Introduction
At the Consumer Electronics Show 2014 in January, Pioneer announced its new line of in-dash stereo receiver line named "NEX", Network Entertainment eXperience. Pioneer started shipping these in March and many seemed pretty happy with their purchase so far, so I decided to give it a try. |
| Pioneer AVH-4000NEX |
Pioneer's NEX line-up consists of five models currently, and they are AVH-4000NEX, AVIC-5000NEX, AVIC-6000NEX, AVIC-7000NEX and AVIC-8000NEX. The table below summarizes their similarities and differences:
| AVH-4000NEX | AVIC-5000NEX | AVIC-6000NEX | AVIC-7000NEX | AVIC-8000NEX | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (MSRP) | $700 | $750 | $900 | $1200 | $1400 | |
| GPS Navigation | Optional (AVIC-U260) | Built-in | ||||
| CarPlay support | Yes, with firmware upgrade1 | |||||
| Screen Size | 7" | 6.1" | 7" | |||
| Screen Resolution | 800x480 (WVGA) | |||||
| Screen Aspect Ratio | 16:9 | |||||
| Capacitive Touch Screen | No | Yes | ||||
| HDMI Input | Yes (1) | No | Yes (1) | |||
| Video output to rear display | Yes2 | |||||
| Bluetooth | Built-In (HFP 1.6/A2DP/AVRCP 1.4/SPP) | |||||
| USB 2.0 ports | 2 (rear) | |||||
| SD Card Expansion | SDHC3 | microSDHC (Max 32GB) | SDHC (Max 32GB) | |||
| Tested SD Card | PNY 256GB SDXC3 | not tested | ||||
| USB/SD File Systems Supported | FAT, FAT32, NTFS | |||||
| Maximum H.264 Playback Resolution | 400x2404 | |||||
| Tested H.264 Playback Resolution | 1920x10804 | not tested | ||||
| Maximum H.264 Playback Bitrate | 1.5 Mbps4 | |||||
| Tested H.264 Playback Bitrate | 13 Mbps4 | not tested | ||||
Today I will be discussing my experience with the AVH-4000NEX model, which I installed recently on our family minivan (2009 Kia Sedona). In particular, I will be focusing on its video playback capabilities.
Motivation
I have many young children at home and it is always a challenge to keep them entertained, especially on the road. So, after pondering my options for few years, I decided to bite the bullet and upgrade our minivan's "entertainment system", which really consisted of an old factory OEM stereo.With the new in-car entertainment upgrade, at minimum I wanted to be able to do the following, in the order of importance:
- Bluetooth telephony for hands-free communication
- Netflix video content playback on the rear-display
- Able to stream music from iPhone (Pandora, iTunes Radio, etc.)
- Playback of H.264 format video (MP4) on the rear-seat display
- Possibility of being able to play video games on the rear-display in the future
- GPS navigation
Given the recent advancements in mobile electronics, my initial thinking was to build a full-blown "carputer" (essentially a 2-DIN PC). However, the carputer industry seems still immature and a properly built unit will cost about $1200, which was a bit more than I was willing to spend. That said, for those interested you may want to check out E3IO's offerings (http://e3io.com/custom-computers-car-pc).
iPhone Integration and Apple CarPlay
So the carputer option out of the way, I started looked at what is commercially available. And from what I was able to gather, a number of brands seem to offer iPhone integration: Alpine, Jensen, JVC, Kenwood, Pioneer, and Sony.However, upon a closer look, most of those integrations were limited to being able to only control Pandora playback from iPhone, and while many offered MirrorLink - screen mirroring for Android phones - it didn't look as though iPhone video integration was widely available. Out of all those brands, Pioneer seemed best integrated with iPhone, even going back few years. I also liked that Pioneer plans to support Apple CarPlay in its current NEX models.
For those who are not familiar, CarPlay is Apple's attempt at bringing its iPhone experience in cars (http://www.apple.com/ios/carplay), and it became available in select new cars from March this year. Then in April, Pioneer announced that its NEX models will feature Apple CarPlay by Summer of 2014, via a free firmware update. At the time of this writing, Pioneer and Alpine are the only aftermarket in-car entertainment companies that announced CarPlay products. However, Alpine is not expected to ship its CarPlay products until late 2014.
NTFS Support for SD and USB storage
I noticed something very strange as I was looking at the receivers currently available. For some reason, all manufacturers (except Pioneer) decided to only support FAT32 file system on their SD and USB storage. For those who aren't familiar, the ubiquitous FAT32 file system was introduced by Microsoft in Windows 95 OSR2 (in 1996), and the maximum volume size is limited to 32GB. It also has 4GB size limit per file.FAT32 is probably okay for storage of music collection today, however its size limitations make it unusable for modern video files. With the NEX line-up, Pioneer was wise to implement NTFS file system, which supports up to 256TB volumes and 16TB per file. (As an interesting historic side note, NTFS actually came out few years before FAT32 came out). I imagine Pioneer's competition will follow and offer NTFS and/or exFAT in the near future.
That said, I was getting concerned about Pioneer's published SD card support, which stated SDHC (max 32GB) and not SDXC (max 2TB). 32GB felt VERY limiting for storing lengthy movies and videos. Why would Pioneer do this, especially with the NTFS support in place? Then, things got even weirder...
H.264 Support... at what resolution??
