Retro Sound Install

[midnight-z]

That is really cool but I hate the radio stations with all commercials and doushe djs talking, that cost 200-300 but you have the ability to add a music device like most new cars

some hick stole my 1970's radio in 2006

it does not play vinyl or cassettes ?

If I where to leave a I pod in the open anybody who wants it can snatch it

when I get mine Im going to run a aux cable in to the center console

[=Enigma=]

That is really cool but I hate the radio stations with all commercials and doushe djs talking, that cost 200-300 but you have the ability to add a music device like most new cars

some hick stole my 1970's radio in 2006

it does not play vinyl or cassettes ?

If I where to leave a I pod in the open anybody who wants it can snatch it

when I get mine Im going to run a aux cable in to the center console

Vinyl in a moving car? I think not. :stupid:

As far as leaving your iPod in the open, the whole idea behind the USB interface is that you can plug and unplug your USB stick or device at will. Leave any electronic device in the open in an unattended car and you're simply asking for it to be stolen. No surprise there.

[70 Cam Guy]

I haven't really used FM radio for a couple years now. I have had Sirius satellite for a while now and I play music from the iphone. Satellite radio saved my sanity on my daily commute. The iphone is my phone so I'm not leaving it in my car. I'd be asking for trouble anywhere, and especially where I work in Emeryville/Oakland if I left an ipod out in the open

I think an 8 gig memory stick on shuffle will last longer than any tank of gas. I have nearly 800 songs on my phone and can leave it on shuffle all week while I'm driving and working, and never run out of music

[Zedyone_kenobi]

UPDATE:

Yesterday was a busy day. I managed to piece together a functional power antenna from the one I currently have and a spare a buddy of mine gave me. After careful cleaning and assembly, I got the new antenna in the car, hooked it up and using the factory up/down switch, it worked like charm. I am going to mount the up/down switch in the glove box.

Word of warming, my factory antenna died because of a stopped up drainage tube. ON the bottom of the antenna there is a rubber tube that extends through the rear fender for drainage. MIne was completely clogged with mud and dirt. When that happens, the water has nowhere to go, it sits inside the antenna and presto, corrosion. Be aware. If you have a functional antenna, look behind the driver rear wheel near where the muffler is. You will see a rubber grommet with a black hose sticking through. I would shove a small thin piece of metal up there to ensure there is no blockage.

MOving on. I was going to install my rear speaker panel back on the car, but noticed the rubber surrounding the paper speaker cone would disintegrate when I touched it. So had to run out and buy a new pair of 6x9's. I settled on some Pioneer 3 ways that had some shallow mounting capability. I spent the rest of the day cleaning interior plastics and assembling trim with new black pop rivits I had been storing. I also managed to remove all the old crap-tastic wiring the PO had installed. Using the factory wire holders, I ran all my new speaker wire through flex loom, under the passenger seat, and up through the console under the vinyl near my shifter. All looks well.

THe only connection I have to make is to find a convenient 12V ignition source. After that I can plug my radio in and see if it works.

This has been a very fun project. I have learned so much about my car doing all of this. I cannot wait to have a properly functioning heater panel as well as a new radio.

[psdenno]

Vinyl in a moving car? I think not. :stupid:

:

Vinyl in a moving car? I think SO!

Check this link or google "car record player":

http://www.flickr.com/photos/4kleuren/104338856/

A little history.......

Long ago, in the days before Freeways, people used to actually talk and sing songs together while driving. Then, in the 1930s, someone thought to put a radio in a car - a radical idea considering the size of radios in those days. Later, in the 1960s, before FM stations ruled the airwaves, clever folks added cassette players and 8-track players to their Hemi-Cudas and Camaro Super Sports. Soon after that, AM stations faded from favor. In the 1990s, CD players began to replace cassette players in cars. The turn of the century brought us satellite radio for our commercial free listening pleasure. It appears that satellite TV will be next.

I remember putting an underdash cassette player in my '66 Olds Toronado in the late '60s and a CB radio in the Z in the '70s. Times change.

Dennis

Edited January 17, 2010 by psdenno

[geezer]

I remember seeing record players in cars. It wasn't a very popular thing to have, for obvious reasons and never caught on. Many records accidently became so warped from the heat that they became unuseable. What I do have fond memories of, is the lag time & hum of the old tube radios warming up and years later experimenting with reverb units on AM radios. I just gave my collection of 8 tracks to a friend who wants to restore them. Nobody has asked for my cassette stuff yet.:stupid:

I like this new fangled retro stuff!

