General Double Din Stereo

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

Right O

Decided to do away with my standard stereo out of my 1.4 (150) tjet. Just not a lover of blue and me. Had it in my grande as well so im not new to this bit of kit!

Anywhoos went for the kenwood dnx5220bt. What a stereo! Built in parrot hands free, dvd player, divx, satnav, RAC Traffic master etc etc etc. Really makes a big difference to have all the functionality in one.

Going to add the DVB option and reversing camera to it in a month or so.

Managed to track down a replacement surround which matches the dashboard perfectly. Had to strip down the dash somewhat to replace the existing fiat stereo cage.

Anywhoos here she is:-

Hellcat · Jun 6, 2008

What's the details then? Cost? where to buy? Steering wheel controls work?

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

All steering controls work except the mute and track forward and back.

However you can buy an adapter from kenwood which enables these. Currently shows as the grande punto adapter but I believe they are exactly the same (Can Bus) Will be ordering one of these today/tomorrow.

Cost wise the fascia kit was £40 and I managed to get the stereo for £700

Not cheap I know but the penned option cost for nav+ was £900.

I think its good for the money tho as you get a hell of a lot of functionality. Sat nav, speed cams, traffic master life time subscription, dvd player, divx, mp3, usb, reverse camera, tv tuner, DAB, Parrot hands free, audio quality is far far superior and the list goes on!

Like I said previously, the blue and me system is ok but toooo glitchy. I dont care what anyone says you will never get the id tags to work 100%, other issues ive found over the past 2 cars with blue and me include.

Random play is not quite as random as it should be!

Ive yet to find a 100% compatible phone to work with blue and me. (From todays current phones! Im not even gonna comment on that samsung phone that is supposed to be 100%)

USB lockups (tried many different types)

Low USB power (does not power hdd as theres just not enough juice)

SMS reader is a complete waste of time.

Handsfree audio quality is not the greatest

Ipod functionality is shaky at best

For all the die hard blue and me fans, let me tell you this! Ive had 2 blue and me enabled cars. I also have 2 friends of which one has had 2 and one has had 1 blue and me enabled cars. ALL with the same problems as stated above.

So as you have no doubt guessed im not the greatest fan. That said as a freebie you cant knock it.

ChrisUK · Jun 6, 2008

If its the unit im thinking about its atleast £900

. Not sure the steering wheel controls will work either, Not without an expensive custom cable anyway.

Im not a big fan of Blue&Me but it works and it goes well with the car I wouldn't be changing it.

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

Yes it normally is around the 900 mark but managed to get it for 700.

Like I said previously steering wheel controls can be made to work, as the bravo is the same steering wheel config as the grande. Cables approx 40 quid.

The only good thing blue and me has going for it, is the fact its a freebie.

So then we all put up with the shortcomings. Some will even defend it lol!

Here one for you:- Blue and me system has been around for well over 2 years now. As yet, there still are to get the server running for mobile updates. Thats unexcusable.

Oh forgot to add:- This unit is also fully compatible with ipods even plays the video from them

Hellcat · Jun 6, 2008

I want a non-ipod friendly head unit.. down with apple!

p.s. all my blue & me functons are working including ID3 tags and message reader!

Cheers for the info - Might be very useful for those who don't have B&M or want to change the head unit.

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

Interesting what phone do you have?

All functions working 100%

SMS
Voice
Operator Display
Ringtone over speakers

Thats a first for me!!!

bluebravo · Jun 6, 2008

If any electrics were to play up on the dashboard,would the warranty be invalidated now!

IMHO i find the default entertainment system, at least the one in my Bravo very good,theres lots of bass when you want it and is loud enough to let everyone know you are there,and i haven't yet thought to myself that the system sounds crap and i have to get a better ICE,maybe I'm a bit behind the trend these days with massive sub woofers that take up boot space and speakers everywhere, let alone the costs to do all these things, bloody hell i must be getting old:shrug:

Has anyone tried the graphic equaliser on the ICE, you can change it to set presets or your own,plus the loudness button,after much experimenting i found out how to access these options and got the ICE sounding IMHO fantastic, i know everyone to there own opinion but i just wondered whether anyone hadn't gone into the options and decided that it just has one type of preset and thought to themselves it sounds crap and just wanted to get rid of for a new ICE.

