Easy replacement for upraded Sony system
The crummy Sony MX 2000u head unit in our 23fb finally failed. Read a lot of threads on the wiring rats nest that lives in the cabinet, so I was concerned about a super involved DIY project. Scouting for a replacement I stumbled onto the Sony MEX DV1700u ($165 via Amazon) which is as close to a drop & swap as it gets.
The wiring harness was identical to the original. However, the outputs are a bit different. Most notably, the audio connectors are wired directly into the unit whereas they were part of a small harness in the original, there is also no controller for the CD changer. This would be a showstopper if you ever use the changer. Have not used the CD changer in my last 3 cars, so not a big deal for us. Install took about 1-1/2 hours and there was no splicing involved (plug & play).
Overall, it's a decent system which still allows DVD playback to the TV. It also provides native support for iPod & iPhone via standard apple connection cable. One kind of cool feature is that song info & album artwork from the ipod are displayed on the TV if it's on while playing. IMHO the iPhone connectivity more than makes up for the loss of the changer since I gained some major cabinet space as well as another phone charger. I've attached a couple of pics for reference.
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