Alpine UTE-52BT Digital media receiver (does not play CDs)

Built-in Bluetooth
USB + Aux Connectivity
iPod/iPhone Integration
AM/FM+Pandora+SiriusXM Radio
Audio Section
Display Features
Remote Control

Built-in Bluetooth

Bluetooth Technology: The Alpine UTE-52BT features built-in Bluetooth (ver. 2.1+EDR) technology. The head unit's built-in Bluetooth allows you to make and receive phone calls wirelessly through the receiver; as well as stream music wirelessly from your smartphone to the head unit. In order to use Bluetooth wireless technology, your phone must also be Bluetooth compatible and be able to interpret certain profiles. This unit is compatible with the following Bluetooth Profiles:

• Hands-Free Communication: HFP 1.5 (Hands Free Profile), HSP (Head Set Profile), OPP 1.1 (Object Push Profile), PBAB 1.0 (Phone Book Access Profile).
• Audio Streaming: A2DP 1.2 (Advanced Audio Distribution Profile), AVRCP 1.4 (Audio/Video Remote Control Profile).

SPP (Secure Simple Pairing): With Secure Simple Pairing (SSP), you can easily pair a Bluetooth enabled phone to the Alpine UTE-52BT without having to enter pin codes or go through complicated settings. When a registered Bluetooth device is in close proximity to the receiver, the auto connection function automatically pairs the two units. You can register up to three Bluetooth-enabled devices with the Alpine head unit (only one device can be used at a time).

Hands-Free Communication: The head unit supports Bluetooth hands-free communication for your Bluetooth enabled mobile phone (including iPhone & Android). The controls of the UTE-52BT can be used to dial a number, answer an in-coming call, or end a call. The unit also includes an external microphone, so you can carry on your side of the conversation while listening to the caller through your vehicles speakers. During a conversation, you can initiate a transfer of audio between your mobile phone and your car's speakers.

• Receiving Calls: The Alpine UTE-52BT provides a couple ways to answer your phone calls without picking up your mobile phone. Incoming calls are announced by a caller ring tone through your vehicle's speakers (music will be muted) & a Caller ID message across your Alpine head unit's display.
  • Manual Answer: Manually answer an incoming call by pressing the "Phone" button on your Alpine head unit.
  • Automatic Answer: Set the Alpine head unit to answer the incoming call automatically; when a call is received, it is answered automatically after approximately 5 seconds.
  • Call Waiting: If a second call is received during a current call, you can have the first caller wait momentarily while you take the second call. When you are finished with one call, you can switch to the other.
• Placing Calls: The Alpine UTE-52BT provides a variety of functions for placing a phone call without using your mobile phone. The Alpine UTE-52BT features full phone book access, call history, voice tag dialing, and redial with compatible phones.
  • Voice Dialing: If you have a voice-dial capable phone, you can dial a phone contact by simply speaking the name of your contact.
  • Phonebook (with ABC search): Up to 1,000 contacts (5 telephone numbers for each name) can be downloaded from your compatible mobile phone. You can select the first 3 call letters (ABC) to search for a desired name in your phonebook.
  • Preset Dialing: You can assign phone numbers that you dial frequently to presets (1-6) for quick recall. You can assign up to six frequently called phone numbers. A total of 18 phone numbers can be stored in the preset memory (6 numbers for each mobile phone paired).
  • Call History: The previously dialed, received, or missed numbers (20 each) can be retrieved and dialed from memory.

Audio Streaming (w/ Advanced Music Navigation): The Alpine UTE-52BT can stream music from your Bluetooth A2DP/AVRCP mobile device. Not only can it control & stream your music through Bluetooth, it can process your music using its built-in DSP Sound Expansion to ensure you get the best sound. In addition to basic playback functions (Play/Pause, FF/RW, Skip, Random/Repeat), the UTE-52BT provides a Search List of your stored music by Playlist, Artist, Album, Song, Genre, etc.. (AVRCP 1.4 phones only). The head unit will also display your stored music's song information; such as Artist name & Song/Album title. The UTE-52BT even supports audio streaming of music apps on your Bluetooth-enabled smartphone with limited control and song/artist information. You will continue to use your Bluetooth enabled smartphone to control advanced music navigation.

