AMAZING tonal quality. Very surrounding and enveloping. If you've heard how the Burr-Brown DAC on the Kenwood Excelon series sounds, this is pretty close if not on the same level. Also, the security feature is extremely good...almost too good...more below.

A little bright, but that can be alleviated simply by turning the treble down a bit. The security though...very strange stuff. Apparently, the CD-Key that the deck uses must be the ORIGINAL CD that was used to key it. Otherwise, it won't work.

Wow, where do I start. This is quite possibly one of the best sounding CD players I have ever heard, hands down. I had a bit of trouble getting it up and running (see above), but when I did, my jaw hit the floor. I put in a test CD that I normally use for A/B'ing home theater equipment, and it sounded better than my own home theater, and right up there with some good home theater setups I've heard. The sound was warm, had just the right amount of bass, dead-on accurate, enveloping, and when I was done tuning it to my liking, makes almost all of my CD's sound like they were intended to (with the exception of White Zombie...'nuff said =) ).
Secondly, the CD pops out quick and easy, no muss or fuss. Also, the display rather surprised me. I was expecting a general run-of-the-mill Sony display, but instead, I got a really eye-catching view. It's bright in the daytime, and not overpowering at night. You also get a decent pick of display types (EQ, CD title, song title, etc). Bear in mind, though, that it has nothing to do with the sound quality, but it does add to the overall package, which is what I'm reviewing here...also a plus if you're into that sorta thing.
Lastly, I think I can identify with those of you that say you've had skipping problems with your deck. Mine doesn't really skip, but it's more of a scratching sound on every track, and it was a brand new CD. My guess is that the laser lens got out of calibration with the CD, because when I took the CD out and put it back in, I had no problems at all. Maybe it was a fluke...who knows.
Overall, I love this deck. It plays all my CD's, even my recorded ones, although I haven't tested out a CD-RW yet. But it is by far the best used CD player I've ever heard and easily destroys some of the newer CD players out right now (as of 4/2001) as far as sound quality goes...and that's what counts. I give it 5/5 on value and overall rating. Great job Eclipse. Keep up the good work.

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood eXcelon series, Pioneer Elite, Alpine, JVC (Don't laugh...it was my first cd player), and Bose.

-Sound quality is very clean. I have been able to hear vocals and instruments that I have never heard before on CDs that I have listened to many times before.
-Function buttons are easy to access and use.
-Face opens quickly to accept a disc, tracks are played quickly. Ejects dics without delay.
-Face can be tilted to your liking. Display can also be set to your liking between a clock display, spectrum analyzer display, CD text or display off.
-Eclipse Security Network gives you the peace of mind that if your deck is stolen, others can't use it unless they can decode it with a key CD which only you know. Eclipse also has a 1 year warranty against theft.

The NOB control allows you to adjust volume, bass, mid, treble, balance, fader, and sub woofer settings, but it is a little too sensitive for my liking.

Although I have had my CD deck for less than a month, I am very satisfied with the performance, looks, and hopefully the reliabilty. My burned CDs play and I have had no skipping problems. I am already thinking of getting the Eclipse sound processor, but will have to hold off because of the fat monthly mortgage bill. My other parts consist of Diamond Audio S500 Hex in the front (5 1/4 size) Diamond Audio 351i in the rear and a Precision Power PPI 5440 amp.

Similar Products Used:

This is my first CD deck for my car - no more cassettes! Wasn't sure what I was going to end up with when I first started shopping. First thought about Sony and Alpine, but one dealer recommended Eclipse. Did some research and seemed like a high quality product. Although it was more than what I wanted to spend, I am satisfied with my choice.

ease of use and sound quality. the NOB is awesome compared to buttons. the bass,mid,treble along with optional dsp/eq makes this combo unmatched for the price.

face needs to flip 180 while hu is off

the seperation and clarity are second to none. the details heard in the recording make you wonder... why haven't i heard music like this before. the speed and precision accessing tracks is top notch. the upgrades are all there. the ease of use is quick and easy. haven't had a skip yet. i'm very happy with this product. give it a try with products of similar quality. i use mb quart 218.61q front and rear, eclipse amps and solobaricl7 subs. amazing....

Similar Products Used:

nakamichi, rockford, alpine, denon, kenwood

Unbelievable! This is the best stereo I have ever owned.
Display.
Fully Functional while fully mechanical face is open.
Sound quality is unmatched.
Remote control is great.
CD Text, Title function,
DSP, Voice activated, and all those extra features.
MID RANGE!

