oog61 Posted March 21, 2006 Share Posted March 21, 2006 The lack of XM capability in the audio system was almost a deal breaker when I bought my Spec.B. In my prior ride, I had been using a SkyFi2 and living with a shaky vent mount and all the exposed wires, but the sound with the cassette adaptor was excellent. The Legacy doesn't even have a cassette player so it was looking like a choice between going back to all the exposed wires plus having to make do with the marginal sound quality of the built in FM modulator; or shelling out big bucks for a replacement audio system when the 2007 XM-ready units come out. In addition, the SkyFi2 along with the docking station is not a very small unit, and it didn't look like there was a good place to mount it. I was getting depressed, but then got some good ideas from this forum. The Delphi SA10003 hard wired FM modulator is a big improvement over the built in modulator, and it also provides power so you do away with the need to plug into one of the 12v outlets. Before I got the modulator, I plugged into the cigarette lighter, but of course the problem with that is that the door to the ashtray/lighter compartment has to remain open, and the ashtray light is always visible at night. Plus the cord is always exposed and hanging loose. In searching for a mounting location for the SkyFi2, I tried several approaches before hitting on one that is completely satisfactory... - It is hard to find a bracket mount to install to the right of the radio, plus that location encroaches on the passenger's knee room and is a long reach to tune. No good. - Mounting on the second to the bottom slat on the right center vent was OK but not great. Positives were that the only thing it blocked was the emergency flasher button, it looked OK, and since it's close to the cigarette lighter, there wasn't much exposed cord. Negatives were that tuning was a long reach, and that it was probably in the path of the airbag deployment, which could be dangerous. Also, the vent pretty much had to remain locked in one position (aimed at the passenger's face) with the unit mounted. - Mounting in the same location on the left center vent wasn't as good. Tuning was much easier because of the proximity to the steering wheel, and it was out of the airbag path, I think. However, the steering wheel and windshield wiper stalk blocked the XM display, and getting the key into the ignition was a little tight because the bottom of the docking station was directly to the right of it. The vent was locked in a position aiming directly at the drivers face. - I tried the Arkon pedestal gooseneck mount that attaches to the bolt on the passenger seat closest to the audio unit. This seemed like it was going to be the answer, but even though the gooseneck can be freely adjusted, I could not find a position that I was happy with. Adjusting the gooseneck so that the XM unit was just to the right and slightly in front of the radio was excellent, but only when there is no passenger. With a passenger, their left leg would always hit the gooseneck or the XM unit. I bent the gooseneck to run between the left side of the passenger seat and the center console, and positioned the XM unit so it was slightly above the seat heater controls. This kept it out of the passenger's way, but it was always a little in the way when shifting gears. (This might be a good solution for automatic Legacys, however.) I also had to look down and to the right to see the display, which was too distracting. - The answer for me was to mount it on the vent right next to the driver's side door. This vent allows a somewhat sturdier mount using the standard Delphi vent mount clips. The vent can still be moved to some degree even with the XM unit mounted to it. The bottom of the docking station partially blocks the mirror control, but not to an extent where usability is impaired. The XM display is clearly visible from the driver's seat, and tuning is very easy with the left hand. It is safely out of the airbag path. There are seams in the dash panels right below the vent, and running the wires in through those seams is very easy, clean, and hardly visible. There is also a small access door just above the hood release. With that door open, there is a flat surface just inside and above the door into which the FM modulator will fit perfectly with a simple Velcro mount. It is also very easy to completely hide the XM antenna from this location by running it through the same seam down to the hood release, then under the lip of the molding that extends up from the rocker panels, under that same lip all the way to the side of the back seat, then up along the left side of the back seat to the top of it, behind the back seat to the center passthrough, then into the trunk, and on to the trunk lid just below the high mounted stop light. The only two negatives to this location are 1) it cannot be reached by the passenger, but this can be overcome by providing the passenger with the remote control that comes with the XM unit; and 2) at night there is some reflection of the XM display on the outside rearview mirror, but headlights aproaching from the rear wash out the reflection so visibility to the rear is not compromised at all. After trying all of these positions, the last one seemed far and away the best to me. 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aldouse Posted March 21, 2006 Share Posted March 21, 2006 nice input. welcome aboard the forum! happy modding you lucky spec.b owner -- yay for the sig! -- my garage! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gfxdave99 Posted March 21, 2006 Share Posted March 21, 2006 welcome anyway newb If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough. - Mario Andretti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-lo Posted March 21, 2006 Share Posted March 21, 2006 258k miles - Stock engine/minor suspension upgrades/original shocks/rear struts replaced at 222k/4 passenger side wheel bearings/3 clutches/1 radiator/3 turbos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donv Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 How does the XM sound via the FM Modulator. I have a Roady and I'm using the Lighter FM wireless Modulator for signal and power and the sound quality stinks. Like a weak FM channel. I've read lot's on the Forum with Pros and Cons about the Wired FM Modulators. I'm not ready to do the Jazzy Mod since my car is still under waranty. Do you need to remove the radio to plug the antenna adaptors for the Delphi SA10003 hard wired FM modulator to the factory antenna? If you could take a photo where you put the SA10003 that would help. Does the sound quality come close to CD quality? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oog61 Posted April 30, 2006 Author Share Posted April 30, 2006 How does the XM sound via the FM Modulator. I have a Roady and I'm using the Lighter FM wireless Modulator for signal and power and the sound quality stinks. Like a weak FM channel. I've read lot's on the Forum with Pros and Cons about the Wired FM Modulators. I'm not ready to do the Jazzy Mod since my car is still under waranty. Do you need to remove the radio to plug the antenna adaptors for the Delphi SA10003 hard wired FM modulator to the factory antenna? If you could take a photo where you put the SA10003 that would help. Does the sound quality come close to CD quality? Thanks Sorry for the delay in answering, DonV. I'll try to get a photo for you, but the radio is mounted on the lower part of the A/C vent to the left of the steering wheel. Straight down below that, near the hood release, there is a small access door into the underside of the dash. If you open that door, there is a flat surface inside the top part of the opening that fits the SA10003 perfectly. Just mount it there with Velcro tape. That gives you easy access to the frequency selector switch if you ever need to change it. I did not want to tear apart the interior to do this install so had it done by a pro ($50 at Tweeter...well worth it). I do think he had to remove the radio to do the wiring for the SA10003. You also need an antenna adaptor (I think it is called an SU-10) which is ordered from somewhere else. It's about $25. He did an excellent job by the way. The sound quality is less than CD, less than you get with the cassette adaptor, but noticeably better than the wireless FM modulator, and about equivalent to a strong FM station. The biggest problem I had with the wireless modulator was that any time a broadcast station shared the same frequency I was modulating on, you'd get some static and sound quality degradation on the XM. No too bad if you have a clear channel at home but once you drive 20 miles, there's likely a station on that frequency if you are in a heavily populated area. The SA10003 completely eliminates that problem by cancelling the broadcast signals which gives you a clean frequency. My only gripe is that the signal cancelling sends white noise across all of your AM band and most of the FM band when your XM radio is powered on. So you can't switch back and forth between XM and say a baseball game on AM without enduring a lot of static on AM. For all practical purposes the XM unit has to be turned off when you are listening to AM or FM. To me the tradeoff is worth finally being able to get half decent XM sound again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coredump4 Posted May 3, 2006 Share Posted May 3, 2006 Useful thread, although some pix would be really really nice! I'm searching for a good permanent installation solution for my SkyFi2. Has anyone tried the Bracketron custom bezel mount bracket? You can buy 'em at: http://www.myradiostore.us/mounts-brackets-tools/bracketron/custom-bezel-mount-cbm.html It would allow you to mount any satellite radio receiver to the right of the radio. Could be a bit of a reach, but it should look very professional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oog61 Posted May 3, 2006 Author Share Posted May 3, 2006 Useful thread, although some pix would be really really nice! I'm searching for a good permanent installation solution for my SkyFi2. Has anyone tried the Bracketron custom bezel mount bracket? You can buy 'em at: http://www.myradiostore.us/mounts-brackets-tools/bracketron/custom-bezel-mount-cbm.html It would allow you to mount any satellite radio receiver to the right of the radio. Could be a bit of a reach, but it should look very professional. I looked at these and wasn't able to find one to fit the Legacy. I thought about fabricating my own, but in experimenting with a cardboard template, it was obvious that anything mounted on the right side is going to interfere with the passenger's left knee if it's mounted low, and will be in the airbag path (very dangerous) if mounted high. That's also a pretty long reach when you need to tune while driving. Take a look at the Arkon gooseneck mount (http://www.arkon.com/xm_mount.php), which is model SR088 on this link. The gooseneck mounts to the passenger seat floor bolt closest to the center console. It swivels and bends so you have a variety of possible positions for your SkyFi. I thought the best position with this was between the front seats, just behind the cupholders. It was a little in the way when shifting, but otherwise pretty good. I ended up going with the vent mount on the vent to the left of the steering wheel, but the gooseneck wasn't bad. You can find them closer to $20 on some websites. (They should have designed this so the wires run down the center of the gooseneck.