New Design Audi aftermarket head unit

1210tech

1210tech

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just trawling through ebay I came across this Audi Aftermarket Head Unit that looks very similar to the oem RNS-E system but has digital TV, bluetooth and iPod capabilities built in, looks pretty good and very oem design so it won't stand out like a sore thumb. the two knobs either side and visible cd slot reminds me of the old RNS-D version that was originally fitted in my motor

has anybody fitted one of these?

heres the manufacturers website: T-ERA
 
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What i would want to know first is who is it made by and second why is it so expensive .
 
paul20v said:
What i would want to know first is who is it made by and second why is it so expensive .
Click to expand...

I agree, to know who defo makes them would be good but I think the manufacturer is T-ERA, but can't be sure and never heard of them :)

Its not really expensive if you look at how much it costs to buy an OEM RNS-E (£500 from ebay), then buy the bluetooth kit (£350 off ebay), then buy the iPod kit (£90) and then buy the TV tuner (£500 not including cables), all in you are looking at £1500 minimum without fitting and coding
 
audi upgrades
hmmmm i would be wary of these guys...

I had a unit for our Lupo which was all singing and dancing like this one. Looked OEM etc etc... but that's the only good thing it had going for it..

Was an absolute **** to fit as there is just no room for all the extra cable looms.

Then once its fitted mine all seemed fine.. However when you start to use it you start to find all the little software bugs..
Chineese errors that randomly pop on and off the screen.. Units crashing and sticking on.. only way to fix is master reset and loose all your settings.

Finally, the drive on ours kept eating CD's as the eject mechanism decided when and where it wanted to work...

So i am not saying dont get one... Just be warned that i have had one with the same looking software... And i wasnt impressed.

I would definaly like to give once a good test drive first before i handed any cash over.
 
Check it has a diversity tuner (two seprate digital tuners) so it have hold a picture on the move... not just when you car is facing a specific direction adn stationary ;)

I was tempted by those, but never found one that said it woudl integrate with the DIS and steering (that says "CANBUS" and steering.... the same??).

Main issue I found when I started digging.... most of those all-singing, all-dancing units overheat and crash.... hence why the OEM units keep the TV tuner units completely separate.

Does look VERY impressive for the money.... as per 1210's comments.... I'd say VERY cheap... if anything, most of 1210's prices are pretty conservative....
 
BILKO1 said:
You'd be better off with this http://caraudiosecurity.com/shop/product/products_id/8416.html Guaranteed to work:)
My next Audi will be having one or a newer version when i get one.
Click to expand...

I looked at that and seriously considered it (and the "700" version of the same Pioneet AVIC), but in the end, the lack of DIS integration and once the guy in the shop started with things like "ummm, I guess you could get somebody to wire the steering controls to the remote features.....".... made me very nervous... I could see lots of wires, lots to go wrong and limited actual functionality.

I looked into this online and at the time (only a year ago) it seemed like a complete mess and headache to have anything more than volume control via the steering.

The main gripe was that I wanted multi-funtion steering controls for satnav voice prompts and voice controlled dialing and phone answering... I don't see any point in having a Bluetooth phone setup and fades back and forth seamlessly with the music / satnav, but you have to look down and reach across the dssh to answer or dial... even more so with voice controls!

Also, although I didn't want permanent voice-directions on but I still want to know what the SatNav is thinking while the missus is surfing around for music: hence I prefer to have the satnav directions coming up on the DIS (between the dials) and then be able to prompt for the "last" voice direction via the steering button.

Plus... I've seen too many bling retro-fits that just look naff... RNS-E might not be the best system out there, but it really looks and feels like it belongs...
 
only feature I really felt I was "missing" was the GPS speed camera software, plus a radar/laser detection hardware that my old system had, so I got a 2nd hand Neo Snooper and RLD-100 and got those hardwaired in.... so I now have EVERYTHING!
 
I have some good and bad experience with car audio/video systems and would highly recommend to buy well known make units. Alpine/Clarion/Pioneer/Kenwood - these are that are worth to look for.
If you buy something like T-era unit, you can forget about parts and repair when something goes wrong. Most of these units are made in factory in China by no name company. When you order lets say 1000 units from them, they will put your company name/logo on the unit if you want to. I can bet that it costs no more than $500 straight from factory. I used to deal with one of them for a while and know how much profit people can get from things like that.
Another thing that sound quality will be crap. They use cheapest parts to lower costs.
 
i just dont like the audio quality of the standard HU, I also dont like the way it works. I want my full ipod control on stereo etc and a group of pre outs for my audio system.
 
