Blaupunkt Honolulu CD50 CD Receiver

Price Paid:  $0.00 from Crutchfield

Year / Model Reviewed:
2000 Blaupunkt

Summary:
I just wanted to post a hint to anyone who's having trouble with the volume control. Mine developed a malfunction where turning the knob cause near-random changes in volume level. I removed the back of the faceplate (4 Torx screws) and squirted some contact cleaner into the volume control with complete resolution of the problem.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Strengths:
Not many. Looks good in the car when it wants to work.

Weaknesses:
Very cheaply made product. Move on to something else!

Summary:
When I first got the Blaupunkt Honolulu, I loved it and appearance, backlighting etc matched my BMW's interior perfectly. But right after the warranty expired, the volume knob became very jumpy and would bounce around to different levels (up and down) when adjusted. Now, the radio only works when it wants to. Seems like there is a malfunction in the faceplate which causes the display to blank or the radio to not work at all.

Price Paid:  $155.00 from ebay

Strengths:
Uh, not too many

Weaknesses:
See above. Preouts, internal amp, tuner, volume knob, cd player.

Summary:
At first, I loved this cd player. It has great rca output voltage, played all my cd''s and cdr''s, and was generally very good sounding. Then, I started noticing things. One, my cD player ate a cd and I had to send it in for warranty repair. The one they sent back had a white cd mechanism (the old one was black). This indicates to me that they had to improve or change something in the cd section. It worked fine from then on, even though it would often not show the right track# or elapsed time. I would see 00:00 during whole songs. When it''s cold outside, the preouts have a low frequency hum when the volume is decreased. It went away when I unplugged my rca''s. Then I hooked speakers up to the internal amp. If you turn it past 42 (out of 66--why does it need to go to 66? you can''t even hear anything until it hits about 20) there was a lot of background hiss and a pop with every notch of volume that you change. Then there''s the tuner. It is weak. It barely pulls in AM stations at all and they increase and decrease in volume as you hit bumps. The fm stations go in & out of stereo all the time. And this is in a fairly large city. Get a unit with digiceiver.

Similar Products Used:
Clarion 5177 from 1995--perfect except it skips a little, great tuner. Pioneer deh-p300, p2100--great units NEVER skip and play everything. Jensen cd511k--ok except no cdr''s and skips.

Price Paid:  $200.00 from Crutchfield

Strengths:
Great power. Great sound. Low price for the performance.

Weaknesses:
None

Summary:
Great buy. Never had a problem with it. Gives good power to my aftermarket speakers. Sound quality is very good, as is reception.

Price Paid:  $319.00 from http://www.HifiDirec

Year / Model Reviewed:
 2000 CD50

Strengths:
Virtually everything. I got this unit on sale, so I might be over-emphasising the value-for-money bit, but I have to say that for the money, this unit is brilliant. Plenty of features, good power output (almost 21w RMS @12v), and good sound quality. I only have cheap speakers (Pioneer 4" coax''s in the front, and Sony Xplod 6.5" dual cone''s in the rear) and this unit makes them sound a lot better than they deserve. Good midbass, and great treble, very clear. I look forward to coupling some Overdrive 6x9"s and 6.5" Overdrive splits to this unit.

Weaknesses:
Not much. About all I can really criticise is the action of the buttons, and the flip-down mechanism...the buttons travel a long way when pressed, and really don''t feel all that sure of themselves, but they work. The flip-down mechanism is a little basic, and there is no dust-brush around the CD slot, which might trouble some people. Apart from that, a dedicated subwoofer pre-out would have been good, but as far as I''m concerned, that''s what the Casablanca unit (and an extra AUD$400) is for.

Summary:
Great unit, overall. I would recommend this unit to anyone who wants great sound on a not-so-great budget. Stands up well to the Blaupunkt name, and walks all over pretty much anything in this price range, as far as features, quality, and output are concerned. I have certain friends who view Alpine as the "one and only" but I have to say, as far as power and s/q goes, this unit gives an AUD$800+ (US$400+) Alpine unit a serious go. Sure, it might not have as many features, but I saved a good AUD$500 so I''m not complaining at all.

Similar Products Used:
Sony Xplod 4800XR (2000 model) unit...this unit has less features than the Honolulu, and cost me more. I wouldn''t recommend any Sony Xplod product unless you''re into looks, or don''t care a whole l