Single-DIN head units

As one of the world’s largest electronics companies Sony consistently succeeds in delivering the incar market with head units that balance high level of features with attractive prices, while also keeping the quality at a steady high point.

And here Sony has provided oodles of power above the standard fare at this price point. Our sister magazine

Australian Incar Entertainment currently has its own dedicated Awards issue on sale with full details of all our incar categories, and they highlight the Sony’s wide file handling via disc, high-speed USB 2.0, or via the 3.5mm analogue auxiliary input. It’s also equipped with a version 3.0 Bluetooth chipset which not only handles telephonic duties but expands significantly upon this via Sony’s downloadable app called SongPal.

On the test bench the Sony’s pre-outs proved themselves, going to near full volume without so much as a murmur of external hiss or noise. Running with separate amplifiers, these outputs provide clean, precise signal at a high voltage, while the XB100BT’s own speaker-level outputs also impressed at the price, particularly when joined by a subwoofer up the rear channels and running the whole shebang with the processing — “things start to become a whole lot more impressive”, said Incar’s review, “with sound banging out well placed, and with superb accuracy and volume.” The MEX-XB100BT could even be considered a game changer for its ability to run an entire system just on its own without struggling. Controls are intuitive, you can pick your colour scheme, and set-up proceeded trouble-free on what is a remarkable unit for $449. More info:

www.sony.com.au