tkhuuyip

After a year and a bit with the Bose system, non-navi, on a 2003 CLK55 w209, I've finally decided to upgrade the head unit. I've been to several local audio shops in my city asking for advice about keeping the Bose speakers because I did not feel like rewiring everything. They told me about it being fiber optics, but through research its just after the amp is where it becomes fiber optics. But the problem with the Bose speakers is their resistance being 2ohm's, where most aftermarket audio is 4ohm's. So I decided to gut everything and start fresh.

This build was on a budget, I am still a student attending uni, and I need as much saved up as possible.

Headunit: Clarion VX400 - $200 (Purchased locally)



Speakers: F: Alpine Type R SPR-174A - Free from a friend R: Clarion SRR1625- Free from my brother (all are new)
Subwoofers: 2 12's Alpine Type R - $100 (got it cheap from a friend)
VW Harness: $15 (purchased from Advance)
Radio Adapter: $10
Amplifiers: Sony Xplod -$100, I know sony is not good in car audio, but it was all I had, But I decided to buy an MB Quart amp for the subwoofers
MB QUART FX1.600 - $180 (Both purchased from visions)
Wires: $30 (Brian Reimer)
All the places listed above are in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Total: $635

Note on install, you may need to modify the factory speaker mounting bracket.



For my alpine speakers, the bottom portion were sticking out a bit.
Marked the spots were I had to cut. Used a dremel.



After:



There is a piece that sticks out on the bottom part of the bracket, You have to cut it.



After: Fits perfectly



Before Pics of the old Bose Unit:



For the 12v accessory and Dimmer Wire, I went to the cigarette lighter for them, Thanks to 2MCHCAR, for his post about this, otherwise I would still be looking for it.

12v accessory = Black/Yellow Wire
Dimmer/Illumination = Blue/Grey



Tapped into them



At first I used a Self tapping connector, But they didn't work that well. So I just spliced them, and used a butt connector.

Tested before putting it back in.



I tucked everything on the driver side, using the cover underneath the steering wheel

3 Torx bit screws hold it in place.



This tool is so handy! Without it, it would have been a b*tch to feed the rca's through.



Here is a pic of how I tapped into the fusebox for a remote wire for the amps
Sorry its blurry




Before:



After:

No Dash kit, Still waiting on it. So I used foam in the mean time.



Here is a picture of the wires being spliced and additional wires being added to them to extend them to the amp

The grey extended wires are for the Rear Speakers
The Copper extended wires are for the Front Speakers

Sorry I forget which is which, but you have a 50/50 chance haha.

MarcusF

A PAC-OEM2 would have allowed you to keep the BOSE amp and OE speakers. The PAC-OEM2 takes the unbalanced signal from the head unit, converts it to balanced signal (same as your OE head unit produced), and that signal is then passed to the BOSE amp. That setup would have been

headunit ----> PAC-OEM2 ----> wiring harness adapter.

The original PAC-OEM2 converter is no longer in production but new old stock units are available for $28 at Amazon. I've heard there is a replacement for the out of production OEM2, but I don't remember the model number.

Are you going to use the steering wheel controls with the new headunit?

tkhuuyip

LOL, too late now, don't wanna go through that again.

And perhaps down the road, I do find that reaching over to the head unit whenever I want to change songs is quite inconvenient.

MarcusF

This is a DIY from when I did mine. It covers the head unit and the steering wheel controls. It was plug and play - no factory/Mercedes-Benz wires were cut.

tkhuuyip

I have to admit, that looks like a very clean install you've managed. Very thorough. Good job! The way you had everything planned seem so organized. Mine is roughly drawn with squares. haha

ricardovasco

Thats nice tkuuyip! I'd like to replace my radio/tape for the genuine MB nav. Is it simple? Just plug and play?

thas what I have in my CLK 500 2004.
https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...ipod-mod-2.jpg

thats what I want to buy :

http://www.ebay.de/itm/ws/eBayISAPI....:X:RTQ:DE:1123

Do you guys think I can have the brazilian maps on it?

Regards
Ricardo

megacrazy

Holy thread revival.

