Cry High From the Mountain: I can play MP3's!!!
Written: Jan 15 '04
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Pros: GREAT sound, good features, MP3 playability
Cons: Some of the buttons aren't very accessible, controls a little too jumbled
The Bottom Line: For the money, this unit offers great sound and MP3 playability. You could spend more ... but why?
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| martytdx's Full Review: Alpine CDA-9811 Car CD/ MP3 Player |
When I bought my Honda Accord, I loved everything about it except one major thing (well, major to me at least) - the stereo. The sound was mediocre factory sound and the functionality was sparse, at best. Worse, although it played my homemade CD-R (I asked up front before buying), it wouldn't play MP3 files (not exactly unexpected in mid-2001).
My how things have changed. I spend anywhere from 1.5 - 2.5 hours a day commuting (let me tell THAT nightmare later), so I listen to my share of the car stereo. FM radio pretty much sucks around Philadelphia (with the exception of WXPN and some local college shows), so that means CDs. My car was constantly filled with a dozen or more CDs for my long drives.
And then Xmas came along and my wife had a wonderful idea - what about a better stereo to play MP3 discs - 10x the music on 1 disc! She did her research and I got the ALPINE CDA-9811 under the tree.
[ • SPECIFICATIONS • ]
For you tech-heads, here are the standard specs:
Chassis Size Code IEJ
RMS Power Output 23 watts
Peak Output 50 watts
RMS Power Bandwidth N/A
Preamp Voltage 4 volts
Video Control No
Preamp Outputs 3 pair
Subwoofer Preamp Outputs Yes
AUX Input Optional
Display Color Multicolor
Key Button Color Green and red
EQ Bands None
Sound Shaping Type Bass Engine Plus
Wireless Remote Yes
Wired Remote No
Changer Control Yes
Security Detachable face
Tuner
Tuner Type MaxTune SQ
FM Sensitivity 9.3 dBf
FM Presets 12
AM Presets 6
European Tuning Yes
Seek/Scan Seek
Radio Data System No
Satellite Radio Ready XM
CD
CD Frequency Response 5-20kHz
CD Signal-to-Noise 105 dB
Anti-shock Memory None
CD Text Yes
CD-R Playback Yes
CD-RW Playback Yes
MP3 Playback Yes
DVD Playback No
Parts Warranty 1 Year
Labor Warranty 1 Year
[ • KEY FEATURES • ]
This stereo has it over the Honda version in spades. Although it is only a 50w stereo, it gives surprisingly strong, vibrant and clear sound from both the tuner and the CD/MP3 player. The unit is lacking a cassette player - something I rarely used but liked as a feature.
The unit is a slim, futuristic-looking piece that takes up half of the space of my old stereo - earning me a shelf just below to hold a CD case or cell phone. The face of the stereo has a blue digital display (with certain elements in green and yellow). The display does a good job in both daylight and at night, although the night version might be TOO bright for some (one of the major knocks on this model is the lack of a dimmer switch.
The CD-9811's ability to play MP3s (and WMA's although I avoid these) was one of the best things about it. My first attempt with this was a bit confusing - the disc played fine but it took a while (and reading the manual) to figure out how to work through the file system (the player maintains the file structure you have on Windows). Once I figured it out, it was a breeze. I had myself a disc that contained 167 songs and about 14 hours of music - not to shabby.
A feature of the unit that I can't really appreciate - but can understand the usefulness of - is the faceplate tiltability: the faceplate can be held at three angles (about 30, 45 and 60 degrees) - great for cars with their stereos at the bottom of the dash.
In terms of 'grab-ability', the stereo is good, but not the most ergonomically fantastic I've seen. The volume button is a little narrown when reaching blindly, and there are a multitude of other buttons on the faceplate - perhaps too many. There are separate buttons for display (volume display), title/time, source (FM, AM, CD), FWD, REV, up and down the file system, MX, Time correction ... well, you get the idea.
One of the nicer features is the mute button – a one-click way of dropping the volume 20dB at a drive-thru, to get a call, etc. I’ve used it several times and it works like a charm. Alternately you can pause a CD by using the PAUSE/PLAY button at the top of the player.
Media Xpander (MX) is a great feature. If you listen to lots of MP3s, you know the quality on some can leave a bit to be desired. Media Xpander helps compensate by adding bass and tone to your files. And you can control the level of ‘help’ you want (from 1-3, mine sits at 2 except for the worst discs). Even my worst bootlegs come out sounding pretty decent – and you can use it on both CDs and FM radio.
