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I have the same one as Vandal and have had it installed for three days. So far it is about 30% chance that it isn't frozen when I start the car... When it works it is pretty cool but more than not it won't even let me link to phone to play Pandora.
Corbin,
you need to contact the seller before it's too late.
Thanks for the updates on the newer models; this will help those still deciding which to buy.
For the wifi problem, a few possibilities are your phone is using 5GHz for the hotspot, as these units only detect 2.4 GHz. The other possibility is your home wifi is a much stronger signal; there have been reports of weak antennas on these HU's and/or poor soldering jobs.If you want a lot to read these issues are covered in the generic PX5 MTCD threads on xda,
which is for 6.0, but covers a lot of hardware issues that might be the same.
I have been scouring those forums to get to the bottom of the issue, I’ll check your links.
With regards to the wifi, it does connect every single time, and works great IF I manually have the unit forget the WiFi network then reconnect. Also, it will work if I turn the WiFi off and on-but only around 5% of the time. Last weekend I just re-paired it for a 3 hr drive and had pandora/Waze going the whole time.
im willing to buy a dongle and pay for a data plan but it feels to me like there is something simple I’m missing here.
Other than that the unit is still going strong and I’m happy, not perfect but for a $300 impulse buy it’s awesome.
Also, the way I have it set up I have just stereo coming out so no adjustment of fade. However, the sub does work and the sound is on par with how it was previously, and for my use much better than the standard pcm due to using high bitrate files on Spotify. The TranzIt Blu was garbage in this regard to my ears. All that being said, the actual Bluetooth sound quality stinks but is perfectly ok with podcasts/audiobooks which is usually what I end up using Bluetooth for anyhow. When I want music, I have some playlists synced to download to the unit so I just go there. When I install the rear cam I’m going to hide the aux-in cable somewhere like the glovebox to get music off my phone if I so desire.
Once I get the WiFi working I don’t really have any faults with it aside from ironing out the error message.
I have a 2014 Dynavin model head unit that has some irritating aspects that I wonder if the same are present in the newer Android units. The Dynavin really does not communicate fully with the Bose system in that the rear base is muted and the fader controls do not work. apparently, it requires another amplifier to be installed to bring up the rear sound. 4 years is a lifetime to develop a superior head unit that takes advantage of the full Bose system. I was wondering about the "whole car" sound quality of the Android vs. stock Porsche head unit. I have a 2008 Cayenne S.
Dan,
the android has no fader, but the sound seems to be exactly how I would set the fader controls if they did exist. Volume levels throughout the car seem just about ideal. Sound quality is at least as good as the factory setup, you sometimes hear a mild "pop" when you shut off the car, remove the key and the most box shuts down.
I bought an Android HU for the 955 Cayenne on AliExpress this past Christmas. It was the Wonderfoo px3 based 4 core with 7.1.2. It was less than $300 delivered which was silly cheap. I used the eBay 2 channel MOST converter box which was less than $100, but I wish I'd known about the Russian 4 channel box mentioned above as I would have spent the extra money to have F/R fading. Installation was relatively easy once I figured out that there's room for the wires and modules in the space between the center console and glovebox - - it won't all fit behind the HU. I subsequently bought a dual fakra antenna converter, but haven't installed it - - I expect that will help with signal drop outs I get on weak FM stations.
Configuration of the Android is fiddly and takes time - - but once you get it set it works pretty well. Note that app installs are painfully slow, so I don't update apps very often once set. I need to make a video, but with a custom launcher (Car Launcher AG) it looks very factory.
I use wifi tethering to supply data to my Android HU. It works pretty well about 95% of the time, although for some reason it will occasionally see my phone's wifi signal (note: you can only use 2.4ghz) but can't get an IP. An on/off reset of the wifi on HU and on the phone will fix it.
I use the Llama app on my phone to automatically trigger tethering. I have a rule that turns on tethering if my car BT is connected and the phone is connected and/or battery power is greater than 50%. It turns tethering off only after 10mins of not seeing the BT connection. That way I can run quick errands with a fast reconnection, but not drain my phone's battery with tethering on all the time.
I use Amazon as my primary music app - - it's not perfect, but unlike the free Pandora app, Amazon allows you to download songs to local and the app also allows you to play your tunes stored on the USB. But Pandora otherwise does a marvelous job with streaming (better, more diverse) music, so I keep and use that one too.
One of the reasons I bought an Android HU was to run the YaV1 app with my Valentine radar detector. Ultimately, I never got around to trying YaV1 and bought a Uniden R3 instead. As such, I can't say whether the HU would run YaV1 well, but I was a bit wary of trusting a cheap Android to multitask and provide timely radar threat notifications. Side note, the Uniden R3 is awesome - - highly recommended. I do miss the threat direction arrows of the V1, but the R3 is otherwise superior. See the Vortex Radar channel on YouTube for more info (no affiliation).
