A few odds and ends questions about installing satellite radio in my '06 Sport

[generalpatton]

Ok, so I've upgraded the stock HU in my '06 sport to the '06 Scion single disk model. Now I want to install a plug and play satellite radio system. I've spent the past few days searching through all the threads here and have gotten a lot of useful info (as always) and I feel pretty comfortable doing the install myself. I do have a few questions relative to the best way to wire the unit for sound quality as I couldn't really find the information I was looking for in the threads I searched....so here goes.

- Power source: I've read where some of you used an "add a circuit" and wired right into the accessory spot in the fuse box for a power source. I've also read where some of you tapped into the accessory plug in the console. Which one would be the least-likely to give me static and noise?........and is there a better way to wire the power than either of these 2? I've also read the only way to eliminate static and noise is to wire the power source directly from the battery.....

- FM Modulator or PIE connector?: I want to make my sound quality as good as possible and I'd rather go ahead and install what I have to when I put the unit in and I already have the dash torn apart, at least partially. I'm thinking the PIE connector would be the way to go for sound quality but is it that much better than just adding an FM modulator and using my FM dial to pick-up the radio? Will a PIE adaptor work with Sirius and XM or just one or the other? I haven't decided which service I'm getting yet. Also, I'm assuming the PIE adaptor is no problem with the '06 Scion HU since others have used it for their IPODS?

Anyone have any experience with the Sirius S50 unit? I've read mixed reviews about quality and functionality but if I end up with Sirius, that's the unit I'm interested in.

As always, thanks for all your help!..........

 

[atomic punk]

First-off, good post. Very specific. Easy to read and answer.

I can help you on one of your questions. I think the "add-a-circuit" is the easiest, fastest, and cleanest way to hardwire a portable sat unit to the power source. Plus it gives you the option of having the unit hooked up to the ACC or always ON, and changing between the two is as easy as pulling and replacing a fuse.

As far as the audio quality is concerned, I've noticed a very small amount of alternator whine - but then again, I'm using a $3 radio shack cable to direct connect my sat radio to my head unit. Maybe a quality cable could fix this, but since it's only noticeable when the volume is either off or very, very low, (and even then you'd have to be listening for it), it doesn't bother me. I always have the volume up pretty loud anyway, and the system can get loud, @90wx4channels RMS and 1000w/sub.

Wiring it directly to the battery probably won't help much. Even if it helps reduce engine whine a little - as compared to using the addacircuit - it likely wouldn't be worth the extra time/effort, in my opinion. That's why I haven't changed my setup.

Second question: I don't know about that Scion or the PIE units, but I do know that anything that connects directly via a cord is better than using air waves to transmit a signal.

Hope that helps.

 

[grather]

I had Sirius Sportster on my 95 4Runner.

At first I was using a cigarette plug for power and the FM for the input.

Turned out to be a pain , since every town I went through I ended up search for a radio freq that wasn't used.


So then I got a Aux plug for the harness and used a cheap plug for the RCA jack. Picked up lots of whine and noise.

Then went to a stereo store and got a quality shield cable and the noise was gone.

Then just picked up 12 volts from the switched power on the radio and all was well.

Well until I bought a 2006 and put in a AVIC-Z1 much better now. But the sporster worked from Sirius without much trouble getting the AUX in cable for the head unit was the hardest part.

 

[generalpatton]

Well until I bought a 2006 and put in a AVIC-Z1 much better now. But the sporster worked from Sirius without much trouble getting the AUX in cable for the head unit was the hardest part

Thanks for the replies. I'm installing mine tomorrow.....I'll let everyone know how it turns out.

I know what you mean about the cable. I was able to find the cheapie cable at Radio Shack but I've been looking for a better cable and I can't find one locally. Monster has them on their web site, I may have to break down and order one from them if I get this thing together and wind up with a bunch of engine whine.