be ordering another one the very same day. Hopefully that doesn't happen!
A friend recommended that I check out Crutchfield.com, since I am an absolute beginner at installing audio equipment, so I did and they not only had the best price, but they included a complete installation kit and I found a nice coupon for first-time buyers. This model was on special, so I picked it up and I couldn't be happier.
The manual is well organized and it's easy to find out how to use the features on a quick read through. One of the big issues with any (cheap) MP3 CD player is the delay that happens when skipping or when you first insert the disc. This model takes about 5 seconds to initially read a CD, and only 1 second to skip. Another issue is the organization of files and folders, and how easy it is to find tracks, since you can store over 100 songs on a single disc (depending on quality). If you have the remote, and you have songs organized into 8 or less folders, this is very easy.
If you have more than 8 folders on the CD, it causes the CD to take up to 12 seconds to load. If you don't have any folders at all you can just name them alphabetically to make skipping through them easier. My method is to put albums in folders, and not to use folders for compilation CDs. I would also caution against using subfolders, as this drastically increases loading and seeking time.
If you lose the remote, it will take a VERY long time to skip around (I still don't know how to switch folders without the remote). This brings me to the remote's design -it is a flimsy plastic thing with buttons that are all exactly the same shape. This can be a problem when you are trying to change songs or folders without looking. It feels the same upside-down as it does right-side up so you have to look every time.
If you can live with the minor annoyances the remote brings, you will love this player. I have never had a single problem with disc playback - it plays regular audio CDs, CD-R's and CD-RW's, the cheap ones and the expensive ones - it doesn't matter. It can play MP3s with any bitrate (I've found that 192Kbps sounds the best, and 128Kbps will sound like the radio), and it can also play WMV files. WMV files are Windows Media audio files, which most players will choke on. You can even use CDs with both data and MP3 files; the player just ignores the data files. If my computer can play it, so can this. If your disc has some small scratches on it, that's no problem. Severe scratches will cause some skipping, but that's to be expected.
I guess I should also mention that it plays normal audio CD's just fine, but if that's all you need you're probably better off with a cheapie player.
One quick of this player is the random feature, which I almost exclusively use with my MP3 CDs. After playing about 20 songs without being powered down, the "randomizer" will keep flipping through the numbers and never quite decide on a track. When this happens all you need to do is eject the CD and re-insert it and everything is OK again. The random setting will choose songs from all of the folders on the CD.
There are several display modes to choose from, including clock with track number, file name/folder name (for MP3 CDs), and track title/disc title (for audio CDs). The track titles won't show up on older commercial audio CDs or ones you've burned yourself. The text scrolls from right to left on the illuminated display and then stops to show the first few characters. You can push the display button again to get it to scroll a second time. You never have to wonder what you're listening to.
Incidentally, this player is also enabled for satellite radio, which I know nothing about. There is a removable faceplate too, which is easy to operate.
This is a great all-around buy. If somebody broke into my car and stole it I'd be ordering another one the very same day. Hopefully that doesn't happen!
