Bought a chinese android headunit and no sound + review in details

Outatime said:

Not sure if this information will help, but as I was browsing the Teyes CR-Z Android headunits, I noticed this on the product page "NOTE: If using the harness with canbus - amp output should be turned up if you have no sound. This will allow the factory amp to turn on."

Click to expand...

I think that's a different wire harness.

I did a in-depth research and compared the diagrams of the harnesses.
Apparently they sent me a CR-V harness with a canbus harness.
Some of the pin outs were missing. One for illumination, hence when turning on and off the head light, it didn't change the brightness level of the screen. Amp turn on & Off switch (Pin 21 of 24 pins) was wired but it was directly hooked to the CANBUS accessory harness, not from the headunit power harness, hence it did not receive the signal. The headunit power harness connected the power wire to canbus and then to the honda harness that's why the power was cut.

In short, they sent me a wrong harness that just had 2 of the 3 matching harnesses (1 missing is the HFL unit I assume).

I have a metra harness for Honda without the RCAs (1730), but the typical colorful wires so I am going to cut the android harness wires and reconnect with this proper Honda metro harness as this one seems to have all the necessary cables in the right places (amp turn on/off is called as POWER ANTENNA on Honda Metra), illumination, ground, and 12V.

I will give an update after this.

Sound Quality Review

When I changed all of the speakers and tweeters (Front with top of the line JBL 605C Stadium and rears with entry level Hertz 2-way coaxial), I had noticed a significant improvement with the Honda Factory Head Unit, but something seemed to be blocking the potential of the JBL speakers.

I mean they are literally the top of the line according to JBL and I was expecting some more dramatic change, but well, I could say that at least it improved a lot in clarity while the bass was slightly more.


After changing the head unit, beside the WHITE/STATIC noise issue, I have noticed a dramatic improvement in SQ. I can literally feel the front JBL mid woofers are hitting as hard as the factory 8" subwoofer, literally. The tweeters are very crisp and clear to the point and it's so much louder. Apparently the android unit's maximum volume is 30 of 30, but it's a bit hard for me to go beyond 9 of 30 due to the loudness of the speakers.

I can definitely feel that the JBL front midwoofers are generating bass as much as the rear factory subwoofer. Maybe the factory 8" sub is making slightly more bass. I am to add a subwoofer in a box or replace the factory 8" sub with a pioneer or a kicker 8" one with an amp so I will see how it goes.

The EQ setting for Android unit is very detailed. Unlike the factory HU which has only 4 (bass, mid, high, and subwoofer), this goes by Hz starting from 20Hz all the way up to 20k Hz and it gradually increases from 20Hz to 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 60, 70, 80, etc like that, making it more than 4 or 5 pages to change the setting of EQ. Each page has about 16 (ex: 20,25,30,40,50,60, etc, next page : 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 400, ... and so on) bars that you can play with. It is really fun to play with the EQ and the sound just changes dramatically depending on how you change the setting so I guess I will be having fun playing with the EQ to find my ideal customized setting after I add a subwoofer.

Overall, ONLY if this unit did not cause the white static noise, it would have been 10 of 10 but unfortunately it seems to be impossible to fix. I followed all the tips from my research but it did not fix the issue.

Well, maybe this is due to the factoy amp. When I upgraded my Acura TL head unit to a Nakamichi HU, it caused static noise as well when I used the factory amp, but when I by-passed the amp and used the Nakamichi HU to power the speakers, the static noise was gone. Maybe something I should look into but everything takes too much time for me so maybe I will do that experiment later. I still have to install a backup cam, dash cam, dynamat the doors, etc and I'm tired already lol.

Update.

Backup Camera = did not work at first but when I went to settings to change it from NTSC to PAL, the camera started working. Good. 720P.

Front dash Camera = still not working, figuring out what to do

*Harness = so this is the main problem here. I figured out that the harness that came with the android HU is Kenwood generic 16 pin harness specifically but the one that the seller sent with pre-wired with Honda CRZ harness UNFORTUNATELY ONLY HAD 14 PINS!! 2 PINS ARE MISSING!! (Steering Wheel Control Keys #1 & #2) so steering wheel keys won't work!!

