mbenz06

ok so I just got back home from taking my car to get the radar and subs installed. Apparently, its not possible to get either of these installed because everything in this car is fiber-optic. Is this true?!? The guy said it would cost around $800 to get the wiring to install the subs. Any suggestions?

PoaMike

all fiber-optic?... I have no idea but this makes mikey sad =( and for any of you that have fiber-optic home theater you know that its a pain to mess with and VERY expencive ($800 sounds right) I really dont understand how the entire car is fiber tho. were u replacing the sub or adding a hidden fiberglass housing?
P.S. I dont think Benz would screw us over like that... but Iv been wrong before... alot =)

-Mike

mbenz06

not replacing a sub but adding 2 12's. They said it couldnt be done. As for my radar, I wanted to get my V1 hardwired so I wouldnt have the stupid cord dangling down to my cigarette lighter but they said they couldnt do that either...

RLE

<<ok so I just got back home from taking my car to get the radar and subs installed. Apparently, its not possible to get either of these installed because everything in this car is fiber-optic. Is this true?!? The guy said it would cost around $800 to get the wiring to install the subs. Any suggestions?>>

So, Vinnie said the car was all fiber, did he? I have been told that the W204 has switched from a CAN bus network to LAN bus but that's wire, far as I know. I am going to look at the input to the rear SAM (behind the right side trap door in the trunk) and see if I can see any fiber screwed to the back of the board.

In the meantime, finding switched 12V for a radar detector is no small matter in the 204 because everything is so well concealed. First, forget about finding it over the inside mirror.

I intended to connect to the back of the 12V power outlet in the glove box and after removing the right side kick panel (after pulling back the door welting) and removing the panel above the passenger foot space (requires a 20X4 Torx wrench) I found that the power plug is NOT switched so I put it all back together and patch up the cuts on my hands.

The next closest 12V source is indeed the cigarette lighter but I'm not going to try again until I find out the color code of the 12V lead to it because it probably feeds forward to the big transverse wire run across the lower firewall inside which I saw when I had it apart previously. And then left to the underhood fuse panel.

You need to find a more professional shop, I think.

pcb

Your installer is correct.

The W204 and W203 do use all fiber optic wiring.

I learned this the hard way as I had to rip out all of the wires in my W203 in order to put in TV's and a sub.

Same deal in the new C350.

Part of why i paid for the upgraded stereo and MM system in my new merc was the huge pain that the fiber optic wires caused me before.

With your radar I suggest going with a battery powered version so you don't need the dangling cord.

Learn from my mistakes and don't try to take out the fiber optics.

PoaMike

^ Thats a shame, I wanted to put in a fiberglass showcase in the trunk (not like pimp my ride, a very clean one) But companies will have to make the change to fiber optic mods. It will be in most cars in like 4/5 years. The change will def. be a big pain...

Krytech

Bummer. I was hoping to put my old custom JL 10" dual bandpass box in the trunk. I was/am thinking that I could tap into the existing speaker wires (hopefully in the trunk) and use a low-level converter to get the audio into my amp. I'm still hoping this can be done, because the high level audio isn't fiber?! I'm just looking to reinforce the low end a little bit, nothing offensive from outside the car.

RLE

<<The W204 and W203 do use all fiber optic wiring>>

This is a false statement.

To prove it to yourself, just open the rear fuse panel access cover and observe first, nine brown ground wires attached to a ground stud. Then look at all of the wiring to the rear light hanging in space as it goes to the taillight plug. All wire, all copper.

Fiber is used for data or light transmission, not voltage. Glass, being a non-conductor obviously passes no voltage to electrical components. It is possible that the LAN is fiber, connecting the front and rear SAMs but all the electrical components need 12V and ground which BTW is always brown in German cars since time immemorial.

If you think I might have a tiny bit of experience in data transmission by fiber, you could be right. Think AT&T.

themperor

I have a Porsche (204 is the wife's car) and it is probably the same setup. The headunit is connected to the amps with fiber but there is the usual wiring going to the speakers. The problem lies in the OHMS of the speakers. The ones in my porsche are 2ohms and although you can get subs that will configure down to 2OHMS it simply just doesn't work.

Add to that, the factory amps are usually tuned to the speakers and don't have enough punch for an aftermarket sub.

I guess we will have to wait for the market to catch up and release fiber optics amps. There are alternatives such as electronic convertors for the CANBUS but it's not cheap.

XJ9

W204 uses MOST (plastic fiber), CAN, and LIN.

the MOST fiber bus is used for multimedia only, carrying audio and control between the radio, amp, cd, SAT. CAN is used to connect all of the major control modules in the vehicle allowing the normal hundreds of wires to be replaced with just 2. LIN is a single wire serial bus used for low speed interconnect between main modules and things like switches. there are interfaces for all of these networks with varying pricing and availability.


you can connect an aftermaket sub using a line output convertor hooked in at the factory sub leads. you will probably need additional equalization to clean up the signal which is adjusted for the factory sub. otherwise you end up getting nothing below 40-50 hz . something like the JL audio cleansweep works well.

PoaMike

^ Thanks, very useful.

kmoss07

i had my two kicker 12s installed in the trunk no problem...$160 total

PoaMike

^Replacing the sub that was there already? Or just a strait Hardwire install?

jay_mark_paul

Go through the W203 threads on sub installs and do what we had to do. No difference.

RLE

<<I had my two kicker 12s installed in the trunk no problem...$160 total>>

Multimedia package, or not?

When I inquired about improving the Bose setup in my W203 four years ago, the shop said they couldn't do much.

V Weazy

Run the V1 to you fuse box and tap the power to the cig fuse and ground the negative on a chassis nut. You should be able to hook up the subs with a RCA ADAPTOR.