# Showtime's Eclipse 5030 Review



## SHOWTIME (Aug 18, 2009)

Over all score: 4.5
(Based on a 1-10 scale)

The Good:
-Bluetooth is amazing
-Sleek look that is appealing to the eye
-Simple installation

The Bad:
-Sound Quality
-Terrible USB Support
-Awkward and frustrating sound adjustment

As a background to how this all began. ive been on a quest to find the
best all around deck for a few months now. i am very picky about sound
quality but also respect a unit that is user friendly. i started with the new
pioneer line. excellent features (usb, bluetooth, fancy display, ect...) but
they really lacked a wide range of decent sound quality.

So i had great excitement when i heard about the eclipse CD5030. I
purchased the Eclipse CD5030 from Crutchfield about 3 weeks ago. I was
really excited! I had done alot of research online,information was very hard
to find but all sounded pretty good. A few people used it and had good
things to say so i figured...what the hell, might as well give it a try. 

As always crutchfield was great to work with. I received the unit, bluetooth
was easy to install, all in all, the install process was a snap. 

Display:
The units appearance was pretty much like any other, not much more can
be done these days...fancy blue lights (which can be set to red) nice clear
display, it was a nice looking unit. No motorized faceplate but i didnt
really mind. i was more concerned about sound quality than appearance 
anyways.

Now, heres where it all took a turn for the worse...

Function: 
Now my primary source of music is throught the usb. i used 2 different usb
drives for a more accurate review. my first issue was that the usb file 
system was very complicated...not user friendly at all. usb navigation is
VERY slow. my biggest complaint was that when i turned the car off, then
back on, the unit wouldnt read the drives. i would have to plug it in the
usb port again...a huge issue being that it was in the glove compartment.
overall usb support is very poor. 

Ok, now on to the ipod support. i pluged in my iphone and waited...and waited...
and waited some more. FINALLY it reads it...i will go easy on the unit because
i know iphone support on decks nowadays is hit and miss. so once it read the
device, all was fine. ipod functions worked well...just dont unplug it hahaa!

Radio and CD support was fine. XM and Sirius was not tested. 

Sound Quality:
Now above all else, sounds quality is the most important thing to me. i will
deal with many issues if the unit has good SQ. Unfortunately this unit really
dissapointed me. The sound quality was horrible. The equalizer and crossover
capeabilities are what really got my attention when i made the purchase.
the probablem was that it didnt make any difference. sound adjusting was
ackward and annoying, the button configuration for adjustments was 
frustrating. honesly, adjusting the sound made no difference at all. im no
competition professional when it comes to sound, but im not an idiot either.
over sound quality was painfully bad. 

The Good Part.....
Well with all this, i was really disapointed. i figured id give eclipse another
chance at redeeming itself. BLUETOOTH! Pairing the iphone and the CD5030
was like a dream come true. it was so simple. the bluetooth quality was 
perfect. this was by far the best function, unfortunately not enough to 
save the deck from its fate of being pulled out of my vehicle but i will admit
the bluetooth feature was amazing.

Conclusion...
Unfortunately for eclipse, this was a swing and a miss. they took too 
many shortcuts. they put too much time into SQ adjustments which 
in the end leave you angry and frustrated.

Reviewer's Note:
After returning the Eclipse CD5030 i purchased the alpine cda-9887.
in my opinion, its the best deck out there. the SQ is amazing. it lacks
the fancy features but the SQ totally makes up for the lack of usb support. 
hey mp3 disks are fine with me! 

Alpine Electronics of America, Inc. - CDA-9887

Special thanks to Duner Central!
www.dunercentral.com
The number on hangout for sand dune riders!


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## chadillac3 (Feb 3, 2006)

Hmm, interesting...I currently own the CD5030, and previously owned the CDA-9887. I couldn't disagree more with your assessment. While I'm not currently using the DSP on the 5030 due to the Zapco DC Reference amps I'm using, I did use the t/a, the EQ, and the built in crossovers.

The EQ is a definite step up from the 9887. More Q adjustments, double the amount of cut/boost available, and the same points. T/A? Equivalent. Crossovers? Minus the fact the 5030 doesn't do 3 way active, equivalent. Preout strength? Eclipse easily. To be brutally honest, from a pure sound quality standpoint, if a person didn't need the extra crossover capability, I'd recommend the CD5030 every time.

