Stock CD player just took a giant crap

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Yuke2K

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I was ejecting a CD the other day, got partially out and then got stuck. There's nothing on the CD thats sticky or would otherwise jam it up, as I've been listening to the same three CDs for about a month. This is the first issue I've had with it.

Then, today as I'm driving to the gas station, the whole head unit is off but I hear this repetative hi-lo tone...I'm thinking that there's a cop or an ambulance coming, but the tone is too fast and it stays constant. I turn the volume knob up and realize that it's coming from the friggin speakers...?? :confused:

I turned the radio on at that point, and the tuner still works but the CD player appears to be FUBAR. The CD that's stuck is just inside of the little fuzzy dust shield thing, so I can't get it out. I haven't heard the tone since that one time earlier.

Time for an aftermarket H/U I guess.
 

MadMedwyn

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I'm just guessing but those odd tones you hear coming out of your speakers might be interference that your HU is picking up from the engine. When you turned up the volume, were you idling? Because the frequency of the noise can vary with engine RPM.

Nonetheless, your HU is taking a crap indeed. It's not worth going to a stealership to get that fixed. You're better off with a new one as it will get you better sound and give you better options for other audio stuff.

Is there anything you are looking into? Single DIN/Double DIN?
 

Yuke2K

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Yes, I was idling when I first noticed the tone (red light), but it wasn't the typical humming that results from electronic interference. It was more like an error tone of some kind. For a second I thought that I had left my portable radio in the back seat of my truck, because the tone I heard actually sounded alot like the alert tone that our dispatchers put out right before they issue an emergency call. Pardon the bad typing interpertation, but the best I can describe it as would be "bee-boo-bee-boo-bee-boo". (boy was that retarded, lol)

Anyway, I'm not at all sure what it was, but it was definitely coming from my speakers - it got louder when I turned the volume up.

As far as replacements, I'm hardcore broke so I'm not sure what I'll end up doing. Whatever it is, it will be a couple months down the road. I'll have to dig out the iPod and my FM trasmitter for a while until I figure it out.

I'm a big fan of Pioneer Premier H/Us, I ran them in all of my hondas back in my rice days...but I'm open to suggestions. I was considering a flip out DVD system, too, but money is a big factor.

The audio in my truck is a mess, though...I'm pretty sure that the previous owner had aftermarket stuff in there, then yanked it out and threw the old stuff back in. It's supposedly a Bose stereo, but the rear sub was taken out and never replaced, and it sounds really flat. No bass at all, even with the bass knob cranked up to the max. Who knows, maybe thats normal for the stock system in a 2000 Yukon, lol....but the Bose in my '99 Envoy thumped pretty good when I cranked it.
 

MadMedwyn

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I believe all of the speakers in trucks with the Bose system have built in cross-overs, so they wont produce any bass at all even if they were capable. This is because it is the subwoofer's job to take care of the bass, so the designers did this on purpose. But the Bose on my '04 is the same way. I have driven on several occasions with no subwoofer (fried amp/broken sub ect) and my speakers would put out zero bass. But of course if everything is in working order, you would never want your small speakers to put out bass anyway. Leave it to the subs.
 

Yuke2K

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Ah, that explains alot. I'm pretty much audio illiterate when it comes to how this stuff works. I'm not a big fan of the huge stand-alone subs, as I've never been that into rap or anything that typically plays with tons of bass. Having it sound good inside is way more important to me than letting people hear my subs from two miles away. Projection is not my goal, lol.

I do like a well rounded sound though, and like having the ability to crank out a little bass if I want to depending on what I'm listening to.

Any suggestions? I've heard that these trucks can be a PITA to get good rattle-free bass out of, but again I don't need a ton. I was thinking something along the lines of a new H/U, new door speakers with a small dedicated amp, and then a small powered sub underneath the rear seats just to up the low end output a little (the MTX X Thunderlink looks promising).

I was also thinking about component speakers at one point, but when you get into that stuff then you have to worry about sound staging and placement, extra wiring and all of that. I'm not that much of an audiophile. :)
 

MadMedwyn

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You have a ton of options. Probably the best approach for you is to prioritize what you need first. In my case, I needed bass so I got subs first. Then i needed a new HU because I was tired of CDs and wanted to use my Ipod. Eventually I'll finish up with speakers and amp for those.

My experience with power subs has been horrid. My first sub ever was the Infinity Basslink T, which has a built-in amp. But since the enclosure is made of plastic, it overtime developed a bad buzzing/rattling problem that I could never really cure no matter what I did. I ended up saying "screw it" and replaced it with what I have now. It takes up a lot more room but sounds a million times better. But that's just my story. Of course all of the other reviews on the net give the Basslink T 5 stars lol and I'm the only one that gave it 1.

Basically when you get new speakers, you will have to re-run your wiring no matter what because your new amp will be in a different location and you don't want your stuff going through the factory harness/amp anyway.

As far as speaker placement goes, KillerB sells custom speaker pods at customspeakerpods.com which take care of that. I plan on getting some for my doors and deleting my rear pillar speakers.
 
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