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    Aftermarket stereo dimming?

    I just put a new Kenwood head unit in my '91 LX. Works great except that it doesn't dim when I turn on the headlights... has anyone made this work? (Yes, the HU has dimming capability and it is on- the factory stereo didn't dim either.)
    I have wired the illumination wires in the harness adaptor but I assume that it doesn't directly correspond to what's in the car.
    Thanks,
    Chris
    '91 Protege LX
    '99 Miata sport

    #2
    thread moved.
    When you turn your car on... does it return the favor?

    Originally posted by goldstar
    Yes, still have it. It was my attempt to immortalize you in verse.

    A Protege driver named Brock
    Once said 7 seconds he'd clock.
    So his engine he goosed
    With much too much boost,
    And drove a rod through his block.

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      #3
      Try connecting the radio's ILLUM lead directly at the dimmer switch (solid red wire) there may be a break in that wire within the loom to the back of the radio.

      Oh wait, you said headlights....so you mean dim like the clock does? I never played with that dimming aspect. You'd have to test the wires at the clock plug.

      but it does dim with the dash lights and the dimmer switch then?

      Comment


        #4
        there might be some alterior way of doing such as daryl mentioned, i've wired 2 first gen radios and the illumination/dimming option is not available directly on the stock wiring harness, nor would i know what kind of a charge it would need to trigger the headunit dimming also probably varies from head unit to head unit. not 100% sure on the matter, hopefully someone can key you in on this.
        peace

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          #5
          This might not be helpful because I've got a 2nd gen but I kinda wondered that too. There wasn't a dimmer wire on my HU wiring harness. Can you just connect the dim wire in the the illum wires from the wiring harness(car) and the wiring harness from the HU?

          <marquee>'97 Tan LX 5-speed-Clear corners, "poor mans" grill, 15in. Gunmetal/Polished Konig Holes covered with Dunlop GT Qualifiers, B&M short shifter installed and lovin it, custom leather black leather boot, MazdaSpeed Shift knob, Eibach Pro-Kit, Custom cold air intake Head Unit-Pioneer DEH-3500MP Speakers-Sony Xplod XS-V1621(3-way)6.5s(Front Doors) Infinity 652i(2-way)6.5s(Rear Doors) Pioneer TS-A6990R(5-way)6x9s(Rear Deck) Amps-Kenwood KAC-7201/Pioneer GM-X352 Subs-2-JL 12 W3s in Dual box, redone LED 3rd brake light(doesn't look like crap anymore). More I.C.E. on the way.</marquee>
          Formerly '90 White Miata w/ 2 8" Laser Blue stripes
          I hate the short nose crankshaft. It took my car away from me.

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            #6
            I emailed Kenwood to find out what this particular HU is expecting to get from the Illum. wire. It just wants +12V, so I guess this HU will only dim like the clock does. I'll try to get to work on this over the weekend if I can find a warm enough place to do it and report back.
            Thanks for all the suggestions.
            Chris
            '91 Protege LX
            '99 Miata sport

            Comment


              #7
              My Kenwood, Z919, only has two modes. Full bright and dim (though you can select how dim from three options). It basically works off the variable dimmer voltage, when it hits a certain threshold it is bright or dim. It must not be 12 (or 13.8) VDC as it turns out that it end up having a feature I really like this way.

              When I have the lights on at night I usually turn the dimmer down for the dash lights a bit... in this situation the HU is in dim mode. But if I turn the dash lights all the way up then the HU sees sufficient signal to go into full bright as well. That is really nice for when I am driving around in the day with the lights on (rainy day for example) and I can still see the HU clearly.

              I would try and figure out how to tap into the variable voltage from the dimmer control and wire that as the input to the HU.
              --JJB--
              '02 Silver Protegé5 - 5sp - no performance mods, no plans for them
              Kenwood Z919 -- Polk Audio speakers
              16" alloys w/ 205/50 Bridgestone RE750 (summer)
              15" steels w/ 195/55 Bridgestone Blizzak LM22 (winter)

              Moon roof - wind deflector - variable intermittent wipers - electrochromic mirror w/ temp & compass
              Winter/beater car: 1997 Mercury Mountaineer with 182k on it

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                #8
                Just to follow up on this- I ended up tapping the + wire for the cigarette lighter lamp which is conveniently located right below the stereo and connected that to the orange & white wire on the head unit. This particular head unit, a Kenwood KDC-MPV622, is only bright or dim, so it doesn't vary with the dash illumination but, rather, dims the way the clock does.
                Chris
                '91 Protege LX
                '99 Miata sport

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