Car Audio Buff » Pioneer

Pioneer GM-6400F Review

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 01:01:26 +0000

4-Channel Bridgeable Amplifier

The GM-6400F is one of Pioneer’s latest amplifiers (2009 model) and was designed to fit both cosmetically and technically with Pioneer subwoofers. The GM-6400F gives you total installation freedom and no distortion.

With an H-shaped chassis for vibration control and a PWM regulated power supply, you can drive multiple speaker channels or subwoofers and turn your in-car audio experience into the sound staging environment you’re looking for.

Review by E. Rodriguez, Miami

I installed this amp in my F-150 two weeks ago and wanted to test it out a bit before submitting my review and so far, I couldn’t be happier. My mids and highs are extremely clear now and I can actually hear small details in music that I couldn’t hear before with just my pioneer head unit powering my speakers. I’m using this amp together with a GM-5400t bridged powering a 10″ Kicker CVT and the systems sounds extremely clear even at high volumes with no distortion.

Being a relatively cheap amp, I wasn’t expecting much out of it but I’m truly impressed by it’s output and clarity. I also read that the previous version of this amp the GM-6300f had some overheating issues but I think they have been resolved with this model. I have two amps mounted behind my rear seat with barely any ventilation and neither of them have turned off once. I’m sure that there are better amps out there but in this price range, I can’t imagine one being better.

Review by Andrew R. Williams, Miami

Been in my car for a month or so now and sounds great. I have it hooked up to my 4 factory in-car speakers (98 Eclipse Infinity speakers) and they sound crystal clear and very loud. All my settings are set to default out of the box on the amp and the stereo is set for max highs and slightly below highest setting for mids. I don’t need to go higher on any of the gain values default is great on the amp. Although I’m not using this amp for any bass it sounds great if I do turn the bass level above 0 on my stereo (I have a separate amp for bass on a sub).

One thing I didnt like is the way the speaker out part is. They are ontop of each other but the rears extrude out further as if they where steps. It sticks out quite a bit and for some reason left and right are backwards so its right speaker and then left? Besides that its a great amp, looks nice to with the black and the red on the sides.

Pioneer GM-6400F

Pioneer AVIC-F900BT Review

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 09:22:14 +0000

Features

5.8-inch touchscreenMap data on flash driveVoiceBox for voice control of iPod and BluetoothMSN Direct (with subscription) Satrad (Sirius or XM) and HD Radio ready. Steering wheel control compatibility (optional, requires separate interface)DVD playbackSix-channel preamp outputs (front, rear, subwoofer).

Navigation

The main selling point for most consumers, of course, is going to be the navigation. The map data covers the U.S., including Alaska and Hawaii (and Canada) on a 2GB flash drive. That contains the usual list of POIs as well. The graphics are fine and the lane departure indicator is terrific, but the voice guidance could have provided faster alerts to turns on surface streets and exits off freeways, for example. But the bigger problem was that accessing data can test your patience. Searching for a POI “around the current GPS location” requires a wait of a few seconds to get to the next menu window. Also, I looked for Nixon’s library locally as a tourist attraction, but it wasn’t listed on the search result. When I typed it in on another search I finally got the address. So there are some things you might think should be more intuitive than it is; however, I should add that I find this kind of problem a lot with various nav devices. What compounds the issue of an already slow system is something more fundamental: I counted anywhere from 30 to 60 seconds for the system to load when I started the car. The only thing I could do during that time was insert a CD and adjust the volume. Whether or not this is a big deal will depend on your level of patience. I just don’t happen to have a lot of it.

There are issues such as the above that make what was potentially an amazing product a decent product instead. The lesser-than-average visibility of the monitor, especially during the day, the average touchscreen responsiveness and the flat, difficult-to-use volume knob also detract from what was a great concept: a multimedia navigation unit priced for the masses. Early adopters of the AVIC F-series have encountered problems with the Bluetooth, iPod functionality, and the system loading time. On the F900BT, I experienced dropped calls as well. To address the different problems Pioneer released a firmware update. You can go to the company’s website, pioneerelectronics.com and go to the navigation section. There are explicit directions for downloading the firmware and for loading it via SD card to your F900BT or other F-series unit (the F500BT is excluded). You’ll find that it will improve the performance of a product, making it that much more worth the price. And ultimately, at this price point (and that is the point) there isn’t another product with as much to offer and that is as easy to use while being so feature-rich. The question is: How much is too much for a product with great and various capabilities that are countered by some functionality issues? There are always value or quality trade-offs when you buy things. I would suggest you go for your own testdrive to determine if the new AVIC is worth it for you. I should note that the latest shipment of AVICs have the firmware included, which should make your decision to buy a little easier.

General

The double-DIN AVIC-F900BT unit with a 5.8-inch touchscreen has map data (from TeleAtlas) completely contained on a flash drive. A lot of nav users will be glad to hear that DVD-ROMs are no longer necessary. So, you have navigation, DVD playback, and music galore via disc, iPod, a thumb drive, or an SD card, not to mention HD Radio and satellite radio with adapters, which have to be purchased separately. Conveniently, there’s also a mini-jack connection on the face of the source unit. The 3.5mm mini-jack aux input is a great feature, but that too requires Pioneer’s CD-RM10 cable in order for you to connect an A/V device to the unit.

The AVIC also has Bluetooth. You can connect three phones and the F900BT will store 400 contacts; it allows you to be totally hands-free. That applies for accessing music from your iPod as well. The F900BT has voice recognition software (called the VoiceBox Conversational Voice Search Platform) that makes it possible for you to select music folders and tracks by voice command. As with a lot of voice command systems, it can have problems understanding your requests. Be it the Ford Sync, the AVIC-Z3, or a separate aftermarket Bluetooth kits-I’ve yet to find a product that works as advertised in terms of the voice recognition quality. In theory, you can make calls, select tracks off your iPod, and even make some navigation commands just by using your voice. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than not having the option. Caveats or not, the above features are a pretty amazing collection of options. They may be found on other pre-existing (and separate) products, but at $1,100, this seems to be a real steal.

Add the option for MSN Direct for traffic information, movie time listings, and a list of the gas stations with the best per gallon prices and more, and you can see why I say that the F900BT is the complete package. MSN Direct is a must-have. And the GOOG-411 service is a nice add-on feature. You can use it to search for and connect to local businesses via a toll-free number. The only thing that is important to me that the unit lacks is the ability for DVD-Audio or, say, SACD playback. But then when was the last time you actually bought a disc in one of those formats? OK, not big misses there. On the audio side, the F900BT takes care of business, and will probably be robust enough for most music fans. There are seven preset EQ curves; and you can make a couple of your own custom EQ settings. There’s also a three-band parametric EQ that allows you to select the Q factor, a highpass filter, adjustable loudness, and SLA (source level adjustment) to keep your volume settings consistent over different sources.

Pioneer AVIC-F900BT

Pioneer DEH-P800PRS Review

Sun, 11 Jan 2009 17:38:54 +0000

Product Feature

Auto-EQ and Auto-Time Alignment
Dual (L/R) 16-Band Graphic EQ
Burr-Brown DACs for the purest sound
Hi-Volt (5V) Pre-Outs

The DEH-P880PRS uses an exclusive White OEL (Organic Electro-Luminescent) display. This creates a clean, easy-to-read display that easily fits in with any dashboard.

For extra convenience, selected OEL models now come with a multi-language display, which can show information in three different languages-English, French, or Spanish. Using the Rotary Commander, allows the user to change default language for all screen displays and menus.

Pioneer DEH-P800PRS