GL Class (X166) 2013-2015 after facelift became GLS (X166)

Road Top (CarPlay) AUX Audio Installation

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Old 10-03-2022, 01:41 PM
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Hi,
I went back to the engineering menu and put both aux, audio and video to on and the amp to internal.
The trick is to shut everything down close your car and let it like that for at least 15 min, the time for the system to shut down.
After that I had everything working with good sound.
Hope this helps for you.
Old 11-12-2022, 10:47 AM
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Can you explain your other settings? Is your phone connected to only CarPlay, or both MB and CarPlay? What is the input setting on your factory COMAND set to? Did you plug the male 3.5mm aux cable from the CarPlay unit into anything at all? Do you have anything plugged into your MMI port, even if it's not being used?

Thanks.
Old 11-16-2022, 08:16 PM
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Hi,

The phone is connected to carplay only with wifi, and dring the setup via bluetooth, so no wired connection.
I deleted all the Bluetooth connections for the MB headunit.
I have nothing plugged into the MMI port.
Like I wrote before, after that I went back to the engineering menu set both aux to on and amp to internal.
Then shut everything down, lock the doors and come back 15 min later.
That did it for me.
I hope it helps you out.
Old 11-22-2022, 12:37 PM
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Hello, I'm running into a similar issue. Running an Android 11 Style 10.25" system to an NTG4.5. Everything is working except audio- carplay (wired and wireless, backup cam, can view factory NTG screen, etc etc).

I believe (95+% confidence) that I have all physical connections correctly installed.

My main issue is that I can't get into the Engineering Menu that I've seen on all the videos... I get something like this picture which I guess is something called Audio20?:

From here I'm unable to program anything.

A couple things:
-I have an AUX input option in my Audio selection. Based on what I understand it's in Column 1, position 8. I have that programmed in my unit. Still nothing.
-I don't have anything (ideally I don't want to) connected to the AMI port in the Center Console. My center console has that port + a USB.
-I have a 1/8" stereo connection secured between the Android and the NTG4.5 Main Unit. These were labeled in my harness that came with the Android.

I believe that the only thing I need to do is programming, but I have no idea what to do next. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Pic of my Unit for reference:

Old 11-22-2022, 04:29 PM
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As an FYI, I pulled everything out and ran a 1/8" stereo from the audio out of the Android unit using the adapter into the AMI (Is this the correct term?) port in the center console and I am successfully getting sound however there is noise/hum and it's not ideal. This is not a Mercedes Adapter so that might be the issue. But all in all I want to find a solution that brings AUX Stereo into the back of my head unit bypassing the stupid connector in the center console. I'm fine with soldering etc,

It looks like on Non-Audio20 units there is programming available to disable the port in the console and that then allows direct wiring in...

Would something like this work:
https://cruxinterfacing.com/product/...-w-4-pin-lvds/ ?

Is there another way to work through this?

Thank you!

Old 12-02-2022, 09:37 PM
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Originally Posted by canron
Hi,

The phone is connected to carplay only with wifi, and dring the setup via bluetooth, so no wired connection.
I deleted all the Bluetooth connections for the MB headunit.
I have nothing plugged into the MMI port.
Like I wrote before, after that I went back to the engineering menu set both aux to on and amp to internal.
Then shut everything down, lock the doors and come back 15 min later.
That did it for me.
I hope it helps you out.
This worked. Thanks!! I’d been using wired for weeks. Confirmed my phone was connected to carplay Wi-Fi, turned off Bluetooth altogether, unplugged MMI/AMI, and bam! Crystal clear, loud sound with no hum.

(to those with hum, connect the ground wires as indicated in road top instructions. Huge help, but not perfect)
Old 12-07-2022, 05:49 PM
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How can I, or where do I verify that my 2013 GL450 has the NTG4.5/4.7 System installed?
I want to get one for the Wife's MB, I plan on taking it somewhere to have it installed.

Chad
Old 12-07-2022, 06:08 PM
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Originally Posted by Tiffany's GL450
How can I, or where do I verify that my 2013 GL450 has the NTG4.5/4.7 System installed?
I want to get one for the Wife's MB, I plan on taking it somewhere to have it installed.


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Old 12-10-2022, 11:19 AM
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Thanks man!!

Chad
Old 01-21-2023, 11:27 AM
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ML350 2012
I have a ML350 2012, trying to get the audio for the CarPlay using my Roadtop decoder unit. I have followed the instructions to enable Audio aux in engineering menu and also set to internal amp as you suggested. I have also make sure optical fiber is connected to head unit is moved to the roadmap cable provided as suggested. Everything works except the sound. I am not able to get the sound. Any other suggestions? is there any specific settings in carplay itself i need to do?

