I just installed a new pioneer head unit in my f150, model DEH-P6800MP . It replaced my Sony cdx-m800 that had a screen malfunction after about 2 years of solid use and being in and out of 2 different vehicles. I know everyone knocks Sony for not being high quality, but now that I have had the pioneer in for a little while, I can honestly say that it doesnt sound NEAR as good as my sony did... its not nearly as powerful, the high's arent as clear... and one major thing it lacks is what sony calls a digital soundstage organizer, which makes it sound like the speakers are right at ear level. I have tried and tried to adjust the EQ and all of my volume settings, but it just doesnt have the oomph the Sony put out. Has anyone else noticed a lack of sound quality in newer pioneer head units? I am really disappointed... its not like I bought a low end product. This is one of the better models...

 

I think we have a couple of members on here that have the same H/U.

on another note...
I have used & installed various Pioneer H/Us for myself and clients in the past and never had a Pioneer product that couldn't perform per my own and my customer's expectations. But I'm unsure of their Newer model line-ups...
I hope that this is only a "fruity" H/U and not an under-performing waste of money. I would hate to see Pioneer's past reputation to be fumbled by poor quality/workmanship...

p.s... how'd the AMP troubleshooting go?

 

I have had a few Sonys in the past and they performed okay but not one has ever performed as good as one of the Pioneers I have owned. That goes for house and car. Trigger, I also hope that they are not letting their name go, if so I may keep the H/U in my truck with me instead of just letting it go with the truck.

 

I agree! I purchased the Pioneer DEH-P4800MP CD/MP3/WMA Player and am running 4 Polk Audio db 570's and am not too impressed! I just can't get the system to sound great. The speakers sound crystal clear, but the low frequencies just are not that great. I can't seem to get the unit dialed in like I could with my older Pioneer head units. I might try a custom sub and amp install under the arm rest...
ERIC

 

The more I listen to it, the more I think it is just a flat out lack of power from the head unit... I can turn it all the way up, but it sounds like it is only putting out half the volume of other head units with the same size internal amplifiers... At this rate, I may need to install an external amp to power my door speakers...

 

i'm not overly impressed with my DEH-P7700MP, it works and functions great but i have yet to get it adjusted to my liking

unlike my old deh-P3300, that i gave to mom it was simple and still works quite nicely i have thought about swaping it in to see if the deck is the problem or the rest of my sound system setup is at fault

 

I looked into the pioneers and came close to buying the DEH-P6800MP. For a couple reasons though, such as the face plate color (never liked the silver, does not match interior), I decided to pick up a Sony CDX-GT400 MP3/WMA CD for about the same price. I have been very happy so far with the sound. I also would definately recommend buying from crutchfield as I saved at least $50 since the car kit and wiring harness came free for buying the HU and the install directions were pretty straight forward. Also free shipping. Total was around $189 for unit, wire harness, car kit, auxillary input adapter($29), and factory radio removal tool.

 

I have had the DEH-P6800 for a few weeks now, I can't comment on the internal amp's power as I am not using it (using an external amp). But for the money I think it's a pretty decent deck, mine sounds pretty decent with good highs and reasonable lows (I am adding a sub at some point in the future, but stuck on what to go with).

I had really wanted to get an Alpine (used to have one back in the UK) but had heard nothing but poor reviews of the latest Alpine HU's (and I could not justify the cost of the W200 and did not want to go used). The main things I feel I am missing on my Pioneer is time alignment. It's something I wanted, but could not find on anything but high end expensive decks. Other than that it's a good (semi) budget deck.

I plan to add a sub sometime this year (stuck on whether to get something like a basslink, Alpine PLT-5 or build a box with a single 10") and will probably pick up the Pioneer Sirius module too. Hopefully this HU will last me a few years now.

Maybe those of you experiencing problems just don't yet have it set up properly. I know with my Alpine (it had time alignment, crossover functions etc etc) it took me months to get it set up how I liked it. I have the Pioneer set up pretty well at the moment, but know it will take a while until I am happy with it entirely, and I will probably adjust things again when a sub is added.