Hello everyone.
Newbie here with a question or sixteen...
I have a 2008 Mercedes AMG CLK63 convertible, a very nice car, if a little old (I prefer "future classic" by the way), which I've had for over four years. It's great to drive but the stereo head unit is rubbish.
The original owner of the car clearly spent his money on the important stuff like the 475 horsepower 6.2-liter V8 under the hood, but ran out of money or didn't care about 20th, let alone 21st, Century electronics. It has the basic radio / CD player (no sat-nav or Bluetooth) and a CD autochanger in the glovebox. It has an "aux" socket too for playback of MP3s or FLACs via a separate MP3 player too. No Bluetooth at all, and retro-fitting Bluetooth is a financial no-no. It has the Harmon-Kardon speaker package which comprises a center channel in the top middle of the dash, four main (fronts and rears) drivers all of which are in the doors, plus front tweeters in the door pillars / corners behind the rear view mirrors.
I want to fit a new head unit and I am looking at the Clarion NX807. it's a little bit pricier than some of the Chinese units on eBay and Amazon but I'm happy to pay the difference for a reputable brand and a seller who is likely to stand behind the product and warranty.
What I'm looking to do is have AM/FM radio, Bluetooth phone connectivity, sat-nav / GPS, CD and MP3 playback from a USB or SD-RAM card, and the ability to plug in a back-up camera.
THe Clarion ticks all of those boxes, except, perhaps, that the USB sockets are on the back (why?) and I will have to live with a USB cable hanging out under the dash or something like for MP3 playback.
I am quite happy to bypass the M-B fiber-optic network entirely and wire the speakers directly to the head unit or to small power amps (e.g. 4 x 50 watts RMS) but would like to retain the steering wheel controls and the Merc's in-dash display if at all possible.
What I would like to do most of all is retain the ALL of the original M-B speakers, including the center channel and sub, and that's really where I need advice. On how to hook those up. Also on steering wheel control or MODBUS interface gizmos. I'm happy to add a couple of modest power amps for the center and sub at some point, then a power amp or amps if needed for the mains. They can either go in the trunk lid or in the space vacated by the (obsolete) CD autochanger in the glovebox. Not looking for window-shattering shake-the-car-to-bits bass, just normal levels.
Any help welcomed.
Thanks.
Semper in excretum est. Solum profundum variat.