Will the factory radio from a 2009 fit and plug in to an 04 Ultra?

 

I have heard yes. But don't quote me...

 

It won't plug right in. It will fit, but you would have to change some wiring as the 04 was Radio Sound and the 09 is Harmon Kardon. Easiest thing to do would be to change out the fairing interconnect along with it.

 

2006-2010 is a direct plug in to the 04 where the 23 pin main harness is concerned. You will have power, ground, front channel audio and handlebar controls. AVC may not work without some conversion, but everything else is OK. If you're using the accessory connector on the RSI unit, it will not be a direct plug in. The accessories plug on the RSI radio is a 23 pin, the HK is a 35.

 

I've never had my fairing apart, but I will this winter. On my radio the CD sometimes doesn't play or it will stop and start. There is an 09 radio with XM built in on ebay and I'm wondering if I should try it. I know they are different makes, but I didn't know about the plugs and connections. Is the fairing inter-connect a separate sub-harness?

 

What is the RSI unit and what does the accessory plug connect to or control? What is RSI an acronym for?

There is a new factory radio on ebay with XM built in - my radio's CD sometimes doesn't play - I'm going to have to do something with it no matter what.

 

Sony makes plenty of stereos with built in xm mp3 player and pretty easy install might even be cheaper hand controls work with the PAC interface HK radio has its share of problems

 

The radio will fit and function without any modification of your existing bike, with a few limitations.

Automatic volume control will not function - you may not even notice.

A NEW radio needs to be initialized - something that can't be done installed in your 2004. If the radio has been previously installed and working, this doesn't apply.

If we're talking about an ultra to ultra swap, there are some differences with the CB and Ultra wiring. For one thing, the HK CB has a different antenna plug than the RS.

*** Also, since the radio has XM, then you need an additional harness which you WILL NOT HAVE. p/n 70169-06

Your speakers are also a different impedance. While the unit will work with your existing 8ohm speakers, you will not get the full power of the radio. (and it isn't all that much to start with)

Bottom line, for just a radio/cd - plug and play and hit the road. If you're talking XM/CB - you're better off getting your radio repaired. Radio Sound has a flat fee repair rate and are very easy to deal with. http://www.radiosound.com/customer_service.php

 

RSI= Radio Sound, Inc.; Harley's vendor of the radio in your bike. If you are having problems with your unit, call Radio Sound customer service: (502) 267-6768.

As for installing the '09 Harman Kardon head unit in your bike, I did this recently along with installing CB. Here are some answers and explanations:

1. Both the RSI and HK head units use the same Base Radio Connector (a 23 wire connector that is part of the bike's interconnect harness and plugs into the back of the radio) to provide power, ground, speaker connections, and handlebar controls of the radio. The only difference in the BRC between you bike and the one used for the HK radio is a pin out for the vehicle speed information that the radio uses for Automatic Volume Control. You can connect the '09 radio to your bike and it will work fine with your handlebar controls, but you won't have AVC unless a simple wire splice is made.

2. Your RSI radio has a CB built into it; unlike the HK head unit that uses add-on modules for CB, XM, and GPS. On your bike, the CB and passenger controls and rear speaker wiring use a second, 23-wire connector that plugs into the back of your RSI radio known as the Ultra connector. For CB, rear speakers, passenger controls, etc., the HK radio uses a 35-wire connector instead of the 23 wire Ultra connector on your bike. So, an '09 Ultra uses a different Ultra connector than on your bike. The passenger controls, rear speakers, etc. plug into the Ultra harness and the Ultra harness plugs into the back of the HK radio. When CB and similar add-ons are made to a non-Ultra HK radio-equipped bike, a non-Ultra overlay harness (p/n 70169-06) is used that provides for connecting the add-ons and the 35-wire connector for the back of the radio.

I'm not a tech and my familiarity with this is due to my recent installation of the Boom Audio Music and Intercom Kit, p/n 77108-09, and CB on my '04 EG. The installation is described in this thread:

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/touri...tra-glide.html

Suggestion: If you are happy with your RSI unit except for the CD skipping, call Radio Sound. At worse, you'll do an exchange and buy a refurb RSI unit with CB for a plug n' play installation.

If you want the '09 w/ XM, you will need to modify the bikes wiring to accommodate it, as well as buy a CB module if you want CB. I'm not familiar enough with the Ultra harness on your bike to say how much modification is necessary. For sure, the 23 wire Ultra connector would have to be replaced with the 35 wire connector, and additonal connectors provided to accept the XM module and CB module if you add this as well.

Good luck with your project.

Carl

 

Thanks everyone for the info. If it was plug and play, I'd have done it, but I have been to the RSI website and I see for the flat fee they'll fix anything. That is probably what I'll do. I just thought I'd look into this because I sometimes get tired of all the add-on crap. I had an add on XM in the past and it was kind of a pain.

I did know that the speakers were different, but I want to upgrade there too.

Any thoughts on the handlebar mount XM that Harley sells?