I received and installed my WT7600NEX yesterday!

I went with the 7600 because the 8600 screen would simply be too large to fit between my center vents above and the climate control panel below. The two units are identical other than the screen size. 

And that screen!!!!  I definitely don’t need the 10” screen of the 8600. The 9” screen of the 7600 is PLENTY big enough, and an enormous upgrade in size and pixel density from previous 7” NEX units.  It really is gorgeous, and makes the user interface easier.

Installation was ALMOST a straight swap for my old W8400NEX. The audio wire harness had to be changed, but that is easy as it is all RCA plugs. The new unit uses USB-C, but includes a C-to-A adapter in the box, so I did have to pull my old USB-A cord to run the included USB-C extension cable. 

The new NEX software is typical Pioneer.  Those familiar with the old NEX software shouldn’t have too difficult a time using the new. Most changes were done to bring the UI up to date and to support new internet-connected features and Alexa.  I love the new Home Screen customization options! The live tiles are customizable and swappable.  You can have up to four. They can be resized, removed, and replaced with other functions... weather, sports, gauges, climate control, etc.

As for aesthetics, there are new dynamic backgrounds with effects that use the colors from the album art within the NEX interface. It’s pretty cool, and a welcome update to the theme colors, which are also still present. 

Alexa support is serviceable, and more so if you plan to ONLY use Alexa, and not CarPlay or, presumably, Android Auto. I honestly don’t see myself using it much, as it requires temporarily disabling CarPlay to use it. This is done as if it is a separate source. I understand why they do this, and I don’t see a way around it, but it would be nice if I could say and use “Alexa” while using CarPlay. Since 90% of my time is spent with CarPlay, I really don’t expect to use Alexa much, but if that is your ecosystem of choice, you should be happy...

...that is if the unit maintains a good hotspot connection with your smartphone, which it relies on for internet. My iPhone hotspot feature seems to go to sleep, and I have to go to the iPhone hotspot setting to wake it up before I use it. 

My biggest nitpick isn’t really a nitpick, but more of an “oh, shit, they got me!”  Pioneer does not advertise built-in navigation with these new WT NEXs. I didn’t really look for it, as I just expected a $1000 head-unit at the top of the NEX range to have it. Alas, they do not have built-in navigation. Now realistically, this isn’t a big deal for most, as pretty much any nav app on CarPlay or Android Auto blows away the stock nav system... and has free rolling updates!  But those who live in or travel to more rural areas will need to take note, less you go to use your preferred navigation app only to be confronted with a blank grid due to a lack of cell coverage. Leaving built-in nav out seems both skimpy and forward-thinking at the same time on a unit of this stature.

Let me know if anyone has any questions!

Is the bypass for this model any different from other NEX models?
Or can you use a pac tr1 or metra trig1?

Or will the quadrant bypass work?

The bypass doesn’t seem to work. I tried holding my finger on the bottom left with the source set to OFF. It didn’t work. 

Not sure about a wired bypass.

Hopefully that info is passed down soon!

I got my 7600 installed In my tahoe and love it so far. This is my first pioneer unit. 
 

I stumbled upon a video bypass. After installing the parking brake bypass and connecting the gps antenna, I connected the speed wire to what I thought was a vss wire going into the old onstar box. It wasn't the correct wire, however it delivered a pulse to the unit that made it think I was only going 1 mph. Idk what the wire is but it means all we need is a signal to the unit so its tricked into seeing the wire connected but not detecting a speed. 
 

This allowed video and nav to work at the same time along with car play. 

On 6/6/2020 at 9:42 AM, Rajr said:

I got my 7600 installed In my tahoe and love it so far. This is my first pioneer unit. 
 

I stumbled upon a video bypass. After installing the parking brake bypass and connecting the gps antenna, I connected the speed wire to what I thought was a vss wire going into the old onstar box. It wasn't the correct wire, however it delivered a pulse to the unit that made it think I was only going 1 mph. Idk what the wire is but it means all we need is a signal to the unit so its tricked into seeing the wire connected but not detecting a speed. 
 

This allowed video and nav to work at the same time along with car play. 

Have you figured out what wire it's connected to yet. It's driving me crazy i can't bypass 

I haven't yet, sorry. And unfortunately I did something in settings or the radio recalibrated since my post and it stopped working like that. Im experimenting to get it back to that state but no luck yet. SO FRUSTRATING! as of now I pulled the gps antenna. Had a road trip with the kids and they can't live without their Trolls World Tour lol The time and date will set if you have the radio hotspotted to a phone. Originally it said you needed gps to set. I guess it pulls it from the phone also. Siri will still work connected to bluetooth but no full CarPlay at this time with the gps antenna detached. Love this unit though!