Appreciate your response.

Thanks
Vikram
Old 05-26-2023, 02:21 PM
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Bad Sound Quality

Hey guys, I just received my roadtop 12.3 inch andoird 11 screen.. Installing it on a 2015 GLA with NTG 4.5 with Harman Kardon Logic System
I know this is a wrong form, but this is the only fourm that looked promising.. So my problem is my car has no AMI nor AUX ports.. only a stupid USB in the center console.. and no AUX either not even on the back of the headunit.. anyway I was able to enable AUX option from Engineering Mode, my menu is totally different however than what's shared.. I didn't find a toggle or MOST or any if that stuff. to be honest, I am not sure how it got enabled. anyway the only way I was able tl get sound is by connecting the aux in with the aux out supplied in the new harness!!! however the quality is soooo bad.. it's loud from only driver side speaker, all other speakers and sub are soooo weak and poor quality.. not sure where the problem really is.. to the extent that I am now looking for ways to at least let the audio from my phone be played over original NTG, and keep the roadtop silent.. But this is not making me enjoy my new purchase!! please help
Old 05-26-2023, 02:33 PM
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I had the same poor sound quality from the supplied aux connector. I used a factory Mercedes aux connector and the poor sound quality went away. Hope that helps.
Old 05-26-2023, 05:46 PM
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Originally Posted by ccrobin
I had the same poor sound quality from the supplied aux connector. I used a factory Mercedes aux connector and the poor sound quality went away. Hope that helps.
The AUX Out is wired within the main power harness, and the AUX In is wired within the screen harness!! how could I change that??
Old 05-26-2023, 05:51 PM
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Perhaps you can post a photo? Mine was hooked up using the AUX adapter in the center armrest. If you get audio, but the quality is poor, it is your connection. Likely insufficient ground. Check and re-check all connections.
Old 08-06-2023, 04:04 PM
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Originally Posted by viksmi
I have a ML350 2012, trying to get the audio for the CarPlay using my Roadtop decoder unit. I have followed the instructions to enable Audio aux in engineering menu and also set to internal amp as you suggested. I have also make sure optical fiber is connected to head unit is moved to the roadmap cable provided as suggested. Everything works except the sound. I am not able to get the sound. Any other suggestions? is there any specific settings in carplay itself i need to do?

Appreciate your response.

Thanks
Vikram
Originally Posted by ccrobin
I just received my Road Top kit yesterday and it only took about 45 minutes to install. Very happy with it so far. The AMI connector that came with the kit was junk (lots of distortion and feedback) but I also have the factory AMI connector and that one worked flawlessly.

I used engineering mode to disable the MB assistant, so now when I click the voice button I only get Siri (which is great).

The only complaint I have is that if the head unit is not on the AUX input, you have to switch back to the OEM screen, activate the AUX input, then switch back to the Road Top unit. It works, but is a bit cumbersome. I was wondering if there is a way to reprogram one of the head unit buttons to switch directly to AUX to avoid this? Perhaps like have the radio button to default to AUX first, and use the dropdown for radio (or maybe a long press function, etc)?

Since the Road Top box has a canbus interface I am a but surprised it does not automatically switch this (some of the other carplay add-on units do this already). Perhaps it does and I missed that in the instructions?
Hello all - I'm glad I found this thread because it sounds exactly like the issue I'm facing. See below for separate thread I made:

https://mbworld.org/forums/audio-ele...0-bluetec.html

Essentially I purchased one of the Mercedes Benz NTG4.5 / NTG4.7 2012-2015 Wireless Carplay Airplay Decoder for my ML350 (2012 model) to be able to use CarPlay on the car. The purchase was on ebay and the device. I believe is is almost exactly like the Roadtop unit (https://www.ebay.com/itm/385238516660). I followed the instructions from one of the Youtube videos on installation. Connecting the main harness wires (including moving the fiber optic audio cable into the new unit’s main harness) and threading the unit into the HVAC area was relatively easy but I cannot figure out why audio is not outputting once the unit is connected.

I’ve tried:
  1. reseating the main harness in the MB unit to make sure its a correct seal and re-inserting the fiber optic cable multiple times
  2. Make sure the audio source is set to AUX
  3. Gone into the engineering mode menu to enable MOST ON & EXTERNAL AMP in 7.5 and AUDIO AUX ON in 7.7…then let the car sit locked for over an hour
  4. Make sure no mute buttons are on
  5. Deleted all prior bluetooth devices in the mercedes OEM interface
  6. Unplugged anything from the arm center box

I returned the entire car to OEM to troubleshoot if the AUX input in my arm center console (through the MMI port) even works and I cannot get that to even work with OEM. Does anyone know what could be causing just the simple AUX port to not work at OEM? I have one of those MMI to 30pin ipod + aux connector adapters plugged in.

