[V8] 10 disc Factory Changer Update

[Buchholz, Steven]

I had a few minutes yesterday, so I tried hooking up my 10 disc changer to the Gamma deck in #344.  As was the case on #344 the only response I got was a relay clicking on and off ... the clicking would change rate with the deck on vs. off, but it still clicked.  I and another lister had suspected the changer might need to have the case grounded, so I connected the frame of the changer to the body of the car ... Voila! the changer cycled through the discs and started playing.  Since I know there's at least one other person interested in doing this I thought I'd share ... 

I also verified if the information is displayed on the little bitmapped display in the instrument cluster ... it does, but the display still indicates that it is in "FM" memory mode, with the station frequency integer part being 10x the track number and the decimal being the disc number.  I suppose this is due to the fact that the '90-'91 instrument cluster was not made to work with the Gamma deck from the factory.  

If there's someone with a '92-on V8 with the 10 disc changer and Gamma head unit who could answer a couple questions I'd appreciate it ... first question has to do with factory mounting ... the mounting panel appears to hold the changer vertically, and it seems to fit into the right side storage bin area ... is that correct?  If so, does your car have the mount for the cell phone in the same area?  By any chance can you take a picture of the unit and send it to me?  TIA!  The second topic has to do with the instrument cluster display ... when playing the changer does the display on the IC indicate that the changer is selected, and how does it display disc and track info? 

I guess there's one more question for the '92-on V8 owners ... on your Bose system are the amplifiers for the rear speakers still attached to the speaker, or do the newer V8s have the amps mounted in a separate enclosure?  If you do have the amp enclosure, I'd appreciate knowing where the box is mounted ... and here again, pix would be appreciated ... 

Steve B
San José, CA (USA)