Pioneer's manual for all its NEX models currently state the maximum supported H.264 resolution of 400x240. Yes, you read that correctly - 400 by 240 - not even a VGA resolution! So, when I read that spec, it just didn't make sense to me. Sure, H.264 decoding requires more computation than, say, MPEG-2 (DVD) decoding... but, given the ubiquity of H.264 (AVC/MPEG-4) - a $30 BluRay player or a Raspberry Pi would be able to decode 1080p H.264 video - the Pioneer's spec just didn't make any sense.Convinced that these limitations must be not true (!), I spent hours sifting through internet AV forums, hoping to find discussions that would debunk this claim. Still not quite convinced, I decided to check the manual of Pioneer's last year's flagship model AVH-X8500BHS. And lo and behold, it claimed H.264 support at 1280x720, up to 8 Mbps! So, does that mean Pioneer purposefully downgraded the H.264 capabilities in their last models, or did someone mess up on the NEX product manuals? Being an optimist, I really wanted to believe the latter. I decided to pull the trigger on ordering an NEX unit.
Which NEX?
I was not looking to spend more than $1000 on the head unit, so my choice was narrowed to AVH-4000NEX ($700), AVIC-5000NEX ($750), and AVIC-6000NEX ($900). Looking at their specs, AVIC-5000NEX felt like a real odd-ball; out of all NEX models, this was the only model without an HDMI input. The lack of HDMI input would be problematic for people with newer iPhones (5/5c/5s) as you are required to use an Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter for AppRadio Mode integration. So, AVIC-5000NEX became a non-option very quickly.The AVIC-6000NEX costs $200 more than the AVH-4000NEX. Both models are pretty much identical other than two differences; for the added premium, AVIC-6000NEX includes GPS navigation, and it features a smaller (!) 6.1" display. To me, additional $200 isn't worthwhile for the GPS navigation feature today. There are a lot of smartphone GPS apps that are vastly superior to built-in GPS units, not to mention being much cheaper. Those GPS apps also offer better data and features as they are constantly updated via Internet. And now with Pioneer's AppRadio Mode feature, a built-in GPS navigation feature seems less compelling than ever. Also, particularly for the NEX models, once Apple CarPlay feature becomes available, you will be using the Apple Map natively for GPS navigation.
For those reasons in mind, I went ahead and ordered the AVH-4000NEX.
Installation
Along with AVH-4000NEX receiver, I decided to go with the following components for my installation:- Concept CFD-135 Cameleon 13.3-inch ceiling mount monitor with DVD player and HDMI input
- TaoTronics TT-CC17 rear-view license plate frame camera
For more details on the monitor and the backup camera, you can read my separate reviews here and here, respectively.
My installation was pretty straight forward; the monitor is connected from AVH-4000NEX via a RCA cable from video out, and the backup camera is connected via another RCA cable to the dedicated backup camera video-in connector.
iPhone Connection Cables
Pioneer's website and the product manual suggest you need both their CD-IH202 iPhone connectivity kit ($50) and CD-IU52 cable ($35). However, this is not really true; CD-IH202 is nothing but a package containing a regular HDMI M/M cable and a proprietary 17-pin connector to USB cable. More importantly, the 17-pin to USB cable is NOT compatible with the NEX series, and it cannot be used. Also, the CD-IU52 cable is Pioneer's version of Apple Lightning to USB cable and you can find cheaper alternatives elsewhere.Image Quality
Overall I am pretty satisfied with the image quality of display. In a really bright ambience, there can be quite a bit of glare and it's difficult to see the images off-center. I do wish the display was brighter; however, until OLED displays become more common, this is about as state-of-the-art as it will get IMO. Here are some of the photos showing what may be expected:
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| Screen viewed under bright daylight. Glare can be pretty bad at an extreme viewing angle |
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| At night time, the display really shines. Colors look great in absence of glare |
User Interface
I would give the Pioneer NEX GUI a solid 8 out of 10. Overall, it is pretty responsive and way (way) less clunky than other units I looked at. There are quite a bit of customizations allowed, including the button backlight LED colors (apparently that is a very important selling point...?).I do sometimes wish I had a dedicated big knob for the volume control. Those front mounted -/+ buttons are usable, but they are small enough to be tricky to find quickly, when you really want to. You should consider AVIC-5000NEX or AVIC-6000NEX if that is important to you.
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| In Main Menu, you can rearrange icons (a la iOS style) for faster access to different sources |
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| Quick menu to switch audio/video input in the Playback mode |
Rear Video Out Limitation
One thing that I learned the hard way, was that NEX's HDMI video input cannot be mirrored or output to the rear monitor output. So, none of my iPhone's streaming content can be shown on my rear monitor - truly disappointing.Pioneer's website was not very forthcoming about this fact, even though it is touting the Dual Zone feature. I suspect there may be technical difficulties due to HDCP support, or Pioneer decided it is not a critical feature. I really wish they were more clear on this. Perhaps the next gen receivers will have HDMI pass-through for rear monitors with HDMI input.
That said, there seems to be a work-around. You could install a separate HDMI to Composite converter, and connect the iPhone into it via HDMI, then connect its Composite out into either AUX or AV input. What I am not certain, is whether the AppRadio Mode will still work in that configuration... I would hate to add yet another thing in the HDMI path (i.e. a HDMI splitter to feed both HDMI input on AVH-4000NEX and the HDMI input on the converter).
For now, I am able to playback HDMI content directly on my rear monitor, as it has an external HDMI input. If you're interested in such solution, you should check out Concept CFD-135 rear monitor. I do have a HDMI2AV converter on its way, and I will report back on the rear video out and AppRadio Mode once I install it. (UPDATE: I tried this and the AppRadio Mode does NOT work when using the converted HDMI2AV input. It looks as though you need to have the HDMI connection in order to get AppRadio Mode to work.)
