Pioneer AVH-P8400BH

great head unit

i installed it in my 2500hd and hooked up all the steering wheel controls and onstar everthing works great bluetooth is nice no stupid wires all over the place. the only complaints is it is not fully compatable with android devices and i lost my factory installed xm. if you have an i phone that takes care of some these issues it is better set up for i phone. if had known this info before i would have looked for other options.

Simply Amazing, Impressive, Technology Rich...

This unit is simply amazing, it has TONS of features, detacheable face, 4V pre outs, 8 band equalizer, hi def screen (which is really nice compared to all of the other units on the market), great bluetooth (highway speeds can cause me to sometimes repeat myself a few times but happened on my OEM bluetooth as well).

This unit is FAST, it takes like 3 seconds for it to boot up and start playing music....I have a fully loaded (4 GB of music) USB stick I use for the moment and it can switch sources, turn on and play within a couple of seconds. It used to take my older JVC KW-AVX830 a full minute to start playing music with a USB.

Overall amazing HU, nice UI, for Pioneers flagship model, they did an amazing job. It even comes with a remote, which is nice.

Is it worth the price?

I installed this radio and I'm really asking if it's worth the pricetag. Screen is nice, but the ipod navigation is horrible. You can't select playlist, or artists or genre. I mean, yes you can but if you press let's say the playlist you wanna play, it will open another menu with all the songs, then you select A song... you just can't press the playlist and bang, it plays the playlist. Some options in the setup menu can't be accessed and i can't find why (yes, parking brake is applied) I can't get in the bluetooth menu to import my contacts or whatever but phone bluetooth does work. Reverse camera image is mirrored and there's no option to switch the video. It's pretty useless when trying to hitch a trailer and you gotta think that when you turn right, the back end will go left on the image because it's mirrored... (I'm using a generic camera, not the pioneer model). Also, this thing won't play files from a GoPro HD Hero2 camera. I'm an outdoor fan and uses my gopro a lot, it's sad that i can't listen to my videos in my car with my friends on the site. Overall, for a top of the line product, it needs a big software update. Don't get me wrong, i'm a big pioneer fan when it comes to head unit. I changed an old 3400 for this one, the 3400 was bulletproof and sounded great AND, easy to use. Be prepared to spend big money to use the apps on the pioneer (GPS drive charges 25$) and again, is flawed because you can't hide the directions on the headunit even tho there's an arrow that you could press to hide them.

Amaing!

This is everything I have ever wanted in a radio. All of the features are amazing and every single one of them works as good if not better than expected. Also I used to have a Kenwood Excelon which had great sound quality and this beats it. There are absolutely no cons with this radio and I highly recommend it if you are willing to spend the money.

sick head unit

If you can fit it get it!! The screen is so crisp it's like tv at home! Does have a new bypass so get a switch!!! Good job Pioneer I sleep good at night with the face by my side!!!!

Not so great

This is my review on the Pioneer AVH-P8400. Unfortunately, this is not really a positive purchase. I can honestly say I am pretty disappointed in Pioneer and this head unit. I am hoping Pioneer gets these issues straightened out and fixed with a firmware update.

First, the positive:
-This unit really sounded much better than my previous Pioneer Premier F90BT. There was a notable clarity once I switched to it.
-I can connect two ipods to it rather than just one.
-The G.U.I. was also very appealing.
-Not having a bunch of harnesses in the back of the unit was also a plus and made installation a lot easier.
-Most of the issues with the head unit appear to be software based, and hopefully will be fixed soon
-The screen has a very vivid and clear resolution. It is definitely one of the nicer screens I have seen.
-Very quick load up time. Unit is ready to go in seconds from turning the car on.

The Negative:
-The screen goes dead and does not respond to any touches intermittently. Considering so many features are controlled by touching the screen, this is a bad deal.
-If you’re using an iphone, the iphone alert sound effects come though when listening to Pandora or the ipod feature from the iphone. Im not sure if it’s a head unit issue or a iphone issue, but when driving to music this is annoying.
-The GPS apps are garbage. PERIOD.
-If you connect the iphone before the Bluetooth connects, it causes all sorts of problems. The Pandora feature does not work, you have to use AppRadio in order to hear Pandora, but AppRadio will also not function properly. If you turn off your car for any reason, you have to disconnect the iphone when you restart it, if the Bluetooth connects while the iphone is already connected to the head unit, then you will have the above mentioned problems.
-The CD-IU201S Cable is ridiculously too short. The part of the cable that connects to the iphone is sadly only 2 feet long, which means you have to mount the iphone very close to the unit. I bought an Iphone extension and it caused AppRadio to no longer function. Ridiculous.


Im really saddened by this unit. I have been a loyal pioneer customer for many years. I have gone through 8 Units and this is terrible. I wanted to replace my F90BT with something newer and faster, with a more precise GPS. I originally was considering the AVIC-Z140BH, but I really didn’t like that I would have to disconnect my ipod and connect my iphone to use certain features. I am accustomed to connecting my ipod, which has all my music on it, to the head unit and putting it in the glove box and not messing with it anymore. I was hoping for the same with the iphone apps but this is not the car. You have to use the iphone itself to control the iphone apps, with the exception of Pandora. This is dangerous as you have to keep taking your eyes off the road to do this, not to mention the clumsy short cable causing problems with reach.

I will say that as just a head unit its great. the major downside to it is the iphone/ipod controls in appmode. also the whole having to wait till bluetooth connects is also annoying. if you do it wrong you have to turn off the car and try again.

Fantastic Head Unit

I purchased this head unit several months ago and have loved it since the day it was installed. No complaints at all. Thank you Sonic and Pioneer.

Nice Quality Head Unit

Very nice head unit. Great quality that I have come to expect from Pioneer touchscreen head units. Very refined screen and looks. Only issue that I have with it is when using an ipod you need to use the aux cord and usb plug.