Head Unit FAQ Page?

TFG

A2OC Donor
When I first started reading up on the A2 head units, I'm sure I remember a thread/FAQ, possibly by timmus, that gave a detailed description of the various head units fitted to the A2 including a picture of the fascia of each and what-could-be-upgraded-with-what information. Does anyone know where I'll find it, as I can't see it anywhere, even when I look back through my browser history!
 
Thanks - that's not the one I had in mind, but it was well worth the read nonetheless.

I'm looking for more information about the lack of interchangeability between Symphony 1 and Symphony 2 head units. I've bought a 51-plate car with a Symphony 1. I may be alone in this, but I quite like the logic of the button layout of the 1 (prefer it to the 2) and perhaps the biggest plus is that it's got durable buttons. BUT...... does the Symphony 1 suffer from the same failing as the Chorus and Concert 1 in having a life of only 10,000 volume steps? Also, I've seen several remarks about the 'Series 1' units not being fully hooked up to CAN bus operation, which limits upgrade options. In itself, that doesn't bother me much as long as I'm not going to find I've got a dead unit on my hands one day.

Can the Symphony 1 be fooled into thinking an SD card reader is a CD changer on the blue mini-ISO by using something like a Connects2 unit, for example? The other thread I've seen on here that looks really great is the MFSW from an A1, but I know that requires full CAN bus function. Can that be enabled on a MY2001 car?

Belated thanks to Tom (timmus), who by PM told me this was the thread I was looking for, but it only covers the single-DIN units:

http://www.a2oc.net/forum/showthread.php?32969-Audi-Concert-Wanted&p=281311#post281311
 
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Not a complete answer but it may help

All A2s have a canbus system but this was not fully linked to the infotainment system on early models with Series 1 head units.

There were similar issues with the Audi A6 of the same vintage and there were lots of articles written by a group in the States showing how to retrofit RNS-E satnav and Symphony 2 radio units etc, and upgrade the canbus system. Much of that info reads over to the A2 and this link may give some ideas of what's possible - https://sites.google.com/a/lee-hicks.com/nsxjr/documents
Many years ago I converted my Symphony 1 to the 'old' RNS-D satnav and used this info to modify the canbus so the nav instructions showed in the DIS display

Cheers Spike
 
Hi Matt,

Apologies for the delayed reply to your PMs.

I can understanding your linking for the Symphony 1. You'll be pleased to know that it does not suffer from the same issue as the single-DIN Generation 1 stereos, so is a much more reliable piece of kit. :)

It does not, however, have any CAN bus implementation at all. As such, fitting it into a later model car (especially one with DIS) becomes more challenging.
Generation 1 stereos send information to the DIS display using a proprietary 3-wire interface rather than the industry standard CAN interface. As such, early A2 instrument clusters have connections for this proprietary 3-wire interface. I do not know whether this functionality was axed on later instrument clusters; I've simply never investigated this.
Lots of people have asked me to fit later CAN-enabled stereos to their early A2, but I've never been asked to fit an earlier stereo to a later A2. I can certainly make the Symphony 1 switch on and off with the ignition and I can make the button illumination logic work properly, but it may be that later DIS screens can only display information fed over CAN. I'll have to do some digging.

Edit: Some digging done. It appears the proprietary connections are still there on later clusters, but I don't know yet whether they're enabled in the cluster's software. A trial fitment would need to be done to be sure.

Cheers,

Tom
 
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If it's of any interest I have a Symphony III (or II+) unit for sale which is a superb unit, and has the advantage of not only having hard touch controls, but will also read MP3s from CDs, greatly extending the listening time which is essential for long car journeys :) PM Me if you're interested.
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Can the Symphony 1 be fooled into thinking an SD card reader is a CD changer on the blue mini-ISO by using something like a Connects2 unit, for example? The other thread I've seen on here that looks really great is the MFSW from an A1, but I know that requires full CAN bus function. Can that be enabled on a MY2001 car?

The Symphony 1 has the same auxiliary inputs as the Generation 2 stereos, so things like SD card readers, bluetooth receivers, etc, can all be added.

You cannot control a Symphony 1 using an A1 MFSW. The MFSW commands are sent over CAN and the Symphony 1 has no CAN bus implementation at all.
Even the Symphony 2 (and other Generation 2 stereos) cannot be fully controlled by the A1 MFSW (though some commands, such as volume control, do work). The A1 MFSW was designed 12 years after the launch of the Generation 2 stereos and there is only so much cross-compatibility. To get a decent range of functionality from the A1 MFSW when fitted in an A2, you need RNS-E.

Cheers,

Tom
 
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