Customer Reviews

Panasonic CQ-C8303U WMA/MP3/CD Player/Receiver with 4096 Color OEL Display

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

 

 

I've had this stereo installed for probably a year or so now. As far as the audio performance is concerned, I'm perfectly happy with it. The volume seems a little weak, as I have to crank it just over halfway to overcome the road noise in my stock Mustang (granted, not the quietest vehicle on the road), but sound quality is good. The full color display is very nice, and the option to upload your own photos and videos as a "wallpaper" is just too cool. Took me a week or so to figure out HOW to do this because the written instructions were incorrect (FYI, you have to hold the VOLUME button in while in CD mode for 5 seconds to access the upload menu, NOT the Menu button). Three expected features that are sorely botched: repeat, auto dimmer, and the clock. No repeat track at all. There is a dimmer, but it's manually operated via the Menu button and not through the vehicle's dash light dimmer, which is annoying since you'll likely trigger "the spaz" (see below). And the clock is there too, but you can't view the time AND a custom background. You have to choose one or the other, and the clock is stupidly boring to look at. Since the cool display is THE major selling point of this unit, the way the clock operates makes it worthless.

The major drawback to this system is the build quality. The removable faceplate contacts just barely touch, so if you press a button on the right side of the stereo, there's a good chance your display will spaz out with lots of crazy little lines and pixels and stop functioning. To remedy, you have to power the unit off, remove the faceplate, reattach the faceplate, power on the unit, and hope everything is plugged up snugly enough to work. I usually have to do this 3 or 4 times before the stereo will function properly again. The kicker: this is a common problem with this model. Do some searches, and you'll find tons of reviews complaining about it. I took a gamble on it anyway, and I payed the price. Luckily this model has been discontinued. Hopefully the newer versions have been more precisely constructed.

Great Screen, Good functionalty, 3 sets of Preamp outs, Sub, Front and Rear, Looks good and sounds good...