Calgden

Hey All,

I am wondering if anyone knows exactly what the SS S/C's stereo consists of. I would like:

1. Deck Info
a. Channels
b. Wattage per Channel
c. Does it have any RCA pre-out
d. Does it have a built-in EQ/crossover... if so, is it able to restict bass out to certain speakers pre-outs?

2. Speaker Config
a. Are the mid and high-range powered by the deck or by an amp
b. Speaker Sizes and Power Handling (Max/RMS)
c. Do they have a cross-over (Passive/active)?

I suppose another good question, for those with an ss s/c, would be... how does it sound stock?

Thanks

Brad_Digs

No preouts,
no built in eq, or bass restriction
factory amp powered located in trunk, 200 watt max for speakers, 80 watt max for sub
6.5 components in front
6x9 in rear

Thats it off the top of my head, I had the SS I test drove in our install bay for a bit about 2 weeks ago

lilngineer

The amplifier for the Pioneer system is mounted under the driver side of the instrument panel. It is mounted closest to the door and engine comparment and vertically snaps into a set of keyways using 4 brass stand off on the amp.

The amplifier is of the power IC variety and is supplying the subwoofer as well as the speakers inside the car.


As far as the head unit goes, contrary to everything I have ready, it does not appear to be GM-LAN. I actually removed and disconnected the radio and did not lose door chimes, blinker click-clack, keyless entry, driver information or anything of that nature.

I purchased a wiring adapter (knowing it prob wouldn't work) from Metra (P/N 70-2103T). This is a radio relocator harness for the equinox/malibu. These vehicles utilize the GM-LAN for other vehicle features as listed above so the radio must remain in the car. The pins that are used for the GM-LAN to relocated the radio for these vehicles are NOT USED on the Cobalt.

I am now working on a solution to utilize the exiting amp with an aftermarket head unit or bypassing the amp completely. I will keep the group informed of my findings.

Has anyone confirmed that the front speakers are 6.5" components? I have verified the rear speakers are 6x9s.

eclipsefloyd

What kind of amp is it...Pioneer too??

Calgden

"No preouts" - Crap Can anyone confirm? The amp must have a high-level input... arg....
"6.5 components in front" - Can anyone confirm?
"6x9 in rear" - At least I guessed correctly on that one

.....

The amplifier is of the power IC variety and is supplying the subwoofer as well as the speakers inside the car. - Hmmm.... it's gotta go. Will have to pickup a new mono amp for the sub... soon to be subs and a 4 way for the speakers

As far as the head unit goes, contrary to everything I have ready, it does not appear to be GM-LAN. I actually removed and disconnected the radio and did not lose door chimes, blinker click-clack, keyless entry, driver information or anything of that nature. - That is a pleasant surprise. Can anyone else confirm? If that's the case, based on the fact that it doesn't have an RCA pre-out, I may have to look at replacing it.

Thanks for the info gents. Any info is good info.
I am quite happy to hear about he head-unit though... I didn't want to look at relocating the deck.

Jam2010

i've unplugged the deck in my base cobalt coupe and all the door chimes, etc.. still worked

now if i can just find a place that sells the cobalt wiring harness i'll put my mp3 deck in

Z24driver1986

hmm so it seems the deck isn't used for that anymore.. interesting seems GM finally got smart. Anyway if this is true then the only thing the LAN comm (class 2) wiring is used for in the cobalt/pursuit is for the DIC.

lilngineer

I wouldn't go as far as to say the only thing on the GM-LAN is the DIC. There could be many other vehicle modules running on the GM-LAN (on-star, XM, etc.)

BTW, GM-LAN is not equivalent to class2. GM-LAN is a new architecture that GM adopted for vehicle communications. All new GM radios will be GM-LAN (inlcuding the cobalt's). Its just that the cobalt is not utilizing the GM-LAN to display the drivers information on the radio display (such as the malibu). Therfore, there is no need to relocate the radio for replacement. Which is good news!

The next obstacle is wiring into the system with the pioneer amp. I am planning on creating a harness to run from the amplifier i/o connector to the head unit cavity for my aftermarket. I need to figure out the pinouts on the amp before I can do that, however. I will be working on that this weekend.

It appears the amplifier is using speaker level inputs. And yes it is made by Pioneer. I am sure there are technically line inputs to the factory head unit, but probably not utilized on the cobalt and might be tricky to figure out which pins. I have a contact in the GM audio department so I will see what I can find out.

Another thing to add as well... I replaced my 6x9s this week (a bitch to get to btw) and found another silverbox module on the rear package shelf. The speaker lines are running out of it so I am not sure what it is yet. Possibly an xm receiver, but not sure. And if so, why run the speakers through it? It seems we need to find a contact at Pioneer for a system diagram....