The Truth on AVH-4000NEX SD Card and H.264 Support
While I am disappointed with the lack of HDMI video mirroring capability, I am very excited to report that Pioneer was SO wrong about its own claims!Remember my concern about the 32GB SD card limitation? Well, I confirm that my AVH-4000NEX is able to read a 256GB SDXC card formatted in NTFS! The card tested is PNY 256GB SDXC, and I have no problem playing back MP3 music and MP4 videos.
On top of that, despite Pioneer's claimed limitation of 400x240 H.264 videos at 1.5 Mbps bitrate, I confirm I am able to playback movies encoded in full 1080p resolution - i.e. 1920x1080 - at over 13 Mbps bitrate without any issues!
While my testing of the SDXC card and 1080p H.264 contents were limited to my AVH-4000NEX, I am pretty certain that the rest of NEX models would be able to do the same, as I suspect all models pretty much share the same video processing hardware.
Conclusion
Pioneer's new NEX line-up offers exciting mobile multimedia possibilities by offering multitudes of connectivity and storage options. In particular, the AVH-4000NEX model stands out among its peers for being able to playback 1080p video contents and supporting SDXC storage.I was disappointed to learn that the HDMI video cannot be redirected to the rear video out, and I wish Pioneer was more clear on that limitation. In general Pioneer did a really poor job of accurately communicating the NEX capabilities on its website and manuals. (Pioneer, I am available for consulting work)
Based on my experience, I would recommend Pioneer AVH-4000NEX for those who are interested in carrying a large library of multimedia contents, especially H.264 encoded video. At $700, it is not cheap, however this is the only unit available with such multimedia and storage (>32GB) capabilities. The CarPlay firmware update may significantly increase its value if it proves to be a worthy iPhone integration.
Pros
- High-definition H.264 video playback (tested 1920x1080 at 13 Mbps)
- High-capacity SD card support (tested SDXC 256GB; theoretical limit of 2TB)
- HDMI video input
Cons
- No HDMI video out to rear video, including Mirroring
- Poorly written, sometimes entirely incorrect, product documentation and specification
- Somewhat pricey. May be considered reasonable if the CarPlay feature works as well as it should in the future
Roy
Disclosure: While I am not paid by anyone to write this review, I may be compensated if you purchase products through links on my blog.
Nice post. I didn't know that the HDMI Source Input cant mirror to a rear monitor. I suspect that may be a limitation implemented by the HDMI Consortium than a hardware limitation by Pioneer. I am looking to get this unit and the planning and wiring involved in installing it makes me wish for the days when we were amazed by auto reverse cassette decks.
ReplyDeleteYeah, overall Pioneer's manual and website are terrible on communicating the right information. My thinking is that the inability to mirror HDMI to a composite video out isn't due to some HDMI (more specifically HDCP) limitation. Since HDMI signal is digital, Pioneer would have to include a (preferably high-quality) Digital-to-Analog Converter; that would definitely add cost to both engineering and manufacturing. But given that Pioneer also makes home entertainment AV receivers, I'm also surprised they decided not to include in this iteration of NEX. It could have been a purely marketing decision - whomever they surveyed probably didn't know/care for HDMI...
ReplyDeleteOk I did some research, the reason it won't mirror HDMI to a rear monitor is because the shadowy overloads will not allow it. Even Pioneers newest home A/V Receivers won't down convert HDMI to a composite output.
ReplyDeleteYou have to understand that when the HDMI standard was developed it was because they were scared to death of people being able to pirate any high definition intellectual content thought the illicit ripping and burning of optical media. So they devised a plan to make sure that the content stays in digital format and only with function with devices that could perform a valid HDCP handshake.
This became most apparent in 2011 when no Blu Ray Players could be sold with a composite output. The only analog output could be through component and the resolution was limited 480i. Some manufactures dropped the analog outs all together.
The irony of all this is that optical media in any form is either dead or a purely a niche market and today content is streamed freely through wireless networks for anyone with a mobile phone to enjoy, but the protection methods from that era are preventing us from doing something as simple as watching an episode of Family Guy through Netflix on the backseat monitor of our cars. Go figure.
Yes I know that family guy is on Hulu, I think I wrote that because I have this theory that Hulu and Netflix are going to merge.
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree all these concerns with content protection is silly. If you really wanted, you could get 1) HDMI splitter, plus 2) HDMI-to-composite converter to source the rear monitor, all for under $100 budget. I did test a $20 HDMI2AV converter, but I returned it as it didn't detect signal changes correctly.
ReplyDeleteHi Roy
DeleteThanks for your detailed review. I got a nex4100 today and wondering if i can redirect my hdmi input source to rear monitor. I have the danger concept flip down at the back. Of rear mirroring didn't work, have you tried plugging in chrome cast and tether your phone for a wireless and cast on to screen?
Not sure what you're asking; are you referring to using NEX as the HDMI signal source for your rear monitor (presumably takes HDMI input)? NEX has no HDMI output, so that scenario is moot.
DeleteOr, if you are referring to getting your iPhone/Android as HDMI input into NEX, to be mirrored/redirected to Video Out, that is NOT possible per what I wrote above. Only way for you to get HDMI content on your rear monitor would be through Chromecast or AirPlay (e.g. Apple TV), but that does not involve the NEX at all.
4100nex has screen mirroring, not sure if 4000nex had. Will that help in redirecting netflix playing on the 4100nex screen to the rear for kids?
Delete4000 NEX has the screen mirroring feature, but it does not work for the HDMI input. I would be surprised if you can mirror its HDMI input on 4100 NEX, as it would require an internal HDMI->Composite converter; my understanding is that very little hardware changed between 4000 and 4100.
DeleteHave you had any problems with the SD card since formatting to NTFS
ReplyDeleteI had not had any issues with my SD card so far. it was formatted using Windows 7 GUI with default NTFS options.
