JR and Huffy wrap up 2025 and the fifth season of Crutchfield: The Podcast by taking questions from our fans and providinghelpful answers. Things vary from simple compliments to deep inquiries about the quality of vintage home audio gear in comparison to newer products. One savvy fan asked about a new Pioneer retro-style car stereo that’s only available in Europe (for now).

As one final gift to our listeners, JR, Zak, and Ned read and responded to some of the comments left by viewers of our YouTube channel. The comments were very observant, creative, and mostly respectful. Think Mean Tweets, but nicer! 

Links to products discussed in this episode:

The Pioneer SXT-C10PS, currently only available in Europe (Pioneer's EU site)

Onkyo Home Theater Receivers (Crutchfield.com)

Analog only Integrated Amps (Crutchfield.com)

This week Huffy and JR take turns sharing some amazing giftideas available at Crutchfield. Car stereos, subwoofers, cameras, record players, and some surprise picks! And remember: if you're buying something for yourself, we won't know the difference.

Note: pricing and availability are subject to change. We’dlove to answer your questions in our December episode; please email [email protected] with any queries about consumer electronics gear. If you don’t make it in time for our December recording, maybe we’ll address your question in a subsequent episode. Either way, we’d love to hear from you!

As promised, here are links to all the gift ideas we sharedin this episode:

Belkin Stage PowerGrip Camera grip

Belkin UltraCharge Qi2-compatible, 3-in-1 foldable magnetic charger

LG OLED65C5PUA (65") OLED evo AI C5 Smart 4K TV

Sony BRAVIA 7 (65") Smart Mini LED 4K UHD TV with HDR

Squier Sonic® Stratocaster® Pack

SVS 3000 Micro Ultra-compact powered subwoofer

Alpine prismalink subwoofers

Sennheiser HDB 630 Over-ear wireless Bluetooth® noise-canceling headphones

Canon PowerShot ELPH 360 HS A digital camera

Sony Alpha ZV-E10 OSS II Zoom Lens Kit mirrorless camera kit

DJI mic 3

DJI rs 4 MINI

JVC KW-M590BT Digital multimedia receiver

Keep Car Alarm Connected video security — mounts in cupholder

Soundburger Portable Record Player

JBL Grip Waterproof portable Bluetooth® speaker with ambient light

Kala Red Light Face Mask

Fender, the iconic brand of guitars, basses, and amps, isnow available at Crutchfield. To celebrate this momentous occasion JR and Huffy (not guitar players) invite some of Crutchfield’s most experienced guitarists to talk about the instruments they love so much. Ned and Charlie have beenvery busy writing about all the new Fender products but were able to take some time away from their keyboards to join JR and chat Fender gear.

Cory and Rodell then take to the mic to discuss how Fenderand Crutchfield are working together to provide the legendary Crutchfield experience for anybody looking for Fender gear. What type of training are we doing? Do we have special Advisors to help our Fender shoppers? What are wecarrying and how do we support it all? All those questions (and more) are answered in this episode of Crutchfield The Podcast.

Shop Fender at Crutchfield

JR and Huffy share the online resources they use to stay upto date on the latest in audio, video, sound, car stereo installation, and more. The Crutchfield website is a great place to educate yourself about the gear so you can shop intelligently for TVs, home theater, car stereo, speakers, amps, subs, cameras, drones, and more! 

We use these resources to do our jobs more effectively atCrutchfield, and we're happy to share some favorites with our listeners. There are plenty of other great resources out there — hopefully this episode will help you start your next project or make your next gear purchase.

 
Here's a list of the resources we covered in this month's episode:

www.rtings.com

www.20k.org

cheapaudioman - YouTube

Car Audio Fabrication - Custom Techniques , Video Tutorials Car Audio

Andrew Robinson Reviews

Digital Trends - YouTube

CalebRated - YouTube

Emily, a Crutchfield editor and one of our TV writers, joins JR and Huffy to talk about her picks for the top TVs for 2025. She explains the reasoning behind her picks and provides some updates that weren’t in the original article.

