Suspect stereo

spud

Member
Hi all, after having my car for just over two weeks, I have noticed that my reception is pants, in other words I don't play it.
Who ever had the car before me has made a right mess of the in car entertainment, the stereo is a Kenwood with Bluetooth so connects to my phone, well that's they only good bit. Now only the front speaker's are working, so I'm thinking that it's not been connected and fitted correctly.
Also iam I supposed to have a amp under the floor on the drivers side,
Because my last A2 did.
Any member who can shed some light on the mater would be much appreciated.
Regards Spud, and my car is the 2001 se model

Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk
 
Hi,

the A2 has signal amplifiers connected directly to the aerial elements on the rear window. These are supplied with power through the signal cable. The OEM head units provide the power that the amplifiers need. An aftermarket one will need to do the same otherwise there will be problems picking up stations. Some aftermarket units can be set up to supply the power themselves, otherwise a power injector adaptor will be needed. These are readily available from car audio suppliers and on eBay.

Not all A2 have rear speakers fitted, but most that do have an amplifier in the driver's footwell compartment. Some early A2s had the Chorus tape head unit. This was a basic unit that did not support the external CD changer and so could only play cassette tapes. It differs from the more advanced Concert unit in that there were 4 channel amplifiers in the head unit itself so the external amp for the rear speakers was not required.

You will probably need to fit an aerial power adapter to solve your reception problem. If there is no rear amp in the compartment and it doesn't look like one has been removed, check the head unit wiring in case there are rear speakers wired up to the head unit directly. If not, you may not have any rear speakers at all. You will need to check behind the door cards to be sure. If there aren't any speakers fitted from the factory then the wiring will also be missing.

regards

Andrew
 
Hi Andrew I have rear speaker grills, so I would have thought that there was speakers, also can i remove the grills in the back doors from the outside.
Regards Spud

Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk
 
Yep no speakers in the back doors, so how would I go about fitting a Audi concert CD unit, I would need speakers of course,
And would I need an amp under the drivers floor.
Regards Spud

Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk
 
Yep no speakers in the back doors, so how would I go about fitting a Audi concert CD unit, I would need speakers of course,
And would I need an amp under the drivers floor.
Regards Spud

Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk

Hi,

if you have a 2001 model then it will be before fitment of the infotainment CANBUS network. Cars like yours would be fitted with the Concert (1) unit with a tape deck in the head unit and single central control knob. The Concert unit, unlike the Chorus unit described in my previous post has the CD changer connection on the back which can be used either to connect the external 6 disc boot mounted CD changer and/or an adapter which provides MP3 and Bluetooth connectivity. Many different adapters are available which utilise the line in of the CD changer connection.

The Concert (1) unit would be plug and play in your car as all the right connections and feeds are allready wired up. You won't be able to play CDs though unless you fit the separate unit.

The more modern Concert 2 unit which has a slot loading CD player instead of the cassette tape and two control knobs uses different wiring and relies on the CANBUS network for some functions. The earlier unit has a switched ignition live and illumination feeds which your car currently provides. The later unit only requires a permanent live feed and uses the CANBUS network to be signaled when the ignition and illumination are turned on.

If you want to fit a Concert 2 unit, you will need to provide it with the appropriate CANBUS connection otherwise it won't work correctly. It is possible to purchase a CANBUS emulator for the head unit with connects to the existing wiring and generates the correct signals for the latter unit. It is also apparently possible to provide the CANBUS connection by running additional wiring from the instrument cluster, but I can't help you with that one myself.

Note that the Concert 2 unit also has the external CD changer input as well even though it has an internal CD so can be used with an MP3 and Bluetooth adapter.

A2 standard door speakers and the small Blaupunkt amplifier are readily and cheaply available second hand. You will need to run cables from the doors to the amp and from the amp to the head unit. The door wiring goes through connectors on the door pillars so to do it properly you will need to add additional pins and receptacles to the connector shells.

This thread discusses the external amplifier and pin connections:

http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showthread.php?24226-Upgrading-rear-speakers&p=190087#post190087

regards

Andrew
 
The unit senses if there are rear speakers in your car and disables the "fader" option automatically, I believe.

The same units are used in 4 speaker and two speaker set ups.

Steve B
 
Hi,

if you have a 2001 model then it will be before fitment of the infotainment CANBUS network. Cars like yours would be fitted with the Concert (1) unit with a tape deck in the head unit and single central control knob. The Concert unit, unlike the Chorus unit described in my previous post has the CD changer connection on the back which can be used either to connect the external 6 disc boot mounted CD changer and/or an adapter which provides MP3 and Bluetooth connectivity. Many different adapters are available which utilise the line in of the CD changer connection.

The Concert (1) unit would be plug and play in your car as all the right connections and feeds are allready wired up. You won't be able to play CDs though unless you fit the separate unit.

The more modern Concert 2 unit which has a slot loading CD player instead of the cassette tape and two control knobs uses different wiring and relies on the CANBUS network for some functions. The earlier unit has a switched ignition live and illumination feeds which your car currently provides. The later unit only requires a permanent live feed and uses the CANBUS network to be signaled when the ignition and illumination are turned on.

If you want to fit a Concert 2 unit, you will need to provide it with the appropriate CANBUS connection otherwise it won't work correctly. It is possible to purchase a CANBUS emulator for the head unit with connects to the existing wiring and generates the correct signals for the latter unit. It is also apparently possible to provide the CANBUS connection by running additional wiring from the instrument cluster, but I can't help you with that one myself.

Note that the Concert 2 unit also has the external CD changer input as well even though it has an internal CD so can be used with an MP3 and Bluetooth adapter.

A2 standard door speakers and the small Blaupunkt amplifier are readily and cheaply available second hand. You will need to run cables from the doors to the amp and from the amp to the head unit. The door wiring goes through connectors on the door pillars so to do it properly you will need to add additional pins and receptacles to the connector shells.

This thread discusses the external amplifier and pin connections:

http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showthread.php?24226-Upgrading-rear-speakers&p=190087#post190087

regards

Andrew
Thanks for the info Andrew, a lot to take in, I can feel a trip to Lancaster coming on as we all know a man who is very good at these sort of thing's. Like you Andrew a wealth of knowledge in this department.
I have a few quid coming in a month or two, so I can price a few things up and then buy the equipment and see Tom and set a date when he's free to fit what ever I decide to go with.
I love my music in the car and only having the front's is really not that good.
Thanks again Andrew you have been very helpful
Regards Spud

Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk
 
The unit senses if there are rear speakers in your car and disables the "fader" option automatically, I believe.

The same units are used in 4 speaker and two speaker set ups.

Steve B
Thanks for that Steve, bit gutted that I don't have the four.
I had a good idea when I lifted the lid in the floor and the amp was missing, and after propping the grill in the back door card, my worst fears where confirmed.
Oh well it will have to be sorted, another job to add to the list. But worth every penny.
Regards Spud


Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk
 
Thanks for that Steve, bit gutted that I don't have the four.
I had a good idea when I lifted the lid in the floor and the amp was missing, and after propping the grill in the back door card, my worst fears where confirmed.
Oh well it will have to be sorted, another job to add to the list. But worth every penny.
Regards Spud


Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk

Timmus fitted my rear speakers (and a long list of other things) the end result is amazing.

The standard Audi units produce great sounds from the four speaker system, you will not be disappointed.

Steve B
 
My last A2 had the rear speaker's, and your right Steve they do sound rather good.
Regards Spud

Sent from my VFD 600 using Tapatalk
 
Back
Top