Until recently, the stereo in my car was so old it still had a tape deck in it, but I’ve finally upgraded the audio system with a new HD radio, the Sony CDX-GT700HD Xplod. And after about a week, my initial evaluation is a big thumbs up. I love the new spectrum of stations available. It’s not Internet radio, but it is a whole lot more content than I was getting before. For example, as an NPR fanatic, I’ve long rued the Saturday morning drives with only cooking and gardening shows available on my public radio station. Now I can switch to HD2 and catch up on Studio 360 for pop culture and arts news.
For actual Internet content, I can also connect my phone or Slacker music player through the Sony radio’s line-in jack, or USB port. This is the biggest reason I jumped on an upgrade. I’m tired of having the car be the only place I can’t access the music and podcasts I want. And since I won’t be getting a new, tricked-out vehicle any time soon, an after-market solution was definitely the way to go.
Other benefits of the new system include scrolling metadata, a huge number of channel pre-sets, and the ability to tag songs for later look-up on iTunes. (Tagging only works if you have an iPod.) I also love the hidden CD dock, which opens like a secret compartment, but is still dead simple to access. I’m not a sound geek, but Amazon reviewers also praise the radio’s sound quality and flexible EQ system.
The GT700HD does have its quirks. The radio makes an annoying ding-dong shut-off noise when you turn off the car, and the UI is a bit awkward at first, though the included remote makes navigation simpler. All in all, I’m happy to live with the quirks in exchange for the extra content.
The Sony CDX-GT700 HD retails for $160, but if you’re looking to upgrade, do it soon. CE Outlook says car radio prices are set to soar thanks to supply concerns most recently impacted by the crises in Japan.
If only they would include bluetooth with the HD part…I’d be sold.
That’s a good price. I will say (for some reading) that if you don’t have an AUX IN on your car stereo, there are some cases where one can be added.
I have a 2005 Prius with no jack. However the stereo does have a special XM IN socket on the back of the stereo unit. I bought an adapter here:
http://www.vaistech.com/products/slu.php
It fools the stereo into thinking that its AUX IN is the satellite radio. This does require taking the dashboard apart, but it was a fun couple of hours that has paid off with huge rewards.
That unit referenced is only for Priuses, but there are companies that make this adapter for other systems.
Mari, the next project I’d do is to cut out a key-shaped piece of thin wood from a craft shop to fit into that slot under the stereo. On the shelf sticking out you can then mount a specific or generic phone dock. This way it is mounted, visable, and accessible while you drive.
Yeah, I did the same thing @dmccall did for my ’06 Accord. In that case it uses the extra CD-changer input (it already has an in-dash CD-changer and XM radio, so I’m not sure why you’d want ANOTHER CD-changer).
Anyway, you had to take the dash apart but it was an easy install. It also has iPod control which I used to use, but now just hook my Evo in to listen to podcasts and Pandora (which will replace the XM radio subscription soon).
We had an aftermarket Dual HD radio in my wife’s old car, but since we got a new car without HD we haven’t missed the HD part much. It was nice to have but not as much variety as satellite radio or Pandora+podcasts.
Hi, Mari: I also have a Sony car stereo (purchased for the Aux In on the front panel). FYI, the “annoying ding-dong” is to remind you to remove the faceplate when you leave the car; you can avoid it by pressing the faceplate release button, even if you leave the faceplate attached.
How does HD radio behave on areas with less than perfect reception? A little static is ok for analog, but do we get annoying drop outs with HD?
Be careful with the Sony’s… I just had a ongoing issue with my mom’s car where the battery would just die… eventually i had to have the electrical system tested wire by wire until finally it was found that my less then 2 year old sony head unit was pulling power while the car was off… and not a little bit of power either… enough to kill a brand new car battery in just a few days. a quick google search shows that my issue is not all that uncommon. Replaced it with a Kenwood and life is wonderful again.
Mari, does your unit do Bluetooth audio? I’m interested in swapping out my stock receiver to put in something that I can connect my Droid to, but don’t want the analog connection. Basically, I want a Pandora player or now maybe an Amazon Clouddrive player without a bunch of unseemly wires running around.
For iPhone mounting I always recommend the ProClip systems:
http://www.proclipusa.com/home/home.aspx
They’re expensive, but they’re custom fitted for each car. No glue. Removable with no damage, but secure. Mine clips on just to the right of the radio. You can get ones that work with iPhones, iPhones in cases, or other phones as needed. Numerous models.
I use one with a dock connector pass-thru so that I can just drop the iPhone in and go. Has both audio out and charge from the one connector. Course on my car the audio out goes to a cassette adapter, but that’s another story…
I had HDRadio in my car for about 2 years (put it in about 4 years ago).
My experience was (Atlanta area):
– when it worked it worked really well and sounded nice.
– when it didn’t work it’d cut back and forth between analog and digital which was kind of annoying.
– some (perhaps all now) of the radio stations had the analog and digital synch’d up – other’s didn’t
I gave up on it about 2 years ago and then about a year ago I ended up buying a radio for my home which had HDRadio built-in. In this situation (where you’re not moving so the signal isn’t coming in and out and bouncing between digital and analog) it works -really- well. I pick up a few of the sub-HD channels for local talk stations that I really can’t get over straight AM (too much static or doesn’t come in at all).
I think that the FCC has allowed them to bump up the digital signal somewhat so it may be better now.
HDRadio (and it stands for Hybrid-Digital, not Hi-Def) has one other problem: no one knows about it. If you were to ask the guy on the street about it he’d say, “HD-what? Is that some TV thing you can get in your car? or is it a paid-for satellite deal like XM?”
When I bought my new car 2 years ago they offered XM to me. Never said a peep about HDRadio.
I like it at home, but for HDRadio to succeed it really needs to be at a point (right now) where it’s ubiquitous. Every radio you have has it. If you were to buy a radio today you wouldn’t ask for FM or AM. You’d just assume AM/FM is included unless otherwise specified. HDRadio needs to be the same and I think it’s kind of missed the boat.
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