I am currently running an Alpine CDA-7894 which has been great. It has certain features that the newer Alpine CD MP3 units do not have which are:
4v preamp outputs, Time correction (which I do not use) & bass engine pro (which I do not seem to use)

The newer units, particularly the CDA-9855 & CDA-9857 however look better and I think have other great features like QuickSearch Function (MP3 Files) & BioLite Display.

Should I stick with my trusty, more SQ (based on included functions) geared 7894, or go with a 9857?

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2000 Maxima | Resonant Engineering | JL Audio | Alpine | Cadence | Zapco

ugh, i just looked at the specs for the 9857... 2v pre-outs and no time correction, which by the way if you do right is better than an eq, if you screw it up it'll sound like crap.

That is crazy, i can't believe alpine would ever go to 2v outputs on a high-end deck. I honestly wouldn't upgrade, since it's not much of an upgrade at all. Better yet, go with eclipse. I know they just dropped their pre-out voltages too, but it's still 5v. And you get time-correction, the best anti-skip on the market, and a WAY more advanced security, GPS tracking and electronic serial number over alpines...huh... detachable face.

It's sad to see the way everything is just fading away to some 'consumer demand' portion of the market, where every 16 year old girl will pull at her dad's sleeve until he gets her one.