Pioneer Is Bringing Back The '80s Style Retro Car Stereo – Here's What It Costs

Anything Pioneer-made arguably belongs on the list of gift-worthy car accessories. The audio equipment the company released in the '80s is iconic, with the classic KEH series car stereos perfectly encapsulating the entire MTV Generation. If you're itching for a dash of the '80s in your car, then you can rejoice. Pioneer has brought back a KEH-inspired retro car stereo and packed it with all the bells and whistles common in the 2020s.

The main selling point of the Pioneer SXT-C10PS Heritage Single-DIN Digital Media Receiver is the design. While it comes packed with everything from Bluetooth connectivity to HD radio and AUX inputs, most people will likely get it because it looks like an old unit from back in the day. The volume control is the period-correct rotary knob, and all the preset buttons are tactile in the best way possible. The receiver also sports a segmented amber display with a typeface that basically screams "Back to the Future." Pioneer went as far as to round out the look with the '80s version of the company logo and hide the USB and AUX inputs behind a faux cassette deck cover.

That said, all this retro-tinged stuff comes at a price of $499. There are plenty of affordable accessories that update your car to a modern standard (including other single-DIN car stereos) and provide the same features at a much lower price. However, if you want to maintain design cohesion in an older vehicle, then maybe this old-school Pioneer car stereo is worth it.

Though the Pioneer car stereo is retro, that only goes for its appearance. Starting with Bluetooth, the car radio supports wireless audio streaming from smartphones, and the addition of the microphone delivers seamless hands-free calls. You can also connect other devices via AUX or USB to play various file formats, including MP3, AAC, FLAC, WAV, and WMA. The SXT-C10PS also supports DAB car stereo and FM radio. Though the device is SiriusXM-ready, the tuner is sold separately and requires a subscription. The audio controls fine-tune the sound with an equalizer.

Going beyond the basics, the retro Pioneer car stereo is compatible with both Android and Apple iOS, and their respective Pioneer apps, though true CarPlay and Auto are out since there is no touchscreen. A nifty inclusion is RGB multi-color illumination, which lets you customize the display to match your dashboard perfectly. Its analog design makes it one of the better car dashboard gadgets for people who hate touchscreens.

If you want to upgrade your entire sound system, Pioneer also put out the TS-X40SXT Heritage, a companion to its '80s-inspired car stereo. Priced at $299 and inspired by the hairspray era, these are period-correct, free-standing three-way speakers designed for the rear deck. Similar to the stereo, the internals of this speaker have been brought into the current century. The modern cellulose-fiber woofer cones deliver up to 100W at 4 ohms, and you won't need any cuts or custom fabrication.

The nostalgia-driven Pioneer system is primarily aimed at older cars. Think '90s and '80s Mercedes, Porsche, Volkswagen, and BMW models. It's single-DIN, so if your car has an 180mm-wide, 50mm-tall opening, it should accommodate this unit.

What about fitting it into modern cars? Today, the double-DIN is the standard size. The width is identical, but the height is double (100mm) for the purposes of being able to house touchscreen systems and other extra modern tech. If you're unsure, you should measure the height of the opening where your current stereo is installed. Then, if you're rocking a double-DIN, you can purchase a dash kit that converts the double-DIN opening to a single-DIN for around $20 on Amazon. Unfortunately, this will eliminate 50mm of usable dashboard space, but you'll be able to fit Pioneer's Heritage unit and give your interior a more vintage look.