Pioneer Premier DEH-P710BT - Radio / CD / MP3 player / digital player - Full-DIN - in-dash - 50 Watts x 4
From Pioneer
Sick of listening to static? CD Players improve sound quality and add features like Bluetooth and iPod control that you're built in factory stereo might otherwise not have.Pioneer offers a World First, iTunes tagging for FM radio (using RDS data). And for you digital radio fans, Pioneer has also made this feature available for HD radio.Enjoy vibrant, exciting displays with the large Full-Dot OEL display that makes it easier to see what is playing, no matter what the light is like. Scroll through your iPod with greater ease with 3-Line list mode. Even enjoy features like 3D full motion screen savers.Plug in your passenger's iPod while leaving your own connected, practically doubling your music. Keep your iPod in your car and add songs into the mix with a USB drive. The possibilities are endless.Enjoy the convenience of having Bluetooth built right into the unit, with no additional hands free car kits or other accessories needed. The unit acts like a speakerphone, channeling the sound through your car speakers which makes the call sound better. It also automatically mutes your music so that you'll never miss a call. This unit also includes an exclusive twin beam microphone for exceptional clarity.It's easy! Simply plug your iPod directly into the unit using the included cable, and you are ready to rock and roll. Listening to an artist that you just can't get enough of? Now you can hold the "List" button down and it will pop up folders containing that specific artist, album, or genre. You can also have your passenger control your music directly from the iPod.
- Amazon Sales Rank: #1051 in Car Audio or Theater
- Brand: Pioneer
- Model: P710BT
- Dimensions: 4.00 pounds
fantastic stereo
Well, after anxiously awaiting this stereo to be released by Pioneer, and then waiting for stores to stock it, I finally ordered mine on-line and had it installed about a month ago. In addition to the tuner, I am using an HD receiver (GEX-P20HD), my BlackBerry 8310 (no ipod or iphone yet), and Kingston DataTraveler 16 GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive. I did not need the Motorola Antenna Y-adapter suggested by Amazon.
There are many things to love about this stereo:
1) The Bluetooth hands-free feature is great and I love the convenience and sound quality of being able to play music off of my BlackBerry via Bluetooth.
2) HD is well worth it, as radio stations sound very good and I love having new radio choices on the supplemental HD channels.
3) The two USB inputs are really convenient. Note that if you use the iPod connector you'll only have 1 USB input available as the iPod connector connects to one of the USBs. I bought my 16GB flash drive for ~$30 and it's so nice not to have to carry multiple CDs anymore in the car.
4) The display is gorgeous. It's surprising how cheap all other car displays now look.
5) The sound is fantastic
Some suggestions that would make the receiver even better (which maybe can be fixed with future firmware upgrades if Pioneer is reading this):
1) You can only preset 6 stations per FM band. Car radios have been around for many decades, we have put a man on the moon, iPods hold tons of music, HD radio is here, etc. It's silly that Pioneer still limits you to 6 stations. True, you do have FM1, FM2, and FM3, but they aren't connected. I'd like 18 or so stations on one band and program music on the other bands when I'm in a different city.
2) When presetting a station, you get a generic Preset Ch 1, Preset Ch 2, etc, vs. the call letters of the station or the frequency of the station (ie. KTCL, or KTCL 93.3)
3) When playing MP3s of a flash drive in shuffle mode, and you don't like a particular song and press next, the next song from that folder plays. I think it should shuffle randomly to any song on your flash drive.
4) I would suggest that shuffle capability be expanded. When playing from a flash device, I think it would be great to shuffle locally within the folder (e.g. the currently playing Rise Against CD), locally within the directory (e.g. all Rise Against CDs in the Rise Against folder), and then a total shuffle of all music on the flash drive.
5) Every now and then, something doesn't work. Maybe no radio stations come in, or the pressing the voice command to call a number on the remote doesn't work, or the unit powers down by itself. A power cycle always resolves the problem.
Good Head Unit. Misleading Documentation
I have had my eye on this unit since about February when it first appeared on the Pioneer website. I was holding out hope that they had fixed the annoying 500 folder limit that was imposed on us users with the USB function on previous models. I contacted Pioneer customer support to ask about this restriction and whether or not it still applied to the 710BT. To my surprise the response I received from customer support directed me to the user manual which clearly explains that the unit supports up to 6,000 folders! Wow! This is enough to support my entire music collection and
still have plenty of room to grow. So I purchased the unit this past Monday and... I can only get it recognize the first 500 folders. I have emailed customer support and they have passed it along to their "engineers". At this time I am still waiting for word back from them. I based my purchasing decision on this information. This is why only four stars.
