I should mention, I didn’t plug it any of the smaller stock connectors nor did I use any of the additional wiring from the new unit (mic, etc.)
After all of the marketing hype, a speaker is just a dumb, round thing that moves back and forth however you tell it. The key is to move it in the correct way which takes a lot of high end power. You could install a $15,000.00 set of Focal Utopia component speakers with active crossovers, and it's still going to sound like garbage when you turn up the volume if you're still running the stock amplifier.
Problem is; I am not sure how much of a music you will be hearing, when you have the valves open on these cars....
I installed mine today, went fairly easy once you get under the dash and clip the zip tie securing the wiring harness. Question - am I missing something? Or, is there no sound adjustments; i.e. bass, treble or balance with this radio?
You can through the audio system settings, this is the menu path from the user manual: Image Unavailable, Please Login
I bought one too and it's on the way... just wondering about you guys listening music. I am old and maybe deaf, but in sport mode, over 3000 RPM"s when valves open, there is absolutely no chance of listening or understanding the music, unless you play very very loud. Idling and normal mode the music and radio is audible, but not very useful. Unless you keep it under 2000 rpm's on the freeway in 6th gear, and asphalt is smooth i.e. no road noise, there is no use for a radio... just my opinion. Maybe my car is louder, I don't know. All stock exhaust.
Lots of people confuse loudness with distortion. By the time you turn up the volume loud enough to overcome the engine, it sounds like total crap because you're asking the system to produce music louder than it is capable of. With a high quality amplifier with sufficient power, you'll be able to turn up the volume and it won't sound "loud" per se, but you'll notice that it's drowning out the engine because there is so much sound pressure.
Hey Guys, Anymore updates on this radio.? Spotify/Pandora/Navi audio through vehicle speakers/phone call audio.?? Pro's //Con's [other then orange color displayed] I like its appearance and natural aesthetics to blend in with our interior's. Thanks in advance.!
has been working great for me. Playing music over Bluetooth. Waze audio instructions working as well. Have not made or received any phone calls. Install was a snap. Direct replacement and no wiring harness. looks like it belongs. Sounds better than the stock unit. the orange color bothers me less everyday. For the price - can’t beat it.
I just hooked up mine last night but I hadn't had a chance today yet to play around with it I'll report back
I had this radio in my E30 because I was chasing something factory looking. My thoughts: Pros: 1. Looks clean and simple 2. Bluetooth 3. Integrated mic is pretty good 4. Taking calls is easy Cons: 1. Orange light on display is pretty dim and only really as the picture at night 2. The Bluetooth shares no song data with the unit so you'll only see "A2DP" on the head unit. You can forward and reverse songs though 3. Power antenna lead stays hot all the time. Not an issue with the F430, but any car that has an extending antenna will have it extended always (annoying on the E30) 4. A bit underpowered compared to nicer units.