Non Really,
But if you want to be extra picky
The mute button - takes a few seconds to click on.
Sub non fader, is not function specific.
Hi Pass, Low Pass doesn't exist, but if you know what you are doing you don't need them.

I paid a high price for this head unit for two reasons. One, there are only two Elclipse dealers in my area. Two, I bought the 5441i first and upgrade a month later to this one.
WARNING!!! THE 5441i does not compare to the 5543O. They are nothing alike.
Right now I am starting to design my dream system.
Current set up:
5443O
Eclispe 6 1/2 from 1996
Boston Acoustics 5 by 7's in the back
Rockford 10" sub in a Qlogic box mounted to the back seat
with 180 rms running it at 5 volts.
All premium wired with Monster and Tsunami.

My future system looks like this:
NB Quart 6 1/2" Separates in the Front and Back.
3 Extant subs in a custom ported box built directy on the back seat.
1 mono Extant 500 watt amp, 1 4 channel 300 watt amp.
Eclipse DSP unit
Eclipse center channel
voice activited controller

Space effiecient.

Similar Products Used:

1994 - 1999 Sony products, Pryamid, Becker, -- DOES NOT COMPARE> this stuff is great for when you have a budget and are just starting out.
5441i - bad quality, no mids, -- does not compare.

EXCELLENT DECK, nothing comparse to this. Even though I spent a lot less than everyone else, about $400 less, this deck is the bom. But if you are willing to buy it from me, just e-mail to me.

Skips, no built in crossover.

I give this deck a 5 out of 5, even though only paid $150, it was a great deal on my part. Recommend to anyone who wants a high end deck for great quality.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer DEH-P3000, the Pioneer didn't skip very much, but the sound quality isn't as good, not even as close.

Sound Quality, Clarity, Display can be disabled, ESN Security.

SKIPS A LOT!!! Ugly all green display (55430), no crossovers, got mine with front face that shakes when car is in movement and CD skips all the time. I think Eclipse should make better Quality Control.

I paid US$518 (with taxes) at Radio Active in Orlando (which is an excellent store). Unfortunattely I got my unit with the problems above. The guys at Radio Active said they would replace the unit immediately, but I live in Brazil and won´t be travelling to USA again so soon... UPS,FEDEX are not a choice since customs taxes become unreal. Be aware to buy these new 2000 units...you might have to return them more than once.
Too Bad for Eclipse reputation...

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood Excelon, Sony Xplod, Alpine and Pioneer. Kenwood and Alpine are good choices to avoid Eclipse problems and also get a good sound and better options (xovers,display,etc).

good, solid deck, set up for compition.

skipped alot, not many options

i bought this cd player(Eclipse 55430) in april just after they came out, i thought it was a good cd player but not a great one, it's not as clean as everbody says it is, i wish they would have put built in crossovers in it. i have a pioneer 8200 and i'm much happier with the pionner, it was cheaper and had alot more options than the eclipse, no more eclipse for me!

Similar Products Used:

pioneer,alpine

Excellent quality and great warranty. I had a skipping problem in the beginning and Fujitsu Ten replaced it right away.

Weak Equalizer display

I paid $500 installed. I would definately recommend Eclipse products to anyone that is looking for high end stuff. The sound quality is superb.

Similar Products Used:

n/a

Outstanding sound quality, Practical button layout w/o too many little buttons, very nice NOB, spectrum analysier, very nice looking head unit, expandablility(Commander control, DSP control, controls 2 CD changers), you can also buy another remote that has the neon blue NOB built on

hmm, they could have left the built in amplifier out of mine cause i don't need it, not sure how much 1 cd changer would cost(prolly $350), but the commander and the DSP add ons are in the neighborhood of $500 each. I would really feel better if the face would detach or if it flipped around even though it's covered by esn, there is still that downtime where you don't have a head unit and are just waiting for them to recover it.

