Does anyone have any experience with the Kenwood KDC-X994 car stereo? I'm thinking of getting it to put in my 2004 XS. It looks like it just came out recently and I haven't seen any reviews yet.
Opinions of Kenwood KDC-X+994?
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I've only saw 1 review on it so far and it was a good one. I ordered mine last night from Crutchfield, should be here tomorrow. But if you order it from Crutchfield, use the promo code: 3a825 It will give you $20 off $100 purchase. I installed the last model for my fiance last week and the ipod controls and bluetooth works awesome. I'll try to remember to check back and give a review after I get it installed.
I couldn't wait so I bought mine today too. I'll post my review when I get it installed.
kdc-x994
I'm thinking of getting this same HU so I'll be waiting to see the comments from you guys. I'm especially interested in the Bluetooth functions. I'm wondering if you can stream audio from your cell phone (both stored on the phone and internet radio) as well as using your phone hands free (at the same time).
Later,
John
Update:
I checked out the KDC-X994 in a store. I was able to easily pair my phone (Droid). I was able to wirelessly play music from my phone's onboard MP3s and I was able to play Pandora, NPR Radio, and DroidLive stations. The sound quality was really good considering it was from a cell phone over Bluetooth. I'd say about as good as FM. I asked the salesman to call me and the unit switched from Bluetooth music streaming to hands free phone mode just as it should. One thing I thought of later was using the phone's GPS system (powered by Google Maps) to see if the voice instructions would be picked up by the HU. I'm thinking this should work if the HU is in Bluetooth audio mode. I'm wondering if you can play internet radio while using the GPS at the same time and if the GPS instructions will over ride the music. But I guess that would be more of a function of the phone.
The sound of the unit in the store sounded really good to me. I chose to play it through Focal Access 6 1/2" speakers with no amp or subwoofer etc. (I think I'll get these speakers.)
The menu system is changed from the x993. There are now some buttons for specific functions instead of everything being done through an "everything knob" such as on the x993.
I was told that the unit would be a straight install in my '08 X with no special kits, etc. so I can keep the factory storage compartment that fills the bottom half of the double DIN space.
I'm thinking of getting this same HU so I'll be waiting to see the comments from you guys. I'm especially interested in the Bluetooth functions. I'm wondering if you can stream audio from your cell phone (both stored on the phone and internet radio) as well as using your phone hands free (at the same time).
Later,
John
Update:
I checked out the KDC-X994 in a store. I was able to easily pair my phone (Droid). I was able to wirelessly play music from my phone's onboard MP3s and I was able to play Pandora, NPR Radio, and DroidLive stations. The sound quality was really good considering it was from a cell phone over Bluetooth. I'd say about as good as FM. I asked the salesman to call me and the unit switched from Bluetooth music streaming to hands free phone mode just as it should. One thing I thought of later was using the phone's GPS system (powered by Google Maps) to see if the voice instructions would be picked up by the HU. I'm thinking this should work if the HU is in Bluetooth audio mode. I'm wondering if you can play internet radio while using the GPS at the same time and if the GPS instructions will over ride the music. But I guess that would be more of a function of the phone.
The sound of the unit in the store sounded really good to me. I chose to play it through Focal Access 6 1/2" speakers with no amp or subwoofer etc. (I think I'll get these speakers.)
The menu system is changed from the x993. There are now some buttons for specific functions instead of everything being done through an "everything knob" such as on the x993.
I was told that the unit would be a straight install in my '08 X with no special kits, etc. so I can keep the factory storage compartment that fills the bottom half of the double DIN space.
So I finally got around to installing the KDC-X994 and here are my first impressions:
- It definitely doesn't look like a stock stereo. Black on silver kind of clashes, but whatever.
- The installation was simple. I wasn't hooking up any amps, subs or anything else. I routed the BT microphone and set it on top of my steering column. The hardwired USB cable isn't long enough in my opinion. I'm trying to get it into my center console and it wouldn't reach.
- Navigating the menus is straightforward but seems a little slow. Perhaps that's because I'm not used to it yet. Any question I've had so far has been answered by the manual (the stereo only comes with the quick start guide, the full guide is on an included CD).
- I like how you can customize what is displayed on the LCD for each source. Different display styles give you more/less lines of text and then you can set what each line will display (Artist, CD title, etc.)
