[subyeh]

Hi,

This weekend I installed an 8" powered sub into the 09. The HU's 20-pin connector wire colours did not match my research. Findings are below and in pictures. I found an existing, water tight, rubber body plug to pass the power wire from the interior to the wheel well, into the engine bay. This body plug was a nice find as it has room for future 'holes', included in the pictures. I also used flex-tube to route and protect all the wires - although it's all hidden, I like how clean everything turned out.

I've posted too many pictures here (link removed - pictures go bye bye). The captions hopefully provide useful details and info. If not, let me know. I didn't include pictures of the final in-dash wire bundle - as you can imagine, it's a bundle of wires - properly connected, of course.

Oh yeah! and it sounds great! Not a boom boom dance club, but it adds some nice bottom end. :discomonkey:

Cheers,
G



Colours of a 2009 Forester 20-pin audio connector: The connector has two rows of 9 smaller pins, plus two larger pins on the far left and right sides. I've numbered the larger pins 10 & 20. I'll photoshop the wire numbers in the pictures when I get a chance. For now, the captions point back to here for the correct numbering and colours.

TOP Row
---------
10 - Black - Ground
1 - Violet/Silver Dots - Illum. with headlights
2 - Black/White/Silver Dots - Dimmer
3 - Yellow/Red - Ign Switched 12V accessory
4 - Lime Green/Red - Steering Wheel Control (-)

5 - Red/Yellow (LR -) [paired w/ 6]
6 - White/Black (LR +)

7 - Brown/White (LF -) [paired w/ 8]
8 - Brown (LF +)

9 - Yellow/Black - Antenna Booster

Bottom Row
-------------
11 - Blue (CAN bus) [paired w/ 12]
12 - Pink (CAN bus)

13 - empty
14 - Yellow - Steering wheel Control (+)

15 - Grey/Red (RR -) [paired w/ 16]
16 - Grey (RR +)

17 - Blue/Yellow (RF -) [paired w/ 17]
18 - Blue/White (RF +)

19 - empty

20 - Blue/Red/Silver Dots - Constant 12V +




Other Research/Sources of info:
====================

1) I installed the Kenwood KSC-SW10, purchased from Car Audio Stereo - Car Subwoofers - Car Amplifiers and Speakers
Owners Manual: PDF

2) Search for 'Blue' wire info here:
SF.org link 1
SF.org link 2

3) You can also optionally install what's called a line-level converter. It's usually used in car audio where the deck only has speaker outputs. The converter lets the headunit play the speakers normally while giving you an RCA signal to feed some amps.
Google images
Google Search

4) 20 pin connector pin out:
NASIOC link 1
NASIOC link 2


5)
Wiring Diagram :2009 Subaru Forester
Battery BLUE/RED (+)
Accessory YELLOW/RED (+)
Ground BLACK (-)
Illumination VIOLET (+)
Dimmer BLACK/WHITE (-)
Power Antenna YELLOW/BLACK (+)
LF Speaker (+) BROWN
LF Speaker (-) BROWN/WHITE
RF Speaker (+) BLUE/WHITE
RF Speaker (-) BLUE/YELLOW
LR Speaker (+) WHITE/BLACK
LR Speaker (-) RED/YELLOW
RR Speaker (+) GRAY
RR Speaker (-) GRAY/RED

 

[SVXdc]

Nice write-up! It's great to see so many pics. I'm sure they'll help people with all sorts of installs/mods (not just audio).

And thank you for posting the Forester wire colors.

[EDIT- some missing info, suggestions, now removed after subyeh updated his post]

Here's Subaru's connector drawing, clipped from the wiring diagram:
.

Attached are the radio wiring diagrams (PDF files) for the 2009 Forester with non-Navi radio (thanks, dpm!).

 

[subyeh]

Thanks SVXdc!

My original post has been updated with the proper numbers and some tweaks to the text (CAN bus & paired). I also updated the photo captions to address the numbering issue.. I'll photoshop them when I find more time

The wiring diagram PDF's are a great help, too bad I didn't have them earlier

Cheers,
G

Nice write-up! It's great to see so many pics. I'm sure they'll help people with all sorts of installs/mods (not just audio).

And thank you for posting the Forester wire colors.

The "mystery" pins are the CAN bus wires (Blue and Pink).

By "joined" you mean "twisted" or "paired," right?

One request — Can you please use Subaru's pin-numbering scheme, so as not to confuse people when they refer to Subaru's wiring diagrams? (yes, I know you included some of the numbers on your pics of the wiring harness, but photoshop can fix that :icon_biggrin: )

 

[jkoppee]

wow awesome write up with the colors of the wires, I had that same problem with it not matching what I researched but it looks like you really over complicated the install. The seat and full center console removal aren't really neccessary at all. It looks really nice though, how do you like the kenwood?

 

[subyeh]

Yeah, I did overcomplicate the install... but since I wanted to run the speaker and power wires seperate, I figured I go for it and get all crazy It was also curiosity, I wanted to see how it all fits together.

