Going from 8.4 RA3 to Aftermarket Head Unit

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troutspinner

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I am FINALLY getting around to replacing the factory 8.4 (RA3) Non-Alpine HU to an aftermarket HU. I know I am not the first to do so here but I thought I would create a comprehensive list of all of the parts required and any notes.

If you visit Crutchfield and enter in your vehicle info and then select a head unit, it will suggest all of the following parts to maintain FULL functionality with the vehicle.

iDatalink Maestro ADS-MRR Interface Module ("Brain" if you will to translate from your aftermarket HU to your truck)
iDatalink HRN-RR-CH3 Factory Integration Adapter (Wire Harness for our trucks to interface with the ADS-MRR)
iDatalink ACC-USB-RAM USB Port Cable (Adapter to maintain that the USB/SD Card Reader in the Center Console continues to work)
Scosche CR1297DDB Dash Kit (Bezel designed to fit the new HU Double Din Size)
Metra 40-EU55 Antenna Adapter (Antenna Adapter to continue using the old fashioned aeril antenna - not to be confused with the "Shark Fin")

Optional Items
iDatalink HRN-ANT-SAT1 iDatalink Maestro SAT1 if you are going to buy an XM module for your aftermarket HU. XM is built into your 8.4/RA3 or RA4 and a separate module is required although with this adapter you can use your existing shark fin antenna.

If you are adding amps, you'll also need Three (3) Sets of 2 Pair RCA Cables, sized in length to fit your amp(s) location. I really like the Knuconceptz Krystal Series of Cables as they seem to be a nice blend of quality and price but this is just my opinion.

A couple of notes and questions that could come to your mind
Most likely the aftermarket HU you buy will have some type of Bluetooth and require a Mic. I cannot find anything on the market to adapt the existing mic in the mirror to work with the aftermarket HU so you will need to use the one that comes with your aftermarket HU. If anyone knows of such a part, please chime in. I know that where there is a will, there is always a way to make it work but that is beyond the scope of plug and play.

The same goes with trying to use the existing Shark Fin for your new GPS Navigation / or Apple Carplay / Android Auto capable aftermarket HU. You will want to use the GPS puck that comes with the aftermarket HU.

You will have to cut a brace behind the existing radio to be able to insert your new HU.

If you do order from Crutchfield, they will price the above parts pretty competitively but you will pay more for the head unit. They do however offer fantastic support. I know for me, I scrounged around Amazon and saved a few on those parts just because I am in no rush and I have experience with iDatalink and aftermarket head units.

I'll update this post as I learn things.
 
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troutspinner

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Scosche Bezel

I currently only have the Schosche Bezel in hand and wanted to see that before I ordered anything else as I wanted to see the finish quality of it. I am happy to say that it is pretty nice. It does however lack the chrome trim around the volume / tune area but the plastic is raised to give the identical profile. Not a big deal but if you REALLY like that small chrome surround that you probably would not even notice was missing after the install, I suppose you could paint it or even wrap it to a finish you like. I may tinker with that.

One thing I was pleasantly surprised about was the width of the opening on the bezel making me realize that an aftermarket HU is just as wide as our current stock 8.4 radios. The 8.4s get their increase in size vs. a double din in height. This was a concern of mine as I thought an aftermarket HU could look small as I am use to seeing the 8.4. This will not be an issue.

I have ordered everything now but I still need to pick a Head Unit! LOL I am 99% certain it will be the Kenwood DMX7704s as I am convinced that there is no better navigation system than Google Maps so buying a Navigation unit for me doesn't make sense when the DMX7704s has Android Auto. I also do not listen to CDs so there is no reason to buy a unit that has that feature as well.
 
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troutspinner

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Parts are trickling in and I did pull the trigger on the Kenwood DMX7704s. I got that locally as I have a local dealer who gives a good price.

The rest of my parts should be here tomorrow so hopefully I can tackle it this weekend.
 

2014BigHorn2500

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I did this about 18 months ago but ended up going back to the stock radio. I was having issues with my dash lights always staying on, even when the truck was off, locked in the driveway. No matter what I tried, the dash lights would always stay on. I took the truck to the dealer, contacted iDatalink, and Kenwood. They all pointed their finger at each other.

To prevent coming out to a dead set of batteries in my truck I decided to go back to stock. After further research I truly believe the culprit was the iDatalink unit. I'll have to see if I can dig up the website I found that discussed it.

I wish you the best of luck with the install, just wanted to make you aware of the issue I had.
 
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troutspinner

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I did this about 18 months ago but ended up going back to the stock radio. I was having issues with my dash lights always staying on, even when the truck was off, locked in the driveway. No matter what I tried, the dash lights would always stay on. I took the truck to the dealer, contacted iDatalink, and Kenwood. They all pointed their finger at each other.