Bluetooth Sound Quality Adjustments: You can customize the sound of your Bluetooth hands-free experience to fit your own preferences. You can adjust the UTE-52BT's mic gain, phone output, & ring tone volume. If that's not enough, there are 5 sound quality settings to choose from to get the balance just right for you. This flexibility will make your phone calls a pleasurable experience.

• Volume Adjustments: You can emphasize or weaken the volume level of phone call, the ring tone, and the microphone input to fit your own preference. The Phone Talk Level, Ring Tone, & Mic Gain are all adjustable between -5 to + 5 dB.
• Sound Types: This unit provides 5 methods to improve the sound quality of your calls. You can choose the type according to your own preference - Type 1 (standard mode), Type 2 (enhances noise reduction), Type 3 (enhances echo-cancellation), Type 4 (enhances both noise reduction & echo cancellation), & Type 5 (weakens both noise reduction & echo-cancellation).

Speaker Output: You can select which car speaker outputs the audio from your Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone/device.

• All: The audio will be output from all of the speakers in the car
• F-L: The sound is only output from the front left speaker.
• F-R: The sound is only output from the front right speaker.
• F-LR: The sound is output from the front left and front right speakers.

USB + AUX Playback

Front-Panel USB Port: The Alpine UTE-52BT features a front-panel USB (type-A) port that is hidden behind a flip-out cover. The USB port enables connection of a portable USB mass-storage class (MSC) device; such as aUSB thumbdrive or flashdrive. The USB port supports audio playback and control of MP3/WMA audio files stored on these portable USB mass-storage class devices. USB portable audio players that can be charged via USB will be charged when plugged into the digital media receiver's USB port (max. 1A), and the vehicle's ignition switch is set to ACC or On.

MP3/WMA Playback: The Alpine UTE-52BT supports the following types of MP3/WMA files recorded onto loaded onto a USB mass storage class device.

Text/File/Folder Search: When you are playing a USB device with ID3 or WMA tags, you can easily search for a track, file, or folder by its title. Once you have activated the search mode, you can use the rotary encoder to quickly scan through the titles to locate the desired track. For  USB devices without ID3 or WMA tags, searches are made using the track numbers associated with each song.

Playback Modes: The Alpine UTE-52BT offers Repeat and Random playback modes.

• Repeat: Repeat Play (repeats playback of current track/file), Folder Repeat (repeats only files in current folder).
• Random: Random Play (all tracks/files are played in random order), Folder Random (only files in current folder are played back in random order).

Auxiliary Input: The unit is equipped with front-panel minijack (3.5mm) auxiliary input. You can input audio from an auxiliary source unit: such as a portable MP3 player. You can change the name on the display to match the type of device connected to the front panel input; Auxiliary, TV, DVD, Portable, or Game.

iPod/iPhone Integration

iPod Direct Connection: The Alpine UTE-52BT's front-panel USB port can also be used to connect your  Lightning or 30-pin dock connector iPod/iPhone to the head unit. The UTE-52BT supports audio playback, music navigation, information display, and charging of your compatible Apple device.

• Lightning Connector: If you have a newer iPod/iPhone with the Lightning-connector, you can use Alpine's KCU-471i cable (500KCU471I, sold separately) or the Lightning-to-USB cable that came with your Apple device to connect your iPod/iPhone to the UTE-52BT.
• 30-Pin Dock Connector: If you have an older iPod/iPhone with a 30-pin dock connector, you can use Alpine's KCU-445i dock connector-to-USB cable (500KCU445I, sold separately) or the dock connector-to-USB cable that comes with your Apple device to connect your iPod/iPhone to the UTE-52BT.

Music Playback w/ DAC Bypass: The Alpine head unit supports audio playback of stored music and music apps on your iPod or iPhone. The USB connection allows your iPod/iPhone's stored music and music apps to be loaded instantly to the head unit and sound quality to be maximized through the head unit's 24-bit D/A converter, allowing for a Signal to Noise ratio up to 105dB.  You can operate your connected iPod/iPhone via the head unit's front-panel controls or from your Apple device's clickwheel/touchscreen.

