Trying to install a car stereo head unit

[TJShag13]

Hi

I'm in the process of trying to install a car stereo head unit in my boat. The boat is a '73 glastron with no previous radio in it and the head unit is Kenwood XXV-01D. I am not new to installing a stereo in car, but in a boat it seems to be slightly different.

I believe my problem is with the antenna hook up. I have 12v+ and ground to the appropriate wires on the deck and I can get the red light behind the face plate to blink as it should, but when I go to turn it all I get is a sound like a cd is ejecting (a lot of previous decks have made a similar sound when first hooked up).

I went out and bought a car antenna with plug and grounded it right to the battery and still no sucess. I even pulled a different radio right out of the car today (so I know it's working fine) and still nothing.

Am I on the right path in thinking the antenna hook up ads an additional ground to the head unit, or is there something else that I must be missing?

 

[slia67]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Where are you getting your positive and negative leads from?

If you don't have a good ground in a car, the antennea can add to the ground. But if you have a good ground to start with, the antennea will strictly help pull in radio stations.

 

[chrclo]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

In a boat you should have the power leads going straight to the battery. There is really no good ground in a boat. There are a lot of posts on here about grounding a deck. I had a problem with my ground, when i ran it to the battery it fixed everything.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Ground on a boat is ground no matter where you find it. The black (ground) lead from the battery typically ends up at a ground bus on the fuse or breaker panel. You connect ground there but if you like to run excess wire you certainly can ground and power from the battery. You also don't ground the antenna to the battery. +12 volts fed to the head unit from the fuse panel is all you need as well. You don't mention if the head unit feeds an external amp and speakers or whether speakers are connected directly to the head unit. What sort of lash up do you have there.

 

[chrclo]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Let me clarify. I have a high power stereo system that required wiring straight to the battery as the ground bus was insufficient. Silvertip is correct, with the setup you show you may be able to get away with using the ground buss and fuse panel. I bought my boat with a pioneer deck 50 watts x 4 CEA rated and the person who installed it used the fuse panel and ground bus. Would dim and crackle at about half volume. Fixed the wiring and all was good.

 

[slia67]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

You also don't ground the antenna to the battery.

Let me clairify my statement. With a vehicle antenna, the antenna is typically connected to a fender or another body part that is grounded which aids in the grounding process if the deck is not grounded properly.

I would take two lengths of wire and temp connect them directly from the battery to the head unit. If that cures your problem, then you need to dig into the existing wires and repair/replace them.

 

[TJShag13]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Ok I'm starting to feel a bit stupid. I decided to eliminate all of the existing boat wiring and go straight to a high power jumper pack (this thing is no joke and I know it has more than enough power to turn on this head unit).

I connected both the 12+ constant and remote to the positive lead and the (-) to the ground and still nothing. I cut my antenna lead and found that when I disconnect the (-) and touch the outer copper wire of the antenna lead I get an arc and the HU does the initial start up sound and then nothing. So the antenna lead must create an additional ground for the HU.

I dug up yet another old head unit and I get the same results.

I took another car battery that is charged up over 12.5V and same results.

Could it be for some strange reason that I need an additional grounding source?

What is it about stock car wiring that I can't replicate in the boat, this is going to drive me insane! I'm sure when I figure this out I'll be kicking myself but man....

 

[79monarch]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Ok I'm starting to feel a bit stupid. I decided to eliminate all of the existing boat wiring and go straight to a high power jumper pack (this thing is no joke and I know it has more than enough power to turn on this head unit).

I connected both the 12+ constant and remote to the positive lead and the (-) to the ground and still nothing. I cut my antenna lead and found that when I disconnect the (-) and touch the outer copper wire of the antenna lead I get an arc and the HU does the initial start up sound and then nothing. So the antenna lead must create an additional ground for the HU.

I dug up yet another old head unit and I get the same results.

I took another car battery that is charged up over 12.5V and same results.

Could it be for some strange reason that I need an additional grounding source?

What is it about stock car wiring that I can't replicate in the boat, this is going to drive me insane! I'm sure when I figure this out I'll be kicking myself but man....

If you actually have the remote wire(usually blue) hooked to 12v + thats your problem it's usually for turning on amps and raising power antennas. You should have one constant + for the memory and a ignition switched +. What brand stereo is it I may have a wiring chart for it.

 

[P 0 P E Y E]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

You might need to ground the the mounting bracket and exterior case of the unit.

