
- AM/FM radio, DVD, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, CD, CD-R/RW, VCD, MP3/WMA/AAC, MPEG1/MPEG2
- Maximum power with two 2V pre-amp outputs 4 x 50 Watts
- TFT LCD touchscreen with 480 x 234 pixel resolution 6.1-inch
- Includes direct iPod connection, USB music streaming, front panel A/V input, A/V outputs
- One-year limited warranty

Rotary volume control and front disc loading (instead of flip down or motorized flip) was the selling point for me.
I bought this head unit to replace the factory stereo for my FJ Cruiser. I
also purchased the HD Radio module(HT300) for this radio. I gave it three stars for
the following reasons:
a. USB Drive I bought it mainly to have all my music on a USB drive which would
be very convenient(No more changing discs). The Kenwood manual says that it will sort the files
alphabetically if it is on a USB drive, and it will sort the files by the order
in which the files were put in if it was any other usb device(like a regular mp3
player). However, my biggest disappointment was that this head unit does not
sort the files alphabetically on my USB drive. This head unit puts the newest files/folders
at the end of the list and the oldest at the beginning. It's tedious
to find the desired file/folder you want to play when you are driving as you
have to go through the list one by one, since it is not listed in alphabetical
order.
I contacted Kenwood USA's technical support. I told the representative about this issue and told him
if they had a fix for this. The guy just told me that it's not really a problem. Yeah right!
After searching online for a few hours, I found a workaround that will work with this head
unit. Search for DriveSort and install this on your computer. It's a freeware so you don't have
to worry about purchasing it. This software can arrange the files in a USB drive and places them
in alphabetical order.
Note: When you turn on this head unit, it will scan and index all the files
that is in the UBS drive before it will start playing. The more files you have,
the longer it will take. I currently have about 5.7GB worth of music and it
roughly takes about fifteen seconds to load up before it starts playing.
b. MP3 files with album art I purchase a lot of my mp3 files online and most
of them come with album art. If you play an mp3 file on this head unit that
has album art, the music will play immediately, but it takes about 2-4 seconds
for the album art to load on the screen. I personally don't care about the
album art, BUT while the head unit is still loading the album art on the
screen, ALL THE CONTROLS ARE ON HOLD. This means that you can't change a
track, adjust the volume or go to another screen as long as the album art is
still not loaded on the screen. This is a real PAIN as some of the mp3 files
are louder and while the album art is still loading, you can't lower the
volume!
c. Graphics You can load up your own custom background if you choose to.
However, the text on the screen will just block your background image. There
is no option to turn off the text on the screen or turn off the screen. The
only work around with this is to put your background picture on EVERY folder
you have music on and set it to play a slideshow.
Also, the text fonts/graphics could be better.
d. Preouts If you have a 4 channel amplifier, a sub and want to use fading, this
might be a little problem. You only have 2 sets of preouts. 1 set for the
front and 1 set for the rear or sub. The built in crossover that comes with this head
unit is great, but you are limited to set the rear crossover setting as a
rear speaker or a sub.
There is a workaround for this. You can use a speaker output to rca converter
for the rear speakers. You will then be able to use all the builtin crossover
settings (front, rear, sub).
e. User Interface The user interface is decent enough. It's not a steep
learning curve. It might take a little while to get used to, but it's no rocket science.
You will be able to operate this head unit without reading the manual thoroughly.
f. HD Radio I bought the HD Radio kit for this head unit. There is a
difference in sound quality between the analog broadcast and digital broadcast.
However, HD radio quality is still not CD quality, but close. From my experience
on this module, it made the analog receptions stronger. Even stations that had a weak
signal came in a whole lot better. As if it wasn't weak anymore.
g. Equalizer The head unit comes with built in presets and you can have a
custom setting. I have Polk Audio speakers all around and the built in
presets were just to bright for my taste. (I listen to a lot of smooth jazz).
Setting the custom Eq was not easy. The custom Eq contains 3 bands; Low, Mid
and High. Now the tricky part is you have to select the center frequency for
each band. One for your lows, one for your mids and one for your highs. Then
you can adjust the level. Personally, I would have preferred a custom 5
band or 7 band graphic Eq over this. You will have to spend quite a bit of time
to get it right for your taste.
However, If you really want a defined sound for your car, I would recommend purchasing
a 13 band equalizer.
h. Manual The manual that comes with this head unit is very broad. It
doesn't go in to depth with details. It does not give you examples. It merely gives
you the button or the icon and what the button/icon does.
Other than those mentioned above, the unit works fairly well. The response
time when changing to different screens or menus is not super fast, can be sluggish
at times, but it's nothing unbearable.
This my first head unit that has a built in USB port with it. I can't compare
it to other head units that have USB ports as I do not have experiences with them.
*** NOTE for installation of a subwoofer ***
If you are going to install a subwoofer with this head unit, you would want to
change the rear preamp setting to SUB to maximize the functions that come with
this head unit. You can ONLY change this setting when the head unit is on STANDBY.
Press the SRC button and scroll down until you see Standy then select it. You can go to the
system setup and change the rear output from rear to sub. Then go to audio setup then
turn the subwoofer setting to on.
Buy Kenwood DDX514 6.1-Inch Wide In-Dash Monitor with USB/iPod Direct Control/DVD Receiver Now
I just bought this recently for my 2006 Scion XB. I did a lot of research on the different head units and I definitely made the right choice. This head unit is easy to use, delivers great sound and great video. I just installed the iPod cable KCA-iP301V (necessary to watch video or listen to and control the iPod/iPhone from the head unit). The installation of that cable completed this device. I can watch podcasts, videos, or listen to music straight from my iPhone 3g.
Read Best Reviews of Kenwood DDX514 6.1-Inch Wide In-Dash Monitor with USB/iPod Direct Control/DVD Receiver Here
i ordered this for my ranger and after getting it installed it works great! the iPod interface is cool and super easy to use and dvds look awesome. theres lots of expandability and the touch screen is always responsive. i have yet to see all the features on it but so far its a great unit...
Want Kenwood DDX514 6.1-Inch Wide In-Dash Monitor with USB/iPod Direct Control/DVD Receiver Discount?
I love this unit. Expandable, great video, I currently have the Sirius tuner connected, have the other components on my wish list..What a great unit!
Simply awesome to use and easy to figure out, it is onre of my favorite models i've owned, ive also owned Pioneers and Kenwood never fails to deliver, it has all the latest features you want such as GPS add on and ipod cable and easy to use touchscreen not to mention the clarity of the screen, Highly recommend this model to anyone who wants those mentioned features.