Most of the Android ChinaRadios come with some sort of CANbus decoder (or so they are labeled) to provide steering wheel controls, backup support, etc... Every single vendor will only sell you a CANbus decoder that they 'manufacture' for their units - claiming that any other combination of decoder/radio will not work.
Aside from this being mostly BS, these vendors are absolutely adamant of not wanting to sell individual of these decoders - which for Chinese vendors is curious, to say the least, to turn down any opportunity to make a buck.
Either way, despite all of them claiming to manufacture their own, we know that is BS -- these vendors buy products from actual manufacturers, repackage them, and sell them.
Try as I might (Alibaba, aliexpress, globalSources) I have not been able to find a manufacturer that produces just these boxes.
Does anyone around here have any leads?
MacConsult said:
Most of the Android ChinaRadios come with some sort of CANbus decoder (or so they are labeled) to provide steering wheel controls, backup support, etc... Every single vendor will only sell you a CANbus decoder that they 'manufacture' for their units - claiming that any other combination of decoder/radio will not work.
Aside from this being mostly BS, these vendors are absolutely adamant of not wanting to sell individual of these decoders - which for Chinese vendors is curious, to say the least, to turn down any opportunity to make a buck.
Either way, despite all of them claiming to manufacture their own, we know that is BS -- these vendors buy products from actual manufacturers, repackage them, and sell them.
Try as I might (Alibaba, aliexpress, globalSources) I have not been able to find a manufacturer that produces just these boxes.
Does anyone around here have any leads?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To add more to that.
My previous unit an Witson 3066/1Gb ram has an CAN decoder that worked fine for my Ford but the Joying ones work only 85% fine meaning the PREV and NEXT buttons were reversed and that was a pain to use since all my life when I push the NEXT button I expect to hear the next song not the previous one.
Anyway, although I was struggling to correct the Joying CAN mistake I could not because I did not find any way that I could reflash the CAN box. Joying said that the CAN might not be 100% compatible with my car although it should be.
Even if the old CAN box from my former Witson unit was looking exactly the same and the wire socket was exactly the same as the Joying one, the wiring was completely different, different wiring location on the socket, different wire colours. The internals of the CAN boxes looked almost the same but I did not had the courage to test the Witson one on the Joying afraid that I would damage the headunit or more importantly the car...
What I did in the end was to directly connect the resistive buttons of the steering wheel directly to the unit (bypassing the CAN) and program them via the unit software and let the CAN box to decode the other stuff like putting the car in reverse, turning on the lights, feeding +12V to the unit when I start the car.
What I learned is that CAN box is a black box... if it's not working it's almost impossible to find a fix of any kind... or buy a working replacement...
That appears to mirror my initial impression, albeit I feel that different vendors use different providers for these CANboxes and hence that a different CANbox should be able to do the job another can't.
Example, on my XTRONS unit, the steering wheel controls didn't work at all - albeit reverse detection and lights worked well. Unlike my prior box (from 'alec-power' where everything worked (except the radio didn't produce any sound - a slight issue. They took it back and refunded me). Now, XTRONS had me send back the CANbus box, and promised to send another as soon as they have stock again. (1-2 weeks), but they also confirmed that their e39/e46 (BMW) decoder is the same as the one for e53.
What we really need is to figure out how these CANbus boxes work, and ideally how to program them (if that is possible -- which it ought to be).
That's what I was attempting to kick-start with this thread.
Bummer, so no one has any information on these CANbus decoders?
MacConsult said:
Bummer, so no one has any information on these CANbus decoders?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your best bet is to try a different car in the canbus setting in factory settings. I had that problem on my ford focus I set the canbus for it and it didn't work right with the steering wheel so went through them all to find that the ford Mondeo rise settings worked and fixed that problem for me.