I feel like part of the troubleshooting will be to first solve if AUX works in my car to begin with with the OEM headunit / nothing installed. When I have 7.5.1 MOST ON and 7.5.2 INTERNAL AMP, I get FM radio outputting through the car speakers but I cannot get any audio from the MMI port through either the 30-pin ipod or 3.5mm aux cable end. If I set 7.5.2 to EXTERNAL AMP then FM radio stops working and MMI port still doesn't work. If I set 7.5.1 to MOST OFF and 7.5.2 INTERNAL AMP, then the MMI port doesn't charge the iPod anymore (so I assume MOST always needs to turned on?).

I guess let me try see if I can output audio via Bluetooth through OEM interface while I use the carplay video interface....though I really want an integrated solutions where the audio is routing properly through the carplay headunit as the instructions intend (i.e. through the 7.5.2 EXTERNAL AMP selection)

Last edited by MBUser901; 08-07-2023 at 08:36 AM.
Old 08-06-2023, 04:26 PM
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Okay quick update, I finally got audio to work by having my iphone connected to MB Bluetooth and routing audio through that meanwhile having just the carplay unit video interface running (I'm using wired carplay for now). I still cannot figure out how to route audio so that it is using AUX option within OEM interface (i.e. not having my phone connected to two different systems - MB Bluetooth for audio and carplay unit wired for carplay interface). As soon as I switch 7.5.2 to EXTERNAL AMP, I lose any option to be able to output audio to car speakers (i.e. cannot use MB Bluetooth for audio and wired USB for carplay video interface nor the AUDIO -> AUX option in interface).

I think this may be going back to just with my OEM unit and nothing else installed, I cannot figure out how to get my center arm to output anything to AUX (either the ipod or the 3.5mm female ends). any ideas here? Is there a physical 3.5mm plug in the heavy OEM Mercedes w166 head unit where I'm supposed to plug in the 3.5mm cable coming out of the carplay unit? I don't see it anywhere to plug that cable in but I see mention of people trying to plug the 3.5mm output from the carplay unit into the MMI plug in the center arm console (I've tried that and it does nothing either, nor do I know how I would route that 3.5mm cable in a pretty way to my center console...).

Last edited by MBUser901; 08-06-2023 at 04:33 PM.
Old 08-06-2023, 07:44 PM
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Originally Posted by MBUser901
Okay quick update, I finally got audio to work by having my iphone connected to MB Bluetooth and routing audio through that meanwhile having just the carplay unit video interface running (I'm using wired carplay for now). I still cannot figure out how to route audio so that it is using AUX option within OEM interface (i.e. not having my phone connected to two different systems - MB Bluetooth for audio and carplay unit wired for carplay interface). As soon as I switch 7.5.2 to EXTERNAL AMP, I lose any option to be able to output audio to car speakers (i.e. cannot use MB Bluetooth for audio and wired USB for carplay video interface nor the AUDIO -> AUX option in interface).

I think this may be going back to just with my OEM unit and nothing else installed, I cannot figure out how to get my center arm to output anything to AUX (either the ipod or the 3.5mm female ends). any ideas here? Is there a physical 3.5mm plug in the heavy OEM Mercedes w166 head unit where I'm supposed to plug in the 3.5mm cable coming out of the carplay unit? I don't see it anywhere to plug that cable in but I see mention of people trying to plug the 3.5mm output from the carplay unit into the MMI plug in the center arm console (I've tried that and it does nothing either, nor do I know how I would route that 3.5mm cable in a pretty way to my center console...).
The order of operations matter with changing the settings in the engineering menu.

FWIW, this is my guide from a Joyeauto install in the E Class forum and the engineering menu setup was identical when I later installed the Roadtop unit in the GL. (Caveat: both vehicles have HK sound)

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...ml#post7807129

Also, I *believe* (it’s been a while) that one of my units had a 3.5mm female plug on one side of the new wiring harness that required the 3.5mm male plug to complete the path. (Can’t remember which was which now.)

Last edited by cadetdrivr; 08-06-2023 at 07:49 PM.
Old 08-18-2023, 08:45 AM
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Firmware update

Hello this may be irrelevant but I have trouble with wifi connection and only solution to it is software update from what I've heard. I asked roadtop for one and when updated I now have new interesting settings but mainly instead of "use car's bt phone" there is "use car's bt channel" which is exactly what it says, it ditches routing audio thru android auto and lets you stream audio to car's Bluetooth. So no more routing damn aux cable for new installs and mainly high audio quality lol. I was not able to test wireless because problem I am facing right now but it worked on wired android auto.
Mind you, my car is w212 with ntg 4.5 and flash this at your own risk but I don't see how w166 box differs from w212.

