I bought the Alpine CTA-1502R Commander Tuner/Controller to replace a rather old Alpine Tuner/Tape head unit with CD Changer. Having had a very good experience with my previous Alpine head unit, the replacement had to be an Alpine. Since adding a CD changer to my old head unit, I'd stopped ... Read review
Car Radio - Panel Release, Panel/Quick Release - with CD Player, With CD-Player - without CD-Changer, With changer control - with MP3 Playback, With MP3 Player - 208 Watt
Advantages: High quality, well-priced, feature packed Disadvantages: Annoying power off button - that's it!!
I bought the Alpine CTA-1502R Commander Tuner/Controller to replace a rather old Alpine Tuner/Tape head unit with CD Changer. Having had a very good experience with my previous Alpine head unit, the replacement had to be an Alpine. Since adding a CD changer to my old head unit, I'd stopped using cassettes because the difference in quality was unbelievable. I therefore didn't want to play tapes on my new unit. That's why I went for the 1502, since ... ...Anything else can be added on, like the CD changer which I bought at the asme time.
Since having the unit, about six months, it has worked perfectly. It has a very large display, since there are no openings for CDs, tapes etc. It uses the display for all of the usual info along with a spectrum analyser (flashing lights) which can be changed to a format that suits you (choice of 10). The tuner has an huge amount of functions RDS,PTY,Radio ... more
I bought the Alpine CTA-1502R Commander Tuner/Controller to replace a rather old Alpine Tuner/Tape head unit with CD Changer. Having had a very good experience with my previous Alpine head unit, the replacement had to be an Alpine. Since adding a CD changer to my old head unit, I'd stopped using cassettes because the difference in quality was unbelievable. I therefore didn't want to play tapes on my new unit. That's why I went for the 1502, since all it has built in is a tuner and amplifier. Anything else can be added on, like the CD changer which I bought at the asme time.
Since having the unit, about six months, it has worked perfectly. It has a very large display, since there are no openings for CDs, tapes etc. It uses the display for all of the usual info along with a spectrum analyser (flashing lights) which can be changed to a format that suits you (choice of 10). The tuner has an huge amount of functions RDS,PTY,Radio Text etc..... You'll definately need the manual to set it up and to pick out the functions that you want to use (you wont want them all!) The sound quality is very good through the 4 x 40W internal amplifier. It has 4V pre-outs to connect to an external amplifier which gives excellent quality sound. It uses Alpine's Ai Net connection system, which allows you to add all sorts of extras such as CD changer, MD player, TV screen, Video etc. The display lighting can be altered to green or amber to match the car lighting and can be set-up to mute if your phone rings when it's connected top a hands-free in-car kit. It evens comes with an infra-red remote control - very impressive but not all that useful.
The unit is basically stacked with features and is very well made. Installation in a new car with DIN connections should take a matter of a couple of minutes using the standard wiring connections or using a wiring kit made for your car. I can't find fault with it except that to turn it off you have to hold down a button for three seconds. It doesn't sound like much, but can get annoying if you want to turn it off quickly.
Anyone wanting a high quality, good-looking feature packed head unit with a built-in tuner and the ability to connect other devices should take a serious look at the CTA-1502R
