OK, got back from the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas. Here's my highlights that I think this forum might be interested in:

1) Sirius Starbase controller. It's small and shaped like the Kenwood, or like the Alpine XM controller, so it's a hell of a lot better form factor than the big Sirius Sportster/Blau/big Clarion/Jensen/JVC/etc. controller out there when it comes to in-dash or in-pocket integration. You Sirius lovers should check it out if you haven't added Sat Radio yet... coming soon.

2) The spread of iPod integration. Pioneer joined Clarion and Alpine, and I think others did too. I liked Clarion's UI quite a bit.

3) Eclipse shot their cosmetics all to hell, but added more features including a Memory stick for MP3s. Look cheesy though. Still rather put MP3s on cheap CDRs.

4) Alpine looks better cosmetically. Also, they added a piece that I did not find in the booth but is in the catalog, coming out later this spring, that will let you add audio and iPod integration to certain OE HUs... and I think that Acuras should be on the list since they make the OE Nav. It will show info on the OE nav LCD! Can't wait for this...

5) Got to hear the DLS IASCA cars - an A4 from Finland and a Tiburon from Carolina, I think. Sweet sound, gear looks good, if you haven't heard of it, the top-end amps and speaks are worth a look. THink the speaks are OE'd by Morel.

6) Directed is now selling Directed-branded SAAV headrest pre-mounted monitors... which could help drive down the prices, and could mean that I can get them at cost soon...

7) A lot more 1/2 din DVD drives, which could be the way to add DVD to the OE navi with an RGB converter...

8) NavTV is now distributed by AAMP - which means that more local dealers can get their adapters for LCD Nav screens used for standard video.

9) Pioneer introduced a "wearable" XM receiver that doesn't suck in appearance like the MyFI does... still a bit tall for add-on use, but the brushed aluminum would look good in my TSX... the AVIC-N2 looked nice, with the new RL-type Real-time Traffic reports.

10) I talked to Peripheral and PIE... no one seems to be addressing the '05 TSX XM and AUX on one port issue with their SHOND-type adapters yet. Sorry, all. I had to explain it to them, they were without clues... think that a source switcher may be needed in the meantime. nyone in the PacNW with an '05 that wants to address this let me know and we can cooperate...

11) Alpine added TWO 5.1 Surround amps that need no external processor - they can be tweaked without one. I think the VPower unit is the same inside as last year's Phoenix Gold piece that I put in the Rosen demo car... the V12 is listed at only 10 WPC more, but I think is a far better amp, I hear the guts are WAY different. I think you use these to run the 5 corners and then add a sub amp (that's what I would do).

12) JL Audio showed a product that a/d/s/ was developing years ago -an OE interface that uses a digital 30-band EQ to subtract OE HU equalization. (The fact that this usually happens in the AMP, not the HU, is ignored: ) $500 retail, too steep, better solutions coming soon, but it should work for real high-end systems. Has an AUX in for video, etc.

13) Bluetooth HF for cars every-fricking-where. HF kits at a dealer near you very soon, cheap.

14) New RF amps look just like last year's new MB Q amps... those guys are in a world of hurt...

15) Phoenix Gold is now offically low end...

16) Alpine seems to have dropped alarms... not in the catalog.

17) The new Clifford Avantguard remote was supposed to be cool, but looked too big and hard to use to me. It's all LCD on the front and a TX button on the side and a step button on the side, and it's menu driven. Seems awkward.
It's patented, though, if you care...

18) West Coast Customs junkies can now buy branded crap audio gear from Directed. In the words of a friend of mine, "Nigga, please." Nuff said.

19) Sony, Kenwood, and Pioneer HUs are getting simpler looking, finally.

20) Alpine had its Scan-Speak/F#1 speakers in home speaker enclosures in a dedicated listening room - it was pretty impressive. They used DVD-Audio as a test media (maybe Super-Audio-CD, too, not sure). Wouldn't mind that DVD HU.

Oh, and Alpine's twin-motorized upward-sliding-door X5 was sweet. Just to beat someone to this...

 

bad pic....but that room was packed.




I thought it was funny that the rims on this car probably cost more than the MSRP on either of their other display cars (scions)

 

From what I heard this x5 was in their booth last year with some sweet fiberglassing, but mostly stock, when the owner (an Alpine VP) said he wouldn't drive it anymore, so they made this show car out of it.

 

I thought the centered driving position deal was pretty cool

 

Alpine Demo Cars are so sweet... http://iweb.alpine-usa.com/html/adc/adc_main.html

check out the mini

 

Good info guys. Keep it coming if you can!

Where was the CES, what city?

 

uh Las Vegas, where it is every year

 

a few pics from the show

 

El Dude - The Clifford 5.5 system look real cool. Yes the remote is a little bigger than my 791 remote but it offers so much more.

For more info click here, www.cnet.com/4520-10602_1-5619682-1.html?tag=hot

 

Classic!

Nice write up boss!

 

Yay for pics!

 

my current plan was to get the Sirius Starmate (their new smaller pnp), since it's dockless, it could fit into the cd cubby. I haven't seen too many reviews of the StarBase but was considering it too. Did you get to play around with one, how was the interface compared to the larger screen'd plug and plays, was navigation ever a problem.


That alpine/ipod connection for OEM headunits sound freakin sweet, I can't wait for more info on this. Did the alpine folk at the show have any eta on it? You mentioned it being in the catalog, is this the Spring 2005 product catalog that usually appear at alpine retailers? Any pricing info, etc.

great writeup!

-vasu

 

Were there any new bluetooth products that were announced at the show? Im still waiting on an aftermarket HU with bluetooth.

 

there was one from 8Com: http://engadget.com/entry/1234000033023560/

elduderino, was the oem/ipod thing you were talking about the Alpine v-hub?

 

Yes, it was... and there were a snotload of BT HF kits.

 

el...from what I understood, the Memory Stick in the Eclipse decks was used strictly for their E-iSERV (basically it takes an acoustic signiture of your car while the untuned system is playing, you remove the card, place it in your PC, sign on to their server, it takes the data & calculates time delay, eq settings & crossover settings, put it back in the deck & it "tunes" it for you automatically). Maybe I'm wrong. Two of their new double-DIN decks do have HDD in them though for music storage (they have the Memory Stick slot in them too, that's another reason it doesn't make sense to me).

 

Perhaps I was misinformed re: the mem stick... didn't get an official prez on the gear, and I may have heard someone who was not official... but that would be WAY stupid if they did that... much simpler and cheaper from the HW side to burn a CD ROM with a special ID tag in the intro, I would think... unless MS HW interfaces are way way way cheap.