Underwhelmed with my new Avic-D3....help with SQ!

[FunkDrSpot]

I had a Premier DEH-P860MP up until about 2 months ago, right before my birthday when i got jacked. I got plenty of cash back from my insurance co. and decided to go with an AVIC-D3 because pioneer units seemed to be respected, and it is going to be $550 after MIR and taxes for me.

Now, the thing looks great in that space for my integra but damn if it doesn't sound much, much crappier than the 860MP. I feel as though I'm losing a lot of detail from songs and that everything seems much more muffled. Even the bass is not nearly as low and crisp as before. I'm instantly thinking this has to do with the Volts of the pre-outs because the D3 puts out 1.7 @ 1kohms and the 860MP put out 6.5 @ 100ohms.

Can anyone fill me in on how i can get my SQ back?

[hibuhibu]

When changing head unit, you will most likley notice difference in sound.
I found that proper gain setting is very crucial to bring back the original performance as close as possible.
Try to set the gain properly first.
I actually even had to mess around with EQ and crossover differently to get it to the level it was before.
Every Cd players sound different.

[03KingRanch21811]

Originally Posted by FunkDrSpot

I had a Premier DEH-P860MP up until about 2 months ago, right before my birthday when i got jacked. I got plenty of cash back from my insurance co. and decided to go with an AVIC-D3 because pioneer units seemed to be respected, and it is going to be $550 after MIR and taxes for me.

Now, the thing looks great in that space for my integra but damn if it doesn't sound much, much crappier than the 860MP. I feel as though I'm losing a lot of detail from songs and that everything seems much more muffled. Even the bass is not nearly as low and crisp as before. I'm instantly thinking this has to do with the Volts of the pre-outs because the D3 puts out 1.7 @ 1kohms and the 860MP put out 6.5 @ 100ohms.

Can anyone fill me in on how i can get my SQ back?

I had the same problem; I purchased the D3 because it was dirt cheap, and I needed a good Double Din unit that could play Dvds for my little girl as well. I didnt realize it didnt support dual zone until after the freakin return period! The SQ does leave a lot to be desired. I have owned some wonderful high end HU's in the past, with the Alpine CDA-7965 being my all time favorite. The low preamp voltage is a concern of mine as well. I am going to be picking up a good, quality line driver in the near future.

[Exalted512]

Not to be rude, but thats what your gains are for. Having a high voltage preout is nice for rejecting noise, but doesn't have much to do for SQ other than having to turn your gain up. More than likely, its going to be the fact that your 860 used better DACs and other components that your D3 does not have.
-Cody

[FunkDrSpot]

Originally Posted by Exalted512

Not to be rude, but thats what your gains are for. Having a high voltage preout is nice for rejecting noise, but doesn't have much to do for SQ other than having to turn your gain up. More than likely, its going to be the fact that your 860 used better DACs and other components that your D3 does not have.
-Cody

I didn't take what you said disrespectfully. It's all love, I'm just trying to get help. Back when Circuit City was commission i used to work there and I knew a LOT about car and home audio, but that was some 7 or 8 yrs ago. I'll admit i know almost nothing except what my ear likes

Ok, so gain aside, what other options do i have for getting better sound quality?

I've heard someone say they're getting a line driver....any recommendations on which one?

Also, I've been hearing people talk about their sound processors....would that be a good idea as well?

[96dak]

buy a better unit

[jel847]

do you use any external processors?

[Exalted512]

Originally Posted by FunkDrSpot

I didn't take what you said disrespectfully. It's all love, I'm just trying to get help. Back when Circuit City was commission i used to work there and I knew a LOT about car and home audio, but that was some 7 or 8 yrs ago. I'll admit i know almost nothing except what my ear likes

Ok, so gain aside, what other options do i have for getting better sound quality?

I've heard someone say they're getting a line driver....any recommendations on which one?

Also, I've been hearing people talk about their sound processors....would that be a good idea as well?

If you're truly after SQ, nothing is just 'plug in play'. Have you already gone in and adjusted everything to accommodate your new head unit? Like you said, there is a big difference in the preout voltage, so what you may be missing is just a turn of the gain knob away.

Otherwise, you might want to think about external processing.
-Cody

[FunkDrSpot]

Originally Posted by 96dak

buy a better unit

Wow thanks for the help! How about you don't be a dick and tell me which unit is better and WHY it's better? Even better, if you don't anything you can help me out on, stop trying to up your post count like a useless troll.