DeleteI was going to pick up the PNY 128gb SDXC. Did you just format it through the Windows right click format screen or command prompt?
ReplyDeleteSo I got the 128GB PNY SDXC card formatted to NTFS and everything is good except some of my music files are out of alphanumerical order under the file selection (which is the one i prefer since the albums songs are in order). If i play them from tagged they are in the correct order but your songs are played in alphanumeric order. If I check the card on the CPU it is fine as far as order. Just wondering if you may have any ideas as to why this may be?
ReplyDeleteNo idea - personally I had not paid attention to this issue you are referring to. Perhaps those music files are in different formats?
Deletejust for know, what are intended for each USB, the HDMI port and the extra RCA i/o cables. I wonder if you can explain it to me
ReplyDelete- USB1 is for iPhone or Android hook up. Also this is the only USB source you can use for rear-video display.
Delete- USB2 is really for music storage. I don't believe you can playback video files from USB2 (only from USB1).
- HDMI port is for either iPhone/Android video or BluRay etc. It will show whatever is streaming from the HDMI source.
- RCA cable is for the "A/V" input port. The NEX unit does not include a cable for AUX in (I wish it did).
Just purchased this head unit and installed. I have an appletv via hdmi going to head unit but the hdmi input won't show active in the menu of the head unit. Anything special you need to do to make it active?
ReplyDeleteHmm that doesn't sound right; I thought the HDMI source icon would light up when you hook up the HDMI video source.
DeleteAre you happen to be using one of those unidirectional HDMI cables (like Redmere)? Then you need to check the direction of cable connection.
I will check tonight on my head unit when I get home, to tell you whether your unit is misbehaving.
Roy
Yeah something is definitely wrong with your unit. You should get it exchanged.
DeleteRoy -
ReplyDeleteDoes the unit allow you to use phone based GPS while listening to another audio source such as the Radio? Specifically, does it display phone based GPS graphics and audio while set to a different audio source? Or do you need to be set to the carplay/iphone input and listen only to audio available through the phone? Thank you for any help.
Yes, audio playback while using CarPlay GPS (i.e. Apple Map) or via PioneerApp is possible. It would really suck if you couldn't do that. :)
DeleteI have also purchased the 4000NEX and while I am happy with a majority of the features, there are a couple of headaches I have run into that I am hoping you may have found a work around for, I am using firmware v1.08. I have a SSD that I formatted to NTFS with music/video/pictures saved. When I first installed the SSD to the USB2, the system did spend some time reading the formatting(approx 10 min) and then displayed the folder and subfolders of all the video media and I was able to view different video media under different folders. After turning off the radio and back on a short time later, the video was no longer shown, but only MP3's. Now under the manual for the 4000NEX it states that there should be a key that generates a pop-up to select what media files types to play, but unfortunately I cannot find that specific key. Have you experienced the same thing? I tried restoring the radio and now the system will only pull up the picture media. I also tried restoring the radio multiple times and the system has repeatedly searched only for the picture media. Any ideas or workarounds would be greatly appreciated. I did try the radio remote BAND button as well(instructions said it should work) but unfortunately this did not work either.
ReplyDeleteThanks in advance.
I was under the impression that you could only playback video from USB1, and not from USB2; consequently I never tried video playback from USB2 source.
DeleteAnyway, when you choose the source, once list of song are visible, there should be a little icon on bottom left corner, which toggles video media and non-video media. See if you can find that.
Thanks for the quick reply. The icon appears to be missing. I switched to USB1 to check as well. Placed a support ticket with Pioneer, hopefully it will get addressed.
DeleteWhat "cheaper alternative" is there for the iphone connection cables?
ReplyDeleteHi Kasey, I updated the hyperlink above - take a look!
DeleteThx for the detailed review.
ReplyDeleteI would like to know whether it's possible to mirror a third party app, which is not supported by neither Carplay nor Pioneer App Mode, to the head unit display? Given that the iPhone is connected to the HDMI-in of the head unit via a Lightning to HDMI adaptor from Apple.
Hi, I'm wondering with the backup camera how long does it take to show the backup camera image when you first put the key in and turn the car/radio on? It looks like from videos on youtube it only takes about 10-12 seconds to start up but I was wondering if this is the case for it to switch to backup image as well or if there additional lag time. That's about the only thing missing from your review otherwise very well written!
ReplyDeleteHi Nick,
DeleteFYI the backup camera only shows up when you put the car in reverse. That said, yes, the "boot up" time for AVH-4000NEX is about 10 seconds. The backup camera shows up in about a second when you put the gear in reverse. Please let me know if you have any other questions - thanks!
Wanted to ask where you installed your BT microphone? Also, were you able to connect to a factory USB from the radio?
ReplyDeleteHi Rae,
DeleteI made a small hole on the center dashboard and ran the microphone wire through it, then fixed it with velcro. One trouble is that it took me some time to find velcro with glue that doesn't melt under hot sun! :)
As for the factory USB, yes I used AXXESS AX-HYKIA-USB - USB-Auxilliary Retention Harness - HYUNDAI/KIA USB Retention Harness for connecting USB2 to the factory USB, and it works well.
Anyone know if it is possible to connect a laptop PC to the HDMI input and display what's on the laptop screen to the Pioneer screen?
ReplyDeleteYes, definitely possible, if you don't mind reading tiny texts on the screen. Any HDMI source will work.
DeleteAwesome, thanks for the super quick reply. It's just for an engine/transmission diagnostics and status PC app that is connected by USB to the electronic engine in an RV. Would be great to have the gauges and information on this Pioneer display. I've been using Splashtop to extend the desktop to an iPad, but that requires a router that creates an internal wifi network. This will eliminate the router and iPad setup.
