All about car stereo reviews plus tips and tricks about car audio installations. Our videos reflect daily life at our car audio shop Sounds Incredible Mobile. As a husband and wife team with over 60 years combined experience in the mobile electronics industry we see our share of challenging installations, rare vehicles and plenty of interesting clients. Subscribe to see new videos each week on new products, OEM integration, vehicle installations plus tips, tricks and some unbelievable client stories.
Check out our weekly videos featuring car stereo reviews, thorough product testing, Jeep Wrangler upgrades, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integrated to factory radios plus answers to your mobile electronic questions.
I’m curious if I can put them in my 01 VW Cabrio? With some modifications. Adding a sub, maybe the ES one. Tweets in dash, 5 1/4 to 6’9 in front doors.
Just installed mine today. An update was released JUL2024 that adds two major improvements. The option to remove the analog clock and setting the custom button for direct sub level access. If you hold it will go to the EQ. Good job Sony ! The rest of my system is the XM-8ES 8 ch amp, XS-W104ES sub, front components run active-JL C2 5.25 (soon to be upgraded) + Hertz MP 28.3 tweeters and Infinity Reference 3.5 for the rear doors. They will be replaced with CDT Unity 8.0+ 2" Widebands for rear fill. Played with the Parametric EQ today and my speakers never sounded so good. This HU is all about SQ above all else so you will not be disappointed. No Multimedia, video or fancy GUI, just pure sound quality.
Like others here, I really appreciate the testing. After seeing how poorly the Sony AX150 tested in one of your vids, I finally understood why my AX100 wasn’t sounding great even with a good amp and speakers. After switching to an AX5500, everything sounded so much better!
I work at a Mazda Dealership, and I just had faith in the brand that they would put speakers in a logical place. Turns out thst the 2024 version in USA just steaight up removed the rear speakers until the carbon version. I get that the brand is trying to save the customer money while trying to maintain a certain build quality... but this is just straight ridiculous.
We want to watch Movies /Live concerts. Why the F would we want to watch vedios of our own cats ?The screen is playing video real time driving video but we are not grown enough to be able to watch videos that we want to listen/watch. WTF, I'm an adult though it dosnt seem that way when i have to bitch about the stupidiest stuff. Stop trying to tell us what we can and cant do while we are driving. The people that get in wrecks because they are watching videos are the same stupid people that are going to get in wrecks anyways cause they stupid. Sorry just so Fing annoying.
This helped SO much!! I was trying to set gain on my sub amp which has a range of 6V to 0.(?)V adjustment … and I have a KW 7709S which has supposedly 4V and it just seemed like I had to crank my gain higher than I thought I should be. BUT, I was tuning at volume 25, everything flat, and sub level 0 … which by what you showed means I was probably way low of 4V when I thought I should be closer. Great example! Explains why I had to crank the gain higher than I anticipated!
Technology is pretty crazy thee days! You mentioning pixel options, I'm thinking back to when our choices were Alpine green, Kenwood blue, or Pioneer orange lol. I chuckled when you said you're updating your radio because its 'already 7 years old'... I just burned 2 more playlists on to cd's last night :) That 9000ES looks like a really nice unit. I'm looking forward to the install video. Have a great weekend and thanks for sharing the details on this one, good stuff!
Yes! I remember being excited that my Kenwood blue & red display matched the blue & red dash lights in my 2003 Jetta GLI. Thanks for watching and commenting. Enjoy the rest of your weekend too!
If I could change my head unit in my car(A4, b9 platform) I'd try this unit too. ( Instead, I use the newer mosconi aero8/12 dsp) It will be interesting to hear your thoughts after some use?
Just curious, what year is your Audi? Are you using a pre-amp adapter with that install from Mobridge or NAV TV? If I had the B9 and there was compatible pre-amp adapter (depends on the year) I'd go optical out from the stock head unit into a high quality DSP amp and keep the signal digital. Keeping the signal digital is way better, but the only main stream head unit I'm aware of these days with optical out is the Stinger HEIGH10. Only reason I didn't go with that is I didn't want the 10" screen in this car. And yes, I plan on making a follow up video with the install and offer more in depth feedback after I get to know it better.
