wedmonds

Hi People,

I have a 1999 SLK230 and i am based in the U.K.
I would like to improve the sound but am a complete beginner when it comes to Car Stereo's and wondered if you kind people could advise on the following:

1) Are the connections behind the standard stereo in the SLK230 (1999) standard, what should i be aware of when purchasing a new stereo?

2) Is the replacement of the stereo something i should get a shop to do? or is it standard enough that anyone with a fairly good knowledge of stereo's could fit for me?

3) Should i look at replacing getting an AMP, Sub etc or just the Stereo on its own? I am not a massive base head but just want a loud clear stereo that will drop some serious tunes.

4) Can anyone recommend a Stereo that is MP3 & DAB that is yellow or orange backlit?

5) Lastly i was wondering if there was a Mercedes Benz "meet" going on where i could chat to experts etc in or around London, U.K

Your input and thoughts would be appreciated people.

Merry Christmas to all!!

Kind Regards

Wayne

maninblack

1:different made stereo have different connector (unless is a MB unit) , here in Canada we can buy a convert kit .
2:with the convert kit , it basically plug and play from there , items you might need is the special tools to remove the head unit and maybe some extra to install the new head unit's bracket . installtion should be within an hr. if you want a shop to do it for you (place you brought the stereo).
3:i will recommand you do it step by step , install the head unit 1st , see if you like it and go from there / if you need to change the amp , you might as well go full system (headunit+amp+speakers+subs etc.)

pfphipps

First of all, probably most of the readers of this post are outside the UK and have no idea what DAB is so you will not get many much resposne on that point. I know what it is but nothing about the available equipment.

If the UK standard SLK audio system are like the USA ones, and you do now already have some kind of upgrade such as Bose in the USA, the supplied head unit is almost certainly an Alpine unit made especially for Mercedes and there is no separate amp outside of the head unit. I have heard some are Beckers that look almost exactly the same but I have never seen one with a Becker.

The head unit mounting is a single DIN slot and many head units will mechanically fit in this DIN mounting. Some head units, especially ones made by Becker, will fit and with some (but not many!) the cables will hook up with absolutely no modifications. A five minute job at the most.

As far as electrical connections, the power and speaker connections of a standard (USA and I think UK) SLK are at the back of the head unit and it is not that hard to build an adpapter to most any other connector.

There is also a fiber optic connector in the back of the factory head unit that goes to the trunk where a CD changer and/or telephone can be connected. All of the audio signals between these units use the fiber optic bus. If you replace the head unit and have either the factory trunk mounted CD changer or the mobile/cell phone, they will most likely not work with the new head unit.

wedmonds

Thanks for the feedback people. Gave me food for thought and have decided that i am going to just replace the Head Unit to start. Got a local company doing it for me. I am going for Alpine CDA-9812RR

http://www.bassjunkies.com/?cpage=pr...ce=subcategory

Thanks again!

wedmonds