88 xlt radio help

[RobbieD]

So I have the speaker side figured out now. I do have a couple questions on the power harness now that we have determined I DO NOT have a premium stereo. So i am gathering the Green/yellow is constant hot and yellow/black is switched power and blue/red is illumination which I believe I wont need since its a new digital head unit? but what about orange/black? is that ground?

Orange/Black is not ground; it's constant +12 volts for the radio/clock memory.

Ground on the old Ford radios was supplied by a braided ground strap which goes under the back brace nut, and the other end to the dash structure.

Your other wire IDs are correct.

Blue/Red is reostated lights; i.e. through the dimmer.

 

[Brain75]

FWIW, no wiring schematic, not hayes/chilton/factory service manual etc for the truck would have given you the info you requested, what you needed is the radio repair manual schematic for the specific radio you have - all of us, every one of us didn't understand your post #1 to mean you were looking for the pinout of the radio pigtail you cut from a factory radio and not the truck wiring harness.

It's really unusual to ask for that since anyone putting in an aftermarket radio usually gets a pinout of the radio with the radio and it is just a matter of matching function to function, ignoring colors (since it seems almost nobody aftermarket has any standards for colors).

 

[Brain75]

Orange/Black is not ground; it's constant +12 volts for the radio/clock memory.

pretty sure O/BK is the 2nd illumination (pin 5)

 

[RobbieD]

pretty sure O/BK is the 2nd illumination (pin 5)

The wire in the truck needs to be tested to confirm it 100%. Even Ford schematics have typos.

Typically, there's a +12 volt constant, for radio preset and clock memory, and it's usually Lt Green/Yellow. Besides the Lt Blue/Red rheostated illumination wire, for radio backlighting, there's a second non-rheostated lights wire to dim the frequency display. Orange/Black in the '88 EVTM is listed as "Radio/Clock Memory", but callout "RR" does come from the main light switch, so it probably is the non-rheostated display dimmer.

Just need to do some quick testing with a meter to verify what's what.

 

[TonyLittell]

Orange/Black is not ground; it's constant +12 volts for the radio/clock memory.

Ground on the old Ford radios was supplied by a braided ground strap which goes under the back brace nut, and the other end to the dash structure.

Your other wire IDs are correct.

Blue/Red is reostated lights; i.e. through the dimmer.

So the radio I bought (a cheap Boss Audio with bluetooth and USB) on the Power harness has a red 12v acc, a black Ground, a yellow it calls power b (Im guessing they are referring it to be a 12v switched circuit ?) and then a blue for power antenna.

Thats why I was thinking i cur and cap the blue/red ilumination wire as the new one doesnt have that one. unless maybe the acc red is actually 12v switched and the yellow power b is the illumination?

 

[TonyLittell]

"blue/red is illumination which I believe I wont need since its a new digital head unit? but what about orange/black? is that ground? "

you need illumination (dimmer) unless you want your radio display full 100% brightness all the time, even when it is dark, the headlights are on and you turned the dash illumination down so that it doesn't blind you inside the truck. "Illumination" is dimmer, it is a 0-12v signal that tells the radio how bright it should be displaying the display (in practice I have found it to be 2-12v though).

No it is not ground, it is a 2nd illumination - hence my comment in #4 about ford moving around, marrying or deleting pins. some years it is there some it is not.

pins 2 & 6 are ground (black and black).

"and also what about the black and pink at the bottom harness pic? "

black (pin 6) is ground, some radios only use 2, some only use 6, I would ground both.

pink (pin 7) is not connected to the truck at all (unless you have some premium custom ordered oddball or else someone has redone the radio), I believe it is power retractable antenna, since it is not connected, do what you want with it, cap it / cut it off (makes that wiring connector plug useless for another vehicle).

the black and the pink on the radio side of my harness dont have a mate on the other side at the body harness (im guessing thats pin 6 and 7) so if I take my new radio ground to the black that you are saying is ground (and I thought was as well until i saw there was nothing on the other end) the radio wont be grounded though correct? Should I take my black on the radio end and just chassis ground it?

 

[Brain75]

B or B+ stands for battery in wiring lingo, it would be a NON-switched (i.e. continous) battery power (for the memory).

yes, some truck side harnesses have nothing behind pin #6, on some it is the only ground (and pin 2 is not wired), some have both.

If your radio does not support dimmable illumination, and is just full bright (only you can answer that from your manual for that radio) then yes leave both of the illumination wires disconnected.

 

[RobbieD]

I'm thinking that the Boss Yellow is a constant +12 volt input. If it's a dijikal radio it'll need a constant for memory.

Boss Blue wire would be an output for a power antenna, or it can be used as a turn-on trigger for an amp, so just cap it off.

Should I take my black on the radio end and just chassis ground it?

That's how I'd do it. That's how Ford did it, too, in the early trucks.

 

[Brain75]

ACC is accessory in wiring lingo, and that would be switched (and match with the truck harness "hot in ACC or Run" pin 3, Y/BK).

 

[TonyLittell]

Shit, I forgot to post the pic of the boss audio schematic! Doh!!!!

 

[2011Supercab]

Power harness has a red 12v acc, a black Ground, a yellow it calls power b (Im guessing they are referring it to be a 12v switched circuit ?) and then a blue for power antenna.

Thats why I was thinking i cur and cap the blue/red ilumination wire as the new one doesnt have that one

I see a smoke show coming

red 12v acc = 12v switched
yellow it calls power b = battery/constant power

 

[Brain75]

The spoon fed version - I read your manual and made a cross reference page, took me a few minutes:

Edit: gridlines did not come through - redid spreadsheet, fixed "grouund"

 

[Brain75]

someone double check my insanity before he hooks it up... I see I misspelled grouund already...

I did not go to the effort to do all the speakers, cause that would have taken me twice as long and you said you had it figured out already.


all wires that have a "NC" are Not Connected, and any wire that I have left no cross to is either A) not connected or B) referenced on another page of your manual that I have not seen.

 

[RobbieD]

Shit, I forgot to post the pic of the boss audio schematic! Doh!!!!

That did it; go stand in the corner!


On your Boss wiring sheet, go with Boss Red to truck Yellow/Black; Boss Yellow to truck Lt Green/Yellow (as @2011Supercab called it, too).

 

[RobbieD]

I see a smoke show coming

I swear, Officer; the midget was already on fire when I got here.