I finally arrived in the car in MP3 age after a long search and herrumkrebsen on my old Sony cassette deck with CD changer is connected.
Delivery by Amazon started out as a game with obstacles and detours because someone had the idea for the first radio is sending with Hermes - that did not work ... but also has nothing to do with the product itself.
The first impression:
A well-packed small box to the car radio in it. The box looks pretty easy, but that does not detract from the quality of hope.
The radio itself is securely packaged, the delivery tight but adequate.
Included in the package:
- The Radio (haha you guessed it ..)
- The mounting rail
- The wiring harness with ISO connectors
- A front panel (black piano finish)
- A manual with a few pages (in German readable) + the mandatory warranty card
- 2x the 'tool' to the radio again to get out of the dashboard out
Installation:
The installation went without a hitch and was completed in 5 minutes.
Disconnect> negative battery
> Old Radio out - pull cable and the old rail out.
> The new rail pure + the wiring harness of the Kenwood to ISO plug my Mercedes C180 (W202, 16 years old) without changing it. (Are On harness still Extra ports for a steering wheel remote control + a mute for handsfree or so ... I did not, I do not need, more on that later.) Antenna connected (yes, sunken port, in some, an adapter will be necessary here !
Clamped> Aperture top + radio to the cable harness and sunk - done.
After the battery was again off even the very first sign of life - the radio is ready for use.
The reception of radio is as far as I can tell in Hamburg because fine, but for me eh secondary. More interesting are the USB port and the small jack.
I have a 16GB Nano USB Stick bought () briefly tested on the PC if it was formatted to FAT32 and fired him with music. After that I made a small 'mistakes' - I created a 'database' with the Kenwood Music Editor Light - totally unnecessary scrap, let it!
Now for the (partly somewhat unsightly) Details:
The stick was immediately recognized and read in a very short time, great!
Thanks to the database created with Music Editor Light (KME) Unfortunately Order navigation was possible. He had read etc. Artists, Albums from the ID3 tags, which are not properly maintained at all my MP3s - and precisely these were then simply can not be found.
Back to the PC and delete the data of the KME: Suddenly it was possible to browse the folder, just fine! What is not so great, well this point is the display, it has to allow too little character to a good navigation order.
The jack:
Mobile in the holder on the latch and you're done hands-free. Works, but is just as good or bad as most handsfree in the car: one understands the other great, but even understood more bad than good.
The sound:
Madness! The old Sony Radio was good - no question that small Kenwood brings here the MP3s but even more out than the old unit from an original CD.
What I noticed right at the sound, the device sit quite bassy. There are very many settings for audio output.
This starts with the middle, treble, etc. and a few good presets, and ends in the individual frequencies for these same settings. Prefer eminen bass to 60Hz, 80Hz to 100Hz or to increase etc.? When I decided this I can still turn on the loudness in two stages and if desired a Bass Boost in another two steps!
For the maximum at a higher volume, I would probably still thoroughly upgrade: The boxes in my 16 year old Mercedes C180 Elegance are good, but they do not hold out. ;) At moderate volume there is but sound like in the cinema. Madness!
If you want more, you have probably build a separate subwoofer in the trunk or make similar gimmicks, then lets talk so safe but also very loose an entire street. This, however, I would not recommend otherwise safe there trouble with the neighbors ... or the race organizers.
Pressure enough so has the radio, because only the built-in speakers are the limit. The sound is a bit bassy, but consistently really good.
The Design:
The slant in the truest sense of the word design appealed to me the same - it does not look just like all the others.
From the Operation ago I think it's also practical, the buttons can be quickly serve blind and also sensing without having to look.
However, I find that the red light a little too frugal. Even without these dim down the keys are not always legible. Thanks to the intuitive operation you have the out but after 1-3 days.
Mechanical Quality:
The radio looks pretty wertig, grade compared to a JVC or Pioneer the same price range. I've tested in a large Eletronikmarkt a few of them - plastic waste is the only term I can think of it.
The buttons have a good tactile feedback and rattle (so far) not around, the plastic and the entire processing act decently, and the volume knob is made of metal. Everything fits and nothing wobbles here you get something for your money!
The radio also costs for 10-20 more than its competitors from other companies, I take it but, if you purchase.
I had the same one I looked at for this device from Sony that in the same price range is (15öre cheaper?) And more or less has the same features, but I'm glad that I have resorted to Kenwood and would do it again.
Why? Although the Sony CDXGT450U has a similar arrangement of buttons - this can be but sensing Blind significantly worse!
--Fazit--
Pro:
Great design and easy to operate
Class sound with many setting possibilities
Functions operate extensive and ..! ;)
Radio reception well (in the city)
Installation easy
High-quality (which you of course have to wait for the long-term test)
The USB port provides 1Ampere! The mobile phone can be charged rapidly over here, and theoretically would probably auche an external 2.5 "hard drive to it - I'll try on occasion times.
The unit is brand new, come 2012 on the market and for fairly cheap.
Cons:
The Order navigation / title search is suboptimal because the display has put little (but you should not watch it while driving). Tip: definitely not use the Kenwood Music Editor Light if you do not perfectly manicured ID3 tags in his MP3s.
The sound can be adjusted quickly to bassy and the like weaker / older speakers do not like is wenns times louder.
The illumination of the keys could be better, but not disturb it.
** Update **
The radio is still large class. I've installed yesterday a new frontal system in my Benz and now the small radio verschlägt a really language. Clear, sound, great sound, nothing to complain about! Whether rock with fast drums or bass-heavy electronic music, this part really expresses a lot out of the LS.
The quality is just great for the money, I would buy it again at any time.