Hellcat · Jun 6, 2008

captain chaos said:
Interesting what phone do you have?

All functions working 100%

SMS
Voice
Operator Display
Ringtone over speakers

Thats a first for me!!!

My trusty Sony Ericsson K800i.

I can send texts to myself and the car reads them (Hey Rob, who's the lard arse in the passenger seat? I'm being squashed!). Phonebook and voice calling work fine. Whats the Operator Display?

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

Ahhhhh ive had that sony lol.

network operator display on the dash "o2, vodafone etc"

Your deffo without the phone ringtone via speaker.

As for voiding the warranty lol. Nah I dont think so as your not cutting wires etc. Besides the factory car audio equpment is only covered for one year.

I remapped my grande punto last car and that did not void the warranty so cant see a stereo doing so lol.

Sound quality as standard isnt bad, at least its better than the grande as standard. However the audio processing is never gonna be even close to that of a top end after market unit.

My missus would say the sound out of her phone is the same as my denon cinema speaker system so some people are unaware or easily pleased.

Papa P · Jun 6, 2008

Looks good...and something I "might" consider in the future!

And I can backup what hellcat says..my K800i works with all features of B&M!

But a question for you captain chaos since you have taken the standard Hu out...can you check the back of it and see if there is a pre-out?

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

No there is no pre-out

Standard iso with power connector and speaker connector.

One Steering wheel loom

Also just to note there is no ignition live so you would need to tap this from the electric windows, ciggy lighter or the rear of the fuse panel. That of just turn it on and off manually.

Also guys I dont know what k800i you lot have but its not 100% close but not quite there lol

Papa P · Jun 6, 2008

Cheers for that! I guess it answers a few questions about fitting an aftermakrket sub now!

But as for the K800:

http://service.fiat.de/broadvision/blueandme/SonyEricsson/K800/start_E.htm

The only feature it doesnt support is a user defined ringtone, which I'm not bothered about at all! When a call comes in B&M rings so I know its the phone and shows me on the screen that a call is coming in and who its from!

So its maybe not 100% but its 99% as far as I'm concerned!

captain chaos · Jun 6, 2008

Oh no I agree,

The point I was making was that there are no current phone 100% compatible. Even windows enabled phones do not work.

This im sure could be resolved with blue and me updates which never seem to arrive

Tad-bravo · Jun 23, 2008

I'm currently Improving my sound system from the standard already supposedly improved HiFi system.

I'm not going to change the headunit though I agreed that the B&M interface is kind of stupid and complex for no reason but I'll do with it...

I managed to run an external hard drive thanks to a secondary power supply so I have all the music I want and it works really well.

I currently have a 12" sub in the boot, I will soon replace the crappy front speakers...

Papa P · Jun 23, 2008

How did you get a 12" sub in the boot connected to the standard headunit??

Or do you just have it sitting there taking up space?

Tad-bravo · Jun 23, 2008

I wired a 4 channel 600 watt Pioneer amp to the wires that are going into the standard amp.

the standard amp is located inside the subwoofer and was a pain to reach.

note : all the speakers in the car are powered by the tiny amp in the standard subwoofer in the hifi equiped cars.

the 12" sub is working great and I finally have the kind of sound I'm used to. the standard sub really is crap.

Tad-bravo · Jun 23, 2008

second note : I tried replacing the front speakers but I gave up, they're riveted to the door!

the sound is decent with the standard hifi speakers so it's ok, only the sub needs replacing.

good luck if you don't have the hifi option and want to upgrade the speakers!

Papa P · Jun 24, 2008

Tad-bravo said:
good luck if you don't have the hifi option and want to upgrade the speakers!

:bang::bang::bang:

Tad-bravo · Jun 24, 2008

can you remove the front door speakers cover and take a photo of the speaker?
maybe they're different in a non-hifi car.

just pull the cover that is over the speaker (pull the front side of the grille, the area that is bent)

General Double Din Stereo

Currently reading: General Double Din Stereo

Member

Attachments

zombie nation

Member

Member

zombie nation

Member

Member

zombie nation

Member

aka PuntoSporting

Member

aka PuntoSporting

Member

Established member

aka PuntoSporting

Established member

Established member

aka PuntoSporting

Established member

Similar threads

Currently reading:
General Double Din Stereo