Hello Everyone..

Bought a used '08 Convertible S w/ the H/K HU. I've done some poking around here looking at all the sticky threads and the links to other threads, etc etc.

Some of you guys and gals have some nice setups!

I get the vibe that in 2015 getting a replacement HU to work in my H/K mini is easier. I feel (correct me if I'm wrong) that a lot of the issues talked about in the 5-10 year old posts were about getting a new HU to talk to the factory amp, etc. My local installer says that there is a $55 box that fixes all that, and a $99 box that lets the new HU talk to the steering wheel.

So, if any of that seems out of line, let me know.. if not..

my question is does anyone have a recommendation for a good HU? I don't want to cheap out here, but I don't need a flip out monitor either. At minimum I need an aux-in for my iPhone Pandora. Bluetooth would be nice.

Any help would be appreciated!

- JB

 

The cable you need is called the H/K enabler (search that term). I picked one up from a NAM member, along with an alpine HU and the MFSW controller already wired in.

I kid you not... It was a 15 minute install (since he wired it already) from opening the door to leaving the finished project. There are 12 screws involved to do the job. The easiest mod I have ever done.

The alpine unit wasn't the most amazing thing, but it had the BT and iPod functionality, and worked great. I'm sure it may be a bit more involved if doing it for the first time, but it may still be under an hour to do the entire job.

Since this is in my showcar, I decided to step it up a notch and install a Pioneer AVH-X7500BT 1 DIN with 7" flip out screen. I was warned the pioneer was not going to fit, and they were kinda right (I'm 1cm off of perfection due to cabling right now). Having the huge screen is really nice for inputting/controlling and navigation, but the actual interfacing with the hard wired iPhone 4 is kinda clunky (but that could be just because I'm not use to the nuances of it yet). I lost the MFSW capability for some reason, but I'll work on that.

The best part was that the sound system really came alive after replacing the stock HU. When they say the speakers are pretty good, they mean it. I was hoping the HK enabler would be a good stop-gap until I gutted the whole system, but I honestly don't see a need until the amp dies.

I'm reusing that alpine into my new 06 that has the basic OEM sound system in it.

My recommendation is check out Crutchfield's site, and give them a call. As you will find others have said - they really do have the best customer service of any company anywhere. Friendly, accurate advice, and willing to help on both pre and after sales to get you up and running. You can find a budget friendly HU with the features you want pretty easily.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

 

Thanks Jamez

You said something I heard somewhere else - about the "Amp dying". Is that common? Is it true that once the amp dies, it's very expensive and people often opt to replace the entire system (HU, speakers and all)?

Thanks!!

JB