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IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
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join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

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[Tech] Aftermarket stereo question

If I replace a Kenwood stereo in the Stratus with a Pioneer, can I just unplug the Kenwood and plug in the Pioneer or do I need to make all the splices to all the harnesses all over again. In other words, are the plugs in the backs of the receivers the same.

If I do have to redo the splices, I may do it with a soldering iron instead of the butt connectors Best Buy used. I am going to buy the stereo from Crutchfield.com, as they have a much better selection than Best Buy. They also have the SiriusXM receiver cheaper too.

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

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The connectors are not the same. You'll need to remake your connections.
tcope
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join:2003-05-07
Sandy, UT

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The other problem with BB... they lowered their return time to 15 days. I stopped shopping there to send them a message.

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

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Lurch77

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You think they got your message?

Hall
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Germantown, OH

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I haven't swapped out a car stereo in a long time, but when I used to do it, I always bought through Crutchfield and they would supply a harness that fits the car and then the other end had male or female butt connectors. This way, the original wiring remained intact.
tcope
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Sandy, UT

tcope to Lurch77

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said by Lurch77:

You think they got your message?

Are you implying that I don't understand that one person can't change a company, rather that it takes thousands of people doing the same thing to make a difference? If so, you'd be incorrect.

Also, by letting people know about BB's return policy more people can then make a decision if they want to do business with a company who's return policy is among the worse in the industry. Clearly 2 weeks is not enough time and is BB's attempt to stick customers with products that they can't use. In the example above, it could easily take someone 2 weeks to start installing a radio just to find out it does not do something they wanted.

Lurch77
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join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

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No, not saying that at all. I just thought it was funny how you said it. Made it sound like you're sticking it to the man.

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
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Springfield, MA

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Except with various state consumer protection laws, in the cases of defective merchandise the return policy does not apply. In Massachusetts, even in cases of all sales final they are obligated by state law to replace items that are defective in a reasonable amount of time. It's called the warranty of merchantability under state law. Either way if an item arrives defective or is missing items from the package then they have to refund your money or replace the item regardless of the return policy.
tcope
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Sandy, UT

tcope to Lurch77

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said by Lurch77:

No, not saying that at all. I just thought it was funny how you said it. Made it sound like you're sticking it to the man.

I think I kind of am. There have been many large companies that become complacent and think they can improve revenue by screwing customers. BB is becoming irrelevant in what they sell. With companies like Amazon around they need to do much more.

I will give BB this... they made a good decision in their price matching policy.

Lurch77
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join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

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You mention Amazon as the comparison. They are doing the same type of stuff. The recent free shipping change from $25 to $35 is an example. Some people think they screwed the customer with the move. But Amazon is making out big time. They found that now people are typically buying more or choosing a more expensive item to still get the free shipping. Same exact thing with the increase in their Prime membership fee.
tcope
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join:2003-05-07
Sandy, UT

tcope

Premium Member

said by Lurch77:

You mention Amazon as the comparison. They are doing the same type of stuff. The recent free shipping change from $25 to $35 is an example. Some people think they screwed the customer with the move.

Agreed... and in some cases I've not bought from Amazon because of this change. However, also consider that free shipping was set at $25 for 10 years. Also, with the increase we are told that more items could now be included under free shipping. So there was a certain value in increasing the minimum. Since BB will price match Amazon I'd would have gone to BB to buy less expensive items that Amazon sells (trade off being local sales tax). However, not I won't due to BB's return policy.

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

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Why not join the free My Best Buy program (formerly Reward Zone) and get up to a 45 day return policy? And free shipping on orders over $25. Once you factor in Amazon price matching they beat or match Amazon in all three categories.
tcope
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join:2003-05-07
Sandy, UT

tcope

Premium Member

I think it's $35 and I found no mention of 45 day return policy.

»my.bestbuy.com/about/

Lurch77
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join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

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You're right, they have increased it from $25 to $35 for standard membership. It was $25 the last time I looked it up. Once you reach the middle level (elite) then it is free shipping with no minimum, and 30 days returns. Elite plus gets you the 45 day returns. There is always a catch. Click link and scroll down.
»www.bestbuy.com/site/Glo ··· 00050007
tcope
Premium Member
join:2003-05-07
Sandy, UT

tcope

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Any other major retailer is 30 day return... without having to spend $3500/year. Amazon offers free shipping on purchases over$35 but also only charges $95/year for free 2nd day shipping and unlimited access to moves, TV shows and music. Unlimited free shipping can also be shared (I think with 4 other parties). I once ordered a $150 backpack from Amazon and think it was stolen from my doorstep. Amazon shipped a replacement for free.

We then having BB lowering their return time and offering free (standard) shipping only if you purchase $1500 in items every year. One company is moving to offer more to their customers... the other is moving to offer less for more.

