Remote Placment

[Grant_West]

Hey I was having this conversation with Chris, and thought I would share it with you.

Chris was saying how un happy he was with the factory location of the stock stereo, To me It dosent matter, I have a 02 and the CD is in the arm rest. If I had my choice I would have it in the glove box like the 03's
I think a remote and the location of the remote is the key. If you have the remote in the right location it dosent matter to me whe the deck is.

I drive with one hand on the throttle at all time's Its not as important with Perfict Pass while towng a rider but I try to NEVER take my hand off the trottle. If I need a free hand Ill drive with my knees for a second rather than taking my hand off the throttle. So having the remote on the left side is key for me. I think its a saftey issue, Not Like Im "Mr Saftey" but It just seems like your more in control and can offer a smoother/ safer ride by constantly adjusting the thottle for rough watter.

With the remote in the location I have you can simpley extend your fingers and adjust anything, Plus the passenger can play DJ with the remote leaving you free to drive. When I drive other people's boats with the remote anywhere but where I have my'n or not one at all I hate it! I know Im a snob. But any where else just seems retarded.
what do you think?

[AbunDiga909]

Seems logical to me. The only problem is when the passanger likes to play DJ, he/she may wanna change CD's every now and then. And haveing a 6CD changer helps, but its not like its easily acessible. So I think when you have guests over, they bring their own cds, so when the cds are going to be changed constantly for a day or so, it may help to have it in the glove box so someone can simply turn around oppose to walk around an kneel or stand behind the drivers seat, that may block the drivers vision through the mirror.... But if your not having a party or anything, and I know you have your IPod thing set up, I see no problem with the way you have it... I agree with you.

[wakejunky]

I posed this question to Grant and I'm not totally convince CC put the Stereo in the right spot. With the deck in the glove box and having to have a wired remote, this limits owners to only a select few decks. I also don't particularly like the Clarion "marine" unit. I'd rather have the option of upgrading my deck at a future date and not necessary be stuck with a wired remote only deck.
Now if the deck were in the 03/04 remote location then there wouldn't be any problem with being stuck with any particular brand of deck.
I'm thinking that in 4 or 5 years down the line when the XMD1 dies on me or even if I were to want to upgrade to something that will allow me to input an MP3 player I won't have to go with the Clarion unit.

Like always, can't please everyone all the time.

Chris

[Hollywood]

I'm all for the receiver in the glove box. It's added protection which allows you to used non "marine" receivers as well. The Driver doesn't need to or should be fussing with changing out CDs while driving anyways. A wired remote solves the problem of driver controls for the track/volume which is all he/she should need, but most brands besides Sony and Clarion have wired remote inputs. I was talking about non-marine receivers, but then again regular car receivers aren't going to have much need for a wired remote input. Sure, most have wireless remotes, but I wish I could hook up a wired remote to almost any receiver. THAT is my problem.

[gotwake]

I couldn't agree more about the remote placement. I don't care where the deck is placed as long as there is a quality remote.
I have wanted to upgrade the stereo in my boat however I am frustrated by the very limited number of head units out there. It is difficult to find a head unit with 3 RCA preouts (I like setting the sub vol from the deck), MP3, XM/Sirius, marine (coated boards), with a wired remote. Sony makes one however converting to their remote isn't easy. Kenwood has 2 RCA's, Clarion - no, and most of the others have no hard wired remote.

[surfsup]

I'd guess another reason for the deck in the glove box is security. The locked glove box provides a little protection - especially if you don't see an obvious place for the stereo deck....

[Grant_West]

Car Auido It at the for front of R&D for car audio. Marine audio is the step child and we get the left overs of what car audio has to offer, Clarion says say most marine units are 1-3 years behind car audio. I dont think they need to up grade the marine units all the need to do is offer a water proof remote option for every one of there units, Thats way we as customers can pick and chose what head unit we want. And tuck it away safley out of the way of watter and let the remte take the abuse,

Alpine is way ahead with features like I-POD ready head units that will allow you to control and scroll threw your I pod's play list from the face of there Alpine head unit, Also They have built in Tac and GPS Speed for a heads up display on there TV screen units. Also with the use of Alpine amps and a special cable that adapts to the head unit to the amps It will tell you the tem of each Alpine Amp in your system as well as Voltage and allow you to adjust X over points and gain control all from the head unit. So you can mount your amps any where and not worry about haveing to crawl into some tight place and pull your boat half way apart to do some minor adjustment,

I could go on and on but the advancment of Audio equipment moves so fast, That no matter what you do youll always be 4 steps benhind what you should be doing.

[882001]

what about malibu. that deal under your elbow is a hazzard. totally sucks for the driver.

[DRAGON88]

Whitechocolate, next winter, i think you should make a carbonfiber steeringweel... that would look pretty sweet, and keep you occupied for some time too. :lol: I'm shure you've thought of doing it before.

as for the remote, you would probably hate haveing a 1999 and previous years dashboard, sterio is on the right side, with no remote. I would say very hard to operate with out removeing your right hand from the throttle.

