I am looking for a replacement for my Pioneer Avic Z3 - I love the Hard Drive and everything.. but it could be better... and I just can't get excited about the F series after playing with one.. the screen look a *little* better, but everything is MUCH slower and boot times are stupid. and the EQ is worse (doesn't have the staging like the Z3) - the only kinda good thing is the 4 volt pre outs. (on the expensive one)

Well i just noticed on Crutchfield that kenwood is about to release their new HU
Kenwood Excelon DNX9140 (click for link)


I've never actually used a Kenwood HU - but just from what I see on crutchfield --
I see that it has 5 volt pre outs! and uses Garmen navigation (that they might actually update unlike Pioneers HUs) and it has a 13 band EQ although i wonder if it is a stupid and lazy as pioneers EQ setting.. It doesn't have a HD - but can play music off of a flash drive or DVD which is awesome!

just thought I would inform you guys.. and ask if anyone out there has an experience with Kenwoods HU's and could tell me what they thought...

 

1800 bucks? daaaaaaaaaaaamn.

 

that's the Crutchfield price..... not the REAL price.

 

compare it with the 8120. i still think the 8120 is better. they deleted some features in the newer model for some reason. there are 2 relay controls built in that they got rid of and some other little things. not sure why it is an upgrade and much more expensive too.

 

Understood. But it'll still probably be >$1000. Compare that to the $555 for the Pioneer F90BT I just installed for a friend. That Kenwood really doesn't have much on the F90BT. Garmin brand GPS which is nice, but I haven't had many problems with Pioneer's. 5V versus 4V preout, a volt extra. Not a huge deal. Pioneer includes the iPod cable that allows video output, Kenwood's is sold separately. (Theirs doesn't specify if it allows iPod video transfer either) Name brand Parrot bluetooth with the Kenwood. Nice, but again, I've had no problems with the newer bluetooth in the F90BT. In short, it's small potatoes for a lot of extra money.

Once a fix is figured out for the boot times/speed , it'll really be an unstoppable deal. Until then, I do feel your pain on this aspect.

 

The new Eclipse AVN726e is now out as well, a huge upgrade from the last years model and much more inline with how the system needs to perform. The Kenwood for this year has priced themselves out of the market, at least a 25% increase in dealer cost from the 8120 is my best guess (not at the shop to check), whereas the Eclipse has plummeted in price to gain their piece of the pie.

 

Have you heard how well the new Eclipse and Kenwood perform compared to their previous units?

Price isn't the issue for me.. I want something that I have have a really good built in EQ with hi voltage pre outs and still have some nice features.. I just can't seem to be really happy with any that I have seen yet..

I've only really used the Pioneer Z, D, and F series and played in the store with the old kenwood and eclipse...

Which one do you think is (or will be) the best if money isn't part of the equation...

 

the 8120 is still more bang for the buck. more features and cheaper.

 

So far the new Eclipse has proven to be a top notch unit based on the reviews available from the industy people. I have my first two units in transit to me sometime in the next two weeks. The new unit is a large scale upgrade from the older AVN6620 platform.