- The stereo remembers what you were listening to last and starts on that source. It will connect to bluetooth in the background, but it won't steal focus.
- Speaking of bluetooth, the A2DP works great. I've been playing music off of my Droid and it sounds awesome. The stereo controls skipping music and play/pause. It seems to work with whatever music program I opened last (Music, Pandora, Slacker, etc.) and every program I've tried has worked with the stereo so far. One thing that's nice is if I'm playing a song on the phone speaker and the phone connects to the stereo, it will continue playing on the stereo with only a minimal gap.
- The phone calling is okay. I've been hearing from people I'm talking to that there's a nasty echo on their end. This will take some tweaking and I might need to move the mic to a better place. I haven't made many calls yet, so I can't speak more on this.
- CD playing works fine. Not much to say here but it reads CD-TEXT so that's good.
- I haven't tried an iPod or USB drive, so no info there.
- I've only tried the radio a little, but it works fine. Something that might take some getting used to is that the stereo has no preset keys for favorite stations. You can still store presets, but you have to navigate a menu to access them. It doesn't take that long, but it's kind of a pain. I knew this would be the case going in and decided I don't care because I don't listen to the radio very often, but others might find this a dealbreaker.
- The display is nice and clear and shows animations nicely. I was able to match the instrument panel lights pretty closely with the stereo color. Something that I don't like is that the display is hard to read in the sunlight unless you're looking straight at it. It's not the end of the world, but it is annoying.
I feel like I've only barely touched the surface of the functions of this stereo. If I find anything else noteworthy out, I'll post it here. If you have questions, let me know. I'll answer as much as I can. Overall, I'm happy with this stereo. I bought it for the bluetooth A2DP and that works great.
- It definitely doesn't look like a stock stereo. Black on silver kind of clashes, but whatever.
- The installation was simple. I wasn't hooking up any amps, subs or anything else. I routed the BT microphone and set it on top of my steering column. The hardwired USB cable isn't long enough in my opinion. I'm trying to get it into my center console and it wouldn't reach.
- Navigating the menus is straightforward but seems a little slow. Perhaps that's because I'm not used to it yet. Any question I've had so far has been answered by the manual (the stereo only comes with the quick start guide, the full guide is on an included CD).
- I like how you can customize what is displayed on the LCD for each source. Different display styles give you more/less lines of text and then you can set what each line will display (Artist, CD title, etc.)
- The stereo remembers what you were listening to last and starts on that source. It will connect to bluetooth in the background, but it won't steal focus.
- Speaking of bluetooth, the A2DP works great. I've been playing music off of my Droid and it sounds awesome. The stereo controls skipping music and play/pause. It seems to work with whatever music program I opened last (Music, Pandora, Slacker, etc.) and every program I've tried has worked with the stereo so far. One thing that's nice is if I'm playing a song on the phone speaker and the phone connects to the stereo, it will continue playing on the stereo with only a minimal gap.
- The phone calling is okay. I've been hearing from people I'm talking to that there's a nasty echo on their end. This will take some tweaking and I might need to move the mic to a better place. I haven't made many calls yet, so I can't speak more on this.
- CD playing works fine. Not much to say here but it reads CD-TEXT so that's good.
- I haven't tried an iPod or USB drive, so no info there.
- I've only tried the radio a little, but it works fine. Something that might take some getting used to is that the stereo has no preset keys for favorite stations. You can still store presets, but you have to navigate a menu to access them. It doesn't take that long, but it's kind of a pain. I knew this would be the case going in and decided I don't care because I don't listen to the radio very often, but others might find this a dealbreaker.
- The display is nice and clear and shows animations nicely. I was able to match the instrument panel lights pretty closely with the stereo color. Something that I don't like is that the display is hard to read in the sunlight unless you're looking straight at it. It's not the end of the world, but it is annoying.
I feel like I've only barely touched the surface of the functions of this stereo. If I find anything else noteworthy out, I'll post it here. If you have questions, let me know. I'll answer as much as I can. Overall, I'm happy with this stereo. I bought it for the bluetooth A2DP and that works great.
I can confirm that the GPS instructions are played over the stereo system. I can also also confirm that the GPS will play over whatever music program you're listening to. I'm pretty sure that the stereo will play whatever audio is coming from the phone, so if the phone is playing any audio (GPS, music, Pandora, etc.) it will play over the stereo.
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