sundevil67

Hey All,
I am looking for some guidance (pun intended!) on selecting a Nav system. I am looking for a few extra goodies, and have narrowed it down to two units. I am quite interested in the Pioneer Vehicle Dynamic Display that shows all kinds of vehicle performance data, but am unsure if the unit I've selected can do this or not; I know the other one with the fold-out monitor can, but I am looking for just a monitor-type unit to go in the Nav cubby, since I already have a Pioneer double DIN head unit. The two I am looking at are the :
1. Pioneer AVIC-D1
2. Clarion N.I.C.E.

The pioneer unit gives you a GUI for XM radio, but I use Sirius and am not sure if I will get the same benefits - while the Clarion model seems to be set up for Sirius rather than XM. It also comes with a DVD player, and if I wanted that with the Pioneer I would need an external unit. The 20GB Hard Drive is of no consequence, as I already have the Omni-Fi system from Rockford Fosgate. Basically the features most important to me are:

1) GPS - A real good one that is easy to use (any experience with each?)
2) Quality Monitor
3) Backup Camera
4) DVD Player
5) Ability to add a TV tuner
6) Good fit in the Nav Cubby - clean install
7) Vehicle Performance Data

I am wondering if the Pioneer unit will operate more smoothly with a Pioneer head unit already present - but I dunno! Any opinions on either of these units would be very helpful!

Thanks.

sundevil67

w8lifter21

iTrader: (1)

I would go with the Pioneer. I have the AVIC-N1 in right now and I just got the D1. The only reason I am changing is because i like the look of the double din better. As ar as it fitting in the upper cubby, I dont know if that will happen. It is a fairly big unit and i'm not sure if the door would be able to close infront of it.

-The GPS calculates your position based on 4 inputs. Signal from your GPS antenna, speed from the vehicle speed sense wire, and the reverse input when your car is put into reverse (R), and the average speed that you program into the unit when on certain types of roads. It is very accurate and there are many ways to search for an address, plus it is SUPER easy to use.

-You can add a TV tuner no problem (GEX-P5700TV or GEX-P6100TV) as well as a back up camera (ND-BC1).

-The screen quality is excellent with very little glare and the colors are very acurate and sharp.

-The only down side is that it doesn't have a true DVD player. It can play SOME DVD ROMs if you perform the "bypass" so that the D1 can play video. Search D1 bypass for more info. It not having a DVD player is not a big issue for me because I will be either adding a JVC headunit that plays DVDs in one of the upper cubby holes, or adding a PC. I've played around with other Navi units like the Alpine, Kenwood, and Eclipse, but not the Clarion. Out of the ones that I have used, the pioneer is by FAR my favorite. Hence me having 2

sundevil67

Thanks for the info. I am leaning towards the Pioneer unit I think. Please post pics of your install when it is done. I am considering doing a custom console where I tear out the nav door anyway - the only thing I am worried about if I do that however is visibility - you'd be able to see there is a monitor by looking through the window, but I am sure I will get my stuff stolen at some point anyway. That is what extra insurance is for! I can always do an external DVD player in the other available "mail slot". If the Clarion had Wifi, I would probably go with that, but otherwise I wouldn't be able to use the USB port if I did a permanent mount - that means the 20GB HD would be useless to me. The Pioneer backup camera also looks like it is much smaller than the Clarion's. I am wondering if anyone on this list has some step by step instructions or detailed pics of a camera install - I haven't been able to find a real good example. Do you know anything about the vehicle performance data? Pioneer's website explains that this is possible, and I think it is even built into your old unit (the AVIC-N1), but I can't figure out if you need an extra component to use it with the D1. The other question I still have is about the Sirius - I wonder if the SIR-P1 I have will work with the D1 or if I need a different Sirius tuner that allows it to take advantage of the GUI. Does that make sense? Thanks for your help - that review of the GPS is probably what sold me. Pioneer thanks you as well.

Paul350Z

iTrader: (1)

I have the Pioneer AVIC N2 installed in my upper DIN slot saving the lower one for my (now empty) wallet and possibly a sound processor later.

The backup camera is an easy installation as there's a rather large pass-thru gromit behind the rear license plate.



I used an el-cheapo back-up camera from e-bay. The quality is pretty grainy but it's pleny good enough for it's intended function. I still haven't learned to trust the back-up-by-wire and look over my shoulders while backing.

