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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Long Beach, CA
    Posts
    2

    Red face DVD Entertainment System for XC90

    Any suggestion on what brand/type to install? Overhead versus headrest monitors? Circuit City refuses to install on an XC90.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
    Location
    Oregon
    Posts
    986

    Default Driving in LA is not entertaining enough?

    The Volvo system is on the head restraints and I have read that it can be a little awkward for people to see depending on how the front seats are adjusted. I saw an overhead system in an XC90 at the Drive For Life class and it looked nice (photo below); not sure where it came from. Because of the car's unique audio system I'd want a dealer to install either system.
    '04 XC90 2.5T, ~170K miles, ash gold/graphite, 7-seater, towing, nav
    "Objects in the mirror may be just as they appear." - Steve Forbert

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Brussels, Belgium
    Posts
    65

    Default Rear Seat DVD System

    Big-

    The system you have pictured is supplied by Volvo and found in my 05 Accessories catalog. It has a 7" high res TFT screen, comes with a remote and input jacks for video games. The screen is not motorised.

    We installed a similar system from Alpine in my wife's Saab. I had thought my kids would outgrow it, but my two daughters (13 & 17) still sit back there watching movie after movie when we go on long trips. In the end of course - it is only used once or twice a year (trip to Switzerland for skiing, then to Spain for the sun). Would I install one in the XC90? No, I've bought them both iPods and they'll be happy back there with those.

    What I don't know about the Volvo system is where they put the DVD player - not sure if it's integrated or not. Of course, a cool thing you can do with aftermarket overhead screens (like the Alpine) is use a PS2 as the DVD drive. A good installer can run leads for the joysticks to the back from wherever it is installed. The PS2 is cheaper than other DVD units you might put in a car and does double duty. We would have gone for that in the Saab but at the time, the then larger PS2 unit was just a few mm too large to fit the glove box....
    XC90 D5 MY05, Black Sapphire Met. on Off Black leather, High Perf., Nav., 18" wheels, GSM, Xenon, RICA upgrade.
    Saab 9,5 Vector Estate MY03, 2.3T, Titanium grey on grey leather

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    Surrey, England
    Posts
    38

    Default

    Why don't you buy one of the portable units? There's a selection now coming with dual screens that hang off the front seat.

    My kids get enough TV without it being on demand in the car, so I'm going to get one of these and reserve the use for long journies only.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2002
    Location
    Oregon
    Posts
    986

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Botanique
    What I don't know about the Volvo system is where they put the DVD player - not sure if it's integrated or not.
    On the unit I saw the DVD slot was in the unit. We stuck in the "Manual In Motion" which is the only DVD handy. So, Volvo offers two different entertainment systems (overhead with one screen and seat-back with two screens)? I wonder if these are available in all markets?
    '04 XC90 2.5T, ~170K miles, ash gold/graphite, 7-seater, towing, nav
    "Objects in the mirror may be just as they appear." - Steve Forbert

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    29

    Default portable is the way to go!

    I thought about the DVD system, but for a lot less $$ we bought a Koss 7" protable player for our 8 month old. And the big benfit is we can take anywhere. We just got back from a cruise and she watched it everyday on the boat. I got to watch it on the plane. Much better and much less $$ than putting it into a car that I know I'll only have for 2 - 3 years max (I get bored easily).

    We also bought a "CASE LOGIC" DVD case that comes with all the straps you need to mount it behind the headrests or in between the seats.

    That is my advise. Save the $$$ and buy a portable player for 200 - 400 abd get the case.

