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angryhampster posted:I've been driving my wife's '08 Ford Focus as a commuter recently. The stereo is terrible. Would upgrading the speakers make a difference, or am I damned by the lovely factory stereo? Upgrading speakers pretty much always makes a positive difference.
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# ¿ Jul 23, 2014 01:44 |
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# ¿ May 16, 2024 18:14 |
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Using good crimps should be fine.
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# ¿ Sep 1, 2014 19:12 |
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Soup in a Bag posted:I put an Alpine head unit in my '06 Acura RSX type S. Everything else is stock so I'm running the head unit's pre-outs to the factory amps via a Metra 70-1725 harness and the unit's internal amp is disabled. You've got a ground loop: 1. Ground your head unit better (sometimes the harness doesn't actually include chassis ground, so you have to ground the head unit separately). 2. Make sure your amplifier and head unit grounds are in the same place. 3. Get and install a ground loop isolator. Is it limited to a specific input, or everything? I had alternator whine (ground loop) when I was using an iPod in a cigarette lighter dock to aux, grounds for those power ports are NOTORIOUSLY lovely. I patched a ground loop isolator in the aux line to the stereo and it got rid of it (until I got a dash unit with dedicated iPod connectivity).
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# ¿ Sep 4, 2014 22:53 |
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Soup in a Bag posted:I really only use the bluetooth input so I'm not sure if it happens with other inputs. I guess it's not anything like the problem you mention with lovely power port grounds though. What model is it? I can look up the diagram and see how it's supposed to be grounded.
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# ¿ Sep 5, 2014 01:24 |
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Chuu posted:I have a 2006 Subaru Forester XT. Stock system is a 2DIN 6-CD changer, but it has a 7-channel output(4 Door Speakers, 2 Tweeters, Sub) with an integrated amplifier. I want to replace it to get AUX-IN and/or Bluetooth. I really don't care about any other feature. In short, no. Every head unit I've seen with an integrated amplifier only has up to 4 outputs. Are you SURE the amplifier is integrated in to the head unit? In most cases with a setup like that it'll have an amplifier hidden off somewhere outside of the head unit.
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# ¿ Nov 10, 2014 21:58 |
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Chuu posted:Very sure it's integrated, but it's a pretty weak sub. It's something like a 6" or 8" (basically a glorified woofer) and the amp I believe is a 65W amp. This stuff really isn't hard to do yourself, the most difficult part is deciding where to put the amp/sub and running a power line through the firewall for it. The headunit itself is typically a really easy swap with a mounting kit and a harness adapter, and you can just pick up speakers that will fit in the stock locations so you don't have to do any modifications there.
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# ¿ Nov 11, 2014 09:53 |
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Wasabi the J posted:Oh yeah I forgot that's the best part about blueteeth, having your phone tell you when you gotta make a turn when you're too focused on jamming out. This isn't surprising, Blaupunkt has been known to use Sony technology. Way back when I had a Sony XR430 tape deck that was connected to a Blaupunkt 10-disc changer.
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# ¿ Nov 24, 2014 08:42 |
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Raluek posted:Yeah I'm aware of the head unit modification options. I'm trying to avoid making modifications like that as it is something I'm considering as a gift for my dad, and neither he nor I are wild about swapping the whole headunit with something aftermarket. I was considering modifying the stock one but I think a hardwired modulator is a much better compromise, if the quality is not miserable. The thing is, you're going to have to go through the trouble of tearing out the head unit to install this modulator anyway, and then you're 90% of the way to getting a new headunit, so why not just do that? Unless you've got a car that's doing weird poo poo with stereo integration or a really weird dash configuration (and this poo poo all has adapters now anyway), I think you'll ultimately be happier just going with a unit that has the features you're looking for native.
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# ¿ Dec 16, 2014 23:01 |
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There's a useful question: does anyone know of a good/recommended car microphone?
