Skip to content
  • Categories
  • Recent
  • Tags
  • Popular
  • Users
  • Groups
Skins
  • Light
  • Brite
  • Cerulean
  • Cosmo
  • Flatly
  • Journal
  • Litera
  • Lumen
  • Lux
  • Materia
  • Minty
  • Morph
  • Pulse
  • Sandstone
  • Simplex
  • Sketchy
  • Spacelab
  • United
  • Yeti
  • Zephyr
  • Dark
  • Cyborg
  • Darkly
  • Quartz
  • Slate
  • Solar
  • Superhero
  • Vapor

  • Default (No Skin)
  • No Skin
Collapse
WIBIMMERS logo

WIBIMMERS

  1. Home
  2. General Discussion
  3. General Technical
  4. Stock Radio CLUSTER F***

Stock Radio CLUSTER F***

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved General Technical
28 Posts 4 Posters 0 Views 1 Watching
  • Oldest to Newest
  • Newest to Oldest
  • Most Votes
Reply
  • Reply as topic
Log in to reply
This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
  • AlpineE30A
    AlpineE30A
    AlpineE30
    wrote on last edited by
    #10

    straight6pwr said:

    i've attached a photo showing the wires on the back of the CM5908 referenced below.

    its seems like general internet consensus is that mystery two prong plug is not needed. see '??' in attached photo.

    backlight wire should be the white wire in the 2-pin plug that has yellow and white wires. see 'IL' in attached photo.

    the white wire for the antenna power: there should be a prong near the top right corner (f you are looking at the back of the radio)where this would plug into. see 'PA' in attached photo.

    is the amp gone, like the wires are hanging around and its been removed, or it was never there?

    see my attached diagram for explanation of the wire loops. it shows a wire being connected to two pins of the the same connector.

    3524061037f6f9a3d3deo.jpg

    Pages from 1990 BMW 325i Convertible Electrical Troubleshooting Manual.jpg

    the etm diagrams are certainly another language until you have used them a few times to figure out wiring.

    Thanks for the clarification on the diagram. This is my first run at fixing a stock radio using existing equipment.  

    Got the antenna power attached, but the radio is now asking for the code and looks like I'm stuck in the hour waiting period.  

    I was using that picture as a reference as well. So IL is going to be my backlight power? Damn I hope that isn't shot. 

    As far as the amp goes there are wires hanging and it looks like the mounting brackets are there.  Part of me wants to just rewire the whole damn system.

    1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • AlpineE30A
      AlpineE30A
      AlpineE30
      wrote on last edited by
      #11

      straight6pwr said:

      i've attached a photo showing the wires on the back of the CM5908 referenced below.

      its seems like general internet consensus is that mystery two prong plug is not needed. see '??' in attached photo.

      backlight wire should be the white wire in the 2-pin plug that has yellow and white wires. see 'IL' in attached photo.

      the white wire for the antenna power: there should be a prong near the top right corner (f you are looking at the back of the radio)where this would plug into. see 'PA' in attached photo.

      is the amp gone, like the wires are hanging around and its been removed, or it was never there?

      see my attached diagram for explanation of the wire loops. it shows a wire being connected to two pins of the the same connector.

      3524061037f6f9a3d3deo.jpg

      Pages from 1990 BMW 325i Convertible Electrical Troubleshooting Manual.jpg

      the etm diagrams are certainly another language until you have used them a few times to figure out wiring.

      Ran the car tonight for an hour and entered the code. Even with the antenna power and the (hopefully) functioning tape deck I'm not getting any sound. 

      I found a thread about replacing the lights within the deck, but want to get some sound before I go through all of that. 

      http://www.bimmerboard.com/forums/posts/145593

      Looks like I need to figure out the amp situation and move forward from there.

      1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • AlpineE30A
        AlpineE30A
        AlpineE30
        wrote on last edited by
        #12

        I just picked up the amp. Hope to give that a shot tonight and see if I can get things working.

