Alpine KCA-SC100 - Ai-Net Sirius satellite radio adapter

This is an initial review 7 days after install.My first impression was, "wow, this sounds WAY better than my Clarion Sirius using the same antenna and the same SCC1 tuner."Then I got to thinking about it a little, and I began to wonder - what kind of a nickel and dime company would make you purchase all these accessory boxes separately, rather than just including them in the purchase of the unit?The answer to that question is Alpine. That is why I docked a star, because every other brand radio being sold in 2010 needs only an SCC1 tuner to receive Sirius satellite radio. The more I think about it, the more frustrated I am that Alpine didn't just include this in the design of the unit.Either way, it hooks up easily enough, and sounds considerably better than the Clarion before it did. I didn't need any additional interface wiring, just spliced it into the existing ignition and ground wires of the dash unit and used the included harness wire.

The Alpine Sirius adapter does exactly what it's supposed to. It is the mating unit between the SC-1 tuner and any compatible Alpine head. The biggest challenge in all of this is trying to find somewhere in the dash to put all this stuff. They come with long enough cables to mount pretty much anywhere under or inside the dashboard. Simply follow the instructions, log onto the website, and activate.Sound quality on all satellite radios is mediocre, and this is no exception. If you are okay with 64kbs streaming audio, this will not bother you. If you have a good ear it may drive you crazy. But alas, you get satellite radio for the programming, not the sound quality.

OK, the Alpine can now "talk" to my Stilleto 2 through this translator box. However, the translation is very simple and ignores many of the Stiletto features including recording. Slightly annoying is that it does not update the channel name upon power up. You can see the artist/song, but must retune the channel to see what you're listening to (minor gripe).The cleverness of this unit being external to the head unit is that the translator can be changed out(to support new Sirius features) without modifying the head unit. However, this simple translator is the only one I could find...thus defeating the purpose of the modularity.

It does exactly what it says it does. And it is cheap. But then Alpine thinks we need a rats nest of wires and interface boxes just to have a modern stereo system. Why do I need an interface box to talk to a SAT tuner box instead of making the SAT box talk straight to the head unit? ARGH!! Only complaint is opened box was missing some cables. But I have extras from the other Alpine stupidity.

Now I can hide my Sirius from prying eyes. Worked the first time. Using a Starmate 5, Alpine iDA-X100 head unit, the imprint KTX-H100 and PXA-H100, and the SC-VDOC1 Sirius doc kit. They all work together perfectly. The imprint and the KCA-SC100 both have Ai-Net input and output jacks. The Sirius screen is now on the iDA-X100 head unit screen so the rest of the stuff can be hidden away.

Initially I did not realize I needed the SCC1 with this. It actually worked out better since I needed the Canadian version of the SCC1. Once I purchased that everything connected fine to the INA-W900.I used to have the old version of the SCC1 and KCA combo and it always cut out. Now changing to this it barely cuts out.

I have SiriusXM again!!!!!!

This was my second unit. It lasted exactly 1 week before dying, POOR Quality of product.