awesome unmatched sound quality.i bought mine when they first came out.and noticed all the sound quality competitions winners had this unit. i have a Fosgate 3500 watt amp on 2 Alpine type R sub's in a ported enclosure and a 500 watt Fosgate on 2 sets of MBQuart Q series 6 1/2's and 2 inch tweeter's and back when they were popular and had songs in the top 10 i was the security for the country music group Shenandoah and at least 15 times they sat in my car listening to music because they couldnt believe the sound i was getting out of a car stereo plus some serious spl.they said they are surrounded by speaker's on stage but it did not compare to my car. i felt very proud by their remark's because i put alot of time into picking each piece to deliver quality sound plus spl and designed and installed it myself.

the only weakness i found is it refuse's to play cd-r disc and now i wished i could have it upgraded to use a memory card. but i live in the country on a gravel road and it's never skipped.

4V Preouts, Awesome Sound Quality / Clarity, Large Display, Too Many Features, Hardly Ever Skips, Ai-Net rulez (u can put anything to it)

Not really good at playin CDRs display is not clear at various angles and in sunlight too

This is the best Head Unit i've ever had. i've used loadz of them b4 but this one certainly rulez. I've connected this head unit to Alpine TDA 5635 (cassete player with integrated DSP and EQ / analyzer) via Ai-NET and then conected my Alpine 6 Cd changer to it (5635). i bought a remote controller separately. and almost everything can be controlled thru the remote (inc. Equalizer setup, surround selection, cassete player, Cd, changer, tuner, u name it). plus i can control everything from the 7949, no need to rewind the cassete from the cassete player, do it frm the Cd player instead (bcuz my cassete player is relatively lower in the dash. a lil harder to approach it. as far as the speakers and subs r concerned, a pair of kenwood 718 (7x10" rear speakers) and kenwood front speakers are connected an a four channel amplifier (linear accoustics) and Rockfor Fosgate sub on a kenwood two channel amp (modified as mono amp) and u guyz gotta believe me, my friends r threatning me tht they'll steal tht system someday bcuz it sounds so crispy and clear and loud at the same time :d

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Mostly Alpine but hav used kenwood, pioneer and clarion and none of them even closer to it in sound quality...

maximum sound quality, one of the best! does not skip at all...unless ur CD's scratched up.

does not play CD-Rs or CD-RWs hich is sad...becuz 99% of my CD's are CD-Rs and 1% are CD-RWs.....

had this in my car for quite some time now...its a great unit indeed..and for the price...its a great Steal! If you plan on having one...be sure to detach the face everytime you leave your car...

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Pioneers, Clarion, Eclipse

Excellent sound quality, many features, ease of use, layout/buttons are great.

Average station reception at best, and terrible cd/cd-r reader. slightest bumps on road cd's skip, and do not try to load cd-r's into this thing, will not play. I agree with most on here that the sound quality is worthy of (some) price, however there are better deals to be had. And to top it off, 'customer service' at Alpine is a joke(check out for yourself), no email support (try finding an address!) and 800 number not much help.

Overall i give the product an average rating, failings include cd/cd-r playback/skip, and a general lack of any customer service from the company. There are better deals to be had, better companies to buy from.

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Sold a clarion which did not skip, however the sound quality wasn't even close (older model).

sound quality, Wont skip driving in the biggest of potholes

WILL NOT PLAY 50 of my 75 BURNED CD-R's. Very dissapointing. CD's even when finalized will not play

Great Sound quality, Copper plated chassis. nice features.

-great sound quality -good look -easy user interface -4v pre-outs -copper plated cage -efficiany (no pre-amp)

-no center channel -doesn' play some cd-r

the head unit is very smooth. it has awesome sound quality, but it is definately gheto. it is designed for spl and eq's. the spl thing is great, but i am not one for a lot of eq's. my biggest problem with the unit is the fact that it has serious problem playing burned cd's. i have found one brand of cd-r's that work with this head unit--> maxell. other than that one problem, i love the unit.

SOUND QUALITY Optical digital output, awesome for alpine processors

Very hard to see deck in sunlight. Remote has to be directly pointed at the deck.

The sound quality is unmatched. I haven't hooked up a processor, because they are quite pricey. If you want a deck with a bunch of features this is not your deck. CDR's are kind of slow but i have cleaned it recently and it seems to work alot better. If you want sound quality this is your deck, no question. If you pick up a newer Alpine remote it works a little better.

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I'm a big Alpine fan, so i mostly have only had Alpine decks.

Crystal clear sound. quiet unit. Mine hasnt skipped once even on the roughest roads.

Display sucks...mine is burnt out. reading CD-R's is not its strength.

sound quality is extraordinary, although the PXA-h600 has to do with that. Sounds like my audiophile home system. If yoru speakers and amps are good, this should be the ultimate unit combo.

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JVC LDX-300 Kameleon, Blaupunkt somethin...

Astounding sound quality (especially when hooked up via its optical output)
Great features
Pure and simple design

-VERY difficult to read display in sunlight
-Terrible at reading CD-R's
-Remote control is useless (except when contolling outboard AiNet components)

Simply put, this is the holy grail of headunits. This headunit plays clean, accurate music perfectly. I have mine hooked up optically with Monster TOSLINK cable to an Alpine PRA-H400 and have heard nothing comparable in a car. Obviously, speakers, amplifiers and installation methods do play a critical role in determining the final result. Although more expensive than you run of the mill headunit, the best never comes cheaply. If you are looking for a headunit worthy of your top of the line speakers and amplifiers, look no further.

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Alpine 7840

A lot of features, large display, excellent sound

Too expensive

Sound quality is very good. I also like the large display with minimal buttons. Most of the features are set it and forget it. Anyone who can't operate this radio probably doesn't know how to operate a tooth brush either. I had this radio in my previous car about a year and unfortunately it now sits in my basement as I haven't put it in my new car.

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Eclipse, Sony, Clarion