That aside, the head unit is great. The bluetooth feature is amazing, easy to set up and works flawlessly. The display is awesome and the sound is amazing. I'm pushing four 6x8 Kenwood three ways with the
built in amp. Itsounds like I have an external amp hooked up. I also noticed the increase in clarity to my subs (two 12in MTX).The user interface is easy to navigate if you're used to a Pioneer interface.This is a definite step up from my DEHP4000UB and I would recommend the unit to anyone willing to pay $400 (after Uncle Sam takes his cut) for a head unit.
Great......but
This unit was purchased to replace an Alpine CDA-9833 receiver. I was done with the whole CD thing and wanted to move to the USB thing since it made more sense to me than playing MP3s off discs. I had the six disc changer for the Alpine as well as the Sirius adapter. I did purchase the Sirius adapter to accompany the Pioneer unit which works great when at a standstill. See my description of usefulness below.
The aesthetics of the Pioneer are outstanding. It just looks sweet as hell but is VERY reflective so any sunlight will make the display difficult to read. I've not spent more time determining if I can alleviate this but my initial experiences are that I have to hold my hand over it to block the sun and see what is actually going on. Hopefully I'll address that issue and it won't be as much of a liability as I currently see it as.
The usefulness is a different story. Why someone decided that one button capable of being pressed inward as well as in four different directions would suffice for those wishing to make changes on the fly defies logic. It works great if you're parked and have the time to redo things since you may have slightly pushed to one side rather than directly in. If you're driving, this thing could get you into SERIOUS trouble...crumpled metal, screeching brakes, etc. It is just NOT a user friendly design and was poorly thought out as a means for use while moving. My advice is to spend the time to get all of your preferences made and leave them alone until the next time you park your vehicle. As someone who also owns a Harley and rides quite a bit, I can only pray that folks who own this unit wait until they get home to finalize the tweaks. Your "whoops" can be our death. This unit is NOT for playing with while driving. Attempting to do so will almost certainly entail the sounds of a crash and litigation that makes the cost of this unit look like peanuts.
The Blue Tooth works flawlessly and I've been told my voice sounds better through the unit than through the phone itself. Pairing the phone to the unit is easy and once done works flawlessly to date. Should you receive a call, the sound is interrupted and you simply answer. I mounted the microphones on my visor and pointed them directly at my face. Should you wish to make a call.....see my usefulness description. I've only had the unit in operation for a few weeks so assume I'll get better with it as time passes. I still believe it could have been made much more user friendly.
As far as the terrestrial radio tuner goes, I rarely listen to terrestrial radio but the one station I attempted to listen to kept washing out. It was one on the lower side of the dial which tend to be less powerful so it is what it is. I don't forsee checking that station again.
The crossover and equalization features work very well (assuming you're using amplifiers, subwoofers, etc.) and I am very pleased with their operation since my Alpine unit had similar but better features and was worried that I wouldn't have the same level of control over the sound as I had with the Alpine unit. Again, you set them while sitting and leave them until the next time you're sitting...see my usefulness description.
I have determined that I will need to readjust the gain settings on my amplifiers with the new unit but figured that would be required. The bass is much stronger with the Pioneer and I haven't even touched the Loudness or Bass Boost features. So far, it's PLENTY without doing so.
I don't own an ipod/iphone so use both USB ports are for portable drives. One USB port has been wired to the dash for thumbdrives whereas the other has been wired to my glove box for the big storage devices. Keep in mind that the unit only recognizes drives formatted in FAT32. When you get your brand new 250GB drive and hook it up, you'll be told it isn't recognized since it's most likely formatted in NTFS. You'll have to reformat the drive to FAT32 and then reload your audio files. Once again, Pioneer dropped the ball on this. There is a workaround but it's a pain in the ass. You have to go through DOS to format your large drives to FAT32 whereas the little ones aren't an issue and allow that. Why Pioneer would set up a unit that doesn't recognize the NTFS format of drives is ridiculous. I'm guessing they've done so hoping to sell next years model?
I don't have a dog in the fight. These are my initial reactions based on the replacement of my Alpine units. My amps and speakers attached to this HU are all of competition quality even though I don't compete. I just like my music to sound pristine.
I reluctantly gave the unit 4 stars even though I feel it really only deserved 3. By all means this is a unit that will please your ears and your eyes and is a very high quality unit. Just be prepared to do all your tweaking when you're parked and safe. At least my Alpine allowed for on the fly adjustments without endangering others. If you attempt to tweak this unit while driving you are asking for trouble.
The remote that comes with the unit is very limited in functionality so really don't see it as a major plus.
The sound system in my car typically boggles the mind to those who don't spend the coin to get things done. As I've stated, I'm not dissatisfied with the unit but certainly think there are MANY ways it can be made better.
While I wouldn't say that I recommend this unit, I certainly can't discount it for all of it's features...if you tweak them in your driveway. Your mileage may vary......