        Took the car for a spin last night my dash lights are no longer working. Unbelievable. From what I've read they are part of the same wiring cluster as the radio

        straight6pwr said:

        i've attached a photo showing the wires on the back of the CM5908 referenced below.

        its seems like general internet consensus is that mystery two prong plug is not needed. see '??' in attached photo.

        backlight wire should be the white wire in the 2-pin plug that has yellow and white wires. see 'IL' in attached photo.

        the white wire for the antenna power: there should be a prong near the top right corner (f you are looking at the back of the radio)where this would plug into. see 'PA' in attached photo.

        is the amp gone, like the wires are hanging around and its been removed, or it was never there?

        see my attached diagram for explanation of the wire loops. it shows a wire being connected to two pins of the the same connector.

        3524061037f6f9a3d3deo.jpg

        Pages from 1990 BMW 325i Convertible Electrical Troubleshooting Manual.jpg

        the etm diagrams are certainly another language until you have used them a few times to figure out wiring.

        AAAAAAAAAAAND it isn't the fuse. Any ideas?

        1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • straight6pwrS
          straight6pwrS
          straight6pwr
          wrote on last edited by
          #13

          which dash lights?

          Dan
          yajsYRL.jpg.e5f350b4dfe961d76ac8b32efce2e1a6.jpg

          1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • AlpineE30A
            AlpineE30A
            AlpineE30
            wrote on last edited by
            #14

            Speedo, Tach, Fuel, Temp & Climate Control 

            All of the warning lights are still functioning.

            I plan on checking the ground (it was a mess) tonight.  Also, none of the wiring that would have been going back to the stock amp is back there, so it looks like I'll be sending wires out for that.

            1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • straight6pwrS
              straight6pwrS
              straight6pwr
              wrote on last edited by
              #15

              AlpineE30 said:

              Speedo, Tach, Fuel, Temp & Climate Control 

              All of the warning lights are still functioning.

              I plan on checking the ground (it was a mess) tonight.  Also, none of the wiring that would have been going back to the stock amp is back there, so it looks like I'll be sending wires out for that. 

              if all of the dash lights are dead that would normally come on when you pull the light switch to position 1, the light switch could have shit the bed or the connection came loose. any of the wire you were dealing with at the radio shouldnt have affected this, the only thing i can think of is if you were tugging you could have pulled something loose.

              the amp wiring is gone? i've never heard of anyone actually pulling the wiring when putting in a new system, that would be a waste of time and rather tedious to remove from the harness. your car most likely never had an amp. do you have tweeters in the doors at the mirrors?

              Dan
              yajsYRL.jpg.e5f350b4dfe961d76ac8b32efce2e1a6.jpg

              1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • AlpineE30A
                AlpineE30A
                AlpineE30
                wrote on last edited by
                #16

                straight6pwr said:

                if all of the dash lights are dead that would normally come on when you pull the light switch to position 1, the light switch could have shit the bed or the connection came loose. any of the wire you were dealing with at the radio shouldnt have affected this, the only thing i can think of is if you were tugging you could have pulled something loose.

                the amp wiring is gone? i've never heard of anyone actually pulling the wiring when putting in a new system, that would be a waste of time and rather tedious to remove from the harness. your car most likely never had an amp. do you have tweeters in the doors at the mirrors?

                I was trying not to pull on them too hard, but there wasn't much to work with. Are you thinking it got pulled from the back of the headlight switch? 

                I have one odd plug, but nothing that looks like the plugs I have found when I search for the amp.  There are a few loose wires back there, but nothing that matches the schematic. 

                Yes, I do have the tweeters.

                1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • straight6pwrS
                  straight6pwrS
                  straight6pwr
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #17

                  only one way to find out!

                  and just to be perfectly clear - there is no amp and location #3, hidden behind the carpet panel? and no wiring that has been cut running up inside the car under the seat/side panel between the rear speaker and location #3? there should be a big bundle (10ish wires) that would have gone to the amp.

                  and to go back a little, did you say at some point when you owned this car the speakers worked? what was changed/who changed it since that point?

                  bmwebaonlinewww.bmweba.com-355.jpg

                  Dan
                  yajsYRL.jpg.e5f350b4dfe961d76ac8b32efce2e1a6.jpg

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • AlpineE30A
                    AlpineE30A
                    AlpineE30
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #18

                    straight6pwr said:

                    only one way to find out!

                    and just to be perfectly clear - there is no amp and location #3, hidden behind the carpet panel? and no wiring that has been cut running up inside the car under the seat/side panel between the rear speaker and location #3? there should be a big bundle (10ish wires) that would have gone to the amp.

                    and to go back a little, did you say at some point when you owned this car the speakers worked? what was changed/who changed it since that point?

                    bmwebaonlinewww.bmweba.com-355.jpg

                    I’m an idiot. I was looking under the carpet on the DS side towards the tail lights in the quarter panel. It’s there.

