AVH-4300/CDT install thread
06-28-2011, 01:09 AM
#1
AVH-4300/CDT install thread I don't really know why I'm doing an install thread but I am. First I want to say I know jack sh#t about car audio. I've always been into working on engines and some body work but never audio. A lot of this, OK all of this has been a learning experience for me. The car is a 2000 Firehawk.
I PM'd Ian at Kee Audio a while back and told him what I was looking for out of a A/V setup. Sound quality was really important but I wanted the sub to hit hard too. I listen to everything from country, rock, some hip-hop/rap. It's like everything else with cars, you can't have everything.
I knew I wanted a H/U w/ DVD. I don't need bluetooth or navigation and I wanted the biggest display I could fit in dash without too much cutting. I went with the Pioneer AVH-4300DVD.
He modified his premium speaker package a little and I ended up with;
Fronts: EU-61CV components
Sails: EU-6CF
Hatch speakers have been deleted
Sub: HD-1000CF DVC 10', the carbon fiber looks sexy
JL XD700/5 amp. I decided on this because it will push the speakers and the sub all in one. This thing is small. It's footprint is smaller than a sheet of paper.
I picked up an amp rack from 6litre and a bezel from Dennis at Double D Mod's.
I decided to sound deaden the car. I have never done this before and man it's more work than I planned. I have read that you don't have to cover 100% of the metal but I ended up going a little crazy. I started out with a box of HushMatt that I got from Ian. I needed two more boxes and at 160 bucks a box I couldn't swing that. I was talking to Dennis @DD and he suggested Rammatt which is 90 bucks a box.
I talked to Rick@Rammatt who talked me into using his ESOlite open cell foam that is suppose to help cancel out higher frequencies. I Googled the **** out of the stuff but couldn't find much about it. Either people loved it or hated it and said it was a waste of time. Rick had some end pieces left over from some rolls and pretty much gave it to me so I tried it.
I wasn't real excited about using two different sound deadening products in my car. I'm **** about stupid **** like that. But I got what I needed for what one box of Hushmatt costs.
The HushMatt is MUCH easier to work with. It's heavier than the Rammatt. What I mean is the Rammatt has the aluminum backing on it and the HushMatt doesn't. The overall weight is the same but some of the Rammatt's is the aluminum. The Rammatt is also very stringy.
Performance wise I don't know the difference and probably will never know. I doubt the car will sound different on each side.
Here's a pic of the sail speaker w/ the Raamatt
With the Esolite.
Rick said to only put a 9x9 piece behind the speaker. He said anymore than that and it will effect the speakers mid range performance.
I started putting ESOlite on the sides of the quarters and the sails tonight. I'm going to do the doors, kick panels and a few other small places. He said not to worry about the floorboard for some reason. I am fighting the urge to do it but I figure he knows what he is talking about and very well could have sold me more of the stuff but didn't.
I will add some more pics of the interior when I get everything covered.
I read a few other threads were people installed the 4300's in w/o much modifications. I ground down the fins on the top of the opening but that wasn't enough. I could force the H/U in but the back of it was wedging against the dash vents. I had to cut the tray out of the bottom. Dennis hooked me up with some mounts from a vette. I had to drill new holes where it screws to the dash and that was it. They are slotted so you can adjust the depth and I slotted the screw holes up front so I could adjust it side to side.
I don't have any good pics with the bezel on. I had some problems with the H/U and sent it back to Ian. He tested for three days and didn't have any problems with it. It looks like its something with my install but we haven't figured it out yet.
Sub
Amp rack
Bezel
I am going to try to finish it up this week. Thanks for looking.
J
I PM'd Ian at Kee Audio a while back and told him what I was looking for out of a A/V setup. Sound quality was really important but I wanted the sub to hit hard too. I listen to everything from country, rock, some hip-hop/rap. It's like everything else with cars, you can't have everything.
I knew I wanted a H/U w/ DVD. I don't need bluetooth or navigation and I wanted the biggest display I could fit in dash without too much cutting. I went with the Pioneer AVH-4300DVD.
He modified his premium speaker package a little and I ended up with;
Fronts: EU-61CV components
Sails: EU-6CF
Hatch speakers have been deleted
Sub: HD-1000CF DVC 10', the carbon fiber looks sexy
JL XD700/5 amp. I decided on this because it will push the speakers and the sub all in one. This thing is small. It's footprint is smaller than a sheet of paper.
I picked up an amp rack from 6litre and a bezel from Dennis at Double D Mod's.