To prevent coming out to a dead set of batteries in my truck I decided to go back to stock. After further research I truly believe the culprit was the iDatalink unit. I'll have to see if I can dig up the website I found that discussed it.

I wish you the best of luck with the install, just wanted to make you aware of the issue I had.

I do recall you posting about that. This is not my first go around with idatalink so I am pretty confident. There is alot involved with it so I am not surprised you were given the run around.

I just finished wiring the CH3 harness to the HU. Still waiting on a couple parts so I'll post some pics with explanations of some things to pay close attention to once it is completely wired. Specifically, amp turn on, emergency brake and antenna booster.
 

baum

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i thought i saw somewhere that they fixed that issue in their software...
 

Jimmy07

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As far as the the factory Bluetooth mics go, I've done some hacking and splicing with different results. I've got a 2017, so now the two mics are in the headliner, one above driver, one above passenger. I got the pioneer avh-4200-nex and the maestro. So, first, I found the + and - for both mics in the factory harness. I cut the plug end off the pioneer mic and spliced it all together. Results on that were, Siri would recognize me, but she was WAY off on who I wanted her to call. Next, I figured I would only splice in the driver mic. That worked much better. Siri understood everything I said, even with road noise, BUT when I was on the phone with someone, they could here me fine, but they were getting serious feedback echo when they were talking. So I ultimately put it back the way it was and just use the pioneer Bluetooth mic that came with it
 
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troutspinner

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As far as the the factory Bluetooth mics go, I've done some hacking and splicing with different results. I've got a 2017, so now the two mics are in the headliner, one above driver, one above passenger. I got the pioneer avh-4200-nex and the maestro. So, first, I found the + and - for both mics in the factory harness. I cut the plug end off the pioneer mic and spliced it all together. Results on that were, Siri would recognize me, but she was WAY off on who I wanted her to call. Next, I figured I would only splice in the driver mic. That worked much better. Siri understood everything I said, even with road noise, BUT when I was on the phone with someone, they could here me fine, but they were getting serious feedback echo when they were talking. So I ultimately put it back the way it was and just use the pioneer Bluetooth mic that came with it

Good info Jimmy. My last truck (F150) had Siri as well and I tried to integrate the HU into the existing Siri and it just turned into confusion. I actually had the option of asking the truck or the radio to make a call depending on what option I had checked in the settings. It got confusing to be honest so I ended up doing what you did and went with the HU voice stuff. This will be my approach with this install as well, no Siri, just HU / Android Auto.
 
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troutspinner

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So here is the HU wired to the iDatalink CH3 Harness. Not much going on here.

The wires just above the USB cables are the HU speaker output wires. Since I am going RCA to amps, their is no reason to connect them so they are taped off. The same goes for the CH3 harness as you will see the yellow tape on the end of the wires to the upper left. I could have connected them, it would have caused no harm. If you are just replacing your factory radio and using your existing speakers, you will need to connect these.

The only other wires in that bundle that are connected are the Parking Brake and the Antenna Control. The Parking brake is just grounded to the chassis of the radio to bypass the safety function. If you want to maintain the feature, connect that wire to the similar labeled wire on the CH3 harness. Quick note, this is for Kenwood ONLY! If you are running a Pioneer or other, you may need to add a relay, check for your particular model. As for the antenna control, I am using a Metra antenna converter that has an AM booster built into it so the Blue wires powers that.

The wires that are connected to the CH3 Harness are as follows;
Red - Accessory Power (Turns the HU on)
Yellow - 12v+ (The actual power source to the radio. Some people confuse the yellow and red, red tells the unit to turn on, yellow carries the power)
Black - Negative
Orange - Illumination (So the radio dims with the headlights coming on)
Purple / White - Reverse (So the radio shows the reverse camera when putting the truck in reverse)

The only other wire left is the P-Cont wire which is used to turn on my amps. While I do have an existing solution for this, I figured I might as well use it since I am running RCA cables anyways.


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All in all, not a lot going on here. There are 4 connectors in the top bundle that will connect to the Maestro unit as well as 2 from the Maestro to the HU but no additional wiring is required. You'll of course have to run your mic and GPS puck but that is self explanatory.

RCA's and the iDatalink USB trickling in today and the Maestro main unit tomorrow so I'll probably do the install on Saturday. Fingers crossed! ;)
 

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troutspinner

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I ended up installing this stuff last evening. A couple of notes while they are fresh in my memory.

When you go to flash Maestro unit. Make sure you go to the website listed on the instruction and not just to idatalink.com. The link is maestro.idatalink.com. You'll notice that both sites are different colors and you have an option to flash your module at either site but if you use the main site, you'll get an unrecognized error. I assume this is for flashing another type of module. Simple mistake but this will hopefully save someone some frustration.

