nvturbo
Go Kart Champion
Alright folks.....as promised, here is my unbiased review of the Audiosources DS-811. First off, I am not being compensated or obligated to make this review on this particular headunit. Prior to the DS-811, I had the Eonon Android GA5153 for about a month. I no longer have it. That's all I'm going to say about it. The DS-811 replaces the factory RCD-510. The following are the PROS and CONS about the new headunit.
PROS:
* PLUG and PLAY without any special adapters such as the dual Fakra antenna or CanBus harness
* steering wheel control compatible
* GPS Navigation using SYGIC map (request for it when ordering). It's the 2015 map BTW, not an outdated one.
* navigation direction arrows show up in the gauge cluster MFD
* stronger internal amplifier to drive speakers (4x60 watts I believe)
* navigation antenna included. The cord is longer than needed so I stuffed it underneath the headunit. The antenna is mounted above the center vents using the provided 3M double-sided tape (pre-mounted on the bottom of antenna)
* fitment is spot on.....no gaps or weird angles. Very stock looking, which was fine with me
* selectable option of RED or GREEN for button and trim. You can change this in the factory setting. Enter the code"7 8 5 1 6 8" to access the advanced setting menu.
* selectable option of intro/startup screen. Mine is set to "Welcome to Volkswagen", same as what comes on the RCD-510. This option is in the same menu as the feature above
* plays DVDs and CDs. Yes, you can watch a DVD movie while the car is in motion
* option of adding Rear View Camera. The screen will black out when car is in reverse if no RVC is connected
* has USB cable to connect to smartphone, etc
* radio reception is as good as the stock VW headunit. Also has RDS, which displays the radio station name, song title, song artist
* 8" touchscreen
* very responsive operation. Buttons work....no delays or glitches.
* great, prompt customer service from A/S. Even with the issues I encountered, the salesperson (Raylene) was helpful and willing to resolve the problem without giving me the run-arounds.
* purchase price was noticabely less compared to those on eBay (that claim to be shipped from the UK)
* you can literally make the screen go blank if you don't want it displayed, yet still plays your music. Just press the moon and stars button, left of the disc slot.
CONS:
* mine came with a bad disc mechanism. When I first installed it, after you insert the disc, I noticed a fluttering sound coming from the headunit. "Disc loading.." showed on the screen. I tried several times to eject the disc but it did not want to eject. After a few minutes, it finally ejected the disc. A/S sent me a replacement disc mechanism which works without issue. Very simple to swap out using only mechanical flat and Philips screwdrivers. Once I removed the old mechanism, I noticed the 3 mounting screws were missing. I found one of the screws wedged in the corner of the headunit casing. Someone must have been in a hurry and neglected to properly mount it.
* Time/date adjustment must be manually set. Make sure to NOT enable "Sync GPS Time" in the TIME setting options. If you do, it will sync with the GPS satellite and will throw the time/date off.
* when using the RCA outputs, you can hear a loud thump sound when selecting radio stations. Had to revert back to using the PAC LOC for my audio system. This method eliminated the thump noise. I'm guessing the RCA output is set too high (which cannot be adjusted)
* communication can be frustrating at times due to language barrier and time difference. I received emails around 3AM and had to respond back before heading into work. Either that or it had to be around 9 or 10EST when I can email and receive a fast response. I'm estimating there were 30+ emails sent and received about the bad disc mechanism and missing GPS card
* the map SD card wasn't included with headunit the first time around. Someone must have forgotten to do so. It was sent along with the replacement mechanism. In order to use the GPS card, insert it into the MAP slot (left of screen). Then, you have to go into the settings and enable it. Once that is done, the screen will show "SYGIC". From that point, it's self-explanatory.
* values are in metric. I asked Raylene if changing to US Standards was possible, it IS NOT. Not worried about it. In the SYGIC GPS, you can select between metric or standard (miles/km, yard/feet, etc)
**** the bright light at the bottom trim of the headunit is the light fixture reflection that is in my garage ****
PICS:
PROS:
* PLUG and PLAY without any special adapters such as the dual Fakra antenna or CanBus harness
* steering wheel control compatible
* GPS Navigation using SYGIC map (request for it when ordering). It's the 2015 map BTW, not an outdated one.
* navigation direction arrows show up in the gauge cluster MFD
* stronger internal amplifier to drive speakers (4x60 watts I believe)
* navigation antenna included. The cord is longer than needed so I stuffed it underneath the headunit. The antenna is mounted above the center vents using the provided 3M double-sided tape (pre-mounted on the bottom of antenna)
* fitment is spot on.....no gaps or weird angles. Very stock looking, which was fine with me
* selectable option of RED or GREEN for button and trim. You can change this in the factory setting. Enter the code"7 8 5 1 6 8" to access the advanced setting menu.
* selectable option of intro/startup screen. Mine is set to "Welcome to Volkswagen", same as what comes on the RCD-510. This option is in the same menu as the feature above
* plays DVDs and CDs. Yes, you can watch a DVD movie while the car is in motion
* option of adding Rear View Camera. The screen will black out when car is in reverse if no RVC is connected
* has USB cable to connect to smartphone, etc
* radio reception is as good as the stock VW headunit. Also has RDS, which displays the radio station name, song title, song artist
* 8" touchscreen
* very responsive operation. Buttons work....no delays or glitches.
* great, prompt customer service from A/S. Even with the issues I encountered, the salesperson (Raylene) was helpful and willing to resolve the problem without giving me the run-arounds.
* purchase price was noticabely less compared to those on eBay (that claim to be shipped from the UK)
* you can literally make the screen go blank if you don't want it displayed, yet still plays your music. Just press the moon and stars button, left of the disc slot.
CONS:
* mine came with a bad disc mechanism. When I first installed it, after you insert the disc, I noticed a fluttering sound coming from the headunit. "Disc loading.." showed on the screen. I tried several times to eject the disc but it did not want to eject. After a few minutes, it finally ejected the disc. A/S sent me a replacement disc mechanism which works without issue. Very simple to swap out using only mechanical flat and Philips screwdrivers. Once I removed the old mechanism, I noticed the 3 mounting screws were missing. I found one of the screws wedged in the corner of the headunit casing. Someone must have been in a hurry and neglected to properly mount it.
* Time/date adjustment must be manually set. Make sure to NOT enable "Sync GPS Time" in the TIME setting options. If you do, it will sync with the GPS satellite and will throw the time/date off.
* when using the RCA outputs, you can hear a loud thump sound when selecting radio stations. Had to revert back to using the PAC LOC for my audio system. This method eliminated the thump noise. I'm guessing the RCA output is set too high (which cannot be adjusted)
* communication can be frustrating at times due to language barrier and time difference. I received emails around 3AM and had to respond back before heading into work. Either that or it had to be around 9 or 10EST when I can email and receive a fast response. I'm estimating there were 30+ emails sent and received about the bad disc mechanism and missing GPS card
* the map SD card wasn't included with headunit the first time around. Someone must have forgotten to do so. It was sent along with the replacement mechanism. In order to use the GPS card, insert it into the MAP slot (left of screen). Then, you have to go into the settings and enable it. Once that is done, the screen will show "SYGIC". From that point, it's self-explanatory.
* values are in metric. I asked Raylene if changing to US Standards was possible, it IS NOT. Not worried about it. In the SYGIC GPS, you can select between metric or standard (miles/km, yard/feet, etc)
**** the bright light at the bottom trim of the headunit is the light fixture reflection that is in my garage ****
PICS:
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. Navigation on this is pretty easy to use. You can search an address, zip code or latitude. It will change colors depending on the set time. Information (street/road names) are quite accurate.
