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radio wiring question

FlatBlackBurb

FlatBlackBurb

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okay so i hooked up my "badass" sound system a couple weeks after i got my suburban. the 3 remaining speakers in the truck leave something to be desired but hey, good enough. i was getting a bit pissed off because every time i turned the truck off all of my presets would dissapear. every time i started it up i would have to reprogram each one. then i figured out that i blew a fuse. i quickly replaced the fuse but now i'm faced with a different problem.

after replacing the HORN/DM fuse and taking it for a short drive, i parked and turned the truck off. the radio stayed on. being optimistic i thought to myself "cool! it;s just like the new trucks where you turn the truck off but the radio stays on until the door opens!". when i opened the door i was faced with dissapointment. the radio will stay on after the truck is turned off. so will the CB. Hey at least it saves my presets and all that crap.

so my question is, is there some way im missing that i can have the battery give the radio just enough juice to stay alert but at the same time have it shut off after i turn the truck off? its annoying because the cb will do the same thing. i come back in the morning and try and start my truck and it starts to crank rediculously slow and i figured out that i left something on. any help? thanks
 
Well , radio has two power connections . One to battery labeled area of fusebox for memory , and one to ignition labled area of fusebox for power .

Should hold memory , and turn off with truck that way .

Amps go straight to battery with shortest power and ground leads possible , and for turning on the remote or antenna wire form radio goes to the amp , it has a relay inside so it can stay on battery power without drawing power until radio is on .
 
so did i miswire it? the orange i thought was the constant battery and the red i thought was the main power for when it was on. is this right?
 
Red is always 12 volts from ignition . Get the radio model number on front of radio and we can put this to bed !!
 
yeah i'll get it tomorrow. everything is pretty clearly labeled on the back of the thing it says stuff like blue/black = right rear, blue = left rear, red = power, black = ground etc etc. so it should be working.... its on the same power as the CB which is just the red wire... is that supposed to be always on? because the cb will do the same thing: not turn off
 
Do you want your CB always on?:D If it's on the red wire it will be. Put it on the yellow wire and it will only come on if the keys are in it.

Doesn't your CB have an on / off switch? Some people prefer constant power (red) to the CB so they can use it with the keys removed.
 
well i don't really want the thing on al the time. sometimes i forget to turn it off and then drive my daily driver for a couple days and i come back and the truck barely even starts. ill try switching the yellow and red wires around and see where that takes me.
 
http://www.the12volt.com/request/request2.asp

Most aftermarket head units have yellow to battery , and red to ignition .

Which doesn't always correspond to what color wires are in the dash . And not every aftermarket head unit has the exact same colors .

Everyone I have owned and installed has been red to switched and yellow ( on the radio ) to constant .
 
yeah thats what im thinking... here hold up one sec. someone wanted a pic and a model number so im gonna run down there and snap a few real quick
 
When you rewired it after I wired it, you changed both wires to constant power. There are two wires that come from the radio, one that goes to constant and another that goes to ignition. Figure out which wire is supposed to go to ignition of those two and your good to go
 
Battery (Constant/Memory): Orange
Accesory (Switched with Key): Yellow
Ground: Black
Illumination: Gray
Dimmer: Brown

All of these wires are found in the factory radio harness behind the dash. If there is no constant(orange) you can get it from the cig. lighter.

The colors coming off the back of your stereo will be: Yellow:Constant, Red:Accesory, Black:Ground
 
Easiest way to figure it out, check it with a voltmeter/test light. A test light is inexpensive, and is very handy when checking wires, etc.

Check the wire with the key on and with the key off. Hook it to your radio/CB accordingly.
 
1984Stepside said:
Easiest way to figure it out, check it with a voltmeter/test light. A test light is inexpensive, and is very handy when checking wires, etc.

Check the wire with the key on and with the key off. Hook it to your radio/CB accordingly.
Click to expand...

I definately agree with that, although I would get a cheap craftsman meter over a test light. But you should always double check what someone tells you anyway. Plus a decent Multi Meter is handy for all kinds of things.
 
Spending 12 bucks on a wireing harness adapter will save you a lot of head banging and time screwing around with the wireing. Corse it s more fun to do it the hard way.
 
well here's some pics for yall. thats the model of the radio and theres the wiring diagram. i'll switch them around like you guys mentioned tomorrow and hopefully thatll set it straight. just bought new paint and it's going on tomorrow! flat blacker burb!

cimg1469xu6.jpg


cimg1471al4.jpg
 
Yup , which brings us right back to red is always going to go the ignition wire , whatever color that is on the vehicle .

I like going straight to fusebox for the headunit itself . I have had the yellow wire in the dash go bad before , blows fuse whenever I turn . Damn 20+year old wiring . Only circuit I can't use :waytogo:
 
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