Well, it depends what you want to get. If you're looking for pure sound quality than none of the DVD units will give you that. It will be much better than audi oem one, but it is still made more for entertainment than SQ. If you want pure SQ than get something like Alpine F1, Pioneer P90 with separate processors or unit with everything you need like Clarion HXD2 or Pioneer P99RS. None of them are cheap and these are just parts of system. You will need to get amps and components. Overall it costs a fortune but it is well worth it.
On the other side maybe it's just me ;)
 
slepy said:
Well, it depends what you want to get. If you're looking for pure sound quality than none of the DVD units will give you that. It will be much better than audi oem one, but it is still made more for entertainment than SQ. If you want pure SQ than get something like Alpine F1, Pioneer P90 with separate processors or unit with everything you need like Clarion HXD2 or Pioneer P99RS. None of them are cheap and these are just parts of system. You will need to get amps and components. Overall it costs a fortune but it is well worth it.
On the other side maybe it's just me ;)
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This is all very nice but at the end of the day its a car and you will never get perfect sound quality like you will at home there too much ambient noise going on and also not enough continuous steady power ,
not knocking what you want just dont understand why you would put all that effort into the car , id rather get my home system right .
 
paul20v said:
This is all very nice but at the end of the day its a car and you will never get perfect sound quality like you will at home there too much ambient noise going on and also not enough continuous steady power ,
not knocking what you want just dont understand why you would put all that effort into the car , id rather get my home system right .
Click to expand...

There is a lot of people thinking that way and you are obviously right. Car is much worse place to put audio and no one will argue with that.
The problem is that I spend at least 3 hours a day on motorway and most of the time when I'm at home I sleep. Maybe if you listen to system of one of the cars which compete in EMMA or IASCA you would change your mind.
Maybe it will never be perfect but still your jaw might drop on the floor few times because some of them are proper good.
 
paul20v said:
This is all very nice but at the end of the day its a car and you will never get perfect sound quality like you will at home there too much ambient noise going on and also not enough continuous steady power ,
not knocking what you want just dont understand why you would put all that effort into the car , id rather get my home system right .
Click to expand...

I spend more time awake in my car than at home and i can enter comps. :)

Not to say i dont have a nice system at home, but its a hobby. Why buy an audi at all when a Micra will get you from a to b.

I just find changing from Standard to a reasonable upgrade is a huge difference. and for the price of an RSN-E i coluld have a Becker or Nakamichi.

ALong with my JL Audio Subs, A/D/S Speakers and Genesis amps i think it will be a pretty nice build.
 
Hmm I don't see why I would drive crappy, plastic micra when I can drive an Audi :).
Car audio is My hobby and as you said, reasonable upgrade makes a huge difference.
The problem is the reasonable means one thing to you and one to me :)
I always promise myself that will not put more complicated (or more expensive) install in next car but after a while I finish with better system than I had before :D
 
slepy said:
Hmm I don't see why I would drive crappy, plastic micra when I can drive an Audi :).
Car audio is My hobby and as you said, reasonable upgrade makes a huge difference.
The problem is the reasonable means one thing to you and one to me :)
I always promise myself that will not put more complicated (or more expensive) install in next car but after a while I finish with better system than I had before :D
Click to expand...

but thats where i agree with you. Its not like JL audio is cheap! this sub alone was 570 quid!

But when its in and boomin:) ill be happy.
 
lostbok said:
only feature I really felt I was "missing" was the GPS speed camera software, plus a radar/laser detection hardware that my old system had, so I got a 2nd hand Neo Snooper and RLD-100 and got those hardwaired in.... so I now have EVERYTHING!
Click to expand...

Well not quite everything. A laser detector is next to useless as all it does it tell you when you've been zapped. You need a laser diffuser to actually protect yourself. Mine has saved my licence a couple of times. Illegal of course, but then so is speeding!
 
AndyMac said:
You need a laser diffuser to actually protect yourself. Mine has saved my licence a couple of times. Illegal of course, but then so is speeding!
Click to expand...

Which laser diffuser do you have AndyMac ? Make & Model please :sly:
 
GPS camera locator just reminds me not to speed... and more importantly stops me from needless dropping the anchors and causign an accident when I'm doing 45mph in a 50 zone that I'm not certain about... at least the GPS locator warns me that it's coming up so I know that (1) I don't need to slow down as I'm already under the limit and (2) lots of other people will be slowing right down to 40mph for no good reason.

Agreed a diffuser does potentially save your licence is used in moderation, but I think it's a criminal offence to have one (as opposed to a civil offence for minor speeding) and the police are pretty clued up on them these days - I saw a Mk3 Golf on the A3 nr Tolworth with two police cars next to it and the whole front bumper was off and there was no accident... looked like they were "checking wiring".

But as long as you have an automatic garage door opening at home, who am I to question when it might go off accidentally :)
 
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