My 5yo Sony Xplod deck took a shit today. Apparently, from what I've read, I'm on of the lucky ones to have a Sony deck last that long.

Anyhow, I'm looking for something cheap (<$75) that will:

A) Not be about to die
B) Have aux input
C) Have more onboard power than my current one (17 RMS, 52 peak) as it blows ass at powering the 6x9s I have in the rear. This may be unreasonable and I know an amp will do a better job, but if more RMS power from the head unit will be an improvement, that's good news. As you know by now, I'm fucking dumb when it comes to car audio.

Advice is welcome, whether or not you have something to sell me.

5/4/2011 3:14:07 PM

Just check out Crutchfield and look at some new ones. Decent head units are so cheap these days it's silly.

5/4/2011 4:05:14 PM

I looked, and you're right, they're much better than they used to be, but I'd still rather get something more cheaply if I could. I'll probably just go that route if I don't come up with something in the next few days.

5/5/2011 9:35:58 AM

No need to spend $75 on used. I wouldn't pay over about $40 for a used head unit unless I wanted something special. Quick search of Slickdeals revealed these:

$83 Clarion unit (was $55 a few weeks ago; no idea if it'll go back on sale):
http://www.amazon.com/Clarion-CZ300-Dash-MP3-Receiver/dp/B0032FOJGQ/ref=sr_1_1?t=slickdeals&tag=slickdeals&ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1301642501&sr=1-1

or

Just spend a little extra and get this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0042X96JW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?t=slickdeals&tag=slickdeals&ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER
Then sell the speakers for $25 if you don't want them. This was on sale for $66 a month ago.
Since it's Sony there's a good chance it'll plug right into the existing wiring harness which will save you a good bit of hassle.

Or search Slickdeals every couple of days until another good deal pops up. I'd be surprised if it takes more than a month to find something new for $50-$75.

5/5/2011 11:30:44 AM

I very much like the second package you have listed there. That might be the route I go. I don't want to buy an amp, but I'm thinking the 6x9s will keep on sounding like shit without one.

5/5/2011 1:20:49 PM

I usually get one about every month or so, usually just recycle them, but I will look and see if there are any laying around.

5/7/2011 1:26:23 PM