What after-market Radio/CD do you guys have?
12-25-2003, 06:26 PM
#31
Although I seem to be almost the lone prophet of doom on this topic, let me again suggest caution in placing stereo equipment in the trunk. In the event of a particular crash/accident, such equipment could serve to puncture the fuel tank and/or brake fuild reservoir and/or ignite fuel.
12-25-2003, 06:36 PM
#32
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Steve, seem you and others here are Greatful Dead fans. I know nothing about the Greatful Dead, but am willing to learn and try a CD out in the 993. Can you make a recommendation of a couple of their most popular CDs. Thanks.
PS: As a point of reference, I have about 12 year on you, and went to college at USC when LBJ was president and I got into the Beatles and Doors, but somehow missed the GD.
PS: As a point of reference, I have about 12 year on you, and went to college at USC when LBJ was president and I got into the Beatles and Doors, but somehow missed the GD.
12-25-2003, 10:13 PM
#33
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I've got the McIntosh MX-406, Focal Polykevlar KP165's, Focal rear 4" coaxials, an Audison amp, and two Image Dynamic 8" subs sitting in the closet. Rod Birch will be installing the whole shebang as soon as my car is out of 4-month surgery.
12-26-2003, 02:27 AM
#34
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Dr. Z:
I do like the Alpine 7909 except the feel of the controls. They are a little vague/course to get set and have it stay. This is even a more petty complaint, but I do not like to constant clock display when the unit is switched off. I would prefer a competely dark unit.
To settle things once and for all head unit wise, I was able to pick up both an Alpine 7990 F1 and a Clarion 9255 to compare. Both units were new in the box. Doing a blind A/B test, both a friend of mine and I chose the Clarion 9255 over the new Alpine using my home lab test bench. Really surprised us, but the 9255 had much better sonic quality. Hard to believe given the 7990's pedigree.
The 7990 F1 did not have a lot of depth to the sound. I wonder if Alpine really intended the unit to only be used with the matching digital processor. The unit alone was rather dissapointing. Very well built, but certainly not worth the money for how it sounded...
I am going to get my new two way front door setup working, then switch the head units. Should keep me out of trouble for the next few weekends.
Did you stay with your Nak???
I do like the Alpine 7909 except the feel of the controls. They are a little vague/course to get set and have it stay. This is even a more petty complaint, but I do not like to constant clock display when the unit is switched off. I would prefer a competely dark unit.
To settle things once and for all head unit wise, I was able to pick up both an Alpine 7990 F1 and a Clarion 9255 to compare. Both units were new in the box. Doing a blind A/B test, both a friend of mine and I chose the Clarion 9255 over the new Alpine using my home lab test bench. Really surprised us, but the 9255 had much better sonic quality. Hard to believe given the 7990's pedigree.
The 7990 F1 did not have a lot of depth to the sound. I wonder if Alpine really intended the unit to only be used with the matching digital processor. The unit alone was rather dissapointing. Very well built, but certainly not worth the money for how it sounded...
I am going to get my new two way front door setup working, then switch the head units. Should keep me out of trouble for the next few weekends.
Did you stay with your Nak???
12-26-2003, 03:18 AM
#36
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Jim, Like to know where you find these rare gems. Yeah I am not surprised that the 9255 came out ahead. Alpine needs the processor but who would want pay that much? Two 7909s recently went for around $900 on eBay so demand for them is still there. Only 300 Ltd edition units made in 1998 which of course all sold out. I have read that some people paid up to $2500 to get a hold of one. Retail was an outrageous $1500 as it was! I agree that the notchy pot feels flimsy especially when compared to the Nak CD700 and overall it appears kinda ordinary looking . Nak hasn't jammed on me since July. Toshi showed me how to get at the transport to the remove the "eaten" CD. One edge actually becomes untracked and the CD is positioned diagonally as opposed to flat. Parts are very much CPC (cheap plastic crap). As you know however the SQ and looks/feel of this unit are stellar. I'm keeping my fingers crossed but if you can locate another NIB 9255 I am interested. BTW got opportunity to pick up a Brax Graphic x2000 amp which I am going to exchange with the reg x2000. Eric also suggests placing some open cell foam under the dash as a final tweek for the mid-tweeter pod.
