Satellite Radio - anyone add it?

EJM4 · 10-06-2014, 05:39 PM

Has anyone added the Sirius tuner to their Berkshire? After two years of ownership I have grown tired of pressing the seek button while traveling!

If anyone has, where did you go thru the front cabinets with the antenna? My thought was just place the antenna on top of the cabinet between the front cap and cabinet.

Superchief · 10-06-2014, 07:03 PM

EMJM - just put one on my rig. Just laid the antenna on the front dash, against the window, in the center. Put a strip of the stuff you put on cabinets to keep stuff from moving. Ran the rest of the wire under the dash, through the lid that come off. Mount the radio to the drivers side window with a suction cup holder. Just drove 1800 miles with this setup from Upstate NY to San Antonio, Texas. Great reception all the way. Craig

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Dbt803 · 10-06-2014, 07:14 PM

I have had it since purchasing my rv in 2010. It works great.
Debbie

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EJM4 · 10-06-2014, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Superchief

EMJM - just put one on my rig. Just laid the antenna on the front dash, against the window, in the center. Put a strip of the stuff you put on cabinets to keep stuff from moving. Ran the rest of the wire under the dash, through the lid that come off. Mount the radio to the drivers side window with a suction cup holder. Just drove 1800 miles with this setup from Upstate NY to San Antonio, Texas. Great reception all the way. Craig

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Where did you get power from? Aux port on drivers side?

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Superchief · 10-06-2014, 09:52 PM

Yes, aux port on drivers side.

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EJM4 · 10-07-2014, 07:44 AM

I did a little more research this morning since I wanted the head unit in the dash to control the sat radio compared to having a separate Sirius controller.

My coach came from the factory with a Jensen JRV212TB I phoned the the company who supplies these units to the RV manufactures and spoke with customer service. I had two options: 1) Install the SCC1 tuner (but this is no longer produced and expensive via Ebay for a used one OR 2) Purchase a SCVDOC1 docking station and the Sirius Stratus 7 controller. All components were purchased from Crutchfield with FREE shipping. When the SCVDOC1 is plugged into the back the Jensen it will use the Stratus 7 as a slave unit thus I will be able to control the Sat radio thru the original head unit. I will be able to tuck these components under the dash and be clutter free!

Superchief · 10-07-2014, 08:46 AM

Nice! I also have a Stratus 7 radio. I will have to look to see if I have the same connections on my 2011 unit. Thanks for the information!

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EJM4 · 10-07-2014, 08:55 AM

Craig -

Have you had any reception problems with the antenna puck in the front windshield? In our first motorhome (Class C) I place the puck on the front bumper. All worked well when I was in the North East but when I hit Southern Virginia (only heading South) the whole way to Florida I would receive no signal until our trip North.

Superchief · 10-07-2014, 09:13 AM

No reception problems. 2 to 3 bars of reception all the time.

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jrlebaron · 10-08-2014, 09:24 AM

On my 08 Berkshire I velcroed the puck to my tv antenna. Ran the wire down behind the weather stripping under the carpet and thru the dash. Wouldn't be without my satellite radio while driving. Took my old unit from my truck when I had a fifth wheel.

EJM4 · 10-08-2014, 09:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrlebaron

On my 08 Berkshire I velcroed the puck to my tv antenna. Ran the wire down behind the weather stripping under the carpet and thru the dash. Wouldn't be without my satellite radio while driving. Took my old unit from my truck when I had a fifth wheel.

Weather stripping - where at?

Campin Cajun · 10-08-2014, 10:23 AM

Just throwing this out there, but if you have in motion satellite system installed with directTV there are radio station in the 800's you can listen to also. This is how I travel sometimes and the television speakers are better than the radio.

jrlebaron · 10-08-2014, 02:41 PM

EJ I ran the wire behind the rubber slide scraper then between the slide and the coach at the bottom of the slider. Jim

mjracsj · 10-08-2014, 04:27 PM

I installed the Jensen compatible parts under the dash to the connector on the back of the Jensen. For the antenna we ran the wire under the dash and up through the trim on the drivers side of the windshield. This allowed access to the top of the front fiberglass cap. We drilled a small hole, ran the antenna wire down thru there, hid it under the inside windshield trim on drivers side, and went under the dash to the unit where it plugged in. We used waterproof epoxy and silicone and mounted the antenna right on top of the roof up there on the cap. All hidden and no problems. It was easier than I thought it would be.

EJM4 · 10-08-2014, 08:13 PM

I did the same thing except drill a hole in the roof. I placed it above the trim piece under the front cap and checked reception. Three bars, so I will try that and see how it works.

I think I spent more time on the phone with Sirius activating the unit then it took to install it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mjracsj

I installed the Jensen compatible parts under the dash to the connector on the back of the Jensen. For the antenna we ran the wire under the dash and up through the trim on the drivers side of the windshield. This allowed access to the top of the front fiberglass cap. We drilled a small hole, ran the antenna wire down thru there, hid it under the inside windshield trim on drivers side, and went under the dash to the unit where it plugged in. We used waterproof epoxy and silicone and mounted the antenna right on top of the roof up there on the cap. All hidden and no problems. It was easier than I thought it would be.

lrob · 10-09-2014, 11:52 AM

I also install a Stratus 7 and dock from Crutchfield. I just put the puck on the dash with the 3m tape it came with ran the wires under the dash and zip tied them to it. Plugged the cable into my Jensen head unit it came with and Volia! Works like a champ. No holes.

psw757 · 10-20-2014, 09:55 AM

Has anyone added any speakers up front to enhance their listening experience? The only speakers we have are in the ceiling behind the driver and passenger seat and are 3" speakers. Would like some more sound up front.

Texas Realtor · 11-12-2014, 10:22 PM

I have a blue tooth wireless Bose that rides on floor between me and DW and have it connected to Sirius on my iPhone.

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chrisbailey13 · 11-13-2014, 09:25 AM

+1 I use the phone app to listen to Sirius on my android phone. Uses very little data and I am not paying for another full Sirius radio subscription.

TURBS · 11-13-2014, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texas Realtor

I have a blue tooth wireless Bose that rides on floor between me and DW and have it connected to Sirius on my iPhone.

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Same here, we use a bose Portable blue tooth and use Pandora or Spotify.

I just recently started using Spotify and I think i like it better then Pandora.

TURBS.

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