I just purchased the dmh8600 with the maestro rr this week.  I have gotten to ride around for about 2 hours with it and while I love the larger screen, I do have some concerns.

1) there is a way to change the forward/backward tilt on the lcd but I cannot figure it out after reading the install manual. If someone knows please snap some pictures for film a movie on how to do it for us that can’t figure it out.  I don’t want to randomly start forcing things and break my $1000 radio!

2) this may be related to #1 but it is kind of a pain to put the lcd screen On and then snake the mounting screws behind it and hold it in place with forceps while I screw in with a long screwdriver. Then... invariably to get everything hooked up and lined up and connected requires multiple installs and removals to get it just right. Removing the lcd screws adds another layer of annoyance for each reinstall, not to mention nervousness that I’m going to drop the screws.

3) The caravassist app is cool to edit the home screen but it took me a little to figure out.  I did not realize I had to find the caravassist app on the unit and open it before I could connect with my iPhone and transfer the data. It was not super clear in the manual and I was trying to connect from my phone without opening the corresponding app on the radio

4) I am having a hard time with wireless CarPlay sound quality. I am running iOS 13.5 and am frequent cut outs of sound which is very annoying. During my initial dry fittings before I actually screwed it into the car I did not recall drop outs but may not have been listening to CarPlay long enough. Since driving around I am getting cut outs and occasionally the phone disconnects and reconnect after 15-30 secs. I have  Tried to delete and reconnect the phone and it persists. I am going to connect with a different phone to see if still randomly drops out.   Hopefully this will resolve.  I need to remove it one last time to put in hdmi and usb adaptors so I will recheck connections.

5) I have purchased right angle adaptors for the usb-c and hdmi since I broke the included usb-c adaptor.  In my car there is not a lot of room behind the unit so in the process of putting it in, I inadvertently bent/broke the usb and hdmi cables

6) The downside of being so quick to get this means I went from a unit with a bypass to no bypass available.  I have the hardwire pass and have tried the lower quadrant bypass and can confirm that these do not work on the dmh8600. Hopefully this will be made public very soon.

7) The hotspot feature is cool in that it can get weather, sports, and even browse websites (when standing still) using the hotspot from the Iphone. However, I believe the hotspot shuts off on the phone after awhile of having nothing connected Perhaps to save the battery.  So.... when I get out of the car and then get back in, I have to go to settings on my iPhone and reactivate the hotspot and then the radio automatically connects.

those are my first impressions! I’d be curious if others have encountered these or perhaps they have a fix for any of them??

How does Siri sound with your receiver? I have the wt7600 and when I ask Siri a question she responds with a robotic voice. When I’m following navigation Siri sounds fine. 

10 hours ago, mfvtgtgs said:

1) there is a way to change the forward/backward tilt on the lcd but I cannot figure it out after reading the install manual. If someone knows please snap some pictures for film a movie on how to do it for us that can’t figure it out.  I don’t want to randomly start forcing things and break my $1000 radio!

With the 7600, it is manual. You have to push and pull it to adjust the angle.

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2) this may be related to #1 but it is kind of a pain to put the lcd screen On and then snake the mounting screws behind it and hold it in place with forceps while I screw in with a long screwdriver. Then... invariably to get everything hooked up and lined up and connected requires multiple installs and removals to get it just right. Removing the lcd screws adds another layer of annoyance for each reinstall, not to mention nervousness that I’m going to drop the screws.

Once the screen is attached, you shouldn’t have to detach it. The entire radio and dash kit should be able to be removed with the screen attached.

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3) The caravassist app is cool to edit the home screen but it took me a little to figure out.  I did not realize I had to find the caravassist app on the unit and open it before I could connect with my iPhone and transfer the data. It was not super clear in the manual and I was trying to connect from my phone without opening the corresponding app on the radio

Yeah, I had to look that up. Typical Pioneer, and probably necessary in order to get around CarPlay taking over. 

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4) I am having a hard time with wireless CarPlay sound quality. I am running iOS 13.5 and am frequent cut outs of sound which is very annoying. During my initial dry fittings before I actually screwed it into the car I did not recall drop outs but may not have been listening to CarPlay long enough. Since driving around I am getting cut outs and occasionally the phone disconnects and reconnect after 15-30 secs. I have  Tried to delete and reconnect the phone and it persists. I am going to connect with a different phone to see if still randomly drops out.   Hopefully this will resolve.  I need to remove it one last time to put in hdmi and usb adaptors so I will recheck connections.

