XM radio installation help?

[SayWhatsReal]

I have the Avic F90BT and I am conteplating on getting XM radio on this unit. How do I get XM on my pioneer? I cant click on the XM or Sirus tab, so I was wondering how will I be able to put the code in. Do I need a tuner or something? any help is appreciated.

[nissanfrontier]

i am using the GEX-P920XM. I am not sure if there is a new model out or not. I would check eBay for better prices, or a closeout store.

[SayWhatsReal]

thanks for the quick reply. How do I install this? Does this go behind my head unit?

[nissanfrontier]

I put mine under the console in the truck, I put the one in my wifes vehicle under the seat, probably not enough room behind the deck. I would search Pioneers site and see if they have an instruction manual for it to find more info on installing and connections.

[greendragon]

You would have to have a lot of room to put the XM tuner in your dash. The unit is aroud 5.5" x7.5" x1.5". I stuck mine to the inside of my fender under my spare tire in hatch area of my camaro with heavy duty two-sided tape. The antenna has a long small diameter cable to run to the tuner and there is a i-bus/power cable. It is composed of a ibus cable to the headunit and an equally long power wire that you hook up to a switched hot like the head unit power. It also includes a much shorter ground to hook to the car body. Once you hook up everything and power up the xm icon will light up. Once you get everything working you power everything up and call XM to sign up, you will need a credit card, your radio id number which can be displayed on the headunit, and it would be a good idea to look at their packages before hand on their website so you know what you want. After that you have to leave the XM on a preview channel for about 20 minutes while they download all the channel info.

[venusfan]

The unit is really big, never knew it was so big until I got it so I doubt it will fit behind any head unit. I got mine from ebay for $50 so shop around and don't pay $100+ when u can get it for 1/2 price. So far I've had it installed for a week and it's okay. Not the very best of sound but it will do. I only payed $20 for 5 month of service so all is good.

[SayWhatsReal]

thanks for the help guys. What kind of XM tuner should I buy that will work with the Avic f90bt?

[SteveInNC]

The GEX-P920XM is the only compatible unit that I'm aware of. It's a pretty simple install, and comes with the necessary cables. The bus cable is a dual cable, with data on part of it and power on the other. You plug it into the back of the F90BT, then feed it to wherever you mounted your XM unit (mine is bolted to a sidewall in my hatchback). At the XM end, you plug into that unit, and attach the supplied grounding wire to some nearby grounding point. Almost any bolt or screw nearby that is screwed into/through metal bodywork will do. Things like seat mount bolts, tie-down bolts, etc. are likely candidates. You then run the XM sat antenna from the XM unit to some convenient place with a view of the sky. Some people have had luck simply putting it on the dash where it can look up through the windshield. I ran mine out through a taillight assembly, then up a rain gutter along my hatch to the rear roof of the car. It has a magnetic mount, and uses a fairly thin wire, so you can probably run it out through trunk or door gaskets without causing any leaks.

[1loudls]

i made a bracket to mount mine just below the air bag and above the glove box, that way if i ever need to get to it or the connections (to aconnect somthing else to the system) i have very easy access to it