DeleteNot sure if your still commenting on this blog, which for me was interesting to read and somewhat confusing as I cannot seem to stay up to date on all the computer/IT lingo out there. I had Best Buy install Kenwood's model# DDX77 last May 2014, and have finally got them to agree to replace it due to screen glare, and dimming the brightness is no better than 2 settings. For example its settings are BRIGHT and BRIGHT or using household lighting it would be like having a dimmer that goes from 100w to 95w, really no big change here. And the glare is so bad I have had some 3-4 near miss collisions trying to change stations or answer a call, even its adjustable screen angle doesn't help.
ReplyDeleteQuestion for you on this model that you installed and wrote review how bad is the Glare, on a 1-10 scale? And when at night how good or bad is the brightness coming form unit, and does it dim down when you turn on your headlights, or can you manually turn it down, say more than one or two clicks? I guess what I trying to ask on dimming is at night can you turn it down so that your not blinding everyone and can't see well enough to drive? Kinda like when my kids or passengers are getting tired, I'd like to be able to listen to music and not bother everyone by there being this huge beacon of light coming from the dash. I really hope that you are still replying, I have till this coming Monday & Tuesday to make a decision on what unit I want Best Buy to re-install.
Thank you in advance for this blog, and again I hope to hear back from you.
Tim
Hi Tim,
DeleteI think quantifying the amount of glare is not easy, because it depends a lot on the ambient lighting. I can tell you that YES it is very difficult to see the screen at times, under a bright sunlight when sun is high, in my Kia Sedona.
That said, I do not find it as a constant issue. I also suspect the glare would depend on the car, where the position and angle of unit installed with respect to the windshield & dashboard makes a huge difference. I believe my car's radio installation bay points slightly up, which ends up reflecting more of sunlight.
So, I'm sorry I can't give you a straight-forward answer here. All LCD screens under bright sunlight will have some glare, and we will just have to deal with this occasional annoyance. (and it's your judgement as to whether you should distract your driving in those situations - drive safe!)
Roy
Tim, I did a quick search, and you are not alone in finding Double DIN format receivers with large screen having a lot of glare at at times.
DeleteLooks like there is a product in the market here from company called Lexerd.
There's also a YouTube video review of the product here. Unfortunately, the video reviewer found it to be worse than not having it on, however that seems to conflict with Amazon reviews, which seem pretty positive. You can give that a shot and let us know!
Roy
Looks like I gave you the wrong Lexerd product link. The one you want is that fits NEX AVIC-7000/8000 screens, which are identical in size to AVH-4000NEX. Here's the correct product link:
DeleteLexerd TrueVue
Again, reviews seem to suggest it works pretty well.
Roy
Sorry for my delay of responding, with you. I do appreciate all the information that you have provided. I thought I had completed a defined search, but you have proven my wrong. I'm going to look into the Lexerd Truevue product, and will report back as soon as I have something to go on.
DeleteThank you again for all the information,
Tim
How's your 256 SDXC holding up? I've read elsewhere (http://avic411.com/index.php?/topic/38892-sd-compatability/page-2)
ReplyDeletethat reformatting these cards leads to problems if you do multiple writes (but no problems with multiple reads). Have you done multiple writes and reads or just loaded up the card once.
My 256 GB SDXC card is just fine after multiple re-writes as it's designed to be used that way with NTFS file system. I believe the discussion thread is more about fake-formatting FAT32 to go beyond 8GB capacity. This is not the case with natively supported NTFS on this Pioneer NEX unit. Go ahead and get a large SDXC card without worries and use NTFS.
DeleteHow did you format the NTFS hard drive. I bought a 128 GB SDXC, default is exFAT. Are you using a windows environment for music and video? I'm on a Mac and Disk Utility doesn't offer NTFS formating (though it does FAT32, and we know that's useless for video)
ReplyDeleteDon't use exFAT; that's factory default. Use NTFS. There are utilities to support NTFS on OS X; I got it free when I bought a Seagate Wireless external drive. It's called Paragon NTFS and works perfectly well. Good luck!
DeleteHi and thanks for the reviews!!! I really like it alot and appreciated the time you took. I have a nex4000 not installed yet. Going to get it installed by a stereo shop professionally done.
ReplyDeleteI am a bit confused. With carplay and apple maps....will apple maps show on the 4000nex? with or without a relay? the relay part is confusing me after reading many different things on the net :(
thank u
I am not sure what you mean by a "relay"... but simply put, Apple Map will be used in the Car Play mode. With the latest firmware update - 1.0.8, you do NOT need the HDMI connection in order to use Car Play. In fact, if you use Apple's HDMI adapter (I'm guessing this is what you mean by 'relay'), Car Play does NOT work. All you need is to connect Lightening Cable from USB 1 to your iPhone directly (not through HDMI adapter) to get Car Play to work. Let me know if that answers your question.
DeleteYes that actually does clear things up for the other question I had :) I thought since the deck plays video there is something the blocks it on the screen when the car is moving? but as long as the maps etc work then im fine.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to enable video playback in motion, I believe there are ways to get around that - not that I condone it!
ReplyDeleteoh :) ok thank u
ReplyDeleteCan I watch video from my iPhone 6 when connected to the back of the deck with a lightning av adaptor? More convenient than sub etc?
ReplyDeleteYes you can watch your iPhone screen content via HDMI connection and the Apple adapter.
DeleteThank u! Your very helpful and knowledgeable :) really helps the car stereo challenged like myself. I did see the installer take the deck out. I think I can do it lol but he thinks the HDMI cable would be too thick to feed it where he did. He had put the cables through a slot?or small opening then to glove box. He said there was no space behind the glove box. Unless I cut a hole and fed all the wires and cable. Now I'm a bit scared the opening and closing of the compartment will pinch and eventually wreck the cables.
