[cubeleo]

I am doing an RNS-E retrofit into an '04 A4 Avant with Symphony II. I've studied the writeups here quite a bit. I only found two plugs to plug into the RNS-E adapter cable. I believe this is because I do not have a CD changer in the glove box and do not have a phone interface. I got everything connected to the diversity antenna, and connected everything to the RNS-E. I noticed that the RNS-E powered up in some way just by plugging it in (now I think I should have disconnected my battery), as the speakers did their background hiss and the DVD drive head seeked.

I then turned on the RNS-E and experimented with the menus a bit, and all seemed well. The first problem I noticed was as I changed brightness, an audible bass drone would change with the brightness. (Smells like a power/audio interference sort of problem already). When I started the engine, I heard a whine which was matched with RPM that reminded me of crappy high-school days stereo system installations. Any ideas what would cause this?

Some notes: A) I have not been able to use a VAG-COM yet on my car, so I am wondering if the lack of programming is causing the weird behavior. B) Turning off the nav unit and removing the key from my car, I still hear the speakers hissing quietly.

My equipment:
2004 A4 Avant
Symphony II

Retrofit equipment:
RNS-E part # 8E0 035 192 J
RNS-E adapter cable
diversity antenna adapter
GPS antenna (later I will use the sharkfin)

 

[cubeleo]

Another discovery: If I use the fader to adjust sound all to the front speakers, I get no sound. It appears that the whine with RPM and other interference is only coming from the front speakers.[/list]

 

[AudiA4B6US]

You should have at least 3 connectors, one for power, one for the rear speakers which are active, one one for the front speakers which are usually powered by the head unit. How many connectors where plugged in to your Symphony before you started putting the RNS-E in?

What you describe sounds like a grounding issue or a lose wire in your RNS-E adapter. Your non-Bose car has only a rear amp and there should be no hissing from the front while the RNS-E is off. The whine with the RPM usually inicates an issue with ground. I guess you double checked that the adapter you got is wired properly, did you? Triple check the ground wires.

 

[cubeleo]

I believe my car is bose--the old head unit said BOSE every time I turned it on.

There's an amp in the back if I remove the right-hand side panel, and the car has a subwoofer.

As far as I could tell as I removed the old head unit, besides the antennas, there were two large multi-wire connectors. I just checked to see if a third one somehow fell down below into the dash, but I didn't see anything. I will take some pictures.

It appears there are some wires coming from the car which do not have anything to connect with on my RNS-E adapter. Perhaps these are the front speaker wires?

 

[cubeleo]

In my last reply I meant there were some leads coming from my car which did not have a corresponding lead in the RNS-E adapter. Anyways, I think I've figured out my problem...the adapter I have is for a non-Bose setup, but I have Bose. Here are pictures of the adapter and my car's cables:

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[siteimg:1264acaa66]480[/siteimg:1264acaa66]

Any suggestions for a place to get a bose-compatible adapter? I'd like to get one with CD-changer and phone support. Euro-parts is currently out of them.

-Aaron

 

[NSX JR]

The humming droning sound coming from your speakers is due to your RNS-E not being setup for BOSE correctly. Since your car has the BOSE speakers, you must be coded for BOSE, and you also must have the BOSE version of the wiring harness adapter. From everything you describe in your post, your RNS-E is not operating in BOSE mode yet. Once you fix this, your nasty speaker problems will go away.

Trust me, this exact thing happened to me before I VAG coded my RNS-E.

 

[NSX JR]

By looking at your pictures of your adapter and your car, it will be easy to fix this adapter to work for your car.

Your adapter is already wired for CD changer and for telephone. This is because:

-Telephone is the 10-pin black connector with three wires. Since this connector is present, your adapter is ready for telephone connections.

-CD changer is the 8-pin end of the red connector (the end that is down against the box in your picture). Since this end is populated with wires, your adapter is ready for CD changer (or phatbox/iPod) connection.

The only thing left to do is make this work properly with your BOSE system.

So, to fix your adapter and make it compatible with your BOSE system:

-Connect pin B7 in the RNS-E end to ground

-Connect RNS-E pin C3 to pin 4 in your 20-pin red plug. (front left line out to amp)

-Connect RNS-E pin C9 to pin 5 in your 20-pin red plug. (front right line out to amp)

-You can remove the front speaker connector (not required, but will clean up the wiring "clutter")

That's it! All you have to do is fix three wires and you'll be all set. If you don't know what pin "B7 in the RNS-E end" or "pin 5 in your 20-pin red plug" are... check the wire labels on top of your RNS-E and Symphony II... they will label the numbers of each pin for you.

Also, you're going to have to VAG code your RNS-E. There's just some things that won't work right until you do this.

 

[cubeleo]

Great information, NSX JR. I will probably order the proper adapter. If I do go the route of modifying my existing adapter, how do I change a wire's position in the adapter without damage? Do I need a crimping tool?

I am trying to get my car ready for the Laguna Seca Quattro Club meet this week

 

[NSX JR]

Great information, NSX JR. I will probably order the proper adapter. If I do go the route of modifying my existing adapter, how do I change a wire's position in the adapter without damage? Do I need a crimping tool?

I am trying to get my car ready for the Laguna Seca Quattro Club meet this week

Yes, you'd have to buy the proper pins or repair wires from Audi to add to your harness. I understand if it may be easier to just buy the proper harness instead, but will also be more expensive. If you do buy a new adapter, please take a few minutes to verify all connections are correct from end to end.