    Hope this helps

    LP
    '05 XC90 T6 Titanium JAMMED (new wheels Dec. 04)
    '05 XC70 silver JAMMED (Wife's new car July 05)

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Location
    Hertfordshire,UK
    Posts
    45

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Big
    The Volvo system is on the head restraints and I have read that it can be a little awkward for people to see depending on how the front seats are adjusted. I saw an overhead system in an XC90 at the Drive For Life class and it looked nice (photo below); not sure where it came from. Because of the car's unique audio system I'd want a dealer to install either system.
    When we first ordered our car in 2003 in the UK, the dropdown system was the only one available in the brochure.
    It was then apparently withdrawn by Volvo because it wouldnt retract quickly enough when the airbags were deployed. They then brought out the headrest system which i dont think looks as nice.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Posts
    21

    Default

    I have an aftermarket headrest system sitting on my workbench that I pulled out of my wife's totaled '00 Grand Cherokee and I'm anxious to find out how much it will cost to integrate it into our upcoming addition ('05 2.5 AWD). It's a 5" Alpine monitor and separate DVD player that was hooked to the factory radio via an FM modulator in the wife's Jeep. I assume it'll be the same for the XC90.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Location
    California
    Posts
    330

    Default Volvo Rear Seat Entertainment systems...

    There are currently two Rear Seat Entertainment (RSE) systems available from Volvo for the XC90.

    - Single screen dealer only installed system.

    - Dual screen (in headrests) system that is only available factory installed.

    With the single screen system, the DVD player and screen are two separate units. The screen is mounted in the roof behind the front seats. The DVD player is mounted in the roof on the passenger side between the second and third row seats. The neat feature of the Volvo single screen RSE is that when the system is on and the screen is down and you place the XC90 in reverse the screen will fold up so that one can see out the inside rear view mirror.

    With the dual screen system one person can play a video game on one screen while another person watches a video on the other screen, or both people can watch the same video on both screens.

    William
    Go on a Journey for Life...
    " See Europe by Volvo "
    Click to take the first step

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Posts
    12

    Post

    We have the factory installed system with the screens mounted in the head rest. Overall the system is very nice. Great to have it integrated into the car's system (physically and electronically) and the kids like the flexibility of having each screen being able to independently select either video source (DVD or the AUX input). The disadvantage with the roof mounted system was the rear view obstruction by the screen and the fact that the AUX inputs are up on the car's ceiling which meant that the A/V wires from the PS2 (GameCube, etc) would be dangling down to the floor (or I suppose run along the perimeter of the car's upholstery).

    When we ordered our XC90 in Nov (received it in early Jan), we opted for the dual headrest system sight unseen--even the dealer had little information. A couple of drawback with this system that we didn't know about until we got our car (nothing is perfect): as mentioned earlier in this thread, the viewability of the screen from the 2nd row is heavily influenced by the reclined position of the front seat. My 9 year old son has complained that he cannot see the screen unless I lean the seat backward more than I normally would (I tend to have the seat back in a fairly upright position). There is a brightness control for each screen and I think that I have my son's screen max'd out but I will have to double check. The real surprise was that because the DVD head unit is mounted on top of the front seat center console (the AUX inputs are mounted there as well), the center console is not removable and the flipout tray is gone. Those were two features that my wife really liked about the XC90 when we first got "hooked" on the car when shopping around.

    The integrated audio works very well (great sound) but I wish the screens were of higher resolution quality (esp color range). Also surprising to me was the fact that the factory supplied remote has all the critical buttons on it that are not available with the head unit--like power. The power must be on before you can feed a DVD into the head unit slot (doesn't come on automatically when you insert a DVD) and the head unit power button has been disabled. So don't lose or break the remote or you will have some expensive ornamental features inside your XC90! I think the intention of the remote-only buttons was to give the parents ultimate control over the use of the DVD system (at least this is a marketing explanation that I have seen). On the other hand, I think I will need an integrated home theater remote for the car so that I can replace the remote for the NAV, DVD, and whatever auxiliary video source we have in the car!!!!!
    Last edited by mahdnc; 01-17-2005 at 07:59 AM.
    Magic Blue/Graphite '05 2.5T AWD, Prem/Climate/Vers pkgs, Rear Park Assist, wood steering wheel, bi-xenon, Nav, dual screen RES, clear bra PPF.

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