Just got my radio back from Beckers - works GREAT, sounds GREAT. Only issue - when using my GPS as a blue tooth handsfree for my cell with it plugged into the lighter I get lots of engine noise. Obviously unplugging the GPS and running on batttery power solves this. I need to try my ipod plugged in. But other than that I am quite happy with the aux input.

 

The noise is coming in from a weak or bad ground. If you ground the lighter, you won't get that noise again. You may get some RF interference when your cell phone transmits or receives. More so on a GSM network.

 

Here is an idea from my audio set up. My stock becker system crapped out on me so I wanted to replace it with some quality digital sound, and a non alien style look. I found this Pioneer DEH-P3100UB which was all black and silver. It has IPOD integration, a USB port, MP3, basically everything I was looking for in a car audio system next to NAV & DVD. I believe I bought this from Best Buy for $130 a few months ago. I rarely use my IPOD to be honest, with the USB port, I simply hook up my removable hard drive with 200GB worth of music.

I place my hard drive and remote in the lower ashtray section.

 

Here is the head unit I would have gone with. I am not a big JVC fan, but this would look like nice in the dash - don't like the blue lights on most current units

 

Elegant looking unit

Do not like the blue display though. Couldn't find out if color can be customized either.

Cheers

 

tabaka -- did you install yourself? Did BestBuy install? Are you using the Benz amplifier? or going right from the Pioneer to the speakers?

Any detail on the ease or difficulty of this installation, or any tricks, would be helpful.

 

Update. My stock becker 6003 crapped out so I returned it to Becker auto sound for repair and had them wire in the IPOD aux input to the rear of the radio. I was flummoxed for a while when I saw that they placed a large black box at the end with a female input. Rather than drilling out holes in my dash I decided to connect a male input into the black box and leave the box behind the dash. I ran the other end of the male input into a hole under my ashtray. I popped out the little plastic window on the ashtray insert (designed to allow light to shine into the ashtray), drilled it out a bit and ran the male ipod end into the ashtray insert. voila. ipod in ashtray. very excited about it.

 

How does it sound?

 

Non-Bose Becker CD-Changer Line IN Use

I like my non-Bose Becker sound quality and its looks and would like to keep it but I never use my Panasonic non-optical CD changer anymore which means there remains a possibility to connect a AUX Audio Line In jack to the CD changer slot in the back of the head unit.

Has anyone used this option? Is there a kit I could buy short of sending the head unit to Becker for retrofit?

 

People claim to sell such things, Dragon.

Here's an example for an Apple, which includes an AUX line:

* Grom Grom-I2-Mb Mecedes Benz Ipod Adapter - GROM - GROM-I2-MB

I have absolutely no knowledge of this company or product. I found this page after a few Google attempts. There are other solutions for your Becker there too, but I didn't look at everything that they claim to sell.

 

I have one of the Grom I2 units.
Placed it in the cubby below the radio (or above the ashtray if you prefer).
Came with a 4GB USB stick.
Works with my iPhone (and charges it as well).
Work nicely with my stock radio.
A small challenge was correctly placing music on the USB stick, but once figured out all is good.

They came out with a BT dongle which goes in the iPod slot. Pairs with the phone nicely and I can make and receive calls. Have had some issues getting the BT AND music to work, but their technical assistance works to provide solutions.

I am at the point where I plan on permanently installing it (has a microphone that needs to get installed maybe near the mirror).

Skippy

 

Thanks for the report, Skippy. I may have to get one of these. The BT interface looks interesting.

Can you post any details of how this thing can be used, and what you did to get the system working for you? From your description, it is a pretty capable device. And you can't beat that price.

 

Sure
I break it into two pieces, MUSIC and BT.

MUSIC
Unit comes with a 12 inch cable that plugs into the CD changer slot on the radio.
I put the unit in the cubby to have access to the USB/AUX/iPod sockets.
It takes the place of the CD and is activated by pushing the CD button on the radio.
There's a method of rotating through the USB/AUX/Ipod use by pressing the AM/FM button, waiting a second, and pressing the CD button. A voice will say which is active and pressing the Seek button will move to the next choice.
When using the USB stick, you place your music in 6 folders being mindful of the correct file naming conventions they provide. Pressing the track buttons (1, 2, etc) will access the folder (1, 2, etc) and begin playing either the first song or it will remember the last song played in that folder. You can move to the next song using the SEEK button (or back up if desired). 5 clicks will move it 5 songs. Sometimes a brief delay when moving more than a couple.
No display of song title or author though, just Track 1, Song 1, etc.
Scan will work and is configurable with the default being 10.

