4200 Radio & Satnav upgrade

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
Can you tell me which models you got for front, sides and rear, please, as that's the next job I want to do?

Any modding, or did they fit straight in?

This is what I bought. For the fronts, Focal ISS 170. For the rear/roof deck, Focal ICU130.

The ICU130s were a like for like replacement, I don’t recall any tricky bits fitting them. Made a huge difference on their own.

The ISS170s are brilliant but getting them to work well was a lot of effort. I’d go as far as saying that if sound quality matters to you, don’t change the front speakers unless you are going to change the NIT.

The problem is the strange wiring of the front speakers. The mid range and tweeters are separate components, which is why I bought component speakers to replace them. However they don’t work with a conventional cross-over. A single channel drives both speakers. As far as I can work out, the sound is balanced by having a high pass filter on the tweeter and by the NIT producing a limited dynamic range.

Replacing them with decent speakers greatly improves the overall clarity and depth, but because the full range is driving both the mid-range and tweeter, the high end frequencies are twice as loud as they should be and quite distorted.

I partially solved this by taking the high pass filter off the old tweeters and attaching them to the Focals. It made quite a difference to the top end but the bottom end was pretty terrible, in contrast to the rear speakers that sound great. This set up worked OK for me, much better than OEM speakers, but still disappointing to me.

I tried putting Focal cross-overs in, and also just disconnecting the tweeters entirely. Unfortunately my NIT detected the impedance change and cut the sound completely, as others have found.

The problem really is that the original speakers are terrible, and the NIT has been compromised to avoid making them sound even worse. Which is why I decided to upgrade the lot in the end.

All IMHO by the way, sound can be quite subjective.

This thread is old but very helpful:


And this one from this very forum:

And here is a previous post I made about transferring the high pass filter if you decide to keep the NIT.
A bit of an update on my Focal component installation. I found the sound was not pleasant coming from the tweeters - too much high end overall and tiring to listen to. I realised that with no crossover, the tweeter was being driven by the full dynamic range rather than just filling out the detail at the top end. The only way to make it bearable on a long journey was to set the high end to the minimum on the equaliser.

I tried some Focal crossovers but I had the same problem I’ve read about elsewhere, which is that some crossovers upset the NIT which then shuts off the sound completely.

Fortunately I’d kept the old tweeters and noticed the 2.2 microfarad capacitor which acts as a high pass filter.
d4c6d529a4c8854e2b09e7cbbd381905.jpg


I removed it and soldered it to the Focal tweeter, in line on the positive terminal (any auto electricians probably want to look away now). I glued the capacitor to the speaker mounting.
09df3b419355abed24f47b03d3911642.jpg


I’ve tried it out and it sounds much better. I’ve got the equaliser set back to flat.

No doubt if I knew anything about what I was doing I’d have sorted this out a long time ago, but I thought my experience might help someone else.

I found this helpful page with a bit more information about capacitors as high pass filters.

 
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Sablewolf

Member
Messages
103
Thanks, yes, this thread has been very helpful. I’ve got this tiny step down buck converter that should convert 12V to 7V and deliver 1A.


Hopefully I can just wire this to the correct pins on the white plug, just need to make sure I carefully follow the information earlier in the thread.

I haven’t found a hazard switch I like yet, suggestions welcome.
This is the hazard switch I used (got it from Amazon:7629576296
 

MrJoshua

Member
Messages
175
This is what I bought. For the fronts, Focal ISS 170. For the rear/roof deck, Focal ICU130.

The ICU130s were a like for like replacement, I don’t recall any tricky bits fitting them. Made a huge difference on their own.

The ISS170s are brilliant but getting them to work well was a lot of effort. I’d go as far as saying that if sound quality matters to you, don’t change the front speakers unless you are going to change the NIT.

The problem is the strange wiring of the front speakers. The mid range and tweeters are separate components, which is why I bought component speakers to replace them. However they don’t work with a conventional cross-over. A single channel drives both speakers. As far as I can work out, the sound is balanced by having a high pass filter on the tweeter and by the NIT producing a limited dynamic range.

Replacing them with decent speakers greatly improves the overall clarity and depth, but because the full range is driving both the mid-range and tweeter, the high end frequencies are twice as loud as they should be and quite distorted.

I partially solved this by taking the high pass filter off the old tweeters and attaching them to the Focals. It made quite a difference to the top end but the bottom end was pretty terrible, in contrast to the rear speakers that sound great. This set up worked OK for me, much better than OEM speakers, but still disappointing to me.