You act like i just bought a $100 unit from Pep Boys and expected it to perform better than my last $600 unit....no, i just bought what was recently a $1000 unit and it doesn't sound as well as my last $600 unit.

[FunkDrSpot]

Originally Posted by jel847

do you use any external processors?

I never have but I've been thinking about it recently after lurking on this forum for the last 3 months or so for ideas about my trunk setup.

Originally Posted by exalted512

If you're truly after SQ, nothing is just 'plug in play'. Have you already gone in and adjusted everything to accommodate your new head unit? Like you said, there is a big difference in the preout voltage, so what you may be missing is just a turn of the gain knob away.

Otherwise, you might want to think about external processing.
-Cody

Any recommendations on sound processing units?

[96dak]

didnt mean to come off as a dick. im a pioneer dealer and the D3 is prolly the worst DD nav peice ive seen, sq is way off (compared to what you get from alpine or kenwood at the same price) and the nav sucks ass(common with all avic units). the units im very familiar with are alpine and kenwood as i sell and install those as well. if nav is a must try the kenwood 8120(built in nav NO DISCS, and BT built in as well) if not try the kenwood 7120 or the alpine w505, you will find they sound much better. ive never been a fan of pioneer because of the poor sq, but im bitting the bullet and am gonna try their 800prs (putting the order in next week).

[FunkDrSpot]

Originally Posted by 96dak

didnt mean to come off as a dick. im a pioneer dealer and the D3 is prolly the worst DD nav peice ive seen, sq is way off (compared to what you get from alpine or kenwood at the same price) and the nav sucks ass(common with all avic units). the units im very familiar with are alpine and kenwood as i sell and install those as well. if nav is a must try the kenwood 8120(built in nav NO DISCS, and BT built in as well) if not try the kenwood 7120 or the alpine w505, you will find they sound much better. ive never been a fan of pioneer because of the poor sq, but im bitting the bullet and am gonna try their 800prs (putting the order in next week).

See how incredibly easy that was? You'd know you'd be pissed if you were asking for help and someone just popped out and said "buy a new unit" as though I had the ability to just drop another $1000 like the first $750 didn't matter. Hell, if it didn't then i wouldn't be bargain shopping in the first place!

Anyways....I just saw the Alpine w505 in my local shop and I was impressed with its clarity.....but I'm not in a good financial situation right now to be dropping money. If it wasn't for the fact that my old unit got STOLEN to begin with, i wouldn't be shopping for another one. Does the Alpine have parametric or graphic EQs?

I did adjust the gain on the amps a lot more than i did the first time and put the crossover on and the speakers sound much better but not quite as good as my old unit did.


Again, if someone could point me the right direction ( line drivers or sound processors ) I'd be happy to take a look into it but this thread is mainly for me thinking in the future.

[simplicityinsound]

i have installed gosh, maybre 30 or 40 D3, and i have to agree, the output section on that is pure junk, virtually every D3 install i have done, i have put in at least a line driver, it helps a lot with getting some more clean signal out of it.

so thats where i would sugegst doing first and foremost, and then, if you are still disappointed with it, i would say sell it.

b

[330CK]

I'm glad I saw this thread. I was seriously thinking about the D3 now with the $300 Pioneer rebate. Usually I wouldn't try to jack a thread by asking another question, but I think this will help OP anyway.

What would be a good match as a sound processor for this unit? (Also - what are the good DD units for SQ?)

[Vestax]

Asking which processor to mate the D3 depends entirely on your system needs and the owner's preference of convenience and budget. Or we could just call it a day and say get 3 Zapco DC reference amps and a laptop.

[FunkDrSpot]

Originally Posted by simplicityinsound

i have installed gosh, maybre 30 or 40 D3, and i have to agree, the output section on that is pure junk, virtually every D3 install i have done, i have put in at least a line driver, it helps a lot with getting some more clean signal out of it.

so thats where i would sugegst doing first and foremost, and then, if you are still disappointed with it, i would say sell it.

b

Well, lets say I go with an Alpine 505. Will I be getting better sound quality? Is that worth the extra $500 or would that be better spent on a line driver that might be able to get me better quality than even the Alpine 505?

[330CK]

Originally Posted by Vestax

Asking which processor to mate the D3 depends entirely on your system needs and the owner's preference of convenience and budget. Or we could just call it a day and say get 3 Zapco DC reference amps and a laptop.

Sorry - I've never actually used a processor. I'm doing my search/research on it at the moment.