M42R173:https://drive.google.com/file/d/15bS...ew?usp=sharing
Update instruction:1. Prepare an empty 8GB USB flash drive (or smaller than 8GB) and format to FAT322. UNZIP the file first, copy "ISPBOOOT.BIN" file onto the root directory of the USB drive. You just need the "ISPBOOOT.BIN" file.3. Connect the usb drive to the decoder box.'Setup' ->'Software Update' -> password 8032 -> 'System Update ISPBOOOT.BIN', then the update will start. Wait untill the update is done. After the update, there will be a new setting "Use car's bt channel". Turn it on, connect your phone to the car's bluetooth and audio from carplay will be played through car bluetooth. However, you can't use Airplay with that setting on. You have to turn it off then choose AUX for Airplay. And of course you can still use AUX for carplay as before, just turn the new setting off.



I will be attaching my version info for people to figure out compability with w166 box




P.s if anyone knows solution to issue in 3rd picture, i'd greatly appreciate it
Old 09-28-2023, 03:56 PM
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Heads up and a question.

1. Heads up, carplay now do a unit that has a built in bluetooth transmitter so you don't need the audio cable from the unit to the aux in in the center console!! ask them for the gold unit when ordering.

2. Question, i installed my carplay "box" and everything works perfect, the only issue i have is that every time i turn the car off and start it again it defaults to the old NTG4.5 screen, i have to press the back button to get to the carplay mode, is there anyway (in the engineering mode maybe ? ) that I'm able to set it to default to the carplay when the vehicle turns on ?
thanks
Old 09-28-2023, 05:19 PM
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Originally Posted by simongunz
Heads up and a question.

1. Heads up, carplay now do a unit that has a built in bluetooth transmitter so you don't need the audio cable from the unit to the aux in in the center console!! ask them for the gold unit when ordering.
That’s awesome! But also, multiple boxes don’t actually need the hardwired to AUX. At least neither of my JoyeAuto or RoadTrip boxes required wiring to the center console as it was integrated in the wiring harness. Users simply had to adjust this setting in the car’s engineering menu.

Originally Posted by simongunz
2. Question, i installed my carplay "box" and everything works perfect, the only issue i have is that every time i turn the car off and start it again it defaults to the old NTG4.5 screen, i have to press the back button to get to the carplay mode, is there anyway (in the engineering mode maybe ? ) that I'm able to set it to default to the carplay when the vehicle turns on ?
thanks
That’s an issue for your CarPlay box. Perhaps there’s a setting on the box or help from the manufacturer?

Unfortunately the engineering menu on the MB won’t do it because the video signal is a “dumb” connection and all the switching occurs in the CarPlay unit.

Last edited by cadetdrivr; 09-28-2023 at 05:24 PM.
Old 09-28-2023, 06:26 PM
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Thanks for the reply, Ive reached out to Road top, will see what they say.

Re your comment about maybe not needing the hard wire to the AUX, i hardwired mine and it does work great, however i did also see a connector on the wiring loom marked audio out and connected it to the other part of the loom, does this mean i can adjust some settings in the engineering menu and remove the hard wire to AUX ? would be great if so as i haven't hidden the cable yet, What settings need to be changed ? thanks
Old 09-29-2023, 04:26 PM
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Originally Posted by simongunz
Thanks for the reply, Ive reached out to Road top, will see what they say.

Re your comment about maybe not needing the hard wire to the AUX, i hardwired mine and it does work great, however i did also see a connector on the wiring loom marked audio out and connected it to the other part of the loom, does this mean i can adjust some settings in the engineering menu and remove the hard wire to AUX ? would be great if so as i haven't hidden the cable yet, What settings need to be changed ? thanks
Yes.

See this post in the W212 install thread about the engineering menu but note that it’s identical for the X166, and for both the Joyeauto and RoadTop units. (Note that I’m in the USA and both my vehicles had HK sound, and this method worked for both an E350 and GL350.)

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...ml#post7807129

Last edited by cadetdrivr; 09-29-2023 at 04:28 PM.
Old 04-14-2024, 08:14 AM
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For any future finders of this thread, diagnosing problems with their roadtop unit in their X166 wanted to share this…

Today, after more than a year of perfect operation of my roadtop unit, my center displayed suddenly wouldn’t turn on. The radio and all the underlying features still worked, but the screen just remained black. Checked #21 fuse, but it was fine, so thought maybe it was something to do with the roadtop unit. The roadtop unit doesn’t seem to have a fuse (accessible from the outside anyway) so I just unplugged all the connectors one at a time, with the car on, and plugged them back in, and voila, the unit seems to have reset itself and it works again.
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