I tried putting Focal cross-overs in, and also just disconnecting the tweeters entirely. Unfortunately my NIT detected the impedance change and cut the sound completely, as others have found.

The problem really is that the original speakers are terrible, and the NIT has been compromised to avoid making them sound even worse. Which is why I decided to upgrade the lot in the end.

All IMHO by the way, sound can be quite subjective.

This thread is old but very helpful:


And this one from this very forum:

And here is a previous post I made about transferring the high pass filter if you decide to keep the NIT.

I don’t have the NIT any more, so do you think I could just wire in the Focal crossover?
 

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
I don’t have the NIT any more, so do you think I could just wire in the Focal crossover?

I would guess so, or maybe any cross-over. I’m no expert, just did a lot of googling and trial and error, so might be worth getting some more informed advice.

If you are driving the speakers from a decent modern system, then another easier option is to get co-axial speakers instead of components for the front. In other words, no separate tweeter, just a combined mid-range and tweeter in the bottom of the door, leave the tweeter in the top of the door disconnected. The Maserati Life thread suggests doing this, but not with the NIT in place. Saves any additional wiring, locating the cross-overs etc.

Focal do a coaxial version of the ISS165/170.
 

Sablewolf

Member
Messages
103
Cheers, that does look very neat and simple to fit. May well be the winner.

Also thanks again for all the advice, and the bezel. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have attempted this without your help.
My pleasure - I got so much help and hints on here and ML so I’m glad it helped.
One (manual) mod I did to the bezel was to file the left side (and right to match) of the screen frame back at about 45 degrees as I found my fingers we’re catching the side of the frame when I was adjusting the volume etc on the left side of the screen. I should have modified the 3D print but didn’t notice the issue until I started using it - but it was fairly easy to file, fill to smooth and then respray and refit
 

Masera

Member
Messages
144
You guys are great! So, who is going to help us novice guys by putting together a write up That can hopefully get us into this club?
 

Nahayiah

Junior Member
Messages
27
If you search back in this post you’ll see what I did and how, with photos

The job done is just amazing and is corresponding to the wish of many regular users of the car, I believe that it doesn't have to be you but somebody can do it and it will help a lot of us. :)
 

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
The job done is just amazing and is corresponding to the wish of many regular users of the car, I believe that it doesn't have to be you but somebody can do it and it will help a lot of us. :)

It’s difficult to write a comprehensive set of instructions to cover all situations. A lot depends on individual circumstances - what kind of system do you want to install, what do you already know about ICE etc. Sablewolf’s post covers most of what you need to know.

It might be easier if you have specific questions to answer. I’m sure they will get answered here, if they haven’t been already.
 

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
Since writing my previous post I’ve fixed a problem that I had. The Pioneer unit lost all of the settings every time I switched off. Turns out that the Maserati ISO connector is wired slightly non-standard. The permanent +12V and ACC +12V pins are switched. The permanent +12V keeps enough power to the unit to preserve the memory when the ignition is off.

Fortunately the Pioneer ‘power’ cable allows for this. There are two red wires plugged together and two yellow. Swapping them to two red-yellow connections fixes the problem. It’s mentioned a bit cryptically in the Pioneer installation guide, easier to see with the cables in front of you.
 

Sablewolf

Member
Messages
103
Since writing my previous post I’ve fixed a problem that I had. The Pioneer unit lost all of the settings every time I switched off. Turns out that the Maserati ISO connector is wired slightly non-standard. The permanent +12V and ACC +12V pins are switched. The permanent +12V keeps enough power to the unit to preserve the memory when the ignition is off.

Fortunately the Pioneer ‘power’ cable allows for this. There are two red wires plugged together and two yellow. Swapping them to two red-yellow connections fixes the problem. It’s mentioned a bit cryptically in the Pioneer installation guide, easier to see with the cables in front of you.
Good catch!
My sub woofer keeps running for about 3-5 seconds (bass only) after I turn the car off
And, when I turn the ignition to start, there’s a pause of about 3 seconds (if I hold the key St the ‘start’) position before the starter kicks in..... still trying to figure those out!
(If I turn on the ignition, wait and then engage the starter the car starts straight away)..... where’s my multimeter!!
 

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
Good catch!
My sub woofer keeps running for about 3-5 seconds (bass only) after I turn the car off
And, when I turn the ignition to start, there’s a pause of about 3 seconds (if I hold the key St the ‘start’) position before the starter kicks in..... still trying to figure those out!
(If I turn on the ignition, wait and then engage the starter the car starts straight away)..... where’s my multimeter!!

