Sony MDX-C7900 Car MD Player
User Comments
Cameron Croft ([email protected])
Commentary
I purchased Sony's new MDX-C7900 car unit at Best Buy near Chicago for
$399. This is a great little unit which I have connected to a 10-disc
CD changer and together they comprise a surprisingly easy-to-use
package. There is a remote control ("Rotary Commander") supplied with
the unit, but even though Sony's pages say there is an optional
wireless remote that works with it, they are incorrect, nor is there
an IR port for it. On the unit itself there is a neat little
lever-like switch to the left of the volume control knob. You push
the lever up and down to switch tracks, or push and hold to FF or REW.
My favorite feature is called Motion Display: a horse (or dog?)
runs across the dot-matrix screen and pulls a display of the playing
time, disc name, track name, etc., and then repeats itself, while
horses run back and forth. I think this is a neat display option and
it is fun to watch.
The display has 3 colors: The main titles and time info are in
orangish-white. In the upper left corner there is a small green
display that continuously shows either the time or audio
source. Finally, there are red display indicators for play-mode,
menus, stereo, etc. It looks great at night but have not yet tried it
in direct sunlight.
I am very happy with this unit. There has been absolutely no skipping,
and I have put it to the test on some gravel roads already. However I
am still curious to see what features the Mobile-ES MDX-C8900 will
have, which is due in June 98. It will have to be very impressive for
me to part with my MDX-C7900!
Features
- Provides MD & CD changer control
- CD Text support when used with CD Text equipped CD changer
- D-Bass including Digital D-Bass for MDs (which sounds pretty good)
- Radio station naming
- List function, allows scrolling through radio presets or disc names without
interupting current station or disc
- Auto-Scroll for MD titles
- Adjustable display contrast
- Auto-dimmer
- 10 second shock memory
- Detachable faceplate
- Wired remote
Specifications
Audio Power
- 17 watts per channel minimum continuous average power into
4 ohms, 4 channels driven from 20 Hz to 20 kHz with no more than
1% total harmonic distortion.
- Speaker impedance: 4 - 8 ohms
- Maximum power output: 40 W x 4 (at 4 ohms)
Tone controls
| Bass | +/- 8 dB at 100 Hz |
| Treble | +/- 8 dB at 10 kHz |
MD player section
| Signal-to-noise ratio | 90db |
| Frequency response | 10-20,000Hz |
| Wow and flutter | Below measurable limit |
| Laser Diode Properties |
|---|
| Material | GaAlAs |
| Wavelength | 780nm |
| Emission Duration | Continuous |
Tuner section
| FM |
|---|
| Tuning range | 87.5-107.9Mhz |
| Intermediate frequency | 10.7 Mhz. |
| Usable sensitivity | 10dBf |
| Selectivity | 75 dB at 400kHz |
| Signal-to-noise ratio | 62dB (stereo) |
| 65dB (mono) |
| Harmonic distortion at 1 kHz | 0.9% (stereo) |
| 0.5% (mono) |
| Separation | 35dB at 1kHz |
| Frequency response | 30-15,000Hz |
| Capture ratio | 2dB |
| AM |
|---|
| Tuning range | 530-1,710 kHz |
| Intermediate frequency | 0.71 Mhz/450kHz |
| Sensitivity | 30 muV |
Connectors
- Speaker outputs (sure seal connectors)
- 2 Line outputs
- Power antenna relay control lead
- Power amplifier control lead
- Telephone ATT control lead
- Illumination control lead
Dimensions
- 178 x 50 x 184 mm
- 182 x 53 x 162 nun
- 1.2kg (2 lb 10 Oz)
Supplied accessories
- Parts for installation and connections (1 set)
- Front panel case (1)
- Rotary commander RM-X4S