New radio/DVD for the Hummingbird

Chickeneye · 01-05-2017, 08:35 AM

I took possession of my 17RB and decided the factory Furion head unit is horrible. I'm a stereo guy and build custom stereo wagons and coolers. Well I decided to upgrade the stereo in my HB.

I went with the Pioneer AVH-2800BS not real expensive and works great for the HB.

I will say Jayco did a horrible job wiring the factory unit. It was a rats nest and a lot of excess wire.

After I pulled out the factory unit and cleaned up the wiring I knocked out the panel that held the Furion unit. I cut a new board 12"x14" out of 1/2" plywood to hold the new unit.

I measured, cut and fit the new unit. I used 1" L brackets to attach the stereo to the board then attached the board to the factory cabinets.

The stereo was a major upgrade to the sound system.

Next upgrade I will be adding 6.5" speakers inside and marine 6.5" speakers outside.

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kevinrbellamy · 01-05-2017, 08:48 AM

Kudos. This looks neat, clean and simple, which I'm all about.
Quick question, which I'm sure any Jayco owner can answer - Besides using as radio and DVD player, what else does original combo offer? Bluetooth capabilities? Does it have HDMI output? I'm just curious.

Chickeneye · 01-05-2017, 09:06 AM

Thank you, It is Bluetooth, XM ready it also has a USB and aux port which I ordered an extension and placed it under the cabinet which is where my iPhone is plugged in to and you can control your pandora Spotify and other apps with the unit. It does not have HDMI but plenty of RCA outs and in's. You can also add your backup camera to the unit if you wanted

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Chickeneye · 01-05-2017, 09:09 AM

The factory Furion unit is connected by hdmi to the tv but still uses rca cable for the sound so I just did away with the hdmi and used a regular RCA AV cable

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Chickeneye · 01-05-2017, 10:22 AM

Here is the aux/USB port I installed. It just plugs in to the back of the Pioneer unit.

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A2Z_Adventures · 01-06-2017, 11:26 AM

Clean install! Cheers!

01tundra · 01-11-2017, 12:44 PM

Nice work!

I haven't had much issue with the Furrion system in our Hummingbird yet, but if it ever goes out this is what I'll be doing as well.

Chickeneye · 01-11-2017, 04:50 PM

Thank you. I will tell you the upgrade in sound just by getting rid of the Furion head unit was amazing. I have swapped out the outside speakers with a set of 6.5" Clarion marine speakers and WOW big difference. I see where some people put subs in their TT's but with upgrading to the 6.5's and where they are in the cabinet there is no real need for a sub. I thought about putting 6x9's but I think I will stick with the 6.5's. I will say this it is louder then any camp site you go to will allow you without bothering everyone in the park. The sound and loudness is completely unnecessary but..... since I am a stereo guy and music lover I wanted to upgrade. Also the wife and I float the rivers in south Texas every year and I float my Mobile sound system and we all party on the river. Here are a few pictures of the new speakers outside and side by side with the Furion 5" and my floating party LoL.

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Chickeneye · 01-11-2017, 04:53 PM

I just carried the trash to the dumpsters about 75 yards away and could still hear the trailer and the outside speakers were on the opposite side from me.

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Desert RVers · 01-11-2017, 05:37 PM

Real nice & clean mod Chickeneye! Also, love the floating sound system.

Magnolia Tom · 01-11-2017, 06:15 PM

Nice clean install. Did you have any problems with the depth of new speakers fitting in wall cavity? It looks like twice the depth of the old ones.

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Chickeneye · 01-11-2017, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Magnolia Tom

Nice clean install. Did you have any problems with the depth of new speakers fitting in wall cavity? It looks like twice the depth of the old ones.

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Not really. I am making a YouTube video of the whole process I will upload it after I finish the inside speakers. But the Left outside was easy I just used my dremel with a rotozip type bit made a template for the new speaker cut the outside ring and the speaker dropped right in. The right speaker was a little more effort but not much. Underneath the factory Furion 5" Jayco had drilled 8 holes so when I enlarged it I tried to make sure I cut all the extra holes out and then on the inside I just trimmed it with a razor. Super easy. But even the factory speakers went all the way through both outside and inside walls I just made the hole a little bigger.

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Magnolia Tom · 01-11-2017, 07:06 PM

Ah ok. I didn't realize the factory speakers went thru both walls.

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Chickeneye · 01-18-2017, 02:53 PM

Ok finally getting around to installing the new 6" speakers inside with the new pods I built. I replaced the factory 4" speakers and their 1" pod with a 2.5" new pod. The new pods have a small foam ring between the pod and the ceiling to prevent vibrations.

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Chickeneye · 01-18-2017, 03:02 PM

Here is both of them from the bathroom. Big sound difference

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Isaacs · 01-18-2017, 04:57 PM

How did you remove the board(s) that held the old radio and the blank spot above it? How did you fasten the new one?

My trailer has a couple of spots with these blank boards and I've had occasion to want to gain access but I don't want to simply smash them.

Chickeneye · 01-18-2017, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isaacs

How did you remove the board(s) that held the old radio and the blank spot above it? How did you fasten the new one?

My trailer has a couple of spots with these blank boards and I've had occasion to want to gain access but I don't want to simply smash them.

The board that holds the radio is just a piece of 1/8" plywood with staples holding it. I just used the palm of my hand and tapped it out. Then took some pliers and pulled the staples out. Then I used a piece of 1/2" plywood with 5/8" Brad nails counter sunk to hold it to the front of the cabinets. To attach the radio I used 4 1" L brackets to hold the stereo to the 1/2" plywood and I just used a gloss black paint on the plywood which matched the other panels really close.

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Touch N Go · 01-18-2017, 06:42 PM

Camping now. Nice n quiet.

Desert RVers · 01-18-2017, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chickeneye

I am making a YouTube video of the whole process

I am looking forward to seeing your video Chickeneye. I may do the same mod to our trailer at some point. Let us know when your how-to video is ready for viewing. TIA

Chickeneye · 01-18-2017, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Desert RVers

I am looking forward to seeing your video Chickeneye. I may do the same mod to our trailer at some point. Let us know when your how-to video is ready for viewing. TIA

I sure will. I should start piecing it all together over the next few weeks. But my baby is due in the next couple weeks also lol. So it may be a little later.

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