Here is my thing... many companies shoot themselves in the foot by nickle and dimming their customers to make a buck. In the long run it costs them much more. Other companies will accept a hit every now and then in order to make millions. If your a CEO and can't see the forest for the trees, if you don't know how to adapt and change, then you need to find another line of work.

spendmoamonh
@69.118.94.x

spendmoamonh

Anon

wow way to pull this OT and compare amazon to BB (apples to grenades comparison)

The plugs will be different... depending on what disaster is back there you may be able to get a vehicle to radio adapter, you may need to do cutting.

You do know sirius costs money to have right?

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
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Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

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I already have a Sirius subscription (have had one since 2004, can't stand commercials on the radio), but the built in units back then were huge and cost way too much money. Right now I just have the unit sitting loose in one of the cup holders, which you wouldn't call a clean installation. I have to hunch down to change the station, not a good idea while driving.



LazMan
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join:2003-03-26
Beverly Hills, CA

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It'll depend on how the original installation was done...

If they used a vehicle adapter; it won't be bad - if they hacked the vehicle harness, instead of using the adapter, it could be a nightmare.

»www.crutchfield.com/p_12 ··· ?tp=2977

This would plug into the vehicle harness, then the Pioneer (or whatever) harness, that comes with the radio, gets spliced to these tails. Solder is best, but crimps work fine, too...

Lurch77
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join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

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said by spendmoamonh :

wow way to pull this OT and compare amazon to BB (apples to grenades comparison)

Quit whining. The OP's question was answered (which you echoed) before we ventured down another path.

Hall
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Germantown, OH

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said by IowaCowboy:

I have to hunch down to change the station, not a good idea while driving.

Yeah, would make it easy to rear-end someone if you were doing that.
Hall

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said by LazMan:

if they hacked the vehicle harness, instead of using the adapter, it could be a nightmare.

Following up on this, IowaCowboy, mark the wires/connectors on the vehicle side using the Kenwood's wire harness as reference. If they're not marked, locate a manual for that receiver. I do think on the aftermarket side, they are pretty good about using red for 12v power, black for ground, yellow for (gosh, this has been a long time) "accessory" power (keeps the clock set, keeps station pre-sets saved, etc), and so on. Speakers aren't that big of a deal - just disconnect one at a time and see which speaker goes quiet.

LazMan
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join:2003-03-26
Beverly Hills, CA

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said by Hall:

Yeah, would make it easy to rear-end someone if you were doing that.

That's a quality burn, right there...

Well played, sir, well played.

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

Lurch77

Premium Member

In local news, from last night.....
quote:
Officials say the driver of the vehicle, a 25-year-old Green Lake man, was looking down at the radio when he hit the motorcyclist from behind.

The motorcyclist, a 35-year-old Ripon man, was pronounced dead at the scene.

»fox11online.com/2014/07/ ··· n-ripon/
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ImpetusEra
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Re: [Tech] Aftermarket stereo question

You have a perfectly good working Kenwood head unit and a working external satellite receiver. You want to replace both so you don't have to look down at satellite unit to change stations? Unless you're printing your own money to blow why not just undo that bundle of wire and mount it up higher on the dash? Better off putting the money in the bank and saving for a newer vehicle that will have a factory head unit that probably has built-in satellite and Bluetooth.
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Grumpy4
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join:2001-07-28
NW CT

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Re: [Tech] Aftermarket stereo question

From your photo it appears that a sat radio in the radio head location you show will still be far below your street view line of site. maybe I'm missing something. On the plus side, it appears your current head takes a wired input from the sat radio. Beats FM reception based sat signal all to hell and back. If the current head is performing well, I'd sure think about keeping it.

Attach one of these to the dash
»panavise.com/index.html? ··· Sword=ww

with these
»ecx.images-amazon.com/im ··· 300_.jpg

If you want to get all pro installer up on it - pull a section of the outer most dash panel then drill the dash for small split loom width and pass all the wires from sat radio to dark side of dash in said wire loom.

Even though i own two, I do believe that almost every satellite radio is EXTREMELY dangerous to fiddle with while in motion. If the unit's mounting location keeps at least some of the highway view in you peripheral vision, well that just can't be a bad thing as compared to having the unit two feet below your windshield.

When I was slip seat truck driving, i had four gee gaws (sat radio, GPS, phone cradle, and video camera) all on windshield suction cups. If suction cup and glass are clean and frost free, this works very well. Glass mounting area must be free of curves. The glass very near the A pillar is usually too curvy for suction cups.
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TheHarvester
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Re: [Tech] Aftermarket stereo question

For the stereo, butt connectors are just fine. Yo will spend much less time using the butt connectors and it will be safer than solder and tape or even shrink wrap.

I don't know how BB wired it but most reasonable install shops will use a wiring kit that plugs into the original harness and splices into the radio harness. If BB used one, you should also get one so you don't have to cut the original wire harness.

RipTides
join:2002-05-25
Dallas, GA

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I'm just replying to the pic posted..

I just LOVE those Sebrings.. cup holders down by your ankles.. and that cubby, man that thing is useful for stashing your pot near your toes..