If you were still able to go onto ECA, you could search under my name and Eclipse and find I despised the CD8454 I used previously. I've been accused of being an Alpine whore before and I still think the CDA-9887 is a great deck. With that said, I stand by what I said in my first paragraph.

As far as the USB support, hell if I know. The CD5030 does just fine with iPod, although it does have some quirks. Ergonomically speaking I find the deck fine. Now, the manual blows and I had to figure out a few things on my own.

Whew, damn near did my own review.


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## SHOWTIME (Aug 18, 2009)

chadillac3 said:


> Hmm, interesting...I currently own the CD5030, and previously owned the CDA-9887. I couldn't disagree more with your assessment. While I'm not currently using the DSP on the 5030 due to the Zapco DC Reference amps I'm using, I did use the t/a, the EQ, and the built in crossovers.
> 
> The EQ is a definite step up from the 9887. More Q adjustments, double the amount of cut/boost available, and the same points. T/A? Equivalent. Crossovers? Minus the fact the 5030 doesn't do 3 way active, equivalent. Preout strength? Eclipse easily. To be brutally honest, from a pure sound quality standpoint, if a person didn't need the extra crossover capability, I'd recommend the CD5030 every time.
> 
> ...


right on bro. i totally respect your thoughts. thats the great 
thing about car audio, different flavors for different individuals.
for the money spent, i guess i was just expecting more than
what i received. i just felt that the unit was clunky and ackward,
but again, just my opinion.

hopefully all of our input will help others make a more educated 
decision on their purchase.


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## OldSkool_08 (Jun 6, 2008)

Great reviews! I am considering this unit, these reviews helped tremendously.


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## overtone (Sep 29, 2009)

Well those are certainly contradictory reviews. I had actually been considering a 5030, because it seems to be the only current Eclipse offering that is focused solely on audio as opposed to the others that tout the Area Shot thing (or have they dumped that feature?).


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## irishboym4 (Jan 8, 2009)

Thanks for the reviews. i have currently a eclipse 5303r deck and i want to replace it to allow my itouch to work with my car setup. has anyone tested the 5030's bluetooth a2dp capability with a itouch or iphone?


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## littlejuanito (Apr 29, 2010)

irishboym4 said:


> has anyone tested the 5030's bluetooth a2dp capability with a itouch or iphone?


I did not test it with an iPod touch or iphone but I tried it with my phone's mp3 player (samsung) and the sound was super clean. I was amazed


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## sn95chico (May 10, 2010)

bro your crazy i have owned all eclipse decks my hole life and was the 60th dealer of eclipse when no one even new what eclipse was 

and yes eclipse was at first made in Japan and that when it was the best but 

the 5030 is still a great deck and i think its way better then your review on it.

but everyone has there own review 

Eclipse is no long sold in USA and that deck is going to be worth more then what you paid for it trust me 

Bottom line is Eclipse made the best decks in the car audio industry 

the CD8053
the CD7000
the CD7200

and much much more

I cant tell you how many times i have taken an alpine out and put in a eclipse and the system sounded way better..

Eclipses rock


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## littlejuanito (Apr 29, 2010)

sn95chico said:


> bro your crazy i have owned all eclipse decks my hole life and was the 60th dealer of eclipse when no one even new what eclipse was
> 
> and yes eclipse was at first made in Japan and that when it was the best but
> 
> ...


I hope you're right about these decks becoming more valuable than an old pair of Air jordans in the years to come. I am proud to own a CD5030, I believe one of the last ones to be made. Although I was little skeptical at first, this unit has grown on me. It has a few glitches but they're not that bad.


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## atsq17 (Nov 16, 2011)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Eclipse-CD5...r_Audio_In_Dash_Receivers&hash=item43ab983c10

If anyone wants one/some. Cheers.


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

atsq17 said:


> Eclipse CD5030 USB/CD/MP3 In Dash Receiver (073549003375) | eBay
> 
> If anyone wants one/some. Cheers.


Please stop the spam


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