This is false information though. The Bose amp uses fiber optics to connect to the head unit so the PAC OEM2 would be useless. The amp needs to be replaced with an aftermarket one to add a new head unit. The connections to the speakers from the amp are normal wire.

In other words Ricardo if you want a new head unit and you have the Bose you need a new amp and new wire connections from the amp to the head unit.

ricardovasco

Thanks megacrazy. You mean, even if I buy the genuine one I need to replace my amp?
I don't know why these sellers offer the nav saying its just plug & play.

Regards

megacrazy

It all depends on what you have in the car right now.

Regardless, stay away from that OEM one. It's basically so outdated it's almost unusable. Get any aftermarket head unit with navigation. They can be had for about the same price.

ricardovasco

Thats what I have now.

megacrazy

I am not sure if you have the Bose speakers or not. Look in the back seat see if there is a Bose logo anywhere. If you don't have the Bose system you can pretty much install any headunit you want. All you need is a harness adapter.\


Take a look at the Dynavin MC2000. That's a direct fit.

NardoNZ

I'm using a Dynavin MC2000... will be selling that soon probably want to upgrade to the facelift decor

megacrazy

I was going to do that but then I realized spending 1k on that is not really worth it. How did you like the Dynavin? Was it the Android version?

I will probably install mine in the next couple of days.

MarcusF

False info? Really?

I can tell you with 100% certainty that the original equipment head unit that was in my car did not have a fiber connection to the BOSE amp. I know because I did all the work and it's wired exactly as you see here. This isn't a guess on my part or something I overheard a stereo installer say.

I currently have an OEM2 that connects an Alpine HU with the original equipment BOSE amp. The only fiber connection from the head unit in my car was to the OE CD changer in the trunk. I've also personally helped other people with BOSE equipped CLKs upgrade their HU. In each case; no fiber from the HU to the AMP. I've heard the same warnings about fiber and the steering wheel controls. My original equipment steering wheel controls work with my Alpine. Plug and play using the existing wiring harness and no fiber is involved. I know, I wired it.

Best luckon your install, let us know how it turns out.

ricardovasco

Thanks MarcusF. I've talked with the seller of this product :

http://www.tradesolution.hk/e/ptxweb...oduct/999.html

He said that if my amp is Bose ( optical fiber connection) I need to umplug it and use the internal amp of his product. It has its own amp. Not sure about the quality though. Anyway, It comes with all face plate, cables,etc. I just need to umplug my amp and plug the wire cables in the new head unit.
What do you guys think?

megacrazy

Are we talking about a W209 here? Look up the wiring diagram in WIS. The Bose amp has outs to all speakers in the car as well as D2B IN and OUT. That's it. That's how the headunit connects to it.

Again, if you have the Bose speakers you cannot use a headunit with a built in amplifier because it will expect to see 4ohms. Bose speakers are 2ohms. This will put strain on the built in amplifier and burn it out. The least you will have to do is get an amplifier - 2 if you want to keep the center channel.

MarcusF

What you're saying now is different than the "false info" you originally claimed that I supplied. You originaly said "The Bose amp uses fiber optics to connect to the head unit so the PAC OEM2 would be useless."

I haven't seen and worked on every year CLK. However I am familiar with non-facelifted 209s. The W208s and non-facelifted 209s do not use fiber to connect the head unit to the BOSE amp. An aftermarket HU can be connected to a PAC converter box, and the output of the PAC box can be plugged into the factory wiring harness. This will allow the owner to keep the BOSE amp and speakers.

Why is a PAC box necessary?

A BOSE amp works properly with a balanced input signal which has equal impedances to ground. Most aftermarket audio systems have an unbalanced output which connects one of its signal conductors to ground and has a non-zero impedance at the other signal conductor. The reason PAC audio built the OEM2 is to interconnect unbalanced and balanced equipment. That covers the input side of the amp, however the output side of a BOSE amp is important as well. BOSE builds their own amps and their own speakers based on their own proprietary specs. Because of these specs, BOSE speakers should not be used with non-BOSE amps. In addition, BOSE amps should not be used with non-BOSE speakers. These are generalities and there are exceptions, but if you're going to bypass the BOSE amp, plan on replacing the speakers.

