JVC KD-AVX2
In-dash DVD player with 3.5" video screen
A Review by (DAB) for Sirius Backstage
OVERVIEW:
The JVC KD-AVX2 has a 3.5" wide screen TFT LCD Monitor. This display is used for both viewing DVD as well as providing information such as MP3/WMA/WAV ID3 Info. It will also show the text data for either SIRIUS using the JVC1 Sirius Connect Tuner or XM using the XM Direct Connect Tuner. It is also iPod Ready, so using JVC KS-PD100 will allow you to view and control music on your iPod.
Note: Descriptions on most web sites indicate that the AVX2 has a SD Card reader, but apparently this feature didn't make it into the production model. If you look on JVC web site the PR release does not state it has an SD Card reader, but instead say the new KW-AVX706 has it.
DISPLAY:
3.5" wide screen liquid crystal panel with 224 640 pixels (TFT) active matrix format, color system: NTSC
The display is built into a removable, motorized, fold down face plate. It sites right in the middle with the control buttons on each side. I found the LCD to be bright and crisp. Though it is a bit small for watching DVD's, I was actually surprised at how viewable it is. If you have a vehicle with limited dash space with a single din slot, this may just be the answer you've been looking for. Even direct sunlight has very little impact on this LCD. The colors are just beautiful and vivid. You can adjust the brightness, contrast, color and tint should you need too. The motorized face plate that holds the LCD can also be tilted into 4 different positions for ease of viewing and to help with glare. It also folds down for the insertion of DVD or CD. You can set the display to automatically dim when your lights are turned on, or you can set it to dim at certain times. The good news is that they fixed an issue that they had with the AVX1 in that the blue buttons were not dimmed while the display was. The AVX2 not only dims the display, but the buttons as well. This was a much needed improvement.
You can choose from the following wallpapers: Standard (blue), Rose, Gold, Black, Metal (gray), Metallic-Silver (silver diamond plate metal), Metallic-Green (green diamond plate metal), Honeycomb-Red (red honeycomb design), Honeycomb-Green (green honeycomb design), Effect-Orange (orange light pattern), Effect-Purple (purple light pattern), Clown fish, Ocean, Sunset, or Earth. Here are a view pictures to give you an idea what they look like.
You can choose from the following aspect modes: Normal: 4:3 and 16:9 pictures display with black bars on either side (16:9 images are compressed). Full: expands 4:3 pictures horizontally to fill the entire width of the screen, distorting the picture slightly but retaining full image height. Just: expands 4:3 pictures horizontally only at the edges. Zoom: expands 4:3 pictures both horizontally and vertically, filling the screen without distorting the picture but cutting off the top and bottom edges. 16:9 pictures are also slight expanded horizontally and vertically. Auto: the correct aspect mode is automatically chosen based on the incoming signal.
SOUND:
20 W RMS X 4Channels @ 4 ohms
I found the built in amp is more than enough for most listeners. For those that have there on amp the built in amp can be turned off. The 7 band (iEQ) offers Hard Rock, R&B, Pop, Jazz, Dance, Country, Reggae, Classic, User 1, User 2, User 3, and Flat preset EQ curves. User 1, User 2, and User 3 presets can be adjusted to your preference and stored in memory. You can also make the following adjustments for speaker size; Front: Small or Large, Center: Small, Large, or None, Rear: Small, Large, or None, Subwoofer: On or Off. Speaker level and distance can also be adjusted. The sound was smooth and easily adjustable to my own listening preference. I give the AVX2 high marks for sound.
Speaking of amps, the AVX2 has the following preamp outputs: front left, front right, rear left, rear right, center and subwoofer. In addition to the 2.5V front and rear preamp outputs, this unit has a single 2V subwoofer preamp output on a 6" pigtail. The subwoofer output has independent level control, adjustable from -6 to +08, and a selectable phase setting that can be adjusted to Normal or Reverse. It also has an internal crossover that allows you to choose: 80, 120, or 150 Hz. The crossover acts as a low-pass filter for the subwoofer preamp output and a high-pass filter for the front and rear preamp outputs.
For DVD's the AVX2 offers 5.1 channel decoding with the built in DPS with Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic and DTS processing. There are front left and right, rear left and right, center, and subwoofer outputs. You'll need the proper setup in your vehicle in order to take advantage.
DVD's/CD's
The AVX2 can play DVD or CD with MP3's, WMA's or WAV files. You can create DVD with up to 1000 songs. This is thanks to JVC's Mega DVD feature. Looking through folder is as simple as pushing the up and down button on the front of the face plate. It makes finding your favorite artist, song or folder a snap. DVD's created must be done on a computer using the UDF-Bridge format. CD's using CD-R and CD-RW disc are readable. Bit rates can be between 32 and 320 kbps, each disc can have a maximum of 3500 files and 250 folders. You can get a list of folders and once you select the folder you want, you can then see all the files in that folder. If the MP3/WMA ID3 tags are done correctly it is very easy to find the specific song and/are artist that you are looking for. On a single din head units this is the easiest file system I have seen. If you have the album info listed in your ID3 tag it will display the album name followed by the artist on the first line and the song title on the second line. I don't really want to see album name, so I edited my MP3 and WMA ID3 Tags and removed the album name, so now it only shows the artist name on the first line and and title on the second line as indicated by the picture below on the right. If I want to know what the album is I can look that up, but I don't want it to scroll as much by showing the album names. (This is just a personal preference) Pictures below also show how easy it is to display folder list and files within the folder. SWEET!
