Alpine CDA-9835 vs. Eclipse CD5444

[Whitebread]

I can guy these head units for similar prices, so which one would you guys recomend I get?

Also, has anyone used the Alpine HDA-5460? Hows the sound quality? Features?

[KMoney28]

I have the Alpine 9831 and it's a tight headunit so I'm guessing the 9835 is just as nice if not nicer. They have lots of options for tweaking subs and components and are 4volt preouts as opposed to 2volts. But then again, I've heard lots of people brag that Eclipse are the best headunits on the market period so.....I think Alpine wins in the look department though, many Eclipse decks are butt ugly

[Haibane]

Eclipse wins overall... I just think they cost too much

[sr20de4evr]

I love my Alpine dearly, but I've heard good things about Eclipse too

If the Eclipse units didn't look so hideous then I might think about trying one, for the time being though I'm perfectly happy with my 9835.

[Whitebread]

Well, I guess I'll just pic the HU with the features I want the most.

[aznxthuggie]

i like my alpine over any other hu i've used before.. but then again i've never used an eclipse, mostly their pricing and looks

[loismustdie]

i'm pretty sure that eclipse deck has 5v preouts. if its the same price, i'd say flip a damn coin, to hard of a descision.

[KMoney28]

Yea I think it does have 5 volt preouts, I believe there's one Eclipse model that has 8 volt preouts.

[sr20de4evr]

yeah but the one with "8V" preouts doesn't really have 8V preouts, they're closer to 5.5V, and I'd guess that the one with 5V preouts is closer to the Alpine's 4V (which have been measured to actually do slightly over 4V).

Either way, preout voltage is one of the most overrated specs in headunits these days. Higher voltage preouts help eliminate audible noise, but unless you have a HORRIBLE install, anything over ~2V will be noise-free (at least as far as induced EMF in the low-level signal goes, which is the only thing that high voltage preouts "protect" against). Don't use that as a basis for comparison, use something that actually makes a difference like crossover or EQ functionality.

[pac4eva5]

how come the premier 860 doesnt get any love? r they that much better? i know the pioneer is cheaper.

[sr20de4evr]

I'm not a big fan of the 860, I had a 750 and wasn't too impressed, and I've played with the 860(0) in stores and it just felt kinda cheap. I would take either the Eclipse or the Alpine over the Pioneer.