I'm not sure if either of these units have a built in parametric equalizer, but any Pioneer unit that has one is a winner.(THE PARAMETRIC CONTROLS GIVE INCRIDIBLE FLEXIBILITY TO THE SOUND) I tried a moderately priced Alpine in my car; but wasn't happy with the sound.(I was still using the stock speakers, but was expecting a bit better performance). I then tried a less expensive Pioneer DEH-P750MP, and it has much better sound quality, and the FM tuner has much better high blend performance. I am not running any amps on the stock speakers, but I am running 2-10" JL Audio subs with a small Orion amp. The Ipod sounds great even with Toyota Corolla stock speakers!!