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JVC KD-AVX2 Revolutionise your in-car music If you’ve had the suspicion that despite the publicity surrounding amplifiers, subwoofers, split speaker systems and all the rest, incar entertainment advancements of late have been sadly lacking, well, you’re not alone. In fact, apart from the major advance of MP3-reading CD players and stackers, it’s easy to think that not much has happened. Until now. A DVD movie is easily viewable by a front seat passenger and a second screen can be added for rear passengers. 16  Silicon Chip siliconchip.com.au Review by Julian Edgar W F ith the release of JVC’s KD-AVX2, there’s now a single DIN-sized package that’s quite extraordinary. irst-up, it’s a conventional AM/FM radio MP3-compatible CD – except it looks better than most after-market units with its black ‘piano’ finish and the lack of garish silver highlights and vacuum fluorescent displays that seem to afflict so many head units these days. Second, there’s a built-in 3.5-inch colour LCD screen. This means that not only are all the menus able to be displayed in large writing against contrasting backgrounds, you can play and view DVDs – yes, the KD-AVX2 is also a DVD player. (And before you wonder at the use of that, the KD-AVX2 can also run a second larger screen, eg, for back-seat kids – so you can use the head unit to easily monitor what’s showing on their screen.) In addition, the inbuilt LCD can show the picture from a reversing camera, automatically selecting the camera input when you place the car in reverse gear! Finally – and get this – the KD-AVX2 can play MP3 files recorded on DVD. You can literally have your whole music collection on a few DVDs able to be stored in the glove box! Add to this a built-in 4-channel amplifier, a huge number of inputs and outputs (including line level audio and subwoofer), a remote control and an almost intuitive ease of use and you’re looking at what’s simply one of the most impressive bits of car audio/video gear we’ve ever seen. Not only is the JVC KD-AVX2 an AM/FM radio, MP3 compatible CD player and DVD player with built-in LCD screen, but it can also play MP3 encoded files burnt to DVD! That makes for a complete audio-visual entertainment unit, all in a standard DIN-sized enclosure. The background wallpaper can be varied – this is the sunset. LCD Screen It’s easy to be dismissive of the small colour LCD – isn’t it much too small to be viewable? The answer to that is: not in most cars. The car in which the pictured installation occurred placed the unit 70cm from the driver’s eyes. That’s similar to viewing my 69cm (diagonal) lounge room TV at 4 metres instead of the 3 metres at which I normally view it – no big deal. This promotional JVC graphic really makes the point: from CDs with (say) 16 songs, to MP3-encoded CDs with 100 songs, to a “giga MP3” DVD with 1000 songs. Even at the highest MP3 sampling rates and with long songs, you’re still looking at 500 or more songs on one DVD – that’s more than 30 albums. Not enough? Well, just burn another MP3 DVD and put it in the glove box! siliconchip.com.au The number of set-up functions is surprisingly large. As shown here, the output levels of each speaker can be set on a plus/minus 1dB basis. A white noise tone that moves from speaker to speaker is generated during this process. The faceplate motors into a horizontal position for disc insertion and ejection. The faceplate can be removed for security and motor-driven to three different angles for better viewing. November 2006  17 intuitive in use and many of the buttons are rarely needed. In fact, for the driver, the remote is near useless. However, rear passengers can use it to control the DVD playback when they’re watching the DVD on a second screen. In use about the only downer of the KD-AVX2 is that when CD/DVD is selected, it takes a full 30 seconds before the disc starts to play. Set-Up Menus It might look like there’s lots of connections but these are just the line level inputs and outputs! The connection flexibility of the JVC KD-AVX2 allows it to function as a standalone AM/FM/CD/DVD/MP3 player or work with additional amplifiers, audio-visual inputs and LCD screens. Note the vent for the cooling fan at right. The display is also very sharp and bright. There are no problems reading any written data (eg, track numbers, the time, set-up menus etc) and even when a front seat passenger is viewing a movie, visibility for them is quite acceptable. And the advantage is that the LCD fits within the single DIN package – you don’t need to use a large motorised screen that, in its extended position, will almost certainly cover dashboard air vents or controls. The KD-AVX2 features a dual-zone DVD facility, where rear passengers can view a second screen and listen to the audio on headphones while front seat passengers listen to the radio or another audio input. The screen can be motor-driven to three different angles, cancelling reflections and allowing the unit to be mounted low on the dash while still retaining good visibility. A large number of set-up menus are provided. Amongst other attributes, these allow you to: • Separately adjust the brightness of the LCD when disc or AV input are selected • Change the ‘wallpaper’ background colour of the LCD (this is a surprisingly effective and useful option – especially because as the unit is relatively plain, it allows the switched-on appearance to be changed across a range of style and colours to suit personal taste) • Alter whether file tags (eg, MP3 song titles) scroll once or continue to scroll • Set the clock for 12 or 24-hour display • Adjust the speaker size settings (small, large or none) for each of the possible six speaker outputs • Adjust the distance to each of the four main speakers from 15 to 600cm in 15cm steps • Adjust the individual speaker levels in 1dB increments (a white noise test tone is provided during this set-up) • Select from nine preset equalisation curves or 3 useradjustable curves (however you cannot tie the equalisation curve to a source [eg, radio] like you can with some systems) • Adjust the volume of each source