• Head Unit: The Alpine UTE-52BT lets you navigate the stored music on your iPod/iPhone by Playlist, Artist, Album, Song, Genre, Podcast, Composer, Audiobook, or Genius Mix. You can then search these categories alphabetically (A-Z). For especially big music libraries, the Percentage Search function uses the preset buttons for quick jumps to specific parts of the list (Preset 1: 0-16%, Preset 2: 17-32%, Preset 3: 33-49%, Preset 4: 50%-66%, Preset 5: 67-82%, Preset 6: 83-100% of the song library). The head unit also offers three Shuffle playback modes (Album/Song/All) and one Repeat mode (song). Newer iPhones with iOS 6.0+ allow you to continue to use your Apple device's touchscreen to access music apps; older iPod/iPhone devices will be locked during connection.
• App Direct: In App Direct Mode, you can navigate the stored music on your iPod/iPhone device through its clickwheel or touchscreen; as well as music apps on an iPhone (iOS 3.0+). Basic playback functions, such as Play/Pause and Previous/Next Track are still available from the head unit. Not all apps will be compatible with this mode.

Song/Artist Information: The Alpine digital media receiver will display your iPod/iPhone's music file information in Head Unit or App Direct Mode. The UTE-52BT will display Track Number, Elapsed Time, Artist Name, Song/Album Title, and Station Identification for stored music and music apps.

iPod/iPhone Compatibility Chart: The Alpine UTE-52BT is "Made for iPod/iPhone" compatible and supports the following iPod/iPhone model features (as of 2/5/2016):

AM/FM+Pandora+SiriusXM Radio

AM/FM Tuner: The Alpine UTE-52BT features a built-in AM/FM tuner with manual, seek, and preset tuning. The built-in tuner provides 12 FM and 6 AM preset stations. Stations can be preset manually or automatically. Local seek tuning lets you tune in only those radio stations with sufficiently strong signals for good reception. Distance seek tuning allows both strong and weak stations to be tuned.

Pandora Internet Radio App: The free Pandora App (either from iTunes Apps or Google Play) lets you play music from the Pandora music service through the Alpine UTE-52BT using your USB-connected Apple iPhone (iOS 7.0+) or Bluetooth paired Android smartphone. Your Apple iPhone must be connected to the UTE-52BT via the appropriate Alpine iPod connector cable (KCU-445i or KCU-471i; sold separately) or the Dock-/Lightning-cable that came with your iPhone. Your Android smartphone must support A2DP/AVRCP/SPP Bluetooth profiles and be paired with the Alpine receiver. Your iPhone or Android smartphone will also need an active Data Plan account with connection to the Internet via 3G, EDGE, LTE (4G), or WiFi. The UTE-52BT provides control over the Pandora music service and displays Artist, Album, and Song information.

• Station List: You can select Pandora stations from your Station List by date or alphabetically (A-Z).
• New Station: Based on a currently playing track or artist, you can create a new station and save it to your Pandora account.
• QuickMix: QuickMix allows you to listen to songs played on one or more Pandora stations in your Station List randomly. You will need to edit your QuickMix station selections on the phone before connection.
• Skip Songs: You can skip song tracks within a station. You cannot skip back to a previous song. Pandora limits the number of skips allowed.
• Thumbs Up/Down: You can give songs a thumbs up or thumbs down to help Pandora personalize stations to suit your preferences.
• Bookmarking: The song or artist currently being played can be bookmarked & stored in your Pandora account.

SiriusXM Ready: The Alpine UTE-52BT is SiriusXM-Ready and compatible with the SiriusXM Connect Vehicle Tuner (220SXV300, sold separately). The SiriusXM Connect Vehicle Tuner supports SiriusXM programming with access to 175+ SiriusXM channels via subscription; check out the most popular SiriusXM subscription packages here. Additional features of the SiriusXM Connect tuner include:

• Channel List w/ Category Search: A channel list displays a list of all available channels. The Category Search function searches for channels in a certain category.
• Song/Artist Info: Displayed Information such as Channel Name, Artist Name, & Song Title can be viewed on the head unit's front-panel LCD.
• SmartFavorite Presets + Jump: Up to 18 SiriusXM Satellite Radio station presets can be saved. All presets are recognized a SmartFavorites with advanced features like TuneStart, & TuneScan. The Jump feature lets you store your absolute favorite channel so you can jump to it with the press of a dedicated button and then jump back to the previous channel.
• TuneStart & TuneScan: TuneStart allows you to choose whether to start a song from the beginning or from its live point when tuning to a Smart Favorite preset channel on the current band. TuneScan gives you a short preview of the songs that you have missed on each of your Smart Favorite Preset music channels on the currently tuned band.
• Instant Replay: You can pause, rewind, and replay content from the currently tuned SiriusXM channel. The SiriusXM tuner will continually buffer up to 60 minutes of audio from the currently tuned channel.
• Song/Artist/Game Alerts: With Song/Artist Alert you can get notified when your favorite songs or artists are being broadcast on any SiriusXM station. With the push of a button, you can jump right to that broadcast and catch the songs you want to listen to. GameAlert will display an on-screen message if your favorite teams' games are being broadcast. Jump to that station with the push of a button so you can listen to the game play by play. You can also get the latest score updates while you are listening to other stations.
• Parental Lock: This function restricts the listening of channels for children of certain age levels and is protected by a 4-digit "lock-code".