Robert, Mac sold to Clarion in the mid 90s. Car gear is alleged to be designed by Mac but undoubtably manufactured by Clarion in Japan. DRX- 9255 model is very similar to MX-406 but has I believe a copper chassis and separate power supply among other design/build advantages.
Robert, Mac sold to Clarion in the mid 90s. Car gear is alleged to be designed by Mac but undoubtably manufactured by Clarion in Japan. DRX- 9255 model is very similar to MX-406 but has I believe a copper chassis and separate power supply among other design/build advantages.
Last edited by DrZ; 12-26-2003 at 05:48 AM.
12-26-2003, 03:21 AM
#37
Thank you. You might be amused to know that I own a Porsche Turbo Cabriolet Flat Nose with an original never used 7909 -- and, although it is a long story, it is a factory installed 7909. Other parts of the system installed by the factory in this 1989 car (completed in Germany in 1990) included:
Alpine 5959 8x Oversampling Compact Disc Changer
Alpine 5700 Digital Audio Tape Player
4 MB Quart QM25HC 1" Titanium Dome Tweeters (1 in each Door and 1 in each Rear Interior Quarter Panel)
2 MB Quart QM100MC 4" Midrange Speakers (1 in each Rear Interior Quarter Panel)
2 MB Quart QM160K 6 1/2" Coaxial Speakers (1 in each Door)
2 MB Quart Custom Made 10" Subwoofers
Alpine 5959 8x Oversampling Compact Disc Changer
Alpine 5700 Digital Audio Tape Player
4 MB Quart QM25HC 1" Titanium Dome Tweeters (1 in each Door and 1 in each Rear Interior Quarter Panel)
2 MB Quart QM100MC 4" Midrange Speakers (1 in each Rear Interior Quarter Panel)
2 MB Quart QM160K 6 1/2" Coaxial Speakers (1 in each Door)
2 MB Quart Custom Made 10" Subwoofers
12-26-2003, 08:45 AM
#38
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I'll have to admit to being different...I've just purchased a Becker Monza. It's AM/FM/CD/MP3 in a unit that looks virtually identical to the factory units which is what I wanted. The only downside is that AM, however, will not work unless the station you want to listen to is a multiple of the U.S. tuning interval (10kHz) and the european interval (9kHz). I don't listen to AM anyway so it's no issue.
I'm going to use a slightly modified DynAudio component system in the front stage (100 tweeter & 140 mid in kick panels that I'm building and a MW-180 woofer in each door) driven by a pair of Helix HXA-400 amplifiers. I probably won't even bother hooking up the rears. With these woofers and having the doors properly damped there will be little/no need for subwoofers. My goal is to have good sound with minimal detraction from the factory look of the car.
This is one of my winter projects so I'm still early in the process - I should have pictures & comments on the result by Spring.
I'm going to use a slightly modified DynAudio component system in the front stage (100 tweeter & 140 mid in kick panels that I'm building and a MW-180 woofer in each door) driven by a pair of Helix HXA-400 amplifiers. I probably won't even bother hooking up the rears. With these woofers and having the doors properly damped there will be little/no need for subwoofers. My goal is to have good sound with minimal detraction from the factory look of the car.
This is one of my winter projects so I'm still early in the process - I should have pictures & comments on the result by Spring.
12-26-2003, 05:59 PM
#39
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graham_mitchell - I like the display panel, but what about the AC/heating ducts? Do they still function?
I went for a ride in my neighbors new Volvo SUV (XC90?) that has the navigation package - the 5 inch screen rises straight up out of the top of the dash like a TV rising up out of a table top or something - very cool - I really like the navigation as a gadget - you can program in your destination and GPS tracks your progress - the system had a pleasant female voice telling you when to turn, how many yards away the turn was, etc. and the whole thing could be operated via steering wheel thumb tabs and a dial control.
A great project would be to put a tiptronic steering wheel in a non-tip 993 and connect the thumb switches to stereo (volume, channel, CD track) and/or navigation controls. I would pay handsomely for something like that. In my former 993 cab that had the hi-fi sound package, I replaced the factory becker unit with an Alpine 7??? (about $450). The installer made it work with the factory Porsche amp (under the passengers seat??) but in a cab, with the top down, at highway speeds, I still found the sound to be underperforming. I just got a new to me 993 cab and plan to remove the factory beck and amp and put in new speakers as well.
