Customer Reviews

JVC Arsenal KD-ADV49 DVD/CD Receiver with Motorized 3.5" Widescreen Monitor, Built-in Bluetooth®, USB 2.0 for Ipod, HD Radio Ready, Satellite Ready

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I purchased this unit on Ebay, so my review is strictly on the stereo itself and not Amazon. It has options such as: ipod control, and bluetooth that most other stereos require expensive add-ons to do. This unit is exactly the same as the KD-AVX44. The only difference is one has blue backlighting and a two year warranty, the other has white backlighting and a one year warranty. This receiver would be five stars if the controls were a little more intuitive. You definitely need to read the manual, or you will get frustrated quickly.

First off, this headunit is well worth $200. I would never spend the $500+ it retails for, though. This is my 3rd JVC headunit. I bought this one mainly so I could plug my external hard drive into it and play all my music. I cannot comment on video capabilities, as I have not tried it yet, I might edit this review when I do.

The Good:
Great looks, Cool factor. Performs well, even in cold weather when my old headunits would work slowly. Relatively easy to use, contrary to what others have said. The controls are not difficult to figure out, but I wouldn't want to mess with it too much while driving, there are a lot of menus to scroll through. Stealthy all-black when turned off.

The Annoying:
If you have subs, you may be annoyed by this. There is only one sub output connection, requiring you to buy a y-connector so you can plug your RCAs from the amp into the headunit. Instead of having the normal Right/Left sub outputs, it has one sub and one for the center speaker for surround sound.. odd. So, your subs will no longer be right/left, but they will be the same. Not a big deal for me. Your only other option is to go back to the stone age and use the rear speaker rca outputs for your subs, but then you have to use the equalizer settings to turn all of the bass off from the speakers.

This brings me to my next point. The subwoofer settings are way, way to loud. With my old JVC, I had the subs set on +4 on a scale from 0 to 12. This headunit defaults the setting on 0 on a scale of -6 to +8. 0 is way too much bass and -6 is still too much. Luckily, I have a bass switch from my amp and turned that all the way down as well. Now it sounds normal. Maybe there is some type of setting that I need to change, I'm not sure.

Like someone else mentioned, the touchpad is hard to use while driving. Skipping tracks/folders, etc. is not too bad, but turning up the volume sometimes proves difficult. If you hit a bump in the road while you are trying to adjust the volume, you will likely bump another button and skip to the next track, radio station, etc. I just use the remote for volume adjustments, its easier.

Also, it takes a solid 60-90 seconds to read my external hard drive, though I do have 11GB of music (around 3,000 songs) on it. It also took a long time (much longer than my old JVC) to read an mp3 cd with around 70 songs on it. Navigating the folders/songs on the external HD takes a while, as only about 10 at a time show on the screen and I haven't figured out how to scroll down more than one at a time. Not a big issue, b/c I usually just use the random/shuffle feature rather than looking for a specific song.

You have to go through 3 screens to get to the Random option for USB. Every time you choose a specific track, change sources or turn off the headunit, it resets to normal mode and you have to select random again.

Overall, it is another great unit from JVC (I've owned 3). Very nice features, just a few annoying things about it. I might not have figured all of the controls out yet, but then again, I haven't really touched the manual, so some of my "annoying" things may be solved once I figure out all of the controls/settings. I would definitely recommend it, its a bargain at this price.

I have had this unit working for about 2 weeks now... everything intergrates well, except the IPHONE, but i dont have one (friends). I just simply bought the bluetooth adapter by motorola and have had no problems. sounds is crystal clear... downside is you will probably want to disconnect the ipod when using your phone bluetooth, bc the controls get confused (still working on this problem, will probably figure out shortly).

bluetooth is integrated into the headunit and has 3 mic setting i keep mine on standard 2 setting and all my friends hear me just fine. i like this becuase i didnt have to run a stupid looking mic in my car and it looks sleak and professional... i really like that when you turn it off the face is blackout and you dont have to worry about it being stolen and untop of that it doesnt look like something from outerspace in your car with 10,000 silver buttons...

my stereo play better now and definately has a punchier bass... i was skeptical of this unit from the reviews, but really the interface isnt as hard to use as people are saying... at first you'll touch the screen where the options are until you realize it isnt a touch screen head unit, but after that its all downhill... if you take 10 minutes to read through the simple manual you'll have no problems... you should be able to use all abilities and install was easy to do with a friend...

in addition the easiest way to control the unit while driving is the remote... so overall it will be way better than any factory head and if you want to expand your options you can do so without a crazy looking headunit...

pros: easy install, better sound, better video, bluetooth works easily....

cons: none if you go bluetooth route... aka you dont need that add on cable...

I bought this unit for my wife for two features: 1) bluetooth handsfree phone 2) SD card reader. SD card reader was prominently advertised by Amazon.

Had it installed right after getting it.

Only then discovered it has no SD card reader. I was pissed. Contacted customer support by email, took a couple back and forths to explain the problem, and they quickly knocked a bit off the price. While I still wish it had the SD card reader, I'm totally pleased with Amazon's handling of the situation.

Plus:
Playback sound quality
Bluetooth sound quality for both sides of phone conversation. Not stellar, but quite good enough.