[psdenno]

I remember seeing record players in cars. It wasn't a very popular thing to have, for obvious reasons and never caught on. Many records accidently became so warped from the heat that they became unuseable. What I do have fond memories of, is the lag time & hum of the old tube radios warming up and years later experimenting with reverb units on AM radios. I just gave my collection of 8 tracks to a friend who wants to restore them. Nobody has asked for my cassette stuff yet.:stupid:

I like this new fangled retro stuff!

Reverb units! I forgot about those. I added one to my dad's '66 Chrysler to give "depth" to the AM tunes.

I'm intrigued by the Retro Sound install, too, and look forward to reading about it when it's finished. I pulled the AM radio out of the Datsun in about 1972 and installed an AM/FM aftermarket unit. That radio is now about at the end of its days.

What has kept me from going with the Retro Sound is the lack of a new faceplate, since the stock one can't be used. I didn't want to install it in the glovebox and I didn't want a poorly carved (by me) faceplate on the dash. So, last week, I picked up an original Z AM/FM and will use it with my XM satellite service. The Retro Sound unit still calls out to me, however.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

Actually I do remember a certain MY Caddy that had a record player in the dash. That was back in the Harley Earl time frame though.

UPDATE: Radio is IN, and I almost have all my climate controls in place! Only have to hook up the DEF cable, which is what started this whole thing to begin with. Which just goes to show you, that no matter how small the project, the 'while-I-am-at-it's' can strike often and strike hard.

What started off as a DEF cable fix ended up being

Refurb ALL the heater controls behind the dash

Lube the cable levers

Install new Retrosound stereo

Rip out all old audio wiring

Install new 6x9's

flex look all audio wiring

rerun all AC wiring, and make it look neat

repair old power antenna so it works again

rerun antenna switch and clean up terminals

Still need to finish up some under dash stuff and program the radio, but for the most part its done. Pics to come tomorrow.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

UPDATE:

finished today all the work on the stereo. I am happy with the sound and the look. It is worlds better than what was in there before. I wish I had more ABS so I could make another faceplate, this time using my template, vs the Retrosound one.

For what it is worth, here are the pictures.

You can see the USB plug I have left out. I am going to try to convert my itunes music to MP3's and store them on a flash drive so I can have 1000+ songs at my disposal.

Also, these are not the knobs from the retrosound kit. I used some knobs I had from an old JVC that I thought looked less Chevy Bel Aire, and more Land of the Rising Sun.

Here is the angle I told you about. This is the angle for a Datsun 280Z I think. But it is not quite a good fit for a 240. I think I am going to have to redo this...it bugs me.

Here is the pioneer 6x9's I got to replace my dry rotted Realistic. The carpet is high because its a newer carpet kit laid over my existing factory carpet, which still looks brand new. I have no idea how long it has been covered up.

Overall I would say this is a relatively easy install. I just added so much with antenna refit, rewiring everything, and the heater controls, that it took me forever.

But on a happy and totally unrelated note, I installed my K&N filter, changed out my SU oil and checked my timing (since I had not done that since I installed the new carbs), and with my timing set, I can now FINALLY rev my car all the way to 6500 rpm with out so much as a hiccup!

Zoom Zoom.

Project Over......

Next is the new fancy rear diff support I just got on the group buy!

Edited January 18, 2010 by Zedyone_kenobi

[psdenno]

Nice job! Thanks for the write up that has answered the questions many of us had about the radio and the install process. I think going with the flat black knobs was a perfect choice.

I'm a little surprised that RETROSOUNDUSA hasn't joined back in the discussion and offered you a new faceplate.

Dennis

[Arne]

Looks good, Stephen. I'm sure you've got way better sound now than the old Pioneer Supertuner and pair of 5 1/4" Kenwood single-cone speakers in mine.

I had to build a face plate for mine as well. I think I've got some spare ABS sheet left over that Dave (Zs-ondabrain) gave me. Let me know if you need some.

[70 Cam Guy]

I like how that turned out. The pictures on the Motorsport website make it look much more modern than it looks in the installed pictures. That is definitely going on my 'nice-to-have' list.

Thanks for sharing!

You might be able to scrape the edges of that angle with a razor blade to create a uniform chamfer to blend in the chunks (with the bad edge scraping, not digging in cutting). A very fine, single cut file may work to get that as well. It may also just be the flash accenting everything, hard to tell.