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Anyway, I know this is a stupid question, but how can I tell if I have XM radio capability? Also, in order to use my MP3 player, what do I have to do? Get a particular cord and hook it up through the auxiliary input?
I realize these are stupid questions, so thanks in advance!
I believe the XM equipped radios also play MP3 CDs but I'm going to assume you don't have it. For the input cable, you can buy a male to male cord just about anywhere. Just make sure it's a stereo cable and fits in your MP3 player. A while back, a reader posted a link on here to an internet site that sold a retractable cord that allowed you to select the appropriate length and then quickly store it away when not used; check out post 1951 in the 2006+ forum.
jt
I just bought a 06 Impala and am in the process of installing my various electronic toys. I can't find a source of switched power in the vicinity of the radio. (Actually, I haven't found it anywhere yet) Does anyone know of a good location to pull switched power?
The thing should worry you is your radio does not stop on anything, however. If the radio does not stop on any station, your antenna connection to the radio may be bad or loosed. But if you tune it manually, and you still can receive FM stations 40 miles (or 200 miles away for AM), then the antenna connection is probably OK.
Another to look for is may be your radio in RDS search mode (by intermitten button agian). If that is the case, it is likely the radio will not find anything since RDS functions are not fully implemented in the US. In this case, do not worry about it.
Most FM station in our country uses RDS just for station name and music type. In Europe, RDS is very popular in program type searching, traffic info, frequency hopping to improve FM reception, Emergency messages,... It is a low cost, nice feature to have once you get used to it. Unfortunately, it did not fly here.
jt
Did you by chance figure out how to hook up the 10449235 amp to the plugs for the old amp?
I would appreciate any help.
Thanks,
I just purchased an amp from a parted out '03 Impala to install in my '01 Impala after the amp died. I expected the plugs to be the same, but they aren't. Could you tell me how you hooked up the '03 amp to your '01?
I would appreciate an help. Thanks,
jt
That is the Bose defect although they probably don't like getting credit for it. Have the dealer fix the system before you buy it. They replaced the rear amp on all of "ours" out here. But, one thing I'd ask as a favor. Since the one you're looking at has the original amp, could you test some music for sound quality at a fairly loud volume? I had mine fixed about 7 mos ago but now when I listen to music at a louder volume (too loud to talk to anyone in the car but not ear-splitting), I notice that the upper midrange volume is annoying. It's between the midrange and treble adjustments on the stereo so it can't be adjusted. It's actually painful for me to listen to certain songs that hit particular notes. It's definitely NOT as expertly tuned as Bose always claims but I don't know if the new amp is the cause because I didn't really test it much before I had the amp switched out.
One more thing, if you do buy the car and have the amp replaced, if you could look at the old and new amps so you could tell me if they're still installing the same one, that would be great. I really like my car but I've never been more unhappy with a stereo system....and it's the "best" I've ever owned.
Generically, things to check:
1. Connection between rear glass antenna pattern (looks like defroster wire) to Antenna amp module near it.
2. Check the connection between the antenna amp module and the co-ax cable that feeds the radio. This should be at the output of the antenna module
3. At the radio, check connection between the co-ax cable and the radio. Unfortunately, you have to pop out the trim around radio to get access to it.
All of the above is to check the mechanical connection from the vehicle antenna to the radio
But again before you decide to do all of the above, may be next time at Chevy dealer, you need to compare yours to another Impala's.
Things that kill AM reception:
1. DC/AC inverter. This is is like AM station jammer
2. Laptop or Aftermarket DVD player: another noise maker
3. Metallic tinning over antenna wire (rear glass in this case). It acts like shield that prevents signal getting to the antenna.
4. Loose spark plug or anything that generate sparks. AM and FM hate them
5. Vehicle Electrical noise that jams radio station
Now if you do not have these Electrical noises and your connections are good from antenna to radio, then the next culprit could be faulty radio . It could be a unique situation (yours only), but it could be design problem with the whole system. In the latter case, the solution is very limited until Chevy decides to use different radio. Most Aftermarket radios have lousy AM performance so that may not be a good option.
You can reduce the static AM noise by reducing the Trebble setting. That will not make yours any more sensitive, but it will make the sound more tolerable.
Another option is using a magnetic mounted whip antenna on the roof of the vehicle. It is not a good looking option. But it may reduce Electrical noise coupled to the radio antenna since this is passive system. You have to buy antenna adapter from that to your GM radio to complete the connection. It may/may not help
So good hunting
jt
Here is the link to it
http://www.alldata.com/tsb/General-Motors/1157094000000_1159858800000_03-08-44-0- 05F/30051.html
jt
All you need from the vehicle is 12 V battery, 12V Acc (aka Ignition), and Ground.
jt
After reading a few posts in this forum I got the idea that the trunk mounted amplifier was bad. So I purchased one on ebay that the seller claims works, installed it and still no radio sound or chimes.
Did all the usual things like check fuses (all good), checked for power at the amp (ok) and now I'm at a loss.
Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks.
As for an add-on, they have deals they run all the time to get you to sign up. The radio (at this point) is no biggie. They want you to get hooked on XM and keep paying for the subscription. I'm a subscriber and love it even though I think their programming could be better. I have my car stereo and a portable. I paid 3 yrs in advance (refundable if you change your mind) and got it for 9.95/mo. The additional radio is 6.95 and I can pay month to month or as far in advance as I like...no discount. You can have up to four per family at that price.
If you do go with an add-on, I would suggest shopping around a little to get what you want vs. what they want to give away. My portable can record broadcasts so that I can listen to them when I want, it can be set to alert me when a band I like is playing on another station, and it has a stock ticker to monitor my investments. I'm actually kind of bummed that the factory radio in the 06+ Impalas ONLY allows me to see the artists name or song...not both...without manually scrolling through the options.