ReplyDeleteHi Jay,
DeleteI too was/am new to car stereos, so you're not alone. :) Regarding the HDMI cable, I used super-thin (thus flexible) Redmere cable.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AJHBMSS/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00AJHBMSS&linkCode=as2&tag=roysranran-20&linkId=6O4427ZAAWBABJDB
Regardless, I had to make a small hole on the dashboard to get the HDMI connector through; it's unavoidable. Make sure that you have the installer plug the correct end of Redmere cable - it's directional.
Anyway, let me know if you have any questions. Good luck.
Grr sorry for all the questions. Newbie to the car deck. I have all apple products at home. What SD card type can I use for video and picture files? Or what do you recommend.
ReplyDeleteAny SDXC card should work. I used this: http://amzn.to/1SqC6FR
DeleteOne other question: CarPlay apps: what determines which ones will work on the car deck? Is it based on what apps in my iTunes account? Location? Because I have a U.S. And Canadian iTunes account.
ReplyDeleteThanks
So any storage card over 32gb needs to be formatted to NTFS? Otherwise any storage under this is plug and play? I'm interested in testing out video on this new deck. Btw all my computers are Macs. Is that an issue for formatting to NTFS?
ReplyDeleteYes, you definitely need to format >32GB SD card with NTFS. By any chance if you had purchased an external USB drive last few years from WD or Seagate, you probably already have a driver/utility for NTFS read/write/format on your Mac. If not, you'll have to get one, to access the SD card. I personally have the Paragon NTFS and I think it came with my Seagate Wireless Plus.
Deletegreat, thanks very much! i ordered a 128gb PNY SDXC. And I think Paragon has a 10 day trial...I think and hope.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your help.
And video file extensions supported by the deck are as listed in the manual correct? no other extension I should be aware of
No problem - I have not tried other video formats as MP4 works well for me. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the detailed and informative write-up!
ReplyDeleteQuestion: How is the device capable of playing 720p or 1080p video if the screen resolution is only 800 x 480?
Basically higher resolution video will be down-sampled to 480p resolution. Meaning, if you happen to have a video in higher resolution, there is no need for you to convert it first before playing back. Personally I have re-sampled videos to 480p so files sizes are (much) smaller, so I can fit hundreds of movies on a single SD card.
DeleteOkay, I figured that's what you meant. But I guess part of me was hoping that Pioneer had somehow made an error in that "Screen Resolution" field too. Ha!
DeleteHi again, I am wondering since I am on a Mac I need a program to format the 128gb card to NTFS. Will I need that program everytime I add and delete files? Wonder if u know? Thanks
ReplyDeleteYou only need to format it once. You will need a program like Paragon NTFS on OS X to write media files onto that SD card afterwards.
DeleteHi, great little question answer blog here! Im looking at getting a 4100 but I use apple solely sonwould the 4000 be smarter if I can still find one for cheaper? Is the 4000 firmware not being updated any longer since the 4100 is out? Thanks in advance!!
ReplyDeletePioneer has been releasing updated firmware every few months; the latest version 1.11 just came out few weeks back (12/16/2015). I would personally buy the 4100NEX unless you can get the 4000NEX for like 1/2 the price, but that's just me! In any case I am very happy with 4000NEX and I highly recommend it.
DeleteThanks, thats kind of what I was thinking too! I appreciate the quick answer! Now to get it ordered and then the nightmare of all the installation parts I need! I think this will be done by a professional lol!
DeleteOne last question, I reqd somewhere, maybe here, lol ive read so many reviews its all kind of blending together now. Anyway, I read that when the apple carplay is running and say google maps is being used, you cannot listen to music at all. I think this was a review I reqd that was quite old, so maybe that has been changed since. Any idea if this is still the case? If so that is kind of a deal breaker for me. I hope this was addressed in a firware update at some point! Thanks again
DeleteSorry about a late reply. You can listen to music just fine while other apps are being used - pretty sure of it!
DeleteRoy, thanks for publishing this info which can be helpful to others.
ReplyDeleteI have a question about the time required to format-read/index large audio storage. For example, say 40GB of MP3 music in 1200 folders and 12,000 files. I know from direct experience trying my own SD card at local dealers that the initial format-read/index can take a long time -- more than an hour for a 40GB folder (although the unit will begin playing songs much sooner, as soon as it has indexed a small percent).
My *specific* question: how long does this process take on subsequent car starts? Assume you leave the SD card in place while the car is off. Do you have access to 100% of your files/music much sooner in this case?
My current Pioneer head unit (4 years old) takes 3 minutes before it can play music from USB. Any time you start the car, or even switch to radio and back, it takes 3 minutes to format-read the USB stick before it will play. This example is 40GB on a 64GB stick. I really HATE that "feature" and want to avoid the 4000/4100NEX if similar behavior is expected.
I must say I won't be able to give you a satisfactory answer here, as I am using this unit for mostly videos and not for music. That said, for a couple hundreds of movies I have on my 256GB SD card, it does not take long for it to index between ejection and insertion. Once loaded, each start cycle does not consume additional time to get the unit to boot properly. I am going to guess that, even though the number of files are large, since the overall content is "only" 40GB, it shouldn't take that long to index. Sorry I can't provide you with a better answer - good luck!
DeleteI just ordered NEX 4000 what cords and where do I put them in order to use Apple Car play with my iPhone 6?
ReplyDeleteThanks!
With new firmware update, you no longer need to connect your iPhone via Apple's HDMI adapter. All you need to connect is USB1 via Apple Lightening cable.