                    Yes, the rear speakers were working for sure with the old radio.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • straight6pwrS
                      straight6pwrS
                      straight6pwr
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #19

                      ok, well if all the components are there, and you think you have it wired correctly, and its still not working....its time to start checking individual components to make sure they are not dead.

                      get the radio fired up and check the outputs to make sure voltage is coming from them. someone correct me if i'm wrong, but it may be an AC current, lower voltage than 12v at each output.

                      if its outputting sound, what i would do is make a temporary jumper cable, pull the interior panels and connect the radio directly to each speaker to see that they are all working.

                      Dan
                      yajsYRL.jpg.e5f350b4dfe961d76ac8b32efce2e1a6.jpg

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • AlpineE30A
                        AlpineE30A
                        AlpineE30
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #20

                        I borrowed a speaker to attempt to see if I could get some sound out of the radio w/out having to remove any panels. Now, when I turn on the radio I can hear a click from all of the speakers. No luck getting any sound to the speaker. Also, no luck with the lights in the dash. 

                        The voltage coming out was .023 at the most. 

                        I'm thinking I ended up with a trash radio and killed my dash lights in the process of trying to do the install. 

                        41gTE-1mJBL.SL500ACSS350.jpg

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • AlpineE30A
                          AlpineE30A
                          AlpineE30
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #21

                          Replaced the HL switch. No luck. 

                          Anybody have any insight into wiring troubleshooting?

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • B
                            B
                            Boris3
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #22

                            Not much of a wiring expert, hint if you have your hazard switch installed upside down in an e30 which is possible by the way your headlights and turn signals will exhibit strange behavior...and there was that rewired 1955 Willy's Jeep kind of on fire incident in the mid-70s. 

                            That said: 

                            -If you're getting power to the head unit have you tried running a cassette in the deck to see if you get any sound from that? If yes could be just a radio specific issue which leads to other things. I don't know the unit but If no longer power to the head is there an inline or internal fuse?

                            -With the radio the clicking sound through the speakers is one click when you turn the unit on or constant? 

                            -As far dead dash lights which fuses have you checked?

                            -Also to rule out the "doh" factor with the new light switch have you rotated the switch knob to make sure things aren't just dimmed (been there I am sad to admit)? 

                            -Lights aside do the gauges themselves still work (tach, speedo). If yes that is a good thing, if no you might have damaged/shorted your SI board.  You have had the battery disconnected during the install yes?

                            1990 325i racecar (ITS, former Spec E30); 2004 330i ZHP

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • straight6pwrS
                              straight6pwrS
                              straight6pwr
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #23

                              Boris3 said:

                              -Also to rule out the "doh" factor with the new light switch have you rotated the switch knob to make sure things aren't just dimmed (been there I am sad to admit)?

                              ooo, good idea! could easily be missed

                              i wish you were closer so i could look at this myself.

                              I found this on r3v: (they suggest to check the grounds)

                              someone said:

                              All the ground wires in the console are brown. I don't suspect that radio ground connection as being the cause of your lights not working unless they cut the wire. As long as they just tapped into it it should be okay. If they cut the wire, then I agree with you, that becomes the most likely fault. Try grounding the loose end of that wire if it is cut.
                              Probably easiest to take the cluster out and trace the dash lighting circuit back to the rheostat in the headlight switch. The connector for the dash lighting may just be disconnected from it.

                              someone said:

                              I killed alot of time tracking it down, but it turned out that someone spliced a ground from the heater control light and used it as the ground for the stereo. Since all the lights use the same ground....they all stopped working

                              Dan
                              yajsYRL.jpg.e5f350b4dfe961d76ac8b32efce2e1a6.jpg

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • AlpineE30A
                                AlpineE30A
                                AlpineE30
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #24

                                Boris3 said:

                                Not much of a wiring expert, hint if you have your hazard switch installed upside down in an e30 which is possible by the way your headlights and turn signals will exhibit strange behavior...and there was that rewired 1955 Willy's Jeep kind of on fire incident in the mid-70s. 

