[BrewCitySinner]

I went back and forth as to which color to do the radio in. I thought all blue would be too much, so I went with a white backlite. Which matches the needles and odometer display.

I also added the iPod dock they offer and that thing is everything I wanted.

Lastly they did all the updates and some moisture damage repairs. I don't know if it's the dock or updates or both, but the radio sounds better than ever.

 

[hd4cruzin]

Looks great. When I did mine I changed the faceplate to blue to match my gauges. But yours is a nice alternative.

 

[tsigwing]

If I ever decide to mess with the audio system (and I'm doing a pretty good job of resisting), I am going to have them add the rear aux input and pre-amp outs to the stock HK unit.

 

[tOSUSteve]

Keep the connector for the IPod as dry as possible, if it gets wet, dry it ASAP. They do not handle water very well!!!

 

[OKBigD]

If I ever decide to mess with the audio system (and I'm doing a pretty good job of resisting), I am going to have them add the rear aux input and pre-amp outs to the stock HK unit.

I thought about doing the same thing when I did my stereo upgrades... But the cost of the led color change, plus rear input upgrade with preamp outputs was actually going to be more than buying a new Alpine head unit (which has bluetooth) and the hawg wired install kit...

The Alpine isn't marine rated but has been soaked several times with no issues...

 

[BrewCitySinner]

Keep the connector for the IPod as dry as possible, if it gets wet, dry it ASAP. They do not handle water very well!!!

Thanks for the heads up! Maybe I'll just wrap it. I had to do a 30 pin to 8 adapter since I'm using my iPhone 6. May actually be a good thing with what you're saying.

Thanks again! Great info.

 

[BrewCitySinner]

If I ever decide to mess with the audio system (and I'm doing a pretty good job of resisting), I am going to have them add the rear aux input and pre-amp outs to the stock HK unit.

The ipod dock came with the second plug for the radio, so now I can tap in to the rear outs and at least have high level inputs for a rear amp. I'm running a front amp the same way now and it works great. The preamps may be a waste of money in my opinion.

 

[Speedie]

I just did the same to my HK unit. My backlight panel board went out so sent in to Iron Cross for repair and updates.

Updated Backlight LEDs to blue to match my gauges. Repaired pbx. Updated all software. Updated shake and moisture protection. Added rear Aux connector.

Reinstalled and it looks and sounds GREAT! With the rear AUX added, it is now always an option on my screen, but I can live with that.

Great work. Fast turn around. Great communications!

Now this damned snow needs to go so I can hear it on the road.

 

[BrewCitySinner]

I'm glad you mentioned the better sound. I kind of figured it must have been the updates or the iPod dock addition, but I think the radio sounds much better than before I sent it to them

I agree on the snow! Hoping some rain shows up and washes the salt away too!

 

[09Sharknose]

I thought about doing the same thing when I did my stereo upgrades... But the cost of the led color change, plus rear input upgrade with preamp outputs was actually going to be more than buying a new Alpine head unit (which has bluetooth) and the hawg wired install kit...

The Alpine isn't marine rated but has been soaked several times with no issues...

I did the same thing. I do however have a rain cover for my alpine that covers the entire unit and keeps it dry.


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[HeatWave]

The ipod dock came with the second plug for the radio, so now I can tap in to the rear outs and at least have high level inputs for a rear amp. I'm running a front amp the same way now and it works great. The preamps may be a waste of money in my opinion.

IMO, The preamp outs are by far the best mod that can be done to the HK if you want the best sound quality out of it. The preamps bypass the (internal) amplifier section of the HK, which has always sounded "muddy" to me.

There is a reason why all high end systems have preamp outs...

 

[BrewCitySinner]

The ipod dock came with the second plug for the radio, so now I can tap in to the rear outs and at least have high level inputs for a rear amp. I'm running a front amp the same way now and it works great. The preamps may be a waste of money in my opinion.

IMO, The preamp outs are by far the best mod that can be done to the HK if you want the best sound quality out of it. The preamps bypass the (internal) amplifier section of the HK, which has always sounded "muddy" to me.

There is a reason why all high end systems have preamp outs...

