Last night I started the install of a Kenwood DNX6990HD, replacing the OEM CDR-220 head unit. This was probably pretty much like the other DDIN installs that have been documented, so I won't go into excruciating detail, just a couple observations:

1) I got an install kit from Rod Birch at Car Audio Innovations. Much of the kit is off the shelf (the head unit bezel is a custom piece), but the value add is being able to contact Rod for help and advice. I've installed a lot of stereo equipment in many cars over the past 30 years, but a pro probably does as much of this stuff in a month as I have in a lifetime. Big props to Rod for providing exactly the right parts, clear instructions, and prompt responses to my emails. FWIW, when I ordered a kit he contacted me to find out exactly which of the three audio options I had, and which head unit I would be using.

2) IMO the most difficult part of the job was relocating the climate control unit. And that was probably because I have XXXL hands and the harness for the climate control has four good sized plugs. Really, it's all pretty straightforward.

3) One tool that helps a lot is a fish tape of some sort ... mine is a long piece of flexible plastic with holes on each end. When I need to fish a wire through the dash I zip-tie it to one end of the fish tool, using the hole in the end. It really helped for the climate control harness, the Bluetooth mic wire, and the USB/iPod cables. I used a regular piece of wire to fish the GPS antenna connector from the top of the dash to the radio opening.

Anyway, that's probably more excruciating detail than necessary. I've attached a pic ... I need to do some cable management on the iPod cable, but other than that I think it's a pretty clean install.

 

Looks nice!

 

Great job!

 

Nice job.

I bet you don't miss the 6 slot spring loaded cassette tape repository.

 

Nice clean install......

I would add a 911 logo in the free space between the top of the screen and the bottom of the vents....It would need to be the "right size" to look nice though.........

 

Looks great

 

Looks nice. I also have a double-din Kenwood and think it really makes the interior look nice, plus the sound is quite nice (especially compared to the POS stock unit).

I keep meaning to look up how to customize the screen on the Kenwood but haven't yet. Any tips?

 

There's a decent YouTube video on the subject here:
I actually found the graphic that I used as part of a piece of public domain wallpaper. For most graphics work I use GIMP ... it's free and does what I need it to do. IMO, the key to getting a decent looking splash screen is to keep the proportions consistent. What you'll eventually need to produce is a 800x480 bitmap. If you start with something that doesn't have the same 5:3 proportion, it'll get distorted when you scale it to 800x480.

So, what I did was to take the original wallpaper (imported into GIMP as a JPG file), cut and crop until I had something that was roughly 5:3, then scale it to 800x480 and save it as a bitmap (BMP file). I don't know why, but the specific format required is 16 bit Full Color BMP and RGB setting of R5,G6,B5. Fortunately GIMP has this as a selection in the "save as" menu when you select the BMP format.

After that it's just a matter of putting it on a thumb drive and following the instructions in the video.

FWIW, my splash screen is actually on a textured background, but it doesn't show up well in my pic. I also have a version that just has the Porsche logo ... I loaded that first, thinking I would prefer it, but subsequently decided that the version with the text looked better.

If you want my splash screen, PM me your email and I'll send it to you. I found the original wallpaper through a Google search and it had no copyright notices or statements of ownership. That said, I don't know if I'd load it on a flash drive and put it on eBay <g>.

 

Hey, I was much further up the curve ... I had the 4 slot spring loaded CD holder. Look for it on eBay next week ;-)

But yeah, there is something about replacing 4 CDs with an 80 gig iPod that just doesn't seem quite fair ...

 

I used to use GIMP awhile ago but ever since the advent of online editing has become relatively more robust(and automated in some cases), I've just been going to http://www.pixlr.com to do all my light duty editing. No software to install or manage. Also the advanced editor allows you to save in different formats including .bmp files.

 

When I first bought my car, I pulled the insides out of a couple of the cassette holders and used them for cell phone holders.
Wouldn't work with the phone I have now though, it is too big.

I put in a DNX6990HD not long after that.

If you haven't yet, make sure you have the latest firmware update. The bluetooth was not useable on mine before I updated it. I put another in my Silverado after that and it had the same issues till I updated it.

 

Good advice. My unit needed both a firmware upgrade and a Bluetooth upgrade.

 

I only remember one option available when I did mine. Did you do both updates the same way?
Bluetooth work really good with the Motorola phone I used to have but now I have a Samsung S4 and it takes a while to connect and sometimes I have to do it manually.

 

Yes. There are both firmware updates and Bluetooth updates available off the Kenwood site:

http://www.kenwoodusa.com/Car_Entert...ment/DNX6990HD

Select the "support" tab and you'll see two URLs. The top goes to the page with the v1.11.00 firmware update. The bottom (after several menu selections) goes to the download page for the v1.12.30 and 1.42.02 Bluetooth updates. FWIW, I have not had any success as of yet getting my unit to take the 1.42.02 Bluetooth update. It gets about 3/4 of the way through (judging by the update progress bar), then hangs. I'm thinking it may need the 1.12.30 update first, so I'm about to try that.

UPDATE: turned out to be a bad USB device ... tried a different one, update went without a hitch. I drove around a little and tried a few "can you hear me now?" calls. Pre-update, Bluetooth had been as flaky as a Martha Stewart pie crust; it now seems like it just connects and does what it is supposed to.

 

That looks nice. Did the kit come with a trim piece for the climate control for the lower slot?