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Audio & StereoTechnical discussions about factory or aftermarket audio and video systems.
This is a discussion thread titled "Kenwood DNX8120 Review", within the Audio & Stereo forum, part of the Technical & Vehicle Assistance Forums category.
I bought the dnx 8120 from Barney's electronics. Great EBAYER. Here is the i.d. number on ebay to find the seller (330231108843). Better price then Sonicelectronix and they would not match his price and wanted to charge me tax in CA. Bluetooth works great. I used to work for ATT and my friend still does. He said it sounds good when I was going 70mph in a 15mph headwind. DVD is a bit dull when sun is overhead. My pioneer flip face is better at glare then kenwood. Backup camera is able to be on FULL TIME which most others don't offer. Great for towing. I'll work on pics.
Can someone help me understand how the JBL audio section is configured as is, from factory? I understand all JBL (with or without Nav) to be identical from amplifiers on out to speakers. I have a limited crewmax coming to me. Need to find a "not bad" looking place for the flying saucer GNX30 antenna. Had planned on putting it under what appears to be a center channel speaker grill on the dash. However, I looked at a limited today that is a clone of my inbound truck and discovered that the infinity system DOES make use of that area to house a center speaker on the dash. So, my questions are the following: 1) How is that existing speaker hooked up in the base JBL system? And, for that matter, how are all the speakers and amp in a JBL crewmax arranged? Is it really a center channel speaker with a channel all by itself? If so, when I use the approved JBL Metra or Scosche interface cable for my Kenwood DNX8120, will the latter unit's 5.1 capability be usable? And, if the answer to the latter is "no", then what is that center channel or center dash speaker used for and what would be the impact of removing it to make space for an aftermarket GPS antenna? I mean, if it is NOT to support a 5.1 system, then what does that center dash speaker do?
Can someone help me understand how the JBL audio section is configured as is, from factory? I understand all JBL (with or without Nav) to be identical from amplifiers on out to speakers. I have a limited crewmax coming to me. Need to find a "not bad" looking place for the flying saucer GNX30 antenna. Had planned on putting it under what appears to be a center channel speaker grill on the dash. However, I looked at a limited today that is a clone of my inbound truck and discovered that the infinity system DOES make use of that area to house a center speaker on the dash. So, my questions are the following: 1) How is that existing speaker hooked up in the base JBL system? And, for that matter, how are all the speakers and amp in a JBL crewmax arranged? Is it really a center channel speaker with a channel all by itself? If so, when I use the approved JBL Metra or Scosche interface cable for my Kenwood DNX8120, will the latter unit's 5.1 capability be usable? And, if the answer to the latter is "no", then what is that center channel or center dash speaker used for and what would be the impact of removing it to make space for an aftermarket GPS antenna? I mean, if it is NOT to support a 5.1 system, then what does that center dash speaker do?
The 8120 does have a center channel output but it is at line level. You will need to buy a seperate mono amp for it if you wish to use it.
But the question I have is how is that speaker in the dash that is part of the JBL amplified system today configured? Is the JBL itself natively set up to support 5.1? Therefore, making that speaker a discrete channel? Or, does that speaker just deliver mixed R and L channel information, and if that is the case, how important is it?
I've heard a mixed review on the 8120 elsewhere... Would you buy it again? Also, do you recommend I buy the Metra harness for the JBL system for the extra 100 bucks plus S&H or is there a better harness to buy or method?
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Super White DC 5.7 TRD
Mods: Proforce dual exhaust, Volant CAI, Unichip, TRD sway bar, Bilstein 5100 adjustable front shocks, sport grille (color keyed), Sequoia door handles (color keyed), Line-X, Wet Okole seat covers, tint, Husky mats, Carriage Works upper grille insert, Lorado tonneau cover, custom pinstripe, and sill protectors... Fancy analysis executed without attention to basic principles will often produce elaborate nonsense.
Also, do you recommend I buy the Metra harness for the JBL system for the extra 100 bucks plus S&H or is there a better harness to buy or method?
I had the JBL also and my harness was only $35 on ebay. Its the Metra 70-8113. I used it to by-pass my JBL amp and add my new ones. The only wires I used on it were power, ground and 12v switched. But it works either way.
I had my 8120 installed yesterday. This unit rocks! I LOVE the functionality and being able to watch music videos, movies, tv shows....but esp music videos, off the 160 GB ipod classic I have connected to it is awesome. The biggest bug so far that I have noticed is that it goes to a blank blue screen upon restart if it was last playing a video since the ipod resets to track 1 on the ipod.......(i.e. also, the ipod never seems to stop playing at all unless you manually top a track so that when you come back to that source it is still humming along.....hence, it will not recall your position in track and restart from there if you have gone away from that source. bottom line, kenwood must not be sending a pause signal to ipod when you leave the ipod source on the kenwood) This issue, and the long boot up time at vehicle start which delays the registering of the backup camera are the two biggest PITAs. For the former, I am going to remember to switch away from the video source before shutting of a vehicle if I have been watching video. For the latter, I am thinking it is further cause for the rationalization I have been doing to install a "remote start" unit. i.e. if the truck has been started as I walk towards it, then the head unit has already loaded, etc.. Not to mention, remote start even a few minutes before that is well worth it in Dallas where the cabin suffers 100 degree heat days when parked in a lot......to get the ac going.