I've also used the iPod function. You control the music via your iPod though it does mean you need to handle the iPod/iPhone. Probably could find a mount for the iPod that would make it easier to manage. I haven't done that yet.

I don't have an MP3 player, but I suspect it would work like the USB.

All-in-all a nice addition to a pretty good radio.

BT (Still a work in progress)
This intrigued me, but there have been some growing pains.

The BT dongle plugs into the iPod/iPhone slot. There have been firmware updates to activate this function.

The current firmware I'm using has made it workable. I'm adjusting the microphone gain (via the Configuration file) and it seems good.
A hitch I'm experiencing is that I need to remove the USB stick when I turn the radio on and then reinsert it so the music will play from the USB stick. Rest of the radio works just fine,

Pairing the phone was easy and it connects upon powering the radio on.

The Grom unit and the BT device and wiring fills the cubby up which makes unplugging/plugging the USB stick cumbersome. I plan on installing the microphone in the light panel between the sunvisors and moving the Grom device and BT dongle behind the cubby (lots of room there). I am sourcing panel mount cables to go from the Grom device to the cubby which should make the USB problem much easier.

Pretty inexpensive BT option. Just need to work through a few issues.

HTH Skippy

 

You are the MEN!

Thanks Matt & Skippy, exactly the answer I was looking for!

 

I took a different approach with a cassette adapter. Instead of notching out the radio face, I took off the metal lid to the stereo itself and routed the wire (with a male connection) from the cassette out the back of the radio and replaced the metal topper of the radio set. I routed the male adapter into the cubby and viola I have an ipod adapter. Sounds great and there was zero mods to the radio head itself.

Used a Monster cassette adapter

FYI The dealer did not have the keys - got them off ebay

 

On my 96 E320 I took the (6) disc out of the trunk and installed a $100.00 UAS SPEC ipod adapter. Mdl PA11-HON. It works as advertised. The sound is ipod quality, the functionality of the ipod is controled through the radio cd buttons. I also added a bluetooth adapter. I have a post with more details in the 210 forum.

Good luck to you.

 

I received my GROM I2 this Monday and it works great. Still working on configuring my iPod but it seems like it shows the menu and the current song being played only when I run it in CD1.

Skippy - mine did not come with memory stick, instead the GROM box had two 9-pin mini Din connectors, one for iPod & one for audio line in or BT dongle. Having just a memory stick is also a nice feature. Did you have to specifically order that option?

Oops, never mind. I just looked: you paid $30 more for item #14146 )

It would be nice to know the pin-out assignment of that audio line in plug so I could just make my own cable.

 

Why mutilate it?

I like my W210 & its original Becker sound too much to mutilate it. There is absolutely nothing out on the aftermarket that looks and works as good or better in that console then its original equipment. Plus, you really do lose a lot of audio quality in using those cassette adapters or FM transmitters. Get yourself a GROM adapter & plug it in into a CD changer port in the back of that radio and you'll be a happy camper, then route the iPod or audio cable anywhere you like.

 

There is absolutely nothing out on the aftermarket that looks and works as good or better in that console then its original equipment. .

My friend I'm as much a purist as they come but you are dead wrong in this case.

I installed this along with some Diamond Audio 6.5 3way speakers in the front, still use the rear factory bose.

The factory comes nowhere near this sound quality. Also have ipod and internet radio streaming from my iphone through blutooth audio.

The ipod and cd is where it amazes

Eclipse CD7200 mk II CD receiver at Crutchfield.com

 

Ipod audio quality stinks compared to a CD player and CD players stink compared to Vinyl!

 

ggmagic - in aviation, they say "with enough power, you can make a brick fly" ) but, leaving the sound quality of a non-amplified or a super-amplified deck aside, let us admit - what you have looks so unmercedes. I don't have BOSE and I do not know what the stock RMS rating of my 1692 Becker is, but after having tried everything from just about everyone, I am now convinced that MB engineers always were, and perhaps still are, decades ahead of everyone else.

