Boss head unit in convertable.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Feb 2018
Posts: 34
Likes: 7
From: Fort Mill, South Carolina
Boss head unit in convertable.
I am planning on updating the head unit in my 2006 convertible base. I'm a little Leary of proceeding because when I bought the car it had an aftermarket head (kenwood) unit that had some issues. 1) would bleed down the car battery in a couple of days. 2) very hard to read the screen even with the top up, the glare was crazy. 3) I don't think the original owner ever removed the plastic screen protector from the unit and it became permanent over the years. All of the problems went away when I pulled the aftermarket head unit and replaced it with the original corvette radio. So, I've been looking on the Crutchfield web page and have narrowed my search to a Boss unit. I'm an old guy so I'm looking for one that can play CDs and has CarPlay and Android apps. I have no desire to have the best stereo in the word or the loudest or most annoying bass. So, purpose of the post is to find out if any of you owners have gone with a Boss and have any good or bad experiences that you would share. Thanks in advance.
Racer
Joined: Nov 2019
Posts: 427
Likes: 142
From: Kingman AZ
I have a Boss BE7ACP with a wireless carplay adapter in my 4runner and I have honestly been impressed with the sound quality and features for the price. I installed it last fall and haven't had any issues with it. I went with it basically because everything Kenwood was sold out except for the top of the line models. Just wanted something modern and cheap for a 20 yr old 4runner and happy with the choice.
I put a Kenwood DMX957XR in my vette and it blows the Boss unit away, as it should for over 3x the cost.
Did you have a PAC steering wheel interface installed with the Kenwood? They are known to cause battery drain issues if not installed correctly or if they are or have gone bad over time. They are very cheaply made in my opinion, but do the job when working correctly.
I put a Kenwood DMX957XR in my vette and it blows the Boss unit away, as it should for over 3x the cost.
Did you have a PAC steering wheel interface installed with the Kenwood? They are known to cause battery drain issues if not installed correctly or if they are or have gone bad over time. They are very cheaply made in my opinion, but do the job when working correctly.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2017
Posts: 5,426
Likes: 2,307
From: Billings Montana. Out in the wild west
First of all the issue you had with your battery draining may not have been the fault of the Kenwood, but a bad interface which has been known to happen. Do you keep a battery tender on your car ? Secondly, you'll have screen glare with pretty much any new aftermarket system, Like the others have mentioned Boss isn't a very good quality system, but may work for you, I personally would never buy one though.
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2020
Posts: 2,135
Likes: 1,309
From: North Little Rock, AR
Boss Audio is indeed a budget system. I used a single din head unit and marine tower speakers in a boat I use to have. For what I needed at the time that system worked and never had any issues. Just remember you get what you pay for.
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 1,035
Likes: 580
From: Cape Coral, FL
I hear ya on the glare on the Kenwood screen. With the top down you can't see anything on my Kenwood 9707S. Other than that I love the unit. The features and sound blow away the stock unit. I considered the Boss when I was waiting for my Kenwood for 4 months. They are a lot less expensive than the Kenwood, but I feared it would not be much better than the stock unit except it would have car play. I believe there is a reason Boss was available when Kenwood, Pioneer and Alpine were not.
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Race Director
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 17,377
Likes: 6,523
From: Melbourne, FL
First of all the issue you had with your battery draining may not have been the fault of the Kenwood, but a bad interface which has been known to happen. Do you keep a battery tender on your car ? Secondly, you'll have screen glare with pretty much any new aftermarket system, Like the others have mentioned Boss isn't a very good quality system, but may work for you, I personally would never buy one though.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 6,139
Likes: 1,962
From: Morris County New Jersey
For sun glare, consider a unit with a capacitive touch screen. Cheaper units will have a resistive touchscreen. A capacitive touch screen is typically a glass touchscreen similar to what's on your phone. It's a much better screen overall, but it won't be perfect in regards to sun glare but better. A capacitive touchscreen with tilting capabilities helps too. Unfortunately, top down situations on sunny days is sometimes impossible to overcome.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 3,151
Likes: 294
From: Opelousas, Lousiana
CI 6-7 & 9 Veteran
First of all the issue you had with your battery draining may not have been the fault of the Kenwood, but a bad interface which has been known to happen. Do you keep a battery tender on your car ? Secondly, you'll have screen glare with pretty much any new aftermarket system, Like the others have mentioned Boss isn't a very good quality system, but may work for you, I personally would never buy one though.
I don't know about durability of the system. but I recently installed a Boss unit on my pickup. So far, it has worked fine. I am selling my C7 and going back to a C6 so I will be installing an aftermarket unit in the C6 as well. I may go with a Kenwood unit if it is available with the features I nee