There is one other VERY FUNKY, but possibly livable, behavior I have come across and I would appreciate input from anyone who has integrated this DNX8120 with the JBL audio amplifier and speakers. I want to know if what I am experiencing is something I should learn to live with, or an effect caused by a poor install or poor interface harness.
My installer used the Metra Axxess TYTO-01 since that is what came to me in the Metra High Gloss piano black and interface cable kit from the ebay store I bought that stuff from. Hence, I did not use the Scosche interface cable that is supposedly the equivalent. (like Crutchfield kits out) Below are the behaviors I have noticed.
1) Confusing behavior when I try to use multi-zone on the Kenwood as it appears that front and rear zones get "mixed up" for a bit....either for a long time or temporarily. This was the first "hmmmm, what is this about, but, maybe it is just taking time for the head unit to synchronize with the amp" kind of thought I had
2) Then I noticed that when using the Bluetooth phone section, if I had it set up for other caller's audio to only come out of FRONT RIGHT, then the passenger dash AND passenger rear door (which should be Rear Right) both were on. If I set up the unit for caller audio on FRONT LEFT, then it performed correctly in that Driver Dash and Driver FRONT door were on (the latter being set for lower frequency information of course). Note that in the first case I "might" have had some information going to the passenger front door also, but I can not recall for sure....but I DO KNOW that the passenger rear door was just as bright as the passenger dash and that should not have been the case. Lastly, with FRONT BOTH set up in the telephone speaker setup on the head unit, it seemed to be working correctly. This was a pretty indicting test. Caused me to wonder if it was due to a poor installation of the adapter harness, a poor interface harness, or a software bug in the kenwood audio portion of the telephone mode.
3) When playing with the balance and fade controls of the head unit I can confuse the amp and have it off synchronization with what it is actually doing and what the head unit has commanded it to do. For example, if I go all the way to Front Right it will work fine, then I fade it all the way to the back (so it is back right) it will not change and the front right is still playing.....then if I "shock" it by going to back left (where it will work fine) THEN back to back right it will work fine. I can do this stuff for various switches....meaning, it might not always be the back right that needs to be "prompted" to get synchronized by an interim step. Sometimes, an interim step is not needed, but you have to wait 4 to 5 seconds for the amp to register the requested changes in fade or balance control.
Again, I am wondering if these behaviors are all inter-related. Caused by a poor interface module, or install. Or, if they are subject to a mismatch of line voltages from the Kenwood and the amp, etc. Finally, wondering what the risk is of just living with it. I will say that once I play with it enough to make sure it has "settled down" and playing correctly (right now I like it balanced, but faded to back at 5 or 6 so the front dash do not dominate) then it sounds REALLY DAMN good for a truck stock audio section. I am sure I could do "better" with aftermarket, but I am sure it would also not be worth my dollar since I am more interested in the functionality improvements rather than the audio improvements, since the JBL was pretty decent to begin with and I had to accept it with my Limited Truck.
If anyone else has the 8120 interfaced with the JBL amp, I would be appreciative if you did the latter two tests...and the test with the phone audio might be the most revealing and quick to do, and report what you find, and accompany that with what interface was used in the install (i.e. the Scosche or Metra, Axxess, etc.)
Great Info Guys. I have learn a lot in this thread.
I had the 8120 installed recently with the addition of a Myron Davis monitor in the back for rear passengers. The issue I am having is when the bluetooth phone is in use (either making a call or accepting a call), the audio for the rear channel (when in dual mode) that is playing in the back is muted or turned off. This happens when it is in "single mode" or "dual mode". I can understand this happening in single mode but I am wondering if anyone has experienced this same problem or a similar one. Minor issue but when the kids are watching a movie in the back, it would be nice to talk on the phone in the front. thoughts?
I am about to do this upgrade. Can someone confirm that via steering wheel up and down channel selection buttons that you can move around the presets on the Kenwood? I remember seeing somewhere on this forum a report that these controls moved the seek up and down, but did not operate the preset up and down. I am wondering if that user who reported this was just not yet real acquainted with the system, or if this is a real issue you have to "settle" for. I have a slightly older double din Kenwood 70xx series that integrated with steering wheel controls and when you pushed channel up and down on the steering wheel it would send the kenwood unit up or down in either seek or preset mode, depending on what mode you had left the head unit up and down hard buttons in most recently. Hence, it was not an issue with steering wheel integration, but just what mode you had the head unit in. Is this the same for the 8120 integrated to steering wheel, or, is there just NO ability to do preset up and down from steering wheel?
Jumbo Jet, I am looking forward to those pictures also......
I have the Kenwood DNX5120 w/ the steering wheel adapter and it will not select the pre-sets, just scan up and down on the turner. Works great on the ipod.
I have the Kenwood DNX5120 w/ the steering wheel adapter and it will not select the pre-sets, just scan up and down on the turner. Works great on the ipod.
What steering wheel kit are you using? I have the PAC SWI-JACK on my 8120 and all my wheel controls work perfect, including the presets.
What steering wheel kit are you using? I have the PAC SWI-JACK on my 8120 and all my wheel controls work perfect, including the presets.
Do you find the response a little slow (delayed)? I tried it on my brothers tacoma (we both have the same head unit) and it seemed slow...unfortunately I don't have the steering wheel controls on my tundra
Re: Kenwood DNX8120 Review
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Linear Mode