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# ¿ Dec 25, 2014 06:51 |
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Ground loops typically happen in cars because you're powering something that's sending audio with something that uses a lovely ground, like a cigarette lighter port; or if you have multiple ground paths for the same set of components (this is why every audio book on earth tells you to ground absolutely everything to the same spot). This would seem to support the ultimate root, that when you remove internal power from the equation, the problem goes away. Here's a good description (Wikipedia): A ground loop is the result of careless or inappropriate design or interconnection of electrical equipment that results in their being multiple paths to ground where this is not required, so a complete loop is formed. In the simplest case, two items of equipment, A and B, both intended to be grounded for safety reasons, are each connected to a power source (wall socket etc) by a 3 conductor cable and plug, containing a protective ground conductor, usually green/yellow, in accordance with normal safety regulations and practice. This only becomes a problem when one or more signal cables are then connected between A and B, to pass data or audio signals from one to the other. The shield (screen) of the data cable is typically connected to the grounded equipment chassis of both A and B. There is now a ground loop. Another thing to consider is your source, have you tried using another source to see if the problem goes away? You could have a combination of a ground loop plus a poor quality source and/or crappy amp. MikeyTsi fucked around with this message at 03:00 on Sep 9, 2015 |
# ¿ Sep 9, 2015 02:47 |
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cephalopods posted:I guess the question I was really asking was "are Kenwood and Pioneer plugs compatible?" But after looking at both models on Crutchfield, the wires are arranged differently. In short, no. There are some things that are compatible, like Blaupunkt was/is using Sony CD changers so you could mix and match those, but the plugs they use tend to be proprietary and/or different wiring.
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# ¿ Sep 9, 2015 06:29 |
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Xy Hapu posted:Yeah, sadly it didn't change anything. Taking the amp out of the equation didn't do anything either. No. It's unavoidable if you have two pieces of grounded equipment USING DIFFERENT GROUND POINTS, and it decides to use the loop path instead of using the ground like a good boy. It's most common when you end up using the cigarette lighter/power port to power something that also does audio, since for some reason those have the shittiest grounding on earth an you'll pretty much always get noise. You might have some luck by running your own power port; run it to the battery, fuse it properly, and then run the ground for it to the same place as your amplifier ground. You could even just run some temporary wiring to test and see if that makes the noise go away before you do it permanently. What are you grounding your amp to, by the way? In my setups I've grounded my amps to one of the rear seat bolts, since they're nice and big and you typically get a really good chassis ground out of them without having to drill holes or anything. When I was still doing audio like you are, I originally had one of those mast dealies you could plug an iPod in to that plugged in to the lighter socket. Tons of whine until I plugged in an isolator. Of course now everything I do is either streaming via bluetooth or plugged directly in to the head unit (iPod), so I don't hear whine any more.
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# ¿ Sep 14, 2015 20:24 |
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Lolcano Eruption posted:Are component speakers inherently better than coaxial speakers? It always seems that people recommend components so that you can position the tweeters closer to ear level. However, if you were able to mount the coaxials at ear level, what is the difference? You can get high-quality in a coaxial. As with anything else, when mounting in a car you have to make different compromises, and each has situations they'll fit best. If you go with coaxials it's recommended to try to angle them so they'll project upwards towards the passenger compartment rather than straight in to your legs.
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# ¿ Sep 29, 2015 23:08 |
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Larrymer posted:Anybody know of a good source for USB and AUX panels (or know what the hell they're actually called so I can search them out)? I ran the cables from the back of the head unit to a spot on the console but I wouldn't mind a little cleaner install. I have a little spot on my truck where the tape deck is (not hooked up anymore) and want to put a blank ABS plastic plate there or something and mount the USB and AUX stuff onto it. You'll probably just need to get a plate cut then mount the pieces to it. A decent car audio shop should be able to knock something like that out pretty quickly.
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# ¿ Oct 18, 2015 12:34 |
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JoelJoel posted:Got a quick question but not sure if I'm in the right place. I'm having an issue with a Kenwood deck that came with a car I recently purchased. Are the system sounds coming from the deck itself? My thought is that system sounds have an internal speaker, and when it's trying to play something that would go through the actual speakers, that's where it's failing. With that assumption I'd guess the amp is blown or the RCAs that connect to it have become disconnected or damaged.
