Laker_Fan3

Hi Everyone!

This installation pretains to a 2006 RX 330 with Navigation

I am going to post my experience installing Sirius Radio in my Girlfriends 2006 RX 330.

I purchased the Sirius-One satellite radio system has a second subscription for my girlfriend.

After I installed the siriurs and posted the antenna on the roof, the reception was HORRIBLE. It was soo bad in fact that we couldn't even listen to it.

So, I researched and with some help from my friend, he recommended I get an "FM Relay Unit" and that it will fix all of my problems.

So, I started calling around places to get an estimate of the cost. The price range at almost ALL of the places was between 109-150 dollars to install this.

Reason being: All of them said I needed antenna adapters (2 of them @ around 15 bucks a pop), the Relay Kit which was $25 bucks and also their installation charge (anywhere from 50-75 bucks)...

So, I then went to Circuit City to get it installed, the mechanic told me that it was IMPOSSIBLE to install it on her car because it uses "Fiber Optic" cables because she had Navigation.

So, I told myself I would buy the FM Relay Kit, try it myself and if it doesn't work then I will do the whole Audio Input thing (that the mechanic recommended)...

I opened her 2006 RX 330 radio (with Navigation), the radio was very simple to take out...I plugged in the FM Relay Unit (Note, I did not Purchase any ANTENNA ADAPTERS), and guess what her Sirius WORKS LIKE A CHARM...All the cabeling was neatly tucked away...

Just wanted to post my experience so anyone who is thinking of doing it should do it themselves...

I spent $19.99 at Circuit City for the Relay Kit, and I spent 2 hrs on installation.

* I would have only spent 1 hr on installation, but I lost 2 screws that I had to retrieve, the screws were not very important, but I took the challenge of finding the screws as the sole reason (they fell into a really awkward place when taking out the radio)...

Very simple to do guys, if anyone has any questions feel free to post and I'll try to help you guys out...

By the way her sirius radio quality is comparable to almost CD quality as well as the best FM station you get currently, results are unbelievable!

Here is the link to the Relay Unit: http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/SIRIU...oductDetail.do

Lil4X

Very cool! Nice detective work and a great effort on your g/f's behalf. Thanks for posting!

Seadee456

Good Job! A couple of questions,
I'm assuming you live in a large metropolitan area, do you still get interference after you installed the FM relay unit? Also, where did you put the relay box and Sirius reciever?

Laker_Fan3

Hi there,

I live in the Los Angeles Area, however it should not make a difference because the relay unit shuts off the frequency to the station that it is set on (for example, if your sirius modulator is set to 105.9, it doesn't matter if there is another station broadcasting on that station the modulator will only broadcast Sirius and shut the other stuff off)

The FM Relay unit lays behind the radio, meaning it is not in sight, it is in the back of the radio. I researched to see if the Unit should be posted near the windshield or if it should be on the roof, but I couldn't find anything on that. I believe the Unit is just a "Relay" hence the name FM Unit Relay.


The Sirius Receive is located on the left side of the Steering Wheel, right above the cup holder that is near the door, the Sirius-One is small so it FITS PERFECTLY. It really looks awesome. My GF was picky about the looks, she didn't want any wires or anything, so it looks awesome...

As far as interference, we get ZERO interference right now, the only thing I noticed was a VERY VERY minor hum when I change stations, but once the station plays music or talk, there is no interference and no hum. It is comparable to a high broadcast FM station and pretty close to CD quality. With an investment of 20 bucks you really can't go wrong with this unit.

Anyhow, hope that helps!

TripleDES

What head unit/receiver are you using and where did you mount it?

TripleDES

Answered my first question. Perhaps you can post some pics!

engin_ear

iTrader: (1)

Also check out my Sirius/XM Install Advice sticky post at the top of the Audio Forum here. It covers the various types of inputs to your radio and the sound quality that you get for each.
What you initially tried was transmission of the FM modulated Sirius signal through the air. This invariably results in an AWFUL quality signal. The addition of the antenna relay unit allows the modulated input to be injected directly into the antenna line. Much cleaner and less susceptible to noise.
You can get another bump up in sound quality if you use the direct line-out output to an aux input to your radio.

The radios are not designed to broadcast FM very well, and the radiated power is limited by what the FCC will allow. That, coupled with the fact that the embedded windshield antenna sucks, results in poor FM reception and no noise immunity. This can be overcome somewhat by adding a wire antenna to the "FM out" output and running that wire to the back of the car, and next to the embedded rear windshield antenna.