DeleteSo where is the USB port? I don't see one on it
ReplyDeleteSee page 68 of the manual
Deletehttps://www.pioneerelectronics.com/StaticFiles/Manuals/Car/AVH-4000NEX_OwnersManual011714.pdf
Roy, thanks for the the work you put in to this.
ReplyDeleteafter reading this, i bought and installed 4100. have enjoyed it for a few months. just got an SD (PNY 64 SDXC)formatted with disc utility(mac); Windows NT filesystem (Tuxera NTFS). placed mp4(walking dead) on it...when i choose D from the NEX menu: "unplayable file" have reformatted, tried just mp3...all the same results. any thoughts.
matt
Matt, are you able to see the files and their preview thumbnails? If you can't see the thumbnails, I would lean toward those media files not in the right encoding format. I would also try updating the 4100 firmware, although I doubt that would resolve this issue.
DeleteI got a 128Gb SDXC card in my deck, formatted NTFS. My question is....is the format read a one-time deal. And...if I add another rip to the collection on the SD card, does it have to do a FULL READ again? That there would be a deal breaker.
ReplyDeleteIt don't believe it would scan through all sub-directories; my guess it is would look at the last modified time-stamp and only scans those. Whenever I eject the card and re-insert, it does take a bit more time to "Read", but I'm pretty sure it doesn't try to re-catalog everything. (if I recall) Sorry I don't have any better answer than that.
DeleteI recently had the 4200NEX installed in my STi. I have one question if you could address it please: Is there a limitation to the amount of contacts that can be synced(not involved with carplay, but the native UI)? It seems to only get about ½ of my phonebook and numbers that are on the bottom ½ of "M" and beyond are not syncing. My phonebook is large but nothing abnormal.
ReplyDeleteInteresting question, but unfortunately I don't know the answer! So far I hadn't noticed any clipping of # of contacts in my phone books being displayed on MyLink (perhaps I need more friends!) :)
DeleteI hope you find the answer you're seeking.
Awesome! If it were not for your great write-up here, I would probably not have discovered that NTFS will let me use a 128GB SDXC card in my new 4200NEX. I read this before I bought the card, but was disappointed when it didn't work. I came back and realized that it was NTFS that makes it workable. THANK YOU!
ReplyDeleteI'm very happy to hear that you found my writeup helpful. Let me know if you have any other questions!
DeleteWell, I spent quite a bit of time loading up all the content onto the 128GB SDXC card and the AVH-4200NEX pretty much died trying to read that much.
DeleteSo it seems the limit they advertise and so forth is not purely a technical (as in what it could do) but more becuase it can't handle much more. In fact, after what seemed like an eternity for it to finish reading (get to 100%, I don't know if it was done becuase I don't know if that message goes away or stays at 100%) the SD card, it was very slow.
I shouldn't have, but I hit MIXTRAX and it sat there for a long time, then went back to the home screen. If I hit the SD card again, it goes into MIXTRAX and repeat. Probably will have to put in a smaller SD card to get it out of MIXTRAX mode. I guess I'll do better with a set of smaller SD cards.
This seems like a huge design flaw, it doesn't seem to write any sort of database or index out on the SD card, and I can't imagine it would store one on internal storage for each SD you might use. But without this index file, it is impossibly slow when you have a large library. The iPod classic works great, so that is always an option I guess, just didn't want the extra device hanging out there not to mention that it will die some day. :)
Another interesting tidbit, the function to set the splash screen and background did not recognize the SD card.
Thanks again for sharing, I have really come to appreciate all the unit can do, I just wish the SD card was more useful.
Interesting - I take it these are music files? And what is the speed of your 128GB SDXC card?
DeleteMy files are ALL movies (H.264 in MP4) and I have about ~200 of them, and other than the initial slow-ish indexing, I have no issues with its speed. How fast is your SD card?
Overall, I do feel that the software isn't "great". Personally I would take a Car PC w/Windows 7 MCE if I could build one cheap.
The SD card is a new Samsung 128GB EVO Select. Amazon says 80MB/s. But yes, it probably is the number of files that is killing me more than what you are seeing... A quick count on my computer says 32,847 files. Mostly music, some miscellaneous photos and small videos in there, nothing big. A mix of MP3 and AAC files.
DeleteNo big deal in the end, I can live with it, it is a huge upgrade from the old stock casette unit in the 2002 Civic. :)
Hey Roy,
ReplyDelete1st of all thanks for all the great info on this unit. I've learned so much from your post. One question I had was about connecting wireless headphones. Do you use IR headphones? I have a 2009 Tahoe with the original dvd screen in the back but I purchased after market (xo vision 650) IR headphones and can't seem to get them to work. Any ideas??
Thanks! Unfortunately I do not use IR headphones (I suppose I don't mind having to listen to Frozen for millionth time) so I can't really comment... and also I would think the IR headphone would pair with the monitor unit, not with the NEX?
DeleteHi Roy! Any luck with IR headphones?? I have. 2009 Tahoe with the original DVD player in the back but after market (xo vision 650) IR headphones and can't seem to get them to work. Any ideas?
ReplyDeleteHi Denise,
ReplyDeleteMore I look into this IR headphone issue, the NEX unit itself does not have an IR transmitter to make it work. Either you will need to install an external IR transmitter, or you have a rear seat monitor unit that has a built-in IR transmitter. Did you have a monitor installed in addition to your NEX?
so i can connect a gaming console to this?
ReplyDeleteYou could, via HDMI input.
DeleteHowever, instead I have elected to connect a Wii U to our rear display via HDMI, and that also works great!