I have the 9500ES paired with 93 db 6.5 speakers. It’s very clean but it’s also somewhat underpowered to my ears. Nonetheless, I still have this one bookmarked b/c it’s in dash 👍🏽
I was in the market for a new head unit and was also deciding between this and the Kenwood 958XR. I just ordered the Sony a few days ago. I was also worried about the wireless-only Apple CarPlay. I have had a Kenwood 957XR for a few years in another vehicle and rarely have issues with wireless Apple CarPlay. I never thought I would buy a Sony head unit. I wasn’t even considering them when I started looking. Here’s to hoping I am not disappointed!
Me too!!! The sound quality on the ES head units is great so I'm hopeful in the car the connectivity will be seamless. I also realized after the fact (thanks to another viewer inquiring) that I had NOT updated firmware on it before powering it up. I totally overlooked that I think because I was excited to get to play with it. I'm hoping John has time to install mine next week.
Thanks for watching! Great question. I did not update it, good point! That could be part of my connectivity hiccup, but I think it may also have something to do with my Apple watch and our shop WiFi. I didn't even think about that. I think I was just excited to start playing around with my new stereo!
I actually did that test on the 6000, but inadvertently had "sound check" turned on from an Apple update that threw off all my readings. I took that video down, but did a quick recap showing the 6000 is in fact 5 volt and clean at max volume. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-SUAGlo_zDGg.htmlfeature=shared
Also with the pairing issue maybe because when you flip the switch its shutting off constant power to the unit instead of just accessory which would mimic what its doing in a vehicle? I dont know, just a thought. We dont sell Sony or Pioneer any more.
Pro tip...go onto Pac Parts out of California and you can order the Alpine brackets that are metal and look a million times better than the Pac and Metra kit for your Jeep. We stock them now and are far superior in looks and functionality
That's such a great tip! Every time we installed an Alpine 407 kit I always thought dang I wish they sold these separately, they're so much nicer. I never thought of ordering them from pacparts even though I order parts from them all the time. Thanks!
After ten years with my sierra my pioneer is dieing and im searching for the best but cost effective unit for replacement, im torn between 670 and the ilx507, 670 still a viable option with still modern features but a couple dollars 💸 gives you the new more advantages of stereo elegance 😂 without breaking the bank, My truck is a plain Jane daily driver, but i drive 45 minutes each way to work, Ive already purchased 2 sets of JBL 625SQ and the matching JBL Amp not sure if it matches. Thoughts???
Great question! No need to remove the in dash unit because it's basically like a hideaway unit and the brain of the head unit is that basic stock amp under the passenger seat. You can grab signal right there.
Hi My media receiver is Sony XAV AX4000 55X4 rms Speaker are Audison, prima apk 6.5 70 rms and apk 165 100w Or Hertz, dieci dcx 165.3 60 rms dpk 165.3 80 rms Should I use amplifier ? if necessary which one is better? Pioneer, DEQ-S1000A Sony, XMS400D Vibe, powerbox 65.4
Both speakers are high efficiency so you could technically run either one off the head unit, but they have a different tonality so that's a personal decision. My ears are sensitive to top end frequency so personally I would prefer the Audison Prima's. I think their tweeter is a little smoother. I always recommend using an amp if you can afford it because it will really make any speaker open up and come to life. Out of the 3 amps you listed, personally I'd probably go with the Sony.
No, unfortunately most microphones are typically proprietary with varying resistance values so sound quality can be an issue if a different mic is used.
I’ve been thinking about getting this unit but idk about the screen cuz I heard from some other video that when it’s like rlly sunny outside they can kinda see the screen just wanted to know if that’s true or not.