Using the remote you can directly access any chapter on a DVD. If the DVD was recorded with different angles you can also view those. You can do a scan type search or fast forward or rewind at 2x up to 60x by holding down the FF or RW button. This works from the face plate or the remote. You'll also have the ability to view in slow motion in both directions. There is a repeat play where you can repeat the current chapter. There is also a zoom feature to zoom in on a certain scene. If you are driving late at night and don't want to hear the louder sections of movies, you can set the Dynamic Range Compression and this will reduce the Dolby Dynamic range so you aren't overwhelmed by loud sections.
I found the AVX2 as a DVD player to be very impressive. I ran down some very rough roads trying to see if I could make it skip, but it never skipped a beat. All the input and outputs are available for adding a second bigger LCD for back seat viewing or other areas of your vehicle. I really didn't get the AVX2 for DVD viewing, but it is certainly nice having that ability. I have found myself using it much more than I thought I would. It is sort of nice while waiting in line at a drive thru to sit back and watch a movie.
NOTE: During installation you are required to connect a wire to your parking break. Only when your parking break is engaged will you be able to view DVD's. However, there is a way around this. You simply ground this wire and it will assume your parking break is always engaged. I don't recommend watching a DVD while driving.
SAT RADIO
Starting with the 2006 models JVC head units are compatible with either SIRIUS or XM. The JVC1 SIRIUS Connect or XM Direct Connect plugs directly into the j-bus CD changer port on the back of the AVX2 or other JVC head units. This will then allow you to control your SIRIUS on XM tuner. My AVX2 currently has the JVC1 SIRIUS connect hooked up, so the following information may or may not be valid for both services.
Text Info, you can view the categories, channels or presets. The LCD being wider on the AVX2 allows it to show a few more characters, but the text is large and very easy to see. (I really don't understand why they didn't move the text starting point further to the left in order to show even more characters, this would have allowed it to scroll even less) You see the song and artist info, along with your preset number, band, iEQ setting, clock and signal strength all at once. With a push of the DISP button you'll then see the category and channel name. The one thing I have been unable to do that I could on the AVX1 and AR960 is to do a look ahead view. Not sure why they removed this, but thus far I have been unable to get it to show me what is showing on other channels. (This is not personally a big deal because I rarely used this feature, but I think it was something that JVC could do that other head units could not, even though the text information was very limited. The Clock is also automatically adjusted by the SIRIUS Satellites, this works on the XM tuner as well according to the manual. You must set up your time zone and rather you are currently in DST or not. (With the recent time change my clock updated with no problems)
Here are few pictures to see the way the unit displays SIRIUS. Pictures were taking at an angle.
I am very please with the way the Sat Radio portion of the AVX2 works. It supports a few things that generally speaking you can only find on a PNP, such as signal strength from the Sat as well as automatically adjusting the clock.
MISC:
iPod Compatible, when hooked up you'll be able to manage your music on your iPod. The text information will be displayed on your LCD and while it is connected it also charges your battery. An iPod can be hooked up if you are using the SIRIUS connect tuner using the bypass. The XM Direct Tuner does not support this.
If you don't plan to use SIRIUS, XM or the iPOD, you can purchase an Aux Adapter to convert your j-bus cable CD Changer port into an Aux Input. However, you can use the Aux portion of the Audio/Video input that is built into the AVX2.
Remote Control: I remote control has a bit of a learning curve to it, but it does allow you to control most functions. I found it to be very responsive. It is a bit larger than most remotes now days, which I found GREAT. The downsizing of remotes and using those tiny buttons was a move in the wrong direction. Glad to see JVC hasn't given into that yet.
Dual Zone. If you have an back seat LCD hooked up and you want to allow the kids to watch a DVD while you listen to Sat Radio.
Here are some other pictures of the setup menus.
VIDEO: Shrek 2
It appears that JVC has really outdone themselves with the AVX2. I really tried to find something about it I didn't like and I just couldn't do it. No setup can be perfect, but this one comes very close. I plan to add a JVC external LCD later on, but for now I am happy with it as it is. If you are looking for a head unit that plays DVD's and allows for use with SIRIUS or XM look no further than the JVC KD-AVX2. I highly recommend this head unit.
The JVC KD AVX2 is currently available! I am offering the following list, but I cannot vouch for your satisfaction or the level of service you will receive from these retailers.
Crutchfield $649.99 (Free Shipping)
Bargains Unlimited $469.99, plus shipping
SavingLots $475.45, includes shipping
The JVC KD-AVX2 is now widely available at most retailers that sell JVC head units and products.
If you are interested in a double din JVC setup, Crutchfield just announced the availability of the JVC KW-AVX706 $799.99, but can be found as cheap as $575.00 on the net if you do a little shopping around.