Make sure you have a fuse in the power wire, close to the power source.

Double check your work. I can almost hear Paul McCarty sing live and let die as you blast that glastron over the jump.

 

[slia67]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Let's start over...

What wires do you have coming from the back of the head unit you are trying to use? You should be connecting the Red and the yellow to power and the black to the ground.

 

[Boss Hawg]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Just giving a bump up as i'm about to take on the same project

 

[TJShag13]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Yellow 12v+ constant and Red 12v+ switched to the positive terminal on the battery, the black ground to the ground on terminal on the battery and the antenna is also grounded to the battery. I have not hooked up any other wires, no orange illumination dimmer, or blue amp power wire, or blue power antenna.

I also tried to ground the sleeve to the battery and no luck either.

Here is the link to my user manual; the installation instructions begin on page 58.

http://www.kenwoodusa.com/UserFiles/File/Global/Consumer/Manuals/XXV01D.pdf


I still think that the antenna lead has something to do with it, maybe it needs another a separate grounding source (though that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me).

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

I just installed a stereo in my tinny. Nothing fancy. Stereo unit & 4 speakers. This is car stereo with Marine speakers. All I connected was the (+) radio wire (2) directly to the battery and the (-) also directly to the battery. I ignored all other power leads as I am not using a power ant or remote or any of that junk. One cheap rubber ant from walmart mounted to the dash and everything is good to go. I do get a little ant "boost" when I fire up the engine. Don't know what this is all about. But it all works...

 

[slia67]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Have you tried to hit the reset button on the bottom left front of your stereo after you hook it up? The stereo is designed as a theft deterent system, but the reset will reset the factory settings.

 

[TJShag13]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

^Unfortunately the reset does not do it. This particular HU has a security code that needs to be entered once the unit has lost its 12v+ sources and needs to be entered the first time it's powered back on. I haven't got to that point yet...

Thanks for all the ideas/info!

 

[Susquehanna Squid]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

If you hook the red and yellow to the pos. battery terminal and the black to the neg. it WILL work. If it does not then the problem is with the deck (try resetting). I have installed audio systems for a long time and have never heard of this not working. And, remember, if you hook it up this way it will always be ON. Also make sure the speakers are hooked up properly (not chassis grounded). As for the antenna, make sure it is only connected to the radio (with the proper sleeve) and nothing else. Oh yeah, does the radio have an inline fuse? I am sure you have already checked it but what the heck. Good Luck!

 

[chrclo]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

If you hook the red and yellow to the pos. battery terminal and the black to the neg. it WILL work. If it does not then the problem is with the deck (try resetting). I have installed audio systems for a long time and have never heard of this not working. And, remember, if you hook it up this way it will always be ON. Also make sure the speakers are hooked up properly (not chassis grounded). As for the antenna, make sure it is only connected to the radio (with the proper sleeve) and nothing else. Oh yeah, does the radio have an inline fuse? I am sure you have already checked it but what the heck. Good Luck!

I have installed for a number of years as well and I completly agree. Sounds like there is an issue with the deck.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

I'll ask one more time! Why are you grounding the antenna to the battery? It does not need a ground. Transmitting antennas need a "ground plane". Receiving antennas do not need to be grounded to the battery. There is absolutely nothing different about a boat 12 volt electrical system and one in a car. In fact, with all the plastic in todays cars, radios have a separate ground wire that gets connected to the car chassis which is connected to the negative terminal of the battery by the battery cable. A boat may be glass or aluminum but ground is still the negative terminal of the battery. If you are grounding speakers to the battery in some fashion that's a mistake as well. There are separate pairs of speaker + and - leads for each speaker. negative on those pairs is not chassis ground.

 

[Champion5]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

I know it has been awhile but did you ever figure this out? I am having the same problem. Before I even installed this new system i hooked up the power and memory wires directly to the battery and the ground to the neg terminal. My head unit just flashes on and off.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Trying to install a car stereo head unit

Nothing is different between a boat and a car. My pontoon has a head unit with a dipole antenna that (when the boat was delivered) was balled up and hung up under the console. No ground whatsoever and it worked fine. That antenna was replaced with a standard auto style whip installed on the glass helm and it works fine. Car radios require +12 volts and ground so the unit should work wired directly to the battery, or to +12 volts and ground wherever you find it provided those points can handle the current demands. You are simply missing something. GM cars have had antennas embedded in the windshield for decades and they work fine with no ground.