Archplsm

If the silver box on the back shelf is about 5" square that would be the XM reciever. If so their should be 2 lines comming in from the antanna and 2 lines going out (possibly only 1)

c0baltss2005sunburst

I can confirm that there are 6.5"'s in the front on the SS

Calgden

Thank you very much. I have already pre-purchased a component 5" set that I had better exchange right quick

Again Thanks

lilngineer

I now have access to the system architecture and pinouts for both the radio and amplifier in the Pioneer system. Contact me offline for details.

aka_Matt

hey lilngineer, u seem to know alot about the system, i just have a simple question... i've read that its a 228 watt 6 channel amp... how r the 6 channels divided into 7 speakers? and how many watts do each get? ok, 2 questions... 32x4 on fronts + 50x2 on rear? (sub wired into 6x9's?)

lilngineer

Unfortunately, I do not know the exact wattage allotted to each speaker, but I can tell you this about the system:

The output from the radio into the amplifier is only 4 channel (LF, RF, LR, RR)

Inside the amplifier, the output is divided into the above four channels plus two subwoofer channels (RR subb, LR sub). The subwoofer is a dual voice coil and is borrowed from the aftermarket system. It is amplified in stereo and NOT bridged.

As far as the amp goes, here are my comments:

Its not worth your time to use the factory amplifier to power aftermarket speakers. For one, the amp doesn't have sufficient power and acceptable distortion to be useful for good aftermarket speakers. Also, there is a lot of equalization built into the amp to account for relatively flat sounding factory speakers. If you replace the speakers, you will be disappointed with the sound quality due to this equalization. Don't waste your time with it. Just my 2 cents. Take it for what its worth.

FYI- I now have replaced my head unit, 6x9s, front components, and added an amp for the sub. Now, it finally sounds like I want it to!

aka_Matt

thanks, maybe the main speakers r getting 32 x 4 and the sub is 50 x 2? how do u know so much about it anyway?

lilngineer

I found out most of this information through a contact at Pioneer as well as my own investigation into the system design.

stealththx

So does anyone know the wire codes for the amplifier or are they actually labeled on the amp?

Maven

iTrader: (1)

Amplifier and Radio pinouts, circuit ID's, color codes:

Audio Amp. Connector1
Connector Part Information
• OEM: 12110088
• 24-Way F Micro-Pack 100 Series (GY)

Pin
Wire Color
Circuit No.
Function

A1
L-GN/BK
1794
Left/Rear Subwoofer Speaker (-)

A2
D-BU/WH
346
Left/Rear Subwoofer Speaker (+)

A3
L-BU/BK
115
Right Rear Speaker Signal (-)

A4
D-BU
46
Right Rear Speaker (+)

A5
BN
199
Left Rear Speaker (+)

A6
YE/BK
116
Left Rear Speaker Signal (-)

A7
D-BU
546
Right Rear Low Level Audio Signal

A8
BN/WH
599
Left Rear Low Level Audio Signal

A9
TN
1946
Right Rear Low Level Audio (-)

A10
BN
1999
Left Rear Low Level Audio (-)

A11
D-GN
117
Right Front Speaker Signal (-) (1)

A12
L-GN
200
Right Front Speaker (+) (1)

B1
L-BU/BK
315
Right Subwoofer Speaker (-)

B2
D-GN
1795
Right Subwoofer Speaker (+)

B3
D-GN
1947
Left Front Low Level Audio (-)

B4
L-GN
1948
Right Front Low Level Audio (-)

B5
TN
511
Left Front Low Level Audio Signal

B6
L-GN/WH
512
Right Front Low Level Audio Signal

B7-B10
--
--
Not Used

B11
GY
118
Left Front Speaker Signal (-) (1)

B12
TN
201
Left Front Speaker (+) (1)



Audio Amplifier Connector2 (UQ3)
Connector Part Information
• OEM: 12110626
• 8-Way F Metri-Pack 280 Series (L-GY)

Pin
Wire Color
Circuit No.
Function

A
BK/WH
1051
Signal Ground

B
BK/WH
1051
Signal Ground

C
--
--
Not Used

D
L-GN
1011
Remote Radio Control Signal

E
PK
314
Radio On Signal

F
--
--
Not Used

G
RD/WH
640
Battery Positive Voltage

H
RD/WH
640
Battery Positive Voltage




Radio C1



Connector Part Information
• OEM: 12110206

• Service: See Catalog

• 24-Way F Micro-Pack 100 Series (L-BU)

Pin
Wire Color
Circuit No.
Function

A1
GY
118
Left Front Speaker Signal (-) (1) (U1C)

A1
D-GN
1947
Left Front Low Level Audio (-) (US8)

A2
TN
201
Left Front Speaker (+) (1) (U1C)

A2
TN
511
Left Front Low Level Audio Signal (US8)

A3
L-BU
115
Right Rear Speaker Signal (-) (U1C)

A3
TN
1946
Right Rear Low Level Audio (-) (US8)

A4
D-BU
46
Right Rear Speaker (+) (U1C)

A4
D-BU
546
Right Rear Low Level Audio Signal (US8)

A5
BN
199
Left Rear Speaker (+) (U1C)

A5
BN/WH
599
Left Rear Low Level Audio Signal (US8)

A6
YE
116
Left Rear Speaker Signal (-) (U1C)

A6
BN
1999
Left Rear Low Level Audio (-) (US8)

A7
L-GN
200
Right Front Speaker (+) (1) (U1C)

