This isn't really an f-series question, just a general question. I have to connect the speaker outputs from the avic to a wiring harness, so it's bare wire to bare wire. How should I go about doing this?

thanks

solder and heatshrink

google will tell you how to use both

^+1....best way to do it

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ok or you can do a nice job on twisting wires together, dont just twist, hold one wire and twistthe other around it then wrap the one you were holding back over the other. looks like a blob ibut it will hold good if you pull. solder and shrink wrap, pftt too much time and effort for the same quality

Soldering hands down is the way to go, if you do it properly. With that being said I suggest you look up how to solder if you do not know how. Also make sure you use an "electronics" grade solder. The solder I use for almost all my audio installs is a 40/60 Rosin Flux Core electrical repair solder, .062" diameter.

Rather than go on into a draw out process/explanation of how to properly solder audio wires. Follow the directions in the link below.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-iiqmF0BhDI ... b1807.html

ok or you can do a nice job on twisting wires together, dont just twist, hold one wire and twistthe other around it then wrap the one you were holding back over the other. looks like a blob ibut it will hold good if you pull. solder and shrink wrap, pftt too much time and effort for the same quality

wrong

it makes a poor contact, it can part with road noise and vibration, its begging for trouble. its also the kind of thing you'd expect some newbie best buy installer to do.

solder is by all means permanent, secure and makes a great contact between both wires

When I first went to radio shack they recommended these butt connector things which failed miserably. I ended up soldering (first time I did that, go google) and the system is working fine. I made the ipod cable come out from my center console, and extended the usb and rca connections to my glove box incase I ever want to use it. I'm pretty psyched the thing actually turned on, I still need to find a spot for the GPS antenna.

When I first went to radio shack they recommended these butt connector things which failed miserably. I ended up soldering (first time I did that, go google) and the system is working fine. I made the ipod cable come out from my center console, and extended the usb and rca connections to my glove box incase I ever want to use it. I'm pretty psyched the thing actually turned on, I still need to find a spot for the GPS antenna.

you can try putting the GPS antenna on top of the outer metal cage of the Avic so that its hidden beneath the dash.. this works somtimes, others it doesnt.

give yourself a pat on the back for learning to solder

butt splice connectors work, but when using them it is extemely important to use the right size for the wires you're working with and to use the right kind of crimpers to ensure a secure splice. solder is still better though

I still need to find a spot for the GPS antenna.

I fed mine via the front windshield defroster ducting, it has a tiny bit of flex, so you can feed the lead between it and the dash, and I pulled the wires over to the unit, so my little GPS antenna is just to the right of the defroster vent, very unobtrusive, and I didn't use the metal plate and I seem to be doing fine as far as reception.

Diane

mine is in the corner of the dash next to the speaker grill; painted the color of the dash.. blends in perfectly

This is the worst Idea I have ever seen, putting a Magnetic GPS antenna on the side of a Mini computer is braindead.

When I first went to radio shack they recommended these butt connector things which failed miserably. I ended up soldering (first time I did that, go google) and the system is working fine. I made the ipod cable come out from my center console, and extended the usb and rca connections to my glove box incase I ever want to use it. I'm pretty psyched the thing actually turned on, I still need to find a spot for the GPS antenna.

 

you can try putting the GPS antenna on top of the outer metal cage of the Avic so that its hidden beneath the dash.. this works somtimes, others it doesnt.

 

give yourself a pat on the back for learning to solder

 

butt splice connectors work, but when using them it is extemely important to use the right size for the wires you're working with and to use the right kind of crimpers to ensure a secure splice. solder is still better though

This is the worst Idea I have ever seen, putting a Magnetic GPS antenna on the side of a Mini computer is braindead.

 

 

When I first went to radio shack they recommended these butt connector things which failed miserably. I ended up soldering (first time I did that, go google) and the system is working fine. I made the ipod cable come out from my center console, and extended the usb and rca connections to my glove box incase I ever want to use it. I'm pretty psyched the thing actually turned on, I still need to find a spot for the GPS antenna.

 

you can try putting the GPS antenna on top of the outer metal cage of the Avic so that its hidden beneath the dash.. this works somtimes, others it doesnt.

 

give yourself a pat on the back for learning to solder

 

butt splice connectors work, but when using them it is extemely important to use the right size for the wires you're working with and to use the right kind of crimpers to ensure a secure splice. solder is still better though

you're right, the Avic's magnetically aligned bits of zeros and ones on its harddrive platter would be instantly erased; if only it used solid state non-volatile storage!

This is the worst Idea I have ever seen, putting a Magnetic GPS antenna on the side of a Mini computer is braindead.

 

Please explain why this is so. What does any of the F series have that would be troubled by something magnetic? Do you know anything about electronics, or just pretend to?

shhh..let him continue.