Technical stuff about upgrading stereo in 1990s Holden Commodores

I guess I’ll try anything to augment my readership... so the following may be of interest to anyone upgrading the car stereo in a Holden Commodore model VN, VR, VS and (possibly) through to VT.

Objective:

Fit new Pioneer DEH-1950 cd-tuner in 1995-model VR Holden Berlina, replacing factory-fitted Eurovox Australia MCC-6330V cassette-radio.

Problem:

The similar dimensions of the units makes physical replacement fairly straightforward (albeit some creative work with a drill on the mounting brackets will be required); however, matching the wiring requires some research and fiddly work.

Solution:

Map wiring of the new Pioneer unit, as shown in installation guide, against car-maker’s electrical schematic as shown in manual.

The following table represents a concordance between the existing wiring and that for the Pioneer DEH-1950.

Wiring Concordance
Eurovox MCC-6330V	Pioneer DEH-1950	Explanation
Tan	White	SpeakerFront-Left Signal (+)
Grey	White/Black	SpeakerFront-Left Ground (–)
Brown/Black	Green	SpeakerRear-Left Signal (+)
Yellow/Blue	Green/Black	SpeakerRear-Left Ground (–)
Light-Green	Grey	SpeakerFront-Right Signal (+)
Green	Grey/Black	SpeakerFront-Right Ground (–)
Blue/Orange	Violet	SpeakerRear-Right Signal (+)
Blue/Black	Violet/Black	SpeakerRear-Right Ground (–)
Black/White	Black	ChassisGround (–)
Yellow/Red	Blue/White	System control terminal of power amp, OR auto-antenna relay control terminal (max300 mA 12 V DC).
Orange/White	Yellow	Constant12 V supply
Brown	Red	Ignition-switch controlled 12 V supply

 
DISCLAIMER

The above information worked for us and is provided ‘as is’, but no responsibility is accepted by the author for any catastrophic results arising from utilisation by others. It is recommended that the applicability of this information be double-checked for each case.