Customer Reviews

XM XDNX1V1 Onyx Dock-and-Play Radio with Car Kit (Black) + Home Kit Bundle

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

 

 

Easy to install in car and home system works perfectly.Would have given a 5 star rating but this model did not come with a remote which I definitely could use,especially with the home system.
Super fast shipping on this item.

This is a tough little unit. I'm a farmer, and I use it in the pickup, tractor and combine. These are not the best environments for electronic equipment, but I've had this for just over a year now, and it has never failed me yet.

Yes, there are a lot of wires to contend with. Deal with it. First off, there is the cradle for the radio. Then there is a power wire to the cradle, an insanely long antenna wire, and if needed, a direct input wire. Take the time and get a little creative and you can make most of them almost disappear. My pickup has an "aux" jack so I can just plug the radio into the pickup stereo. The tractor and combine don't have the "aux" jack so I use the FM broadcast feature of the radio. You have to find a vacant spot on your FM dial, but when you live out in the middle of nowhere like I do, that isn't hard to do. Set the Onyx to broadcast at that vacant frequency, and it works! I've noticed that the sound quality does suffer just a bit when in the FM broadcast mode as opposed to the direct input. But, tractors and combines are not concert halls, so I don't mind.

It is a bit of a pain to move the radio and mounting kit from one vehicle to another, so I would recommend purchasing a vehicle mounting kit for each vehicle you plan to use it in. I have the home docking kit attached to the stereo amp in my shop and with my old Klipsch speakers, I can really "rock out".

I have only minor complaints on the unit. First of all, the anntenna wire in the vehicle mounting kit is too long. I can't imagine a situation where anyone would need all that wire. Even on my tractor, I ended up coiling several extra feet of wire and trying to hide it. Also, there are only ten presets on the radio. While this may be enough for many people, I have about 15 channels that I listen to on a regular basis. Extra presets would be nice.

It is cheaper than the other radios and there is a reason for that. The quality is pretty bad and it constantly falls off the dash of the truck when listening. The reception is not very good and it just looks "cheap".

I suggest spending the extra money and going for something a little better. What that is, I am still trying to find since most mount radios seem to lack in the quality and sound department. Trying to find an in-dash radio seems to be equally difficult!

Good luck... but I would steer clear of this radio if you are using for your car/truck.

Bought it for my husband and the only thing I didnt like was that they forget to tell you that you need a auxillary to connect the system to a radio. All they say is if you an FM radio is all that is needed, all fm radios do not have an auxiliary to it, that disappointed my husband as well as me so now he has to buy a new stereo in order to use it in his car.

Plan to take this back where you bought it after you experience the worst signal to noise ratio since the 1950's AM tube radios. The XM signal is weak weak weak, while you can hear your spark plugs loud and clear. I called the XM support center in New Delhi, and found that they have never heard of ignition noise there. I was asked several times "your channels are not working, sir?". The local Radio Shack was most helpful, and sold me a Ground Loop Isolator and a Y Adaptor for about $27, and my dashboard looked like a 1950's telephone switchboard with all the wires hanging. The sound did not improve at all.

Hookup method was the supplied AUX cord to AUX receptical on vehicle. Tried two vehicles, 2009 Chev Silverado and 2008 Lexus IS 250. The Lexus spark plugs sounded a bit more muffled and refined, but still overwhelmed the XM signal.

I don't think there is any hope for the Onyx, so I canceled my XM service and plan to return it.

Installation: The unit has a flimsy mounting system and wires are running all over my car.

Reception: Poorer than poor. Worse than any AM station I have on my radio. It is unlistenable.

Customer Support: As I write this, I have been on hold with customer support for over 10 minutes. I have called several previous times. They offer the same solutions over and over again that still don't work. They promised to send me a coupon within 5 days for professional installation. It has been two weeks and I have not received the coupon.

Buy this product if you want lousy reception, wires running all over your car, and poor support.

The only reason I gave this product a 1-star review is that they won't let you give it 0 stars.