Video: Sony CDX-GT930UI CD Receiver
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Welcome to this article from the Crutchfield archives. Have fun reading it, but be aware that the information may be outdated and links may be broken.Crutchfield experts Ken and Ralph discuss the Sony CDX-GT930UI CD receiver. In this short video, they'll demonstrate how easy it is to search through your music files and find the song you want to hear.
Read video transcript
Ralph: Hi. I'm Ralph.
Ken: And I'm Ken.
Ralph: And we're here today in the Crutchfield studios to talk about the Sony CDX-GT930UI CD receiver, or the "930" as we like to call it.
Ken: 930 works for me. One of the strengths of the 930 is how easy it is to access your music files, whether you've got them on an iPod, a thumb drive, or a disc loaded with MP3s. There's a 4-line fluorescent display here so it's easy to read your information. There's also some pretty cool music search features from Sony and you'll talk about those in a minute.
Ralph: I will.
Ken: The control is easy too. You just rotate the knob and push for most functions.
Ralph: Right, sort of like operating an iPod.
Ken: Exactly. Let's take a closer look at it. We're on CD right now. If we want to go to iPod, we'll hit source, there we go. Now to navigate there, we hit here and now we can choose playlist, genres, artists, albums, etc. Let's go to playlist. Here's one of my favorites right here and we can just go down and pick up the song we want.
Ralph: How about that one?
Ken: Sounds good, and here you have it. The song's playing and you make most of your stereo adjustments using the knob.
Ralph: Now Sony also gives you two other tools for navigating through your music. They have something that they call the Quick-BrowZer, which lets you jump through files in 10% increments in the folder. So if you had, for example, say a thousand songs.
Ken: You could go a hundred at a time.
Ralph: Yes you could. They also have something else they call Zappin'. Now this is sort of like the scan button on your FM radio so it plays a short sample of a track and then zap, goes on to the next track.
Ken: Yeah. There's some impressive sound control features built in too. There's a 3-band parametric EQ so you can change the frequency of the high, mid, and low, also seven presets if you just want to hit one and go.
Ralph: Right. And they also have what they call Digital Music Plus circuitry, so if you have, uh, some files that are compressed it sort of restores lost details and just makes the music sound better.
Ken: Also this has Dynamic Soundstage Organizer, or DSO. Sony's had this for a lot of years and it works really well. If your speakers are low in the door, this will artificially raise the soundstage so the sound's in front of you, much better stereo imaging.
Ralph: Right, which makes sense because your ears are here, not down there.
Ken: Exactly.
Ralph: Now if you'd like to learn more about the CDX-GT930UI, just go to crutchfield.com/gt930.
Ken: Or give a call to one of our expert advisors. They'll be happy to help. You can get them at 1-800-555-9408.
by Crutchfield's
Meet Ken Nail
My name is Ken. I seek the Holy Grail of car audio excellence. My favorite color is blue.
I came to Crutchfield in 1999. During my six years as a Crutchfield Advisor, I learned a lot about the technology behind great car and home audio. I learned even more about what people wanted in their car stereo systems.
I've been a writer for car audio and fitness tech at Crutchfield since 2005. Over the last few years, I've also carved out a niche producing demo videos for our in-dash car stereos. The hands-on experience I get with car stereos while doing video production is an invaluable aid to me in learning about their exciting features. This helps me convey that information to our customers when I write about the stereo on our website.
Before coming to Crutchfield, I spent 10 years teaching music in Charlottesville area schools. I keep my musical interests satisfied by volunteering as a classical music DJ at a local community radio station, and I stay up to date with the latest in outdoor tech by cycling, running, and backpacking.
Fun facts: I've completed an Ironman triathlon, run the Boston Marathon, hiked 1150 miles of the Appalachian Trail, and lost on Jeopardy!
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Meet Ralph Graves
What's most important about audio tech? Only how close it brings you to your music.
As a composer and record producer, I've always been most concerned about sound quality. I know what instruments sound like - and how they should sound through speakers. That's what I listen for when I'm researching and writing about wireless speakers and wireless multi-room audio systems.
While I enjoy many musical genres, my passion - and training - is in classical music. I've hosted a weekly classical music program on WTJU since 1984, and I review recordings for their website. I'm credited in Best Music Writing, 2011 (Da Capo Press) and have had some of my compositions recorded on the ERM and Fleur de Son Classics labels.
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