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Best Marine Stereo (clarion Vs Jl,jbl,etc..)

Old 03-12-2007, 12:25 PM
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Default Best Marine Stereo (clarion Vs Jl,jbl,etc..)

Does Anyone Have Any Real Pro's Or Cons On Stereo Equipment And Brands, Im Ready To Make A Move But There Is Just So Much To Chose From
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Old 03-12-2007, 06:32 PM
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JL Audio in the marine application is the only way to go.
I have heard and used alot of them and JL Audio has the best sound.
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Old 03-12-2007, 06:42 PM
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How/where do you store your boat? And where is the stereo going to be mounted?

Reason I ask is you don't really need a marine HU unless you are installing in the cockpit with only a cockpit cover stored outside.

If you are installing in the cabin, and the cabin is normally closed; you can use a regular car audio HU, which gives you lots more to choose from.

I am running a Sony HU. Paramount in my decision was 3 sets of Pre-Amp RCA outputs, (Front, Rear, and Sub) to easily control equalization on the fly from the HU, and not need a separate equalizer, or deal with gains on amps on a regular basis.
(My bass hits so hard sometimes when running that I tend to think I have broken something in the drivetrain; so I turn down the bass when running. )


As far as speakers; JL Audio are probably the best quality and sound marine speakers available.
Followed by MBQuart and Babb, but both of these are now no longer imported or out of business respectively.

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Old 03-12-2007, 11:27 PM
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I got an Alpine head unit with Kicker Marine speakers. Sounds great and the 12inch subs hit hard.
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Old 03-13-2007, 06:32 AM
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I have found the most difficult thing to find is a HU with aux inputs which is nice to plug in your Ipods/Sirius/XM etc. Many have Ipod controller options which work very poorly from the many Ive tried. Most were so slow or unreliable that they were unusable. They also cost an extra $100 usually. A straight aux input is what is needed. The only HUs I have found are several Blaupunkt units which have aux inputs. I have ordered one but have not tried it yet. My expectations are not high due to the past units Ive tried. I would avoid Clarion and Alpine which have unreliable aux inputs and horrible/unusable Ipod controllers. If all you need is a radio and CD then almost anything will do.
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Old 03-13-2007, 06:54 AM
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You must not be up on the times, Sony and Pioneer and many more now have AUX INPUT right on the front and some in the back for IPOD input and work very well. And the Pioneer HU has high volt output RCA which will deliever a better signal to your amps.
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Old 03-13-2007, 07:09 AM
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My HU will be in the cockpit, the boat is a former Race Boat and the downstairs is gutted and tough to access.

I will say i was debating between the Clarion and the JL set up, my plan is 2 sets of 6.5" and 1 Set of 10", i was leanign toward the clarion but now i may have to re-think it
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Old 03-13-2007, 07:45 AM
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JL amps & Speakers! They sound awsome.
In head units - Pioneer sounds the best, followed by Clarion. Both also have good marine remotes. You do NOT need a "marine" radio or amp unless it is really exposed.
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Old 03-13-2007, 10:11 AM
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I like the sony heads. Best remotes I have found. their i pod control is good. Jl has it on speakers , followed by kicker and then clarion , I think the clarion will last the longest. Jl marine are fairly new and time will tell there.
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Old 03-13-2007, 11:15 AM
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Originally Posted by excursion
You must not be up on the times, Sony and Pioneer and many more now have AUX INPUT right on the front and some in the back for IPOD input and work very well. And the Pioneer HU has high volt output RCA which will deliever a better signal to your amps.
"the times" was in the early 90s when almost every car stereo had a mini aux input on the front for the newly invented portable CD player, now they are tough to find because the manufacturers want to sell you an additional $100 Ipod adapters or aux input adapters, etc. Like the $100 Sony XA-300 aux input adapter needed for their Unilink HUs. Fortunately, there are some out there tho that dont need adapters, special cables, etc.
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