I am glad that I decided to shop around a little when I decided to replace my Alpine 7837 Head unit that I have used for 2 years in my old car. At first I was going to go with the new Sony Mobile ES(top of the line in Crutchfield, w/ the built in EQ for $430), but I figured that if I was spending that much, that I should shop around. I went to a places near me called Butches Sound Shack. I told them the components I was using and they said that a Sony Head Unit, unless it was that 1200 dollar reference unit, would be the weakest link in my chain. I have no weak links in my chain that I know about, except I don't feel like taking the whole inside out to dynamat everything. When I first saw the 5443, I wasn't phased cause I still wanted the sony. I listened to the 5443, and indeed it sounded outstanding even with the built in amplifier, so i knew the clarity would really come through with my amplifiers. After about spending an hour deciding, leaving the store and discussing on the phone, reading Eclipse's really thick catolog(very convincing if you have the money), I decided that this lady knew her stuff and wasn't just trying to rip me off cause I was in her and her husbands store. The feel on this head unit is that of quality, it's nice to be able to kill the high volumn with two flicks of your finger. If you have a power antenna, it goes up only when the radio is on and down when a cd is playing, or the unit is off, another nice feature. Buttons use the illumination circuit wired to your headlights, so the buttons all light up and the face dims at night. Face tilts out when you hold the OPEN button, they don't tell you that in the manual. This head unit does have a motor face plate, but unlike other motorized faces, this one folds down and up with the blink of an eye, and spits your cd out immediately, unlike the sony that i have seen. One thing i didn't like and question is why they would have all three pre-amp outputs actually be seperate from the console, rather than built in, they are also unshielded and suspectable to noise. So far I haven't had any problems. It has a cell phone mute, meaning if you have a cell phone built in and powered by the car, you can hook the ground of your cell phone to a wire on the unit and it will automatically mute when it rings, yet another convienent feature. The cd player is a little touchy when you use CD-Rs that are damaged, but CD-Rs scratch much easier since there is just a piece of film as the written layer rather than a piece of aluminum as on professionally(and legal) recorded cds. There is subwoofer level control which is useful for days you are just not in the mood for mind altering bass. The dancing light display is not as flashy( i admit) as the new Sony's, but people who buy the sonys usually do so just for the look of things anyway( and db bass races). Speaking of bass races, a girl in my area last year at circuit city hit 150 db using only 2 cerwin vega stroker 12's. I think it's funny that people buy more than what they actually need and can't even hit close to this number. But anyway. The head unit includes a card type remote, which i really don't care for, but i don't really use it. I put my remote in the back anyway for people that want listen to whatever(just make sure you make it clear what number you want the volumn to not go past.) Speaking of volumn, you get audible level when you hit around 50-60 on a scale of 80. I don't know why it is like this but it is, probably has to do with the 5V preouts, which I have never had before. I have my gains set for when the maximum volumn is 70, so 70 is what i do not turn it past. I can't find anything else better to say about this head unit except it sounds really good, looks really good, has a lot of nice features and "extras." If you have the money not only for this head unit, but quality amplifiers and a cap or a beefed up alternator(not that jensen crap either or jcwhitney pyramid brand), then go for it, you will be pleased with your purchase, as I am. I paid $470+tax, installed it myself and i still get ESN( make sure you check that out and the sales person says that you will get it if you install it yourself), but i only get 1 year warrentee rather than a 3 year. I always say make sure you buy this stuff from an authorized dealer, or else you simply don't get a warentee at all and no one to ask questions to when you have them. When you have a full warenttee, stuff usally never breaks, but when it isn't covered, that's when it goes. I give this unit 5 and 5, because you only get what you pay for and what you pay for clearly shows, 'er is fed out of this head unit.

Similar Products Used:

Alpine head units, Sony ES and XES?, Kenwood Excelons, Clarion Pro Audios and oh yes McIntosh:) (not ready for that yet!)

Sound Quality, Ease of Use, Sound Quality, Volume knob as opposed to buttons, looks, sound quality.

Quality Control, Mono-color display, overpriced.

I was unfortunate and got one of the models that had problems, the bass from my pair of Eclipse 8712's tend to make it skip as will a bump in the road. The local Eclipse dealer installer was very helpful and is sending me a new unit. Otherwise, the sound quality is very good, I also love the layout and the controls, very easy to use and adjust. Subwoofer control is awesome. I don't know how good or bad the internal amplification is since I have an outboard amp. I would recommend this to anyone who just wants a kick-ass head unit, I haven't heard anything better (maybe the more upscale eclipse HU's). The place I went to sold it to me for $480.

Similar Products Used:

Stock system. Heard alpine, JVC, kenwood. Nothing can compare to Eclipse.