I decided to sound deaden the car. I have never done this before and man it's more work than I planned. I have read that you don't have to cover 100% of the metal but I ended up going a little crazy. I started out with a box of HushMatt that I got from Ian. I needed two more boxes and at 160 bucks a box I couldn't swing that. I was talking to Dennis @DD and he suggested Rammatt which is 90 bucks a box.
I talked to Rick@Rammatt who talked me into using his ESOlite open cell foam that is suppose to help cancel out higher frequencies. I Googled the **** out of the stuff but couldn't find much about it. Either people loved it or hated it and said it was a waste of time. Rick had some end pieces left over from some rolls and pretty much gave it to me so I tried it.
I wasn't real excited about using two different sound deadening products in my car. I'm **** about stupid **** like that. But I got what I needed for what one box of Hushmatt costs.
The HushMatt is MUCH easier to work with. It's heavier than the Rammatt. What I mean is the Rammatt has the aluminum backing on it and the HushMatt doesn't. The overall weight is the same but some of the Rammatt's is the aluminum. The Rammatt is also very stringy.
Performance wise I don't know the difference and probably will never know. I doubt the car will sound different on each side.
Here's a pic of the sail speaker w/ the Raamatt
With the Esolite.
Rick said to only put a 9x9 piece behind the speaker. He said anymore than that and it will effect the speakers mid range performance.
I started putting ESOlite on the sides of the quarters and the sails tonight. I'm going to do the doors, kick panels and a few other small places. He said not to worry about the floorboard for some reason. I am fighting the urge to do it but I figure he knows what he is talking about and very well could have sold me more of the stuff but didn't.
I will add some more pics of the interior when I get everything covered.
I read a few other threads were people installed the 4300's in w/o much modifications. I ground down the fins on the top of the opening but that wasn't enough. I could force the H/U in but the back of it was wedging against the dash vents. I had to cut the tray out of the bottom. Dennis hooked me up with some mounts from a vette. I had to drill new holes where it screws to the dash and that was it. They are slotted so you can adjust the depth and I slotted the screw holes up front so I could adjust it side to side.
I don't have any good pics with the bezel on. I had some problems with the H/U and sent it back to Ian. He tested for three days and didn't have any problems with it. It looks like its something with my install but we haven't figured it out yet.
Sub
Amp rack
Bezel
I am going to try to finish it up this week. Thanks for looking.
J
06-28-2011, 02:33 AM
#3
^ Very Popular im about to pull the trigger on the AVH-4300DVD also. Don't really like all the modifications that have to be done to get the HU installed, but knowing what the finished product will look like i guess ill have to live with em.
J what trouble exactly are you having with the HU?
J what trouble exactly are you having with the HU?
06-28-2011, 02:50 AM
#4
The thing acted screwy. Wouldn't find a radio station, it just kept seeking. I had to shut the car off and turn it back on to stop. I couldn't go to any other screens except the radio screen.
Pioneer checked it and so did Ian and he said it worked flawlessly. I used the short mounting screws that came with. I an thinks that one of the screws must have been touching something inside to make it act like that. He tested it for three days and had no problems with it.
I should get it back this week. I am going to hook it up but not put the brackets on and see how it works. We really don't know what else it could be.
Ian was real cool to deal with and I really appreciated him taking the time to test it on his own which he didn't have to do. He did say that his wife watched him messing with it all weekend and now she wants one. LOL.
Snake your car looks fantastic!
Pioneer checked it and so did Ian and he said it worked flawlessly. I used the short mounting screws that came with. I an thinks that one of the screws must have been touching something inside to make it act like that. He tested it for three days and had no problems with it.
I should get it back this week. I am going to hook it up but not put the brackets on and see how it works. We really don't know what else it could be.
Ian was real cool to deal with and I really appreciated him taking the time to test it on his own which he didn't have to do. He did say that his wife watched him messing with it all weekend and now she wants one. LOL.
Snake your car looks fantastic!
06-28-2011, 02:54 PM
#5
Yea....THANKS!! Now I have to get her one for her Sequoia...lol! I asked her to mess with it on my bench tester to see of she had any issues with it because she is not an electronics kind of person just to see what happened. I like to cover the bases, plus she was able to some how completely kill the memory on one of my head units one time just by driving my Trans Am. Literally got in to go somewhere and all my stations and EQ settings were gone. I was completely baffled as to how she did it but she did.
Anyway, my thoughts were that if anyone could make it malfunction she could. It worked like a charm for her. Screens came up, menus were all there and stayed there like they were supposed to. I was able to recreate the station scanning issue by not having an antenna hooked up to it but as soon as I put a piece of wire in the hole where the antenna went I picked up a few stations immediately. Not all of them mind you but when I pressed the scan button and pressed it again I could control where it stopped and started so it was working.
