Tarmac_Terrorist Posted June 24, 2007 Report Share Posted June 24, 2007 Finally got round to replacing the standard 'Okikoki 300' head unit. After much consideration between Alpine, Pioneer and Kenwood double din units, I went for the Kenwood. Why? Well cost was a major factor, so that tended to rule out the Alpine (although Alpine is my favourite brand and the one I would have gone for cost aside. Secondly, I wanted bluetooth phone connection, sat nav (with option to add on speed camera POI's etc) ipod video connection, and a DVD player to keep the little ones happy. It was a close call between the Pioneer and Kenwood but the only reason I went for the Kenwood in the end was the Garmin sat nav (internal hard drive)which would allow me to add in POI's via a SD card. I was a bit concerned that with the Pioneer that I would have to remove the Nav disc to play CD'S / DVD's (I'm not adding a seperate disc stacker) and the Disc in time could get damaged and is costly to replace. That said, I do think that overall the Pioneer has a more advanced nav set up on it and comes with a Canbus conection. As I only cover small mileage and generally not in city centres, I wasn't overly concerned about this. From a sound point of view, it sounds miles apart from the VW OEM unit. Much more punch, greater clarity and depth. I've retained the standard speakers for now but will probably upgrade the front speakers and add a small easy to remove sub woofer in the boot before too long to add some further depth to the sound. I'm not looking to penetrate the neighbours double glazing but just want a decent sounding system that I actually want to switch on and listen to rather than just 'hear'. The complete package came in cheaper than the OEM sat nav unit and personally, I don't reckon it looks too bad. Anyway...here's some pics taken earlier. Apologies for clarity as they're taken in the garage (dark)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRobin Posted June 24, 2007 Report Share Posted June 24, 2007 Looking good . This kind of kit gives far better value than either the OEM option or the removable SatNavs. I like that "Ready to Navigate" interface screen. I assume it's a touch screen. You might not feel any need to change from the OEM speakers with such a setup - Unless you're into some serious listening while sat in a dark garage! . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHA Posted June 24, 2007 Report Share Posted June 24, 2007 Do you have the multifunction wheel TT? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaysgti1 Posted June 24, 2007 Report Share Posted June 24, 2007 good unit, what model is it. ive got last years the ddx 6029 you can get cambus lead fitted for town driving it hink its £150. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarmac_Terrorist Posted June 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2007 DHA - no, I didn't spec the multifunction wheel. I'm not sure if it's supported by Kenwood. The model is DNX 7200. You can spec a canbus if you want although Kenwood claim not nesessary. I've just got mine operating off the internal Giro. So far so good, seems to work very well. The thing I liked about this model is that the nav is all built in - no seperate box to hide away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnysenna Posted June 25, 2007 Report Share Posted June 25, 2007 I have the Pioneer AVIC 1BT. Wish I had have waited for the 3BT that has just come out. Reason? It has USB connectivity to iPOD meaning it has real time control over the iPOD, the 1BT takes too long to go through the iPOD menus. Apart from that, it is amazing. My multifunction steering wheel works for the volume only (Highline trip computer functions carry on as normal). It has Blue Tooth handsfree, hard drive sat nav, plays films, a 40G internal hard drive for storing tunes on top of the iPOD controller. The 40G tunes hard drive is fast to access, unlike the iPOD. I would probably recommned the new modified 3BT to anyone with 2 grand burning a hole in their pocket!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdyGTI Posted June 25, 2007 Report Share Posted June 25, 2007 That looks nice when installed, I must stop looking at these upgrade threads as they're giving me urges Comming from a standard Focus I was initially disapointed with the headunit but I have got used to it although I still think it's poor for the type of car. What benefit would the canbus adapter give with this unit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martialyang Posted July 25, 2007 Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 What on earth is a canbus? Looks excellent TT! Think I'm in a similar situation. Want a double din unit for sat nav, bluetooth, playing MP3 CDs and one that allows me to update speed camera locations, but don't quite want to spend the cash needed for the Pioneer. Seen the Kenwood 7200 for about 735 on eBay. Cheapest I've seen the Pioneer go for so far on eBay is around a grand. How are you finding the sat nav? Is the GPS receiver built into the unit itself? Just wondering if the signal strength is OK because I sometimes drive through central London which can get problematic with my TomTom 300. Did you install the unit yourself? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silentandy Posted July 25, 2007 Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 I have the DNX 7200 - it has a separate GPS receiver unit as most units do. I positioned mine just underneath the middle air vent and have yet to have any signal problems around the country. Admittedly I haven't tried it in London, but it works fine in the centre of Birmingham at least As for can-bus, I got the adapter just for ease of installation. With this it really is just plug and play, you don't have to find ignition switched live etc and has the benefit of auto dimming when the lights are on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silentandy Posted July 25, 2007 Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 Forgot to add for anyone that has one of these or the G520 there are software updates available from here: http://www.garmin.com/products/kenwood/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarmac_Terrorist Posted July 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 My understanding is that a Canbus receives pulse signals from the car's electronic systems which tell it how fast the car is going both forwards and backwards. Kenwood aparently dont recommend using one with the 7200. The benefit of a canbus could be in a city centre if you lost GPS signal, your sat nav would be provided with info as to your speed and direction. That said, my 7200 has never so far lost signal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoopy Posted July 25, 2007 Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 CANbus Meens Controller Area Network. Its a serial communication system used on many makes of car to connect individual systems and sensors, as an alternative to conventional mutiwire looms. It works on a similar principle to computer data bus systems. Most cars CANbus networks operate at a bus speed of 250KHz, but there are systems out there operating at up to 1MHz. The canbus controller is connected to the nodes of the network (Sensors etc) by two wires CAN-H and CAN-L these lines are reference to each other not the cars ground so makes interference less of a problem. Since the Bus is seriel all the nodes see all the data all the time each node only rsponds when it sees its own identifier. Not all CANbus systems on every make of car carry the same information some will have more systems integrated and some will have less. In the case of the golf many systems are integrated but on the audio side these are more or less limited to Light dimming, ignition on/off, speed pulse (used for GPS) Reverse gear selected etc. The next step on from CANbus is MOST this is a fibreoptic based bus system and is used in top end BMWs, Mercs and Audi's and is a real pain in the Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarmac_Terrorist Posted July 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 Yeah...that's what I meant to say....sort of..... ....... Thanks Geoff - that makes more sense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now