So what I had to do was to buy an extra Honda metra harness that had "FULL"

So I had to buy a Honda harness with full 16 pins and another Kenwood harness with full 16 pins. I bought them on Aliexpress as I could not find the full 16 pins version.
I bought them on Amazon (Metra, Red Wolf, and other brands) but surprisingly they all did not have full 16 pins but 14 pins only. SWC key pins were missing.
Hence until the new harness arrives, I temporarily am using the android HU without SWC key function.



Issues
1. As stated above, the grey static noise is there. The grey static noise increases as the volume increases.
2. Sometimes, the left side of the speakers loses the audio signal and stops playing audio or whatever that's supposed to play and starts causing really loud grey noise at a higher pitch. The right side is fine.
This has happened 2 times so far until now.
3. Sometimes when you turn on the car, the Android boots from the very first 0%. Until it reaches 100% which takes about 10 seconds, you can not use the backup camera. Sometimes Android turns on instantly, sometimes it loads from the very beginning, so I really don't know.
4. Wireless Android Car Connect has issues and always gets disconnected for some reason so I don't even care about this feature.

Sound Quality issue besides the grey noise
1. The EQ is great and fun to play with but let me tell you something. Normally when you have an aftermarket subwoofer hooked up and change EQ of higher frequencies, usually you can feel the subwoofer continuously pumping the bass at the same rate. Unfortunately, this is not the case with this android unit. When you change the higher frequencies, you can feel that this music player intentionally kills/sacrifices the bass to make the higher frequencies sound crisper and the bass is weakened significantly.

2. At volume 7 of 30, it's already too loud with the normal EQ setting where everything is set to 0 db or below 6db on some frequencies. I have a 380w rms amp @ 4ohm and my 12" pioneer sub is rated at 400ish w rms if I remember correctly. But as mentioned above, you never feel the thump of the bass as the higher frequencies setting KILLS the bass intentionally. So the only solution I came up with was two. Do something with the EQ to find the right point OR change the music player app.

3. I tried changing the music player app but there were some issues with the interface. The default fast forward/play buttons on the android main menu screen DOES NOT support the other music player apps. I tried changing the gadget if possible but NOPE.

4. So I had to change the EQ and what I had to do was make everything -12db to flatten all the frequencies equally and boost up some frequencies that I liked but still the sound is not as good or crispy/clear as the regular EQ settings where things are above 0 db.



Other objectives to do.

1. I want to connect the Factory mic to this android unit and there seems to be a way apparently. No, I won't use the factory handsfree.
The android unit comes with a 3.5mm input so if I can get a 3.5mm male with positive and minus wires, I can maybe t-splice or whatever to make it work.

2. I want to use the factory USB port and it seems like there is a way to from my quick research.


Bottom Line
It's a great unit with many great features with a typical Made in China quality and hardware glitches. I doubt it has any issue with the android OS as it runs fine.
The touch screen is great. I like the feel, but the static noise is really something difficult to get used to. If you drive a lot on highways/freeways where road noise overpowers the grey noise and not an audiophile, then I assume you can use this unit. If not, then just get a better head unit with some reputation which does not cause any static noise issues. I bought this unit as it had great features like being able to record front dash cam, 4G, Wifi, android car connection, fast CPU, rams, 128GB storage, etc.

If this unit does not have those above issues I mentioned, then there is no doubt. This would be a bang-for-the-buck all-in-one package deal.




Any questions would be welcome.

Update on static noises.

I saw a YT video of a Honda Civic owner with premium audio and I assume it's exactly the same as our CR-Z or Honda Accord because the audio spec is the same in numbers. (Way to save $$$$ for companies).
So basically, the Honda factory amp is designed to get LINE-INPUT/NON-AMPLIFIED low frequency signals but the harness is directly connected to Speaker-Level/Amplified high frequency input from the android HU. Therefore, due to the amplified/powered high frequency, the factory amp is receiving more than necessary powered signals, hence causes static noises. He fixed the static noise issues by changing it to the RCA pre-outputs. However, this guy had a decent brand (Pioneer I think) head unit. Some members with a Chinese head unit like mine, says still some static noises are occurring even after using the RCA pre-outs but I doubt it would be louder and higher pitched than mine.
I ordered some RCA splitters and a new harness to work on the Steering Wheel Control and make it work with RCA pre-outs like Metra 1730.

