Aiwa CDC-X437

Price Paid:  $110.00 from Sears

Year / Model Reviewed:
2004 CDC-X437

Strengths:
It sounds great! This has got to be one of the best receivers you can get for under $200. The display looks awesome, especially at night! The source level adjuster works really well, and the auxilery input comes in handy too. You can also change the jogdial's backlight from blue to red, or have it cycle through both. Detachable faceplate helps ease the worry that someone may steal it.

Weaknesses:
It could have more preamp outs; and since I live around lots of mountains, I could benifit from a better FM sensitivity (somewhere around 9 dBf would be nice). Other than that this is a great receiver.

Summary:
Many people don't consider Aiwa when they look for CD receivers... I didn't even think about them at first. But they're really good, and they're not expensive. This is a perfect receivier if you're looking to simply put in a receiver to power your regular speakers, or if you're looking to power your regular speakers and an amp for some extra bass. I have mine powering my Profile Clarus 6.5s and 4x6s (also a good company if you don't fool with their Baja subs and amps) and it sounds great. It provides good, clean line level input to my Crunch V-2400 also.

Similar Products Used:
I have a Pioneer DEH-12 in another vehicle. The Pioneer and the Aiwa both do about 22 watts RMS, and the Aiwa has a much better display. If you decide to go with Pioneer, try to get an Organic EL display. The others are simple one-line dislpays. I also build and install sub boxes, so I have seen many different receivers.