here's the back of the radio:


here's the cables that came with the radio:


and here's what they sold me at Car Toy's after i showed them the new head unit and everything:


NOW WHAT DO I DO?! haha

 

Funny, I'm doing the exact same thing right now. But I paid $365 shipped. Man, $300 is a good deal. I've been looking for ages on eBay to get one about $300, but finally just gave up waiting and ordered the x100m last week. Just arrived on Monday, and am putting it in tonight. Well, I might finish tomorrow, as I'm just wiring the adaptor now and it's getting dark.

Trim ring is WHITE, btw, not silver. Kind of a metallic white, but still white. Rest of the unit is a perfect match for the dash otherwise, though. Trim ring can of course be painted easily. Although I don't know how easy it will come off. It seems like a fixed part of the unit.

One request, though -- how do you take the keys out of the original stereo? I got the radio out in seconds, but now can't get the damn keys out. Assume you need to push something in on the bottom, but can't figure it out.

 

uhh... havn't gotten that far yet I tried earlier but they were kinda stuck, so I let them be for now.

but do you know how to wire it up, given what I have?

 

BTW, I wouldn't let the white trim ring scare anybody off. It looks pretty good. Better than black.

 

You have to push in on the sides of the unit toward the front where the keys are locked in and pull on the key at the same time. I watched the guy at Car Toys do mine the other day. Looked like he had to push pretty hard. Then the little wings will pop out so it will lock in place when you put it back in.

 

http://4x4icon.com/crossfire/pioneer_tuner/index.htm

 

Wiring is pretty easy. I've done it a couple of times, colors are all standard. Don't believe there's anything special with the Alpines.

 

yeah but look at what the guy at car toys sold me... it has those jacks attached, and 2 wires/ jack... I have no idea what I'm supposed to do!

 

techno - there was an install thread that discussed the wiring. I'll try and find that thread for you tomorrow. There was one wire that needed to be switched over. Since I didn't do my install I'm not sure which one it was. I'll try and find the thread for you if someone doesn't respond first. Good luck, that's a really nice unit.

 

The thread is called "How to install an aftermarket stereo" Just do a search on it.

 

I'm just going to go back to car toys tomorrow and have them explain it to me. I'm not sure the harness they sold me was correct. In case nobody looked at it, it has these jacks that i have no idea where I'm supposed to plug in to my radio... those jacks in the back are for something else i think... idk I'll see what they say

 

I'd offer more advice, but I'm trying to get this working myself. Did a straight wire match and got power, everything working great -- it was cool how the display uses the album art straight from the iPod -- but no sound at all. Have just done the red/yellow wire switch and going out now to try again.

I have the blue/white wire from the Alpine going to the blue/white wire on the adapter. Assume this is correct for the amp? I have no other blue wire on the adapter. On the Alpine I've got a blue power antenna wire, though. Just wondering if I need to switch these.

One question -- does it hurt to wire the rear connections? I've done this just for neatness, but wonder if doing this might cause a problem.

 

All done here. The wiring connections are a bit trickier than I'd have preferred, but this wasn't a big deal.

My only issue was that the guy who sold me the adapter on eBay promised a Scosche, but sent a cheap copy. Which would've been fine, since wires is wires, usually, but the one of the damn pink wires fell out when I opened the package. I looked at the wiring schematic here, didn't read it right and thought the two pinks belonged side-by-side. Realized my mistake after noticing that I was plugging into an empty socket there. Moved the pink under the orange where it belonged (A-5 on the wiring diagram) and everything worked perfectly.

So, to install the Alpine x100m with the Scosche adapter, you need to just match colors on everything, but:

1. Switch the red and yellow wires as described elsewhere on the site.

2. Use the pink wire on the adapter to connect to the blue wire from the Alpine to power the amp. Otherwise, you won't get any sound. You can't go blue/white to blue/white.

3. Oh, and I left the rear speaker wires attached. Figured it wouldn't hurt anything, and it didn't.

Don't get discouraged, Technojunky. It just requires a little fiddling. Most of this is simple color matching, as long as you've got the right adapter. I wonder if those plug-ins on yours can go straight into the back of the Alpine. I assume that those plugs are for the speakers, given the colors.

And I love the stereo! Had to go out for a quick run after I got it working, and am absolutely blown away by the difference in sound quality. Everything is much clearer now, especially at higher volumes, and the bass muddiness is gone. Amazing unit. Pretty good match with the dash, too, at least using the red display colors. I may paint the trim silver, but the metallic white isn't bad on its own, makes the unit stand out. I'll snap some pics tomorrow.

Oh, and the iPod controls are fantastic! Everybody should take a tip from Alpine here. I don't know how I'm going to go back to the JVC KD-NX5000 in my 300m. It's interface is utter crap by comparison.

 

And thanks to everyone here who has posted audio advice in the past. The install pics and diagrams were invaluable. This is such a great site. I'm sure I wouldn't have bought my Xfire without it.

 

I drilled mine in a spot on the back of underneath the glovebox, it looks like a perferated hole ready to punch I'll post pictures.

 

I went back to car toys today, and they told me those jacks plugged in to the back of the unit. I'm working on wiring it up now, but I was wondering how to pull the unit out once I have it installed, in case I wire something up incorrectly

 

After living a couple of days with the x100m, I still like the unit, but am not totally in love with it anymore. For just one reason -- GLARE. It's so bad in the daytime with the top down that you basically can't read the screen at all. I don't know how Alpine could even sell this thing for use in boats, which would seem to be just as problematic with glare as a convertible. It's really dangerous to try and switch songs, as you need to cup one hand over the screen to even get a glimpse of what is displayed there. And when you're driving a manual, this is kinda, well, suicidal. Interface is incredible, just like using the iPod itself, though this doesn't help much if you have to use it blind.

That's my only issue with the receiver, though. Don't regret this buy, although I'm not sure how much this glare issue is going to annoy me through the summer. I never drive the car with the top up, so I imagine this is going to be a constant irritant.

Going to try some anti-glare screens. Anyone have any experience with using one on a car stereo? I was thinking of trying one of the ones made for the iPhone.

 

well I still love mine. I put the trim on and everything, looks great. Glare isnt really a problem for me because I have a coupe, and even with the windows down there isnt much glare. I might try to post some pictures tomorrow.

Oh, and installation was a lot easier once the guy at car toys explained to me what I was supposed to be doing. I was just freaking out because there were 8 or 9 unused wires coming out of the back of the unit...

 

oh and gettting the wire through the hole I drilled in my glove box was a pain in the ***... I ended up having to unscrew everything and pull the glove box out to get the wire through

 

Glad you got it installed okay. I just don't understand why Alpine would use such a high-reflective finish on a head unit like this, especially one designed for boats. My JVC KD-NX5000 is bad, too, in my other car. I open the moonroof and the screen is washed out.