I’ve had no problems with audio or CarPlay dropping. No disconnects at all.  I AM getting a robotic voice with Siri and phone calls, as Dizle mentioned. Glad to confirm it isn’t my unit!

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5) I have purchased right angle adaptors for the usb-c and hdmi since I broke the included usb-c adaptor.  In my car there is not a lot of room behind the unit so in the process of putting it in, I inadvertently bent/broke the usb and hdmi cables

That sounds like a problem unique to your car. This unit takes up about the same depth as any other head unit I’ve owned. 

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6) The downside of being so quick to get this means I went from a unit with a bypass to no bypass available.  I have the hardwire pass and have tried the lower quadrant bypass and can confirm that these do not work on the dmh8600. Hopefully this will be made public very soon.

I hope so, too. 

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7) The hotspot feature is cool in that it can get weather, sports, and even browse websites (when standing still) using the hotspot from the Iphone. However, I believe the hotspot shuts off on the phone after awhile of having nothing connected Perhaps to save the battery.  So.... when I get out of the car and then get back in, I have to go to settings on my iPhone and reactivate the hotspot and then the radio automatically connects.

This is intentional behavior for iPhone to conserve battery life. 

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those are my first impressions! I’d be curious if others have encountered these or perhaps they have a fix for any of them??

 

 

7 hours ago, Dizle said:

How does Siri sound with your receiver? I have the wt7600 and when I ask Siri a question she responds with a robotic voice. When I’m following navigation Siri sounds fine. 

Glad to hear I’m not the only one with this problem!

Yes, the Siri voice and phone calls sound awful... distant, scratchy, and robotic. Navigation sounds fine. I called Pioneer and they blamed Apple, of course, so who knows at this point. 

Siri and calls are a huge part of CarPlay, I hope they can fix it with a firmware update! 

One other thing I can’t get to work at all: i have the Maestro RR for steering wheel integration, and I added a front camera. I programmed the RR for press and hold track up: front view camera, press and hold track down: rear view camera. Neither of these work, maybe the head unit and Maestro are missing the right commands because it’s so new? 

Mine is also quite slow at start up, it boots up in about 13 seconds but navigating menus and such after that time period are still pretty slow. Love the unit so far and hoping they fix some minor things with software updates! 

@mfvtgtgsWith the 7600, I just forcibly push it. Not tabs or buttons. 

Interesting about the Siri. I can’t imagine the actual components or hardware are any different, other than the screen.

@Dizle, I’d call and report the Siri problem to Pioneer support. I did last week. This may be a problem with the 7600. Hopefully it is a firmware-addressable problem!

14 hours ago, mapotter99 said:

@mfvtgtgsWith the 7600, I just forcibly push it. Not tabs or buttons. 

Interesting about the Siri. I can’t imagine the actual components or hardware are any different, other than the screen.

@Dizle, I’d call and report the Siri problem to Pioneer support. I did last week. This may be a problem with the 7600. Hopefully it is a firmware-addressable problem!

Thanks I’ll give them a call! 
 

How’s your wireless CarPlay? My phone needs to be quite close to the pioneer or else it cuts out. I practically have to set it on the dash above the radio to get a solid signal for CarPlay, I’ll mention it to pioneer as well. 

@Dizle No problems with wireless CarPlay or its range. Just the robotic Siri voice and phone calls. 

I got a notification in CarAVAssist that a new firmware (v1.13) for the WT8600NEX was available. I downloaded it (~225MB) but can't sync it to the unit because it fails to tether properly. Additionally, it looks like the firmware update is not available on their website yet.

Anyone successfully update it? Any word if the bypass is added (it's not in the changelog, of course)?

I also was not able to update it through carassist and thought I would try to do it on a usb drive but was unable find it online to download.  Based upon the info it looks like it is entirely android auto so it may not necessarily be applicable to my use of the radio.

I just completed the update to 1.13. No noticeable fixes on my end. Siri still sounds like garbage. 

CarAVAssist is a complicated pain in the ass that requires a very precise and intentional workflow that differs based on the function one wants to perform. To update the firmware, there is no need to connect CarAVAssist using the CarAVAssist source on the head unit over Bluetooth. Firmware updates only work over a WiFi hotspot, and must be done from within the Firmware Update menu on the head unit. Here is what I did using iPhone...