I will keep working with you to help you get it right! Just have to trouble shoot it. I have that coming back to you by the way!
Anyway, my thoughts were that if anyone could make it malfunction she could. It worked like a charm for her. Screens came up, menus were all there and stayed there like they were supposed to. I was able to recreate the station scanning issue by not having an antenna hooked up to it but as soon as I put a piece of wire in the hole where the antenna went I picked up a few stations immediately. Not all of them mind you but when I pressed the scan button and pressed it again I could control where it stopped and started so it was working.
I will keep working with you to help you get it right! Just have to trouble shoot it. I have that coming back to you by the way!
06-28-2011, 03:43 PM
#7
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Whenever I turned on the head unit, it seemed like the touchscreen source button was being pressed. When I went to the "Radio" source, it would just keep seeking for stations. It was crazy, I had no idea why my brand new unit was doing that.
Finally, I decided to uninstall all the components and do it piece by piece to see if I could find a solution. Turns out the issue was the PAC SWI-PS steering wheel control module. I had the audio jack from the PAC SWI-PS plugged into the head unit, BUT I did NOT have the wires from the PAC SWI-PS hooked up yet. As soon as I unplugged the jack, the head unit started operating normal again.
I'm not sure if you're also installing the PAC module, but it may be something similar that's causing it to act that way.
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06-28-2011, 05:53 PM
#8
Actually I did have it plugged in but the PAC hasn't been wired up yet.
Hmmm.
I don't have the instructions in front of me at the moment. I can't remember which hole it was suppose to be in. I remember I looked at the instructions forever before I figured it out and still could have had it wrong.
Hmmm.
I don't have the instructions in front of me at the moment. I can't remember which hole it was suppose to be in. I remember I looked at the instructions forever before I figured it out and still could have had it wrong.
06-28-2011, 06:25 PM
#9
Thx I appreciate that J, your stereo build is top notch!!!! I love all the effort your putting into it.
Have you ever thought about using the back up camera feature on the HU? The cameras are real cheap and i hear they have real good quality picture in day or night.
Have you ever thought about using the back up camera feature on the HU? The cameras are real cheap and i hear they have real good quality picture in day or night.
06-28-2011, 06:47 PM
#10
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I DOUBT you had the wrong hole. My head unit only has 2 input jacks, one for the bluetooth microphone and another for the steering wheel control module. I'm sure you had it plugged in correctly, BUT since you didn't have the other wires from the PAC SWI-PS hooked up yet, it was causing your headunit to go crazy. I'm interested to know if you had the same issue I did.
06-28-2011, 07:09 PM
#11
The H/U is getting shipped back right now. I should have it tomorrow. I will test it with and without the PAC plugged in(it's not wired in to the car yet). It would be cool to find out if that's it or not. If it is maybe it will save someone the problem in the future or at least be able to find out about it.
06-28-2011, 09:06 PM
#13
The H/U is getting shipped back right now. I should have it tomorrow. I will test it with and without the PAC plugged in(it's not wired in to the car yet). It would be cool to find out if that's it or not. If it is maybe it will save someone the problem in the future or at least be able to find out about it.
Hopefully we just found your issue with the PAC adapter! I want you to get this thing in and hear it!!
06-28-2011, 10:15 PM
#14
That's no problem. Good call on the the plain box. I had actually thought about the same thing after I shipped it.
I want to hear this thing too. I'll report back about the PAC. If that is it hopefully in the future if someone has the same problem it will save you the trouble you have went through with me. LOL.
I want to hear this thing too. I'll report back about the PAC. If that is it hopefully in the future if someone has the same problem it will save you the trouble you have went through with me. LOL.
06-28-2011, 10:32 PM
#15
I took off from the shop today to try and get this thing done. I got the esolite in the back hatch and finished up the sails. Got the Raamatt in the drivers door.
Doubled up the Raamatt behind the mid and installed the Esolite
Installed the tweeter in door panel. I used the x bracket and what I call a bucket it sits in that came with the tweeters.
Modified the speaker bucket to accept the CDT mid. The CDT is wider at the bottom so it won't sit down all the way. I could have ground the inside of the bucket but don't have any tools at home. So I spaced the speaker up with two small machine locking washers.
Cut a section out of the bottom to get to the terminals
My windows motor are junk and it took most of the day to get it done. It wasn't that hard I just don't have any freakin tool's. I have to run and get something from the shop or my other house. You can kill so much time running to get ****. The window motor had wollerd(sp?) out the holes and split the fiberglass. I made a plate to help support it. I won't go into much detail. I think I am going to do a short write up on it because I've seen the question asked several times on how to fix it.
