retrofitting stock cassette/radio head unit

[Bruce Kennett]

all:

my newly-acquired 1992 525iT has an aftermarket cd/radio head unit. simple setup, no separate power amp.

i make frequent long trips. i have hundreds of jazz tapes that i would like to continue using on these road trips. and the local library's books-on-tape are almost exclusively on cassette (at least for now). so even though it seems the reverse of what most people want in their cars, i actually prefer cassettes to cds.

no room for a double-height cd/cassette combo in the dash, of course.

i'm thinking of finding an original-issue e34 head unit in good condition that plays cassettes/fm radio and can also direct a cd unit in the back of the car. i don't *like* the idea of a cd changer -- when an album ends, i prefer to look over what cds i've brought with me and decide in that moment what i will play next -- but i could get used to it pretty fast if it allowed me to have cassettes in the dashboard and still have option to listen to cds in the back.

what do you guys think of this idea? did the units that shipped with our cars generally last all right and not eat tapes? even though i am in rural NH, radio reception is less important because what stations i listen to have good signal strength. and although i have a very accomplished home audio rig, and am persnickety about that (i reviewed music and equipment for many years for a hifi mag), in the car i'd say i care less about fidelity and more about the machine not eating some prized thelonius monk tape that may not be all that easy for me to replace. in the saab 900s (so-called "classic" 900 with older-style body) that i know well and which i drove for twenty years, the stock clarion decks were not very well-behaved, so people often took them out and replaced them with other makes.

aesthetically i am into simplicity, and certainly prefer black sobriety to flashing purple lights, so the idea of a stock unit in the dash really appeals to me. i don't need all manner of pre-selected EQ circuit choices, for example, and do not require big separate amp, deep bass, etc. just simple head unit should be fine. as long as cassette transport is reliable.

and what about the stock bmw cd changers? were they well-behaved? sound okay? or would you recc that i find a bmw cassette head unit and buy something aftermarket for the back of the car?

thanks for any insights you can pass along.

anyone have a good-condition stock head unit for sale?

[joshua43214]

The BMW tape head is more reliable than the Saab Clarion one, but they are all old now and nothing lasts forever. The rear CD changer was less reliable, but held up well enough, I had a spare one laying about but I cant find it. It doesnt skip unless you hit a hard bump. I had 3 disc cartridges for mine assorted by type of music and just swaped them according to my mood, it worked, but is not as good as a cd head unit.

The nice thing about using the BWM head and changer is that you probably have all the wiring already installed and it is just plug and play. The BMW system has fairly decent reproduction. You would probably have to go with a clean stereo install in order to make an improvement to the sound stage. If you want more volume, you can install a small amp and do the amp bypass that is spoken of here so much.

[Russell]

Option might be another non-factory tape unit that would be a plug and play with whatever was done with your wiring harness. Check crutchfield fit and advice. Perhaps there is a tape unit with inputs for ipod, sattilite radio and even an inexpensive cd changer that would either fit in the trunk or glove box?? Even so, you might have to do some new wiring.

Now if you want a factory BMW radio. I would do some reaserch to what radio head/cd changer combo would work Some OE AND aftermarket changers will not work with some facstory radio heads. for example my 95 BMW with an Alpine 5 radio will only work with a specific Alpine of Pioneer BMW brander changer.

BTW, there are a lot of bmw radios on e-bay at reasonable prices. However, who knows condition and which models work. Bet someone on this board or archives knows