Updating Radio To Modern Specs

[YellowRose]

Tim, I saw your deleted post and what you were considering doing. I deleted it off the system for you. If you have not looked at the Technical Resource Library, there is a whole section on the radio. Including several companies who will convert it to a modern, AM/FM Stereo, up to date version with USB, and Bluetooth. Without you having to cut your dash. Check out the Gary Tayman link in particular. He can rebuild your present radio and put all those modern conveniences in that old radio. When you get it back, you just slip it back in its slot! That is my understanding. Several on here have had him re-do their radios to their satisfaction.

[Daleo56]

Tim, I saw your deleted post and what you were considering doing. I deleted it off the system for you. If you have not looked at the Technical Resource Library, there is a whole section on the radio. Including several companies who will convert it to a modern, AM/FM Stereo, up to date version with USB, and Bluetooth. Without you having to cut your dash. Check out the Gary Tayman link in particular. He can rebuild your present radio and put all those modern conveniences in that old radio. When you get it back, you just slip it back in its slot! That is my understanding. Several on here have had him re-do their radios to their satisfaction.

I started that post thinking I was going to be able to use one of the existing radio options for the 60'. After posting I quickly realized that the current stereo options all require removing the stock bezel and cutting the dash. I removed the post at that time since it was not what I wanted to do.

Since then I have started working with RetroSound to see if they have something that we could make work. In the mean time I ordered a RediRad from Amazon to hold me over until I get all of the information. They are easy to add and remove and do not change the radio at all.

I have sent an email to http://taymanelectrical.com/ to see their pricing. I think I had them convert my 56' radio 10+ years ago and it was about $500.

[Tbird1044]

I hope you share any info you get on the radios. I too was thinking of getting my original radio upgraded, but have no idea of the costs involved. Keep us informed.
I looked in Larry's catalog and they have the trunk lock cover parts listed separately. You can get the springs retainer and cover. (Pg 85)
Nyles

[Daleo56]

I hope you share any info you get on the radios. I too was thinking of getting my original radio upgraded, but have no idea of the costs involved. Keep us informed.
I looked in Larry's catalog and they have the trunk lock cover parts listed separately. You can get the springs retainer and cover. (Pg 85)
Nyles

I will start using this post to give updates about the stereo information. I know the TRL has a few links but having a post that comes up during a search will show the additional work being done to provide options to the members here.

[del]

Gary has my radio now

I started that post thinking I was going to be able to use one of the existing radio options for the 60'. After posting I quickly realized that the current stereo options all require removing the stock bezel and cutting the dash. I removed the post at that time since it was not what I wanted to do.

Since then I have started working with RetroSound to see if they have something that we could make work. In the mean time I ordered a RediRad from Amazon to hold me over until I get all of the information. They are easy to add and remove and do not change the radio at all.

I have sent an email to http://taymanelectrical.com/ to see their pricing. I think I had them convert my 56' radio 10+ years ago and it was about $500.

The radio out of my '60 is at Tayman Electrical now for the FMR-1 conversion and a pair of the under seat Stealth spkrs. Their website is a little under construction at the moment but with patience you can find what you need and he is also very responsive via email. I'll be converting my drivers seat so that the speaker will fit under but I'm the only driver so it never moves anyway. Got those parts from Carl Heller. Also got a pr of front kick panels that I'm planning to SEM Color Coat to match my int and get some sort of speakers down there. Not going to use the center console speaker at all.

Can't wait for winter to be over so I can get to it! Car in dead storage until April...

[Daleo56]

The radio out of my '60 is at Tayman Electrical now for the FMR-1 conversion and a pair of the under seat Stealth spkrs. Their website is a little under construction at the moment but with patience you can find what you need and he is also very responsive via email. I'll be converting my drivers seat so that the speaker will fit under but I'm the only driver so it never moves anyway. Got those parts from Carl Heller. Also got a pr of front kick panels that I'm planning to SEM Color Coat to match my int and get some sort of speakers down there. Not going to use the center console speaker at all.

Can't wait for winter to be over so I can get to it! Car in dead storage until April...

I received a quick response back from Gary about upgrading the internals on the original stock AM radio. The full conversion with USB and Bluetooth puts you at $650 with shipping. It is a lot more than a replacement stereo but you do not have to do any modifications to your dash and get to keep the original bezel. If you have the original AC then this sounds like you best bet!



The instructions for wiring his Aurora Design radio is at:

http://www.garytayman.com/stereo/FMR%20User%20Manual%201.5_1.pdf

Gary wrote on 22-JAN-2015:

"Actually, pricing and details for all of these are posted on my website. However, the price for FMR-1 Stereo Conversion is $400. The BT-1 Bluetooth is $180, the USB-1 is $100, and the BTU-1 which contains both is $230.

Turnaround is about 2-4 weeks.

