Installed my Pioneer 80prs yesterday, but the dimmer feature doesn't seem to work

[nrubenstein]

yup I know. I'm just not sure how much those stock speakers can handle. The 80prs said it pushed out 50W RMS.....I left 2 channels of the amp capped, so if I decide to do it, I will splice it to the amp wiring in the trunk. I'm actually very satisfied w/ the sound for now. I just adjusted the fader slightly to the front to compensate.

And yes painting the trim made a big difference imo....I think it blends in w/ the dash a lot better. I sanded it slightly, applied a couple coats of Duplicolor etched primer & Duplicolor trim paint (which I used to shadowline the exterior E30 trim).

You misread that. :) It's around 50W peak, and 20 or so RMS. Plenty to run the rears, but there's no reason not to have some headroom for the fronts.

[dwvw]

I have an 80PRS as well, amazing deck.
About painting the trim ring, best stuff is SEM Color Coat in Satin Black.
As for running an amp instead of using the built in power. Any aftermarket head unit really puts out 12-18 watts of power per channel. If you really want to hear how great your system can sound, disconnect the rear speakers, put the deck in 3 way mode, run the front outputs to your tweeters and the rear outputs to your mids. Full active for the win.

[Gordo0208]

the pic above has the trim piece around the stereo painted matte black. Originally it was shiny black like the face of the headunit.







I can't get over how great this headunit is. I really wanted a CD43 at first, but to me this stereo suits the interior of this car perfectly....not to mention the quality of sound and the capabilities it has. Its incredible the amount of bass the stock premium speakers give out (considering its' size), that the old cassette deck was preventing it to do.

Looks great! And thanks for the review I've been looking for a stereo to replace my C33. I put it in originally because BavSound makes an awesome integration kit which enables me to incorporate HD Radio and Sirius but, now they disconit ued the model 2 and only sell model 1 and 3. Model 3 is $300, I rather change out the radio than pay $300 for their integration kit. If this radio sounds as good as you say than I can't wait to hear it in my car as I have a full E36 HiFi system including the amp and all ten speakers. Should be epic.

[audiquattrot]

p.s. I wish I had a 993 to put this in lol

[audiquattrot]

You should still power the front speakers. It's worth it, and all you need to do is splice it in in the trunk. :)

Edit: Also, painting the trim ring is a great idea. I need to do that in the 993.

yup I know. I'm just not sure how much those stock speakers can handle. The 80prs said it pushed out 50W RMS.....I left 2 channels of the amp capped, so if I decide to do it, I will splice it to the amp wiring in the trunk. I'm actually very satisfied w/ the sound for now. I just adjusted the fader slightly to the front to compensate.

And yes painting the trim made a big difference imo....I think it blends in w/ the dash a lot better. I sanded it slightly, applied a couple coats of Duplicolor etched primer & Duplicolor trim paint (which I used to shadowline the exterior E30 trim).

[nrubenstein]

btw i never put any review on the system....

All i can say is wow, about the Pioneer DEH-80PRS.....I had my doubts about fitment, sound & aesthetically, matches PERFECTLY with the Amber/reddish interior console......and just replacing the headunit alone (w/o the sub) completely transformed the premium sound. If I had known changing the headunit alone would've sounded like that, I may have not even opted for the sub/amp! The capabilities & tweaking of the EQ seem endless with this headunit. I opted to NOT amplify the speakers externally & I'm just using the MOSFET pioneer built-in amp, and it is super clear from my perspective. I just adjusted the fader a bit more to the front to balance out the sound.

The quality of Luke's box is awesome. Fits in there like a glove & is super clean...and doesn't rob much of the trunk at all.....good for me since I haul a ton of snowboarding gear in the winter. The $40 8" Infinity sub is great.....I have 2-channels bridged to the sub, and it gives it enough bass to fill in what the stock speakers don't produce. Not thumping bass, but just right for what I was looking for.

Thanks again Luke for the writeups on R3V for the wiring stuff.

And MANY thanks to E30Darkknight for helping with the install!!

btw, i painted the stereo trim surround using Duplicolor trim paint, since the surround came super shiny like the headunit.....thought it blended better w/ the console.

You should still power the front speakers. It's worth it, and all you need to do is splice it in in the trunk. :)

Edit: Also, painting the trim ring is a great idea. I need to do that in the 993.

