Product ReviewsJVC KD-R300 CD Player In Dash Receiver

Not bad, but not so great either, still a good value.

Bought this unit to replace an aging Kenwood. Was expecting great features as I have had several JVC products over the years. Reviews seemed to say the unit is outstanding. That may be true, but is probably based on comparitive experience with similar lines of product. I am however a bit discriminating when it comes to products from a higher end manufacturer like JVC. Overall, this unit is very good at what it does and is way ahead of many units in audio quality. But that is where the feature package ends. Even though this model sports a handy key fob remote that has been around a while and proven of great value, the menu controls are a bit cumbersome and lengthy to navigate taking more time to use than it should. Another really annoying feature that looks good but actually is the pit, is the display dimming process. This unit does not come wired to interface any stock lighting system. Thus it does not allow you to adjust brightness as with any plain jane factury unit. And to add to that, the unit should have had a ambient light sensor so it could automatically dim according to your tasts. Dimming is available, but only through the long menu process. Also, since the control knob is side lighted and it has such a large area that illuminates at night, if you do not manually change to dim mode, it nearly blinds you and dominates the interior. It is almost so bright, you could read the numbers on a driver license depending on the color chosen. My wife actually hates this unit specifically because of this problem. Other than that, if you want really nice sound and personalized colors on the display, then this is very good unit for the money.

I would not buy it again unless the display issues are worked out!Read full review...

A good value-lots of features, with some minor sacrifices, at a great price

I purchased this head unit because the radio in my car was still stuck back in the 20th century with a cassette player. I also have a JVC 12-disc CD changer with an external controller and FM modulator, along with a separate FM modulator through which to play my iPod. All the spaghetti wiring for these add-ons was giving trouble and I knew there had to be a better way. After careful consideration—and getting a hell of a deal on eBay—I decided the best course of action was to update the head unit and eliminate some unnecessary wiring.

The features that drew me to the JVC KD-R300 were the built-in CD changer controller and the auxiliary input jack on the front that respectively allowed me to plug both the trunk-mounted CD changer and my iPod directly into the head unit instead of using FM modulators for each, thus making it the centerpiece of a truly multifunctional sound system.

In addition to the above mentioned features, the onboard CD player affords me the additional flexibility of playing a 13th disc from inside the car, which is quite handy when playing audio books while traveling. It also has the capability of playing mp3 discs, which can hold as much music on a single disc as my CD changer can with a dozen.
The variable color illumination feature seems to be a favorite among many owners. While I think it's great that I can make the unit blend in better with my car's red/orange dash lights, it's really just eye candy—pleasant, but neither a deal maker or a deal breaker. It should be noted here that JVC's claim of more than 30,000 possible color settings seems to be a case of marketing hyperbole run amok, exaggerating the truth by a factor of 1,000. Still, that's more than adequate for most users, whether one is looking for a spot-on match for the factory dash lights or to make a fashion statement with a non-standard color like pink or purple.

One area of concern is there's a whole heck of a lot of features crammed into a dozen little buttons, including the control knob. Although this creates a fairly clean looking user interface, It can mean only one thing--practically speaking—menu hell. There's a lot you can do with this radio, but most of it is best done in the driveway when you don't have to keep your eyes on the road. One particular set of buttons that is sorely missed is dedicated station preset buttons. Instead of pushing a specific button to instantly go to a specific station, one must toggle through them in sequence. Menus in sequence may be neat and orderly on the inside, but it isn't very convenient to the user on the outside.

Although the menus can be cumbersome, the effort of moving through them can be worthwhile when it comes to tailoring the sound to your tastes. The EQ button makes it easy to toggle through a set of predetermined choices—rock, pop, jazz, hip-hop, etc—but the real power of the system is the choice labeled 'user', which allows one to manually configure the bass, treble, and midrange settings to get the most out of your speakers. Curiously, one set of controls entirely missing from the menu are the left/right balance and front/rear fade. Fortunately, the sound distribution is acceptable in its default, non-adjustable configuration. Once you have those settings you actually can control dialed in the way you want them, the sound quality is quite good—in my case, delivering far better clarity than the OEM head unit it replaced, even using the car's OEM speakers.Read full review...

Great product for any starter wanting a system

A very excellent product at a reasonable price in some stores. I love the multi-color, EQ and LOUD features. In the EQ settings, one can tweak bass, mids, and highs while adjusting the Hz and quality on each setting. Basically making it sound even better and louder.I got 4 Sony Xplod XS-R1644 6-1/2" 4-Way Speakers and a 12" Pyle amplified sub and wow.... it thumps. Usually I have it on LOUD and turned up to max. while adjusting the vol. adding to +2. Makes your ears ring pretty good and that is with no amp. I'm a guy that loves more voice than bass. I gotta hear pristine voice from far away and that tells me you have a great system instead of hearing sloppy bass all the time.One must need a great balance between the two.Sometimes I do a little "parking lot pimping" and I turn a lot of heads by adjusting the bass at a great level with the loudness of the voice. I want to buy an amp in the future to make my system even louder!!! JVC has a lot of bang for your buck with awesome features.I recommend this product highly to anybody.Read full review...

Great delivery

Product got here before the original date promised, looks great, everything is there, can't wait to install it!!!

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: nu2ushuguru

great buy!!

i like the way there are a bunch of different colors to choose from to illuminate the receiver face. Like the options for bluetooth and small remote that comes with. Satellite for XM or Sirius Radio is great. What a great deal. Thanks will recommend to friends and family for future purchases of this and other similarRead full review...

Great product

I am enjoying using this radio. The options that it has are great. It was easy to install. I enjoy all of the color options.

Excellent car radio

Excellent car radio, I recommend this article, good sound and attractive design.
Excellent car radio, I recommend this article, good sound and attractive design. System security and management of Bluetooch very good, good MP3 CD, WMA CD very goodRead full review...

Good.....

This is nice car audio system.
But blue tooth ready and HD radio ready means you have to buy separate piece for that. That could be cost you.

damaged item

the deck looked great and turned on but none of the buttons actually work, can't turn up the volume can't use the deck its a big paperweight.

radioJVC KD-R300 CD/MP3 In Dash Receiver

radio work fine great buy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Read full review...