guavissimo's Full Review: Nakamichi CD-400 Car CD Player
DESIGN / APPEARANCE
The first thing you will notice about this unit is that the face is all business, no BS. There are no tacky graphics/animations or wild colors like many other brands, just a plain black housing and the essential controls right where they should be. A nice feature is that you can customize the display between four different illumination options to match the dash of your car. It can be amber display with green buttons, green display with amber buttons, all amber, or all green. This is great for those who lease their cars - the Nak can match the dash in practically any car. The display contrast is also adjustable, and you can even turn the display off.
FEATURES
In terms of features and usage, everything is extremely easy to use, with a minimal amount of bells & whistles. I'd like to thank the folks at Nakamichi for putting a nice big rotary volume knob on this unit. Personally, I hate pushing buttons for volume. The CD-400 has a great encoder-style volume control that is very accurate, letting you adjust in small increments from 0 to 60. By using the Select button, the knob changes function to adjust other settings (balance, fader, etc). 3-band tone controls (bass, mid, treble) are accessible via this method, as is subwoofer level. Of course there are the usual function buttons: FM/AM, Source, Track/Tune, Mute, Pause, Eject, Loud, and 6 preset buttons. Everything operates instantly and reliably, and controls are very visible and well-spaced.
SOUND
It's obvious that this is where Nakamichi really puts most of your money. The CD-400 sounds gorgeous. Other head units may have more features, but the CD-400 is light years ahead in terms of sound quality. I have NEVER heard a receiver from another brand put out sound that is this refined but still powerful. There is very little (if any) noise, which reveals detail and imaging you might expect from a good home stereo. The 47 x 4 (max) amplifier delivers power to spare, unless you are using hard-to-drive speakers or are a bass freak (in which case this unit is not for you - go buy one of those flashy units with 9 kinds of bass boost). If you do use external amplification, there are a full set of 4V pre-outs for front, rear, and sub. AM/FM reception is very strong and I am pulling in weak stations a little better than my old head unit. Naturally, the CD player is where the CD-400 really shines. Aside from the sound described above, the disc mechanism is very solid. I could only get it to skip when driving over a VERY bumpy road. If you want all the specs, check them out here: http://www.nakusa.com/master/cd400.htm
MISC
It is really hard for me to find much that is negative about this unit, but there are a few things you should know if you are considering purchasing the CD-400:
1. There is no CD changer control. I could care less about this, but some people have to have it.
2. This really has nothing to do with the actual unit, but I had to include it. The supplied case for the detachable faceplate is a piece of junk. It protects the face just fine, but when the face is inside, good luck getting the case open! Nakamichi has had this same problem with past units, including the CD-35z which I owned. I'm thinking of sawing the lousy plastic latch off of mine and using a velcro strap to keep it closed!
3. The CD-400 will read CD-R discs just fine, but it will not play MP3 files. Again, I think this is a non-issue, but some people will want it.
4. The faceplate is solidly built and I doubt anything would ever break, but it is not the last word in durability. (It's still just plastic!) For something more robust, check out Nakamichi's CD-700II, which has a solid aluminum face (but costs a LOT more).
CONCLUSION
As you probably have guessed, I LOVE my CD-400. It is easily the best car head unit I have used. If you are a classical music fan, or someone who just wants a CD receiver of outstanding sound quality and design, go get one!
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