Hey everyone, I'm looking at two Pioneer head units. The 2400-BT and the 3400-BT. The only difference is one has HD Radio built in and one doesn't, and about $40 price difference. Is it worth the $40?
Thanks!

 

I just installed a new stereo with HD radio in it. While it sounds good, I can't tell much difference from the local FM channel (bass seems richer, and high's aren't as tin sounding), but because most people can really hear the difference, I'm going to blame my stock stereo speakers on the lack of quality difference. For only $40, get it.

As a side note, I find myself playing music more through my phone (Pandora, Spotify, Google Music, MP3's loaded on my phone) than the radio.

 

Oh okay. Got it now. I was planning on getting the one with HD after I looked into. And I'm like you, I use my phone and iPod more than anything, but when I do use the radio, I want it to sound good.

 

I have in my other car and love it, but I've also upgraded my amp and speakers. You should also check the stations in your area to make sure they're broadcasting in HD. The only down side is the range on HD is much less than standard FM, so if you're in an area with mountains or lots of hills you may lose the HD reception.

 

I love my HD radio for am stations since that's where I get my news. Sounds amazing. Mass FM music radio sucks since I have more variety and taste than the same 11 songs repeated all day. Yay for IPod integration. Mines a pioneer as well

 

No commercials like 'regular' radio for the most part.. (on HD 2 or above that is.. HD 1 is just the regular station broadcast, just in "HD")

Other big difference is when you are out of reception, it goes silent or it'll try to 'link' to the home or main station. (with commercials)

You really only can get HD stations near the larger cities. Get 50-60 miles out of the city and you start to lose reception.

But, that's what the USB plug is for to plug in your MP3 player with!

I've not listened to 'regular' radio for years and don't miss it one bit!

I run mine thru the OEM speakers and it sounds better than regular radio, but sounds the same as playing a CD.

Mitch

 

I think I'll go for the HD then. TruckGuy24, what Pioneer unit are you using?

 

HD radio is nice. With a good set of components, you can really hear the difference. I looked into adding the Pioneer HD radio module to my head unit, but they run over $100. A $40 premium really isn't that bad. And yes, when the HD reception drops out, it is a little annoying. The radio goes silent.

 

I have a JVC head unit in my daily. It has HD radio but I didn't buy it for that, just an added bonus. It sounds way clearer than standard stations but as people have said above, go out in the country a bit, and it either automatically switches from HD to SD or just goes silent depending on the station. But I listen to my iPod or Pandora 95% of the time. If you listen to radio a lot and get good signal in the areas that you drive the most, I'd get it.

 

Sorry I missed your post deh33hd I believe

 

Ok, have to update my original post. Apparently I wasn't using the HD Radio correctly. It is night and day different from the regular broadcast. Get it. As for the brand/type of radio:

I pulled out the Eclipse AVN 50d from my truck (for sale actually) to put in the HD Radio without navigation. While the 50d was nice, it was starting to feel outdated. The HD radio I put in sounds much better.

I went with a JVC KW-HDR81BT over the Pioneer DEH-P9400BH (the 2 I was debating on) for a few reasons:
The first reason: $$$. I found the JVC for about $30 less (got it on an "egg" vendor at a steal), second was the higher powered USB ports, since I'm running a tablet for my navigation/music/video I needed more power, and didn't want to run it from the car; this was pointless, since I ran power anyway.
2nd, Double DIN: I hate the little "cubby holes" while they are useful for temp storage, I find they end up becoming another "garbage can".
Finally: Display. Since the JVC is a double DIN the display is much larger, which definitely helps when doing a quick glance.

A side note: During my research I read that the Pioneer controls were pretty painful to navigate, I can't be drilling down through 4 menu's to get to the bluetooth input.

Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't have gone with a unit this fancy. I would have just purchased one that had bluetooth and HD Radio. I don't use the USB ports (never will thanks to bluetooth) or any of the other features that it offers. I'd even opt to not have an actual CD Player (CD's, who uses those anymore?), since CD's are on their way out. If you must have all your local music available to you, load it onto your MP3 player, or check out "google music". Even when my wife bought a new CD I found I could stream it through Spotify (or google music and itunes if purchased that way), without having to insert an actual CD. I guess it will be good for audio books from the library?