Sony ES CDX-C580

Year / Model Reviewed:
 1999

Strengths:
Simple to use. Sounds clean enough for an average to slightly above average system. Direct CD loading is nice and rare these days. If your throwing a CD in at a stop light the doors on newer units are just a nuisance. Plays CD-R's quite well.

Weaknesses:
No electonic Shock protection. In cold weather this unit skips!! No Sub Woofer out.

Summary:
Installed this unit myself in an integra using a really handy adapter for honda/acura cars, I didn't have to cut any wires! highly recomended. I buy the sony ES gear as I think sony puts more effort in the sound quality than in their base models. To be honest the rest of my system is currently pretty poor with a small Fosgate 40X2 amp and a bazooka tube. I guess the highlight would be the AVI separate mids and tweets. for this reason I can only say the unit sounds ok. I think the unit looks sharp, most sony product do - witht the exception of the explode stuff - just my opinion. In retrospect I would have bought the c7850 even tough I don't like thos flip down faces. The biggest reason is the skipping in the cold whether. the skip protection is obviously based on mechanics that behave differently at low temperature. It is actually quite robust in the summer!
I would like a sub out too.

Similar Products Used:
Old alpine pullout deck. both were good units for their era.

Year / Model Reviewed:
 1999

Strengths:
Decent control layout, handsome look, radio station labels (i.e. KHIH instead of 95.7), flip lever next to volume control for track selection

Weaknesses:
A bit pricey for the feature set, volume control cams failing, no loundess control and only bass/treble controls

Summary:
I paid almost $400 for this Sony last January. I've found since then that you can get a JVC head unit with tons more features for less money, including a remote control, a loudness-compensation circuit, multiple sound equalizations for different types of music (pop, rock, etc.), and an RCA-in jack for plugging in an auxiliary audio device (like a tape player for audio books or a laptop computer for MP3s). You'd have to check local stores to get exact pricing, but my friend seems much happier with his JVC than I've ever been with the Sony.

The main problem for me is the lack of a loudness-compensation circuit. It wouldn't be so bad if I had a sedan or coupe, since the trunk acts as a natural subwoofer for bass response. But I have an SUV, and with no trunk, I'm pretty much dependent on the bass performance of my full-range drivers in the doors. I bought a good set of front and rear Polk Audio speakers last summer, and a REALLY good Kenwood amp last month, and now that I have quality equipment to back up the otherwise excellent sound coming from the head unit, I really miss a loudess-compensation circuit for bass purposes. I simply can't get any bass out of the Sony unless I turn the bass setting up to maximum. But you only get bass and treble controls, so when you turn the bass up that high it really colors the overall sound. I know those Polks are capable of more bass than they're producing now, and like I said they're pretty much all I've got. (I have no interest in putting in a bulky subwoof; my cargo area isn't exactly cavernous as it is...) I could get an external EQ but that'd just be another device in the system to muddy the sound. At any rate, ~$400 really ought to buy you a loudness control these days.

The other problem is the volume control; it's a rotary digital, and the cams wore down after only 9 months. The same thing happened to some friends of mine who had a Sony that was like 2 models up from mine. I don't know how well the JVC will stand the test of time, but my gut feel is that it'll probably do better than the Sony.

I do like the ability to program in actual labels for radio stations (for example, KHIH instead of 95.7), and the control layout seems fairly logical. But if you lose power to the unit, you have to program them all in again (and 30 stations worth takes a lot of time to program!). One time I tried to insert a CD, and the CD transport's motor wouldn't take it right away. It must have freaked somehow because when it finally did, the unit reset itself to factory settings and I had to re-program everything. That was probably just a fluke, but these days I'm a lot more careful now about how I put in my CDs!...

Bottom line: the Sony is an acceptable unit, and owners of cars with trunks ["boots" for all you UK'ers! :)] will probably never miss a loudness control or EQ so long as your rear drivers are of decent size. But truck and SUV folks will probably have to look to a subwoofer or an external EQ for adequate bass response. Either way, compare features before you buy! I prefer to rely on the experiences of others myself, and it was the good experience my friends had with the aforementioned high-end Sony that prompted me to buy this unit. But I'm harboring secret hopes that this unit will fail on me altogether so I can have an excuse to put in a JVC!

Similar Products Used:
JVS of my friend's; don't know model number

Summary:
I have had the 580 for one year now, and now that I look back on my purchase, am really quite pleased. The zero bit mute detector is really nice, and the onboard amp is very good for only being deck power. The only real disappointment I have is that it does not have a dedicated subwoofer pre-out. The dual illumination is really handy. I also like the disk info option. Overall, a good unit.

Summary:
Just purchased the car deck a month ago and I love it. I was looking at the CDXC780 but the dog or horse turned me off. The only difference I noticed was the CDXC780 had 45W X 4 instead of 40W X 4. I also liked the fact that I could remove the face plate. I purchased the remote and use it all the time, it's so easy to use. Now I have to replace my factory installed speakers which are 15 watts max. Currently, I'm looking at the Boston RX67's 6 1/2 speakers all the way around because I don't want to do any cutting. I also liked the HIGHS on the sony es mobile XS603g speakers, three way speakers are pretty cool, But I know sony doesn't even make their own speakers so I'm in a delimma. Hmmm...Decisions...