Garbage Radio in the Miata is Garbage

"Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)" (rduncan5678)
05/20/2019 at 20:45 • Filed to: None

So the Previous Owner of my Miata installed this Kenwood DDX271 head unit in the car. While it actually looks decent and the touch screen interface is pretty good, I quite hate everything about how this thing works. First of all, it has no bluetooth. Considering it is from 2014, this is not that surprising. Second, the newest Iphone supported is the Iphone 6 so my girlfriend’s Iphone X will not work when plugged in via USB. Third, the only way to add AUX in requires buying a proprietary Kenwood cable (found it on Amazon for about $25). And fourth, the only viable input that I can use without buying stuff is USB drive but it only supports MP3/AAC/WAV/WMA. The majority of my music is in FLAC or OGG format. I have made due by converting some stuff and using my limited mp3 collection. I had assumed I could simply aux in from the back and add BT that way but the proprietary cable has squashed that idea.

While this is certainly fixable by just replacing the thing , it just upsets me that this thing exists and that someone would spend money on it. I would rather just have the stock unit at that point since at least the clock is easy to see. Most of the faults were fine until I came across the proprietary cable bullshit. That is what set me into BURN THIS THING WITH FIRE mode and I will be promptly removing it. Since I am happy with the simple single din Alpine unit in the Subaru, I will likely just buy another one and install it here. Plus, it will surely equal some weight savings skipping the big touch screen thing!

DISCUSSION (16)

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/20/2019 at 21:01

it has no bluetooth. Considering it is from 2014, this is not that surprising.

To me, this is surprising. Bluetooth was already fairly common in 2014. Seems like Kenwood was just being difficult. Either way, it is a nice looking unit, but I’d be super pissed with that list of annoyances.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz)
05/20/2019 at 21:08

Well bluetooth missing entirely is probably odd for that year I suppose. But even if it had it, it would have likely been one of the older stacks that only supported phone calls or poor quality audio at best. I actually had thought this unit was MUCH older until I looked it up and found out the owners manual. I suppose having a USB port is better than nothing for now.

The only thing it has going for it is the OFF button for the screen as a hard button on the unit. I really like that feature for driving at night. But even at full bright during the day, I cant see the screen much at all.

facw > Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz)
05/20/2019 at 21:08

I’m with you. If we were talking about 2007, then maybe. In 2014, I can’t imagine it cost more than $5 for Kenwood to add a BT radio to the device. I can only assume they left it out to help justify a higher price for a more expensive unit.

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/20/2019 at 21:14

I guess it could’ve been an option for a more expensive model I guess. I’d prefer the USB anyway, and it wouldn’t be an issue for me since all my music is mp3, but for you it sounds like a major pain.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz)
05/20/2019 at 21:21

I also dont even have a USB drive anyways. I am currently just using the SD card from my dash cam in a USB adapter. Dash cam is still sitting in the other Miata unused anyways so it was a good temporary way to get a sizable (64gb) amount of space. It was a pain to format it to FAT32 as well which is the only way this radio supports (forgot about that problem).

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > facw
05/20/2019 at 21:23

That’s what I was thinking.

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/20/2019 at 21:25

Now see, that surprises me that it supports up to 64GB (or whatever the max supported is). It was common back then but given the Bluetooth thing, I’m a little surprised.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz)
05/20/2019 at 21:29

Honestly, it might not support it properly. I have found issues seeing all of my tracks on the device, even though I did make sure to convert them to Mp3. So it might just ignore half of the crap on there. I am not entirely sure since I prefer a radio to “just work” and stay on shuffle forever. So I havent really investigated trying to navigate the menus too much.

This is why I pine for bluetooth, just having my phone operate like it always does it perfect. I could consider the silly kenwood cable and solve my problem but I think I am better off just buying a modern unit instead of giving kenwood more money.

AestheticsInMotion > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/20/2019 at 21:49

Touch screen head units are awful. The number of friends who have bought a $900 android auto HU that doesn’t even have physical volume controls hurts my soul. They’re just so infuriating to interact with.

I like that my retrosound looks old-school but still has modern tech and decent sound quality. The build quality on the other hand will probably keep me from ever buying another one.

My next build is going to be a bit more in-depth, and I’m reaaaaally leaning towards Sony’s offering below. Not a single flashing light in sight, massive central volume knob, all ports front and center for the rare times I don't just use BT

Kinja'd!!!

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/20/2019 at 21:51

Weight savings > anything else!

beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard > Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz)
05/20/2019 at 22:04

Often back then BT was a USB module anyway.

SPAMBot - Horse Doctor > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/21/2019 at 00:46

Even a double din with BT, carplay, AA, shouldn’t be too expensive. I didn’t care about smart phone compatibility on my last one so I got a basic, but decent double din with BT. I think it said it supported Pandora but didn’t care enough to look up how that worked. Just having BT was amazing to me and higher tech than the bug. I think I bought the previous year’s model on Crutchfield for under 100 and it came with the mounting hardware and harness. With the new door speakers, it was a huge improvement and so worth it.

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/21/2019 at 10:57

I think you’d probably be happier with just a new, modern unit. I’m the same, unless I’m specifically in a motivated mood to hear a specific song/band/artist, I prefer to just let it shuffle through. All things considered I wouldn’t be worrying about it too much either as I’d replace it.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > AestheticsInMotion
05/21/2019 at 15:32

That seems like a pretty neat solution, but if I was going to get that minimalist, I would probably just rather have a blank plate where the radio is. And have it operate solely from the phone, connected to something behind the scenes entirely. Having a simple single din with buttons and color matched lights seems to make me happy so I am probably just going to switch to that.

AestheticsInMotion > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
05/21/2019 at 15:55

I wish it was easier to integrate steering wheel controls on our cars. That's one of the few modern tech features I've grown attached to. At least adjusting volume and skipping tracks

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SPAMBot - Horse Doctor
05/21/2019 at 17:23

Well yeah I did the same thing in the Subaru but with a single din. I just dont care for it to be larger and the pocket provides some useful storage space for my wallet or other quick access stuff on long drives. The single dins also tend to be cheaper for the same feature- set and sound quality. I am highly considering getting the same exact unit for both cars just for ease of use/familiarity. It would be pretty neat to just get in either car and everything just works seamlessly.