Time for new radio....questions

[7lazy77]

My old radio's scan buttons no longer work so I figured it is time to put a new radio in the pontoon. I would like to get one that is relatively easy to install (for a person with minimal experience) & upgrade to one that I could hook up my MP3 player to play music. How easy is it to swap radios? Any specific recommended brands? Do I also need to install new speakers, or will the existing speakers be compatible? Any other helpful information is greatly appreciated!

 

[mark1905]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Hey bud..

Installing a new head unit is a relatively simple job. Pretty much all stereos install the same these days, and consist of a metal mounting sleeve which slides in and is held by tabs that you bend in order to hold it. The main unit slides in to the mounting sleeve after you've hooked the wiring up.

To do the wiring, you'll need nylon butt connectors:

and a decent set of crimpers:


The wiring is straight forward. Yellow wire will be your constant +12V, the red wire will be your ignition switched on +12V, and the black will be your ground. If you want to leave the stereo on when the boat is turned off, just twist the red and yellow wires together and connect them to a constant +12V.

Speakers are speakers.. they are all compatible.. but I would upgrade them at the same time. You'll be amazed how much better they sound and you can get a decent pair without breaking the bank. Take the old ones out and look on the back.. they should say what size they are.

I would shop Amazon for your components.. they're pretty much always the cheapest and have free 2-day shipping if you sign up for a trial "Prime" membership for no cost.. just don't renew it. I would recommend this deck: http://www.amazon.com/Clarion-M109-...ABZI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1332850908&sr=8-2. Clarion's last well, have a very powerful internal amp and are priced reasonably. It does have a plug on the front to plug in an iPod. If you'd like to step up to one that has a USB on the front so that your iPod charges at the same time, go for this one: http://www.amazon.com/Clarion-M309-...8K1U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332851034&sr=8-1. Whatever you do, stay far away from the junk/cheap brands such as Pyle/Boss/etc. They will only break quickly and sound like crap.


Any questions, just ask. Good luck!

 

[nhblock]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

I don't have experience with these components, but I've heard and read great reviews of each. They're what I'll be buying later this season:

Sony DSXMS60 Marine Digital Media Receiver. Marine (anti-corrosion) head unit with a tray behind the faceplate to place your iPod, so it's not flying about when you're under way.

Polk Audio DB401 4-Inch Pair Coaxial Speakers. Marine speakers at a great price that the reviews (and other forum members) highly recommend for their big sound relative to their size.

 

[mark1905]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Yes on the Polks.. I run 4 of them in the swim deck and they're awesome sounding for their size. About to add another pair.

NO on the Sony. They don't last worth a damn once you get any kind of moisture on them. Get the Clarion M309.. it's a sealed unit with a conformal coated PCB.

 

[nhblock]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Yes on the Polks.. I run 4 of them in the swim deck and they're awesome sounding for their size. About to add another pair.

NO on the Sony. They don't last worth a damn once you get any kind of moisture on them. Get the Clarion M309.. it's a sealed unit with a conformal coated PCB.

Noted. Thanks Mark. It looks like you know what you're talking about with that "obscene" sound system in your signature!

 

[mark1905]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Oh.. that? I use ear buds. That's just for show..

 

[7lazy77]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Thanks for the info guys, but after looking at the back of the radio & all the wires I am still a bit confused. The radio appears to be a regular car radio, a cheap one at that! It is functional, so I am "assuming" all the wiring is correct. Here is what is all coming off the back of the radio:
Yellow & a Black wire which go to an inline 5A fuse box(?)
Grey with a Black stripe
White with a Black stripe
solid White
solid Grey
There are also two wires (Blue & black insulated one containing a small Red & White wires) that are cut & go to nothing.

HEEEELLLP.....Can anybody tell me what each of these wires are for???
Is the wiring for a "marine" radio the same or is it less complicated than a regular car radio???
Is an antenna necessary for the radio??

 

[mark1905]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

The yellow is your 12V+. The black is your ground wire. The other 4 white/grey wires are your speaker wires.. two for each side. The cut wires sound like what used to be RCA cables but someone cut them.

Just yank the sucker out and replace. Done deal.

 

[nhblock]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Is the wiring for a "marine" radio the same or is it less complicated than a regular car radio???
Is an antenna necessary for the radio??

A marine radio is the same/same wiring as a regular car radio, just "enhanced" to be more durable in a wet environment. As Mark noted above, true marine radios will have a coated PCB (printed circuit board) and a sealed box/bezel to protect from the elements. A little more expensive than a regular car radio, but more durable in the long run.

 

[7lazy77]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

Ok, finally got my radio (Clarion M109) in the mail & ready to install! I clearly understand what all the different wires are for, but now I need a little help hooking up. I looked over the new radio install instructions & compared it with the current wiring situation in the boat & was curious on a few things:

1. On the old existing radio it has both the Yellow & Black wires coming from the radio going to a 5A inline fuse box. Coming out of the fuse box the Yellow wire ties into the Red wire which then goes to the fuse panel (from my research so I can run the radio with the boat turned off). The black wire also goes to the fuse panel. I understand why the yellow wire has a fuse (which the radio came that way), but why is the black wire running to the same fuse box?? Does the black wire need to be fused?? The instructions for the new radio install mention nothing about having a fused black wire.

2. The existing wiring for the speakers is wired for a "2-speaker system", while the boat has 4 speakers. All the speakers seem to work fine with it being setup this way. Can I wire in the speakers the same way with the new radio, or should I just do the "4-speaker system" wiring as mentioned in the install instructions??

3. The new radio has an Orange/White wire which is for the illumination lead. The instructions say to "connect it to the power supply terminal". I am assuming this means to connect it to the Red wire?? Just want to make sure I am doing this correctly.

Thanks for all the help!!!

 

[mark1905]

Re: Time for new radio....questions

1. Sounds like they were finding a ground source in that fuse box somewhere. No, you don't need to fuse your ground wire. Find a good source for it and tap it in. Look to wherever they had it last time and use it again if you'd like. A good ground is a good ground.

2. NO, DO NOT sum the wires for the 4 speakers to the 2 front outputs. You'll blow the internal amp. That Clarion has outputs for all 4 speakers there.. use them all separately and correctly. Read the instruction manual and it will give you a clear layout of how to connect the speaker wires. Grey pair to front right, white pair to front left, purple pair to rear right, green pair to rear left. Pay attention to + and - speaker connections too. Solid color is +, corresponding color with a stripe is -. http://www.clarion.com/us/en/MungoBlobs/64/527/M109_INST,1.pdf

3. Disregard that wire. That's if you want the deck to dim it's lights when you turn on your nav lights at night. You would connect that trigger wire to your switched illumination wire. You can if you want.. but I generally just let it be bright at night which is fine.