Marine Stereo - is it worth it?

[Yellowmobius]

I was at a stereo shop yesterday and the guy was basically telling me the marine decks are not really worth it. Saying the biggest difference was price and that very little was doen to make it "marine"

I will be buying a new deck soon and I am not sure if I need a marine deck or not.


Any thoughts?

[Summit_SS]

Sometimes the marine decks can be worth the extra money. If the deck is going to be exposed to open air and you have no way to cover it then i would recommend one on the fact that it will probably get wet. Marine decks are just a little more water tight then normal in car decks. But if you have some way of covering the deck like it is in a glove box or something like that i would not worry about it. One thing that i would look at is the quality of the deck......of course your going to get more for you money. If i were you i would not go out and buy some cheap $100 deck they just tend to fall apart with all the jousting around the boat does in rough water. Spend the extra money and get something that has mostly metal internal parts (i believe eclipse head units are mostly metal)...i have one of these in my CJ 7 and it gets wet and muddy and banged around a heck of a lot and is still working like it was bran new. When my factory deck goes out that is probably going to be what I will install. It is all just a matter of how much your willing to spend. Now eclipse is not your only choice, there are a ton of other really good head units on the market today. One other thing i would recommend is that if your one to put XM or Sirius radio get a head unit that is already set up it makes install so much easier.

Hope this helps

SUMMIT

[noneya]

The standard Kenwood is not a marine unit. In the 03 Outback it is in the glovebox, in the '01 I had it was in the dash with a little plastic door that closed over it.

[bj]

I had a 98 Mobius for 5 years with a standard Kenwood deck. It was in-dash and protected with a plastic slide down cover. The deck worked like brand new after 5 years of serious wakeboarding. I do keep my boat in the garage which might make a difference.

If you keep it garaged and have something to cover it if you get caught in a rain storm, you can get any car deck you want and get extra features compared to the marine grade price.

[wakeboarder89]

the marine decks are NOT worth the money at all!!!! you can spend the same amount of money on a way better one that isnt marine.

[Buttafewcoe]

Dang.....my Kenwood quit working in my 2004 Outback. The radio was playing, and i put a CD in (Big and Rich, mind you) and it just shut down. I checked the fuse and the breaker. Both seemed ok. I haven't pulled out my multi-meter to check voltages and continuity. Guess I'll do that, unless someone knows of a fuse i haven't ran across yet.

[seanpatsdad]

Try pushing in on the reset button on the face of the deck.Use a paper clip.It is a small hole on the front.
John

[Buttafewcoe]

I did that John, it didn't seem to help. It's just not getting any power to it. The thing is still under warranty (i just bought it in august). Plus something else,.... the trailer already has light bulbs burnt out (3 of them).....how do you get to the bulbs to change them?
.
Jim

[Brian Raymond]

There is a 10 amp mini-fuse on the back of the head unit, and there is a 10 amp fuse for the memory in a fuse holder located near the buss board. The trailer lights are sealed, and the whole light needs replaced. Hope this helps. Brian Raymond

[smokedog2]

Double check the sealed light theory. I can change the bulbs on my other boat trailers. I have not looked at Moomba. Going to dealer in an hour. Maybe I'll look.

SD2