Pioneer DEHP3100UB SCD Receiver with USB control and LCD
Pioneer DEHP3100UB SCD Receiver with USB control and LCD
* In-Dash CD/MP3/WMA/iTunes AAC/WAV Receiver features ASR, Rotary Commander, Alphabet Search
* USB Control for iPod/MP3 Players/Flash Memory, 16-character LED Display, and Hi-Volt RCAx2.
SCD Receiver with USB control and LCD
Pioneer DEHP3100UB SCD Receiver with USB control and LCD Reviews.
I have a 2002 Mazda Protege 5 sport wagon. I had replaced the crappy stock double DIN unit with a different but unfortunately also crappy JVC unit, mostly because I wanted a unit that had an aux port for my iPod.
The attractive points of the 3100UB was not just the aux port but the built-in USB port located right on the front panel, facilitating an amazingly easy install and no need to buy additional adapters or route cables around the dash or glove box. The Pioneer site says you need to pick up their USB cable for iPod functionality, but you don’t; my standard iPod sync cable works perfectly for both charging and playing with no problems. I suppose if you have an extra $25 to spend you can get the Pioneer cable, but it isn’t necessary. You can use USB flash drives as well – but the iPod/iPhone system integration is seamless, easy, and very satisfying.
I knew that in getting a single DIN I would be giving up interface real estate and the convenience of more buttons. However, the “joystick” control on this unit along with the bezel button functions are very easy to use, and do not take a lot of time to figure out. It gets intuitive after a few hours of use and you’re set. Compliments too on the included remote, which does just about everything even easier and quicker than the front panel controls. READ THE MANUAL! It’s an easy read and the instructions are simple. Once you’ve got it – you’ve got it.
The other wonderful feature is the unit’s ability to read every audio file format you can throw at it on a CD. MP3 and WMA are pretty much standard on everything, but harder to find are units that read Apple AAC files. This unit does it without hesitation (unless they are iTunes store DRM files, which you can either skip over, or use iTunes Plus on the iTunes store to convert your protected songs to DRM-free for about $.30 a pop). I can fit about 80-90 tunes on one CD and it makes having a large listening library easily available with just a few discs when I don’t have my iPod with me. Pioneer’s Sound Retriever processing for compressed files takes the quality of these discs up to near-standard CD fidelity – great stuff!
The unit can be expanded in several ways: a Bluetooth module (about $85) which allows for audio streaming and cell phone functionality, HD radio and/or satellite radio, but I have no interest in any of these at this point. It’s also got a pair of rear RCA ports for an amp and/or sub-woofer expansion. The unit itself has a 50 watt x 4 channel MOSFET amp and the sound is pristine and puts out a lot of power. The EQ settings are plentiful with both factory presets, user programmable slots with a 3-band eq as well as frequency based adjustments, bass boost and loudness settings, as well as sub-woofer and high/low pass filter options with a fully adjustable crossover. It’s ridiculously multi-faceted and you can really fine tune it for your tastes and speakers. I have stock speakers and this unit really makes them shine. I’m going to replace them next month with four Pioneers and I can’t wait to hear it.
The detachable faceplate is, of course, a great security feature. The only con I can come up with for the unit is that the display could be brighter. The 4100UB model (same functions across the board but about $25 more) has a much brighter display, but honestly, it’s a real “set it and forget it” unit, so it doesn’t bother me much.
This unit sells just about everywhere else for $140 and Amazon had it for $125. I’m so happy to have a high-end, iPod and AAC file compatible unit that can be expanded with a nice array of upgrades in the future if I want. It’s flexible, powerful, subtle in appearance, and a joy for iPod/iPhone owners. Just plug it in and go! No need to buy anything else. I can’t recommend this unit enough. Pioneer quality and broad functionality at this price point is just ridiculous!
I actually brought this product from Best Buy and paid about 35 dollars more for it with tax and all. Plus I got it installed by the Geek Squad for another 100 dollars (which I recommend for anyone who is not or doesn’t know someone who is savvy about installing such things) but anyway the product works great. The sound is absolutely wonderful and clear with a nice bass. I got it so I could play my iPod Touch in my car and the USB port makes this easy. I had actually had a cheaper Pioneer in my car for about a week that only had the AUX port, but I quickly found that driving and trying to pick up my iPod and control it was a hazard…actually worse than me trying to text while driving…so I exchanged it for this one…but anyway some people don’t like that it disables your iPod but the great thing about this radio is it gives you the option to control your music through the radio or the iPod. If you are like me and want to control the iPod through the radio you should sit in your car for awhile with your manual to play with the buttons, because like others have said the controls are a bit confusing and take some getting use to. Plus the display is difficult to see when its sunny which is another reason you should take some time to play with the controls before driving. Also it might help some people to create a few playlist and get everything ready before you drive so that you’re not constantly fidgeting with the iPod and the controls and so you can sit back and just enjoy the amazing sound of your music.
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