separately so changes in the master volume control position aren’t needed when selecting a different source • Adjust subwoofer line level output including level, high pass filter and crossover point (80, 120 or 150Hz) • Alter amplifier gain to limit power output when using low power speakers. All these are easy to set, however it should be noted Operation For many people, the KD-AVX2 will be the most complex piece of car audio-visual gear they’ve ever used – that’s certainly the case for this reviewer. However, despite having numerous set-up menus and possible adjustments, the unit is very straightforward. The main controls consist of two 4-way pushbutton knobs. With these you can select the source (eg, radio or DVD/CD), adjust the volume and select different radio stations or tracks and albums. At the four corners of the faceplate are four pushbuttons. These turn the unit on/off, adjust the angle of the faceplate, eject the CD/DVD (the whole faceplate motors forward to 90° to reveal the slot) and detach the faceplate for security. Additionally, there are four small pushbuttons that are used to alter rarely adjusted parameters. The system works very well, with the most commonly used controls the most easily accessible. A remote control is also included. However, in contrast with the head unit, the remote has 36 buttons, many of which have dual functions. The remote control is much less 18  Silicon Chip Unlike the head unit, we found the remote control hard to use. However, it is useful for controlling the DVD playback if the head unit is working in dual mode, where rear seat occupants can watch a DVD and listen on headphones while those in the front listen to the radio. siliconchip.com.au that two of the menus (Disc Setup 1 and Disc Setup 2) can only be accessed when a disc is selected as the source and for Disc Setup 2, when play has been stopped. Why this is required (rather than being able to select these menus whenever you want) is not clear and is one of the very few control system glitches. Both the input sources (eg, “rear vision camera”) and the radio stations (eg, “ABC News Radio”) can be titled. The title can comprise upper and lower case letters (and also numbers) and while it’s time-consuming to put in a lot of titles, again the procedure is straightforward. Versatility The KD-AVX2 can play CDs with MP3/WMA recorded on CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, and DVD+RW discs. (And of course it can play normal old CDs too!) The four-channel in-built amplifier has a claimed output of 20W RMS per channel at 0.8% THD. Clearly, if you want to listen at high undistorted levels through inefficient speakers, you’ll need one or more external amplifiers. Line level outputs are provided for front left, front right, rear left, rear right, centre and subwoofer. The centre speaker output is included because the KD-AVX2 can provide 5.1-channel sound with Dolby Digital, Dolby ProLogic II and DTS processing. The KD-AVX2 is standard DIN size in width, depth and height (182 x 52 x 160mm) but it uses a slightly higher than standard (55mm) faceplate. In this respect many other DIN radios are the same but this is a dimension to check in your car before buying. So that the faceplate can perform its motorised gymnastics for disc insertion and variable viewing angles, the front of the unit is designed to protrude slightly further forward than a conventional radio. Mass is 1.9kg – again about par for the DIN course. An internal fan vent means the rear of the unit should not be butted up flush against a surface. Conclusion We’ve left the best to last. Considering that the KD-AVX2 replaces an AM/FM radio, in-dash CD stacker, DVD player and small monitor LCD screen, adds sophisticated set-up and display features and has the unbeatable ability of playing back DVDs of MP3 songs, the recommended retail price of $1199 seems positively cheap. But it gets even better: such is the retail competition in this day and age that at the time of writing, you can buy the KD-AVX2 for $789 plus postage from reputable (ie, have excellent feedback records) sellers on eBay. SC And in fact, that’s just what this reviewer did… IS IT LEGAL TO WATCH DVDs IN A MOVING VEHICLE? Our interpretation of the Australian road rules suggest that it is not legal in any state to install a video screen where it can be seen by the driver, unless that screen is being used for navigation purposes or as a driver’s aid (eg, as a reversing monitor, etc). It is possible to wire the KD-AVX2 so that it cannot display while the vehicle is in motion but that rather defeats its purpose. In a nutshell, the driver must not be able to view the screen at all if it is showing any form of entertainment. siliconchip.com.au “MERLIN” Safe External Switchmode Power Supply Practical and Versatile Mini Broadcast Audio Mixer Broadcast Quality with Operational Features and Technical Performance identical to full sized Radio Station Mixing Panels Permanent Installation is not required, the “Merlin” is as easy as a Stereo System to “Set Up”,all connections via Plugs and Sockets The “Merlin” originally designed for Media Training use in High Schools and Colleges is a remarkably versatile Audio Mixer Applications: Media Training - Basic Audio Production - News Room Mixer - Outside Broadcasts - Radio Program Pre Recording On-Air Mixer in small Radio Stations - “Disco Mixer” The “Merlin” is an Affordable Professional Audio Product Buy one for your School, College, Community Radio Station, Ethnic Radio Broadcast Association or for yourself For Details and Price, please contact us at ELAN Phone 08 9277 3500 AUDIO Fax 08 9478 2266 2 Steel Court. South Guildford email sales<at>elan.com.au www.elan.com.au Western Australia 6055 Silicon Chip Binders REAL VALUE AT $13.95 PLUS P&P Issues Getting Dog-Eared? Keep Your Copies Safe With These Handy Binders Price: $13.95 plus $7.00 p&p per order (buy five and get them postage free). Available only in Australia. Just fill in the handy order form in this issue; or fax (02) 9939 2648; or ring (02) 9939 3295 & quote your credit card number. Silicon Chip Publications, PO Box 139, Collaroy 2097. November 2006  19