Im trying to find out what differences there are between the factory plain radio and the Kicker upgraded radio. Both look the same but everyone tells me there is a difference. I got a kicker system from Dark Syde SRT-4 and being a moderator and an honest guy I trust that he sent me what was in his car. His Kicker radio has the same part number on his as mine does, and I dont have the kicker system. Neither unit sounds different, no more power or bass. Ive swapped them back and forth and the bass is no longer there cause the Kicker components need more power in order to make the bass. Ive seen one Kicker radio in person and it had digital fade and EQ controls and didnt have a "time" button next to "disc 5" for an 05 SRT-4.
If anyone needs it Ill post the part number I have for it. Ive done searches and turned up nothing, too bad no one took pics of the PN when they were selling theirs.
Help??
Chris.
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11.59 @ 121.29 MPH 1.84 60ft
Stage 3 Methanized....coming soon
My mods require a DCR security clearance!
well if you dont trust me that i sent you my kicker ask LowNslowNeon (he has seen my car before and after the kicker uninstall... also ask bacardi, ptperformance, or most the guys from the NW section..or if need be i will scan in my factory invoice and show you that... i know what i had in my car..and i know i now have a alpine touchscreen, all alpine components, JL 1/1000 watt amps and jl 12w7's ... john (LowNslowNeon) can vouce as can blkhawkdwn (my co-worker) or any of teh other fairbanks area people.
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If it ain't got that whistle...It ain't a missle!!!
. I got a kicker system from Dark Syde SRT-4 and being a moderator and an honest guy I trust that he sent me what was in his car.
You need to read before jumping in my crap! Your getting awful defensive about the whole thing and I have yet to accuse you. I will however take the radio to the dealer and let them "have at it". Now that you put your 2 cents in how about letting people with some info chime in. This radio dosent sound, look, or act any different than my stock one and BTW resetting the ECU wont help.
One thing you could do is get me the tracking info Ive been asking for for 5 days now.
99% sure that there is no difference whatsoever between a head unit from a car with a kicker system and one without. The difference is the speakers and the cd changer. This is why people can buy the cd changer from those with the kicker system and just plug it right into their factory deck. The deck is the same.
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'09 True Red MazdaSpeed3 - Stock for now
'05 Flame Red SRT-4 - Stage 1, AGP WGA, MaxxFab Catless Downpipe w/Borla Exhaust (Reducer removed), AGP Dogbones, Mopar BOV, Mopar STS, $20 Catch Can and Check Valve - SOLD
the radios are reflashed with a different eq setting. dale and i had the 1st prototypes of the system and when we went down to the 1st nationals kicker reflashed both of our headunits.
Im trying to find out what differences there are between the factory plain radio and the Kicker upgraded radio.
Nothing. Zip, zilch, nada.
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the radios are reflashed with a different eq setting. dale and i had the 1st prototypes of the system and when we went down to the 1st nationals kicker reflashed both of our headunits.
Production radios aren't re-flashed. Why?
All Chrysler corporate head units are loaded with the EQ curve sets for the entire Chrysler vehicle line-up. When you turn the car on, the radio gets a VIN hash from the body controller, which it then uses to load the proper curve. So, for example, when you power up your SRT-4, the radio receives the VIN hash and knows it has to load EQ set 23 (for example,) disable speed-control-volume, and enable loudness curve 2. If, then, you take that radio out and put it in a different vehicle (say, a Ram truck with the Infinity system) it'll get the VIN hash from the Ram's body controller. Then, the radio knows to load EQ curve 0 (flat, since the Ram's amplifier does the EQ,) go to fixed-level-output mode (since the amp handles volume, balance and fade.)
If, however, you have a Kicker-equipped car and install a head unit that was made before the Kicker EQ was released (say a 2002 head unit,) the EQ load command from the body controller will be invalid (no matching curve exists in the radio,) and the radio will default to a flat EQ.
the only place where this doesn't apply is with the new CANBus radios in the 300/Magnum/Charger, Durango, and Grand Cherokee/Commander. Older radios don't have EQs for CANBus vehicles 'cos they won't work in them anyway.
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You need to read before jumping in my crap! Your getting awful defensive about the whole thing and I have yet to accuse you.
well, you shouldn't have mentioned him by name, especially the way you did and with as little info as you had.
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2004 SRT-4 120,000 miles and going
2010 Mustang GT, 1,000 miles and going
My car was reflashed by kicker, what ever they used to do it was plugged into the drb plug. they event told me how many cds were used, ejected, longest play time and all. and then they changed the eq curves. radio sounded totally different. my car was an 03
My car was reflashed by kicker, what ever they used to do it was plugged into the drb plug. they event told me how many cds were used, ejected, longest play time and all. and then they changed the eq curves. radio sounded totally different. my car was an 03
Right, but you said it was a prototype system. The radios were made before the Kicker EQ was released. You most likely had the standard Neon EQ in there as a placeholder. Radios made after the EQ release will already have the EQ in ROM.
You need to read before jumping in my crap! Your getting awful defensive about the whole thing and I have yet to accuse you. I will however take the radio to the dealer and let them "have at it". Now that you put your 2 cents in how about letting people with some info chime in. This radio dosent sound, look, or act any different than my stock one and BTW resetting the ECU wont help.
One thing you could do is get me the tracking info Ive been asking for for 5 days now.
well, you shouldn't have mentioned him by name, especially the way you did and with as little info as you had.
im not even going to get into this one... but i guess you will see a post from LowNslowNeon sometime soon since he was there when the install of my sponsorship system was going on
So since there is no difference in the radio, same part number, I guess I need to get to the dealer and see if they can flash my vehicle for the Kicker system then. Or I have to buy the new radio that has the Kicker EQ settings in ROM.
Right?
Lets atleast get some facts before everyone tells me Im wrong and this headunit doesnt have the programming. I thank those who got me the facts and Dark Syde Srt-4 for the system and what knowledge he knew. I was not trying to discredit anyone, just want the thing to work. Too many people trying to make assumptions.
So since there is no difference in the radio, same part number, I guess I need to get to the dealer and see if they can flash my vehicle for the Kicker system then.
I highly doubt the dealer has the ability to do that. The vehicle's configuration is programmed in at the assembly plant. That firmware doesn't go out to dealers (with the exception of bug fixes.)
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Or I have to buy the new radio that has the Kicker EQ settings in ROM.
If yours is a 2004, then your radio already has the Kicker EQ stored. The radio's not the problem here. The vehicle is configured to tell the radio to load the standard Neon EQ, because that's how it was built. The tools you'd need to change that behavior are not something that dealers have.
I'll get into this since I own an alarm/stereo shop. I will say that I've never heard of the older DCX radios "reading" the VIN to set eq curves. Now, I know the new systems like in the Pacifica do. But on the SRT4, I haven't seen any extra "data" wires in the harness like you do say for a Chevy Equinox.
Either way, all of the DCX radios are the same. So, for the kicker system, it's just the speakers and the subwoofer that's special. Yes, there's only a small amount of wattage to run them because of the stock radio. That's why so many people say their system sounded so much better after the install of an aftermarket stereo.
I'll tell you that I was not in any way impressed with the Kicker system. It was just a neat marketing program.
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Kicker headunit PN and differences?
Linear Mode