[jhiestand]

I've also been toying with where to locate a remote but I'm in the OTHER camp from White Chocolate since I'm more anal about keeping one hand on the steering wheel than on the throttle. I guess I've always deemed it more important to be able to maneuver the boat instantly than have to adjust the throttle. Granted, this has become even more the case since I've been running Perfect Pass.

I really liked the stereo placement in my '94 Sport (right side by steering wheel) and I think MC has the best setup going in their older X-Stars with the Clarion remote positioned right above the throttle. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a decent mounting space on CCs around the throttle. It's beyond me why none of the boat manufacturers have tried to implement speed-sensitive volume like in some cars/trucks. It works great in my F150. Either that or a volume switch on top of the throttle you could operate with your thumb, similar to what high performance aircraft use for trim. Thumb up volume up, thumb down volume down.. Dope...

[AbunDiga909]

jhiestand, I don't like the remote by the throttle on the MC's frankly. I use it a lot and I have to admit is seems to be a very logical place to use it. However, in a time where someone would be adjusting the throttle, I don't think anyone would think about changing the volume. Think about it, with PP, we only use the throttle to start and stop, unlike whitechocolate. And out of all the time on the boat, you think that would be the time to change volume or a radio station?

Then lets say you do wanna change the volume while your driving, chances are for people like me with hands not as big as adults, you are bound to move the throttle if you go over the slightest bump since your hand is resting on practically. Thats why I think the placement of the remote on the new CC's is ideal.

[Rick]

I think the idea of volume and maybe cdchanger on the Throttle is an Awsome idea Time to get to work

[igkya]

Why not place these controls on the steering wheel, like we already have in the auto industry.

[redelf75]

Why not place these controls on the steering wheel, like we already have in the auto industry.

Touche. But unfortunately that will only work for factory installed systems and not upgrades.

Whitechoc: Why don't you post a pic of your secondary remote... :)

[Grant_West]

I even adjust the throttle when PP is on when going over bump's
so On or Off Im still always there. On the right hand side. Some Sonys have a remote that is infra red and it uses a Velcro strap the goes around your stearing wheel and works as a wheel remote. Ill try to fid a picture I think Clarion even has the same thing. My Aux remote is at the rear of the boat , This remote is never used while under way

[jhiestand]

I also help out with throttle even while running such as a quick let-off to help my rider land a complicated move or a turn for a double-up, but I still feel a more pressing need to have a hand on the wheel as most of my riders pull hard and require constant, minute adjustments to maintain a straight pull. I also want it on the wheel in case I need to do emergency maneuvering. Looks like I might be in the minority, but just my opinion. Since there's no clean spot to position a remote on the throttle side (at least none I can fathom) I'll probably go for the "stick" spot under the ignition controls. That'll also cover up the unsightly decals.

[tomdarcy]

OK - there is a company called PAC-Audio that makes a device that will allow a wired remote to be used with a stereo that uses an infrared remote, like the Alpine CDA series with the upcoming iPod interface. So, in theory, we are now free to buy any stereo that comes with an infrared remote and keep the wired remote.

The box made by PAC learns the infrared signaling from the Alpine (or other) remote and assigns each function to one of the wired remote buttons.

The problem is that this unit is designed for a Sony remote which has a 1/8" plug.

Has anyone found this solution?

Is there anyone that has been able to wire the Clarion remote to function with this box?

Thanks,

Tom

[1time17]

ok i have an older boat but im a firm believer in a wired remote. maybe this will help a little

[tomdarcy]

I agree - a wired remote that is installed can't be misplaced or dropped overboard.

Has anyone been able to wire one of the factory Clarion remotes to a converter so that it can operate an aftermarket stereo that accepts only infrared?

I'm getting warmer on this conversion - if I figure it out I will certainly document and post instructions.

[tomdarcy]

Since I'm no electrical engineer - me and my tester could not figure out how to get the clarion remote to work with the PAC Audio infrared receiver/transmitter. I ended up scrapping that idea and just installing an infrared repeater under the dash so that my Alpine wireless remote could be used from the driver's seat with the glove compartment lid closed. It is 100% concealed and works great. Now the challenge will be not losing the remote!

[brit_rider]

pioneer do a nice aftermarket remote to mount on the steering wheel.. I ahve use done in my car and works well, not sure how it would fair in the wet.. however it does clip on and off so you can keep it somewhere dry

[wakejunky]

brit_rider; that remote is more than likely an IR remote such that the stereo has to be in line with the remote so that it can pick up the IR signal. I have yet to see a car remote that is RF such that you don't have to have a direct line of sight.
Again, I go back to my original arguement that I don't necessary like the location of the stock stereo and having to have a WIRED remote. You only have a very select few OLD technology stereos you can select from. I say old because the "marine" stereos are an old model with a waterproof face. Then if you don't pick the Clarion unit, you have to make it look like it was supposed to be installed from the factory and that's no easy feat.

Chris

[brit_rider]

Wakejunky - yeha sorry i didn't think too har don that one before. it is IR, not RF, so unless your stereo is mounted near then its useless!