Hey guys!

My work has currently partnered with XM to provide us the Roady (Wish it was the Roady2) at a deep discount. i was thinking about giving it a shot but was hoping for some advice from some of the people out here who have it....

Does the Roady fit inside the navi door?

Do I need anything besides the Roady and the Modulator to hook it up to the Bose?

How hard is the install on a scale of 1-10?

How is the XM service..?

I am new to the world of XM, as you can probably tell, but I just wanted to get some feedback and some install tips from you guys, as I have always had good feedback on mods in the past.

Thanks in advance guys!!

--Rob

 

I'm trying to install the XM commander in my car together w/ an iPod that is hardwired rather than w/ an iTrip as it is now. I don't know the answers about the size of the Commander but in another thread, someone posted this link whom I have just contacted, to get the PAC part # AAI-NIS which should work. Read here: http://www.350zmotoring.com/forums/...&threadid=11402
Good luck!

 

Hey Rob, I was about to install an XM radio receiver in my car too.. but I have a pioneer head unit so I'm simply using the Pioneer IP-BUS XM unit..

From what I gather, the difference between XM and Sirius comes down to personal preference.. but that's kinda hard since as a newbie.. we've never heard either but I'm kinda locked into XM now since I chose Pioneer and want it to look seamless..

--mike

 

oooops, I have XM in my Wrangler and it's great. I like to listen to a bunch of different stations, esp. bluesville, cnn and comedy stations. Sometimes I'm laughin' so hard I have tears in my eyes. I don't know about sirius but the reception is good till you go into a tunnel or sometimes into thickly wooded areas like parks, but other than that, you will become addicted.

 

Yah...i am a little bit afraid of what it wil look like once its in the dash box. Not sure if I even want to go down that route. What are your thoughts Mike?

 

https://my350z.com/forum/showthread....threadid=82888

 

I knew there had to be a link out there somewhere Thanks Bradg!

 

Bradg -- Another question, how did you get the unit power? Did you hardwire it? I am just curious...also..where did u put the antenna?

 

I have the XM Skifi unit installed in the navigation compartment with the antenna on the dash behind the gauges. I installed it myself. I also have the Bose. Make sure that you look for the thread that tells you how to take apart the dash. That's what took me the longest time. I put the antenna on the dash behind the pod gauges because there was no way I would put it on top of the car. Reception is still good, I would say similar to the normal location.

It was really easy to install, If you have experience with installing radios you should be good. For the Skifi I had to buy four things, the Skifi unit, the fm modulator, the XM service, and the mounting kit that includes the antenna. The wiring is simple, power supply, ground, and the tie in for the modulator. I would suggest using constant power rather than ignition power, just to power down the XM unit with the power button rather than killing the power while it is on. Note: on the Bose the yellow wire is constant power. I tied in there because the XM unit doesn't draw too much current, no effect on the system. The mechanical installation took some time. I had to cut a 4" X 1" hole in the compartment box. It will probably be different for the Roady and it should fit since it is smaller that the Skifi.

XM Service is good. Great selection of stations, little talk between songs, no commercials, and good variety. Reception cuts out sometimes when I go under bridges or big trees. When it does that it's only for a second. When I was in a cayon the other day I couldn't get a signal, maybe since my antenna is inside rather than on the roof. IMHO, the quality is way above FM radio, but not close to CD quality. It does sound pretty good on the Bose though.

XM rules.

 

Bottom,

Do you have any pictures of your install? I am going to go check out the Roady tonight and see what I think of it before I order it up. So you tapped the yellow behind the Bose for power?

 

I don't have any pictures of the install, but it's really easy. If I would have known how to take a part the dash, I think it would have taken a little under an hour. I used a phillips screw driver, a wire cutter, and knife.

The reason I tapped into the yellow wire is that I didn't have a volt meter with me when I was installing and I was counting on Bose going with standard wire colors for power. They do. The other options for power is to go to the fuse block or straight to the battery, but since the Bose and the XM unit are so small demands I figured they can safely share the same power supply in series. The ground can be wired to the chasis that holds the head unit. The head unit radio signal antenna does not require a special adaptor. I used wire ties to hold the modular unit in place so it wouldn't rattle.

I don't know the size and shape of the Roady and it's cradle so I don't know how you are going to mount it. For the Skifi, I cut the hole for the bottom of the cradle and used the mounting neck with the sticky tape to secure it to the back. With the dash taken a part, it's easy to remove the compartment box and cut the plastic.

The newer XM antenna's are smaller than the originals and they're magnetic. I still didn't want anything on my roof though. What I sacrificed in reception (not much) for looks is well worth it.

Let me know if you have any other questions,
DK

 

Sounds like its pretty easy. You modulate the signal onto the FM bad I assume, since you have the modulator. Now..for the hardwiring, did the piece come with the unit or did you have to order it up from somewhere. This sounds pretty straight forward, I will probably go look at it tonight and check out the unit and get some measurements. Any thoughts on the roady vs the Skyfi?

 

I love mine. Install was simple. The Roady is even smaller I think.

 

When I left the store I had three boxes that are separate items. The first was the SKfi unit, just the unit and a remote. The second was the Car adaptor kit, this had the cradle, a cassette adaptor, a cigerette power adaptor, a it think that's it. The third was the FM modulator, this is basiclly the unit to hard wire the system to the radio.

The FM modulator had a input power lead. This is fuse protected and this is the one that I took to the Bose yellow wire. The ground wire, which goes to a good bare sheet metal location. The in and out fm antenna plugs, exact same as the Bose unit. and a power jack that goes to the cradle. And the music source input wire with a jack at the end.

The cradle had two inputs and one output. In: the XM antenna and the power supply jack from the Fm modulator. Out: a jack for the souce from the FM modulator.

I went with the Skifi becasue I thought it had more features and it was easier to use. The orange color or the screen is brighter that the other Z orange colors. The Skifi seemed like it had more options for home or portable use. Clarion makes a unit too.

DK

 

You have been VERY helpful Bottom! I am going to have to go take a look at it and I may have more questions after that. Thanks again

 

Vandy -- That pictures is great! I love the look. is that the Roady or the Skyfi?

 

Sky-Fi

Reciever, car kit, and fm modulator, just like Bottom describes.

All wires are there to work with. The only wire you have to run is the antenna.

I can get you the exact wires, or I will email you that portion of the service manual if you need it.