If you have a US spec 2003 or 2004 W209 your OE radio is either an audio 30, a COMAND 2.0, or a COMAND 2.5. If you would like to confirm whether your audio 30, COMAND 2.0, or COMAND 2.5 uses fiber for the BOSE connection; with the ignition off, simply unplug the orange fiber plug from the rear of your HU. Now turn on the radio. The remote CD changer won't work, but the radio and cassette work fine.

If don't have a COMAND, but are unsure about the model number of the head unit in your car, look at the following photo of a W209 head unit. If the front of your radio looks like the top photo, then the bottom photo is what the back of it looks like. The red arrow points to the port that is used for audio output. The green arrow points to the port that is used for fiber. The orange cables that plug into that fiber port do not go to the BOSE amp. If you have an MP40 attached to your HU or COMAND, that will use fiber but that fiber does not go directly to the amp. On the flip side, if you have an MP40, I doubt you are considering an upgrade.

megacrazy

I am not sure what your experience is but take a look at the diagram:

Bose Amplifier2.pdf

According to the diagram all speakers go to the amp and in turn the amp provides D2B out. How are the speakers then connected via regular wire to the headunit?

MarcusF

Nowhere in any of my posts, or on my website have I stated the HU connects to the speakers via regular wire. Here is the schematic of my existing audio system.

This clearly shows the speakers are connected to the amp.

I'm not trying to argue with you, I'm telling you facts. I "know" how it connects. I've already swapped head units. You're looking at a partial wiring schematic for a BOSE amp and posting about how you "think" the amp is attached to the HU.

You propose that the HU connects to the amp via fiberoptics. If this is correct, the OE HU only needs a fiber connection, power, ground, and an antenna. Here is a photo of the back of an original equipment Becker Audio 30 in a CLK.



It has been pulled out of its sleeve, but the factory wires are all attached. The pair of orange wires is the fiber connection. The thick black connection closest to the camera is the antenna lead. If all that remains is power and a ground, why are there so many other wires plugged in to the HU?

Does your OE radio look like the Audio 30 photo I posted? If so, why does it have so many pins in the back? Why are wires attached to those pins?

If after all this, you still think your Audio 30 connects to the BOSE amp via fiber, all I'll say is, "best wishes in your upgrade".

Robperri

So if I have an 04 CLK with Navigation Comand 2.0 unit with Bose sub and speakers I can connect an aftermarket Nav unit to existing Bose sub/spk with a PAC OEM2?

Existing unit looks like this:

megacrazy

That's nice in theory but that is a full wiring diagram of the amplifier. The only output and input from it is via fiber. Just to entertain your idea I tried to unplug the fiber optic cable from the back of my Command and guess what? No more audio from radio or otherwise.

As far as there being many other cables I think we can figure out what they are: 12v, acc, illumination, reverse etc etc. No mystery there. I can look up that wiring diagram as well if you insist.

Clearly there's a wiring difference between what you worked on and what I am dealing with here. What you have done clearly worked for you and kudos for documenting everything and making it available. However, the W209 I am dealing with is clearly different from your 208 so let's leave it at that.

I stand by my original statement. I don't see a way to retain the Bose amp. Pac-OEM 2 is pointless in this situation.

Robperri

found an older post with this excerpt:
"Your car uses the D2B fiber optic bus. It connects the radio head unit to the CD changer and amplifier. If any part of the fiber chain is "broken" then none of the parts will work. When you unplugged your CD changer, you broke the fiber loop and that's why you have no audio (the headunit can't talk to the amp). Reinstalling the CD changer should have fixed it. If you do need to leave the changer out of the car for a while, see your dealer and get a CD changer bypass adapter. This will plug in and complete the fiber loop with the changer removed."

So with the CD changer bypassed would it work?

