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Aftermarket Head Unit Questions

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by gbugler, Nov 30, 2018.

  1. gbugler

    gbugler Junior Member

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    Hello Prius Chat community. I have a 2016 Prius 4 (No JBL with Navi) and I am going to replace the head unit with the Pioneer AVIC-W8400NEX with a Maestro RR and all the recommended harnesses. I have already replaced all the speakers in the car. I have a couple of questions.

    Where did you mount the new microphone that came with then head unit? I would like to mount it were it cannot be seen. Was anyone able to mount the new mic where the old factory mic was?

    Also, can the new head unit use the existing GPS antenna? I know there is a harness connector for the factory radio antenna, but not sure if this also includes the GPS antenna? Also, would like to keep that out of sight if I have to use the new head unit antenna.

    Thanks in advanced.
     
  2. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    Vehicle:
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    Two
    Not sure how many differences there are between my c and your regular prius, but given that I used references for a Tacoma truck I don't think it's going to be that different...

    Anyway... I removed the stock microphone pod from the ceiling, gutted the assembly, installed the aftermarket mic in the shell of the factory unit and then reinstalled it in the ceiling- it looks original.

    Then I trimmed the mic wires out of the harness behind the dash and spliced them onto the aftermarket mic plug, and plugged it into the back of the new head unit.

    In other words, I'm using the factory mic mount and trim and wiring, I just replaced what was on each end of the wire.

    Recycling the gps antenna is possible, but that would be really hard to prove and plan in advance. You should plan on that session being open-ended for timing and results since it may take a few tries with different cable adapters.

    That said, lots of aftermarket GPS antennas work fine when you just glue them to the underside of the plastic dashboard. GPS signals will have no problem coming through the windshield glass and dashboard plastic.
     
    gbugler likes this.
  3. jerryxsara

    jerryxsara Junior Member

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    2016 Prius
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    My 2016 Prius w/ Nav and JBL, I replaced my stock radio with W4400NEX and using GPS adapter(ACC-SAT-TO2) to retain the shark fin antenna.

    This GPS antenna adapter package has 3 different type of adapters, Pioneer, Alpine and Kenwood will be supported, there’re more but not so sure what brands. For my case it works.
     
    gbugler likes this.
  4. timothevs

    timothevs Junior Member

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    I just did a 4400NEX install in my '18 Prius Three the last weekend.

    I mounted my microphone right between the two visors, to the side of the mirror. It is an amazing improvement over the stock mic (not even sure where that was). The other party can hear me crystal clear during calls, etc. It simply works wonderfully.

    Unfortunately, I didn't have much luck with reusing the existing GPS antenna. I used the ACC-SAT-TO2, and I thought I had it all connected properly, only to find out during my test drive that the Antenna status shows "NOK". Using the phone GPS with Carplay has been quite a disappointing endeavor. I can't wait till this weekend to try and fix this. If it means I need to use the Pioneer GPS unit, well, it won't be the end of the world - as I've heard it is better than the stock GPS unit. :/ I really want to avoid that scenario.
     
  5. gbugler

    gbugler Junior Member

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    I completed my install of a AVIC-W8400NEX in my 2016 Prius Four w/ Nav and no JBL and I was able to use the factory antennas for the GPS, HD radio and the SXM radio using the ACC-SAT-TO2 kit, all seem to work well. I mounted the new mic just left of the center mirror hanging off of the head liner. I also left the Maestro RR USB cable plugged in and hanging in the glovebox so I can re-flash if needed (which I have done already. I disconnected the battery from the car and then re-flash the RR.) I was concerned that the RR had a limited to how many times you could flash it but I called Idatalink support and they confirmed there is not a flash limit. Steering wheel controls all work. One issue I have with the steering wheel controls is I have programed Up/Down button to track/preset with one press and seek with long press. This works fine with radio and XM but in CarPlay a single press does nothing when listening to Apple Music, but a long press advances the track and a longer press seeks through the song. A single press should advance the track but it does not?
    Thanks everyone.
     
  6. timothevs

    timothevs Junior Member

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    I found out why my GPS isn't working. Such.a.dolt. :/ Sorry.

    Glad you got it all figured out - not sure about your question though. I haven't messed with mine too much yet.
     
  7. chriscarlo

    chriscarlo Junior Member

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    Hi JerryxSara, do you mind posting a list of your install. I also have a 2016 Prius 4 w/ Nav and JBL... looking to replace my stock radio. I just wanted to know what works and what didn't work on your install. Thanks for your help in advance.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  8. jerryxsara

    jerryxsara Junior Member

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    2016 Prius
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    N/A
    My installation list as below,

    Pioneer W4400NEX
    Maestro Rr
    ACC-SAT-T02 GPS adapter
    ADS-HRN-RR-T02
    Metra 95-8264HG dash kit
    TOYOTA USB adapter(I bought this in Taiwan)
    TOYOTA Antenna adapter(I bought this in Taiwan)
     
    Vyse likes this.
  9. chriscarlo

    chriscarlo Junior Member

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    thanks for the list does this list makes everything work on 2016 Prius 4 Nav with JBL?

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  10. jerryxsara

    jerryxsara Junior Member

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    Yes, my Prius has JBL and Nav, the GPS antenna can be adapted.
     
  11. MichalGocl1981

    MichalGocl1981 Junior Member

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    IV
    Hello Jerry, did you replace the factory Bluetooth microphone, or can you keep it via maestro RR? Kind regards from Austria.


    iPhone ?
     
  12. jerryxsara

    jerryxsara Junior Member

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    Hi MichalGocl1981,

    I didn’t replace the microphone and I’m using the one came with the head unit, just use a double-side tape to attach the mic, I knew some people route the head unit mic to the location where the factory mic is.

    My friend told me that the new mic provides clearer sound than the factory mic.
     
  13. Al Ortiz

    Al Ortiz New Member

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    2019 Prius
    Model:
    XLE
    Hi JerryxSara,
    Can you detail what car functions you lost ( hybrid monitoring, maintenance info, door/window settings, etc)?

    Thx
     
  14. jerryxsara

    jerryxsara Junior Member

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    The hybrid monitoring won’t display on the head unit but still display on the cluster, the maintenance should be able to show on the cluster but I’m not so sure. The only thing will lost is the compass and turn by turn nav if your car equipped with nav.

    D/W setting can be supported by Maestro RR and access it from the head unit.
     
  15. Radd1280

    Radd1280 Junior Member

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    ----USA----
    Hi Jerry @jerryxsara -
    Would you mind posting a picture showing us where/how you mounted the microphone? thanks!


    QUOTE="jerryxsara, post: 2879080, member: 168600"]Hi MichalGocl1981,

    I didn’t replace the microphone and I’m using the one came with the head unit, just use a double-side tape to attach the mic, I knew some people route the head unit mic to the location where the factory mic is.

    My friend told me that the new mic provides clearer sound than the factory mic.[/QUOTE]