Where can i buy new canbus gor ownice c500? I send mail to manufacturer but no answer
pcmender2005 said:
Your best bet is to try a different car in the canbus setting in factory settings. I had that problem on my ford focus I set the canbus for it and it didn't work right with the steering wheel so went through them all to find that the ford Mondeo rise settings worked and fixed that problem for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Turned out, in my case, that the proper setting was "NONE" in the CANbus settings, and suddenly everything worked.
Chinese engineering....
If you need a canbus box, your best bet would be to go with a more mainstream manufacturer, like axxess/metra. Their units can tie back into the car radio using the SWI1/2 wires.
Any update on this?
Just reviving an old thread looking for answers
I also think there is a problem with my bmw e39 can-bus box i am using with Xtrons PQ7939BIP. When i connect the can-bus box, the red (terminal R) and the yellow (battery + terminal 30) become "shorted" and they should not "touch" each other. This way, i have to connect the yellow and the red wires from the android unit to the violet/white wire from my car (terminal R - accesory) and leave the terminal 30 (hot all time) wire from the car disconnected so that the xtrons unit shuts down when i put the ignition switch in position 0 or when i pull out the key from the ignition switch.
Is this normal or is my can-bus box bad?
Trimis de pe al meu SM-G950F folosind Tapatalk
bogdan wst said:
I also think there is a problem with my bmw e39 can-bus box i am using with Xtrons PQ7939BIP. When i connect the can-bus box, the red (terminal R) and the yellow (battery + terminal 30) become "shorted" and they should not "touch" each other. This way, i have to connect the yellow and the red wires from the android unit to the violet/white wire from my car (terminal R - accesory) and leave the terminal 30 (hot all time) wire from the car disconnected so that the xtrons unit shuts down when i put the ignition switch in position 0 or when i pull out the key from the ignition switch.
Is this normal or is my can-bus box bad?
Trimis de pe al meu SM-G950F folosind Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can connect the red wire to any wire on your bmw that has 12 volts with the key on RUN or ACCESSORY, but the yellow wire needs to have 12 volts all the time.
MacConsult said:
Most of the Android ChinaRadios come with some sort of CANbus decoder (or so they are labeled) to provide steering wheel controls, backup support, etc... Every single vendor will only sell you a CANbus decoder that they 'manufacture' for their units - claiming that any other combination of decoder/radio will not work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Every PX5 and PX head unit can work with a canbus decoder from different manufacturers. You have to go to Android Settings > Car settings > Factory settings (password: 126) > Canbus tab > Select the manufacturer of your canbus decoder and the car model.
I have a PX5 head unit with a canbus decoder from "Simple", and when it broke, I replaced it with "Raise" and it works.
I recommend to review the list of supported canbus decoders in your head unit in the Factory settings, before purchasing a new one. You may need also to buy a new wire harness if you don't have a plug for the canbus decoder.
piotrmocko said:
Every PX5 and PX head unit can work with a canbus decoder from different manufacturers. You have to go to Android Settings > Car settings > Factory settings (password: 126) > Canbus tab > Select the manufacturer of your canbus decoder and the car model.
I have a PX5 head unit with a canbus decoder from "Simple", and when it broke, I replaced it with "Raise" and it works.
I recommend to review the list of supported canbus decoders in your head unit in the Factory settings, before purchasing a new one. You may need also to buy a new wire harness if you don't have a plug for the canbus decoder.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
I also have PX unit (PX6) with Simple soft CANBUS and I get more options when I chose raise like air-conditioning info on my PX6 unit. I have Honda civic 2016 and the only thing that is not working is the car clock not syncing through the CANBUS from my Dasaita PX6 unit. which is a bummer.
I am very curious about the Can Box options as when looking to buy a unit for my '18 WRX with HK Audio I found the IDoing selling them with support for the HK and was surprised as Crutchfield and Meastro just added support for this setup and I was about to order their harness and box to wire in a Kenwood unit I have in my old car.
