MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Bass, Treble, CarPuters, adding an after market alarm. It's all in here.

Moderator: Committee Members

Post Reply
User avatar
GJO
Posts: 117
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 10:45 pm
MGF Register Region: South Midlands
Model of Car: MG TF 135
Contact:

MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by GJO » Mon Nov 24, 2014 6:59 pm

I am looking to replace the original radio fitted to my 2001 MGF with something that is more modern - possibly with a USB input rather than a CD player. The main consideration is to find a piece of kit that is easy to operate when on the road, reliable, capable of achieving good reception and reasonably priced. Any recommendations or advice would be most welcome . . .
Graham
2009 MG TF 135, Radiant Red

User avatar
talkingcars
Posts: 5766
Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2010 10:44 pm
MGF Register Region: South East
Model of Car: mk1 VVC
Location: West Sussex
Contact:

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by talkingcars » Tue Nov 25, 2014 9:30 am

That is potentially a very large question.

Do you want DAB radio - worth having as there is a much greater choice of channel but requires some sort of aerial upgrade.

Do you want Bluetooth so you can connect your phone through it - personally I don't in the F but do in the ZS.

Do you have an iPod - some units have built in controls for these.

Do you want to fit steering wheel remote buttons - not an O/E option on the F/TF but can be done using the MGR parts bin - one of the best things I've done to mine.

What is your budget?

I'd go to my local Halfords and see what they have and then buy it online.
If you are less inclined to fit it yourself then maybe try your local car audio centre.
Home to black Alfa 159 3.2 V6 Q4, blue MGZR160, green MGF VVC and grey MGF 1.8i, and red MG Maestro T16.

MGF chatting on the Register and at http://www.the-t-bar.com

User avatar
GJO
Posts: 117
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 10:45 pm
MGF Register Region: South Midlands
Model of Car: MG TF 135
Contact:

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by GJO » Wed Nov 26, 2014 11:16 am

Thank you - I appreciate that this is a broad question. The main priority is to get good clear radio reception. If this can be obtained with DAB then that would be desirable. Steering wheel controls and phone connection are not required but it would be nice to have the option of plugging the iPad in via a USB port for the purpose of playing music and audio books stored on the iPad and also for charging the device. An aerial change may be desirable anyway because the present aerial is an aftermarket add-on and is not very effective.

As regards budget - I wouldn't want to pay more than the car is worth and I always like to get the best I can at the most reasonable price. I am assuming theat the radio unit is a 'standard' size but although I was more than happy to fit radios in the days when I owned new MGBs and Spitfires - the technology has moved on a bit and probably left me behind. So a visit to a local ICE specialist may be desirable.
Graham
2009 MG TF 135, Radiant Red

User avatar
malcolm64
Posts: 278
Joined: Mon Jul 21, 2014 8:31 pm
MGF Register Region: Essex
Model of Car: MGF1.8i
Location: Southend

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by malcolm64 » Wed Nov 26, 2014 12:32 pm

Am also thinking about upgrading my radio and just been to Halfords. Pioneer DAB radio including ALL necessary accessories £129.99 fitted!

User avatar
Helsbyman
Posts: 1189
Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2007 11:07 am
MGF Register Region: North West
Model of Car: MGTF V V C
Location: helsby cheshire

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by Helsbyman » Wed Nov 26, 2014 2:08 pm

I got my DAB radio from Halfords £199 down to £59 +£28 to fit and a good job they did as well :thumbsu:
Bilstein dampers, 4-2-1 manifold, Head work by Sabre,stainless steel under floor pipes, MGMAINA moded alternator bracket,silicon hoses, Torque tamer, JAYLAD servo bracket, Pro race 1.2 wheels
PETROL BY SHELL :D

User avatar
talkingcars
Posts: 5766
Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2010 10:44 pm
MGF Register Region: South East
Model of Car: mk1 VVC
Location: West Sussex
Contact:

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by talkingcars » Wed Nov 26, 2014 5:09 pm

Just bare in mind that a DAB radio will require another aerial (they do stick on windscreen ones but I'm not sure of their reception abilities) or a splitter from the standard aerial.

If you have poor reception from the current after market one I'd get an O/E whip from a Rover 25 or 45 and try that before anything else.

Modern units are all the same size so will fit the aperture on the F/TF, there are double height units but these are quite rare and more expensive.
Home to black Alfa 159 3.2 V6 Q4, blue MGZR160, green MGF VVC and grey MGF 1.8i, and red MG Maestro T16.

MGF chatting on the Register and at http://www.the-t-bar.com

User avatar
Helsbyman
Posts: 1189
Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2007 11:07 am
MGF Register Region: North West
Model of Car: MGTF V V C
Location: helsby cheshire

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by Helsbyman » Wed Nov 26, 2014 8:13 pm

My DAB came with a screen aerial it is not obtrusive and I get good reception :thumbsu:
Bilstein dampers, 4-2-1 manifold, Head work by Sabre,stainless steel under floor pipes, MGMAINA moded alternator bracket,silicon hoses, Torque tamer, JAYLAD servo bracket, Pro race 1.2 wheels
PETROL BY SHELL :D

AlexBarwell
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Sep 13, 2017 7:25 am
MGF Register Region: South East

Re: MGF Radio upgrade - advice sought . . .

Post by AlexBarwell » Fri Oct 13, 2017 6:06 am

As part of a refresh for my TF160 when I bought it, it sounded rather gutless - found a blue parrot bluetooth phone add-in to be a horrible scramble of cabling interrupting the radio loom - removed and a bit better, then looked at the speakers - standard fair are best fitted to the bin; replaced with decent enough aftermarket variants (3-point fixing of standard is a pain...), but make sure you don't get dirty great deep ones unless you never plan on moving the windows - my Rockford Fosgates have nice big, shrouded magnets but quite nice and slim. Didn't think much of the standard Kenwood head unit, so parted with just over £100 for a Sony MEX-N6001 that stuffs an enormous amount in a standard DIN fitting including bluetooth handsfree, NFC, DAB+ (yep, separate aerial required stuck to windscreen), CD, USB and much more capable DSP/EQ. Speakers in the rear bar are not up to much and wires are quite impressively short, changed them as well, but are always a bit lost behind the seats/headrests - may need to shave the hole of the bar speaker housings.

Any change of speakers (including door satellite tweeters?) may need fitment of regular spade connectors rather than the plug bodies and/or small spades of bar speakers - watch out for your wiring as shorting would be bad, but cross-wiring otherwise could give a phase reversal - yuk, can kill level and gives the effect of your brain being pushed out one ear...

Post Reply