I like everything about the Empeg except the fascia. The first 2-3 characters on the top row are about halfway covered when viewed from the drivers side (95 Sentra.) The rest of the display is readable. If the fascia haa sloped the same way on the left side as the right side, then none of the characters would be covered up.

Assuming the player is mounted properly in your average car (i.e., the player is angled slightly upward towards the driver), you should not have the corner cut off. Your display may be mounted unnaturally high.

It is possible to re-adjust the display position, but only under direct instructions from tech support. Essentially, you bend the pins it's mounted on by pushing on the display. The VFD is very fragile and you could break it this way, so don't do it unless you're sure it's OK with support. Call them about it and see what they say.

I just received my second empeg today, and it does the same thing. The fascia pretty much covers up the first letter in "track" info, and the next three letters are halfway covered up. The mounting does not have much angle to it. I will see if I can angle the empeg toward me, but I have a trim piece that goes around the radio which might get in the way.

Folsom -- it seems to be natural, at least for the 3 empeg players that have passed through my hands, and the two on my desk in front of me. I can see what you mean just looking down at it on my desk. I blame the RHD guys on the wrong side of the road in Cambridge... (that is, its never a problem to my passengers, that is, when viewed from the right-hand side)

(and then the coolness of everything else about the unit makes me quickly forget about it)

I live in England (and therefore drive on the left) and even mine has the extreme top left of the display chopped off by the fascia. It's obviously not as bad as you guys have to put up with though.

When I had my empeg mounted in my works Golf there were no problems with the display because it was mounted high in the dash. Since putting it in my Escort where the mounting position is lower and even angled up slightly then the top left-hand corner is cut off. Something I probably wouldn't have noticed if it'd gone straight in my car. Both are right-hand drive cars.

My one gripe about the empeg is Rio's decision to stop making it.

Sorry i would blame that on the car designers not the empeg folk i have a BMW with the stereo mounted high in the dash and it is perfect.

Hmmm... mines a BMW too, a 520i se. Yours is probably newer than mine (it's a 'K' reg) so maybe they've changed the positioning. As I said mine's not bad but it's not perfect.

Older car newer design mine 318i (e36 model) H reg yours is the e34 model almost bought one but i didn't like where the empeg would be mounted

That said it is about the best positioning i have seen for a car stereo i have seen on any car some really bad my parents Fourtrak the stereo is on the floor almost.

As I said earlier, I've always had the top-leftmost two characters somewhat obscured by my fascia. Here are some pictures of the phenomenon as it occurrs in the extreme viewing angles present at my workstation:

head height, slightly to the left
desk height, slightly to the left
head height, straight-on

If anyone wants to do the math, my eyes are approx 1.5' above desk level, and 2' away from the fascia, maybe 15deg off straight-on.

Hard to distinguish from the pictures, but the second character is maybe missing the top 2-3 pixels.

If anyone is still incredulous, I'll get some car pictures up shortly.

p.s.: just because the angle is fine in your particular car, doesn't make anyone else's findings less valid

(and no, it doesn't bother me at all, but while the topic is up again, here i go...)

I had a Jaguar Soverieign ('E' reg) before my BM and I think that would have been a nightmare. The Radio was mounted down low in that too. I can't remember whether it was mounted at an angle though so it may not have been as bad as I think.