Factory radio interchange

[Guest re-reatta]

Looking for info on any factory GM radios that would fit the 90-91 Reattas. If it had a CD in it, that would be a definite plus.

Thanks for any info offered,

Kevin

[padgett]

Are many, it is a standard GM plug-in. What I am looking for is CD+EQ and Buick blue light (not Pontiac amber).

[Guest Richard D]

I found a Delco model 16085434 that has a five band EQ and AM/FM/CD with proper blue lighting. I have seen them on epay for as-is $49.99 to NOS $349.95 They were also used in Buick GNs, GNXs, and Syclone and Typhoon trucks and probably others.

They plug right in, but save your two plastic mounting brackets.

Richard

[DAVES89]

Park Aves also work. I pulled one out of there, was going to put it in my '93 Roadmaster, never got it done, sold the Roadmaster, then sold the stereo unit to Richard, who I am assuming has now put it in his car.

Whew, long way around the barn.

I could probably get more, but I would have no way of testing the unit. I would think $40.00 plus freight should get it done. PM me if interested...

[Guest Richard D]

Hi Dave, as a matter of fact I did try installing the radio I bought from you to make sure all connectors were correct. They were, but the CD player would not work and most shops I could find on line wanted $150.00 to $300.00 for repair. I found one at a garage sale for $25.00 and it works, but it doesn't much care for playing CDRs. I was told that to upgrade the transport to play CDRs would cost $200.00 so for now I am playing factory stamped CDs. Although I want to do some more research on why it won't play CDRs, they are supposed to have the same reflectivity (or close) as Factory discs, unlike re-writable CDRs

[DAVES89]

Sorry to hear about that Richard. I will withdraw my offer to get these stereos as I would not be able to test them. Most cars in a u=pick don't have keys...

[padgett]

Was told there are two types of CD recordings. One was MP3 and the other wasn't. Since I did not know I burned some using the XP tools and they worked in my Reatta (and the PC). Think this was actually the older method and the newer one that puts more songs on a CD does not.

[KDirk]

Padgett,

Correct there. Standard audio CD's (factory pressings) have raw digital audio format, in PC parlance this is a .WAV file. MP3 files are a highly compressed encoding of digital audio, which usually originates as .WAV format before being processed (compressed/encoded) to MP3. A standard CD player should play most CD-R discs (record-once type media) made in a PC/MAC with .WAV format files. Be forewarned though that "overburn" (the process of getting more than the industry standard amount of data on a CD) may result in dropped tracks on playback, or inability to read in some older players.

Standard CD specs (aka Orange Book) call for a capacity of 74 minutes of digital stereo (2 discrete channels) audio. Most CD writers can burn beyond this into a previously unusable part of the disc surface, getting as much as 80 minutes of audio (or 6 minutes more than spec). Many older players cannot access this part of the disc when reading as the transport has to be designed to move further out (CD's read from inside hub to outer edge) thus keep your CD-R's at 74 minutes or less to avoid problems in older players.

Also, as already noted CD-RW's (re-writeable media) do not playback well in most older CD players due to differences in the reflectivity of the media. These should be avoided if you are planning on playing in a older (pre 2002 or so) factory CD player.

KDirk

[padgett]

Thank you. .WAV is what I forgot. Interesting note about 74 minutes only even on 80 min CD (most now). That indicates that the extra six minutes is all on the end and not the front. I always use -R though now two vehicles can handle SD chips as well.

Did GM change CDs at some point to make them more reliable than the early 90's ones ? Am not a fanatic about original equipment so long as it looks like something the factory would have installed.

[KDirk]

Yeah, most "blanks" are sold as 80 minutes capacity (including the 6 minute overburn region) and this is all on the back end (outer edge) of the disc. As far as reliability of early 90's units vs. current, I think there are two issues:

First, is that the older units are just that - older. Electronic component values drift after 15-20 years (especially in the harsh environment of a car) thereby reducing the precision of the transport/optics to read a disc. While built in error correction will cover this up to a point, once tolerances are exceeded there will be skips/pauses/loss of data during playback. This is only exacerbated by CD-R's.

Second, newer players (since PC based CD Burners have become common) are designed and tuned with the playback of CD-R's in mind from the start. This involves some improvements to the optics to handle the recordable media accurately. It also provides for the ability of the "sled" (moving platform to which the laser pickup is attached) to travel out beyond the 74 minute mark portion of the disc surface, thus getting the extra 6 minutes of playable capacity. This was not standard on CD players until well after the popularity of CD-burners had really taken off.

One other issue that may be in play is the way the computer/software writes out the disc when making a CD-R. If it doesn't provide the correct table of contents (TOC) at the start of the disc then the whole thing is nothing but a drink coaster. I have had discs that did not master correctly for some unknown reason and would either playback poorly (skips/pauses/lost data) or not at all (corrupt TOC most likely). This is not a common occurrence, but does happen sometimes.

KDirk

[padgett]

I have had few issues with CDs either burned or bought, just the only OEM unit is in the White 'vert and while it plays anything I have given it, it only plays on warm days.

Now from what I have seen, either from age or design there have been (2|more) designs used by GM for the "sled".

My experience with older GM audio has been that is is well built but after 20 yar or so, any belts become questionable (seems more age than use). Is this no longer true ? Or is the warm weather issue with my 90 belts slipping when cold ?

