grumpin Posted February 20, 2021 Share Posted February 20, 2021 On the right I see a binder clip, and I wonder what its holding. Ha! That’s a great idea! I use a trash bag twist tie to hold mine up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 On the right I see a binder clip, and I wonder what its holding. Ha! That’s a great idea! I use a trash bag twist tie to hold mine up! That would work. But the binder clip is pretty quick. While I'm in and out and in and out with the bezel it works well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted February 20, 2021 Author Share Posted February 20, 2021 That would work. But the binder clip is pretty quick. While I'm in and out and in and out with the bezel it works well. Got the radio installed today. A dozen wires soldered and heat shrunk, then convolute over them. And it works! However, the old radio only had 11 wires as the LB/R instrument light wire wasn't connected. So I went looking for it since I wanted to have that feature work on this radio and I knew it should have been in the 3-conductor plug going to the original radio. Yep, there it was - along with the plug itself, laying in the middle of the levers for the HVAC controls. No wonder sometimes the controls didn't want to move properly. http://www.garysgaragemahal.com/uploads/6/5/8/7/65879365/florida-man-42_orig.jpg strikes again! And again. And again! Anyway, I'm really, REALLY impressed with this radio. Several things are sooooo much better than the old radio. For instance, the settings stay when power is disconnected, and there are a TON of settings. And those settings make a huge difference in the sound, so I didn't want to lose them. Another difference is that the clock sets automagically. Neither Blue nor Janey's Merc does that. Plus, with this one you can have two Bluetoothed phones in the cab and you can answer which ever one rings. Not so with Blue or the Merc, they only let one be "active" - whichever connects first. And I also figured out how to share my iPhone's contact and call info, which wasn't the easiest setting to find. So now I can easily make calls, see who is calling, etc. Speaking of which, I called Janey several times and tested the mic in various places. It isn't all that directional, but it seemed to work very well up here, so I think I'll put it up there tomorrow. Then I'll be ready for the connectors when they come in on Monday, assuming they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctubutis Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 Got the radio installed today. A dozen wires soldered and heat shrunk, then convolute over them. And it works! However, the old radio only had 11 wires as the LB/R instrument light wire wasn't connected. So I went looking for it since I wanted to have that feature work on this radio and I knew it should have been in the 3-conductor plug going to the original radio. Yep, there it was - along with the plug itself, laying in the middle of the levers for the HVAC controls. No wonder sometimes the controls didn't want to move properly. strikes again! And again. And again! Anyway, I'm really, REALLY impressed with this radio. Several things are sooooo much better than the old radio. For instance, the settings stay when power is disconnected, and there are a TON of settings. And those settings make a huge difference in the sound, so I didn't want to lose them. Another difference is that the clock sets automagically. Neither Blue nor Janey's Merc does that. Plus, with this one you can have two Bluetoothed phones in the cab and you can answer which ever one rings. Not so with Blue or the Merc, they only let one be "active" - whichever connects first. And I also figured out how to share my iPhone's contact and call info, which wasn't the easiest setting to find. So now I can easily make calls, see who is calling, etc. Speaking of which, I called Janey several times and tested the mic in various places. It isn't all that directional, but it seemed to work very well up here, so I think I'll put it up there tomorrow. Then I'll be ready for the connectors when they come in on Monday, assuming they do. Along these lines (number of available settings, Bluetooth, etc.) I bought this for one of the Taurii... I'd imagine there's a Metra kit to install this into my truck. I have all the brushed-aluminum trim that Kyle on FTE sent me some time ago, I'm mostly waiting on time & warmer weather (story of MY life, I guess). https://www.crutchfield.com/p_110CMR3710/Jensen-CMR3710.html?tp=72334 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 Along these lines (number of available settings, Bluetooth, etc.) I bought this for one of the Taurii... I'd imagine there's a Metra kit to install this into my truck. I have all the brushed-aluminum trim that Kyle on FTE sent me some time ago, I'm mostly waiting on time & warmer weather (story of MY life, I guess). https://www.crutchfield.com/p_110CMR3710/Jensen-CMR3710.html?tp=72334 There's a kit. And a pair of harness adapters if you want to make it plug into what your existing