Getting new radio receiver. Should I get HD? Should I worry about Power?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Accessories & Modifications' started by flippo, Nov 27, 2016.

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  1. flippo

    flippo Junior Member

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    Hi all,

    I have a 2006 Prius with standard (not JBL) factory audio, and I'm considering buying a new radio receiver with bluetooth for my wife for the holidays. She got spoiled by bluetooth on our old car (an '07 Prius), and misses it. I tried one that uses an FM transmitter, but she likes listening to the radio, which of course, makes the FM-based bluetooth worthless, and it basically was a cheap piece of crap.

    However, I've never bought an aftermarket receiver before, and have a few questions.

    First, do I need to worry about power? Will the receiver (most of them 40-50W) damage the cheapo non-JBL speakers in my Prius? Should I avoid receivers with a certain power range?

    Second, is there a point to getting HD radio - will she be able to hear the difference on the non-JBL speakers? The HD receivers are about $70 more than their non-HD equivalents when they have the other features I want, like the ability to pair two phones. There are plenty of HD radio stations near me.

    I'm not doing the install myself - going to Frys, which installs pretty cheaply (they call it free, but it's not really free, they charge extra for the bluetooth mic and mystery materials fee).

    Any advice is appreciated.
     
    #1 flippo, Nov 27, 2016
  2. 69shovlhed

    69shovlhed Surly tree hugger

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    any receiver can damage the junk oem speakers if you crank it up. at reasonable volumes the speakers will wear out at the normal rate. the HD isn't going to sound any better through those junk speakers, but if you have a lot of HD stations that don't constantly cut in and out, I would get the HD.
    the biggest things are to make sure they use a steering wheel button adapter module, and install the 68ohm resistor so the MFD works correctly.
     
    #2 69shovlhed, Nov 27, 2016
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  3. mmmodem

    mmmodem Senior Taste Tester

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    First, no. Max power on a receiver is reached by max volume. Keep it downn and you'll be fine.
    Second, HD radio is better than radio but not as good as CD. If you can hear the difference between CD and radio, then you should be able to hear HD radio. I personally love it except when you get into areas of spotty reception. Static on analog radio reception is annoying but I cannot listen to audio cutting in and out from bad HD radio reception.

    Don't be surprised that free Frys installation goes over $100. That $15 harness is $40 at MSRP and that $25 kit is $50 at MSRP but they're a fine choice for installation.
     
    #3 mmmodem, Nov 27, 2016
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  4. flippo

    flippo Junior Member

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    Many thanks - Good to know - I don't want them to break the MFD.

    As for the steering wheel integration, we can live without that. We never use the steering wheel buttons, and the climate buttons (which we did use) are already broken.

    I'll also probably end up going with Best Buy instead.

    Fry's offers "free install", but doesn't include the bluetooth mic, and jacks up the price on the install kits and receiver. They won't price match with a free install (an understandable policy).

    Best Buy will price match Amazon/WalMart (who are much cheaper on the kits/receiver), and then charge a fair price for the install. Better deal overall. They even include putting the old radio back in when I want to sell the car, so I can keep the aftermarket receiver. Useful for an '06 with 106k miles - that car only has a few years left.
     
    #4 flippo, Nov 28, 2016
  5. 69shovlhed

    69shovlhed Surly tree hugger

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    it won't break the MFD, it just won't work without the resistor.
     
    #5 69shovlhed, Nov 28, 2016
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