Upgrade Clarion M255

BoomerDaddy

BoomerDaddy

New Member
Nov 26, 2017
5
Boat Info
185 Sport 2007
Engines
Mercruiser 3.0liter 135hp
My '07 185 Sport came stock with a Clarion M255 head unit. It works fine but I rarely use the CD Player and stream most of my music over Bluetooth. The M255 doesn’t have Bluetooth. I'm concerned about matching the existing wiring harness on the back.

Any recommendations on the easiest way to upgrade? Is there a more up-to-date Clarion model with Bluetooth that would be an easy swap?

Thanks in advance.
 
If you have an Aux port, you could always use a Bluetooth receiver and come put much cheaper and easier. I did this on our 260DA we owned. Worked to perfection!

Bennett
 
I would not worry about swapping the harness if needed. Mobile audio wire colors have been standardized for a number of years. It would be a easy as cutting and splicing color for color.

Clarion M303 is a good mix of price v's features. Built in BT and has 4 chnl RCA outputs, front USB and AUX.
 
BoomerDaddy said:
My '07 185 Sport came stock with a Clarion M255 head unit. It works fine but I rarely use the CD Player and stream most of my music over Bluetooth. The M255 doesn’t have Bluetooth. I'm concerned about matching the existing wiring harness on the back.

Any recommendations on the easiest way to upgrade? Is there a more up-to-date Clarion model with Bluetooth that would be an easy swap?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
I tried the same thing, replace the whole unit and found the cabling was all different. I returned it and bought a blue tooth receiver. Powered it with the adapter AC but could also direct wire to DC. Then plugged the bluetooth receiver into AUX on the Clarion. "Found" the bluethooth on my cell phone, paired them and can now stream my music using the menu on my phone. Many of the blue tooth receivers are direct from China so the instructions are confusing. I use Unify. Due to intermittent response I bought another brand, it was DOA. So back to the Unify. Seems it needs a reboot with power cycle. Like many bluethooth connections they are subject to compatibility issues. If anyone finds a good one let me know. "Unify" brand OK when it works.
 
Good list of bluetooth receivers. Thanks.
 
Thanks for your help everyone. I’ve purchased a new Clarion m505 and will update the thread once I install.
 
Range wise, the 2 Wet Sounds and Kicker units get the better range over the hide-away units.

Sounds quality, the Metra would be at the bottom and the JL would be next to bottom. I have found them to have a little "hot" of a signal for head units that do not have an adjustable AUX level. The 3 Wet Sounds and Kicker units would be at the top, along with the Roswell cybox right behind them.
 
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