The long-awaited W124 budget stereo install (lotsa pics) - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

G-Benz · #1 06-22-2008, 05:23 PM

Ok...so now a year (or more) has passed and I finally decided to actually INSTALL the sound system in the W124.

The tires were bald so I figured now was a good time to take the car offline and attempt a project I haven't performed in oh....20 years!!!

This is not meant to be a "how-to" by any means...I'm almost 50 and I don't have the patience for cutesy painstaking installs in neat garage bays...so I'm posting shocking (not for the faint of heart) pics of a grungy install on a budget!

Here goes:

G-Benz · #2 06-22-2008, 05:30 PM

New rubber all around...haven't even driven on them yet...pulled off wheels and took them to the shop and put them back on.

Here's the car two weeks after starting the teardown. I'm just now getting to the fun part...running wires through the cockpit to the termination areas.

This is the head unit...$69. It is functional as far as being able to listen to the fronts via radio or CD. Did that a while ago. Now it's out again so I can connect the rest of the wires. The front spekers leads are accessible from the dash, so I used the units amp for the time being. This time around, I will be using the pre-outs since I purchased separate amps.

The first cable run is the power lead. I managed to get that one through the firewall...

G-Benz · #3 06-22-2008, 05:36 PM

Here are the rest of the cables to be used...no Monster Cable...it's budget, okay?

Rear seat removed and some of the deadening fabric removed for wire access.

5-10mm bolts removed and the front passenger seat can be moved enough to gain access to the area below the carpeting...unfortunately, years of spilled drinks and objects yielded this nasty view!

OEM Becker amps, control unit, and trunk panels stripped out of their locations to make room for the new gear.

G-Benz · #4 06-22-2008, 05:41 PM

I used a spare home amp to trace speaker leads and other assorted tools to find power and ground leads. So far, I've isolated all but one lead to the OEM amps.

Here is the Becker amps and control unit...they originally reside on the passenger side just above the shock tower. The weird think about the amps is each amp controls a side (i.e. left front/rear, and right front/rear). I presumed one was for the front and the other for the rear.

G-Benz · #5 06-22-2008, 05:45 PM

Ok, back to the cockpit. With the seats out of the way, we now can get wires where we need.

Here's where cables will be routed to the trunk:

G-Benz · #6 06-22-2008, 05:51 PM

Here are the new components waiting to be installed.

The 4-ch Crunch amp...$140.

The Fusion sub amp was included with the sub...$150.

I'm not particularly fond of the color scheme, but what the heck? It was cheap, sounded good in the store, and will be tucked away in the trunk...I'm not doing stereo contests anymore!

G-Benz · #7 06-22-2008, 05:56 PM

Okay, I've posted for my sake as well to remember what the car was like before I tore it up...hopefully I'll be able to put it all back together!

It's 100 outside, and yet, I will venture back out to continue routing cables...stay tuned for more pics as the work progresses...

Johnhef · #8 06-22-2008, 06:54 PM

Looks good so far, great job!

Lexxani · #9 06-22-2008, 07:17 PM

reminds me of. . .

the last time I had to do a complete install of a new XM radio setup in my Lexus. . .

also the time I installed a 2nd wire harness to connect all my speakers and head unit (plus sub. . at the time) in my SL-C

When I installed subs and full speakers in my Suburban

When I installed subs in my ML320

The list goes on and on. . .

Looks great! And it gives you a chance to clean up those floor mats. All the time you put into it will all be worth it on your next drive. .

Dee8go · #10 06-22-2008, 07:22 PM

Screw you and all you feigned modesty, Gee! I'm impressed. I'd like to be there and hand you screw drivers and soldering irons. You're light years ahead of me, man.

That looks very impressive. Great job, and thanks for taking the time to photograph it and share it with the rest of us!

Hammertime · #11 06-22-2008, 08:38 PM

Nice! sign me up for some of that..
I currently hate my volume nob....

G-Benz · #12 06-22-2008, 09:15 PM

Thanks for the compliments, but installing a system in a car really isn't that hard...tracing and identifying wiring from the OEM Becker system without documentation IS!!

Threading wires in those plastic tubs along the passenger side floor was a breeze once the seat was removed.

Silver wires are the RCA connections, and the blue wire is the turn on lead. Ran out of blue wire just at the footwell, so I'll splice with the red automotive wire I have on hand...

Head unit wiring now ready to be connected, soldered and heat shrink-wrapped (dang! what a dirty carpet!!):

I have a big jar of wire ties somewhere in a closet...the RCA wires will be neatly routed around that...that...whatever that is...control amp???

Turns out I'm out of carpet shampoo...can't really put everything back in until I get those dingy stains out!

Signal and antenna leads under the vacuum pump...

There is only one access hole available to the trunk from this side. Signal and power wire should never run parallel (especially since I'm using cheap unshielded RCA wires). I'm running the risk of introducing noise to the signal path here...so I fudge a little and try to keep the big red power lead as far as possible from the others.

Note: I ran the power lead along the door sills while the signal wire followed the vacuum lines under the carpeting. They don't get close until they meet at the access hole...

I have plenty of wire available for a variety of install configurations...so I'm currently sketching up some ideas.

When suddenly, the smell of home-cooked fried chicken wafts over to the garage...I decide to call it an evening. Wife wins again!

Mistress · #13 06-23-2008, 06:59 AM

G- I have a W126 and W107 in need of a stereo system like that, very impressive. Not too mention that organized garage!

G-Benz · #14 06-23-2008, 07:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mistress

G- I have a W126 and W107 in need of a stereo system like that, very impressive. Not too mention that organized garage!

Organized garage??!!! LOL!!! If by "organized, you mean..."stuff pushed against the walls to allow room to park cars"...well, then, yeah, I guess it's organized!

I will be doing a garage makeover in the coming months...I might post the progress on that one as well...hopefully it wont stretch out into many moons like this stereo project!

As I document this work, I hope some of you with similar Becker setups can get a look at some of the wiring issues you may face as you attempt your own stereo installs. The common lore with these cars is that it's best to just run new speaker wire everywhere (even the Crutchfield site says this!)...NOT true. I will identify each wire as I begin connecting everything.

G-Benz · #15 06-23-2008, 11:56 PM

Tonight, I decided to reinstall the front passenger and back seats. Also scrubbed the passenger side carpeting.

I disconnected the head unit so I could solder and heat-shrink the harness wiring. At this point, all that is needed here is to reconnect the plugs to the head unit and slide it back into the dash. Here's my progress so far:

Some time ago I decided to use the blank switch cover in the console to hold a mini phono input for an external player. The head unit allows for an "aux" input...perfect for an iPod or other mp3 player. The input jack is to the right of the shifter:

Decided to clean up the trunk area to make room for the new components. The sub box took up more space than I thought (no more hauling dead bodies, etc).