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New Car Stereo - Alpine iDA-X001

For my birthday, my lovely wife Jenn saved up and got me a new car stereo - an Alpine iDA-X001.  I've been wanting a stereo that has direct iPod integration for quite some time now so she took me to Car Toys and we picked this one out.

iDA-X001

It's more of a controller than anything else, relying on external peripherals to supply the music source.  It's got a USB connection that you can use to connect pretty much anything to (they have adapters) - iPod, USB memory stick, Zune.  It's also got an iPod-specific connector that you have to use with older generation iPods (that's what I have to use).  It doesn't have a CD player on it, but that's okay because I don't really listen to CDs anymore - basically they're only around long enough for me to put them on the iPod, then they get archived.

What I like is that you control it just like your iPod - you can browse your playlists, listen to your podcasts, the whole bit.  Love it.  The thing that sold me, though, is that this unit has this "MX" feature ("Media eXpander") that takes the music and "rebuilds" it, making compressed sources (like MP3s and such) sound much closer to the original source.  It's definitely noticeable, and it's one of the features I was specifically looking for.  It's very similar to the functionality of the DFX Audio Enhancer plugin for Windows Media Player.

It also has the ability to plug into a bajillion external devices and control them - Bluetooth, XM Radio, HD Radio... it seems like it can control just about anything.  Only downside is that each of the boxes that you have to get to enable these features run around the $200 - $250 range.  So, like, if I want to control my phone through Bluetooth, I have to buy a $220 box.  If I want to listen to HD Radio, that's another $250.  You get the idea.  They really get you coming and going on that stuff, but I can't really complain - the modularity of the thing makes it such that you only really have to buy the bits you want and ignore the stuff you don't.  I'd consider getting the Bluetooth box, for example, but probably will pass on the XM Radio.

While I was there, I also got an amplifier and a 10" subwoofer with a custom box for the trunk.  I had the stock Bose stereo that came with my car, and it was decent and all, but the bass... sounded great when you were sitting still but disappeared as soon as you'd start driving down the road.  The new amp/sub combo has me back in action.  Thanks, Jenn!

Print | posted @ Monday, July 30, 2007 1:07 PM

Comments on this entry:

Gravatar # re: New Car Stereo - Alpine iDA-X001
by seth at 8/23/2007 12:41 PM
hey there, i'm looking at exactly that same headunit, though i have read in several reviews/comments on crutchfield.com that the audio controls are lacking, in other words, no digital EQ's, you basically get just volume, treble, bass, fader, balance. i'll be hooking up a sub and sub amp (as you mentioned you were) so it's extremely important to have sub amp control. could you comment on that portion of it? also did the x001 come with the 5th gen ipod optimized cable? thanks and hope you are still enjoying it.
Gravatar # re: New Car Stereo - Alpine iDA-X001
by Travis Illig at 8/23/2007 2:19 PM
You do get sub volume control as a separate setting from the overall system volume, but the EQ thing is right - you only have treble/bass. That part is disappointing, but with the MX feature, I haven't wanted to "tweak" the settings quite as much as I thought I would. It'd be nice to have more control, but it's not killing me like it was with the factory deck.

For newer iPods, you actually connect through the USB cable using an iPod dock connection adapter. Only older iPods connect using the iPod-specific connection (which is what I use because I have an older iPod). All of the cables and adapters came with the unit.

I'm still very much enjoying the unit. The only thing I really feel is lacking is the ability to change the font size on the display; the font is fairly large, so not a lot of information can be shown and it causes things to scroll (like "moving text" not "line wrapping"). It's sort of annoying because it would look better with a smaller font.

Oh, and whenever you select a new playlist the "repeat" and "shuffle" settings get reset. So say you select a playlist, set it to shuffle, listen to a few songs... then you go select a new playlist, you'll need to turn shuffle back on. It figures that since you selected a playlist, you automatically intend on playing the songs in playlist order. I don't know if this is the case through the USB connection; the USB connection seems to have a lot more functionality than the standard iPod connection.

The controls to search through your music can be a little frustrating at first if you try to control it like an iPod click wheel. It just takes some getting used to.

Generally speaking, I still really dig it. The benefits far outweigh any shortcomings and I still totally recommend it.

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