markee2k

I have a Honda CD changer currently hooked up to the stock head unit. I plan on replacing the stock head with an Alpine head but was told by the radio shop that the Alpine head will not work with the Honda CD changer and must get a new Alpine CD changer costing $250 . It is my understanding the a Honda CD changer is made by Alpine to begin with, why can't it work? Is it because of the harness connection? Can the electronic gurus out there help me save my Honda CD changer. Thanks

lucid

Live in the now man! Get an MP3/CD player and say goodbye to the changer. Sell it in the forum!

markee2k

Hmmm, Let me look into that, thanks for the advise!

Barry in Wyoming

Markee, the Honda CD player will work with "M" series Alpine heads such as the CDM-7871 which has a list price of $300.

Here is a link: http://www.alpine1.com/html/D2_n_1_n_n.html

The Honda player is an "M" bus not a "A" bus. The DIN connector from the Honda CD player doesn't match the Alpine head, so you do need a patch cable.

If you can't find one somewhere else, I'd suggest you try this place. They specialize in repairing Honda/Acura/etc stock cd players.:

http://www.willmanselectronics.com

chuckjoy

I ran into the exact same situation when I recently installed an
Alpine Head Unit (CDA-7977). My current Honda CD Changer
would not work with the new head unit, but I opted to put out the
cash for the matching Alpine CD Changer because of the added
features, like CD Text, AI-net, etc... I am glad I did now. The
new changer seems faster, and has not skipped once. The Alpine
head unit is great, as well. Definitely replace the head unit
with your brand of choice and match it with the approriate CD
changer. There is just no way to use the Honda/Alpine one that
connects to the OEM head unit... Good luck...

Barry in Wyoming

[QUOTE]Originally posted by chuckjoy
[B]

chuckjoy

Very True Barry...My bad. You would think that Alpine would
make things a little clearer for us folks who just want a great
sounding system. I'm fairly knowledgeable but I got mixed up
on the CDA, CDM stuff. I really like the CD text as well.
I've had Sony head units in the past but the Alpines just sound
better to me...just personal perference... I'm glad there are so
many good brands to choose from out there, but it gets
confusing sometime...

markee2k

Barry WY and chuckjoy, Thanks guys for your responses. If I interpret it correctly, CDA is a newer technology than CDM, or CDA replaces CDM. In want ways is CDA 'better' than CDM? I am looking for a better sounding system. The stock head, in my view, sounds very bright (metallic and edgy/harsh sounding) than the Alpine (a CDA model) I listened to over the week-end. Is there any difference in the 'sound' between CDA and CDM? If the improvements do not translate to better sound, that maybe I can save two hundred bucks by keeping the Honda CD changer. Any advice?

shingles

Actually, think the difference you are hearing is the speakers not the head units. To be honest, I think the stock unit is not very bright at all, but that's really a subjective thing. If you are interested in better sounding system, might I suggest looking into speaker replacement as your first option? Many folks have reported here that a simple speaker replacement made a world of difference. And I recently just did the same as well. I did add an amplifier and picked out some nice speakers, but I also still have the stock head unit.

-Shing

markee2k

I did replace the speakers. First, I replaced the fronts with Polk 602's....sounded better in detail and clarity. Then added a pair of Polk 402's to the rear....much better 'fill in' and the sound stage is much better to my liking. However, the brightness is still there. I then considered adding an amp, but my logic is that it would probably provide higher volume and maybe less distortion (I typically set the volume to 5 bars on the stock head) since the pre-amp section of the head doesn't have to work so hard. But at 5 bars, there shouldn't be much distortion. That's how I arrived at my next step...changing the head since it is the source of the music. I don't know, is my logic right