Post by
rwardell »
https://forums.nicoclub.com/rwardell-u154563.html
Mon Mar 08, 2010 5:42 pm
this is a cheap and some what easy way to connect a 3.5mm standard head phone jack to the factory Bose head unit in an infiniti QX4 in place of the cd player allowing you to connect what ever external audio source you prefer.
ok so to start off down load the factory service manuals for both the body and trim as well as the electronics system (http://(http://forums.nicoclub...w-tos). these will give you instructions on where to pry to remove the trim around the head unit as well as all the wiring diagrams for the head unit itself.
tools/supplies required: small Flathead screw driver covered in cloth (denim works well) or plastic no-mar pry tools to remove trim, Phillips head screwdriver #2 to remove screws securing trim/head unit, small screwdriver to help remove electrical connectors, knife/box cutter to remove shrink tape from harness, wire cutters, wire stripper (optional), butt connectors/electrical tape, 4-6ft 3.5mm-3.5mm audio cable(head phone jack on both ends) drill(optional)
step 1: set the parking brake and using a key/screw driver depress the shift lock button and pull it back to 1st to give yourself some room to work with, cover the center console with a blanket or protective material to prevent scratching of the trim.step 2: remove trim. follow the FSM instruction to remove trim by removing the vents above the head unit, then the rest of the trimstep 3: remove head unit by un-screwing the four screws at top and bottomstep 4: cut and peel back the shrink wrap on the wiring harness that connects the disc changer to the head unit its the smaller top left plug if u r looking at the back of the unitstep 5: cut the blue and green wires about 1.5-2" away from the connector (less if need be) and strip the insulation from 1/4" the striped wires are the neg and can be wired together. step 6: cut one of the ends of of the stereo cable and strip wires. (neg will be the un insulated RT will be red LT will be black in most cases)step 7: connect the red wire of the audio cable to the solid green harness wire, connect the black wire to the solid blue wire and connect the ground to both striped wires. step 8: secure connections to harness and tape exposed wires. route audio cable down and out of the console or drill a hole in the cup holder and rout the cable through the whole.step 9: re install head unit and trimstep 10: set ipod volume to max, stereo volume to min and connect to head phone jack, push cd button and play on ipod, adjust system volume and your set! happy listening!
post mod observations: the good- works great to connect external source w/o interference of fm transmission/modulator. the bad- max volume is not as loud as fm max volume due to low input power from ipod, must be a cd in the changer for input to work, cd changer no longer works since we cut the wires.
overall i prefer having my ipod connection over the cd player any day but for some this may be a deal breaker, the only solution i have thought of is to use a tap splice to connect the headphone cable rather then cutting the wires and just driving around with the cd player paused when u wanted to listen to your i pod. as far as the volume goes if its not loud enough then spend the money on a pre-amp or a new system all together. the thing to keep in mind is that this is a second best option for some one who dose not want to spend the time or money to completely swap the system
let me know what you think!
Modified by r.wardell2 at 4:26 PM 3/11/2010