HEATH!! CD Changer question...

[carlos_knology]

I have installed a CD changer directly into the CD input on the BOSE unit. Works great. I can get the pin-outs to you, but you'll have to be good with a soldering iron and a few parts from Radioshack. The input is a DIN plug and you'll need to make an adaptor with female RCA inputs.

Heath

Heath!!! I have been trying to figure out how to do something like this. My idea is to use the CD changer input in my J30 head unit for my XM radio (male rca jacks) instead of an actual cd changer. All I care is for the input itself. I realize the the CD specific buttons on the head unit won't do anything. I just want to tap into that unused input.

Your female rca jack scheme would be perfect. I dont' have a cd changer in my car so i don't really care about borrowing that input or not using a cd changer.

How does the head unit know to switch to the cd changer input? Today (granted, there's no cd changer in there) when I press the cd changer button, nothing happens. I guess the head unit is looking for a signal or something?!

If you point me in the right direction I'll put together a DIY article to put on my web page.

Carlos

[Q451990]

I'm not sure about the J30 Radio... What does the input look like? If it's a DIN plug I may have something for you - but I suspect it's a different design than the Qs and old Maxima. On those radios, the controls were on an outboard controller, so there wasn't even a "CD" button on the radio - you just turned on the CD changer and it switched over (with a 12V constant input on one of the Pins)

I'm sure it can be done, we'll just need to figure out how the inputs work.

Heath

[carlos_knology]

Well, in the J30, there is a DIN plug near the rear speakers. However, my head unit has a CD Changer button as well as buttons to specifically control the cd changer (next disc, next track, etc).

When I press the cd changer button, nothing happens so I'm guessing that the head unit is expecting to get some sort of acknowledgement from the cd changer saying "im here and im a cd changer".

Maybe it's as simple as a 12v current coming back to the head unit. I'm not sure.

Right now I'm using a cassette adapter to listen to my XM radio and although the music sounds fine, if the music is soft or the Dj is talking, I can hear the gears in the cassette adapter turning. It drives me nuts. I'd love to use that cd changer input instead.

Carlos

[maxnix]

Right now I'm using a cassette adapter to listen to my XM radio and although the music sounds fine, if the music is soft or the Dj is talking, I can hear the gears in the cassette adapter turning. It drives me nuts. I'd love to use that cd changer input instead.

Carlos

Because of the equalization curves (how well are they matched?), I would imagine listening to digital radio through the cassette player adapter is like watching HDTV through an empty milk bottle.

Hmmm...shouldn't this be in the Audio forum?

[carlos_knology]

Yeah, this probably needs to be in the audio forum. Sorry about that.

In any case, it appears that the project is a no-go. Spoke to two of the BOSE repair places on the net and I'm told that the head unit in my J30 uses a proprietary communications protocol to operate the cd changer and only enables that input once the cd changer has been detected. They said is more complex than just a 12v input. They both called the connection a "communications bus". Oh well.

I guess the only solution would be to get a cd changer (to enable the input) and once a blank cd is playing, splice into the audio connections to feed the xm signal to the head unit.

I've heard of people burning CD's with an 80-minute track that is silent just for this purpose. Seems like a pain and at this time that's a lot of money to rig something up.

Carlos