Any question is welcome.

Update:

Okay. All problems are solved.
The problems I had were the followings:

1. No Sound
After I changed to a new Honda harness which has full 24 pins with wires (instead of just 16 with 8 empty no pins), I lost all the sound.
I checked the fuse box, and everything was good. I reinstalled the OEM factory radio, the sound was strong, so I knew that the amp was fine.
After struggling and re-doing all the crimping terminals on the harnesses properly, the audio came back. So this was purely my mistake due to a poorly done crimping job.

2. Steering Wheel Controls not working.
I attached the Positive SWC (I think it was #22 of the 24 pins harness) to Key 1 and the so-called negative/ground SWC(I think #11 of 24 pins) to Key 2, but the android unit never detected any signal from the SWC.
I tried switching them by swapping keys 1 and 2. Not working. After carefully researching the forum posts, I could not really find a clue, until I watched a video.
It said, "Key 1 is for SWC while Key 2 is for Bluetooth module, and the negative should be connected to a ground/negative cable".
So I thought "oh? perhaps I should connect the negative SWC wire to a negative wire!" and then worked on wiring and crimping to make an extra slot for the negative SWC cable.
When I removed that negative SWC cable from Key 2 and connected it to the negative cable which I just worked on, the head unit started detecting the signals from the SWC fantastically.

3. Serious hiss/buzzing noise
So, I bought a few LOCs. 2x 4 channel Scoche LOC units (one with RAC output, and one without) and 2 of 2 channel PAC SNI35s.
When I first used the Scoche unit(no RAC output), it removed the buzzing/hissing issue like a charm, but I could still hear a bit of humming noise at some point from the rear speakers.
So, I decided to replace the Scoche unit with the PAC SNI35s, and they completely removed the residual humming noise!
It sounds so fantastic now!

4. Front Dash Cam (DVR) never worked, but now is working flawlessly.
I had an issue with the front dash cam which should work with the head unit. The camera kept getting disconnected from the head unit like every 5 seconds and the app that came with kept crashing as well. This was due to my USB extension cable. I thought the USB cable length of the Dash Cam would be a bit too short to reach behind the dash unit, so I extended the cable by adding an USB cable but this caused short of power, hence the Dash Cam was not able to continuously working. When I removed the extra cable and directly connected the camera cable to the head unit, things have been working fantastically. All good now.


So to sum up,
If you buy a CRZ Android unit, please go with the top model (the fastest CPU and biggest RAM) as they will give you a fantastic touch response.

Here are what you have to do (If you have an external factory amp/EX+ premium audio model)

1. You need a 4-channel or two of 2-channel Line Out Converters (like PAC SNI35) to convert the high power from the Android head unit to low voltage. The Honda Factory Amp DOES NOT support hi level input, therefore it starts hissing and buzzing like crazy.

2. You need to buy a Honda 24-pin harness full of 24 wired pins if you want to use the Steering Wheel Controls as the Android unit will come up with only 16 pins of 24 pins wired. (Steering Wheel Controls pins missing) This means you will have to work on crimpings, etc. again. The Chinese seller from Aliexpress started dodging my questions and ignored me eventually as I complained to him about the harness and all other issues. Very unethical. Mine is still within 1-year warranty but when I mentioned about warranty, he literally ran away.

3. If you buy a front dash cam that works with the android head unit as a package deal, then do not use any extension cable as it will cause a malfunction of the camera due to loss of power.


*If you have a base model or any model that has no factory amp/subwoofer, then you do not need Line Out Converters as the speakers can directly be powered by the android HU.
You will still need to get the 24 pins harness and work on the wiring/crimping to make SWC controls work though.

