Hey all

my MINI has the Harmond Karden sound system but I noticed that the headunit looks exactly the same as the regular sound sytem.
I have a Pioneer headunit sitting at home that a kept from my previous car and was wondering if I should switch it

so my question is : Is the headunit in the Harmond Karden sound system any better than the normal sound system ???

Thx

 

The same headunit is used for both HK system and the standard stereo, but it automatically switches to an HK mode when it is connected to the HK amp. To use an aftermarket headunit with the HK system, you'll need an adapter called the HK Enabler that simulates the factory headunit's HK mode. It was designed by Ian Cull (GBMINI here on NAM), and available from a UK vendor: http://www.newministuff.com/new/shop...uctshow&id=116

 

What do you mean when to say the unit switches when it is connected to a HK amp. Will I lose this setting even if I buy the connections needed ?

 

The headunit communicates with the HK amp through the CAN data bus. When it detects an HK amp connected, the headunit changes to HK mode where it outputs full volume audio to the amp, and controls the amp's volume and other settings through digital commands on the data bus. If you do a straight swap of the headunit without an adapter, you will not be able to control the volume. So if you want the use an aftermarket head unit on an HK system, you need to either bypass the HK amp entirely or use the HK Enabler.

More information about this on Ian Cull's website:
http://www.gbmini.net/wp/2004/04/run...ory_head_unit/
http://www.gbmini.net/wp/2004/06/min...roductionized/

 

website gives lots of info but i cant seem to be able to contact him via the website.
Is he a member on this forum and if not do you know the best way to contact him

Thanx a lot

 

Ian is GBMINI on this forum.