Hi Roy, I just want to take a moment and thank you for this blogpost. This is the reason why I bought the Pioneer 4200NEX. The 256GB SD card works flawlessly in it. By the time being I have 5555 FLAC files playing through it.
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome that you found my review useful! Please do share your experience on 4200NEX.
DeleteSame here Roy, thanks. I didn't think that NTFS would work, so I didn't try it until I read your blog, working great now.
ReplyDeleteGlad I was able to help. Pioneer really ought to do a better job at their documentation.
DeleteHi Roy, thanks for the blog. I have been experimenting with the SD and USB drive storage and it seem that the AVH 4200 will not play songs in random order over a certain folder size. I put my iTunes library of about 80GB on a USB drive and it refuses to random play, period. The shuffle icon illuminates but no shuffle. Then I made another drive of only 8GB containing 5 folders all less than 2GB. If I select shuffle it will shuffle all songs throughout all the folders, there does not seem to be a way to shuffle just one folder from the drive. If I want to hear just one folder I have to de-select shuffle then it will play just that folder in order without shuffling. I did try a 64G Sandisk SDXC card with one small folder on it but haven't made a bigger one yet as I have to first transfer my iTunes from my Mac to a USB drive then plug the USB drive into my PC and transfer the files to the SD card since the Mac doesn't see the SD card.
ReplyDeleteHi there. Since I am not a big music listener, I never really use the shuffle function and I can't comment to its performance. That said, it sounds like you cannot shuffle selected folder; I imagine it would also pose some UI challenge on letting users do so. What would be really nice is for users to define playlists with randomize option, and perhaps they will write that in the future.
DeleteI wonder if the limitation of files you are running into may have to do with the speed at which folder content is being read. In other words, the shuffling code may be written with certain timeout, so if it takes too long to go through files, it will exit with silent error. So what I would try is to see if a faster USB drive (SSD?) or SDXC would make a difference. Good luck!
Roy
Hey Roy, Great review of the 4000NEX. Just wondering, are you ripping DVDs to MP4s? IF so, what software are you using? Thanks in advance.
ReplyDeleteThanks Steven. For all my video conversion needs, I have been using Handbrake for years. I have a conversion profile setup to convert to 480p for NEX, using H.264 Intel Quick Sync codec.
DeleteThanks for your post
ReplyDeleteActually I have bought an AVH-4000NEX unit and I noticed some flaws but I do not have enough knowledge and when reading his article I verified that if I had reason in all my doubts.
However since you have more knowledge of these equipment I would like to know what would be the best car stereo and accessories according to your needs as a parent and I identify with you since it is important for me to control my children and have a safe trip and relaxed.(email: private2010@yahoo.com )
Thanks for your post
ReplyDeleteActually I have bought an AVH-4000NEX unit and I noticed some flaws but I do not have enough knowledge and when reading his article I verified that if I had reason in all my doubts.
However since you have more knowledge of these equipment I would like to know what would be the best car stereo and accessories according to your needs as a parent and I identify with you since it is important for me to control my children and have a safe trip and relaxed.
Hi Roy
ReplyDeleteI have the exact set up as yours and hooked up Chromecast only to find it cant be mirror ed to rear. I'm ok with the solution to cast directly to concept player. However i cant hear the audio through car speakers. How should i enable that
Hi Pavan,
DeleteYes the mirroring for HDMI doesn't work; I mentioned that somewhere in my review. I am guessing that Pioneer would be breaking HDCP if they allowed mirroring to rear via analog AV (i.e. then one can "copy" DVDs), so in a way that's expected.
When I had the monitor installed, it's audio out was also wired back to AVX as Aux (I forget exactly which input) audio. I rarely ever play things directly on the monitor itself via its HDMI, but I do recall it working under that scenario. One of the use cases I hadn't tested out, is to hookup a video gaming console to the monitor, so kids can play XBox/Nintendo on the road... but I am not sure if that will create more harmony than conflict among kids, so I hadn't attempted that yet.
Anyway, let me know if you have any questions!
Hi Roy, thanks for responding. I think my audio was also wired back to pioneer. What mode the pioneer receiver should be in to receive this audio? is it AVI ? i can't get the sound output from chromecast hooked up to my monitor through my speakers. i believe concept also has a speaker built in, even that is not sending any audio out..so i am assuming the audio out is wired back to pioneer, but i dont know what mode on pioneer will route this audio to speakers.
DeletePavan, at this point you will just have to try various input on AVX while you play some content via the monitor (or on the monitor's DVD) - it would totally depend on your installation. Good luck!
DeleteThanks for sharing the valuable points, i think it still works.
ReplyDeletecar alarm system
It sounds like he had carplay enabled and didn't realize it was disabling his HDMI input. I have one of the newer head units with wireless carplay (AVH-4400NEX) and this is still a problem. The HDMI and SD inputs only work when I disconnect from carplay. As soon as I disconnect they light up and work fine. The problem is I want to play video sources and need carplay at the same time for navigation.
ReplyDeleteI've been scouring the internet for a solution and there's very little information out there, I'm surprised more people aren't trying to figure this out. There must be some work-around or new cable or connection that lets you get around what seems like a limitation of carplay or the NEX units.
Side note on something I tried based on info above, I'm using a 128GB SDXC card with no issues. Formatted it NTFS.
- Howie
It's been a few years and the AVH is working like a champ although the hand held remote won't work, I haven't tried to troubleshoot that because I never used it anyway, instead I installed the steering wheel remote which is much better in that I can perform all functions without taking my eyes off the road. Last week I received a tailgate latch camera from Amazon and connected it to the AVH so I now have a backup cam which is nice on a long truck. Besides the occasional song data mis-read from the SD cards and the lack of shuffling on huge folders I am very pleased with this unit.
ReplyDelete