Alpine AVI-W505

[strife]

Does any one have a experience with this unit? Good, bad, or other wise? I am seriously considering this unit plus its DVD nav add-on in place of a AVIC-F90BT. I know all about the spec's and menus of the Alpine but I haven't seen it is use.

 

Thanks

[skicrave]

I seriously considered this before order my F-series, so I spent a fair amount of time playing with one at a shop. I was interested in the Blackbird nav, and not the NVA-871 (or whatever it is), based almost entirely on price, so I can't comment on the functionality of the DVD based nav. I have owned previous Alpine DVD nav units though, and they were always top notch, so I would expect nothing less.

 

The interface of the 505 is very nice, not as clean as the F-Series, but much better than the Z-Series or the IVA-W205. The biggest issue I had was the lack of integration between the Blackbird and the rest of the system. It's very obvious that you're "leaving" the embedded OS and operating the Blackbird, which makes for different conventions and a different layout in the menu. Also, the video quality of the nav portion is not very good as it gets upscaled from the Blackbird screen to the 505's.

 

Pros:

- Very fast boot time, everything is ready to go in 10 seconds or so.

- Good iPod integration

- Clean interface

 

Cons:

- Poor video quality in nav mode

- Poor interface between nav and everything else

 

Remember, this was on a bench in the back of a shop, not in a car, and with next to nothing hooked up (no Bluetooth, external processors or even speakers). I would think with the DVD based nav system it would be a much more integrated system, which would essentially eliminate the cons I had. I've heard that Alpine's Bluetooth interface doesn't work very well though, so by losing the Blackbird's built-in Bluetooth you might be taking a step back there.

[strife]

Thanks for the info.

 

Can you describe the ipod interface compared to the F series?

[skicrave]

They're about equal in terms of speed and functionality, I think the Pioneer interface looks better personally, but that's probably subjective.

 

I wouldn't let the iPod control be a factor in your decision.

[strife]

Thanks again. Listening to my ipod will be the main use followed by radio and then Nav. In the photos for the ipod screens they look good I just didn't know how they actually function (good or bad).

 

That only leaves the DVD based Nav. I've read it gets you from point A to point B very accurately but that’s not enough for me. I would like it to look good to like the F series.

[skicrave]

The iPod UI isn't as logical as the F-Series, but I think it's probably just as functional once you get used to it.

 

Alpine's DVD based nav system is fantastic. So long as you don't mind spending some extra money for it, you'll be VERY happy with it's performance and appearance.

[grgcombs]

I debated a choice between the W505 and the F90BT. For me it came down to interface and (primarily) economics. I much preferred the feel and ease of use for the pioneer, but the kicker came down to price.

 

For the W505 I was looking at:

Headunit --- $999

Blackbird -- $499 (necessary for Navigation)

Bluetooth -- $199

HD Radio -- $199

iPod Cable -- $30

Sirius+Traffic -- $299

 

For a total of $2,225

 

The Pioneer F90BT was (not counting my al-eds discount):

Headunit -- $1199

HD Radio -- $129

Sirius -- $129 (pioneer interface + SCC1)

 

For a grand total of $1,457 ... NOT COUNTING THE GROUP BUY DISCOUNT. In actuality I paid significantly less than that.

 

Plus, by and large I'm still very happy with my purchase.

[skicrave]

Not that it changes the economics significantly, but if you're going to use the Blackbird, you don't need to add the KCE-300BT, Bluetooth is built-in.

[strife]

One thing I really like about the F series is it shows the Album art and the song title (I think) in the nav screen. Does the W505 do that? I also don't mind paying more for the total set up as long as I like it. I read that when you use the DVD nav on the Alpine it then lets you control most everything using voice commands, like volume, change track, change source, input destination, etc.

[skicrave]

You can get the song name to show up (I think), but it's an overlay that appears for a few seconds at the push of a button and then disappears. It's not always visible.

[strife]

Just wanted to let everyone know I got this unit (IVA-W505 and NVE-P1 nav) and it sux, it takes a few seconds to switche between the nav screen and the radio screen, the nav has no brightness control (radio does thru) and the voice to talk sounds horrible.

 

I plan on returning it to crutchfield and ordering a F90.

 

Thanks