I was thinking of abandoning/bypassing the factory amp and directly feeding the power to 4 speakers and a sub from a 5 channel amp, but that seemed a bit too much for me.
I know that the factory amp is a decent unit from my own research. The sound from the JBL speakers powered by the Honda factory amp is good enough for my own taste.

This is it! So far, the Android HU's sound quality is so much superior to the factory HU. One thing I'm surprised about is that with the factory HU, my EQ setting was Bass +6, Treble +5, and Subwoofer +6 with the factory audio setting. On the Android HU EQ, I was happy with the flat/normal setting! It still had way more clarity and bass in that normal setting! However, I chose "Rock" from the presets as it gave much more clarity with a bit more bass.

My front 6.5 JBL Stadium component speakers are unleashed from the Factory HU's setting! Well, it's not as good as ACURA's ELS system (that ELS system is great!), but I have no complaints.
I replaced the rear factory speakers with 2 cheap Hertz speakers (the lowest entry model of Hertz) as fillers in the rear. Still, the magnet size of the Hertz speakers is significantly bigger than the Honda's 25 cents size speaker magnet lol.

If you are wondering about my car audio specs:

Powered by Honda Factory Amp
-Front speakers: JBL Stadium 6.5" Front Component System (GTO 600C)
-Rear Speakers: Hertz 6.5" 2-way Coaxial Speakers (Cheapest / Lowest Entry Model)
-Rear Factory Subwoofer (I didn't remove it)

Powered by 340W RMS @ 4ohm
-Pioneer Shallow 12" Subwoofer in a sealed shallow box (TS series)


My only concern is that every time when I turn it off, the aftermarket subwoofer makes a poof/boom noise. The amp is getting a signal directly from the RCA subwoofer output of the android HU and maybe adding another LOC there may solve the issue I assume. I will give it a try in the future. For now, I'm happy!

Feel free to ask me if you have a question.

ZanyLlama said:

Thank you for the detailed updates! I know this white/grey noise has been a notorious issue with these head units in the EX models and as far as I know no one else has been able to fix it.

Could you put together a guide to help others get around this as well? A comprehensive parts list & wiring diagram would be very much appreciated by the community. I have been wanting to put one of these in my own vehicle but have been hesitant as I am pretty particular about audio quality. I have seen several people saying that these Android units would be the perfect solution if we could just figure out how to eliminate the static.

Click to expand...

I never imagined myself getting a request related to car audio stuff but I'm glad to hear that you find my posts helpful.
I'm usually the one asking questions to forums, etc. but clearly, I can see that I'm one of the few who shared about how to fix the static noise issues.
There are others who have fixed it but they used a youtube video instead of documenting them in writings like mine.
So I took references here and there and was able to solve the issue.

To answer your question, there are already many posts on how to DIY install an aftermarket HU.
This post is made by RioRyan and he did a great job there. His head unit is exactly the same as mine and he fixed the no-sound issue there which I used as a reference.

I will just write how to remove the static noise issues which I already posted above but will put more details here. So this is the step after everything has been done properly such as installing the aftermarket head unit, fixing no sound issue, etc. There are many good posts on how to install an aftermarket amp and a subwoofer, so please refer to those.
And the reason the speakers make static/humming noise is due to the Android unit feeding hi level input power into the factory amps which do not accept hi level input but only low-level inputs.

This is where the LOC jumps in. So far after trying several different LOCs, I find that PAC SNI35s is the best as I could still hear a bit of humming noise with a 4-channel Scoche LOC (non RCA version). Sure, it's more expensive but it will give you peace of mind. Also, not just Android units but also regular brand head units such as Alpine, Nakamichi, etc. will cause static/humming noise issues due to the high-level input. This won't be a problem with a CRZ or any car without a factory amp. My Acura TL which comes with a factory amp by default had the same static noise issue as well as a good non-android head unit. That static noise issue was solved when I bypassed the factory amp and directly let the head unit feed power to the speakers. From my research, no CRZ with base audio (no premium audio) had any static noise issues in general.