Anyone know a shop in the Boston area that does good work.?
I went for a ride in my neighbors new Volvo SUV (XC90?) that has the navigation package - the 5 inch screen rises straight up out of the top of the dash like a TV rising up out of a table top or something - very cool - I really like the navigation as a gadget - you can program in your destination and GPS tracks your progress - the system had a pleasant female voice telling you when to turn, how many yards away the turn was, etc. and the whole thing could be operated via steering wheel thumb tabs and a dial control.
A great project would be to put a tiptronic steering wheel in a non-tip 993 and connect the thumb switches to stereo (volume, channel, CD track) and/or navigation controls. I would pay handsomely for something like that. In my former 993 cab that had the hi-fi sound package, I replaced the factory becker unit with an Alpine 7??? (about $450). The installer made it work with the factory Porsche amp (under the passengers seat??) but in a cab, with the top down, at highway speeds, I still found the sound to be underperforming. I just got a new to me 993 cab and plan to remove the factory beck and amp and put in new speakers as well.
Anyone know a shop in the Boston area that does good work.?
12-26-2003, 11:36 PM
#41
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Graham,
As a gadget man - I would love a video screen like yours for features such as navigation, playing DVDs (a novelty at best, but maybe kind of neat for a passenger on a longer trip), and maybe to provide visual display of audio information. Does anyone know of a head unit that does not have a built-in retracting display, but allows a display to be mounted elsewhere in the car?
A small display hinge mounted on the lower part of the dash, maybe next to the ashtray above the console would be great.
Last year in my 97 cab, I was considering installation of a small ruggedized PC in the trunk - about the size of a CD case holder, for storage of MP3 songs. A wireless network card would allow me to download my music into my car while in my garage or driveway. For a screen, a company called Datalux makes high quality touch screen displays for PCs in mobile applications such as police cars (I have one of their 10 inch touch screens mounted on a bar in my basement to control my home stereo through my computer - like I said, I'm a gadget man). I have not looked lately but my guess is that with navigation systems gaining in popularity, more of such systems maybe with seperate displays are on the market.
As a gadget man - I would love a video screen like yours for features such as navigation, playing DVDs (a novelty at best, but maybe kind of neat for a passenger on a longer trip), and maybe to provide visual display of audio information. Does anyone know of a head unit that does not have a built-in retracting display, but allows a display to be mounted elsewhere in the car?
A small display hinge mounted on the lower part of the dash, maybe next to the ashtray above the console would be great.
Last year in my 97 cab, I was considering installation of a small ruggedized PC in the trunk - about the size of a CD case holder, for storage of MP3 songs. A wireless network card would allow me to download my music into my car while in my garage or driveway. For a screen, a company called Datalux makes high quality touch screen displays for PCs in mobile applications such as police cars (I have one of their 10 inch touch screens mounted on a bar in my basement to control my home stereo through my computer - like I said, I'm a gadget man). I have not looked lately but my guess is that with navigation systems gaining in popularity, more of such systems maybe with seperate displays are on the market.
12-28-2003, 08:56 PM
#42
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Originally posted by Nol, 95 993 C4
For Carrera Mike:
I have 6.5" component speakers in the place of the original 5.5" units (plain doors, not the HiFi option). It was a while back but I remember there is only minor adjustments to the door trim involved. The Porsche 5.5's use a non standard large mounting circle not far off the 6.5 aftermarket standard.
Nol
For Carrera Mike:
I have 6.5" component speakers in the place of the original 5.5" units (plain doors, not the HiFi option). It was a while back but I remember there is only minor adjustments to the door trim involved. The Porsche 5.5's use a non standard large mounting circle not far off the 6.5 aftermarket standard.
Nol
Thanks for the speaker fitment info. I'm going to get the 6.5" tomorrow. I already removed the 5.5 and measured the hole and it will surely fit the 6.5" with very minor trim. Actually, the speakers I'm looking in installing will not need any trimming.
To all who contributed to this thread, Thanks much
