alpine head units vs. others

[ladiesman8527 10+ year member]

i just bought an alpine head unit and i want to know how it ranks with others. my car audio guy doesnt think they put out enough power. it has three 4 volt outputs. the one the car audio guy wants to sell me is a pioneer but it only has 2volt outputs. this doesnt make sense to me....can someone please explain.

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[AudioGuy]

The alpine is better! But pre volts really don't do much, the higher they are the better the signal. I have 2.2volts on 3 pre outs and have great performance, but bigger is better, but it doesn't make much of difference. Keep the alpine their decks are alot better than pioneer.

 

[ladiesman8527 10+ year member]

thanx a lot...i thot the guy was crazy when he told me how bad alpine was...sounds to me like he just wanted to sell me somethin......any one else who has comments please do so.

 

[AudioGuy]

Alpine is actually one of the best and most sold cd player for car audio.

 

[desi_daru 10+ year member]

higher preout volts means lower gain settin on amp, which means it wont have to work as hard and u get cleaner signal //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

(this is wat i have come to understand, im really sick and cant think to good so correct me if im wrong or let me know if im right)

 

[60_cent 10+ year member]

Alpine=the best

they make the best HU's period...

 

[MrBill2U 10+ year member]

higher preout volts means lower gain settin on amp, which means it wont have to work as hard and u get cleaner signal //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif
(this is wat i have come to understand, im really sick and cant think to good so correct me if im wrong or let me know if im right)

Volts = EMF = ElectroMotive Force. The higher the voltage you run the more interference has to be there in order for you to hear it. The gain on the amplifier is just there to match the input voltage to the preamp. If you tune properly your amp will be running exactly the same watts with 1 volt as it will with 4 or even 8, so it does not work any more or less hard. Higher volts gives you a cleaner signal, that's all.

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

Most companies also lie through their teeth when it comes to pre-out voltage, there is much more to a cd player than pre-out voltage. The Alpine probably has a better power supply than the Pioneer, but the voltage claim is a little exaggerated unless all of your sound lies at 1000hz. Consider the well documented proof that the Alpine pre-out for a sub channel drops like a rock down to 1.5 volts, a far cry from the 4volts that they claim. It's a nice cd player, I would also choose it over the Pioneer.

 

[Bavarian3 10+ year member]

alpine decks **** //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[desi_daru 10+ year member]

Volts = EMF = ElectroMotive Force. The higher the voltage you run the more interference has to be there in order for you to hear it. The gain on the amplifier is just there to match the input voltage to the preamp. If you tune properly your amp will be running exactly the same watts with 1 volt as it will with 4 or even 8, so it does not work any more or less hard. Higher volts gives you a cleaner signal, that's all.

i thought if u had a lower gain setting (due to higher preout voltage) then ur amp wouldnt be working as hard, but i could be wrong

 

[helotaxi 5,000+ posts]

The PREamp (input stage) of your amp won't be working as hard, but it is such a small part of the amp (a few REALLY small transistors or even an IC, a few resistors and a potentiometer) that it isn't worth a worry. Lower gain settings and better noise rejection are all you are getting out of high volt outputs.

 

[cjj2d 10+ year member]

I too think that Alpine is probably the best HU on the market.

 

[frozenfire89 10+ year member]

alpine is the best but its overpriced. u can get a clarion, eclipse, or a pioneer for much much cheaper and it will compare to the alpines really well. Though stick with your alpine, the guy whose trying to sell you his hu is trying to rip you off no doubt.

 

[JLCivic 10+ year member]

I have owned pioneer, kenwood, alpine, clarion, and 4 eclipses.

I prefer Eclipse to every other brand I have owned.

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

I have sold all brands over 16 years, thus have the luxury of playing with a whole pile of equipment that the average consumer does not. I'll go with an Eclipse hands down. Bump for JlCivic and his choice.