New radio install for my 325is - premium sound )

[Luciano36]

Hey, nice write up! I'd like to add that, for those people on an even tighter budget, this HU might suit you right:

http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DEH-4300UB-Receiver-Control-MultiColor/dp/B004CLYOFU

I just finished installing it in my car and I love it. A little less "flashy" than the 6300 models, the light colors can be customized and its look sort of "matches" the overall look of an E30 dash. No Pandora though.
I listen to my music via iPod connected to the HU all the time, and the unit charges the iPod as well! That's all I need :)

Now I got to paint the rim with satin black and I am OK to go! I am also trying to seeif I can build a nice iPod holder...

My two cents

Thanks for the photos! gorgeous! I'll post some of mine soon.

Aloha!

Luciano

PS: I also need to thank Luke for his advise and help for the install.

[DRTSRFR]

Nice job!

My two cents...I also painted the trim ring. Don't prime before using Fusion. It's intended to bond to the plastic.

[QUiKSR20]

Glad to see more people benefiting, Pics always help.. Good to know on the priming.

[e30 gangsta]

I have the same HU its great! Nice install!

[QUiKSR20]

No Problem Anthony, Glad you benefited from this thread were all here for the same thing to help each other out and learn about E30s :)

[Alpine30 Wolf]

Nicely done and just what I needed. My Pioneer DEH-6300UB just arrived this morning and I'm pumped to put it in. Thankfully I saw this because now I'll be doing the exact thing with the faceplate. Thanks for the detailed guide/write up.

[QUiKSR20]

Nicely done and just what I needed. My Pioneer DEH-6300UB just arrived this morning and I'm pumped to put it in. Thankfully I saw this because now I'll be doing the exact thing with the faceplate. Thanks for the detailed guide/write up.

Glad it helped you guys!

[StereoInstaller1]

Wow that HU matches up really well with the BMW amber and it has Pandora control - but does anyone know if it can Bluetooth stream with the optional bluetooth add-on module?
I want a headunit that I don't have to plug in on the front-panel an iPod connection.

As an update, the DEH 6300u has been discontinued.

The replacement is basically split into 2 models (please give me a 3rd in this chassis, with high volt outputs!) where one has more goodies and the other, less..kinda.

So, here is the deal: the DEH44 ($115 at Walmart local to me) has all the exact same stuff as the 6300, but also adds HD radio.

With virtually the same face, the DEH64 is $20 more. It has full A2DP audio streaming, but you should check compatibility first. It also has full BT handsfree calling and includes a separate mic. I cannot speak for the quality of the A2DP or the BT system, but generally Pioneer does well.

For some retarded reason, Pioneer left HD radio out of the nicer one. Oh well, FM sucks anyway, even in HD. Get an 8GB thumbdrive and put a ton of 192K.WMA rips on it and enjoy. Even searching is easy, nearly intuitive to me.

Both have the stupid 2 F/R or F/S preouts, the stupid low output voltage, but do have the same look, the same colors, the same high pass filters. Overall, my fav deck right now.

I would love to see one of these plugged into an Audiocontrol 6XS...that would be killer SQ and get sub level control too.

Luke

[r3vRob]

So recently I picked up a 325is w/ Premium sound and when I went to listen to it there was this piercing sound.
Sometimes it was worse sometimes it was less, sometimes it wasn't even there.

Stock Radio


So after tons of searching and posting a video for you guys to diagnose we determined it was the amp and I had either,
replace the amp ( stupid ) or replace the head-unit and amp.

I elected for the later as I dont even own tapes anymore. So my hunt began for a new head-unit but I had some requirements that were non negotiable.

• Had to match the BMW illumination ( or be pretty close ) Nothing more annoying than green buttons when everything is amber.
• Had to work with iPod/iPhone ( i have a lot of music on an iPod )
• Had to sound good! ( dont need explaining here )
• Couldn't be super expensive ( im not cheap but wasnt looking to go crazy )

I did some research and saw a ton of people recommended a used Nakamichi but they were pricey and from what I read had issues over time,
My second pick was either a BMW Business CD43 or C33 modified for AUX input but these were pricey for the performance + I would have to dremel my dash to fix it.

