aftermarket radio worked, then stopped

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claytonjacobsen

Member - Posts: 3

Joined: September 14, 2013

Location: Texas, United States

Posted: September 14, 2013 at 8:42 AM / IP Logged

Disclaimer: I have a novice understanding of electronics

I recently installed a new aftermarket Boss radio in my 1993 Jeep Wrangler 4.0. I decided to hard-wire it to the original wiring. I got the radio to turn on, display lights, play radio sound and function in general for a few minutes.

Then I jiggled the antenna cable at the back of the radio to see if I could improve the reception and the radio turned off. After close inspection I noticed there IS STILL A FAINT display that functions when I hit bottuns, but it is not bright, and no sound whatever goes to my speakers.

Any ideas? Did I short it out? In hindsite, I was jiggling the cable while my hard-wire connections were still exposed, no tape or jackets. It's conceivable that 2 wires touched each other... :(

There's a reset button on the radio, but no luck. I've tried disconnecting everything and re-wiring. Fuses all appear fine.

Thanks

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i am an idiot

Platinum - Posts: 13,693

This member consistently provides reliable information

Joined: September 21, 2006

Location: Louisiana, United States

Posted: September 14, 2013 at 9:37 AM / IP Logged

Next time before you cut a plug off of the factory wiring, see if there is a harness available for your vehicle. Next time, disconnect the battery and insulate all connections before you reconnect the battery.

http://metraonline.com/part/70-1002

Now you need to get a volt meter or a test light and verify that you have 12 volts on the radio's red and yellow wires. When testing this, use the chassis of the radio as ground for your meter/light.

If you find that the radio has 12 volts on those 2 wires, (with the key in the run or accessory position). You have a now broken radio.

If one of those wires do not have 12 volts on it, you have a blown fuse.

claytonjacobsen

Member - Posts: 3

Joined: September 14, 2013

Location: Texas, United States

Posted: September 14, 2013 at 11:05 AM / IP Logged

Wow, thanks for the quick response! I am going to get a volt testing today and try it out. I had hoped the radio would be ok because the fuses at the back of it do not appear to be blown out, but that does seem like the most likely explanation.

Thanks

i am an idiot

Platinum - Posts: 13,693

Joined: September 21, 2006

Location: Louisiana, United States

Posted: September 14, 2013 at 1:43 PM / IP Logged

Wires touching where they may have touched will not blow the fuse on the back of the radio. It more than likely blew one of the 2 fuses in the vehicle.

Phreak480

Copper - Posts: 84

Joined: June 12, 2003

Location: United States

Posted: September 15, 2013 at 8:38 AM / IP Logged

I would also check your ground connection to make sure it is reliable. It is possible that it wasn't and the radio was receiving ground via the antenna lead and when you wiggled it you caused it to lose that connection.

claytonjacobsen

Member - Posts: 3

Joined: September 14, 2013

Location: Texas, United States

Posted: September 22, 2013 at 7:31 AM / IP Logged

Ok. I tried the old trick of connecting the (+) and ACC wires from the radio directly to the (+) battery post, then connecting the ground wire directly to the (-) battery post and the radio works fine. All my vehicle fuses appear to be fine too. This tells me that with the radio functioning, and the fuses fine, I may have a more complicated electrical/wiring issue with my vehicle?

I wonder: if my aftermarket radio came equipped with fuses on the (+) and ACC wires, is there any harm in just hard-wiring this radio DIRECTLY to my battery?

Thanks

i am an idiot

Platinum - Posts: 13,693

Joined: September 21, 2006

Location: Louisiana, United States

Posted: September 22, 2013 at 6:47 PM / IP Logged

I would try the little trick of seeing which wire is missing power and find the fuse that protects that circuit. You DO have a blown fuse somewhere. Did you check both fuseboxes?

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aftermarket radio worked, then stopped

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