Paul350Z

iTrader: (1)

If I understand you correctly you want to mount a D1 inside the navigation cubby hole?

There is just about zero room behind the cubby the way it sits stock. There is a solid plastic surface within about a half an inch behind the back of the visible back of the cubby. What lays beyond that I don't know - you'd have to nearly cut the top of the dash in half to make room one way or the other. If there's any steel strenghting members in there you'd have to cut them away too.

I'd look at a Tom-Tom or Garmin dedicated GPS unit rather than a second headend or just blow out the current double DIN unit and go with one that better matches your requirements. Cutting into the dash for that custom installation of a second headend is going to be costly and open up problems like interfacing with the speakers that are already connected to the first headend.

w8lifter21

iTrader: (1)

The performance data is built into the D1, it doesn't have a separate box like the N1 or N2 does. I'm not sure exactly what your Sirius question is but I think you are talking about the SIR-PNR1, Sirius's dedicated sat. radio tuner for Pioneer radios. Yes it will work, but you will only be able to browse by category and by station. You will not have a "direct tune" feature that lets you directly punch in the channel number that you want to listed to. Only the dedicated XM Radio tuners have that feature. You still get all the regular info like category, artist, song, channel number, etc. that any other stand alone Sirius reciever would have. You also can't use the NavTraffic feature, you need a special dedicated XM radio tuner($300) plus a subscription, plus an additional fee on top of the normal $13. Not sure what you mean about GUI, just thought I would throw that out there. I was able to try the NavTraffic in a customers X5 with an N2 and it's nice, just dont know exactly if it's worth it...

sundevil67

I actually found the answer to my question about Sirius - the Graphical User Interface is available for XM only, and my existing Sirius SIR-PNR1 will work for basic operation. The Pioneer Website had the info here. As far as using the Nav cubby, Paul350Z makes some good points...

I know that it probably makes more sense to use the existing Double DIN opening, but I really do want to keep a "normal" head unit in that space for another reason - I can't seem to let go of my need for a tape deck. I've also gone through quite a process to settle on this deck - first I bought a sick Alpine Japanese unit for $1200 and then decided that I liked the Pioneer FHP-5000 much better and sold the Alpine on eBay for a fraction of what I paid for it. So I guess I am "emotionally invested" in this head unit now.

I think what I will probably end up doing is a custom console like pictured below - it is something I've wanted to do for a long time anyway. If I did something like this, I should be able to use the AVIC-D1 model in conjunction with my Pioneer FHP-5000, right? I would have an extra single CD I wouldn't need, but that shouldn't matter. I don't know much about how it would all connect together, but I would like to use the FHP-5000 for AM/FM, Tape, and CD, and then use the AVIC-D1 for GPS, an external DVD, Sirius, and a backup camera. Think I could pull that off?

w8lifter21

iTrader: (1)

Like Paul350z said, I HIGHLY doubt the D1 would fit in the cubby. But hey you can do whatever you want if you have the $$ to do it haha. I hope your comes out better, I see a gap around his screen....

sundevil67

Yeah, I noticed that - I think that is just because of the angle, but I would hope my installer could do better. The point is that I could get the dash custom built around the unit. If you know of any other examples of custom consoles built around monitors, I'd love to see them. Also, if you all have any recommendations for a different setup, I would be receptive to that as well. I could always just buy a standard monitor with a touch screen and buy an external GPS, but I figured the Pioneer unit was a good value for the features that are included. What is the maximum monitor size y'all have been able to squeeze into the cubby and have it still look stock?

jasonbokamper

What external GPS units will work with an external touchscreen?

I have been looking at the Pioneer Avic-80/88/90 units as well as the Kenwood Navi unit, but I can't seem to figure out if they will work directly with a Xenarc or Lilliput touch screen.

Any help would be appreciated.

J

sundevil67

I just noticed that the Kenwood Excelon DDX8017 supposedly also has a 6.5" screen - the same as this Pioneer unit - I could swear I've seen that installed in the cubby. How much smaller is the stock Nav screen? Will this be close?

jasonbokamper

Nevermind, I confirmed that the Avic-80 will work with any screen so long as you get the CD-RGB26P coverter box from Pioneer that outputs to RCA jacks.

Jason