Doubled up the Raamatt behind the mid and installed the Esolite
Installed the tweeter in door panel. I used the x bracket and what I call a bucket it sits in that came with the tweeters.
Modified the speaker bucket to accept the CDT mid. The CDT is wider at the bottom so it won't sit down all the way. I could have ground the inside of the bucket but don't have any tools at home. So I spaced the speaker up with two small machine locking washers.
Cut a section out of the bottom to get to the terminals
My windows motor are junk and it took most of the day to get it done. It wasn't that hard I just don't have any freakin tool's. I have to run and get something from the shop or my other house. You can kill so much time running to get ****. The window motor had wollerd(sp?) out the holes and split the fiberglass. I made a plate to help support it. I won't go into much detail. I think I am going to do a short write up on it because I've seen the question asked several times on how to fix it.
07-03-2011, 02:43 AM
#16
OK guys you have to check this out.
After the wife went to sleep tonight I decided to work on the car. I got the H/U back from Ian a couple days ago but I've been so busy at the shop and mowing grass I hadn't had time to mess with it.
I soldered up the harness this morning double checking everything.
I installed just the H/U and the wiring harness. Amp is hooked up but only the rear speakers are wired off the amp.
Started with just the rear speakers hooked up off the H/U and it worked fine. I messed with the H/U for about 20 minutes; changing stations, changing settings and even watching a DVD.
This H/U is pretty damn sweet.
I started to think I was crazy. I installed the two top brackets on the H/U and it still worked fine. I'm thinking ****, Ian is never going to believe me. I'm embarrassed I sent the thing back.
Then I changed two things at once. I hooked the PAC SWI up and the lower left hand bracket and it started acting like it did before! I was happy and upset at the same time. More happy because it was doing it again.
I took off the lower left hand bracket first. Still did it!
Check this **** out!
2nd video of exactly the problems I had before
It's the PAC SWI hooked to the H/U but not wired into the car!!!!!!!
TruBloodTransAm you were right!! Please tell everyone you know about this. Ian you do the same. I am going to start another thread about this to help anyone in the future.
I unplugged it and plugged it back up several times to make sure that was the problem.
Ian, this is exactly what it was doing before. Please pass this info on to Pioneer.
Ian, thank your for your patience with me and your help.
After the wife went to sleep tonight I decided to work on the car. I got the H/U back from Ian a couple days ago but I've been so busy at the shop and mowing grass I hadn't had time to mess with it.
I soldered up the harness this morning double checking everything.
I installed just the H/U and the wiring harness. Amp is hooked up but only the rear speakers are wired off the amp.
Started with just the rear speakers hooked up off the H/U and it worked fine. I messed with the H/U for about 20 minutes; changing stations, changing settings and even watching a DVD.
This H/U is pretty damn sweet.
I started to think I was crazy. I installed the two top brackets on the H/U and it still worked fine. I'm thinking ****, Ian is never going to believe me. I'm embarrassed I sent the thing back.
Then I changed two things at once. I hooked the PAC SWI up and the lower left hand bracket and it started acting like it did before! I was happy and upset at the same time. More happy because it was doing it again.
I took off the lower left hand bracket first. Still did it!
Check this **** out!
2nd video of exactly the problems I had before
It's the PAC SWI hooked to the H/U but not wired into the car!!!!!!!
TruBloodTransAm you were right!! Please tell everyone you know about this. Ian you do the same. I am going to start another thread about this to help anyone in the future.
I unplugged it and plugged it back up several times to make sure that was the problem.
Ian, this is exactly what it was doing before. Please pass this info on to Pioneer.
Ian, thank your for your patience with me and your help.
Last edited by LilJayV10; 07-03-2011 at 03:33 AM.
07-03-2011, 10:04 AM
#20
No problem!! I will pass this on to Pioneer as they have guys who do alot of this kind of thing but apparently were not aware of this one.
Love the thumbs up on the one video...that is hilarious!! It's like see...I told you I wasn't crazy!
I am just glad it is working for you!! I believed you by the way, in fact I never doubted that you were having an issue, I just thought it was something simple which it usually is and in this case was but you never know until you test it out.
Now you have to finish it up and tune it!
Get some video of that up!!
Love the thumbs up on the one video...that is hilarious!! It's like see...I told you I wasn't crazy!
I am just glad it is working for you!! I believed you by the way, in fact I never doubted that you were having an issue, I just thought it was something simple which it usually is and in this case was but you never know until you test it out.
Now you have to finish it up and tune it!
Get some video of that up!!