Audio Section

24-Bit D/A Converter: The Alpine UTE-52BT uses a 24-bit D/A converter for superb sound quality and playback of your music.

CEA-2006 Compliant: The specifications given by Alpine for the built-in amplifier comply with the CEA-2006 mobile amplifier power testing and measurement standards from the CEA (Consumer Electronics Association). All manufacturers who comply with the standard can display the CEA-2006 logo on their product.

• CEA-2006 Power Rating: 18 watts x 4 channels (at 4 ohms, 20-20kHz, 1% THD)
• Max Power Output: 50 watts x 4 channels

6ch/2V Preamp Outputs: The UTE-52BT has three sets of 2-Volt RCA pre-outs (Front/Rear/Sub) for connection of external amplifiers. The unit's front & rear preamp output can be faded, while the subwoofer preamp output is non-fading. When an external amplifier is connected sound quality can be improved by stopping the power supply of the built-in amplifier.

Subwoofer Control: When the non-fading subwoofer preamp output is activated, you can adjust the subwoofer's volume, low-pass filter, & phase.

• Volume: There are two volume (system) modes for the unit's subwoofer output. System 1 (subwoofer level changes according to the main volume setting) or System 2 ( subwoofer level change is different from the main volume setting (0-15); even at low volume settings, the subwoofer is still audible.
• Low Pass Filter: The unit's subwoofer output low-pass filter can be set to 60, 80, 120, 160 Hz, or Off (through).
• Subwoofer Phase: The subwoofer output phase can be set to Normal (0°) or Reverse (180°).

High Pass Filter (for Front & Rear): The Alpine head unit is equipped with a high-pass filter for its speaker-level output and front-channel preamp output (when activated). You can set the unit's high-pass filter to 20Hz, 25Hz, 31.5Hz, 40Hz, 50Hz, 63Hz, 80Hz, 100Hz, 125Hz, 160Hz, 200Hz, or Off (through). The slope of the high pass filter can be set to 6, 12, 18, or 24 dB/oct.

Preset/9-Band EQ: You can select from 11 different EQ presets to get the best sound from all your sources. You can choose from Flat, Pops, Rock, News, Jazz, Electric Dance, Hip-Hop, Easy Listening, Country, Classical, or User. Using the head unit's 9-Band EQ (in User mode), you can modify the EQ settings to create a response curve more appealing to your personal taste.

Audio Enhancements: The UTE-52BT offers the following audio adjustments to enhance your in-car listening experience.

• Media Xpander: Alpine's exclusive Media Xpander is engineered to bring out the musical details lost in compressed media, and it is adjustable per source to get the most out of your digital audio media. The Media Expander makes vocals or instruments sound distinct regardless of the music source. You can customize the Media Xpander to suit your personal taste by adjusting the level (0-8) for Bass, Mids, and Highs. The FM radio, USB, iPod, Pandora, Bluetooth, and Aux will be able to reproduce the music more clearly even in vehicles with a lot of road noise.
• Bass Engine SQ: Bass Engine SQ tuning is a new feature that changes bass sound characteristics by automatically adjusting different combinations of EQ, Sub Level, and Crossover settings through the choice of five bass profiles (Standard, Punch, Rich, Mid Bass, and Low Bass); only customizable through TuneIt app for Apple iOS and Android devices. You can adjust the effect level (0-6) of the selected profile from the head unit.
• Source Volume Level: The output level of each source (Tuner, USB, iPod, Bluetooth, Pandora, Aux) is individually adjustable from -14 to + 14 dB.