Actually if the gain is properly tuned, High levels can sound just as clear as line level. That's what the gain is there for. Most treat it like a volume knob, which it is far from.

I run Bag End speakers on my home theater system and they suggest using the high level inputs when driving the subwoofer amp for a better matched sound from fronts to sub.

High levels got a bad rep because most people don't know how to properly tune an amplifier. And most don't certainly have an O-scope to do so. So line level is simply easier.

 

[racer-x]

Actually if the gain is properly tuned, High levels can sound just as clear as line level. That's what the gain is there for. Most treat it like a volume knob, which it is far from.

I run Bag End speakers on my home theater system and they suggest using the high level inputs when driving the subwoofer amp for a better matched sound from fronts to sub.

High levels got a bad rep because most people don't know how to properly tune an amplifier. And most don't certainly have an O-scope to do so. So line level is simply easier.

WOW....

So the entire aftermarket world puts pre-amps on their radios for no reason?

The entire point of pre-amps is to bypass the radios internal amplifier and avoid the inevitable distortion or noise that any internal amp will produce, thus avoiding amplifying that same distortion or noise.
Running speaker levels to a sub amp is no big deal because Bass dedicated outputs are not as vulnerable to the distortion or noise that a full range amp or speaker would be (these issues tend to be more noticable at higher frequencies.

To say that high level inputs will be just as clear as line level really avoids alot of facts...not to mention physics.

 

[BrewCitySinner]

Actually if the gain is properly tuned, High levels can sound just as clear as line level. That's what the gain is there for. Most treat it like a volume knob, which it is far from.

I run Bag End speakers on my home theater system and they suggest using the high level inputs when driving the subwoofer amp for a better matched sound from fronts to sub.

High levels got a bad rep because most people don't know how to properly tune an amplifier. And most don't certainly have an O-scope to do so. So line level is simply easier.

WOW....

So the entire aftermarket world puts pre-amps on their radios for no reason?

The entire point of pre-amps is to bypass the radios internal amplifier and avoid the inevitable distortion or noise that any internal amp will produce, thus avoiding amplifying that same distortion or noise.
Running speaker levels to a sub amp is no big deal because Bass dedicated outputs are not as vulnerable to the distortion or noise that a full range amp or speaker would be (these issues tend to be more noticable at higher frequencies.

To say that high level inputs will be just as clear as line level really avoids alot of facts...not to mention physics.

Never said "no reason", I said because most people don't have the equipment to properly adjust the gain levels and it's much less finicky with line level or low level inputs.

Noise can come from either high or low level inputs. That's more times than not, a ground loop issue on the power side.

The best solution is balanced line inputs, but they're very bulky and expensive which is why you don't see them much other than in studio settings.

 

[09Sharknose]

ALL amps have some level of distortion, so using hi level outputs sends that distortion into your aftermarket amp. You can adjust the gain so that the amp doesn't transmit as much distortion, but the distortion is there permanently on hi level outputs. I've only seen one amp that actually sounds better using hi level and that's the RF PBRs. They don't tune very well using low level input. Other than that, low level has always been better sound quality imo.


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[HeatWave]

WOW....

So the entire aftermarket world puts pre-amps on their radios for no reason?

The entire point of pre-amps is to bypass the radios internal amplifier and avoid the inevitable distortion or noise that any internal amp will produce, thus avoiding amplifying that same distortion or noise.
Running speaker levels to a sub amp is no big deal because Bass dedicated outputs are not as vulnerable to the distortion or noise that a full range amp or speaker would be (these issues tend to be more noticable at higher frequencies.

To say that high level inputs will be just as clear as line level really avoids alot of facts...not to mention physics.

Thanks, I couldn't have said it any better...

I never saw too many high level inputs at IASCA... LMAO!

 

[kvnshphrd]

I really like the white and blue set-up. Makes the radio face pop and IMO is much easier to see. Great job! Looks awesome!

 

[HeatWave]

I like the white and blue also!!!

 

[BrewCitySinner]

I really like the white and blue set-up. Makes the radio face pop and IMO is much easier to see. Great job! Looks awesome!

Thanks! I figured my F150 has a similar look, why not my RG.

The Daymaker helps pull it all together as well. Although my GPS makes it harder to see the radio from this angle.