Just finished putting in the Conti TR312UB-WH (white display version of the OP) and I've got a few takeaways. My system as of a couple days ago consisted of the 6112 Navi head unit, JLA MX500/4 amp in the factory cradle, Alpine S-S65C 6.5" component speakers in the doors, and 2 51/4 subs in the OEM box. Sounded okay but the 6112 was the problem child in this setup as EVERYONE knows. One thing that Conti/VDO did on this head unit was go two-tone with a dark gray face and black buttons. They did this only on the Silverline series with the white backlighting. I saw someone on another forum had painted it matte black to match the buttons and his dash. Brings back the factory look. So, I did this as well. Not sure if the faceplate is made from some weird plastic or what but it did not paint well at all. First attempt caused the entire faceplate to have a wrinkle finish just like the plenum cover. Stripped it and tried again. Second attempt resulted in a smoother finish but not as smooth as I would have liked. Color was off too, but close enough to match the surrounding black. Now it looks like an OEM factory radio from a non-descript company. - Sound is much improved over the previous Becker. - Menu functions are a little cumbersome but nowhere near the Becker. - RDS feature on the FM dial (displays the song name, etc) only functions if the location is set to something other than US. - BT audio works as you would expect after figuring out the pairing process. - BT phone calls are much improved. (Not sure if I was using the internal mic or if it was pulling from the wired mic from the 6112 that I have mounted on the ceiling/dome light housing) - Two hour drive last night coming back from Galveston TX along dark winding roads told me one thing for certain. The white background is too bright. The display alone is enough to light up most of the center console. - System was plug and play with the Becker unit but I did lose the key off playability of the Becker. If I would rewire the connection, I'm sure I would get it back, but I wasn't interested in doing that. The backlighting is the dealbreaker for me, due to the brightness of the panel. If it was reversed (black background/white digits) I think I could deal with that but it's pretty bright. Thinking I may pull it and put in the Blaupunkt Bremer instead. We'll see
Any chance you can add some pictures of your radio display...in regards to over brightness.? Thanks for your feedback.. So far it seems most are Happy with the radio's performance especially in comparison with the stock 6112 and for the money how can you argue with that? I've had some interest in the Keinzle radio the one with the navi display found more commonly with the Porsche classic car upgrades.. Thanks in advance
Ask and you shall receive. The pictures were taken in a blackout garage, no lights except for dash idiot lights and radio. I tried to get an accurate representation of how much light there is in the cabin but it was difficult to do without a tripod, etc. Hopefully, this will give you some idea. Honestly, looking at the pics, compared to actual, it's pretty close. Pics were taken with a Galaxy S22 Ultra in either regular or night mode with one taken in pro mode to allow settings to be adjusted. Most of the pics were shot in Night mode since even on a long exposure, I wasn't able to capture an accurate brightness level comparable to what was observed with the naked eye. Image Unavailable, Please Login F1.8 1/20s 6.7mm ISO 1250 AWB No flash (for reference - garage lights still on obviously) Image Unavailable, Please Login F1.8 1/2s 6.7mm ISO 4000 AWB Nightmode (red glow is from my voltage guage mounted in the console (covered up for following pics) Image Unavailable, Please Login F1.8 1.2S 6.7mm ISO 4000 AWB (Nightmode) Image Unavailable, Please Login F2.2 1/4s 2.2mm ISO 2500 AWB No flash/Nightmode (From outside drivers door - window down) Image Unavailable, Please Login F2.2 1/4s 2.2mm ISO 2500 AWB No flash/Nightmode (from outside passenger window - window up 36% tint) Image Unavailable, Please Login F1.8 2sec 6.7mm ISO 3200 AWB Manual/Pro mode (this is a fairly accurate level of brightness in the cabin) Image Unavailable, Please Login F2.2 1/4s 2.2mm ISO 1600 AWB/default photo settings (wide angle shot showing the sun when I am driving)
you could fit some tint to the screen to dim the backlight, although that wont help the buttons, i would have thought the menu would allow a backlit setting?
Hello Wally, I see what you are talking about..I'm on the fence if that's a deal breaker..Since I do very little nite driving with the F430.. Thanks for posting and great detail.
I read your posts and bought the the Goodman radio. Wow. Just wow. Night and day. For $150 it has to be the best $ for $ update you can do. Sounds 3x as good and instantly connects to my phone. I spent almost $3k on the Scudaria Audio upgrade and was happy but not delighted. Add this head unit and sounds as good as my new 7 series rather than my 95 XJS, which was equall only in appalling stereo quality…. This little unit doesn’t look ‘that’ bad, I have the Ferrari unit if I sell and it is AWESOME! I have the amp, there’s a video on YouTube on how to change the radio, it took 25 minutes. Do it! Here’s a link to the video, watch it if you have the amp! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
I just fitted this one. Took all of 10 mins, standard harness, sounds great. It took me longer to remove the old unit than to fit the new unit. Really simple, sounds so much better. Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
Here’s what the CD option looks like. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hi Joey. Nice! I couldn't find the link to the CD version. Would you happen to have it by chance? Also is it direct plug-and-play like the non-CD version? Wonder what year your car is, but its buttons look immaculate! Have they been redone at all ?
