Started the RMA process of my F90 today. Ordered an 8120 to replace it. I wanted to like the F90 and if I thought there was a fix on the horizon that was going to make it mostly bug free, Id wait it out but my 30 day return window is almost closed and I cant chance it.

you wont be sorry. Trust me.

Anyone with an 8120 know exactly what I need for Sirius and iPod control. I already have the universal Sirius adapter, just need whatever adapts it to Kenwood.

Anyone with an 8120 know exactly what I need for Sirius and iPod control. I already have the universal Sirius adapter, just need whatever adapts it to Kenwood.

You need the Sirius SCC1 tuner and a Kenwood CASR20V adapter cable. Don't know about the iPod.

For the iPod, all you need is the KCA-IP300V. $25-30 at most places. The nice part is, that with the Kenwood, it uses its own dedicated iPod Video input feed and does not at all hog up or interfere with the main Video 1/2 inputs.

Sweet.. got everything ordered.. I hated to go away from the Pioneer as it is a badass unit but I just foresee it taking a long time to squash all the bugs out of it.

So I too broke down and bought a dnx8120 (same price as al-ed f90bt + tax) over the weekend after considering my options and cancelled al-ed's f90bt order. I need something that just works for my wife to use in her car since I've already sold the oem nav which does not have touch screen. Also I should be able to upgrade the maps every year from Garmin and not have to wait from Kenwood/Pioneer.

I might replace dnx8120 with f90bt if pioneer come out with a decent fix on nav crashes, bluetooth quality and boot time. Hopefully, Pioneer can dish out fully tested firmware before releasing this time.

I too have for the first time in 15 years went with Kenwwod over Pioneer. The 8120 on paper blows the Pioneer away as far as features anyway. However, I just didn't feel any confidence in Pioneer anymore to fix the issues in a timely manner or to be receptive to any other issues that arise in the future. I have however spoken to Kenwwod tech support on three occasions with questions about the unit and they have been very receptive and very professional. Something I haven't seen allot of from Pioneer.

I am so happy with my Kenwood. I am really glad I had a Pioneer D3 in the past though. Because now I see what I was missing by having a Pioneer. I will never go back. No tech support, crappy routing, blah, blah, blah.

So I too broke down and bought a dnx8120 (same price as al-ed f90bt + tax) over the weekend after considering my options and cancelled al-ed's f90bt order.

 

leeb18c - how did you get it for $983? that's what the price of the f90bt comes out too

leeb18c - how did you get it for $983? that's what the price of the f90bt comes out too

i got it for $1048 from 6ave with coupon aflken1048. i have to pay tax at al-eds so f90bt was $1071.

I too purchased the Kenwood DNX, Garmin XM Traffic Adapter and 3 year extended warranty for $1,360 (paid only $1048 for the unit) using the coupon code AFLKEN1098 at 6ave.com.. Also, remember that 6 ave is an authorized online dealer for Kenwood and Pioneer so you get the 2 year warranty as well as the an additional warranty if purchased.

ehhh I've had the kenwood DNX8120 series and was sick of the screen freezing over and over during navigation and/or video/audio playback. Got the d3 for 600 with everything and haven't gotten a problem except for the stupid antenna adapter from scosche which was bad. Some people like Pioneer, some poeple like Kenwood, some people like JVC. However, there is this saying all over the world: "Never buy a first-year product because chances are, they will be full of bugs". You people should know this by now. It comes with all electronics. I've seen the f series in action in my buddy's tc and wasn't impressed at all. Also, he had problems with navigation and when i checked his wiring, it was all loose and the navigation antenna was taped under the dash giving bad signal. Same happened to my friends d3 which i re-did the wiring and everything is good. Some people just don't know how to install things and bitch about it. Some others experience true bugs. I've learned not to buy first-year production products myself...NEVER AGAIN

My Kenwood never freezes. And its also a ton better than my D3.

My Kenwood has never froze once. Been using it everyday for near a month now.

mine froze alot so had to return it and get a refund - 20% restocking fees.

I had the same problem with my 8120 but fixed it today. Thanks to Kenwood tech support. THEY ARE AWESOME. A hell of a lot better then my experiences with Pioneer. That is where the big difference is. The few times I have called them I have spoke with a different person and they have all been very receptive and helpful. Rarely did I get such help from Pioneer. Anyway, they sent me a link to re-update the unit and the problem is solved.

Yeah, it sounds like you guys may have gotten some of the units that were supposed to be recalled for a firmware update. That happened the first week they were out with the initial batch. Crutchfield had them for few days when they came out then they pulled them and sent them all back to Kenwood for the firmware update. There may have been old stock floating around in other distribution centers for other shops that never got sent back.

You can tell if you had one of the updated units by a green circular sticker on the outside of the box that said "Updated" or something to that effect. If you did not have a sticker on your box that would explain the freeze ups.

Kenwood said the serial I had, had the latest firmware(which i doubt) and after sending the unit back, they said the unit was fine. Ehhh dealing with BS is not my cup of tea. But to each his own. Kenwood has some good units. Pioneer has some good units, JVC has some good units. Some chinese no-name units are also pretty good. That's why there's a price difference, it's called competition.

Mikeinnj check your PM's

I don't need the BT features (car is too noisy with sunroof & windows open - which is how I usually drive), so I went with the Kenwood DNX5120, HD Receiver and Garmin FM Traffic tuner. Not needing BT, I got what I DO want for less than the F900/F90 would have cost me without the HD Receiver.

Screen size is between Pioneer F series and Kenwood 7120/8120 ... very comfortable to me. Love the USB MP3 playback. DVD playback is very nice (considering it's on such a tiny screen compared to my 50" main display in the house ). I like being able to set the NAV subsystem to work while moving via a menu pick and not having to muck around with "bypassing" things that can cause insurance issues if I were to have an accident and it's discovered that the safety feature was disabled. Love Garmin navigation.

pat----

Mikeinnj check your PM's

I did.. Theres no new messages.

Weird!!! I PM'd you on july 1st. Anyway, I resent it, check your messages now.

I'm having my 8120 installed tomorrow.

Any features, or special considerations regarding the install that you can think of? Example, I'm asking them to ground the safety wire/switch for those rare occassions I want to mess with a DVD, etc. while in motion . . . what else, or is that the only "custom" direction I should request?

Thanks

That should be it. I cant think of anything else.

I had the same problem with my 8120 but fixed it today. Thanks to Kenwood tech support. THEY ARE AWESOME. A hell of a lot better then my experiences with Pioneer. That is where the big difference is. The few times I have called them I have spoke with a different person and they have all been very receptive and helpful. Rarely did I get such help from Pioneer. Anyway, they sent me a link to re-update the unit and the problem is solved.

would you send me that link for re-updating the unit please...i have the same problem. i hate to send my unit back, i rather have the update. thanks.