TuneIt App: TuneIt is an easy-to-use sound-tuning app that also offers Facebook notifications. Download this free app (from iTunes or GooglePlay) onto your Apple iPhone (iOS 7.0+ ) or Android smartphone (2.2+) and create a user profile about your vehicle and sound system. Your iPhone must be connected to the UTE-52BT via the appropriate Alpine iPod connector cable (500KCU445I, sold separately) or the Dock-/Lightning-cable that came with your iPhone. Your Android smartphone must support A2DP/AVRCP/SPP Bluetooth profiles and be paired with the Alpine receiver. Your iPhone or Android smartphone will also need an active Data Plan account with connection to the Internet via 3G, EDGE, or WiFi.

• Sound Tuning: The TuneIt app turns your iPhone or Android smartphone into a sound tuning interface for the UTE-52BT. Follow the simple TuneIt graphical instructions on your phone to adjust sound settings for your specific vehicle or choose from pre-made settings in the database. Settings that can be adjusted include Parametric EQ, Bass Engine SQ, Crossover, and Media Xpander. As you change settings on your smartphone, you will hear the results, so you can customize the sound to exactly how you want it. You can make and save up to 100 different sound settings in your account, which is helpful if you want various settings to use for specific types of music. After tuning your system, upload your settings to the Alpine Cloud Server to share them with other Alpine fans. You can also check out other user's settings and rate them. The more active you are, the higher your profile status progresses within the app.
• Facebook Notifications: The TuneIt app also keeps you in touch with your Facebook friends. When you receive a notification, you will get a visual alert on the smartphone and the head unit, plus a sound alert through your car speakers. The visual notification includes the Facebook icon and the sender's name, with the profile picture shown on the phone. You are then able to listen to the notification via TTS (Text-to-Speech) through the head unit and your vehicle's speaker. You can even "Like" the notification from the head unit's front-panel controls. In order to receive Facebook notifications on the head unit, the TuneIt app must be the active app on your smartphone.

Beep Guide: This function will give audible feedback with varying tones depending upon the button pressed. The volume of this feature can be set from 0-7.

Display Features

Detachable Face: The unit's front-panel is detachable to deter theft; a hard storage case is included to protect the faceplate once detached. An optional soft face case (142DFC1X, sold separately) can also be purchased for this unit. A face-fixing screw is supplied for making the face non-detachable, if desired.

Single-Line Display: This unit is equipped with a 1-Line white-backlit LCD, so you can easily view AM/FM stations and ID-3/WMA tag information.

Text Display: The digital media receiver will display the folder name, the file name, and the tag information, while playing a USB device loaded with MP3/WMA music files. This unit can scroll the text information of MP3/WMA files, folder names, and tags. There are two Text Scroll settings.

• Auto: The information of folder and file names, and the tags are scrolled automatically.
• Manual: The display is scrolled when a when a track is changed.

Auto Dimmer: This unit is equipped with an illumination lead (orange); when the unit's dimmer mode is set to Auto and the illumination lead is connected to your vehicle's headlight circuit, the display and button illumination will dim to a fixed, preset level whenever the headlights are turned on. If preferred, you may choose the Manual dimmer mode setting, so the display and button illumination is dim at all times.

Stay On Mode: You can set the delay in turning off the head unit's power after the vehicle's ignition is turned off. When you select a source mode, other than Off, the music will be paused after you turn the ignition key off. At the same time, the prompt "Press Preset 6 to Stay On" will scroll once. Press Preset 6 within 15 seconds to continue to listen to your music for the select period of time (off/5/15/30 min). If Preset 6 is not pressed, the unit will power off within 15 seconds. During this period, you can only receive a call by operating your paired smartphone.

Demo Mode: This unit has a demonstration feature for its display which can be turned On or Off in the menu.

Angle Mounting: For proper playback, Alpine recommends mounting the UTE-52BT no more that 35° above horizontal.

Remote Control

Steering Wheel Remote Compatibility: The head unit features an OEM steering wheel remote control input on the rear of the unit that lets you keep your vehicle's factory radio steering wheel remote controls when used with an optional steering wheel audio control adapter (sold separately). Please consult Crutchfield's Outfit My Car to see if your vehicle is compatible.

Optional Wireless Remote: The Alpine UTE-52BT is wireless remote control ready. Simply add on the Alpine RUE-4202 IR remote (500RUE4202, sold separately) to make it even easier to control the head unit's functions.