1) Assuming you have already setup CarAVAssist between your head unit and phone, open the app on your iPhone, tap “Firmware Updates” and download the new firmware. This step can be done from your house WiFi away from the head unit. The initial CarAVAssist setup alone is a pain in the ass, and is required so your phone knows what head unit you have.  If folks need help with this, let me know.

2) This assumes you have already set up the head unit to use the iPhone hotspot. Note that iPhones disable the hotspot after 5 minutes if there are no connections to save battery. Activate your iPhone hotspot by going to Settings/Personal Hotspot and waiting, or by dragging down from the upper right corner for the Control Center, holding your finger on the WiFi icon, and then tapping “Personal Hotspot” to make it discoverable. Wait for the head unit to display the connection notification. 

3) Open the CarAVAssist app on your iPhone and go to the Firmware Update Section. 

4) On the head unit, go to Settings/System/System Information/Firmware Update and tap “CarAVAssist”.

5) On your iPhone CarAVAssist app, start the installation process. 

1 hour ago, mapotter99 said:

I just completed the update to 1.13. No noticeable fixes on my end. Siri still sounds like garbage. 

CarAVAssist is a complicated pain in the ass that requires a very precise and intentional workflow that differs based on the function one wants to perform. To update the firmware, there is no need to connect CarAVAssist using the CarAVAssist source on the head unit over Bluetooth. Firmware updates only work over a WiFi hotspot, and must be done from within the Firmware Update menu on the head unit. Here is what I did using iPhone...

1) Assuming you have already setup CarAVAssist between your head unit and phone, open the app on your iPhone, tap “Firmware Updates” and download the new firmware. This step can be done from your house WiFi away from the head unit. The initial CarAVAssist setup alone is a pain in the ass, and is required so your phone knows what head unit you have.  If folks need help with this, let me know.

2) This assumes you have already set up the head unit to use the iPhone hotspot. Note that iPhones disable the hotspot after 5 minutes if there are no connections to save battery. Activate your iPhone hotspot by going to Settings/Personal Hotspot and waiting, or by dragging down from the upper right corner for the Control Center, holding your finger on the WiFi icon, and then tapping “Personal Hotspot” to make it discoverable. Wait for the head unit to display the connection notification. 

3) Open the CarAVAssist app on your iPhone and go to the Firmware Update Section. 

4) On the head unit, go to Settings/System/System Information/Firmware Update and tap “CarAVAssist”.

5) On your iPhone CarAVAssist app, start the installation process. 

Thank you! Seems like it’s not even worth doing for me. 
 

I got an update from a gentlemen at Maestro regarding the camera views and steering wheel control (that currently don’t work):
 

pionner plans to release firmware in September that will fix the issue with Maestro/ camera view commands. I wonder what else will be fixed in September? Kind of disappointing. I didn’t buy a $1000 receiver knowing it would have a beta firmware on it :/. 

they make support for Metra Axxess
it will be an analog for MaestroRR

Functions for MaestroRR will also change.
New features
1. Park Assist
2. Radar
3. RSE
4. Climate
5. Chime

I didn’t tell you anything 

I called Pioneer about Siri audio, they were less than helpful and blame my phone. I know it’s not the phone but I’ll try my wife’s tonight. 
 

Those are great Install pictures from those who posted.  Very glad I found this forum. Learned quite a bit already.  
 

Wanted to update you all on my bypass trials and errors.  Found a company on eBay that was advertising in motion bypass for 2020 Pioneer NEX’s.  It’s a triple pulse bypass.  I had initially installed my WT7600 with a double pulse, which did work until I started moving.  Ordered one thinking it would help with the speed pulse wire error.  Received it, installed it, and once the 3D Calibration had initialized, I lost video.  Went to Settings/System Information/3D Calibration and tapped on the Learning button.  Chose Reset All, then video came back.  At one point I had video for 13 minutes, then made a few turns, slowed down, then lost it until I came to a stop.  If you have the VSS wire connected and reset everything, it will eventually initialize to 3D Hybrid and you will lose video.  If the speed sense wire is not connected at all and you reset the learning, video will work briefly until the system initializes to a Simple Hybrid, the video is lost.  
 

I drive with the kids a lot, so it’s more important to me than losing CarPlay functionality.  Someone had posted that they pulled the GPS plug.  Did video stay on consistently, or did it eventually go off?

Thanks for the help.