When I found the IDoing(FYT) I figured all the other better know sellers should have had same option so I emailed Joying as I couldn't find option from them and they responded that they didn't have a solution. SYGAV does claim to have one but but it's nearly double cost and all the WRX reviews said it was hit or miss if it worked.
I bought the IDoing unit and it was plug and play and works great(with one exception)
If these are all the same HU and CanBus hardware, why the variances? Just programming by the seller or are they all buying from different MFR?
Before ordering I tried to order a harness and canbus from IDoing and the unit from Joying, Joying wouldn't sell me the HU because I had mentioned I had HK Audio and IDoing Flat out refused to sell me a canbus and harness without proof I had bought a HU from them.
That said the Unit works very well and the only issue with the Canbus is that it can't control the rear speaker separate from the front(no fade).
Someone earlier mentioned buying a maestro, has anyone ever connected one of these chinese units to a maestro box?
Just so everyone knows
I managed to add canbus functionality to my xtrons unit even though they said it’s not compatible
I bought a harness for my car with the correct decoder and chopped it to fit the pin outs of my head unit.
works like a dream.
If anyone needs advice I am always available
what car and what harness? You bought a canbus and harness from another "seller" and made it fit? Or you bought something aftermarket like Maestro?
gottahavit said:
what car and what harness? You bought a canbus and harness from another "seller" and made it fit? Or you bought something aftermarket like Maestro?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Peugeot 207.
bought harness with decoder from feedo seller.
chopped off the connector and soldered it to my hu connector
are you looking to do same?
Sdpuk2020 said:
Peugeot 207.
bought harness with decoder from feedo seller.
chopped off the connector and soldered it to my hu connector
are you looking to do same?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the harness I bought
Sdpuk2020 said:
Peugeot 207.
bought harness with decoder from feedo seller.
chopped off the connector and soldered it to my hu connector
are you looking to do same?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What are you looking to do?
Sorry I was hoping you had found a way to make a maestro or other idatalink module work.
Hello,
I am using an android head unit (px30) in a ford Mondeo mk4. Suddenly the screen did not power on and found that the canbus stopped working. I need to buy a replacement one, but I need to ensure that will work in the specific model. I 've tried to ask sellers in aliexpress (dasaita, isudar, etc) but they can't confirm that will work. Should I take the risk and buy one? Is there a way to check and pick the correct one? (Mondeo does not have ACC connection pin to power on red wire coming from iso cable through the harness, it needs canbus and CANL+CANH will tell the unit when to power or not, so i had to modify and connect both red-ACC with yellow-Power cables together but now I have to shut down the unit on my own). So Is there a way to find the correct canbus for ford or does not matter which one to buy and confirm only the car model?
Thanks and Regards,
Tasos
I take it you didn't buy your HU from Aliexpress or you could just ask your original seller to sell you a new one. In theory any Mondeo MK4 CANbus box should work if all you need is to control power and illumination as those are separate wires coming out of the CANbus box. You might get compatibility issues if the new box doesn't translate all the bus messages your HU needs for other features like temperature, open doors...
I would suggest you start by opening the broken box and re-solder all the connector pins and any other pins of roughly the same size you see.
Hi there,
I'm looking for an Android Head Unit which would allow me to be able to customize features.
I'd like a functioning Head Unit which allows me to have some basic functions like DAB+/FM radio, Naviation, Bluetooth etc. Whilst still making it possible for me to add custom features. Let's say I'd want to add an lightbar on top of my vehicle (it's an offroad vehicle), I'd like it to be controllable using the head unit.
I've been looking at a couple of head units:
- Xtrons TBX104
- InDashNet
Xtrons is more actually a finished product. However InDashNet seems to actually have what I'm looking for, as Xtrons doesn't seem to be open source...
Have you got any advice?
LandDefender said:
Hi there,
I'm looking for an Android Head Unit which would allow me to be able to customize features.
