F700BT Volume and SubWoofer problem

[RaffiH3]

Guys, I just installed the F700BT model in my H3 over the last weekend and have a couple of concerns. First of all it seems to me that the Volume does not go up as high as it should be. The max I guess is 62 on the numerical sphere but at that level its still nowhere near as loud as the factory system was. Do not get me wrong it is loud for most but if you really wanted to let it kick u cant, is this normal for aftermarket radios? I have the premium sound (Monsoon) system and bought the GMOS converter and all, connected the RCA cables right in. All the speaker seem to work just not lound enough. Also I have no control over the Sub Woofer. Wheather I turn it on or off it sounds exactly the same, I assume it doesnt turn it off at all. Also going up and down on Level does not seem to change anything at all. The only real difference I can tell is by playing with the equalizer but that only lets u manipulate sound so much. Did anyone else have a similar problem ?

[RaffiH3]

Anyone have any idea? I only have a few days left in the warranty from the seller (14 days) if there is something wrong I would like to be able to send back before that and not have to deal with Pioneer later, its a refurbished unit. Someone has to know something.

[narcolept]

What do the settings under AV Settings look like? Specifically, Loudness and Subwoofer?

[RaffiH3]

They are not greyed out if thats what you mean, I can go in there and adjust everything, its just that when I turn the Sub off or change the level, nothing seems to happen at all, the Sub is always ON and levels do not increase or decrease the base level.

[narcolept]

Well, as you are trying to hook into your factory setup, your sub isn't connected to the Subwoofer output on the head unit, so you aren't going to be able to control that.

 

As for Loudness - is it On or Off, and is there a difference there?

 

I really don't think we're going to be able to troubleshoot your volume level of your factory premium system with a converter harness between the 700BT and that, unfortunately.

[RaffiH3]

Thanks narcolept, just to clarify, you are saying I will not be able to control the sub at all ? or its just that I do not have it connected properly? I was able to control the level just fine with the stock radio, also since this radio has the settings to control it, why would I not be able to use them? According to the GMOS-04 model it states it is needed to retain the amp control so I assumed with that unit I should be able to control the sub being on or off, but more so the level of it. If I can not turn it off is one thing, but not being able to control the level is a much bigger pain in the you know what

Are u saying there is no way to control the sub woofer with the F700BT? its kinda crazy considering it has the options to do it.

When it comes to loudness I did play with that and there is a slight difference but not as much to make a real difference. When the radio is at full volume it still should have a ways to go before it gets too loud. With my stock I was able to get a lot more volume out of it and from reading reviews I was expecting for this readio to expand this even further. Instead it limits the volume by a large margin. You have to get into 50s on the volume before you can even hear the radio outside of the car and well into 40s before you can actuall hear the radio clearly inside. 0 to about 40 its like a whisper.

[RaffiH3]

narcolept, I was just plaing around with the radio and noticed that I can control the base through the Bass Booster, I don't know why I would not be able to control it through Sub Woofer controls? Is it because this is just the Bass Booster from radio itself while subwoofer is the actual sub I have in the back ? its a bit confusing.

[narcolept]

I don't know, 1loudls or one of the other installers would be able to answer this better, honestly. I've never worked with the GM retrofit adapter you're using..

 

What I'm saying is that I believe that the converter is only going to just feed sound to your existing system, without their being RCAs running from the subwoofer output on the deck to the input of the amp, the subwoofer controls on the deck are essentially nipples on a parrot, if you get what I'm saying...

[RaffiH3]

I understand, but since sub woofer was fully controllable with stock radio wouldnt that mean there has to be some kind of feed for them ? I guess like you said maybe one of the other guys could help more so I can only hope they read this post. If I need to install an additional wire something that would be great but at this point volume is my biggest concern as I at least can control the bass in some way.

Do you think installing 3.2 update could solve that problem? I know its not meant for this model but I heard a lot of people on the web saying it solved problems for them. I have 2.00800 version right now and did not notice many problems, the bootup time is very quick in my opinion. I did however get an error yesterday which took a week to show up, could this affect my problem in any way ? although I doubt this has anything to do with it

The error sais that "system detected the break lead being connected incorrectly" or something of that effect. I am pretty sure I connected all cables correctly. possibly something came loose.

[RaffiH3]

narcolept any ideas on the parking break cable error message?

also to the installed narcolept spoke about, are you out there ?

[narcolept]

Yeah, check the parking brake wire from your harness and make sure it's connected where it should be (obvious where it should be connected if you're bypassed or not)

[RaffiH3]

narcolept, I am pretty sure I connected the parking brake cables ok, there was only 1 cable in each manual stating its for the parking brake so I do not think I could make a mistake, the only thing is maybe it came lose or I did not splice them correctly. What do you mean if I am bypassed?

[narcolept]

Listen, if you're saying the only issue would be that the connection is bad/loose on the parking brake cable, what are you asking me about it for, instead of checking it and fixing it?

[RaffiH3]

no need to get upset so quickly, I was simply stating it is unlikely I spliced cables incorrectly. I was asking what you mean by bypassed because I don't really know what you mean, as in I do not know enough about these systems to understand what it is you are suggesting, as in I do not know what it is I should be bypassing, etc. I can follow a diagram ok but it doesnt mean i know exactly what I am doing

[RaffiH3]

narcolept, I thought of what I did and maybe that is the problem? the ligth green cable that comes with the navigation unit is the parking brake cable if I remember correctly, it is very long and has some red adapter that you lock into with the parking brake cable. I am pretty sure it has two sides to it and a piece of metal that you slide the other cable into before locking. I ran the GMOS adapters parking brake cable into that and locked it, was I perhaps supposed actally not use the red adapter and just splice the two cables? I assume it was the way to do it after seeing there was the exposed metal inside the red clamps housing.