trackball

Yes, that is exactly what I did on my car (a 1997 model). With the odds of finding a working SC cd changer for a reasonable price getting slimmer as time goes on, I skipped putting the relays in, and hardwired my new connection directly to the left and right line level wires. Keep the rest of the wires connected, so that the head unit still can detect the cd changer being present, but take advantage of the audio input you now have.

Empty out the cd caddy, and put it (empty) into the cd changer. If your cd changer is jamming or not reading discs properly, the last thing you want is it continuously cycling forever trying to read or move discs.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

if that is the case then it should work, as long as the headunit recognizes teh CD changer and selects it as the source it shouldn't be a problem.

black_LS

I can't seem to get the signal bleeding to go away on my 98 LS400 with NAK.

At first I had very long wires, but no relay circuit. I hooked up my mp3 player essentially replacing the CD changer (no switch) and it worked, but the CD changer bled through. How can the signals from the CD changer get through if they are not connected at all??

I figured the wires were too long so I made the relay circuit with shorter wires. It switches perfect, but still bleeds when in aux-mode with the mp3 player paused and head unit volume all the way up.

BTW, I tapped the red, green, black, and white wires. There were 2 reds and greens, but I matched them up as per the diagram.

Here's a picture of my temp wiring:

whazzzzuup

iTrader: (11)

What does the wiring consist of with this 4PDT relay?

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

you missed and tapped one of the data wires.

i cant tell which one you did since i dont know where you tapped (Cd changer or headunit) and cant see the pinouts

for the changer all the wires would be on the BOTTOM row of the connector...not teh green/reds in the top since they are Tx lines.

for the headunit..well...there's 1 plug with 5 wires, 4 of which you tap, with no duplicate colors so its kinda simple...

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

it should in theory work just without having to wire 4 spdt relays together

whazzzzuup

iTrader: (11)

Haha! So it seems. Has anyone on here completed an install with it? If not, I will be building your relay system. Thanks, by the way!

Blavatsky

Question for PureDrifter:

I have a 99 LS400 w/o nakamichi....if i don't care about being able to switch to the CD changer (doesn't read well), can I skip the switch/relay part?
Basically, can i strip an RCA cable and crimp the appropriate wires to that orange plug that goes into the stock amp, (Does that make sense?) and then just run that 3.5mm adapater on the other end to my zune?

If so, let me know if there is an easy way to do that ... I guess i just intercept the same wires from page 1 and hook it up to a spliced rca??

Peter_95

iTrader: (2)

do you guys think its worth just buying the harness kit for the sc300 to install an aftermarket unit, or is wiring all the wires yourself a pita?

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

it will work but be aware that the CD changer will still be working and need to have at least one cd in it (on repeat or w/e) otherwise the headunit will NOT select it as a source.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

not really relevant here is it mate....

Blavatsky

I just finished, and overall I am very pleased with the sound!

For anyone doing it this way, the RCA cables are usually + in the center and - on the outside wires when you strip the jacket off (I didn't know that beforehand)

Anyway, just followed the layout on page 1 with the orange plug, but I cheated and used those plastic screw things on the end for my wire splicing..hehe. Worked the first time like a charm, sounds a LOT better than the tape adapter and FM transmitter I'd used.

Overall cost for me: 6$ for the wire stripper and .80 cents for the little tips (already had an old RCA Y adapator).

Thanks PureDrifter!

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

no problem glad to hear you're happy with it

a tip tho, i would DEFINITELY buy a crimper and some butt connectors, those screw caps do NOT work well in cars, and become undone from vibrations. if they short you can say goodbye to anything they are connected to...

trackball

It's been a few months, and I just thought I would report back on how this setup has worked out for me.

The David Navone iPod cable worked great. I wired the cable in so it supplies power to the iPod whenever the ignition is turned on; this keeps it charged and powered at all times while driving the car. With the Apple iPod Touch, another nice side effect is that whenever you turn the car off, the iPod detects the loss of power on the cable, and pauses the audio playback exactly at that spot. That way, the next time you start the car, you just press play on the iPod, and continue from where you left off.

Unlike some of the speculation on here by one or two people, i've had no problems powering the iPod this way (exactly as David Navone said it would work when I emailed him). I've taken several five-hour road trips, with no problems of any kind.

One suggestion I would make to improve PureDrifter's design is to use female RCA connectors on the ends of the wires you run to the CD Changer and Amp. RadioShack sells these, as pictured below. By doing so, this makes it completely plug and play with the David Navone cable without needing any adapters.

I've also mentioned on another thread how happy I have been with the ProFit custom mount for the iPod Touch for the SC400. Needed to add some threadlock to the screws to cut down on some movement from vibration, but otherwise it has been excellent, and everyone who see it in my car is impressed.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

yea, il note this in the original, all the setups i make for friends these days use FEMALE rca heads, which when i had designed/created the initial setups were not locally available.