When I get time, I will upgrade to one of the custom firmwares. From what I understand, that would add some features like adjustable sound mixing, app keep alive, and some other features. I'd love it if you could also customize the color pallet of the UI (eg, change font colors from cyan to Cayenne orange or white), but I'm not sure if anyone has done that. Let me know if there's a firmware that does as that would complete the factory look.
In summary, I like the system and have no plans of going back to the PCM. It added some very useful features (like Waze, streaming music, and the Torque app). But I acknowledge that it's not factory-like without spending some time getting it configured just right, which some won't want to bother with. I prefer rotary volume *****, but I've become used to the touch arrows and using the wheel buttons.
I might consider upgrading if there is a next generation HU, with more hardware power/memory, more configurable firmware (UI colors), BT tethering, 5ghz support and a volume ****, but otherwise I'm pretty happy for the money spent (~$400 all in).
Thanks for the review! And the R3 tip - in Alberta we can use jammers and detectors legally; I hit almost $1000 in one month of tickets here once, so I should really look into this!
Almost decided for the Android unit - I'm going to try a PX5, 4GB, Octa Core with Android 8.0 and a 9" screen. It's down to HIRIOT or DCHXing, which probably use the Hot Audio mainboard I think, which has some firmware customization options.
Thanks for the review! And the R3 tip - in Alberta we can use jammers and detectors legally; I hit almost $1000 in one month of tickets here once, so I should really look into this!
Almost decided for the Android unit - I'm going to try a PX5, 4GB, Octa Core with Android 8.0 and a 9" screen. It's down to HIRIOT or DCHXing, which probably use the Hot Audio mainboard I think, which has some firmware customization options.
Yeah, the R3 radar detector rocks. For $400 delivered, there's no better detector IMO. Falsing from blind spot monitoring radars has been pretty much reduced to zero and the Ka performance (the primary LEO band around here) is really good -- it alerts pretty far in advance and off-axis too. With City mode on, it pretty much filters out all the nuisance K band (automatic doors), and those K signals that it catches are often auto muted if you're below an adjustable speed (35mph in my case) -- so as you're rolling up to a grocery store it's not blaring at full volume, but rather a tolerable, configurable level. Two presses of the mute button and that radar frequency/location is marked and permanently muted. It's so quiet once trained.... no more complaints from the wife. Highway mode catches way more K band (in the city), and there's an adjustable "Advanced" mode that let's you determine the sensitivity of the various bands if the default City/Highway modes aren't working for you. I do get some Laser falsing, but it's not terrible and could just be my mounting location -- its narrow enough that I've got it mounted up high to the left of the driver sun visor. I mounted it behind a toll tag, so you really can't see the detector from outside the car, even when looking at the windshield to look for an inspection sticker or dash VIN.
The PX5 Android units appear to be better hardware than the PX3 that I bought -- I didn't appreciate the difference at the time. The one you've described sounds like good specs (4gb/8 core), and there is aftermarket firmware for those units too which is a plus. For those of us with the PX3 hardware, I've found out that PX5 upgrade boards are available for ~$150 delivered. Pending reports of materially improved performance, I might consider that. Good luck.
Do you lose the Park Assist with these Android units?
I tried to read all the posts... Sorry if it was answered earlier.
Do you lose the Park Assist audio and visual warnings when installing such a radio?
I know that you lose the Fade function, but do you still get any sort of sound through the factory speakers?
I can’t speak 100% to the park assist because I don’t have that option, but I am sure you will retain the warning signals as it’s integrated into the vehicles CANBUS system through the MOST adapter.
I tried to read all the posts... Sorry if it was answered earlier.
Do you lose the Park Assist audio and visual warnings when installing such a radio?
I know that you lose the Fade function, but do you still get any sort of sound through the factory speakers?
If you're talking about the bumper distance sensors, they work independent of the head unit and are as stock.
Note that if you're adding a third party rear view camera, you should buy one without the distance lines fixed on the screen. The android head unit has the ability to overlay it's own distance lines that turn/adjust depending on the angle of the steering wheel. Pretty neat feature and makes it seem that much more modern, though not really necessary.
OK, Thank you!
These units have a 70db signal to noise ratio... How is the sound compared to stock? Same same, or noticeably worse?
I don't have the bose option, and my stock system sure lacks power and clarity. The last thing i want to do, is to make it worse...
Sound is comparable with stock. Good enough for most folks, but likely won't satisfy the audiophiles.
Fader balance is only adjustable if you buy the 4 channel MOST adapter from Russia. There's a link around Jan/Feb 2018 in this chain if you want to buy that unicorn (it's hard to find). The fader is essentially balanced f-r with the cheaper, more available 2 channel MOST you buy on eBay or AliExpress. A neutral results in a slightly forward positioned sound stage to the driver which is fine for most people.
I am planning on making the upgrade on PCM 2.1, with Navigation but NO Bose (with an aftermarket old Dennison iPod dock). I noticed at the back of the PCM, that there are MOST cables.
Do I need the MOST adapter? I was planning on ditching the whole MOST setup if I could.
View of PCM 2.1. With Navi, NO Bose, with aftermarket iPOD connection.
04-07-2018, 03:10 PM