You definitely want to be careful around all those plastic tabs, take your time and pry in the right spot, nice n gentle...

The kenwood is quite nice.. on the right volume/music I can vibrate the rear view mirror, so it's got some bump. Also, I can turn the bass down on the HU and the factory door speakers sound more clear, like they're not working as hard.

wow awesome write up with the colors of the wires, I had that same problem with it not matching what I researched but it looks like you really over complicated the install. The seat and full center console removal aren't really neccessary at all. It looks really nice though, how do you like the kenwood?

 

[BigSi69]

I've found this thread *very* interesting and am now beginning to shed some light on what I have!

Mine is a UK spec Forester 2.0DXC (Diesel).

UK spec models have different head units to the US spec vehicles.

My 6 disc changer (standard) was a Matsus_hita model: 86201SC340 (

Also standard in mine is the powered SUB sitting beneath the passenger seat though it looks different to the ones you see advertised.

I've just had an Alpine iXA-W404R fitted and was sad to lose the factory sub... but having studied this thread, I now at least stand a chance of getting it back up and running. On my vehicle, there is also an 8pin white plug which (according to the wiring diagrams) carries the input form the AUX socket mounted in the centre console armrest AND carries the signal output to the factory sub. I just need to work out whether this output is a line level or speaker level output.

I was able to get a harness adapter to retain the steering controls.

For now, I have left in the stock speakers but have to run the Alpine HU with "Defeat" enabled to retain control over the volume... it's bloody loud without defeat on! (stock HU was garbage but we cannot have a direct iPod interface for the stock HU in the UK)

 

[dpm]

The feed to the stock sub is balanced, linelevel, if memory serves. I didn't think much of the sub and replaced it with an old Pioneer underseat. But in doing so found that connecting both the wires to the pioneer resulted in no output; eg they cancelled each other out. Dunno if the stock sub might respond for you if you ground one of it's inputs and just send it ONE signal?

Oh, and the sub gets it's switch-on 12v from that 8-pin too IIRC.

 

[BigSi69]

Thanks for the reply

Inspecting the wiring diagrams previously posted, the factory dsub does appear to run from pins 3,4,7 and 8 in the 8pin plug "i86"

From what I can work out;
pin 7 is shield
pin 3 is 12v switch signal
pins 4 and 8 are left and right but I can't work out which way round! I'm guessing 4 is left and 8 is right.

I don't like messing up factory stuff and as there is no harness adapter in the UK for that fitting, I may end up getting an after market powered sub to sit under my seat (the factory one is beneath the passenger seat) and simply bypass all the factory wiring. That way, when I come to sell on, I can retrieve the Alpine and sub and put everything back as it was.

 

[dpm]

^^ yup. Pretty sure tho that the signal from the stock HU is a processed balanced-line drive, rather than simple L&R as their sum cancels...
Try strapping one of the inputs to ground and running your sub_out to the other input, see what happens.

 

[SVXdc]

My 6 disc changer (standard) was a Matsushita model: 86201SC340

Is there another model number printed on the front (perhaps starting with "CZ...")?

Also standard in mine is the powered SUB sitting beneath the passenger seat though it looks different to the ones you see advertised.

Do you mean different than other Subaru OEM subwoofers? Can you post some pictures of both your stock subwoofer and HU (front, back, and label on the top)?

On my vehicle, there is also an 8pin white plug which (according to the wiring diagrams) carries the input from the AUX socket mounted in the centre console armrest AND carries the signal output to the factory sub.

I know that Subarus with the subwoofer in the rear cargo area connect via those subwoofer output pins, but I wasn't aware of the under-seat style connecting that way. Up to now, all of the under-seat style are connected by tapping into the speaker-level outputs. For more information, see the 'subwoofer' posts in this thread I compiled:

Stock head unit information -- pin-outs, subwoofer, aux inputs, and more​

Subarus with the newer style 20-pin radio harness use a similar T-harness for the under-seat sub.

Does your sub have the same larger style of 8-pin connector as on the older Subaru subs I show in my thread?

Inspecting the wiring diagrams previously posted, the factory sub does appear to run from pins 3,4,7 and 8 in the 8pin plug "i86"
...
I don't like messing up factory stuff and as there is no harness adapter in the UK for that fitting, I may end up getting an after market powered sub ...

You should first take a closer look at how your OEM subwoofer is wired -- does it really connect via the 8-pin i86 harness, or did it connect via a T-harness to the main power/speaker harness (as subs on earlier years do). If it was the latter, your installer simply may have left the T-harness disconnected.

I make an adapter that will connect to the car's 8-pin harness. It would provide a way to re-use your center console aux input jack. If your subwoofer really does connect via that harness, it would also enable you to connect that to your new HU. PM or e-mail me for details.

 

[dpm]

SVX, I've done all that already; I posted a thread about the 09 sub a while back...

 

[SVXdc]

Ah, that would be this thread...

