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Ripspeed DVD732B
by Huomenna
I have a 16 year old Volkswagen Golf, which up until last month had the original tape player in it - the tape eject button was missing and the wires must have been crossed as you'd press volume only for it to change the the radio station instead. Anyway my boyfriend had been promising to buy me an up to date replacement and this is what ... he got me...
What is it?
The Ripspeed DVD732B is a head unit stereo system for your car - it does the standard and traditional things which you would expect (radio and CD) however it can also play DVD's, has a slot for SD cards (up to 2gb) and a USB connection.
Connection:
Putting this into a car is a relatively straight forward process (going from the experience in my car) - you pull the old unit out and plug the connector from the car into the unit, if it doesn't fit then you can buy adaptors.
If you wish to watch DVD's then you will have to connect one of the cables to the parking break or find another way to make it earth, if you don't do this the unit will assume that you are constantly driving and won't allow an image to be displayed.
The unit is a standard size so should fit most slots, however there are alot of cables behind it and depending on how your cars dashboard is set out, you may have a tough time pushing it all the way in as the cables get bunched up behind it.
Once the unit is in place you simply press the power button to turn it on and away you go! There are no set up menu's to worry about which is a bonus.
Use:
Although this unit has alot of functions, it's relatively easy to use. When the power button is pushed it immediately sets the source to radio, however if you connect another media it automatically switches over to that. If you otherwise want to switch between different media you simply press the src button.
The volume adjustment is on a dial, however if you push the dial inwards in brings up another of options such as increasing the bass and changing the output from different speakers. I have found this very handy, but my only gripe is that it doesn't remember the settings for when you next turn it on - I listen to alot of rock and metal music where I want the bass to be amplified, but I have to set this every time I get in my car as it doesn't retain that information, even so it only takes a matter of seconds to do.
Quality:
I have to say I've been incredibly impressed with the quality of this player. The detachable front unit is plastic and very lightweight, but all the buttons feel durable and even though you have to be quite rough pulling it off the rest of the unit (don't want to leave it on view incase it tempts someone to break into your car), the connections are very solid and won't snap off.
As for the quality of the output - this is superb. Yes the DVD display is only 3" but the clarity is fantastic and to be honest I doubt many people will be watching DVD's in their car anyway! The sound is wonderful although this will of course be affected by your speakers - the speakers in my car are the standard (ie. not great quality) ones and 16 years old, however the sound is still brilliant. The bass in particular is very impressive and can be turned up very high with little distortion, futhermore the volume can be turned up exceptionally loudly if you're that way inclined.
Other info:
As mentioned above the front of this unit pulls off which means you can take it off when parked, to avoid giving dishonest people the temptation to break into your car. You get a little plastic box to keep the front in and it has foam padding on the inside, to open the box you're supposed to push the bottom bit in to release the catch which I always find a bit fiddly.
There is a remote control supplied, however as the driver I can't see an instance when you would need this as it's just as easy to make adjustments on the unit itself (unless you drive a hummer maybe). It could be useful though if you have passengers in the back seat who want to change songs etc.
Price:
I believe the RRP for this is around £160, which is quite expensive, however when you consider what you get for it then it's not too bad. That said, this is currently on offer in Halford's just shy of £90, making it very reasonably priced.
Overall this comes highly recommended from me - it's high quality (in more ways than one), lots of connections for different playing devices, it's a good price and it has certainly made my driving experiences much more pleasurable.
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Kenwood KDC W4044UA
by jimbibob
When I downgraded my van around 6 months ago, I also ended up with a downgraded Stereo and needed a cheap replacement that did as much as possible. So I bought this.
Very impressed right from the start. Its packed with everything i could need without buying a double DIN DVD player. It Plays MP3 CDs which is handy if you want ... to put more CDs on a disc than a regular audio CD, or if you wish, you can use WMA or AAC files! which is great if you use MACs over PCs. But my favourite thing about this is the USB port. I eventually went out and bought myself an 8Gb USB Pendrive, and put nearly everything i own onto it, and can now sit and choose whatever i want, without having to mess around with CDs. There isnt a CD in there anymore.
The sound quality seems to get the most out of the speakers you already have (mine are not great but this stereo seems to make them sound better).
Its Easy to fit, and comes with a remote should you for some reason want some1 in the back to take control of it.
All in all: Great Product, Bargain Price
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