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It's going to be interesting to see what happens when the Millennials and subsequent generations who have grown up plugged into iPods and iPhones with Beats by Dre blasting music into their ears hit their 40's and 50's. I envision a lot of hearing aids...
I'm hoping our nanobot overlords solve that problem for us. I still want to be able to hear an internal combustion engine while I'm driving
Here's a photo of the SiriusXM antenna location. There is plenty of room underneath that panel, and I prefer this permanent installation to any of the magnetic options. Mounting it inside the car results in poor reception (tried in my 986 before I went this route in that car as well)...
Note that when the car is clean and the plastic has been treated properly, it's nearly the same color as the antenna - but I've been lazy so the plastic is currently "old 996 gray."
At any rate, I think it looks a lot better than some of the other crap they're doing to cars - like those hideous park distance warts.
This. I'm to the point where I would like to have a media player (no CD required) but they all seem to have the same busy annoying lights. Does anyone know of one that looks simple and basic but has decent functionality?
My current solution is the iSimple Tranzit Blu that gives very good hands free phone, eyes-free Siri, and streams music and apps. The only functions that are missing are the ability to play USB MP3's and the displaying of the streamed music info (Artist, Title, etc) on the radio's display. Those would be nice to have, but this is a pretty good compromise .
I've retained the original CDR220 but added Bluetooth without any visual modification except for the addition of one very small button (edit: and the microphone)
I was hoping that the Continental radio would be able to fit the bill but it doesn't have line out to feed my (Hi Fi option) amp and the guy who sells them never got back to me about a fix for that.
Bad recommendation. This radio only produces 10 Watts per channel. You're better off not trying to cosmetically match the car's OEM and either fix the Becker or just purchase a nice high quality Alpine, Kenwood, or Blaupunkt system.
I was hoping that the Continental radio would be able to fit the bill but it doesn't have line out to feed my (Hi Fi option) amp and the guy who sells them never got back to me about a fix for that.
Bill,
The Continental CDD7418UB-OR is the unit that you need. And it provides pre-amp output via two stereo pair RCA connectors. (See picture & wiring diagram.) Notice the Red and White RCA connectors with the label AUX-R and AUX-L on it. Those outputs provide the correct line-level output to most all standard amps.
Bad recommendation. This radio only produces 10 Watts per channel. You're better off not trying to cosmetically match the car's OEM and either fix the Becker or just purchase a nice high quality Alpine, Kenwood, or Blaupunkt system.
Didn't realize that. Thanks for pointing it out.
I soldered in a bluetooth unit into the becker about 10ish months ago, so I have no real qualms with it other than I have to pull out my phone for controls.
The Continental CDD7418UB-OR is the unit that you need. And it provides pre-amp output via two stereo pair RCA connectors. (See picture & wiring diagram.) Notice the Red and White RCA connectors with the label AUX-R and AUX-L on it. Those outputs provide the correct line-level output to most all standard amps.
Have you installed it using those connections? The description on the website says:
Note 2: This radio unit has speaker outputs only, no line out connection.
^ Some units are programmable, as well - so you can choose whether the outputs are line or speaker level.
Those speaker-to-line-level converters were the sh*t in the 80's when we were shoving 18" subs into every available space and adding second alternators. Another checkbox on the "why I'm losing my hearing" questionnaire...
Here's a photo of the SiriusXM antenna location. There is plenty of room underneath that panel, and I prefer this permanent installation to any of the magnetic options. Mounting it inside the car results in poor reception (tried in my 986 before I went this route in that car as well)...
Note that when the car is clean and the plastic has been treated properly, it's nearly the same color as the antenna - but I've been lazy so the plastic is currently "old 996 gray."
At any rate, I think it looks a lot better than some of the other crap they're doing to cars - like those hideous park distance warts.
I mounted the Sirius antenna in the same locate but underneath that plastic panel. I just mounted it to the wiper bracketing using the magnet. It's outta sight and the reception is great.
I don't know if it's just my line-of-sight to the SiriusXM satellite constellation or what - but even that couple MM of plastic was enough to interfere with my reception. Like you said, the antenna is magnetic and a piece of cake to mount, but I never got a reliable signal until the antenna was exposed.
Damn, I love the Internet. You can find the trajectory of any of the SiriusXM satellites here...
SIRIUS FM-6
Track SIRIUS FM-6 now!
SIRIUS FM-6 is classified as:
XM and Sirius
NORAD ID: 39360
Int'l Code: 2013-058A
Perigee: 35,793.5 km
Apogee: 35,794.6 km
Inclination: 0.0 °
Period: 1,436.1 minutes
Semi major axis: 42165 km
RCS: Unknown
Launch date: October 25, 2013
Source: United States (US)
Launch site: TYURATAM MISSILE AND SPACE COMPLEX (TTMTR)
SIRIUS 3
NORAD ID: 26626
Int'l Code: 2000-077A
Perigee: 24,660.4 km
Apogee: 47,079.8 km
Inclination: 64.4 °
Period: 1,440.0 minutes
Semi major axis: 42241 km
RCS: 8.8725 m2 (large)
Launch date: November 30, 2000
Source: United States (US)
Launch site: TYURATAM MISSILE AND SPACE COMPLEX (TTMTR)
This is not a problem if you have a hifi option as you can use a speaker to line level converter.
Tor, the guy who sells them here, was looking into a plug & play solution with line converters but was having trouble getting a clean sound. He might have given up or got too busy to keep at it.
I'll keep the bluetooth solution I have now for a while as it meets most of my needs. The other functions would be nice to have but aren't show stoppers.
Now that the car is back on the ground with new (used) wheels, I've actually had some time to enjoy the crappy stereo. Love it. I didn't think I'd wind up using Pandora predominantly, but it's slick and it just works. Fire up the car, the stereo and the phone do their thing and music I like appears.
I still have to clean up some odds and ends (remove an old in-line FM modulator, install the remote microphone for handsfree calls, and plumb the satellite radio receiver), but other than my aftermarket TPMS pressure and temp monitoring system, this is the best upgrade I've done to the 996 in 4 years.
08-05-2016, 02:43 PM
