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The Audison does not do as claimed. It is not a swap for the existing PCM3 997.2 amp with premium sound. (It may work for the non-premium system where the analog outs in the back of the head unit are activated.)
I contacted two Audison dealers here in the US and both concurred. They went on to say Audison products are "flaky", noisy, and can be unreliable... but this is beside the point. The reason I had to contact two of them as both had bad experiences with their products so they were a bit sketchy when I asked them about that harness. That harness: they didn't know what that was....
These harnesses look like, given the shape of the connector, they connect directly into the back of the Porsche head unit.... I have held mine in my hand and examined them and they are analog outs... dead in the premium system. The Audison diagrams for these harneses show directly connecting to the back of the head unit. The problem is with the premium system, these analog outs are dead.
On 6Speed, there was a guy Serg124 in Russia who did an amp swap in a PCM3 and connected to these rear pins… but he did not have the premium system. http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/9...ad-unit-3.html For that, the Audison harness may work…. but if it does for the non-premium system, you then have many other choices of amps because those harnesses can be made by any good audio installer to work with a boatload of different amps... you then don't need an Audison solution. Further, I would never use Audison if it did take from the analog outs as Audison then converts back to digital, does DSP, then converts back...to an audiophile, this is horrifying... all this manipulation. Some are recommending just this with the Mosconi units which are very similar to the Audison with their powerful DSP. No way.
To find these Audison dealers, I went on Audison's website and tracked back from there. I sent Audison in Italy an email asking them some tech questions but they have not responded as of yet.
I have no bone to pick with these products.... I only want to swap out the amp and keep the head unit and keep things simple. I wanted this Audison to be a solution as I would have snapped one up.
Both of these installers I contacted today, as well as the installers I deal with locally, all say the same thing: No solution exists for a direct amp swap out in a 997.2 PCM3. However! Some are saying that the head unit can be "reflashed" to think it is a lower-end unit and the analog outs that exist in the back of the unit will then be activated. I have not fully confirmed this…. although that Russian guy Serg124 seemed to have done it.
BTW, I was just on Mobridges site and they still do not have a PCM3 option. I doubt they ever will since this came out in 2009 and it is almost 2017... the PCM3 sends 5.1 DVD A and a whole bunch of crazy stuff to that amp... the market is just too small for development.
Peace
Bruce in Philly
Last edited by Bruce In Philly; 11-01-2016 at 01:28 PM.
Spot on Bruce, that harness is definitely designed for non-MOST applications. Also, that harness is not Porsche specific, that's a standard Euro Quad-Lock connector you'll find on most 2002+ European cars including Porsche, Mercedes, Audi, and BMW. It's the same harness that Helix sells with their DSP Amp — doesn't usually work on US Spec platforms.
Not sure why Mobridge doesn't list support for PCM3, I'm fairly sure I've done a couple installs using the DA1 in a 991.2 car. Then again, my memory is nothing to bet on. Though, Mobridge has their own set of issues. We're a dealer that goes through a lot of their product and almost every application has some sort of quirk.
My personal preference has always been to swap the head unit out on anything older than a 991. I know it's not a 100% factory look, but if it's done with care it can look damned good, OEM+ even. As a bonus, you also don't have to deal with the headaches involved with fiber-optic integration.
I had my PCM 3 recoded from Bose to Sound Package Plus and added all new amps and speakers with a Helix DSP. Reco
ding the PCM turns on the 4 line level outputs on the back of the PCM that are balanced differential signals. I built a harness to connect to the back of the PCM and ran it to the DSP and Mosconi amps in the front trunk. Replaced all the Bose speakers with Scanspeak and Dynaudio speakers including a new sub the replaced the rear seat. Sounded great.
My personal preference has always been to swap the head unit out on anything older than a 991. I know it's not a 100% factory look, but if it's done with care it can look damned good, OEM+ even. As a bonus, you also don't have to deal with the headaches involved with fiber-optic integration.
Nick, if you replace the head unit, what happens to the Sport Chrono and chassis electronics controls that are accessed through the PCM3 head unit? Can you still access/operate those through any aftermarket solution?
Nick, if you replace the head unit, what happens to the Sport Chrono and chassis electronics controls that are accessed through the PCM3 head unit? Can you still access/operate those through any aftermarket solution?
I had my PCM 3 recoded from Bose to Sound Package Plus and added all new amps and speakers with a Helix DSP. Reco
ding the PCM turns on the 4 line level outputs on the back of the PCM that are balanced differential signals. I built a harness to connect to the back of the PCM and ran it to the DSP and Mosconi amps in the front trunk. Replaced all the Bose speakers with Scanspeak and Dynaudio speakers including a new sub the replaced the rear seat. Sounded great.
Fantastic! Finally confirmation of this recoding thing. How was it done? Who did it? Can it be done through Durametric? Who was your installer and location... I may want to ping them for data.
Thanx so much for posting and the data about the pins being balanced differential configurations. More info please!
I learned the hard way about the balanced differential. I tried a Mosconi 6to8 DSP but could not get rid of a hum since it could not handle balanced differential. The Helix DSP worked great and really allowed fine tuning with a calibrated mic.
It was quite the project since I did the full soundproofing to reduce tire noise. Stripped the entire interior and put in CLD tiles, closed cell foam and mass loaded vinyl. Made a world of difference. The car really has little from the factory. Added maybe 40 pounds but not a big deal.
Okay here are some details on making a harness to the PCM analog pins.
These images are pretty close but I don't guarantee all pins. You can see which pins in A1-A8 for the analog output lines.
I made a harness that has
- 1 Connector (plugs into the back of the PCM)
VW Part # 3B7035447 (about $16)
or
TE Part # 1355526-2 (about $0.50!!! at Mouser)
- 8 Pins
VW Part #N90684505 (about $1)
or
TE Part #571-968074-2 (about $0.26 at Mouser)
- 1 Cable (I used a shielded cable with 4 twisted pairs and a drain wire. Connect the drain to the case of the PCM only. I ran it all the way through the chassis, through the rubber plug just above the brake pedal, and then direct to the DSP.) Here is an example.
For the sub, I used the rear channels from the PCM to drive the sub signal from the DSP. I didn't bother with the rear speakers.
I built a custom sub enclosure that replaced the rear seats. It bolted into the holes for the seat belts so easy to remove and reinstall the rear seats if want to back to stock. The enclosure had a downward fiting 10 in sub in the drivers side and a storage compartment with a hidden lid on the passenger side. Made it out of baltic birch that is strong, stiff and lightweight. Here are some pictures.
10-31-2016, 10:05 PM
