Hi Guys - thanks to you guys I installed a Pioneer F90BT with the 2.0 firmware upgrade into my non fiber-optic 2000 ML430. I used the Metra 70-1784 harness. I took the 2 extra leads that came with it - put one in A01 for my VSS, one in A05 for my factory BOSE amp trigger.
I tried to use the RCA hookup method but was unsuccessful - I guess that's only for Fiber Optic systems? I just wired up my speaker outs from the head unit to the speaker in on the harness (colors do match up from the head unit to the metra harness). I took the extra 6 foot pink lead that came with the unit and grounded it to the fuse box on the passenger side, then took that up to the unit and hooked up the head unit ground, special bypass function, parking break ground and I was done. I used the Pioneer ADT-AV133 from Best Buy and it made the unit look like a professional installed it - which I am nowhere near. I mounted the GPS antenna at the top of my windshield on the inside near the rear view mirror and the microphone for built-in bluetooth right next to that. I will post some pictures soon but people say they can hear me loud and clear and can't tell the difference between me talking on my handset or on the integrated bluetooth.
If you need more install details I would be happy to provide them because the Pioneer F90BT is slightly different than the other avic models (D1,D1,Z2,Z3, etc). Here is a short review:
Overall the sound has been DRAMATICALLY improved. My mids and highs are MUCH clearer but my bass is slightly lower. My current setting are this:
SPA +1
Loudness Low
Bass Booster +1
Balance/Fad 2 clicks right 2 clicks rear
EQ POwerfull
HPF 125 Hz - as recommended by pioneer dealer and forum posts
Overall I like the unit and its functionality. I have only had it for a few days now but so far I love it. The navigation is super fast and the maps are very detailed. I live in central PA and it had roads on there that my MCS didn't even dream of showing. The 2D and 3D map settings are great - I like both. The DVD playback is great, the sound is awesome, the touchscreen is awesome... The bluetooth was unbelievably simple to integrate with my Blackberry - I had it connected and the phone book transferred in a matter of a minute or two. The sound quality of my phone is awesome... everything is awesome - now here are a few of my complaints:
1) I can't mute the b*tch talking while my NAV route is on. I can turn the voice volume all the way down, but it makes my audio (ipod,cd,etc) choppy. So whenever she is giving a direction she still talks and cuts out my audio - I just can't here her talking.
2) IPOD integration - don't get me wrong, it is fantastic but it lacks functionality. I have a 30GB ipod and it is full to the megabyte, literally I couldnt fit another song on it. So whenever I am going through an artist, I could select and artist and view their albums... but if I want to go back to the artists, it starts me over at letter A instead of taking me to the area I was viewing (artists that start with M or N for example), I kind of wish it would just take me back to where I was.
3) The brightness, compared to the MB MCS unit, its a bit dim during the daytime but I can deal with it. I have the brightness turned up the whole way I just wish it were a bit brighter during the day - and I even have my windows tinted at 20%.
Now I am off to play with wallpapers, hacks, and other fun tricks I found...
One thing to note about the F90BT. You can search high and low and you may not find how to bypass the security setting that doesn't allow you to change destination or watch dvds while driving. In order to do so you must ground the parking break... and then take the black/yellow wire for mute out of the RCA harness coming out of the head unit and put it in the empty spot on the bottom of of wires (empty space between two black wires coming out of RCA leads). This will bypass the F90BT security settings and will work free at all times.
I tried to use the RCA hookup method but was unsuccessful - I guess that's only for Fiber Optic systems? I just wired up my speaker outs from the head unit to the speaker in on the harness (colors do match up from the head unit to the metra harness). I took the extra 6 foot pink lead that came with the unit and grounded it to the fuse box on the passenger side, then took that up to the unit and hooked up the head unit ground, special bypass function, parking break ground and I was done. I used the Pioneer ADT-AV133 from Best Buy and it made the unit look like a professional installed it - which I am nowhere near. I mounted the GPS antenna at the top of my windshield on the inside near the rear view mirror and the microphone for built-in bluetooth right next to that. I will post some pictures soon but people say they can hear me loud and clear and can't tell the difference between me talking on my handset or on the integrated bluetooth.
If you need more install details I would be happy to provide them because the Pioneer F90BT is slightly different than the other avic models (D1,D1,Z2,Z3, etc). Here is a short review:
Overall the sound has been DRAMATICALLY improved. My mids and highs are MUCH clearer but my bass is slightly lower. My current setting are this:
SPA +1
Loudness Low
Bass Booster +1
Balance/Fad 2 clicks right 2 clicks rear
EQ POwerfull
HPF 125 Hz - as recommended by pioneer dealer and forum posts
Overall I like the unit and its functionality. I have only had it for a few days now but so far I love it. The navigation is super fast and the maps are very detailed. I live in central PA and it had roads on there that my MCS didn't even dream of showing. The 2D and 3D map settings are great - I like both. The DVD playback is great, the sound is awesome, the touchscreen is awesome... The bluetooth was unbelievably simple to integrate with my Blackberry - I had it connected and the phone book transferred in a matter of a minute or two. The sound quality of my phone is awesome... everything is awesome - now here are a few of my complaints:
1) I can't mute the b*tch talking while my NAV route is on. I can turn the voice volume all the way down, but it makes my audio (ipod,cd,etc) choppy. So whenever she is giving a direction she still talks and cuts out my audio - I just can't here her talking.
2) IPOD integration - don't get me wrong, it is fantastic but it lacks functionality. I have a 30GB ipod and it is full to the megabyte, literally I couldnt fit another song on it. So whenever I am going through an artist, I could select and artist and view their albums... but if I want to go back to the artists, it starts me over at letter A instead of taking me to the area I was viewing (artists that start with M or N for example), I kind of wish it would just take me back to where I was.
3) The brightness, compared to the MB MCS unit, its a bit dim during the daytime but I can deal with it. I have the brightness turned up the whole way I just wish it were a bit brighter during the day - and I even have my windows tinted at 20%.
Now I am off to play with wallpapers, hacks, and other fun tricks I found...
One thing to note about the F90BT. You can search high and low and you may not find how to bypass the security setting that doesn't allow you to change destination or watch dvds while driving. In order to do so you must ground the parking break... and then take the black/yellow wire for mute out of the RCA harness coming out of the head unit and put it in the empty spot on the bottom of of wires (empty space between two black wires coming out of RCA leads). This will bypass the F90BT security settings and will work free at all times.