So, lets look inside this new '09 subwoofer then.
​

Very interesting.

So yes, BigSi69, you could connect your Alpine's subwoofer out and amp remote turn-on to the correct pins on the 8-pin i86 harness to regain your OEM sub.

 

[BigSi69]

Yep, that's the sub as fitted to mine.

To be honest, I've only had the motor for 2 weeks, and the sub was barely noticeable on the old stock head, but I wasn't sure whether that was down to the HU or the SUB!

Having seem the images of it stripped down, I reckon I'll pick up an under seat powered sub from Alpine or Kenwood. In a previous car I did have an Alpine AWD-1600 which was pretty effective without turning the car into a mobile nightclub!

Thanks for your help.

For what it's worth, I'll post some pictures of the UK spec head unit in a wee while.

 

[BigSi69]

UK Spec 09 Forester 2.0DXC Head Unit opening. 4 Connects: 20pin, 8pin, 1pin spade (Earth/ground) and 1 pin aerial.


UK Spec 09 Forester 2.0DXC 1 pin aerial fly lead; tight to harness.


UK Spec 09 Forester 2.0DXC 6 disc changer head unit front.


UK Spec 09 Forester 2.0DXC 6 disc changer head unit labelling.


UK Spec 09 Forester 2.0DXC Head Unit opening. 6 Connects:
USED CONNECTS: 20pin (white), 8pin (black), 1pin spade (Earth/ground) and 1 pin aerial on trailing flylead.
UNUSED COPNNECTS: 20pin (black) and trailing brown loop wire labelled "mute".


As above.


UK Spec 09 Forester 2.0DXC 1 pin aerial fly lead from head unit; mounted onto a 12inch long lead which comes out of the back of the HU chassis.





I have now replaced this head unit with an Alpine iXA-W404R (UK Spec with RDS).


Alpine iXA-W404R in-situ.

 

[SVXdc]

Great pics. Thanks for posting those.

Yours is a new model I hadn't seen:

Model number (on front face): PP343R6
Model number (on label): 86201SC340
Ref. No.: CQ-EF7771AJ​

It's very similar to the CZ641U6 in USDM Imprezas, except the controls on yours are mirrored (for RHD) and a few of your buttons have different or additional labels.

Can you add a close-up of the 8-pin socket that's lit a little better (or a pic of your car's 8-pin plug)? It appears to be the same as the Aux connector on Imprezas, but I'm not 100% certain from your pictures.

 

[BigSi69]

Great pics. Thanks for posting those.

...

It's very similar to the CZ641U6 in USDM Imprezas, except the controls on yours are mirrored (for RHD) and a few of your buttons have different or additional labels.

From what I know, our UK models do not have the "SAT" radio function yours do. I understand that there is an iPod interface kit for the US head units, whereas there isn't one for us here i the UK

RDS is the "Radio Data System" and is used for the transmission of traffic data to the radio... transmissions being interrupted to go to live travel news broadcasts on local radio stations.

Can you add a close-up of the 8-pin socket that's lit a little better (or a pic of your car's 8-pin plug)? It appears to be the same as the Aux connector on Imprezas, but I'm not 100% certain from your pictures.

Sorry the images aren't better!

 

[SVXdc]

Thanks for the additional pics. That's definitely the same 8-pin connector as used in Imprezas.

I'll bet the Impreza HUs have the subwoofer output too, they just don't use it. [ADDED: That turns out to be wrong -- Imprezas get different HU models that look similar but do not have the subwoofer output]

 

[axxman]

hey bigsixnine,

I just wanted to let you know I will be shamelessly copying your amplifier install using your excellent photos. I too have the alpine iXA-W404 but I managed to put that in on my own. cheers.

 

[ratsac]

Awesome writeup! Great pictures too. I have been looking around for an alternate to spending the AUD$429.18 Subaru Australia wants for the accesory Subwoofer. This looks great. Unfortunately, Kenwood Australia don't seem to list this sub. :icon_frown:

Some questions:
Did you just splice straight into the forward (or rear?) speaker wires? You mention something about a line level converter. Did you use one of these?

Edit: I just read the manual for the Kenwood KSC-SW10. When you install it, you have the option of using *either* speaker wires (with no line level converter required) or RCA out puts (again no converter required). It seems to be a well thought out bit of gear. I just ordered one from sonicelectronix.com. Cheaper (delivered) than anything similar available in Australia.

You tapped the power from under the bonnet (um... 'hood' in the U.S) Did you use accessory 12v? Or always on?

Edit: There seems to be an always on 12v supply going into the back of the head unit. SHould be able to tap into that. Will just have to make sure the sub doesn't draw too much.

 

[ForesterDave]

US Spec has RDS, but our button is called "TEXT" and is used by radio stations to broadcast their call letters and the song or radio program currently playing. No traffic info broadcast that I know of via RDS in the USA, but it would be a good idea as traffic here in the Seattle area can be a real ***** at times...