Maybe that subwoofer has a big capacitor inside that’s holding enough charge to keep it going?

I’ve done a couple more things. First is the critical installation of a Maserati badge as the screen wallpaper.
e808e0345f932289dfc7c1f340f19a61.jpg


Next, I managed to hook up the original aerial on the rear wing of my Spyder as both the FM/AM and DAB aerials. Basically I just connected this cheap splitter in between the original FM aerial and my unit. I already had an ISO to DIN FM aerial adaptor and they all went together very easily.

Eightwood DAB Splitter DAB Aerial... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B077GMM5G9

It works surprisingly well and it means I don’t have to remove a load of trim to fit the windscreen aerial I had bought. For DAB the signal isn’t as strong as a dedicated aerial would be, but I think it will be good enough for me.

In other news, I tried to fit my 12V to 7V converter for the console switch lights, and managed to fry the converter through ham-fistedness. No great loss at £1.80, another one on the way.
 
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Sablewolf

Member
Messages
103
Maybe that subwoofer has a big capacitor in that’s holding enough charge to keep it going?

I’ve done a couple more things. First is the critical installation of a Maserati badge as the screen wallpaper.
e808e0345f932289dfc7c1f340f19a61.jpg


Next, I managed to hook up the original aerial on the rear wing of my Spyder as both the FM/AM and DAB aerials. Basically I just connected this cheap splitter in between the original FM aerial and my unit. I already had an ISO to DIN FM aerial adaptor and they all went together very easily.

Eightwood DAB Splitter DAB Aerial... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B077GMM5G9

It works surprisingly well and it means I don’t have to remove a load of trim to fit the windscreen aerial I had bought. For DAB the signal isn’t as strong as a dedicated aerial would be, but I think it will be good enough for me.

In other news, I tried to fit my 12V to 7V converter for the console switch lights, and managed to fry the converter through ham-fistedness. No great loss at £1.80, another one on the way.
I did something similar in that I changed the antenna over for a joint DAB/FM unit that looks exactly the same (physically) as the OEM antenna - I had the back seats out anyway as I was running the cables for the reversing camera (mounted just to the right of the keyhole for the boot). I think your pioneer probably has an input for a reversing camera?
I have to say the camera is great during the day but not great at night despite my upgrading the reversing light bulbs to LED.
 

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
Yes I have a reversing camera input. I think I will fit one eventually as I have the pre-facelift plastic rear window and any kind of rain or condensation makes it hard to see out of. I’m put off by trying to work out where to run the cable but I’ll do it one day.

I wondered how you had got on with your replacement aerial. That’s got to be the best option overall I would think.
 

Sablewolf

Member
Messages
103
The reversing camera cable I ran from the boot lid, following the other cables (from number plate lights) to the rear left corner of the boot lid. I squeezed the camera cables into the rubber tube the other cables run through (using a bit of silicone grease to help). I then ran the camera power cables to the left reversing light and piggybacked them onto the reversing light cables (I soldered them but you can get press fit connectors that allow you to tee off existing cables). The camera coax I routed up over the left side of the fuel tank (from memory there’s a rubber grommet that I pushed the cable through) and then down behind the rear side panels, along under the seat to the centre transmission tunnel and forward under the centre console (all of which I had out anyway to do the radio fit)
 

Gooner

Member
Messages
443
A couple of more jobs completed.

I got the heater control lights working using Sablewolf’s pin mappings.
98bfd305322afc5508fbd0830925b302.jpg


I found this tiny adjustable DC-DC converter and set it to output 7V. I hope it lasts but it seems OK for now.
d52bde8e5e39a4c946317c93d9394be3.jpg


Then, I tidied up the USB connector under the centre console with this socket. I drilled a hole into the console. I think it would have looked better without the rubber but it covers the screwheads.
60886fdbb133804e685a51d55677d24a.jpg


Just need to rub the bezel down and paint it now.

Still waiting for the hazard switch to turn up.
 
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TimR

Member
Messages
2,656
Replaced my front components with MB Quart QS-165 - They fit in nicely. My original speakers had crumbling foam surrounds :(


Now, next question...

Does anyone know how hard it is to get a pair of phono cables from the cabin into the boot on a Coupé, please?
The actual passing of the lead through the wall isnt diificult. Remove the seat back, place light in the boot space and you will see a route on the drivers's side. Here's a pic to show you where Im specifically talking about- i recently fitted a reversing sensor and used this route...
 

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