Alpine 3DA-W882 In Dash Changer

Price Paid:  $800.00 from Custom Car Alarm and

Year / Model Reviewed:
 98 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer

Summary:
OK I read other reviews and I will disagree with most of there complaints: I have never had a CD jamb. Its never scratched a CD either. I find this to almost be physically impossible to occur with the design, unless its damaged before hand. I have never had anyone try to steal it, its too dark of a face to see it in a vehicle at night. If your car has been broken into more than once, stop flaunting your gear and then parking it out in the open, garage it everywhere. Oh yea get a better alarm with a remote that notifies you of it activation from up to a 1.5 miles away (Compustar!, It really works over one MILE away) One reviewer stated you should buy the extended warranty: Hopefully you read the manual and noted all Alpine products installed by a authorized dealer comes with a 3 yr warranty, dont pay circut city, best buy, etc. for a warranty you already get, the already got too much of your $$$.

Strengths:
This unit is an all in one system head unit. If you are looking for quality sound w/o video, DVD etc., this is the only uinit a 2 din that can create a tight sound stage and look good doing it.

Weaknesses:
I will agree a non-removable face plate is a huge weakness for a vehicle that is parked on a street daily. Also if you dont have the dash space this isn't a unit that makes sense for you.

Price Paid:  $650.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 89 Ford Taurus

Summary:
This is a good car stereo. It has the 3 disk removeable cd changer and cassette player and a built in viewable equalizer.

Strengths:
Nice wattage output and cd title memory.

Weaknesses:
People want this stereo and willo attempt to steal it.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 1989 toyota supra

Summary:
I would not suggest buying this stereo. There are several other high quality stereo's out there that have better theft deterrent features.

Strengths:
3 disc changer is great and the ability to tweak the eq is a nice feature.

Weaknesses:
Thieves apparently love this stereo. Haven't stolen mine yet but broke 4 windows trying. Anyone want to buy one?

Price Paid:  $678.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 98 Maxima

Summary:
This unit did a number of things well, and with a 12 disc changer in the trunk provided me with enough tunes for a cross country trip. Once you get over the wickedly pimptastic display though, you realize that it's annoying at night. I used the tape deck once (books on tape) and it performed decently. The FM tuner is excellent. I NEVER used the DSP effects, as they all sounded horrific. However, some of the provided EQ setups (like News) came in handy. If you get one, buy an alarm! If you see mine, shoot me an e-mail! I want it back!

Strengths:
3 Disc changer in front was nice, 3 pre-amp outs, cool display. Having a sub level control and the adjustable EQ was nice.

Weaknesses:
THEFT TARGET (Mine's gone!) No detachable face. The display should blackout as it's distracting at night sometimes. The changer mechanism made me nervous and did damage discs occasionally.

Similar Products Used:
Other Alpine units.

Price Paid:  $700.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 1994 Acura Integra GSR

Summary:
Get an extended warranty for the changer portion, it will malfunction eventually. Make sure you live someplace where it's not easily seen. I have an alarm and they tried to steal it twice.

Strengths:
In dash changer, cool display, everyone loves it, the remote worked great for me.

Weaknesses:
any bumps to the cd changer mechanism means your changer will get stuck in the out position. It cost me $150 the first time to fix this, and it still sticks occasionally. No removable faceplate.

Similar Products Used:
2 previous Kenwoods used before this. The Alpine has outstanding features, but it makes your car a theft target, the controls are better and the display, you also get better control over your music.