markv@dartvax.UUCP (Mark F. Vita) (08/20/85)
<...>
Several weeks ago, I posted a message to the net asking for car
stereo recommendations. I was particularly interested in information
on the 6-watt Alpine 7162 deck, and the Alpine line in general.
Well, I received many responses, and in general, the Alpine decks were
highly recommended. Of the 14 replies I received, 10 had very good things to
say about the Alpine stereos. The only real "negative" comments concerned the
power of the particular model I had inquired about (the 7162). Almost
all the people who had experience with this deck found that 6 watts
was not enough to overcome road noise, etc., and recommended a deck
with more wattage (in particular, the Alpine 7263, which is the 16-watt
equivalent of the 7162).
Other warnings about the Alpine decks: one person reported that
his Alpine 7263 would not play about 1/3 of his pre-recorded tapes,
but played home-made tapes (i.e. Maxells, TDKs) with no problem. Another
person liked the Alpine decks, but has had three stolen from his car,
which has deterred him from buying Alpine since.
Other recommendations for decks included Sony, Audiovox, Concord,
and Sansui. Also, there seemed to be a general consensus that the Clarion
stereos are pretty bad and should be avoided.
Speaker recommendations were less consistent. I got recommendations
for Jensen, Sony, and Yamaha speakers, amongst others.
Also, contrary to the rumor I had heard, Alpine apparently *does* sell
to discounters.
Taking these comments into consideration, I purchased an Alpine 7263
deck and a pair of Alpine 6243 4x6 speakers. In case you're interested,
the deck was $219 and the speakers were $49. I bought them at the new
branch of Rich's Car Tunes in Danvers, MA.
If anyone would like the full text of the recommendations I got, send
me mail, and I'll be happy to ship you the whole wad.
Thanks muchly to all who responded...
--
Mark Vita
Dartmouth College
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