Would be doing more but it is such a pain R&R ing the CD that a radio/CD up top seems preferable. Problem is that now I need two of them. And given my time issue (building ramps for cat, replumbing the RV, day job) there is a value in having ones that are "known working".

[harry yarnell]

What is the issue with these stand alone CD players? Everyone I've seen, doesn't work. I'm a retired electronics tech, and would sure like to fix these. I can't believe it costs $150-300 to really fix these.

The trades (and this covers alot) will often price a repair high if they didn't want to fool with it. The idea being that usually the customer would go away, or if they took the estimate, the PIA job would be worth it.

[padgett]

Of the four I have had, one works when warm, two didn't, and one is untested. Richard may want to chime in on why, he is very knowlegable. For me if it doesn't have a DS01 I am in trouble.

[KDirk]

Harry,

Not sure what exactly goes wrong with these early Delco outboard CD players, but any that are around seem to be highly questionable at this point, unless they have already been repaired. Since there is usually no belt drive in a CD player (direct drive for the disc spindle) either the DC motor is going bad (bearing runout?) causing disc wobble and inability to read or it isn't maintaining proper speed. The latter could also be in the motor drive circuit.

The motorized sled which carries the optical pickup across the disc surface is also prone to failure with age (again, bad motor, or just worn out electronics) and the pickup itself can go bad. Laser pickups (if available) are usually $50 and up, and require fine tuning with a scope when installed; not just a plug and play part replacement.

I imagine that places that repair charging $150 or so are not making that much on the repair, and $300 is a bit much unless they are swapping you a fully reconditioned and warrantied unit on an exchange basis. Even then, that is high for what you are getting.

Personally, I just dump the stock audio and do a good aftermarket system. A good Alpine or Pioneer head unit is light years ahead of the factory audio available in 1990/91 in terms of both performance and features. The only reason I can see to stay stock is if you are entering a car show where originality is of paramount importance. If that is the intent, then the car is not likely to be a daily driver and the radio is less critical for enjoyment of the vehicle during long drives.

KDirk

[wws944]

What is the issue with these stand alone CD players? Everyone I've seen, doesn't work. I'm a retired electronics tech, and would sure like to fix these. I can't believe it costs $150-300 to really fix these.

The trades (and this covers alot) will often price a repair high if they didn't want to fool with it. The idea being that usually the customer would go away, or if they took the estimate, the PIA job would be worth it.

They don't even try to fix the old. They just swap the guts with a newer rev for about $200.

[Guest Richard D]

Sorry to hear about that Richard. I will withdraw my offer to get these stereos as I would not be able to test them. Most cars in a u=pick don't have keys...

Hi Dave, I would not withdraw your offer to get these stereos, for only $40.00 it is worth taking a chance on getting a working one or having it repaired.

Regards,

Richard.

Edited March 14, 2010 by Richard D (see edit history)

[Guest re-reatta]

OK guys and gals. It finally dawned on me that I had a factory '90 Reatta radio and a factory '97 Silverado radio out in the garage. I checked them both and believe it or not, they are exactly the same dimensions. The mounting method and the plug are slightly different. The plug is the same shape but the Reatta plug has more pins. There are tons of these Silverado radios on ebay. They used the same radio in many late 90's to early 2000's GM vehicles. They came with a cassette or a CED player. The one I put in my '97 Silverado plays cd-r's with no problems and has good sound using factory speakers. It also lights up blue. Anybody know of a reason why these will not work before I tear the dash apart, AGAIN ???

[padgett]

Not off hand - saw one for an S-10 that looked good but had no EQ. Later ones also had theft-loc which must be reset by a dealer if locked. What is the part number of yours ?

[Guest re-reatta]

Unfortunately, mine is in the dash and I'd have to take it out to get the number. If you search for radios for late '90's Chevy full size trucks, it should fit. I can get the # of the cassette radio that I took out if anyone is interested. If I can figure out how to do it, I'll post a picture of my Radio so you have an idea of what to look for. I'll try tomorrow, no promises.

[Guest re-reatta]

I can't figure out how to get the picture of my radio small enough to be able to attach it. The radios with the external fans may be a little larger. My radio does not have the external fan. Check radios for 95-02 Sierras and Silverados.

[55chevy]

Looking for info on any factory GM radios that would fit the 90-91 Reattas. If it had a CD in it, that would be a definite plus.

Thanks for any info offered,

Kevin

In a car-parts.com search the Riviera and Toronado matched the Reatta, but some had cd changer in trunk. A 1992 Park Ave cd w/o Bose matches Pontiac Grand AM, Trans Sport, Bonneville, Buick Century, and Roadmaster.

[Guest squiretom]

doesn't the reatta have an extra amplifier circuit plug ?

also if you do not mind , my fade/balance and equalizer do not work in my 91 . i only have the driver side rear speaker working. the graphics show the fade /eq is working , but no result at the speakers. yes, i have checked the speakers independently. in which unit is the fade / equalizer located ?

i would trade my rebuilt cassette deck ( works fine ) and sorta working radio , for a working radio with a bad cassette.

sorry for butting in .

[padgett]

Which radio are you talking about ? Your .sig says '91 which has a combo radio/cassette, 88-89 had them seperate.

[Guest squiretom]

sorry for the confusion . but my 91 radio is in two components. the tuner eq etc is the top unit while the cassette is a separable bottom unit. i have had the cassette unit replaced. the radio is not the crt type.

the face plate is one unit and the radio and cassette units are separate .