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# ¿ Oct 18, 2015 12:36 |
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Gorson posted:I have a Pioneer DEH-1900mp deck that needs a harness. Most of the harnesses on Amazon (Metra brand) have bad reviews, loose wires and such. Are there better quality harnesses, or are the bad reviews just a case of hamfistedness? I've never had a problem with any harness I've used. Just soldier or use crimp connectors and you should be fine.
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# ¿ Oct 25, 2015 09:44 |
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film_critic posted:I just bought a 2016 mustang ecoboost and I didn't want to shell out $3000 for the larger display and shaker system since I knew I could go aftermarket for cheaper and better sound. How are you going to keep Sync without the head unit?
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# ¿ Nov 16, 2015 11:40 |
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film_critic posted:Sorry. I mean I'd like to keep the voice/backup camera/ and steering wheel controls. In that case, I'd say they're full of poo poo: http://www.metraonline.com/vfgapi/vehicle/251678
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# ¿ Nov 16, 2015 22:11 |
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You can get an Infinity Basslink for something like $100 if you shop around, should be plenty for your needs.
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# ¿ Dec 13, 2015 06:37 |
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The 2G Eclipse has a standard 2-DIN slot. I know EXACTLY how to deal with these: You'll need a harness adapter AND you'll need either a RCA-Amplifier adapter (the Eclipse with Infinity system has the amplifier under the passenger seat and it uses a non-standard plug), OR a new amplifier (lots of rewiring work), OR you'll need to patch the powered leads from the internal amp on the new stereo in to the existing speaker wiring (also a goodly amount of custom wiring work). There's a trim ring around the stereo and the HVAC controls, it'll just pry off if you get a flat edge in one of the corners. I usually go from the top of the HVAC controls since they don't really have anything holding them in place. If manual, you'll need to take off the shift knob. I don't think you have to pull the shifter if it's an automatic. Once you pull that trim ring off, there are: Two screws for the top of the center console, they should be right near the top of the radio. Two screws underneath the cupholder/ashtray assembly. This assembly should just pop out to get to the screws. One screw on each side of the rear area of the center console. You'll probably need to move your seats around to see them. Once the screws are off, the console lifts up and out. Make sure you're careful and pull the lights for the ashtray and cigarette lighter, and the power leads for the lighter. The power leads should basically pull off, and the lights are a twist lock. Head unit is held in with four screws. They should be pretty self explanatory. Once you have the head unit out and and unplugged, you can remove the mounting plates on either side and re-use them to install the new radio (this is a pretty rad feature). Wire your harness adapter to your new radio wiring following the instructions. I typically remove wires that aren't used, but YMMV. The factory harness doesn't have a ground lead, so you'll need to patch the radio ground wire to something. You can utilize the metal frame that the radio mounts to, one of the bolts that's actually connected to the body, etc. Plug in the amp adapter (if you so choose) to the RCA jacks in the new stereo. Patch the blue wire to the remote turn on lead in the radio harness. Plug the weird black plug in to the one you removed from the factory radio. Assembly is reverse of removal. Go ahead and hit me up if you want any other advice, like wiring bluetooth, GPS, iPod, or if you decide you want to upgrade your speakers/amp/whatever. I've owned DSMs for close to 20 years and have done several stereo installs on them.
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# ¿ Feb 19, 2016 23:34 |
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some texas redneck posted:Switch the positive instead (there's companies that even make battery disconnects specifically for this purpose!), run a fused wire from the positive terminal to the radio's memory wire, call it a day. And find a good automotive electrician before you set your car on fire. Or he could do the "not a lazy dumbfuck" option of actually finding and fixing his problem instead of trying to do stupid bodges on a system he doesn't understand. Or we could just take his car and set it on fire some place safe so he doesn't inconvenience the rest of the world when he burns his car down in a Wal-Mart parking lot somewhere.
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# ¿ Mar 15, 2016 08:01 |
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BJA posted:
The internet appears to say no unless you have iDrive or it's a 2011.5+ model. The universal suggestion appears to be to get a bluetooth adapter that you can plug in to your AUX port. Or buy a better head unit. I'm sure the "big" car multimedia manufacturers will have at least one "slider" so you can have a multimedia display. To get the controls working you'll need to pick up an adapter which will bridge the OEM controls to the head unit.