speaker wiring too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted February 21, 2021 Author Share Posted February 21, 2021 There's a kit. And a pair of harness adapters if you want to make it plug into what your existing speaker wiring too. I looked at something like that for Big Blue, Chris, as it seemed a good way to get a screen for a backup camera. But my use of the medium-duty bezel for the switches precluded having a slide out screen as it wouldn't clear. However for your truck it should work well, and with the kits you should be able to bolt it in and plug it in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted February 21, 2021 Author Share Posted February 21, 2021 I looked at something like that for Big Blue, Chris, as it seemed a good way to get a screen for a backup camera. But my use of the medium-duty bezel for the switches precluded having a slide out screen as it wouldn't clear. However for your truck it should work well, and with the kits you should be able to bolt it in and plug it in. Got the microphone for the Sony radio installed. And then made a couple of calls to test it out. The party to which I was calling said it sounded loud and clear. But it wasn't as clear on my end as I'd expected, so I after the calls I did some checking. Turns out there is a feature to set which speakers the phone's sound comes through. It was set to "Front" and I set it to "Rear" so the sound will be from the speakers in the Highliner that are much closer to the ears. But for whatever reason that feature isn't available when the unit is being used. Only when no audio source is selected and the clock is being displayed. So at this point I think the radio installation is done, with the exception of the rear mount, and I got a notification today that it is on its way. As is the OX shifter cable. So later this week I may be able to install both of those. And the Molex connectors came in today. Yep, Sunday via USPS. They seem to be trying to outdo the others as the connectors weren't due until tomorrow. And the shoulder harness bolt I sent John went out on Friday and was received on Saturday. Go USPS! So tomorrow I can connect up the Mission Control switches and put the dash pad/cover back on and the interior will be done. Well, there are few little things, like changing out the blue LEDs on the aftermarket gauges for white ones and lining the storage unit with foam or somesuch to keep rattles down. And then there are the hooks I want to put in the Highliner for the GMRS radio's microphone cord. But, at least "essentially done". Maybe Tuesday I can start installing relays for the fog and backup lights. Then we have some errands to run on Wednesday so plan to take Big Blue on them to test things out. Last, here's the mic for the phone: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 Got the microphone for the Sony radio installed. And then made a couple of calls to test it out. The party to which I was calling said it sounded loud and clear. But it wasn't as clear on my end as I'd expected, so I after the calls I did some checking. Turns out there is a feature to set which speakers the phone's sound comes through. It was set to "Front" and I set it to "Rear" so the sound will be from the speakers in the Highliner that are much closer to the ears. But for whatever reason that feature isn't available when the unit is being used. Only when no audio source is selected and the clock is being displayed. So at this point I think the radio installation is done, with the exception of the rear mount, and I got a notification today that it is on its way. As is the OX shifter cable. So later this week I may be able to install both of those. And the Molex connectors came in today. Yep, Sunday via USPS. They seem to be trying to outdo the others as the connectors weren't due until tomorrow. And the shoulder harness bolt I sent John went out on Friday and was received on Saturday. Go USPS! So tomorrow I can connect up the Mission Control switches and put the dash pad/cover back on and the interior will be done. Well, there are few little things, like changing out the blue LEDs on the aftermarket gauges for white ones and lining the storage unit with foam or somesuch to keep rattles down. And then there are the hooks I want to put in the Highliner for the GMRS radio's microphone cord. But, at least "essentially done". Maybe Tuesday I can start installing relays for the fog and backup lights. Then we have some errands to run on Wednesday so plan to take Big Blue on them to test things out. Last, here's the mic for the phone: Looooooking gooooood! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted February 21, 2021 Author Share Posted February 21, 2021 Looooooking gooooood! Thanks, Jim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpin Posted February 21, 2021 Share Posted February 21, 2021 Thanks, Jim. Nice! Yeah, the mafia couldn’t get USPS to deliver on Sunday, but Amazon can. Kinda scary! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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