The instructions that come with the Scosche Bezel are not that good. After you remove the knobs prying away the 3 tabs to each knob (volume and tune) you will also have to pry some tabs away to the blue-ish rings in the left over spot to transfer them to your new bezel. You will also notice that the knobs just don't go smoothly on. You have to pay CLOSE attention to this little mark inside the ring and make sure you align it back to the circuit board. Otherwise, those pry tabs will not fully seat and the rotation will not be smooth. Lastly, pay close attention to the order of how the knobs comes out as you will want to use the reverse order to put them back in.

The iDatalink ACC-USB-RAM USB Port is a little disappointing, it does not maintain the SD Card (I knew that before the install) as well as it is not fast enough to keep up with Android Auto on my Galaxy S7. Once again, I knew this could be an issue before I made the purchase so I was crossing my fingers. If I plug my phone into the other USB port it is fast and fluent as expected. The USB port is however MUCH faster than the stock USB port as the full music library (28 GB for me) comes up almost instantaneously on the new HU.

Other than that, the install was pretty typical, remove the main bezel, cut the support behind the stock HU, run the GPS puck and the Mic, make the RCA and Main Harness connections and put everything back together.

The sound quality is SOOO much better than the stock HU. I had a DSP on my stock system and enjoyed learning about and tuning it with a mic and REW but the source is the source and while I do feel that the RA3/RA4 HU's are one of the better stock HU's available in a vehicle today, they do not hold a candle to a higher end Kenwood.

The vehicle interface is nice, all of the options I previously had to changing vehicle settings are present and the HU adds some nice gauges that are not available to the RA3 or RA4 HU. I suppose this new setup would be similar to what you get in a Challenger with 0-60 times, 1/4 mile times, G Acceleration and more. The AC/Heat options are also perfectly done IMO, all options are there and the screen comes up automatically if you elect to use one of the other knobs to change settings. I never understood why RAM let you change settings in the HU or by manual controls, you would think it would be one way or the other but at the very least, the operation remains the same, possibly even a little better with the auto pop up screen.
 

autokraftgt

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Great write up Trout! This should be a sticky. My friend tweeked and tuned his ride for a few years (Acura TSX) with a Helix, PS8, H800 and got great results. He tested his factory HU a few times through out the years to make sure his signal was clean and flat....it all checked out good. One day he retro-fitted his P99 to become the source and it was unbelievable how much the sound changed for the better. Subs, MB, Mids, tweets all came alive. Just shows how important that source really is....even if the factory HU checks out on paper so to speak. Enjoy the new, clear signal!
 

Jimmy07

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It's also nice to be able to configure the steering wheel controls however you want with the maestro.
 
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troutspinner

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It's also nice to be able to configure the steering wheel controls however you want with the maestro.

Indeed! I actually went with the stock setup locations as my brain is now trained that way after owning the vehicle for 3 years but I can see me tinkering in the future.
 
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troutspinner

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Just a quick update on the center console USB and the Android Auto issue I noted in an earlier post.

I have since learned that Kenwood HUs have an issue communicating with Android Auto / Apple Carplay if the cable is longer than 9 feet. Since we are using existing Ram wiring, that length surpasses what the Kenwood can do. This however is not an issue with other head units. This info was sourced from the 12V Idatalink forum.

One final note about Kenwood HUs. I also learned that while the Kenwood has 2 USB ports on the rear of the unit, only 1 of those ports work for Apple Carplay. Both ports do however work for Android Auto. Since I am an Android user this was not an issue for me but if you are an Apple user, you'll want to be specific when running your USB cables and using a Kenwood HU.
 

walker111

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I’m hoping to do this soon with Alpine’s new head unit. Thanks
 

adrianp89

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Just a quick update on the center console USB and the Android Auto issue I noted in an earlier post.

I have since learned that Kenwood HUs have an issue communicating with Android Auto / Apple Carplay if the cable is longer than 9 feet. Since we are using existing Ram wiring, that length surpasses what the Kenwood can do. This however is not an issue with other head units. This info was sourced from the 12V Idatalink forum.

One final note about Kenwood HUs. I also learned that while the Kenwood has 2 USB ports on the rear of the unit, only 1 of those ports work for Apple Carplay. Both ports do however work for Android Auto. Since I am an Android user this was not an issue for me but if you are an Apple user, you'll want to be specific when running your USB cables and using a Kenwood HU.

It is pretty much any cable with the Kenwood. After installing quite a few of them, there is no rhyme or reason to what works and what doesn't. Best route is just to get a long lightning cable.
 

walker111

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Anyone know what you need to do to bypass Alpine's video in motion?
 
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