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Review by Enthusiast for Sony CDXGT340 MP3/WMA Player CD Receiver (Black)
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You can’t go wrong with a Sony. This radio does everything I wanted it to do, which was play my ipod. Least expensive one I could find on the market and it plays great. Extra bonus feature is when the ipod is playing my retractable antennae is down without needing to purchase an additional switch. Was $30 more at Best Buy, and $60 more at a car stereo place. Don’t forget the harness and dash kit necessary. Easy installation. No regrets.

Review by E. Bismack for Sony CDXGT340 MP3/WMA Player CD Receiver (Black)
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Alright, first of Im not beth, Im her son, and I dont have an amazon accoutn so i used hers. Anywas, I was looking for a new stereo reciever for my 2000 Nissan Xterra. The OEM radio was absolutely crap. Bad reception and sound quality, plus it played only a few CDs. If you put in a CD with a few scratches or scuffs, or one that was just very old (I have several CDs in good condition, but they are 10+ years old) then the OEM stereo would not play them.

So I did some research, compared stereos etc and found this one. By far this has some of the best sound quality Ive ever heard in a car stereo, and that is through OEM speakers as well (will be buying Sony Xplod 6.5 inch speakers and Xplod 6×9 speakers).

The CD player plays pretty muc anythre ing that hasnt been shattered or microwaved, and it will pick up on the track yoau left off when you turn off the car/switch to radio(or auxilary). The Custom EQs are also a bonus, providing different sound combinations for your tunes. After finding your favorite Eq, you can also individually tune the sound on different levels (low, mid, high, sub, and other special EQ settings, as well as being able to switch between mono, stereo, and 2 “surround” settings). In the back there are input/output ports for extra speakers and subs, as well as auxilary ports for the HD radio and Satellight radio.

The radio also supports a Radio Data System which I find to be pretty awesom. It shows the station number, station name, song, and artist. Plus, it has a “smart tuner”. Press a button and you can scroll through differnt genres of stations (rock, pop, rap, r&b, soft rock, soft r&b, news, talk, eclectic, jazz, etc.). Select which genre you want and the radio will automatically tune itself to the different available stations under the selected can genre.

On top of that it features custom settings that can further improve whatever your trying to do (such as the demo mode or whatever else you can think. It has so much stuff it took me about 5 minutes to get through the whole menu).

On top of all the kool high tech whatever-ness, it comes with a remote and beeps at you when you turn your car off to remind you to remove the detachable faceplate so no one will break into your car to steal your new amazing Sony Xplod stereo.

The only downside I find is that you cannot actively turn the thing off. To make it stop plying music when your driving is to either turn the volume down all the way or remove the faceplate. However Im sure this isnt the case (come on its a Sony), however I am still figuring it out. Also, Im not sure how to make it tell the time when your driving with it on. Im sure this is simple operator error, however Im llisting this as a bit of a downside since it doesnt come programmed to have the clock automatically display itself. imsure I will figure it out though. Also, as I said above the menu is very very very big. It has alot of stuff to scroll through, and it is easy to get lost. Not something you want to mess with when driving.

The stereo here is a serious competition system. The basic interface (finding a station, putting a CD in, scrolling through songs, etc.) is simple, but the menu can be a bit hard to navigate as it is so big and has soooo many options. Overall if you want a very high quality competition sound, this is the system you want. Its very good (better than other more expensive systems) and it has a very nice price tag. if your technilogically challenged then you may be turned off by the large menus and extremely versatile sound settings, but overall if you want an AMAZING system this is it! Dont look anywhere else.

*Tip: if you want to keep a uninterrupted sound coming from the system when driving with passengers, do not leave the remote in the backseat. My friend has fun with it. A little too much fun.

Review by Jeff Stasney for Sony CDXGT340 MP3/WMA Player CD Receiver (Black)
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Following instructions included to set up display, you can pretty much get what you desire, mine is set to display the clock now without the factory “demo” display. EQ displays too with station displayed. EQ settings can be customized besides having the described default settings and saved on a custom setting. On the Xplod factory EQ setting, this unit will blast you out with bass thump if you have a decent amped sub without adding +db. Max the +db out and your rattling screws loose and awaking the natives to a restless state from miles away. Yep, you read right, EQ settings are infinately adjustable to taste. The display is plenty bright for daytime viewing and dimable for night time. The FM gain pulls in the weakest channels with ease. The clarity of the sound is without any noticable distortion of any kind. The CD is skip free on wash board dirt roads and clear as a bell. The unit is backward compatible with the older XPlod series units, this one plugged right into the harness of the ’94 unit that finally bit the dust in my ’93 Civic. How simple is that? You can get a pre-wired factory harness extra to simplify installation for a true plug and play install to your factory wiring. You couldn’t get a better bang for your buck if you wanted to. Not to mention being digital ready??? For less than a C note???

Get it. You’ll love it.