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# ¿ Apr 5, 2016 19:32 |
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Roundboy posted:That was the push I needed to not worry about hd radio, and it opens up my options. I'd just try to find a headunit that has app support for your mobile device of choice. There's some pretty cool stuff happening in that space now where the headunit basically works as an extension of your phone, using your phone apps with the display and control being sent via the head unit. You don't even need to take your phone out of your pocket for most things (Windows Phone need not apply).
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# ¿ Apr 10, 2016 11:36 |
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Advances have been in quality vs. cost and and efficiency. You still have to obey the laws of physics. I think go-to for most people for online purchasing has been Crutchfield.
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# ¿ Apr 29, 2016 21:12 |
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doogle posted:I had an awful popping sound over the arbitrary volume of around 20 on my head unit so I replaced the speakers thinking they were blown. While I was replacing them I noticed that behind the head unit the front L and R speaker positives were spliced together with vampire clips. I removed the vampire clips and all is well. Is there a reason that someone did this? That's totally how you bridge for that kickin' amp boost, right, yo?
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# ¿ May 2, 2016 08:38 |
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MMD3 posted:played with my stereo a little more today, realized that HD radio isn't working as it's only giving me static, I don't even know if there's a way to use a non-HD tuner but I'm wondering if I connected something up wrong or missed an antenna wire or something. HD works over the same antenna jack. Keep in mind that HD radio is a lot more touchy though so if you don't have a really good antenna that could be giving you problems. If you aren't tuning HD though it should kick down to standard FM, so if you're not getting that you either don't have the antenna plugged in or there's something wrong with it.
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# ¿ Oct 11, 2016 02:46 |
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Megasabin posted:I'd preferably like a fully functional unit with bluetooth receiver for the iphone and voice controls. My current car doesn't have in-dash navigation or hands-free phone systems. It has a pretty basic radio, although it does show the temperature. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR CAR. Seriously, we're not going to be able to do poo poo outside of the most general advice unless you tell us what it's going in and what your budget is. Generally, a basic headunit swap is pretty easy wiring wise for most cars. You just get an adapter harness, follow the color coding instructions to use crimp connectors to crimp the appropriate leads, then plug it in. Crutchfield even provides installation guides and this stuff if you buy from them. If that's still more than you want to do though Car Toys will generally do basic install for free with a head unit purchase.
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# ¿ Dec 13, 2016 02:49 |
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Yeah, if you insist on having single-din NAV you're going to have to get a slider unit, which rather severely limits your options and adds another point of failure for your unit. I don't know why people say it doesn't matter, what size slot you have to work with is sort of factor #1 when trying to decide on what to buy. Looks like this is the cheapest single-din nav that Crutchfield has: http://www.crutchfield.com/p_530VRN74HB/Soundstream-VRN-74HB.html?tp=20212 Don't know if it's any good or not, Soundstream at least used to make quality amplifiers and such, but this price point seems to put it with other gear that isn't really all that high quality.
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# ¿ Dec 14, 2016 19:41 |
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Black88GTA posted:Thanks for the suggestion! I haven't read too much online about the traffic capabilities yet, but am still digging into it. Still have a lot of research to do before I pick something, but this looks like it may fit, provided I can get traffic on it. If free realtime traffic proves to be unobtainable for whatever reason, I'll have to change my scope a bit. It seems weirdly scarce on head units, although it seems like every standalone GPS has it. Pretty much every head unit that does navigation does traffic, it pulls the OTA signals, it just needs a few bands outside of the standard AM/FM stuff for it. Buuuuuuut, head unit nav is pretty loving dismal, since the routing logic is pretty loving laughable (literally "route to nearest major arterial and stay on it regardless"), so you'd probably be better of getting an "appradio" that will allow you to display Waze or whatever your preferred phone nav app is on the head unit display.