[audiquattrot]

Got a post paint pic?

the pic above has the trim piece around the stereo painted matte black. Originally it was shiny black like the face of the headunit.

I was able to source a few more factory (*working!) slider radios for my cars.
but if (read: when) they inevitably poop out, I'll be looking into this.

thank you based op.

I can't get over how great this headunit is. I really wanted a CD43 at first, but to me this stereo suits the interior of this car perfectly....not to mention the quality of sound and the capabilities it has. Its incredible the amount of bass the stock premium speakers give out (considering its' size), that the old cassette deck was preventing it to do.

[RUFFLZ]

I was able to source a few more factory (*working!) slider radios for my cars.
but if (read: when) they inevitably poop out, I'll be looking into this.

thank you based op.

[Gordo0208]

btw i never put any review on the system....

All i can say is wow, about the Pioneer DEH-80PRS.....I had my doubts about fitment, sound & aesthetically, matches PERFECTLY with the Amber/reddish interior console......and just replacing the headunit alone (w/o the sub) completely transformed the premium sound. If I had known changing the headunit alone would've sounded like that, I may have not even opted for the sub/amp! The capabilities & tweaking of the EQ seem endless with this headunit. I opted to NOT amplify the speakers externally & I'm just using the MOSFET pioneer built-in amp, and it is super clear from my perspective. I just adjusted the fader a bit more to the front to balance out the sound.

The quality of Luke's box is awesome. Fits in there like a glove & is super clean...and doesn't rob much of the trunk at all.....good for me since I haul a ton of snowboarding gear in the winter. The $40 8" Infinity sub is great.....I have 2-channels bridged to the sub, and it gives it enough bass to fill in what the stock speakers don't produce. Not thumping bass, but just right for what I was looking for.

Thanks again Luke for the writeups on R3V for the wiring stuff.

And MANY thanks to E30Darkknight for helping with the install!!

btw, i painted the stereo trim surround using Duplicolor trim paint, since the surround came super shiny like the headunit.....thought it blended better w/ the console.

Got a post paint pic?

[audiquattrot]

btw i never put any review on the system....

All i can say is wow, about the Pioneer DEH-80PRS.....I had my doubts about fitment, sound & aesthetically, matches PERFECTLY with the Amber/reddish interior console......and just replacing the headunit alone (w/o the sub) completely transformed the premium sound. If I had known changing the headunit alone would've sounded like that, I may have not even opted for the sub/amp! The capabilities & tweaking of the EQ seem endless with this headunit. I opted to NOT amplify the speakers externally & I'm just using the MOSFET pioneer built-in amp, and it is super clear from my perspective. I just adjusted the fader a bit more to the front to balance out the sound.

The quality of Luke's box is awesome. Fits in there like a glove & is super clean...and doesn't rob much of the trunk at all.....good for me since I haul a ton of snowboarding gear in the winter. The $40 8" Infinity sub is great.....I have 2-channels bridged to the sub, and it gives it enough bass to fill in what the stock speakers don't produce. Not thumping bass, but just right for what I was looking for.

Thanks again Luke for the writeups on R3V for the wiring stuff.

And MANY thanks to E30Darkknight for helping with the install!!

btw, i painted the stereo trim surround using Duplicolor trim paint, since the surround came super shiny like the headunit.....thought it blended better w/ the console.

[audiquattrot]

I figured it out! The settings on the headunit had the dimmer function off! Turned it on. Problem solved.

[BlackSpeed66]

"C302" is a large white (about 2" by 2") connector under the dash near the pedal box & steering column. Some of the items for the dash are powered through this junction such as the radio. Unfortunately, it seems the factory wiring for the radio (and fader illumination) does not offer the option to dim with the light switch rheostat. It may also depend on what kind of voltage the aftermarket unit is looking for too. I tried my unit with a known connection that was "dimmable" and the radio still would not dim.

[audiquattrot]

Should be a grey/red wire.

I noticed in Luke's radio wire thread that he mentioned (changes to white wire in C302)....would you happen to know what C302 refers to, and or if it changed after a certain E30 model yr?

[AndrewBird]

Should be a grey/red wire.

[audiquattrot]

pics of the system E30darkknight and I installed yesterday.