Which BT Module

[chrisk2010]

Ok i know this has been done to death but yesterday purchased a w203 with Audio 20 head unit and the little connection in the armrest under the black clip i guess i'm just looking for a little reassurance.

I have been looking at the viseeo mb 4 but there seem to be connecting issues with it and i'm not fussed about music ect .... so is something like this the way to go ??

MERCEDES BENZ GENUINE HFP BLUETOOTH MOBILE CRADLE B67876131 IPHONE 7, 6, 5, 4 | eBay

That is the connection in the ebay listing i have btw and i have decoded the vin and have

354- ANTENNA FOR TELEPHONE D/E-NET
386- MOBILE PRE.-INSTALLATION (MTUS)

Thanks in advance all

 

[PobodY]

You might find that something like the Viseeo MB-2 is better value. - I managed to buy two for less than the cost of the genuine Mercedes adaptor.

Pretty-much just plug-and-play. - Install it, wait for it to power-up, search for it with the phone, make the link and let it download my contacts.

The disclaimer is of course that I'm using COMAND NTG2 rather than Audio 20.

 

[chrisk2010]

Thanks for coming back to me i'll look some prices for the mb-2.

Out of interest would NTG2 a straight swap for the audio 20 ?

 

[GLK]

If your Audio 20 looks like this:

then it is NTG2, so it'll be the same, as far as the option 386 is concerned

 

[chrisk2010]

ahhh that's great thanks guys i'll swap it out with an NTG2 and grab hunt around for a cheap mb2 unit

 

[GLK]

Chris, NTG2 denotes the generation of Mercedes head units, there are NTG1, NTG2, NTG2.5 etc, etc
Within each generation there are different head units - various Audio (5, 10, 20, 30, 50) and COMAND

There's absolutely no need for you to swap your head unit with anything, just to add bluetooth

 

[chrisk2010]

Yep got that bit i was reading the about them last night on mercupgrades.com, I found a cheap head unit £150.00 which made it all look a bit more up to to date.

Did toy with the idea of going for the NTG2.5 BUT decided against that as i believe they can be a bit of a pain to wire and program in though doable far from easy.

I have literally just been sitting in my at lunch (NTG2 in my basket on the comp) and I'm not going to lie ..... i like the Audio20 ! it's basic, fuctional, clean looking and will do what i want it too without lighting up the cabin disturbing my ambience so for now i'm just going for the Bluetooth adapter and put the money saved from the NTG2 into a cup holder

 

[chrisk2010]

Really do appreciate the help and advice guys

 

[GLK]

Do you have a CD changer? If yes, then you can replace it with fibre optic multimedia unit, designed for the MOST network, and it'll do hands-free and also let you use USB and SD card for music playback. Providing your CDC is MP3-capable - you can check it on your datacard.

This is the thing - not cheap, but looks well made: Bluetooth Music Handsfree USB MP3 adapter-Mercedes Benz Audio 20/50 Comand Radio | eBay

 

[chrisk2010]

I did look at that but unfortunatly i do not have a CD Changer.

I was hunting BT adapters last night and missed a couple of Merc ones for £100 and bids on others are going for over £120.

However i keep coming back to the MB4 on amazon for £169.00 .... do they have alot of problems ??

 

[GLK]

You could still fit that multimedia unit, even without CDC, but you would need to fit a MOST splitter (I have a WIS on that) or replace the loom, and that's way too complicated ...

Alternatively, and I'm not even sure it can be done in W203 (I know how to in W169 / W245), you could fit NTG2.5 Audio 20, that will come with bluetooth built-in, and no MOST (so the phone pre-wire will be redundant)?

 

[Codger49]

Thanks for posting that link GLK. My son's CLK has a duff CDC and he has been looking for a bluetooth adapter, but none so far are as neat and functional as that one.

 

[PobodY]

It's getting music that's the problem; the phone connection is doddle.

I ended-up with two Bluetooth gizmos; an MB-2 for the phone and a cheap Bluetooth dongle for the AUX port (it was only £20 from Sainsbury's, and as long as I remember to charge it first it works fine).

 

[GLK]

Thanks for posting that link GLK. My son's CLK has a duff CDC and he has been looking for a bluetooth adapter, but none so far are as neat and functional as that one.

Yes, it looks the most elegant solution, and the fact that it utilises the MOST network, and uses exact same power and fibre optic plugs, as the CDC, is brilliant.

I'm glad I didn't see, it before I upgraded my head unit - it would have been very tempting to get this and keep the rest as is ...

 

[chrisk2010]

Thanks All i won a MB-2 adapter on eBay in the end waiting for it to arrive hopefully it does the job

 

[flowrider]

I have a spare Mercedes HFP if anyone is interested.

 

[chrisk2010]

Morning all MB-2 arrived this morning and it works beautifully missus said it was crytal clear

Thanks everyone for all the help and advice.

 

[Codger49]

Do you have a CD changer? If yes, then you can replace it with fibre optic multimedia unit, designed for the MOST network, and it'll do hands-free and also let you use USB and SD card for music playback. Providing your CDC is MP3-capable - you can check it on your datacard.

This is the thing - not cheap, but looks well made: Bluetooth Music Handsfree USB MP3 adapter-Mercedes Benz Audio 20/50 Comand Radio | eBay

Bought one of these and tried it in the CLK500. Unfortunately, it doesn't work - the COMAND unit won't go beyond the Mercedes logo on power on when this is connected in place of the glovebox CD changer. Contacted seller who suggested disconnecting fibre connection for 30 secs or so after switching COMAND on, but this didn't work either. So its going back for refund.

Fortunately, COMAND worked fine when unit disconnected and replaced with original CD changer.

 

[GLK]

Thanks, good to know - obviously MOST protocols were not implemented correctly, or most likely, the unit was faulty.

I only discovered this, after I already replaced my Audio 20 with an aftermarket unit (which is great, by the way), and was wondering, whether I'd still go for it, had I seen this multimedia unit ... It seems I made a right choice, even though it wasn't actually a choice at the time

 

[chrisk2010]

Morning guys, funnily enough i was poking around in my car last night thinking about this thread as my car may have the the connection under the carpet on the passenger side for a mercedes Aux cable which i'm considering installing when i get some free time. part no. (A 203 540 61 07)

I was thinking of going cheap once this is done and getting one of these or something similar for music i know it's basic but basic usually works well and it's clean and tidy which i always like
Wireless Bluetooth 3.5mm AUX Audio Stereo Music Home&Car Receiver Adapter w/ USB | eBay