Like Custom Auto's USA-66 replica radio? Work with iPod & iPhone?

[GirlNextDoor714]

Hi Boys!


I have a 1964 1/2 that needs some tunes! Anyone out there like the Custom Auto's USA-66 replica radio? Wondering about quality of the iPod kit and if there's compatibility with the iPhone...?


The Girl Next Door

[64.25]

Welcome. Use the search function to find all the good and bad reviews of Custom Auto Sounds product. It seems like there's alot of both. I think there's another company, retro auto sound, that I was thinking about using. I think with either unit a good quality power amp and speakers are probably needed for a good sound. John

[Smitten]

I have one with the iPod connection. The reception sucks becasue the sensitivity is poor, the sound quality is at best, lackluster. But they look nice. And that's about it. I would NEVER get another.

[fastback65gt]

I have one and its not great at all. It was supposed to work with MP3s too and I could barely hear the songs at full volume. Its just good enough to keep you from cutting a big hole in your dash. It may be resolved by now, but mine every time you disconnect the battery it blows a fuse on the incoming power line to the radio. Not fun.

[Klutch]

I'd also be interested in experiences and opinions with classic car sound systems. I'm seeing a lot of conflicting information online.

Hey fastback65GT, my family and I went through Poulsbo last June. That's a really cool little town!

[ALEBEAU415]

I have their secret audio system and it sounds great but I have 6 speakers, 2 amps, and a 10 inch sub.
I have had tons of problems with the cd changer and have replaced it 3 or 4 times.
I have also had poor performance of the remote control and currently can't get it to work at all.
My system is about 6 years old.

[MrFreeze]

Custom Auto Sounds is legendary for poor performing radios. On the plus side, they only last about 6 months, so your suffering is brief. I suggets you look into Retrosounds. They make a unit that fits the 65-66 dash opening and works with MP3 players. I have one in my fastback and like it a lot.

Good luck,
MrFreeze

[victor]

Look ok I guess but build quality,sound and cust service are awful. I have a Retrosound. It looks more modern and the sound is incredible even at speed with the top down. Has various media ports including two aux ins for mp3s or whatever. Don't waste you time with CAS.....

[FasterCat]

Don't know why so many people have gripes about CAS Stereos ... as with everything, you will see more complaints than acclaim for everything on the internet.

I am happy with myne .... but I will be adding an amp some day ....

I have had a CAS630 + CD changer in my 67 Cougar for 3 years now (but I only drive it about 5 days a month) .... no problems at all, great sound - ESPECIALLY with my ipod. In addition, I invested in "pretty darn good" CDT speakers, and treated the whole car to Second Skin Damplifier Pro (sound deadener).

[Leon Narozny]

I have a CAS, have had it 2 years, sounds as great today as the day I put it in.
I listen to a lot of FM, great reception, I listen to my XM converter throught the AUX input, great, I listen to my Sony MP3 player through the AUX, great also.
I dont have an I phone. I think a lot of people that have a bad product tend to answer these questions more than people that have had a good experience, like me.
I probably am not going to push you over the line to buy one, but all I can tell
you is it looks and works great for me. I am sure there will be more replies to your
inquiry, I hope you hear from some other satisfied customers! Good luck.

[wsovonick]

I've had a USA 66 in my 65 convertible for over 3 years and I'm happy with it. I bought the iPod adapter and ran the cable to the glove box in my center console. It's hooked to an older 6GB iPod mini that stays in the car. The iPod sits out of the way and protected in the console glove box. I trimmed an old mouse pad that it sits on for added protection from vibration. I added a dual voice coil speaker in the dash speaker mount (much better than one of those dual speaker stereo rigs) and that works for me. Not only does the adapter keep the iPod charged, but you also have some control by using the radio selector buttons. It took me a little time to remember which button did what though. Radio reception isn't great with my USA 66, but I haven't listened to it since hooking up the iPod. For appearance sake, the USA 66 looks great in your 65-66 Mustang.

[SoCo66]

For my '66 vert project, I recently completed an audio upgrade with the goal of improvement over stock audio (AM w/ mono center dash speaker) while avoiding/minimizing panel modifications. To achieve these goals, the following components were utilized:

• CAS USA-630
• iPod interface
• Kenwood KNW1001 Dash Speaker(s)
• Kenwood KFC-1694PS 6.5" 3-way speakers mounted in KHE kick panels

On the plus side, this makes for a very clean, near-stock-appearance install (no cutting of dash; stock kick panels replaced, retaining originals). The addition of FM and iPod interface do count as improvements, though sound quality is NOT what anyone would consider being up to audiophile standards.

There are really several reasons behind this, not all of for which CAS can be faulted:

• The internal amp for the USA-630 is somewhat under powered at 240w (60w per channel), though as mentioned, this can be rectified with the addition of an external amplifier as four pre-out jacks are provided on the back of the head unit
• The dash speaker, while providing dual "stereo" coils (into which both "front" channels feed), provide essentially no stereo separation due to their close proximity
• The kickpanel speakers mount at foot level and are pointed directly towards one another, resulting in a fairly significant cancellation of sound. While a fix could be to do a custom install angling the speakers up and towards the listener, this would also result in a further intrusion into the legroom, which some find objectionable.

Like with so many other mods, a lot of choices are about compromise and what you really want to accomplish. I'm sure that if money were no object and a killer ICE system is your goal, this could certainly be accomplished.

pws

[Karl71]

Owned 2 of them.
Looks ok (USA66 better because of metal knobs)
bad radio sensitivity
Low power
Bad sound
Same quality as a noname unit but 10x more expensive...
I finally put a new Clarion in the glovebox with IR remote transmitter, sounds 10x better.

[sessayan]

So while we are on it, anything like this that supports Bluetooth or am I asking for to much ?