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Firmware fixes most issues
Pros
Easy to use, Voice activation, Bluetooth hands free phone, SD RAM for music (and upgrades).
Cons
Existing IP-Bus components may not be compatible. Shame on Pioneer.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Overall its a very nice unit, but Pioneer should be ashamed for obsoleting existing components and not including HD radio in the head unit.
First off the other reviewers apparently reviewed this unit before the firmware upgrade answered most of their complaints. The unit now starts up quickly and is much more responsive than before.
Like most Pioneer head units this one includes their IP-Bus linkage system for connecting optional accessories (CD changer, XM/Sirius tuner, etc.) For my unit I added XM and HD modules. These are my only sore points with the unit. When I upgraded my head unit I stayed with Pioneer because I already had a Pioneer XM tuner module in my car. It turns out that my perfectly unit was made incompatible for some reason. That defeats the purpose of having components.
The HD radio module is so small that you can tell that most of its size is taken up with the connectors to the unit. This begs the question why wasn’t this just included inside the head unit as it certainly would fit. I guess Pioneer wanted to tack on to the price (and the installer fees too).
On the positive side Pioneer offers firmware upgrades for the main system and Bluetooth. It’s simple to upgrade using the SD RAM card. That SD slot is also great for adding music to the system. It’s so much nicer than carrying around CD’s in the glove compartment, but you can do that too. The CD player in this unit is much better than the unit it replaced. This one doesn’t skip while bouncing along on the highway. My last unit typically destroyed CD’s after the third or fourth play.
I love the hands free phone capability with voice activated calling. Voice activation also works with I-Pod players. One other feature I like is the parametric equalizer.
Like most Pioneer head units this one includes their IP-Bus linkage system for connecting optional accessories (CD changer, XM/Sirius tuner, etc.) For my unit I added XM and HD modules. These are my only sore points with the unit. When I upgraded my head unit I stayed with Pioneer because I already had a Pioneer XM tuner module in my car. It turns out that my perfectly unit was made incompatible for some reason. That defeats the purpose of having components.
The HD radio module is so small that you can tell that most of its size is taken up with the connectors to the unit. This begs the question why wasn’t this just included inside the head unit as it certainly would fit. I guess Pioneer wanted to tack on to the price (and the installer fees too).
On the positive side Pioneer offers firmware upgrades for the main system and Bluetooth. It’s simple to upgrade using the SD RAM card. That SD slot is also great for adding music to the system. It’s so much nicer than carrying around CD’s in the glove compartment, but you can do that too. The CD player in this unit is much better than the unit it replaced. This one doesn’t skip while bouncing along on the highway. My last unit typically destroyed CD’s after the third or fourth play.
I love the hands free phone capability with voice activated calling. Voice activation also works with I-Pod players. One other feature I like is the parametric equalizer.