Any other questions? I'd be happy to weigh in.
Since your radio has the CAT button, yours will play MP3 CDs as well (in case you didn't know). The owner's manual only states that XM is available with that radio. Have you tried pressing the Band button to make sure it doesn't have it? The CAT button is used to switch between different categories of XM stations. You must be in the XM band to use it. If you're not in XM band, it gives you the "XM Feature" message you're seeing (I just tried it on mine). I think your radio has XM.
But, if not, you can still use a portable but you wouldn't even need to tune to an FM station to listen. You could use the Aux port on the front of your car stereo to get an even clearer sound.
If you want to know about MP3 CDs, let me know.
Ron
heated front seats
6 Disc CD
Bose sound
XM radio
Sunroof
Woodgrain trim
Engine block heater
leather seats
heated mirrors
I have none of those options..
I'll try my radio again , but doubt if i have XM..
Well, if you've tried it before, I'll take your word for it. Some people take the salesperson's word for it and never second-check. I don't think you have FM1 and FM2. That's a feature of the older stereos that allowed more memory presets in the same band. The new "black tie" stereos in our cars allow you to store AM/FM/XM stations all together on the same "page." I hope you aren't offended by my continued offerings of unsolicited info. It's just that you showed interest in XM. I did see in the owner's manual that the XM receiver is a separate part of the stereo so it is absolutely possible that your stereo doesn't have it. At least now you know you can use the AUX port in the front if you prefer.
Later...
Ron
I'm not far behind ya in age. I'm sure lookin' back, 40 was just yesterday for you.
An MP3 CD is a CD you create on your computer. It gives you the capability to have several CDs worth of music on just one CD. In my sister's case, I copied all of her favorite CDs onto one. She keeps it loaded in her car and switches between albums just as easily as switching between songs on a regular CD player. Does that make sense?
In order to create an MP3 CD, you basically just need a CD burner on your computer and some CDs you like to listen to. Everything else you can get for free. You mentioned your son wasn't impressed by your stereo. Sounds like he may be into music enough to explain the details to you but if not, I'd be happy to step you through.
You didn't actually confirm one way or the other if you had the XM band on your radio so what's the official word?
Talk later,
Ron
No XM band, just FM and AM..the only thing I get is when I push the "cap' button, it says "XM Feature" on the radio screen, nothing else anywhere. Yeah, I'll get my son in law to help me with the mp3 thing if I want it.......thanks for your help on this one.
If it's off by a small amount, you'd probably have to check to see if it's within "reasonable" limits set by GM. If it's losing time fast enough to be noticed within a couple days, I'd argue until they fixed it. Mine loses about a minute every month or two.
If your clock lost time completely, then you likely have a more serious problem. Does it happen everytime? Occasionally? Work with it a little and get some data before you go to the dealer. It will make your visit go a whole lot better if you can answer those questions first.
Do you have the six-disk changer? Just curious.
I have a 2006 3LT with the standard AM/FM radio but I do have XM, ipod all of which works great except the power on the standard radio is less than what I would expect especially when playing CD's.
MY radio clock advances by 2 or 3 minutes every 3 months. I set it and the next month I am a minute ahead, 2 months 2 minutes ahead, etc.
Your clock sounds like mine. It probably isn't bad enough for them to agree to replace it but if you're willing to fight, you might get it done.
By the way, there have been a few people with unexplained battery drainage. Hopefully you aren't heading for that but something else to watch for.
Most of radios, time keeping unit is actually derived from the oscillator circuit that run the radio computer. This circuit has tolerances (from part to part, operating temperature and aging of the circuit).
If the vehicle has some sort of GPS or embedded cell phone, then the accurate time could be provided to radio to display. And that would solve the problem.
jt
Here is the description for this connector. Check my info out using a simple Multimeter (voltage and resistance) for sure.
A1: Vehicle bus (not needed for aftermarket radio)
A2: vehicle bus
A3: switched 12V (output from radio when radio is on)
A4: ?
A5: Ground (?) same as radio metal chasis.
A6: Ref voltage for Steering wheel Control? Not needed
A7: ?; not needed for aftermarket radio
A8: Left Front + (one end of this Left Front speaker)
A9: Left Front - (other end of this speaker)
A10: Right Rear - (speaker)
A11: Right Rear + (speaker)
A12: Ground ? (check to see any black wire on the male connector)
B1: Battery or 12 Permanent" This is the main power to radio. It is either red or orange in color.
B2: Ignition or 12V acc. This has 12V when igntion is on
B3: 12V switched output. This could be used for antenna module of Power amp. If it is for antenna module, you will need it to get RF signal to the radio.
B4: DIMMER
B5: ?
B6: Amp sense (for Audio Amp interface)
B7: ?; not needed
B8: Left Rear + (speaker)
B9: left Rear - (speaker)
B10: Right Front - (speaker)
B11: Right Front + (speaker)
B12: Park light (12V when Light is on)
So from the above, to get an aftermarket radio to work with your wireharness, you will need :
1. Battery (B1)
2. Ign or acc (B2)
3. Ground (A5 or A12)
4. Four pairs of speakers
If you want to use vehicle antenna, then B3 (12V) must be provided to the vehicle antenna module. This should not be connected to B1 since it will drain your battery down in no time. if the aftermarket radio has the 12V output, then use it. If not, connect B2 and B3 may do the job?
So if you have a simple voltmeter, measure this vehicle connector to verify my info.
jt
On another note, I had the car in for service last week. I picked it up after work and the next day the clock was displaying military time. Don't know why it switched. I would have thought that the battery had been unplugged and they reset the clock incorrectly, but the stations were not reset to factory settings.