Also if your aim is to have a good sound quality like competition level (music studio level), Android units may not satisfy your taste.
This is my personal experience, but the SQ of the Android unit is not a competition level, not anywhere close. I'm not an audiophile but I have seen some cars with extreme audio systems and heard them in person. Who would not appreciate good sound quality?
Sure, the Android has an amazing EQ app that allows you to change over 32 different frequency channels, unlike those simplified EQ apps in which you can only touch 3 or 4 (sub, low, mid, high).
I played with the EQ app for an hour or more to increase the SQ, but it was not anywhere close to my 2006 TL(sold)'s ELS system. You would find it hard to believe but Acura's ELS head units are competition-ready and this is confirmed by Acura and other car audio forums. As long as the ELS head unit gets the right power and speakers, it will shine and be ready for audio competitions.

I was originally planning to keep the CRZ's factory HU and change speakers only and add a subwoofer and I did that after reading some posts. The SQ improved significantly but not anywhere close to what I experienced with the TL's ELS system. This is where I started leaning toward changing the HU to an Android because I also wanted a dash camera and a backup camera with a monitor. After extensive research, I found out that the Android unit was the only HU that allows the recording of the Front Dash Cam. Regular aftermarket head units only supported backup cameras in general. I personally am a minimalist and love simple stuff (aka lazy), so instead of installing a stand-alone dash camera, a monitor, and a backup cam, which will make the interior look messy, I went with the Android route.

Android is going to satisfy most of the users, but not audio manias. I read some complaints about the SQ of Android units from audio and android forums. I understand their disappointment. Once you taste the SQ like the ELS system I experienced before, it's hard to compromise. But we have to remember that the Android units bring bang for the buck value. The price is good and it comes with all the accessories such as a dash kit and harnesses.

While writing this, I was thinking that maybe the Android unit's SQ can be improved if you try a different audio app. I'm just using the default audio player app. I tried installing other apps and noticed a bit of difference as every app has its own taste/colour. The default audio app is okay. I wish it had a "search" function for those who have many songs. I tried other music player apps as stated above but they are annoying due to ads (If your android is connected to internet, those apps will trigger pop up ads). So far "PowerAmp" app is the top app according to some forums which I will try soon.

However, if your #1 objective is to achieve good SQ, then it's best to avoid Android and go with Pioneer or something similar.


Accessories You will need to buy:

-2x of PAC SNI35s Line Out Converter (LOC). This is a 2 channel LOC, therefore you will need two of these for Front and Rear channels.
(Maybe you want to get 1 more LOC, total of 3 if you have an aftermarket amp with an aftermarket subwoofer and hear poof/boom noise everytime when you turn off the car. I am experiencing that issue right now and I saw some people claiming that LOC has removed that issue which I am going to try in the future but I'm not bothered by it by now)

-Crimping tools with terminals Something like this to connect harness and the LOC ends

-RCA to Wire (LOCs have RCA output)
or
Tiabiaya Speaker Cables to RCA Plugs Adapter, 2-Channel (1 Foot) : Amazon.ca: Electronics

-Harness for Honda Factory Amp

I searched through the entire Amazon, etc. and I found that Aliexpress was the only one who had the harness with full of pins.
The Metra's Honda harness is missing some pins such as for Steering Wheel Control 1 & 2. So SWC will not work. RioRyan's Post explains about it as well and he used a solder to melt the original harness to take out some pins to re-use those pins into the new harness to fill up the missing pins. I tried that but I failed miserably so I ended up buying a new one from that link above.
You will save at least a minimum of 30 mins, if not days and money, realizing that SWC pins are missing from all Amazon sellers' harness.

-Flat/Slotted Driver to adjust LOC level




Installation is easy. Again, this is written under the condition that you did everything right and are just dealing with the static noises. If you are having no sound issues, you have to read my entire post and you will figure out why. It's due to the goddamn harness that prepped and sent by the Aliexpress whatever Chinese sellers screwed up with the wrong pins/diagrams. You will have to cut the entire prepped harnesses, keep it simple, and re-do the wiring by looking at the wiring diagram.

Once again, I am writing the installation instruction under the assumption that you have everything right (sound is coming) except you lost SWC functions and are struggling from the static/humming noise issues.

