Can innovation and reasonable prices co-exist in the world of car audio? That is the question.

Do anyone have any experience with Boss Audio head units? They seem to have very advanced features thoughout their line. And the prices are quite reasonable.

For example I came across two Boss models that compare favorably to the better models offered by Alpine 9851, Eclipse CD-2000, JVC KD-AR560 , Kenwood KDC-MP5032U, Pioneer DEH-6800MP

Boss 630U
5-volt front and rear pre-outs, sub pre-out with bass control, sd/mm card input, usb port, anti-skip shock, IR remote, Aux input. EQ curves. List $199 (OnlineCarStereo.com price $109)


Boss 638B
all of the above, plus bluetooth. List $299 (OnlineCarStereo.com price $179)

I visited the Boss Audio website and everything seems sound. (www.bossaudio.com) The info says the company has been around since the 1980's so they have been selling this stuff for a while.

I keep thinking there are only three or four companies out there making car stereos and each brand gives specifics. Sort like when VCRs were real popular and there were only three companies making them, but there were like twenty five brands out there.

Bob at Modifry said that if I send him the remote he might be able to add it to the list of models that will work with the IR DCI. Something to think about.

Again, any experiences with Boss Audio to share would be appreciated.

 

I had some 6X9's from them probably about 7 years ago, and they were awesome then.

 

I had a friend who had a Boss HU in his Eclipse. Sounded ok. Kinda muddy and artificial sounding from the internal amp (not sure if this was a problem of the brand, or another problem). It also broke 3 months after he got it, and seeing as he installed it himself, the warranty was voided, as it was not installed by a certified installer.

Boss =

I would look at JVC before Boss.

John

 

Thanks for the head's up. The warranty is not good unless installed by a professional? They can get away with that?

I am going to revisit their web-site to check that out. Thanks.

 

I guess, if it sounds too good.... maybe it is too good to be true.

I will stick with the better known brands instead of brand X.

Chris

 

Not sure if they are allowed to get away with it, but they did......just the overall customer service with the company. Some people will not deal with JL for that same reason, even though they make decent products.

John

 

I'm a Boss dealer through one of my distributors... but I won't even sell it.

 

^ That is when you KNOW a brand is not good! When you have a chance to make some $ off of it, but you pass it up!

John

 

Why didn't you say so from the beginning. Then this thread would have been much shorter!

 

It's a flea market brand.

I haven't tried any of their stuff, but I'd be leary of build quality.

Strangely enough though, I've been seeing more and more of their stuff in show cars (which strikes me as odd, $20k in mods and a $200 HU?!)

For a long time I didn't like JVC or Panasonic. I'm still not a panasonic fan, but I've got a JVC headunit in my car and love it.

I'd not recommend anything I haven't used or had experience with though. So unless you've got the money to play with, I'd pass. But, if you aren't worried about maybe losing the money, then it might be worth playing around with.