I'd like a functioning Head Unit which allows me to have some basic functions like DAB+/FM radio, Naviation, Bluetooth etc. Whilst still making it possible for me to add custom features. Let's say I'd want to add an lightbar on top of my vehicle (it's an offroad vehicle), I'd like it to be controllable using the head unit.
I've been looking at a couple of head units:
- Xtrons TBX104
- InDashNet
Xtrons is more actually a finished product. However InDashNet seems to actually have what I'm looking for, as Xtrons doesn't seem to be open source...
Have you got any advice?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been doing some research and the only solution I seem to be able to find is as following:
Using a head unit which has a USB output (which you can control using an app or something similar), control an USB relay board.
Then I can control the on/off of the light bar on top of my vehicle using the head unit.
I do have 2 concerns about this, first of all where to find a head unit with an USB output. But also whether this is a recommended way of doing this?
I would really appreciate your feedback!
So I bought an aftermarket Android head unit for my car.
I wanted to connect OBD diagnostics apps for vehicle status info, but I had no luck.
I am completely new to this and obviously clueless, but from what gathered online I need an OBD adapter (wireless or bluetooth) to connect the head unit with the cars ECU. That would make sense if the head unit didn't already come with an inbuilt '' Car Info'' app that somehow accurately displays engine rpms, battery voltage, residual oil, mileage, etc.
Is the head unit somehow already connected to the OBD port or am I completely missing something?
The headunit offer you the possibility to read OBD information, but from where ? If nothing read the car information, your radio read nothing.
So, go and spend 10$ for an wifi or bluetooth OBD device, attack it to the car socket, open your BT or WIFI on headunit, do the connection 8PASSWORD 0000 OR 1234) and after that open the app to read the car information.
StefanMne said:
So I bought an aftermarket Android head unit for my car.
I wanted to connect OBD diagnostics apps for vehicle status info, but I had no luck.
I am completely new to this and obviously clueless, but from what gathered online I need an OBD adapter (wireless or bluetooth) to connect the head unit with the cars ECU. That would make sense if the head unit didn't already come with an inbuilt '' Car Info'' app that somehow accurately displays engine rpms, battery voltage, residual oil, mileage, etc.
Is the head unit somehow already connected to the OBD port or am I completely missing something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If your head unit comes with a can bus box then it will supply a (limited) amount of engine data.
Of which if the many types of head unit do you own and how/what was connected
Minus 10 points for posting a meaningless model number
StefanMne said:
So I bought an aftermarket Android head unit for my car.
I wanted to connect OBD diagnostics apps for vehicle status info, but I had no luck.
I am completely new to this and obviously clueless, but from what gathered online I need an OBD adapter (wireless or bluetooth) to connect the head unit with the cars ECU. That would make sense if the head unit didn't already come with an inbuilt '' Car Info'' app that somehow accurately displays engine rpms, battery voltage, residual oil, mileage, etc.
Is the head unit somehow already connected to the OBD port or am I completely missing something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi there!
It sounds like you're having some trouble connecting your aftermarket Android head unit to an OBD diagnostics app for vehicle status info. From what you've gathered online, you need an OBD adapter, either wireless or bluetooth, to connect the head unit to the car's ECU.
However, you mentioned that your head unit already has an inbuilt "Car Info" app that accurately displays engine RPMs, battery voltage, residual oil, mileage, etc. This raises the question of whether the head unit is already connected to the OBD port, or if you're missing something.
As someone who has built a Custom Raspberry Pi Car Computer, I can tell you that it's possible for an aftermarket head unit to have an OBD connection built-in, but it's not always the case. It's also possible that the "Car Info" app is displaying information obtained through other means, such as the car's internal sensors or third-party APIs.
If you're still not sure, you could try contacting the manufacturer of your head unit and asking them directly. They may be able to provide more information on how the "Car Info" app is obtaining its data, and whether or not it's connected to the OBD port.