To be able to use the factory SWC, you must use the #22 pin of the 24 pins harness . The diagram below says "detects SWC" for pin #22. For the negative of SWC, you must connect it to any negative wire. So I ended up cutting any negative wire, crimping it with a terminal that has a bit bigger hole so that it could accept two negative wires (One for SWC negative, one for original negative). You may notice that the some colors of the wires and the colors mentioned in the diagram don't match, but rest assured, the functionality matches, so don't worry about it.



So yeah, at this point, your SWC will work.

For LOC, well, it's straight forward, but if you still need an instruction, here we go.


You just need to connect those -/+ wires to the Android's -/+ wires appropriately, meaning, you match the L/R wires. Each LOC will be used for Front or Rear
And for that RCA output, you connect it with the RCA to speaker wire adapter. There are a few different versions for this, but I went with a simple route by choosing this one.



You connect these RCA adapters to the RCA outputs of the LOC, and connect -/+ wires of the Honda Factory Amp Harness appropriately.

In the end, you will need to adjust the input/gain level on the LOC. The level knob is on the opposite side of the RCA outputs.
You will need to use a thin flat/slotted screw driver to adjust the level.



To adjust, set the radio's volume to 2/3 full and adjust the SNI-35's pots clockwise to increase the volume level.
Personally, my SNI-35 LOC is set about at 70%.

Since then, I never heard of any static/humming noise and have been enjoying the audio to the fullest.



So this sums up the whole Android thing.

In a few points

• Get the best Android for the best response
• Re-do all wiring again with crimping tools and terminals (not a fan of soldering but you can solder if you want)
• Get a proper harness full of pins from the Aliexpress link posted above
• Get RCA to wire adapters from Amazon or whatever
• Get 2 or 3 of 2 channel LOCs or 1 of 4 channel LOC from Scoche with RCA output and 1 2 channel LOC for the subwoofer poof issue (if you want to fix it)
• Adjust LOC volume to your taste

You may have noticed that my writing is not as smooth as a native English speaker due to English being my 2nd language. I'm a bit embarrassed to say that English has been one of my weakest things in my life despite of trying to learn it for more than 20 years living in Canada. I guess this is a fate for Far East Asians such as Koreans and Japanese like myself.

For fun, I'm going to copy and paste my English and let the AI re-write and post below.

I never anticipated receiving a car audio-related request, but I'm pleased to hear that my posts have been helpful to you.

Typically, I'm the one seeking answers on forums, but it seems I'm among the few who have shared solutions for fixing static noise issues.

While others have resolved the problem using YouTube videos, I have taken the time to document my fixes in writing.

To address your question, there are already numerous posts detailing the DIY installation of an aftermarket head unit. One notable post by RioRyan on the CRZ forum provides an excellent guide on installing an Android 10 head unit, which is the same as mine. He also addresses the no-sound issue, which I found particularly helpful.

In my previous post, I discussed the steps for eliminating static noise problems in detail. However, I'll provide additional information here. These steps should be followed after successfully installing the aftermarket head unit and resolving any no-sound issues. Several informative posts explain how to install an aftermarket amplifier and subwoofer, so please refer to those for guidance.

The main reason speakers produce static or humming noise is the high-level input power from the Android unit, which the factory amps cannot accept. They are designed for low-level inputs only.

This is where a Line Out Converter (LOC) comes into play. After trying various LOCs, I have found that the PAC SNI35s is the most effective. Although it is slightly more expensive, it offers peace of mind by reducing humming noise. It's worth noting that static/humming noise issues can also occur with regular brand head units like Alpine and Nakamichi, not just Android units. This issue does not affect CRZ or other cars without a factory amp. However, my Acura TL, which comes with a factory amp by default, had the same static noise issue with a non-Android head unit. I resolved it by bypassing the factory amp and directly powering the speakers with the head unit. From my research, it appears that CRZ models without premium audio generally do not experience static noise issues.

