Ripper131

I have a 2005 LX Accord, which originally comes with the single CD audio unit. This unit's sound processing failed (radio controls, environmental controls operated normally (including dimming functionality), but no sound came out of the speakers. The dealer diagnosed this as a bad head unit and recommended replacement of the entire unit. In an attempt to save some money, I decided to handle this myself.

I purchased a remanufactured 6 CD head unit that seems to be compatible with my vehicle. With this unit installed, the system has partially returned to functionality. I can use the radio, change stations, adjust volume, and manage environmental controls. However, some problems remain and some new ones have cropped up. The backlight on the radio display does not illuminate; I need to use a flashlight to read anything off of the display. Dimming of the environmental controls' LEDs in conjunction with the headlights does not function. There also seems to be some sort of new, persistent clicking noise coming from the head unit when the vehicle is or the ignition is in accessory mode.



One of the potential complications is that, prior to purchasing the new unit, I attempted to reflow one of the boards on the radio on the off chance that a cap had come loose and I could get it working again. After the reflow, I attached the radio again. In this state, the radio display was blank (with no other sound system functionality) and the environmental controls functioned, but without dimming.

This behavior is identical to the behavior I get with the radio entirely removed from the console unit, so I can't imagine that this is in any way related, but... I'm lost, so perhaps this attempt at repairing things is worth mentioning. Presumably my hail mary attempt to reflow the board simply destroyed the board entirely.

On the other hand, I didn't do an explicit test of system functionality without the radio present prior to installing the reflowed board, so without that baseline, I can't really be sure I didn't burn out some other component elsewhere in the system by hooking up a damaged radio.



I have checked my fuses for both environmental controls and radio. They appear to be in good condition. Their removal entirely disables the corresponding strangely behaving unit and their return brings it back in the same form.



Before I start assuming that my parts dealer shipped me a bad unit, any advice on how to further diagnose my difficulties would be greatly appreciated. I'm hardly an expert on this front. Some of the thoughts I've currently got, but haven't figured out how to address include:

Did I screw up putting the 6 CD head unit into my model of vehicle?

Would this sort of weirdness be consistent with damage to one of the wiring hardness or a sheared wire? I've inspected what I can readily access for damage, but I'm not ruling out some sort of clumsiness on my part. I've never pulled this before and can't really be sure I wasn't too rough on something somewhere.

Am I missing something entirely unrelated to these guesses?



Any advice or critique would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

lazlong

The OEM units are meant to be plug-and-play so, putting this unit in your vehicle shouldn't harm anything.

Not displaying properly would not be the wiring, it would be the head unit itself that's bad.

Did you disconnect the battery before beginning work? You can easily ruin something when you don't disconnect the battery. If the environmental controls aren't working properly you probably shorted something out.

Ripper131

Hmmm. No, I did not disconnect the battery prior to doing the exchange.

That's an unfortunate thought, as it means I can't say the dealer shipped me a poorly remanufactured part with any confidence. Still, the unit didn't arrive in exactly pristine condition, so maybe the damage went deeper than that. I guess this is a discussion for me to have with the parts dealer.

Thank you for the input. When I'm putting in the next new unit, I'll make sure to disconnect the battery.

Ripper131

There was no good resolution to this issue. I suppose I'd caution others that dropping a 6 CD changer center module into a car in which it wasn't originally installed may not work.

The parts dealer took the unit back for testing, failed to properly test the unit, and gave me a full refund due to their error. End result, no confirmation either way. I purchased an exact match OEM replacement, which worked flawlessly in all capacities.

Original and replacement part number: 39050-SDA-A02
6 disc part number that did not work: 39175-SDN-A12

Jjbaehr

Honda has a technical service bulletin on the dim backlight, requires replacing the pcb with another that has added thermo protection over a few surface mounted components, I personally have overhauled countless numbers of them over the years.

Jjbaehr

Reflow is a good last resort, I would hope you used hot air and not the toaster oven.

Ripper131

Hmmm. Interesting. I did consider trying to pull some boards from the old unit and drop them into the new unit, but I decided to pursue the parts dealer route first. That was up there on the list of possibilities if I wound up with a unit I couldn't return. Thanks for the info.

As for the reflow... Well... I did use an oven... After the fact, I also learned that the oven was a good 50 degrees hotter than its temperature setting. No wonder the board was toast after that attempt. Heh.