After posting about the problems I was having with the stock unit Luke ( stereoinstaller1 ) recommended a Pioneer DEH-6300UB for good sound quality,
price and a good overall match in the E30 dash.

So while at the local Best Buy I went and checked it out in person and liked it so I went online and found it for $129.99 here : http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...EH-6300UB.html

Best buy price matched it and I was on my way, It helped not needing to purchase a mount kit as the E30 takes a DIN radio perfect without one and also
not needing a wire harness or antenna adaptor since we will be modifying the stock wiring to eliminate the amp.

First I removed the stock radio by popping open the two tabs and inserting the appropriate allen key, radio slid right out.

( ignore the shift knob I just got the car and it was on it ) Being replaced with ZHP knob.



At first I was like wholly crap what a mess where do I start, but after looking I see they had some sort of common ground we
could eliminate and also that the power / remote / antenna power were all separate from the twisted pair stereo wires.



So after separating and taping the wires a little everything was nice and neat. I then proceeded to connect all the wires per
the sticky for bypassing the amp which worked 100% perfect.



Cool its install time, When installing I looked at it and thought hmmm theres gotta be something I can do to calm it down a little.
It looks good but could look better :



Its the trim ring! Its flat which fits the dash nice but its shiny. I know the radio is too but cant really change that.. What to do? hmm.

Sand / Prime / Paint w Krylon fusion satin black for plastics..



Painted & Installed





Cool now that we have the front installed time for the trunk.. Process in a nutshell :

Removed drivers side carpet, removed antenna ( 2 bolts + wire harness etc )
Removed one bolt holding amp and then unplugged amp and throw into the closest garbage.

Separate the wires out :



Taped the Amp ( turn-on / Ground / Power ) out of the way which leaves just the twisted pairs behind. Now wires these up per the "Amp bypass Sticky "



Button up trunk and we should be in business!! All I can say is WOW after a little playing with the settings the premium sound speakers come to
life with a new headunit.. A 5 channel amp and a Luke box may be in my future sooner than im thinking but this sounds great for what it is.

One of the beauties of this unit is the colors can be changed to not just amber / green but to 1000s of color shades and the Keys and LCD can be changed separately.

These are the settings that worked best for me matching the stock lights

• LCD - R 35 / G 10 / B 5
• Keys - R 16 / G 12 / B 11

After setting these up your unit should look like this ) pics can be deceiving it matches almost 100% perfect!
I tried to match the keys to the buttons on the dash and the LCD to the clock.





Its wierd why my camera detects the hvac buttons as yellow but you can see the USB logo is the same.




Hope this thread helps anyone else looking to replace there radio with something much nicer and rather cheap with good results,
If you have any questions feel free to ask.

heres a question for you, wanna come on down to ewing and help me with my install?

[Slicktop_serg]

Radio rem

Hey guys i need help. Can someone please tell me how to get the radio out -__- i have a pioneer in already but i wanna switch it out and i dont know how to get it :hitler::hitler::hitler::hitler::hitler: its pissing me off lol . Help me Please and thank you.

[QUiKSR20]

heres a question for you, wanna come on down to ewing and help me with my install?

Just saw this, Did you ever get yours done? If you did not and were willing to head here I would have no prob doing for you.

[QUiKSR20]

Hey guys i need help. Can someone please tell me how to get the radio out -__- i have a pioneer in already but i wanna switch it out and i dont know how to get it :hitler::hitler::hitler::hitler::hitler: its pissing me off lol . Help me Please and thank you.

Stock radio removes with 2 screws but if you already have aftermarket they usually have some sort of release mechanism. Best bet would be to check pioneers website for a .pdf manual of some sort.

[Slicktop_serg]

Stock radio removes with 2 screws but if you already have aftermarket they usually have some sort of release mechanism. Best bet would be to check pioneers website for a .pdf manual of some sort.

Thanks bro :o