A7
L-GN/WH
512
Right Front Low Level Audio Signal (US8)

A8
D-GN
117
Right Front Speaker Signal (-) (1) (U1C)

A8
L-GN
1948
Right Front Low Level Audio (-) (US8)

A9
D-BU
1796
Steering Column Radio Control Signal (UK3)

A10
WH/BK
644
10-Volt Reference (US8)

A11
--
--
Not Used

A12
BK/WH
1051
Signal Ground

B1
RD/WH
1140
Battery Positive Voltage

B2
--
--
Not Used

B3
L-GN
1011
Remote Radio Control Signal (US8)

B4-B5
--
--
Not Used

B6
PK
314
Radio On Signal

B7-B8
--
--
Not Used

B9
D-GN
5060
Low Speed GMLAN Serial Data

B10-B12
--
--
Not Used



Radio Connector2
Connector Part Information
• OEM: 12064799
• 12-Way F Micro-Pack 100 Series (BK)

Pin
Wire Color
Circuit No.
Function

A-G
--
--
Not Used

H
D-GN/WH
368
Right Audio Signal (+)

J
BN/WH
367
Left Audio Signal (+)

K
TN/WH
372
Audio Common

L
OG/BK
2061
Cellular telephone voice Low Reference (UE1)

M
PK/BK
2062
Cellular Telephone Voice Signal (UE1)


relevant RPO descriptions:

UK3
Control, Steering Wheel, Accessory

UN0
Radio, AM/FM Stereo, Seek/Scan, CD, Auto Tone, Clock, ETR

UQ3
Speaker System, Performance Enhanced Audio

UQ4
Speaker System, 4, Base

US8
Radio, AM/FM Stereo, Seek/Scan, CD, Auto Tone, Clock, ETR, MP3, RDS

U1C
Radio, AM/FM Stereo, Seek/Scan, CD, Clock, ETR

U2K
Digital Audio System S-Band

UE1
Communication System, Vehicle, G.P.S. 1


the radio DOES communicate on the Lowspeed GM-LAN line, it recieves VIN information for TheftLok, illumination dimming inputs, and signal for speed compensated volume.

Some audio functions are available using the steering wheel controls. The steering wheel controls are actually a resistor network which consists of multiple momentary contact switches and a series of resistors. The switches and resistor network is arranged so that each switch has a different resistance value. When a switch is pressed, a voltage drop occurs in the resistor network which produces a specific voltage value unique to the switch selected. These specific voltage values allow the radio to identify which switch has been pressed. The radio responds just as if the corresponding radio front panel button had been pressed.When the radio is ON, the radio supplies approximately 10 volts to the switches on the 10-volt reference circuit. The specific voltage signal from the switch is returned to the radio on the steering wheel controls signal circuit.This may inhibit the use of the redundant control with an aftermarket head unit.

(Gm Service Information 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt)


Some of you may have been aware of this information, many of you may not have, hope it helps any who need it.

mken

Did you forget anything?

Excellent info

Calgden

Thanks for all of the info Maven/lilngineer.

Based on that info, do you think I will have problems replacing the factory stereo since I have ordered mine with Onstar? Will I have to find one of those bypass modules or relocate the stereo somewhere just for that function?

Maven

iTrader: (1)

While it would be BEST to relocate your factory head unit in order to maintain OnStar functionality it isnt strictly necessary if you are creative....the OnStar VCIM controls all aspects of cellular/digital communications...the radio just responds to its signals...the VCIM uses the radio speakers for cellular audio...it does this through Connector1 pin 12 and connector2 pin 24 of the radio. This circuit also has a 3rd bare wire used as a shielding circuit near the VCIM , it doesnt go to the radio it gets blunt cut.....if you can convert the VCIM output on these two wires to a usable signal for your current radio then you wont need to relocate the head unit....but I dont currently know of how that would be accomplished on an aftermarket head unit.

Calgden

Crap Crap Crap

I guess, what you're saying is... don't wanna do it!!

If I understand correctly, no only will I have to relocate my deck, but I will have to install a new speaker just for the ONSTAR digital communications ... arrg... Oh well... maybe my installer can be creative with the existing deck considering I already have purchased my new equipment, minus the deck. Has anyone here used one of those Onstar bypass modules that are available?

NGalaxyTimmyo

iTrader: (1)

Hey, if I wanted to add in one of those 12v power thingies, the cigg lighter (I'm tired...worked last night till 4) Anyways, I wanted to add on but only have it on when the car is on. I figure I would take the power cable for the radio and splice into that.

1. would it work.
2. which wire would I want then. I saw several that had to do with power and voltage.
3. would there be a better spot to splice into? I only want it to have power when the car is on, and I don't want any power at all going to it if the car is off.

NGalaxyTimmyo

iTrader: (1)

Anyone???

05stockbalt

go to the fuse block don't tap off the wires for the radio...yes it will work but if you are pulling alot of current through the power point it could blow the fuse if you look in the fuse block there is 2 ten amp fuses stacked right on top of each other on the right side towards the motor just run the wire there and tap in at the fuse block it's what i used for acc power for my alpine deck