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coredump4 Posted May 3, 2006 Share Posted May 3, 2006 I looked at these and wasn't able to find one to fit the Legacy. I thought about fabricating my own, but in experimenting with a cardboard template, it was obvious that anything mounted on the right side is going to interfere with the passenger's left knee if it's mounted low, and will be in the airbag path (very dangerous) if mounted high. That's also a pretty long reach when you need to tune while driving. On the link I posted, they claim to have a bracket for '05 Legacy. Presumably that would work on any current-generation Legacy. Thanks for the note about the cardboard template idea. I do want to make sure I interfere as little as possible with the passenger's space. Take a look at the Arkon gooseneck mount (http://www.arkon.com/xm_mount.php), which is model SR088 on this link. The gooseneck mounts to the passenger seat floor bolt closest to the center console. It swivels and bends so you have a variety of possible positions for your SkyFi. I thought the best position with this was between the front seats, just behind the cupholders. It was a little in the way when shifting, but otherwise pretty good. I ended up going with the vent mount on the vent to the left of the steering wheel, but the gooseneck wasn't bad. You can find them closer to $20 on some websites. (They should have designed this so the wires run down the center of the gooseneck.) I have one of these goosenecks, but haven't installed it yet. When I did take 10min. to scope out the job, I noticed that the gooseneck's base bracket will interfere with the passenger seat's movement. I figure I'll lose about 20% of the forward-most travel of that seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coredump4 Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 This link has the installation instructions for the Bracketron custom Legacy bracket, including a pretty good picture of the bracket after installation: http://www.bracketron.com/xmain/manuals/SUB-101-05.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donv Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 Thanks for the Information. I still think I'm going to need to take apart the center dash to get to the antenna wire in order to put in the adapters (which are sold at crutchfield for 12.99 each (circuit city wanted 25.00 each)) I like the idea of placing the modulator inside that access door, I'll have to look for it when I get home. Where I live (Philadelphia) the wireless modulator sucks due to the over abundance of radio stations, and I'm not ready to do the warranty voiding mods that work better. I'll take a good FM signal over what I'm getting now. Thanks again for the Info. Sorry for the delay in answering, DonV. I'll try to get a photo for you, but the radio is mounted on the lower part of the A/C vent to the left of the steering wheel. Straight down below that, near the hood release, there is a small access door into the underside of the dash. If you open that door, there is a flat surface inside the top part of the opening that fits the SA10003 perfectly. Just mount it there with Velcro tape. That gives you easy access to the frequency selector switch if you ever need to change it. I did not want to tear apart the interior to do this install so had it done by a pro ($50 at Tweeter...well worth it). I do think he had to remove the radio to do the wiring for the SA10003. You also need an antenna adaptor (I think it is called an SU-10) which is ordered from somewhere else. It's about $25. He did an excellent job by the way. The sound quality is less than CD, less than you get with the cassette adaptor, but noticeably better than the wireless FM modulator, and about equivalent to a strong FM station. The biggest problem I had with the wireless modulator was that any time a broadcast station shared the same frequency I was modulating on, you'd get some static and sound quality degradation on the XM. No too bad if you have a clear channel at home but once you drive 20 miles, there's likely a station on that frequency if you are in a heavily populated area. The SA10003 completely eliminates that problem by cancelling the broadcast signals which gives you a clean frequency. My only gripe is that the signal cancelling sends white noise across all of your AM band and most of the FM band when your XM radio is powered on. So you can't switch back and forth between XM and say a baseball game on AM without enduring a lot of static on AM. For all practical purposes the XM unit has to be turned off when you are listening to AM or FM. To me the tradeoff is worth finally being able to get half decent XM sound again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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