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# ¿ Jan 15, 2017 07:38 |
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Cop Porn Popper posted:https://www.crutchfield.com/p_130X2800BS/Pioneer-AVH-X2800BS.html?avf=Y What color is your car? As general advice, regardless of what headunit you buy you're going to need an adapter to translate existing steering wheel controls to the new headunit. Depending on what color you car is there may be other functions that go through the factory head unit, so you should probably check online with people that have the same color car to see if there are any concerns there to work through. Kenwood and Pioneer are both quality manufacturers and I'd say the main concerns are going to be aesthetic and features. Depending on what handset you have, there are certain models out there that will either replicate the display on the headunit or have some apps built-in so you just use the phone basically as an internet connection, otherwise just streaming over bluetooth works pretty well. To be honest, your requirements are basic enough at this point that you can pretty much choose any headunit that matches your budget and has a look and feel that you want in your car and you're fine provided you don't go with a poo poo brand. It looks like they're "factory refurbished" which means it was a warranty return to the manufacturer that was repaired and they're selling for a cheaper price. That should be fine provided you're comfortable with whatever the shorter warranty period is.
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# ¿ Jan 26, 2017 23:28 |
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The Door Frame posted:What is the smaller pin connector with space for a 10 amp fuse called? It appears to have 14 pins and 2 larger pegs in line with them. My sister lost the wiring harness that came with the stereo she wants me to install and getting an "official" replacement off of amazon just got me a 16 pin that was too large http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.XJVC+KD-R540+harness.TRS0&_nkw=JVC+KD-R540+harness&_sacat=0
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# ¿ Jan 26, 2017 23:31 |
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The Door Frame posted:Thank you! I would have never thought to have looked at eBay. Best Buy, Amazon, Crutchfield, PepBoys, and RadioShack were super unhelpful. I ended up buying this one, which does not fit at all and made me think it wasn't called a 16 pin connector https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006Y3S4QY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Yeah, unless your model number is explicitly listed, or you KNOW it's pin-compatible with a listed model, assume it won't be the right one and move on. You can also generally get them from the manufacturer, but they always price them like they're made of gold-pressed latinum or something.
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# ¿ Jan 27, 2017 06:58 |
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Cop Porn Popper posted:Sorry, 2004 mazda 6 sportwagon with factory bose audio that has had the amp and sub removed by a bastard previous owner. Interestingly enough I've been "researching" audio options in mid-late 2000's Mazdas, for no "particular" reason, and it's been noted that there are some functions that are handled by the bose unit, I'm thinking that clock bar if I remember correctly being one of them? I'd check a mazda forum just to make sure; you may need another doodad if you want that stuff to work. Pioneer and Kenwood are basically a wash as far as quality as long as you're matching product lines; I personally prefer the design of the Pioneer over the Kenwood, but they both make good gear.
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# ¿ Jan 27, 2017 07:03 |
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Cop Porn Popper posted:Correct, the top lcd display bar is tied in the the radio, current A/C settings if you have auto a/c like I do, outside temp monitoring and the clock of course. The metra install kit while kinda ugly, is the only kit available and not only retains full lcd bar functionality, but also relocates the hazard switch along with the three hvac control buttons to allow for installation of a double din radio AND allows you to customize the wording that is displayed in area that is used for the radio. However for a first generation 6, it is 160 loving dollars through crutchfield when ordering a head unit, $210 standalone. Steering wheel controls do hickey is another $50. Gonna have it to constantly scroll "Poor Financial Decisions" at me while driving! Obviously the answer then is to buy the metra kit so you can get the functionality piece you need, then buy a kit that isn't ugly and put the necessary bits from the metra kit in there!
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# ¿ Jan 27, 2017 09:40 |
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Don Dongington posted:So here's one for any installers/SQ spergs that may be floating around: I'd use velcro rather than double-sided tape if you're going to go that route, I guarantee you're going to want to get back in there at some point. It really doesn't take much to do screws though, you just drill your holes then put in those threaded clamps so you can bolt the piece in. Then you just need foam tape around that area so it doesn't rattle or vibrate. Or you can do the cheap/quick route and just get some self-tapping screws that aren't long enough to hit the glass or interfere with the inner workings.