 

Being a Fanboy is one thing, having superb sound is quite another.

I'll take the superb sound thank you


(BTW, the songs on my ipod are recorded in Lossless quality, much better than your Average mp3))

 

How I hooked my ipod into the stereo

First let me say this is my first post and I have found the forum to be extremely helpful. I recently bought a 2000 E320 Wagon and like everyone here wanted to figure out how to add my ipod to the factory stereo. The main problem I had with using a cassette adapter was the annoying beeping that the stero made when the face to the cassette player was left in the down position more than a minute or so...

Most of you seem to have fixed that by permanently installing the cassette adapter and the notching the radio and routing the wire to one of the cubby holes. I'm not that industrious or maybe I am just lazy, but here is my simple solution.

Open the cassette player by pressing the eject button. Locate the hole on the right side that the pin on the back of the radio face goes into - this hole has a small switch that the pin activates when closed - if this switch isn't activated you get that annoying beeping sound telling you the face of the radio isn't closed. Now this is the tricky part find something to put in that hole to activate the switch and that will also allow you to close the face. I used a wadded up peice of foil from a candy wrapper and a peice of masking tape to cover the hole and hold the candy wrapper in place - the trick is finding something flexible enough to cover the hole that will also have give to it so you can close the face when you aren't using the cassette adapter. And that is it!

With the hole covered and switch activated you can open the cassette player and insert the cassette adapter and hook up your ipod or whatever. It won't look as pretty as the radio face stays in the down position - but it works just as well and should only take you 5 minutes or less to do... when you are done using the cassette adapter, eject it, and close the radio face and everything looks stock... it took me longer to write this post than actually do it!

 

First let me say this is my first post and I have found the forum to be extremely helpful. I recently bought a 2000 E320 Wagon and like everyone here wanted to figure out how to add my ipod to the factory stereo. The main problem I had with using a cassette adapter was the annoying beeping that the stero made when the face to the cassette player was left in the down position more than a minute or so...

Most of you seem to have fixed that by permanently installing the cassette adapter and the notching the radio and routing the wire to one of the cubby holes. I'm not that industrious or maybe I am just lazy, but here is my simple solution.

Open the cassette player by pressing the eject button. Locate the hole on the right side that the pin on the back of the radio face goes into - this hole has a small switch that the pin activates when closed - if this switch isn't activated you get that annoying beeping sound telling you the face of the radio isn't closed. Now this is the tricky part find something to put in that hole to activate the switch and that will also allow you to close the face. I used a wadded up peice of foil from a candy wrapper and a peice of masking tape to cover the hole and hold the candy wrapper in place - the trick is finding something flexible enough to cover the hole that will also have give to it so you can close the face when you aren't using the cassette adapter. And that is it!

With the hole covered and switch activated you can open the cassette player and insert the cassette adapter and hook up your ipod or whatever. It won't look as pretty as the radio face stays in the down position - but it works just as well and should only take you 5 minutes or less to do... when you are done using the cassette adapter, eject it, and close the radio face and everything looks stock... it took me longer to write this post than actually do it!

Trixopt,
YOU are a star!
That is the simplest solution so far, I LOVE simple.
Thank you, I'm going to apply your technique this week.
peace,

 

Glad I could help

wasn't expecting such immediate feedback! I like simple too... let me know if it doesn't work for you...

 

All done!! And so easy too.
Again my thanks for your "thinking outside the box' on this one.

 

Glad I could help!

Hopefully it will come back to me as I attempt to learn how to work on this car!

 

Sorry if this is a repost but this is awesome

 

Sorry if this is a repost but this is awesome

Mercedes Benz E320 w210 Double Din Modification ALPINE INE-S920HD Navigation AL & EDS AUTOSOUND LA - YouTube

That looks nice! :thumbsup:

 

Thanks Eastb, that's the first time I've seen that. Awesome is a good description.

 

Rad!

Relocating the climate control inside the pocket allows installation of just about anything above without having to worry about the mismatch. Genius! Hats off to Al & Eds! And thank you for the tip )