Usually I'm an electronics advocate, I love upgrading my car's interior with all the neat new gadgets that come out. However, ever since I've got the s2000, I'm not even sure its worth it to upgrade the sound system in our cars. From what I've read, there is a big difference between the stock unit and an aftermarket unit. But is it really worth it due to the s2000's pure driving nature? (This car isn't made to entertain with its gadgets, its more to entertain the driver inside)


That aside, I'm curious if you guys can point me to a headunit that will allow me to keep the dash controls and is compatible with an SD card. A CD player is optional. (Whether or not the upgrade is worth it probably won't stop me from doing it, I was just curious at your thoughts.)

 

It depends on how much you enjoy listening to music. I upgraded, and it's going to be nice for my move to NE when I have to drive the S 2500+ miles over a 2 week period. The car sounds great when it's being driven hard, but...it would get old quickly.

Being able to put on some music and actually hear most of the nuances with the top down on the highway makes the upgrade worth it to me.

And in prep for a track day, I can pull the amps and sub enclosure in about 20 mins total and drop most of the weight from the install (not pulling the speakers and power wiring leaves approx 10-12lbs, but I can lose 20+ pulling the amps/sub)

 

yes it is absolutely worth it...in fact if i could do it again it would be the FIRST thing I would have done to the car...absolutely no question lol

 

I have an Alpine 9857 HU, Modifry DCI, new speakers, amp, and powered subwoofer. I think this was definitely worth the $. Sound much clearer at speed, with no distortion. Don't listen any louder, BTW. When I want to hear the engine, I simply mute my music.
One unexpected outcome is the mid's/bass from drivers door aren't shadowed like they were with the OEM system (by my knee). Much more consistent listening.

Should be even better this winter when I put my hardtop on.

 

Your hardtop is merely going to cause more rattle when the bass hits.

I have an Eclipse head unit (before they sold out), 2 JL 10" subs, Focal 6'5" components, and a JL 300/4 amp. >> sounds very good.

 

Wait...so your leg being in the way doesn't affect the sound? If that is the case its definitely worth the effort, I am very annoyed by the fact that my left leg covers up the speaker and all I hear is the right passenger side speaker. When I have a passenger in with me I don't even bother.

 

I forgot to mention, I also put S-pods in my headrests. I set the fader up so that sound presence is still in front of me. Regardless, my leg no longer appears to shadow the output from my driver side. Sound stays much more balanced now, with/without a passenger. It was worth the upgrades, just for this.

BTW, I would agree w/the S-pod site, if you get these, you only need coaxial speakers. I put in components and it's overkill..

 

I see. Well, I'm looking for a headunit that accepts usb or sd cards since I plan on using a usb device or sd card for songs instead of cd's (its much cheaper than buying cd-r's). The only one that I found to my liking is the Alpine IDA-X001. However, like most decently equipped Alpines, its got a pretty good price tag. Anyone have any other suggestions?

 

Eclipse CD7100 has a USB port and for a modest sum you can purchase an IPOD adapter (the 7100 has IPOD controls, just not the adapter cable).

It does have a heftier price tag than the Alpine, but it has much better sound processing for that price.

Took me a while to find time to complete the install, but I managed to get the CD7100 in and used the internal amp, just that alone made a difference. Of course, now with my external amp...it's really a whole different experience.

 

i bought my car with a defective stereo system and needed to upgrade day one, i went an bought this cheap $80 unit from walmart til i can design what i want in the over-all... anyway it's like a RoadMaster VRCD400SDU.. it has usb an SD an aux.. it's cheap..