MarcusF

@Megacrazy - Honestly, this is the most cryptic hi-fi thread I've ever been involved with. It's taken several posts to hear you have a 'command'. Mercedes Benz has two versions of its COckpit MAnagement and Navigation Device (COMAND) that were typically used in the CLK. The COMAND 2.0 and the COMAND 2.5. Each of those versions has various features. Your COMAND is a 2.0, correct? It's possible that I’ll explain what to look for on a 2.0 and then hear that you have a 2.5 or a COMAND out of an S-Class. I'm not being argumentative, COMANDs were regularly retrofitted from ROW cars just a few years ago. Check the old threads. Every other month somebody was coming through some area installing COMANDs. It was much cheaper than getting one from a dealer. The combination of better aftermarket nav units and OEM2 converters caused that market to dry up.

A COMAND 2.0 is two units bolted together with a common front section (buttons and screen). The top section houses the CD and NAV system hardware. The lower section houses the tuner and in many cases an amplifier. The two photos below show the rear of a COMAND and the pin outs.



The lower section has 7 ports. Looking at the five ports on the right side, the green arrow points to the single fiberoptic port and the red arrow points to the four non-fiber ports. Looking at those non-fiber ports; When you pulled your COMAND, was the port labeled #3 empty? If so, you have a BOSE optical amp and your COMAND does connect to it via fiber. It’s also the first CLK I’ve heard of with an optical amp. The E, CL, SL, and S-Class’ commonly have optical amps. Every CLK I’ve paid any attention to has used a non-optical BOSE amp. If you noticed and remember, please post back and tell me the shape of the bracket that holds the upper and lower sections of your COMAND together. Was it straight, curved, had an angle, or??? The shape of the bracket typically indicates the type of car the COMAND was destined for. If you do have a plug in the port labeled #3, then you simply replace the COMAND with your head unit of choice, and buy an OEM2. If you have trouble locating an OEM2 (which has been out of production for well over a year), buy an SOEM4. Take this info and do with it as you wish. File it as false information, or say "hmmm . . . . . . port 3 DOES have a plug in it . . . . . ."

Lastly, that is a partial BOSE amp schematic you posted. That is a schematic for a single BOSE amp. Several different BOSE amps were used in the CLK.

Best luck with your upgrade.

Rob Perri -
Do you have a COMAND and a remote CD changer? Also, do you have a plug in port #3?

megacrazy

Haha hey, I was hoping you'd be right but unfortunately it wasn't the case. The install would've been a breeze. I am about halfway done with my install. The RCA's to the new head unit is all that remains. And yeah you guessed it. There is nothing in port 3. The only connection to the amp is fiber which was easily tested by all sound turning off when the fiber optic connection is pulled.

The car is a late 04 CLK55. I don't remember the shape of the bracket but the back of the unit looks exactly like the pics you posted. The pinouts are also correct (according to WIS). You said you've dealt with several pre face lift W209's with command and Bose that were wired differently? Why would that be? Also, why is there an amplifier within the comand housing if there is an amplifier in the trunk? It doesn't make any sense. Why would they run the speakers off the headunit and the amplifier at the same time especially when everything is supposed to be on D2B? I am asking, not being argumentative.

So, going forward I guess the easiest way to check if you are screwed is to simply unplug the fiber optic plug from the back of your radio see if you still get sound...if you still do then the PAC-OEM2 is clearly the way to go. If you don't get any sound then get ready to buy some amps and possibly new speakers.

MarcusF

Wired differently
They're probably wired differently because they are different COMAND units. When the W211 E-Class was first introduced (late 2002 for the 2003 model year), it came with a new COMAND. That was COMAND APS and it used a MOST based telecommunications protocol rather than D2B (for those in telecom, both of these look a lot like token-ring, which explains a lot of things). The main advantage to the MOST system is it's faster (for video). The W209 CLK was introduced along with the W211 for the 2003 model year, but the W209 CLK continued using the old COMAND until late 2004, when the face lifted 2005 model was introduced.

There are over 50 different COMAND units. They use different part numbers and heaven help you if you try to get something like a S-Class COMAND to work in a CLK. For openers, the nav won't work. If it's a European S-Class COMAND, teleaid and the weather band won't work either. A lot of the AM stations won't come in either.

Why two amps?
Having not chased all the wiring, I’m going to guess the COMAND’s internal amp powers select speakers. The external amp would then power the others.