Minus:
No SD car reader as advertised
Controls are awful. Hard to get at radio presets. But "tilt" is a single function button?! Menu hell to get to so many features. I love the capacitive touch technology, too bad it was so poorly used. For example, it uses a rotary touch sensor for volume up down, but for nothing else!? Would be great if it were used for more features.

LLEGO EN PERFECTAS CONDICIONES, CABLES ACCESORIOS, ETC, NINGUN PROBLEMA CON LA INSTALACIÓN, AHORA MISMO LO ESTOY USANDO EN MI CAMIONETA.

Pros: Excellent video quiality, good audio quality, high compatibility, iphone bluetooth compatibility.
Cons: long time usb reading, no iphone compatibility (cable option).

I'm addicted to new tech in car radios and this have great features, love the blue tooth for the phone no more tickets, was easy to install to DVD screen and sound equipment, all in all it's been the best acquisition this far.

I purchased this unit a couple of weeks ago for 200bucks and it was money well spent. As with other reviewers there are some things I would change, but overall I wouldn't trade for a more expensive unit.

The Goods:
Easy to install even if you are not a professional installer
Great monitor. I've tried DVD's and purchased a $30 OX backup camera and both look great on the screen. Due to my heater controls I couldn't go with the larger flip-up screen and I'm really glad I couldn't or I would have spent more than I needed.
Sound is excellent and there is plenty of customization you can do with the EQ. The rear sub was a bit loud until actually read the instructions and after making the correct adjustments it works great to.
For the most part all the controls are easy enough to use while driving down the road. Don't let the volume control comments stop you because I found with a bit of practice they are not that bad and since it is in a truck, I just put some velcro on the remote and mounted it next to the deck for when I'm bouncing around off road and the volume buttons on the remote work just a good as your old deck.
The removable face is a must. Why spent 3x as much on a deck that a theif can help himself to at will. With technology these days there is no excuse.

The Bads:
-The Bluetoothe sinks right up when I turn on my truck, but the internal speaker is pretty much worthless driving down the highway. It works fine in town where there is little road noise but plan to get an external speaker if you drive with the window down or want to use it out of town. Access in the deck to make a call isn't perfect, but the voice recognition works pretty good, but again not on the highway.
-It would be really nice if I could play my stereo while the backup camera is on, but that is only the case right when I turn on the ignition. I wired my camera into a switch on my shifter so I can see what the boat is doing while the camper is on the truck and once you go to stereo you have to leave it to get back to the screen that will show you the camera and they both won't work at the same time. A minor inconvience.
If you unhook the battery you have to start all over again with all your personal settings including radio stations except for bluetooth.
The instructions are very good in some aspects, but leave a fair amount of guessing if you use a lot of the options.

This is an excellent product for those who need a single-din color screen radio. I have a 91 corvette that only fits a single-din because of the gear shifter's position. I couldn't fit anything with screens that pop out because there was no room for it to come out. I was dying to get something with color and iPod capabilities to replace my broken pioneer. I searched high and low and found nothing that jumped out at me. This jvc did what others could not. It not only provides a USB for iPod connection for quality songplay, it also plays the music video on the 3.5" screen (was not expecting that)! A bonus is that it also plays DVDs! This is the best option for those who can only fit single-din radios in their car. I could not find anything else even remotely close to this product. Not only that but the price is great too!
The volume takes a little getting used to, but I learned that if u hold it down between the arrows before you start spinning it's much easier to use. The only problem I have with this product is that you have to buy the cable separate for the iPod if you want the best quality playback. The regular iPod cable causes it to skip during the songs. At least with mine it does. All in all I love this product and it seems to fit beautifully and sound beatifully in my car. I highly recommend this product for anyone with a c4 corvette who has the same space problem and wants an aftermarket radio installed.

When I saw the price for this and all it featured I had to get it. My state has recently required hands free and is enforcing it so this couldn't have come along at a better time. Because the Bluetooth handsfree is built-in (not a $100+ optional accessory)makes it worth the price all by itself. All the other features it comes with are icing on the cake. Despite the fact that my pick-up is noisy the built-in mic work just fine. As far as iPhone compatibility goes that's Apples fault. iPhones are notorious for poor bluetooth compatibility. One reason I wouldn't own one. That and I don't want to cop an iTude.

Installation was a snap. Since the unit I was replacing was a JVC it fit right into the old sleave and used the same wiring plug.

One thing I like that's not mentioned anywhere is the tilting faceplate. You can adjust the angle of the faceplate which helps reduce glare and improves the veiwing angle. It also makes it easier to use the touch controls. It automatically lies flat when you shut the car off and resumes the previous angle when you start up.

While it's true, using the touch controls for volume is a bit difficult and possibly dangerous, the rest of the controls are easy. My only real complaint with this unit is, after a week or 2 the touch area has become smudged and possibly even scratch from use. Controlling the volume requires you to slide your fingertip in a circular motion which leaves a mark in a very short time. This is my reason for docking it a star.

Otherwise I love everything else about it. Sound quality is improved over my last unit. Reading mp3's on DVD and USB is slow but so was my previous head unit so I'm accustomed to it. Video quality is great despite the small screen(it's as big as you can get and still fit it's standard size faceplate)it's bright and sharp with good color.

Overall a splendid unit and a great value at $200.