Ins and Outs- Red Yellow Blue
updated July 1, 2007
See also BobInCalifornia's Home Made iPod interface

Input and output wiring:
Ken Belliveau writes:
I'm going to be putting my TP into a 1998 328i. I've already replaced all of the stock audio components with upgraded after market stuff in my car. I just found the prospects of an in-dash CD player with stock lighting and the navigation to be too tempting to turn away. Here's the low down on the RCA input and output wiring issues:

If you look at the BMW harness that came with the TP, specifically at the end that plugs into the back of the TP, you'll see that there is a 2 part black connector and a red connector. The red connector is the one that contains all of the wiring and places for wiring for the outputs, telephone feature, and the CD Changer/auxiliary input.


Yellow (Chamber C1)= OUTPUT (amp)
Blue (Chamber C3)= INPUT and/or phone (phone doesn't count as INPUT)
Red= Yellow + Blue + BMW IBUS

There is only one INPUT possible, must choose either CD Changer or other AUX Input (e.g. iPod, satellite radio, Phatbox). A 4771 can only use the BMW IBUS CD changer.
Ken Belliveau writes:
I'll be connecting the TP to an aftermarket amp rather than the stock BMW amp, so I want to plug in the wires to the back of the TP that would terminate into 2 pairs of RCA- type outputs. The same is true for input into the TP, I want to plug in the appropriate wires that would terminate in one pair of RCA type connectors.
For Output Becker has an additional output harness that terminates in a yellow connector on one end and RCA connectors on the other, this harness is for wiring up RCA outputs so you can connect to an after market amp.
For Input wiring can be purchased in a separate harness which has a blue connector on one end and RCA inputs on the other:

JoeCinVa pic
You can either plug the yellow connector and/or blue connector into the TP or you can transfer the wires from the yellow and/or blue connector(s) to the red connector by using a an appropriate removal tool.
June 26, 2007 update- there are now a variety of ready-made input cables with the blue connectors.

You can't plug both the red connector and the yellow or blue connectors into the TP at the same time (unless you cut the red connector like Al did). Or give up the CD changer (and BMW-specific controls) and do not use the red connector- just plug in the yellow connector for the outputs and the blue connector for the input. The advantage of using the yellow and blue instead of the red is that if you change you're mind at some point and want the CD changer you'd easily change connectors on the back of the TP. (Z3s only have the CD Changer to consider, we don't have the other BMW electronics. Also note the yellow cable for the 4771 is not the same as the yellow cable for the 4773.)

In my case, I decided to put all of the wiring into the red connector to simplify things in my dash board and reduce the number of connector plugs in there. Over the weekend I transferred all of the wires for the pre-amp outputs in the small yellow plug to the appropriate locations in the C1 (output) portion of the red plug (and thereby preserved the BMW electronics).

In case you need to see the placement of the pins on the BMW end of the cable, here is Ron Stygar's 4773 pinout detail:

Pins 4 and 10 are missing from the BMW connector


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