In the meantime, if you're interested in building your own car computer, I came across this helpful guide that you might find useful: https://www.autopi.io/blog/build-a-raspberry-pi-touch-screen-car-computer/. It includes step-by-step instructions on how to build a custom car computer using a Raspberry Pi and a touch screen display. Good luck!
I have a generic 9" Android Head Unit (K6_11_OH??) running Realdash app as a car dash board.
It works quite well using both of the USB ports for serial data (UART) and GPS input. Basically nothing else is required other than wifi to install head unit app
Main issue I have is the head unit re-assigns the USB COM ports each time it powers off and back on. This is annoying as I need to re-assign the dash app inputs every time I turn it of and back on.
Can anyone recommend a generic 9" head unit and chipset combo for the following: ??
- Easy to root
- Easy to customise ROM to strip unwanted apps and bloat
- Easy to customise Launcher / UI to remove (Dash app auto launches but not good if radio also tries to auto launch)
- USB ports enabled and easy to assign and access
- GPS
- Wifi
- 2GB RAM is sufficient
- No need for any other features that add cost such as high end music features (So relatively inexpensive)
markze said:
I have a generic 9" Android Head Unit running Realdash app as a car dash board.
It works quite well using both of the USB ports for serial data (UART) and GPS input. Basically nothing else is required other than wifi to install head unit app
Main issue I have is the head unit re-assigns the USB COM ports each time it powers off and back on. This is annoying as I need to re-assign the dash app inputs every time I turn it of and back on.
Can anyone recommend a generic 9" head unit and chipset combo for the following: ??
- Easy to root
- Easy to customise ROM to strip unwanted apps and bloat
- Easy to customise Launcher / UI to remove (Dash app auto launches but not good if radio also tries to auto launch)
- USB ports enabled and easy to assign and access
- GPS
- Wifi
- 2GB RAM is sufficient
- No need for any other features that add cost such as high end music features (So relatively inexpensive)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From forums, which units have you considered
marchnz said:
From forums, which units have you considered
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There seems to be so many options, I don't want to make the same mistake and buy another one that is not well supported, which is why I asked here.
The one I have now has firmware with K6_11_OH and the last updates I could find was 28/06/2019 and it seems they we never very widely supported.
I had a head unit for my Mazda which is nice. I got it from Bestycar which has an SC7862 chipset which is great for normal music player but more advanced and does not seem as easy to customise and simplify like I want for the basic dashboard specific use for my project car.
So I assume one of the MTC units like a PX5 or PX6 chipset might be the best way to go now?
The dash has been built using a 9" unit this exact shape and I would rather keep this the same.
markze said:
There seems to be so many options, I don't want to make the same mistake and buy another one that is not well supported, which is why I asked here.
The one I have now has firmware with K6_11_OH and the last updates I could find was 28/06/2019 and it seems they we never very widely supported.
I had a head unit for my Mazda which is nice. I got it from Bestycar which has an SC7862 chipset which is great for normal music player but more advanced and does not seem as easy to customise and simplify like I want for the basic dashboard specific use for my project car.
So I assume one of the MTC units like a PX5 or PX6 chipset might be the best way to go now?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don´t get your point...
You are searching for a good supported and quality head unit, right?
In this case you really should dive in at Joying for FYT units ( https://forum.xda-developers.com/f/fyt-android-head-units.12445/ ) or may be Klyde for CSN2/CSM4 units which are supported in this forum part.
At least you need to search for a unit specially for your car, or you need to search for a universal one with 2-DIN. Don´t ever buy a 1-DIN unit, as they all have severe issues with overheating if they are based on 6- or 8-core chipsets.
But by the way... the points you mentioned in your first posting... Sorry, but what do you expect to get?
I was expecting someone might say something like "UIS7862 head units seem to be the easiest to root hack and customise".
I don't actually want an expensive unit with heaps of great audio features as it is just a screen with 1 app and serial data feeds.
If I could get an Android tablet for 12V car use, with 2 x USB ports and completely raw Android ROM I'd be happy.