I have a few different vehicles, mostly "classic", that I'm going to start building systems in. Pretty much all will be geared towards sound quality, maybe some SQL. I've read that older Alpines and Nakamitsu were good headunits and I think it'd be fun to keep the similar era or at least less modern looking equipment. So...
1. When did the Alpines/Nakamitsu/Insert other brand here take their downturns from SQ towards profits?
2. Kind of piggy backing on the above, what other brands and/or specific models would you recommend? I would prefer something I could adapt an AUX IN to, possibly using a CD changer input if possible. I have a vehicle or two that have 2 knob decks, wouldn't be against a quality tape deck if I could rig an aux cord into it.
3. What qualities should I look for in a head unit? I've been leaning towards getting an Astell and Kern lower end unit with dual DAC and I want to make sure the HU can "keep up".
I have an 86 burb that I ran a US-740 deck in and it's terrible. I don't want to repeat that mistake again, so I figured older units will probably have better quality and I can try to create an aux in.
TIA!!!