If you are interested in televisions or are just wondering which one might be best for your TV watching situation, thisepisode is a must-listen! You can also check out the Best TVs for 2025 article that we used as the basis for this discussion.

Shop TVs

JR and Huffy/Eric invite Matt Palumbo to discuss the new Stinger HORIZON10 10" floating-screen infotainment center, along with where car stereo is headed. The HORIZON10 is a feature-packed digital multimedia receiver that integrates capably with Jeeps and other vehicles. It also plays well with AudioControl DSP devices and other peripherals. It’s another example of the future of car stereo. If you have a Jeep, you need to hear this!

In this episode we discuss the Stinger HORIZON10 as well as AudioControl DSPs. You’ll definitely want to enter your car in to the website to see if we have any vehicle-specific solutions for you.

Factory car stereos have become so much harder to replace in the last few years. The radio in the dash is so integrated with the vehicle systems and features that it can be almost impossible to replace. Now, JVC/Kenwood have teamed up with ADS (the makers of the iDatalink Maestro OEM interface), and the result is Direct Replacement. Finally, we can offer radio replacement solutions for millions of cars that were previously difficult or impossible to upgrade.

In this episode JR and Huffy (aka Eric) interview Kelvin Riviera from JVC/Kenwood to discuss how this all came about, get into some specifics about Direct Replacement, and have some fun talking about the future of car stereo. If you want to see the Kenwood Direct Replacement stereos, here’s our YouTube video. To find out if there’s a Direct Replacement option for your car, enter your vehicle and then go to custom car stereos

In this special bonus episode Eric and JR explore thequestion, “Do you need to go to the theater to enjoy movies, or can they be just as good on a home theater?” To get to the bottom of this, the guys brought in some experts and did some of their own research. First they talked with Bryan Loy from Alamo Drafthouse Cinema about why people go to movies, especially at his theaters, as well as how he watches movies.

Then Eric brings his 10-year-old son Porter into the studio to share his thoughts on movies, Dolby Atmos, Minecraft, books, WWII, and more. Porter also schools JR on the lingo the kids are using these days. He’s got plenty of rizz, that’s for sure.

Eric and JR go see a movie!

Thinking about making your home theater feel more like amovie theater? Here are some articles you might find helpful:

TV Buying Guide

How to choose a home theater projector

Home theater receivers: The complete beginner's guide

Intro to home theater speakers

Small home theater ideas

Best Dolby Atmos sound bars for 2025

JR’s mother is pretty cool. So cool that she recently boughtnew speakers and installed them in her 2008 Ford Escape. JR interviewed her after she finished the installation to see how it went, and to show the world how much he loves his mom.

If you are considering your own car audio installation, weare here to help. We offer plenty of insightful articles to get you going, tons of information on the products, expert Advisors for assistance in finding the right products, tech support for your new gear, and 60 days to make sure youlove it.

Car stereo buying guide

Car speakers buying guide

Car subwoofer buying guide

Car amplifier buying guide

JR and Eric invite Tech Support Supervisor Cris Baker intothe new podcast studio at Crutchfield HQ to discuss the latest developments in EVs and hybrids and what can be done to improve their sound systems. We know a lot more about these vehicles today than we did just a few years ago, as Cris explains. Cris is also working hard to fill in the information gaps so we can be even smarter about how you can put a new system in your EV or hybrid more safely.

The guys also have some fun talking about their favorite EVsand which ones they would take home today, if money were no object. There are also some new EVs on the horizon that have piqued our interest. Alpine has developed some impressive systems specifically for Tesla Model 3 and Model Y cars,  and even made a thorough installation video so you can see what’s involved before you buy. We are pretty excited about the future of audio in EVs, and you’ll know why as you listen to this episode.

Additionally, Cris and JR answer pertinent questions fromthe owner of a 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E about adding a powered subwoofer to his system.

We have custom audio packages for more than just Teslas, Go here, enter your car in to the site and see what we have for your ride: Custom-fit Audio Packages at Crutchfield

Check out Alpine’s Tesla installation video here.