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First off, this headunit is well worth $200. I would never spend the $500+ it retails for, though. This is my 3rd JVC headunit. I bought this one mainly so I could plug my external hard drive into it and play all my music. I cannot comment on video capabilities, as I have not tried it yet, I might edit this review when I do.

The Good:

Great looks, Cool factor. Performs well, even in cold weather when my old headunits would work slowly. Relatively easy to use, contrary to what others have said. The controls are not difficult to figure out, but I wouldn’t want to mess with it too much while driving, there are a lot of menus to scroll through. Stealthy all-black when turned off.

The Annoying:

If you have subs, you may be annoyed by this. There is only one sub output connection, requiring you to buy a y-connector so you can plug your RCAs from the amp into the headunit. Instead of having the normal Right/Left sub outputs, it has one sub and one for the center speaker for surround sound.. odd. So, your subs will no longer be right/left, but they will be the same. Not a big deal for me. Your only other option is to go back to the stone age and use the rear speaker rca outputs for your subs, but then you have to use the equalizer settings to turn all of the bass off from the speakers.

This brings me to my next point. The subwoofer settings are way, way to loud. With my old JVC, I had the subs set on +4 on a scale from 0 to 12. This headunit defaults the setting on 0 on a scale of -6 to +8. 0 is way too much bass and -6 is still too much. Luckily, I have a bass switch from my amp and turned that all the way down as well. Now it sounds normal. Maybe there is some type of setting that I need to change, I’m not sure.

Like someone else mentioned, the touchpad is hard to use while driving. Skipping tracks/folders, etc. is not too bad, but turning up the volume sometimes proves difficult. If you hit a bump in the road while you are trying to adjust the volume, you will likely bump another button and skip to the next track, radio station, etc. I just use the remote for volume adjustments, its easier.

Also, it takes a solid 60-90 seconds to read my external hard drive, though I do have 11GB of music (around 3,000 songs) on it. It also took a long time (much longer than my old JVC) to read an mp3 cd with around 70 songs on it. Navigating the folders/songs on the external HD takes a while, as only about 10 at a time show on the screen and I haven’t figured out how to scroll down more than one at a time. Not a big issue, b/c I usually just use the random/shuffle feature rather than looking for a specific song.

You have to go through 3 screens to get to the Random option for USB. Every time you choose a specific track, change sources or turn off the headunit, it resets to normal mode and you have to select random again.

Overall, it is another great unit from JVC (I’ve owned 3). Very nice features, just a few annoying things about it. I might not have figured all of the controls out yet, but then again, I haven’t really touched the manual, so some of my “annoying” things may be solved once I figure out all of the controls/settings. I would definitely recommend it, its a bargain at this price.
Rating: 4 / 5

I have had this unit working for about 2 weeks now… everything intergrates well, except the IPHONE, but i dont have one (friends). I just simply bought the bluetooth adapter by motorola and have had no problems. sounds is crystal clear… downside is you will probably want to disconnect the ipod when using your phone bluetooth, bc the controls get confused (still working on this problem, will probably figure out shortly).

bluetooth is integrated into the headunit and has 3 mic setting i keep mine on standard 2 setting and all my friends hear me just fine. i like this becuase i didnt have to run a stupid looking mic in my car and it looks sleak and professional… i really like that when you turn it off the face is blackout and you dont have to worry about it being stolen and untop of that it doesnt look like something from outerspace in your car with 10,000 silver buttons…

my stereo play better now and definately has a punchier bass… i was skeptical of this unit from the reviews, but really the interface isnt as hard to use as people are saying… at first you’ll touch the screen where the options are until you realize it isnt a touch screen head unit, but after that its all downhill… if you take 10 minutes to read through the simple manual you’ll have no problems… you should be able to use all abilities and install was easy to do with a friend…

in addition the easiest way to control the unit while driving is the remote… so overall it will be way better than any factory head and if you want to expand your options you can do so without a crazy looking headunit…

pros: easy install, better sound, better video, bluetooth works easily….

cons: none if you go bluetooth route… aka you dont need that add on cable…
Rating: 4 / 5

Pros: Excellent video quiality, good audio quality, high compatibility, iphone bluetooth compatibility.

Cons: long time usb reading, no iphone compatibility (cable option).
Rating: 4 / 5

I’m addicted to new tech in car radios and this have great features, love the blue tooth for the phone no more tickets, was easy to install to DVD screen and sound equipment, all in all it’s been the best acquisition this far.
Rating: 5 / 5