If your goal is to achieve high-quality sound similar to that of a music studio, Android units may not satisfy your expectations. While the Android unit offers an impressive EQ app with over 32 frequency channels, surpassing the limitations of simpler EQ apps with only a few adjustments, it still falls short of the audio quality provided by the ELS system in my previous 2006 TL (which I sold). Acura's ELS head units are renowned for their competition-ready sound, a fact confirmed by Acura and other car audio forums. When the ELS head unit is paired with the right power and speakers, it shines and is suitable for audio competitions.

Initially, my plan was to keep the CRZ's factory head unit and only upgrade the speakers while adding a subwoofer. This significantly improved the sound quality but didn't come close to the experience with the TL's ELS system. That's when I started considering switching to an Android head unit because I also wanted a dash camera and a backup camera with a monitor. Extensive research led me to discover that Android units were the only head units capable of recording from a front dash cam. Regular aftermarket head units generally only support backup cameras. As a minimalist who prefers simplicity, I opted for the Android solution to avoid installing separate devices that would clutter the interior.

While Android units satisfy the needs of most users, they may disappoint audio enthusiasts. I came across complaints about the sound quality of Android units in audio and Android forums, and I understand the disappointment. Once you've experienced the sound quality of systems like the ELS, it's challenging to settle for less. However, we must acknowledge that Android units offer excellent value for the price, including accessories such as a dash kit and harnesses

.

While writing this, I pondered whether the sound quality of Android units could be improved by trying different audio apps. Currently, I'm using the default audio player app, but I have experimented with other apps and noticed some variations in sound. Each app has its own unique characteristics. The default audio app is satisfactory, but I wish it had a search function for users with extensive music libraries. I tried other music player apps as mentioned earlier, but they were plagued by ads (if your Android device is connected to the internet, these apps trigger pop-up ads). According to several forums, the "PowerAmp" app ranks highly and I plan to try it soon.

However, if your main objective is to achieve excellent sound quality, it's advisable to avoid Android units and opt for Pioneer or a similar brand.

To successfully install the system, you will need the following accessories:

• Two PAC SNI35s Line Out Converters (LOCs) - This is a 2-channel LOC, so you will require two of them for the front and rear channels.
• Crimping tools with terminals - These tools will be used to connect the harness and the ends of the LOCs.
• RCA to Wire adapters - Since the LOCs have RCA outputs, these adapters are necessary.
• A harness for the Honda Factory Amp - You can find the appropriate harness on AliExpress, as other sellers may not include all the required pins, particularly for functions like steering wheel control (SWC).
• A flat/slotted driver to adjust the LOC level.

The installation process is relatively straightforward. However, keep in mind that these instructions assume you have completed the installation correctly and are only dealing with static noise issues. If you are experiencing no sound problems, you will need to carefully review my entire post to identify the cause. It is often due to errors in the harness provided by Chinese sellers on AliExpress, who may have used incorrect pins or diagrams. In such cases, you will need to simplify the wiring by cutting the prepped harness and referring to the wiring diagram.

For the factory SWC to function, you must use pin #22 on the 24-pin harness. The diagram indicates that pin #22 is for detecting SWC. For the negative connection of SWC, you can connect it to any negative wire. I resolved this by cutting a negative wire and crimping it with a terminal that can accommodate two negative wires (one for SWC and one for the original negative connection). Note that the wire colors mentioned in the diagram may not match exactly with the actual wire colors, but the functionality remains the same, so there's no need to worry about the color discrepancies.


"I apologize for any language issues in my writing. English is my second language, and despite living in Canada for more than 20 years and making efforts to learn, it remains one of my weaker areas. It seems to be a common challenge for Far East Asians like Koreans and Japanese, including myself.

To summarize the Android experience in a few points:

1. Choose the best Android unit for optimal performance.
2. Re-do the wiring using crimping tools and terminals (soldering is optional).
3. Purchase a proper harness with all the necessary pins from the provided AliExpress link.
4. Get RCA to wire adapters from platforms like Amazon.
5. If needed, acquire two or three 2-channel LOCs or a 4-channel LOC from Scosche with RCA outputs. Additionally, obtain a 2-channel LOC for resolving subwoofer-related issues.
6. Adjust the volume level on the LOC to your preference.

I hope this revised version helps clarify your points. If you have any more questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask!"