You should check out my most recent video. I haven't had a single complaint from any clients regarding the screen on the 4000 or 6000. These are very popular models at our shop, but these are NOT HD displays. If you want an HD display AND wireless CarPlay/Android Auto you need to spend more $$. I cover it at 5:22 and show the 6000 vs the 4000 vs the HD display options from Kenwood, Sony and Alpine. If you don't want to spend the extra $, but want a nice display and are cool with wired connection, the DMX709s is a nice option and great value. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-buHlB4bXkEQ.htmlfeature=shared&t=322
I appreciate this video. I'm just wondering how musically literate you are. Using an iPhone to play through a hi-res LDAC unit when I pretty certain the only way to experience hi-res audio on Apple is with a Mac/book OR the Vision Pro Quest. But for sure, the Sony sounds fantastic. I've got my S24 Ultra playing FLAC files wirelessly to this unit and out a JBL setup. I also did the update to the 2.0 firmware through the phone. It was extremely easy once I figured out that the wifi connection AND Android Auto may have been messing the tethering. I don't think either of the updates did a whole lot. I completely missed out on 1.13. But 2.0 appears to be mostly cosmetic. Better photo & video quality, cleaned up the look of the UI, supposedly better clocks. And 2.0 is supposed to have better connection with Carplay.
I know Apple CarPlay is capped at CD quality 1,411 kbps and this is something I've explained in other videos. The hi-res on all of these aftermarket head units would work with FLAC files on a USB. When these models 1st came out I was told by Sony there was a weird work around to get it going with Android, but not while using Android Auto, just basically having the head unit read the phone as a storage device. At this point my understanding is Android has updated that. Is that true? Are you using Android Audio when you're streaming FLAC on your S24?
@@carstereochick That's cute. Cause when this came out Android phones weren't doing wireless hi-res yet. Not by default. You would have to unlock developer options and enable it that way. And even then you would likely need a top-notch music player like poweramp to avoid the signal getting compressed somewhere. Even now you still have to enable the UHQ option. But that option is out where the general public can find it now. And yes, Android Auto fixed that.
I'm not sure what you find cute about my candid response. I help clients all day with their Apple and Android phones, but I don't have an Android so the knowledge I have on them is limited to my brief use assisting clients in store. I am not afraid to ask a question to someone who uses one on a daily basis if it means I have the opportunity to learn more. The only dumb questions are those you don't ask. One of these reasons I make these videos is to really get to know everything I can about the products I'm selling and also to share what I've learned with others. The other thing you may not be aware of is when all of these manufacturers started pushing hi-res capable stereos, many were not clear on what devices you could actually use to enjoy that high-res playback. There was a general implication that the hi-res was something consumers could enjoy using Apple CarPlay & Android Auto and as I looked into further I found out this was not the case. It took several emails and a couple phone calls to each of the representatives that do the national product training at Alpine, Kenwood and Sony for me to definitively verify that although Apple would support hi-res with other devices like in a home audio system for example, Apple CarPlay was capped. At that time, I was told Android Auto was the same way. It was only recently that an Android using client mentioned to me there was an update to correct this. I heard this from one client so I wanted to know if this has been your experience as well. Thank you for letting me know so I can share this information with other Android Auto using clients that may not be aware of this option. You'd be surprised how many Apple and Android users are unaware of even the most basic audio quality settings in the music apps they are using. Many clients get excited seeing the hi-res feature and then proceed to stream Spotify on their new stereo using the 128 kbps setting. On nearly a daily basis I am showing both Apple and Android users where these basic audio quality settings are in their phones. Regarding unlocking developer mode to enable the settings prior to the update, I remember at an earlier Sony training they were basically like you can do LDAC with some Android phones, but not while using Android Auto and there was a bit of prep work to get it to work and out of about 80 people in the room there was 1 guy that raised his hand and said he was able to get it to work. Essentially if you weren't an experienced Android user it was like don't even bother trying, just use Android Auto.
For a bass head with subs would you say the "Bass Ext" setting is a bust have? Is the JVC KW-M785BW the same sound quality as the DMX709S Excelon? Is the Sony XAV-AX7000 worth it over those? Id prefer carplay and android auto wireless but is using carlik a pain or is it more seamless conection with it built in?
Good Evening. Incredible work, apart from the center console knob and steering wheel controls retained, what about the original headunit functions such as the maintenance alerts, warning guidance and other features? Were they retained on this new headunit as well?
Interesting! I have a client that is a retired air force pilot and he is the only one who brought it up to me and initially I assumed something off in the nav software, but when I reached out to Stinger they confirmed they were aware of the issue. Maybe it's since been resolved and they failed to update the support ticket and follow up with me. Thanks for letting me know!