                                That said: 

                                -If you're getting power to the head unit have you tried running a cassette in the deck to see if you get any sound from that? If yes could be just a radio specific issue which leads to other things. I don't know the unit but If no longer power to the head is there an inline or internal fuse?

                                -With the radio the clicking sound through the speakers is one click when you turn the unit on or constant? 

                                -As far dead dash lights which fuses have you checked?

                                -Also to rule out the "doh" factor with the new light switch have you rotated the switch knob to make sure things aren't just dimmed (been there I am sad to admit)? 

                                -Lights aside do the gauges themselves still work (tach, speedo). If yes that is a good thing, if no you might have damaged/shorted your SI board.  You have had the battery disconnected during the install yes? 

                                Yeah, I have tried the cassette deck. Still no sound. Cassette deck itself seems to be working. 

                                The speakers click once when the radio turns on and the sound is turned up. 

                                Dead dash lights (& PS rear Tail light) - I have replaced fuse #'s 10,12, 19, 21, 22, 23

                                I did rotate the knob.  I wish it was that easy! 

                                The speedo, tach, etc. all work, just no longer light up. 

                                Yes, I did have the battery disconnected.

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • AlpineE30A
                                  AlpineE30A
                                  AlpineE30
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #25

                                  straight6pwr said:

                                  ooo, good idea! could easily be missed

                                  i wish you were closer so i could look at this myself.

                                  I found this on r3v: (they suggest to check the grounds)

                                  I'm getting more and more concerned the ground got messed up in the process of all of this. All of the ground wires that I can find (3 of them 1 from the radio) are all connected. Any advice on re-grounding it them? 

                                  My analog clock is still lit and working, but I don't have lights for my heat/ac controls. 

                                  I am concerned about pulling the cluster and causing more issues.

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • straight6pwrS
                                    straight6pwrS
                                    straight6pwr
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #26

                                    the fact that all the lights that are out are in the same circuit leads me to believe the cause is one wire in that circuit. (causing all of them to not have power or ground.)

                                    i'd pull the cluster/knee panel/etc to start following wires from start to end to inspect.

                                    the cluster is easy to pull. more time consuming if you have an airbag steering wheel. i can swap clusters in about 5 min with an non-airbag wheel. there is no risk to damaging anything if you don't pull on stuff like He-man

                                    Dan
                                    yajsYRL.jpg.e5f350b4dfe961d76ac8b32efce2e1a6.jpg

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • JdesignJ
                                      JdesignJ
                                      Jdesign
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #27

                                      Did you get this sorted? @AlpineE30

                                      SumBunny.jpg

                                      https://www.instagram.com/_jdesigner_/                                          http://nevertoolow.tumblr.com/

                                      🥳SOLD BMW E24 633CSI - BMW M30B32                                          🧪SOLD HCH  ES9 - 1.3 LDA
                                      👽BMW E30 325IC - Toyota 1JZ-GTE                                                     ⏰ HONDA EF9 CIVIC SI - JDM B18C5
                                      ☠️BMW E36 318i - Ford 5.0 FE302                                                         🚴‍♂️ GT-Labomba - 26x2.75 Freeride
                                      🤹‍♀️SOLD BMW E36/7 Z3 - BMW M54B25                                                🧓SOLD BMW E10 2002 - BMW M10M05

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • AlpineE30A
                                        AlpineE30A
                                        AlpineE30
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #28

                                        AAAAAAAAAAAAAAND my speedo stopped working. Tap the dash and it comes back for a second and fails again. If anyone has tips on pulling the cluster and checking out everything. It would be much appreciated.

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0

                                        Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.

                                        Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.

                                        With your input, this post could be even better 💗

                                        Register Login
                                        Reply
                                        • Reply as topic
                                        Log in to reply
                                        • Oldest to Newest
                                        • Newest to Oldest
                                        • Most Votes


                                        • Login

                                        • Don't have an account? Register

                                        • Login or register to search.
                                        Powered by NodeBB Contributors
                                        • First post
                                          Last post
                                        0
                                        • Categories
                                        • Recent
                                        • Tags
                                        • Popular
                                        • Users
                                        • Groups