Bass Engine Plus is Alpine’s unique system to help a user customize speaker response to their car. You adjust the tones, levels and even times to compensate for distances between, say the rear right speaker and the left front speaker so you hear the music as it was intended. Better yet, their I-personalize functionality on the site helps give you a baseline for your vehicle – if you can get to it (their site was hiccuping on my first two attempts).
Disc Titling - although the CDS-9811 accepts and displays CD Text automatically, you can custom title up to 18 CDs and/or 24 radio stations. The titles can only be 8 characters, though so I can’t say it’s really useful for CDs. It’s neat for radio, but more of a toy than real functionality – I mean, do you really need it to display WXPN 88.5 instead of just the 88.5?
That being said, the CD Text comes in very handy with the MP3 discs. As long as the MP3’s have the title, album and track info, it will be displayed. The player allows you to choose several modes of title display:
CD
Track #/Elapsed Time > Track No./Clock > Text (disc name) > Text (track name) > Title
MP3
File #/Elapsed Time > Folder #/File # > File #/Clock > Folder Name > File Name > Track Name* > Artist Name* > Album Name* > Frame *NOTE: If the file contains the full ID3 info for the MP3, the tag info will be displayed instead of having to sort your way through it.
Displaying the text takes some getting used to. There are two scroll modes: automatic and manual. Manual scrolls though the title of the MP3 twice before setting to whatever display mode you have selected. Automatic continues to scroll for the duration of the song. I have mine set for FOLDER #/TRACK # and it works fine in manual mode. One limit is that the display will only show the first 32 characters of text – after that just get cut off. I also don’t like the fact that you can’t have the clock displayed in the corner instead of “CD” or “MP3” or “AM”/”FM” – but since I do have another clock in the car, it’s not a huge inconvenience.
XM Ready One of the reasons my wife bought the Alpine was that it comes XM Radio Ready. Now, I’m not ready to spend $5-10 a month for radio yet, but it’s nice to know that I could do it easily when/if I decide to make the plunge.
The unit offers the CD player hidden behind the detachable face-plate. In this “That’s a nice stereo … I think I’ll take it” world of ours, detachable is a great way to go, and Alpine’s is easy to use. And while the unit itself houses a single CD player, you can also add a CD Changer for the trunk – which could add immensely to your song selection (10 CDs at 14 hours per … wow, the possibilities!!).
One thing that I don’t like about the stereo is that it won’t work with the steering wheel controls I already have (it seems that only GM cars work with Alpine units). The handiness of having the volume and track/station selection controls literally at my fingertips was nice, and I miss it. There is a remote that comes with the unit, but I find it isn’t that easy to use since you have to have it handy – and mine seems to like to hide. It’s easier to make the adjustments directly.
[ • Should I consider the CDA-9813 or 9815? • ]
It depends on what you want. They both offer a bit more power (60 watts instead of the 9811’s 50 watts) and an upgrade in the Bass Engine PRO. Additionally, the upgrades can offer additional power (up to 17.2 volts) but it draws directly from your battery and requires extra installation. Also, whereas the 9811 gives you 4-channel digital time correction (the system that delays sound so it all reaches the ears at approximately the same time), the 9813 and 9815 give 6-channels of correction and multiple modes to mold your music. The 9815 also adds more features, at a significant cost, including a digital equalizer and a 2-level display which expands text possibilities.
[ • Final Thoughts • ]
I spend way too much time in the car to not have a good stereo – and the Alpine CDA-9811 is a huge improvement over my Honda’s factory stereo. In addition to better sound, I’ve gained better functionality and best of all – MP3 playability. The process of installation at Circuit City was quick and painless, and 3 hours after arriving I was styling down the road an stereophonically-empowered man.
The 9811 offers a multitude of options – most of them good. Scrolling text is a bonus, letting you know the artist AND the song. MX is a wonderful add-on to bring out the best of my discs, and the ability to “shape” the music to my car is impressive. All this for less than $300.
The system isn’t perfect – it is under-powered for those who use their cars as mobile raves, and won’t offer the digital 65,000-color screens of the new Sony Xplod series. But if you want a stereo that delivers the great sound that Alpine is known for, this reasonably-priced unit is a solid choice.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 300
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Epinions.com ID:
martytdx
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Member: Marty
Location: New Jersey
Reviews written: 481
Trusted by: 179 members
About Me:
Doing what I can to try new places, restaurants, books and beers.
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