One consideration for this car is speakers. The original speaker is mounted in the console. The only replacement speaker option is 2 small speakers mounted together – a DVC is too deep and will not fit. A nice alternative, if you don’t have power seats, is to mount Undercover Stealth Speakers under the front seats. They sound very nice and are invisible.


If you have further questions, please let me know."

Gary Tayman
Collector Car Audio
http://www.GaryTayman.com

[Restifier52]

If you want to see what I did about mounting speakers in the kick panels, look up my thread "my speaker pods". I used stretchy fabric and fiberglass. There are pictures on the thread. My radio sounds great until I start the car then it kind of slinks into the background

Rick

[Daleo56]

Today when I got home the USPS had delivered my RediRad (from Amazon) and the extra stereo bezel I bought on Ebay. The RediRad is going in the car tomorrow for testing and the bezel is going to RetroSound so they can take measurements and see if they have a system that will work. I will post more when I get updates.

[simplyconnected]

I don't mean to criticize but is that really what you want? AM is very low fidelity which is ok for baseball games and talk radio. It's also monaural. The advantage is, you keep your radio 'stock' and the RediRad is inexpensive.

RediRad works over the antenna when you tune your AM radio to somewhere around 10kHz, so that will be the highest sample rate possible, which is 'telephone quality'.

FM can deliver much better quality because it operates in the megacycle bandwidth and many FM radios are stereo. 'CD quality' is typically 44.1kHz, and to compress it by a factor of four removes much of the highs and the fidelity. Mono removes a CD's separation and presence which makes it sound distant:

http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~hgs/audio/44.1.html

I do appreciate classic components for what they are. My ears appreciate high fidelity stereo. In my humble opinion, it seems like a step in the wrong direction to degrade quality sound when you could retrofit your radio to deliver the goods or keep it stock and listen to sports. Just my two cents. - Dave

[Daleo56]

I don't mean to criticize but is that really what you want? AM is very low fidelity which is ok for baseball games and talk radio. It's also monaural. The advantage is, you keep your radio 'stock' and the RediRad is inexpensive.

RediRad works over the antenna when you tune your AM radio to somewhere around 10kHz, so that will be the highest sample rate possible, which is 'telephone quality'.

FM can deliver much better quality because it operates in the megacycle bandwidth and many FM radios are stereo. 'CD quality' is typically 44.1kHz, and to compress it by a factor of four removes much of the highs and the fidelity. Mono removes a CD's separation and presence which makes it sound distant:

http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~hgs/audio/44.1.html

I do appreciate classic components for what they are. My ears appreciate high fidelity stereo. In my humble opinion, it seems like a step in the wrong direction to degrade quality sound when you could retrofit your radio to deliver the goods or keep it stock and listen to sports. Just my two cents. - Dave

I agree with you Dave. All my 56's and my Ranchero's have stereos that fit into the stock dash locations. On most of them I run RetroSound with Bluetooth and USB. One is a conversion and it works well but I do miss the RDS and BT. I will only get a new stereo that fits in the stock however I do not want to wait 4+ weeks or pay $600 at this time. The RediRad is just a hold over for me until I hear back from RS. Even in LA the stations on the AM band blow and I would rather hear CCR in mono than nothing at all.

Assuming we work out the head unit "Modern Specs" part of this post we should also cover speaker options for the console.

[bird 60]

Radio

We're kinda lucky here in Adelaide S. Australia. We still get strong AM reception, for Sport, Music & Talk programs. My Radio is still the Original AM & works great. I get two stations that play '50s-'60s music all day & night 7 days a week.

Chris.....From OZ.

[JohnG]

I live in the States and got my original AM radio in good shape long ago. Eventually I got tired of it. As Dave points out, you get talk radio and baseball. I am fine with baseball as it harkens back to the 50s when I recall being in the car with my father. But the range and consistency of the radio is not all that good.

So I got Gary Tayman to convert over a junker and installed it last Spring. It turned out to be everything claimed. A bonus was the auxilliary jack which I feed IPod material through.

I went with the center console speakers trying to keep the car as original in appearance as possible. I would say they are the only real compromise. I may try speakers under the seat at some point; not ready to cut up the door panels quite yet.

John

[Dan Leavens]

John I agree with keeping the speakers in the center console to keep it original. However with your conversion with the jack for a plug in, you need to check out some of the cool " mini speakers " online or at a specialty shop. My son says that there are good quality speakers small but great sound that you can hide under the visors or just under the dash to enhance the sound

[fomoco59]

I remember Alexander S. putting mini-speakers under his headliner when he replaced it.

[simplyconnected]

Mike, that idea is brilliant. There is plenty of room for a whole lot of mini speakers between the bows. The sound would be much more believable than music coming from under your seat or under the dash.

Ford put mini speakers in modern cars, high on the "A" pillars.