87 300E Becker Problem - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

lizem100 · #1 01-29-2003, 11:01 PM

My Becker has problems every year or so. The letters on the LED look greek at times and today my volume control stopped working for a time. Should my stereo shop be able to fix it for longer than 1-2 years? Who can fix it better? Should I put in an aftermarket unit-I want to change as little as possible. Crutchfield?

samsly29 · #2 01-30-2003, 12:34 AM

It might be due to the weather, mine used to do that when it got real cold here in FLORIDA.. after a few weeks like that I installed an aftermarket CD player in it. If thats not the answer....Check with Scott.. He might be able to help you get this problem resolved.

SCLJA · #3 01-30-2003, 12:41 AM

Cleeve is my repair shop manager and he can take care of your problem if you want to do that otherwise putting in a new unit might be a better long term answer as your radio is now 15 years old. If you want to check with cleeve he can be found at www.lajollaaudiorepair.com.

Scott

Zeus · #4 01-30-2003, 03:50 PM

Just my $0.02 -

Take the money you were going to spend on fixing the 15-yr old Becker and apply it to a new aftermarket unit. The Becker can then be used for its best purpose, a brilliant doorstop.

Great aftermarket units include Alpine, Blaupunkt, Nakamichi, etc. There are many designs to choose from and you can always find one that will match your taste/car interior.

Chris

Bryan Harter · #5 01-30-2003, 05:48 PM

The Nakamichi may look good but evidence as to the brand being a good choice is hard to find....Nakamichi is in receivership and there are lots of comments on the web that point to problems
with reliability / customer service etc....

I think I have found that Blaupunkt has improved the quality from previous years (84 was not a good year) as have Alpine. It seems there is a cyclical nature to the manufacturers popularity and quality....

IMHO none look as good as the Nakamichi in a Benz.

lizem100 · #6 01-31-2003, 03:26 PM

What do you think of the Kenwood 235 avail at Crutchfield? Do I have to bypass the fader? I would like to just be able to plug and go. I have taken the radio out by myself before.

Also my fader is "touchy/tempermental." I sometimes am missing one or more speaker and then I wiggle it to get all 4. I have blown it out with air but the problem recurs. Does the fader wear out? I really do not use it much.

thanks.

Zeus · #7 01-31-2003, 03:35 PM

Can't offer an opinion on the Kenwood, I'm not familiar with it...sorry.

Regarding the fader, I would definitely bypass it and use the head unit fader control. Simply run new wires from the head unit to the rear speakers. You can hide them under the carpet. Easy install, plenty of info on this forum on how to do it if you run a search on the subject.