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# ¿ Feb 7, 2017 22:32 |
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signalnoise posted:What's a good resource for telling how much power or whatever I need or shouldn't have for my car audio? Right now I'm just replacing a couple speakers with better speakers, but if I wanted to add more poo poo to it I wouldn't know where to begin because I don't know about electricity. You match RMS rating to RMS rating, speakers to amplifier, as well as match ohm ratings (not as important because most consumer stuff uses the same ohm ratings now). Anything that requires an amplifier will require running a power line from the battery, that's gauged to the total amperage you're going to draw through the line. If you go through the trouble I'd just run a nice fat one so you don't have to run a new line if you upgrade in the future. You need an in-line fuse near the amplifiers to protect the line, I usually run a 1-2 or 1-4 box at that junction so I can feed to multiple amplifiers if needed. You can start with one and only fuse and wire the output for that junction and go up as needed. When you go with an external amplifier, you want to make sure you use common ground, or you'll get a ground loop which really sucks for sound quality. In my case I just grounded my amps to the seat belt bolt on one of my rear seats. You'll have to run a remote turn-on line from your audio source to your amps. This is pretty east to re-crimp and tee as you add more amps. This tells the amps to turn on when the audio source turns on, and off when the source turns off. Otherwise your amps will be always off (pointless), or always on (drains battery). You'll need to run signal wires from your audio source to your amps, it's just standard RCA, although I try to use higher grade wiring since a car has a lot of poo poo bouncing around that can bleed in to audio which will give you a bad time. Running wiring from amps to speakers can be really easy to really complicated depending on: - Where your amps are placed in relation to the speakers - The stock audio set up - how much of a pain in the rear end it is to run wiring in your car. In short, you either need to run wire from the amps direct to the speakers, or patch it in the factory wiring at some point. Which one is more optimal depends a lot on the vehicle and how good the factory wiring is (usually lovely but sometimes you get lucky). Then you have to set your amplifiers depending on what kind of audio frequencies they're handling (either through a low pass/high pass/all switch or via an actual hardware crossover) then tune the gain settings. OR/THEN you can set the EQ/Crossover on your audio source, depending on how featured/quality it is. There's a whole lot of "how do I?" guidance out there, or you can use Crutchfield's audio guides. Crutchfield does a pretty good write up on how to install and tune audio; they're free if you buy a matching piece of gear, or you can buy them separate for a couple bucks.
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# ¿ Feb 17, 2017 08:55 |
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Raluek posted:I dunno if it's different on android, but in iOS google maps you just select the area you want to capture and it will save it for offline use. It can even do offline navigation, it just won't take traffic into account. I use it a lot, and it's been mostly fine. Occasional hiccups, but better than anything else I've tried. My built-in (Microsoft) lets you download maps for entire states/provinces/whatever that are stored for offline use. Or when I went to Canada I just set my destination in Waze when I was on Wi-Fi, then found another access point when I was ready to go somewhere else. Worked pretty well.
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# ¿ Feb 17, 2017 09:02 |
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falz posted:I'll likely get the s2000 specific thing as it claims to have speed audio adjustment and nothing else seems to. http://www.alpine-usa.com/product/view/cde-hd149bt/ https://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Car/CD-Receivers/DEH-80PRS https://www.kenwood.com/usa/car/receiver/kdc-bt958hd/ http://www.kenwood.com/usa/car/receiver/kdc-bt858u/ Took about 10 minutes. It looks like Clarion still has some "slider" models if you want to have a full size screen.
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# ¿ Feb 19, 2017 00:16 |
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falz posted:I had primarily been searching on Crutchfield, I don't think any of those showed up there. While I clearly did not list price anywhere in my criteria, the Alpine and Pioneer seem to be about $ double than expected. Your specifications give you pretty limited options. If you step down to a more basic LED display your options open considerably.
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# ¿ Feb 19, 2017 07:41 |
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# ¿ May 16, 2024 18:14 |
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falz posted:Seems that way. Perhaps I'll focus more on characters/lines of display instead of blocks vs pixels and accept that it may have CD. Alpine made a single din "media receiver" several years ago that didn't have CD and had a full-color LCD screen in it that showed album art and such: IDAX305S https://www.crutchfield.com/S-WEyHvFL87W7/p_500IDA305S/Alpine-iDA-X305S.html Looks like you'd have to buy a bluetooth adapter for this one.
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# ¿ Feb 20, 2017 00:45 |