Blaupunkt Casablanca CD51 CD Receiver

Price Paid:  $178.00 from eBay

Summary:
I upgraded from Balupunkt Alaska. This is a fantastic radio!! It is loud and clear. The controls are easy to learn and use. This has a large bright display. I have been using Blaupunkt for years. It is nice to acutally have something made in Europe instead of China!
Overall I would tell anybody to buy one!!

IT ROCKS!!!!

Price Paid:  $98.00 from Ebay

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 Casablanca

Strengths:
FM sound quality prefect Cd sound quaility great

Weaknesses:
No reception on Am or LW Slight distortion on 1 selected station

Summary:
My Casablanca is good in alll respects, the somund quailty on FM radio is second to none and the CD is as god as any on the market. teh only problem I only have is on AM(MW) and LW. they are none existant, total static on all stations, wont work at all. I dont think its the antenna, other radios work fine. This radio work fine in my collegues car, a BMW. Does anyone have a solution to the problem. The vehicle it is in is a Ford GAlaxy with the antenna built into the screen

Price Paid:  $150.00 from Crutchfield

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 Casablanca CD51

Strengths:
Terriffic sound at a low price.

Weaknesses:
No written specs for sub output.

Summary:
Very good product for the money. The fm reception is topnotch, and the cd sound quality is crystal clear. I've read about other Blaupunkt receivers skipping, but this has not been an issue at all. In fact it's installed in a Dodge Ram pick-up truck (not exactly noted for their smooth ride) and hasn't skipped yet. According to Crutchfield's specs it doesn't play CDR's, but I've yet to have a problem with any of the CDR's I've burned. The only really picky thing I'd change is this: It comes with front, rear and subwoofer pre-amp outputs. Nowhere in any of the paperwork does it say what frequency the Sub output is crossed over at, Or even if it is! I ended up using the outputs from my Amp

Similar Products Used:
various receivers from JVC, Sony and Kenwood

Price Paid:  $110.00 from Etronics.com

Year / Model Reviewed:
2002 Blaupunkt Casablanca CD51

Strengths:
Excellent FM tuner sensitivity Excellent FM tuner selectivity Bass/Treble controls in addition to EQ 5-band EQ with adjustable centerpoints Highly readable display, day or night Neutral colors on display

Weaknesses:
Undocumented GALA/Speed-sense input Possible problem with AM reception?

Summary:
I will just refer anyone to the prior reviews praising the amplifier (both preamp-out and speaker-out), EQ, and FM reception. I like the fact that you can adjust overall bass/treble in addition to the parametric EQ; some radios make you use the EQ for everything which is a time-waster for that one CD or station that needs a quick fix. The Casablanca doesn't occasionally skip like my other radio, the Alaska-II. The display is very readable compared to the Alaska-II and uses more "neutral" colors. The only problem I noted is with the AM section (yes, believe it or not, some people actually listen to AM!). I have not diagnosed the problem or figured out the cause, but even on 50kW AM stations, I get garbled audio and sometimes even static. Lower frequencies (below 1000kHz) are worse. The strange part is that when I travel under overpasses or through tunnels, the AM station actually comes in *better*! I am curious if any other CD51 owners are having this problem; it is very possible it's my antenna and not the radio. The stock Chrysler radio I replaced did not have any problems on AM. Odd. One issue I had with installation... Where do I connect the "GALA" wire for speed-sensitive volume? It is almost completely undocumented as to what the receiver expects as input from the vehicle!

Similar Products Used:
Blaupunkt Alaska-II

Price Paid:  $300.00 from Technic Autoson, Cha

Year / Model Reviewed:
 2002 Casablanca CD51

Strengths:
Really powerful receiver (really great in mountain area), parametric equalizer, sound quality, looks...

Weaknesses:
Sometimes skips dirty cd. Hard to find here in Canada.

Summary:
I buyed this deck for the digital receiver and for the parametric equalizer. Both of the are incredible. I never received this much radio station before. Alpine"s parametric equalizer don't even come close to this one. Sound quality beats major brands easyly for the price. Menu items are easy to reach and set. No extra "i'm never used" button on he panel. Used with ODca650 component it's really hard to beat for the sound quality. Good amplification: recently plug a Kenwood amplifier and the difference was berely audible.

Similar Products Used:
4 x ODca650 component, Kenwood KAC-646 amplifier