Audi Navigation System Plus RNS-E (iPod AMI) OEM Replacement with Dynavin DVN-A3

garethrees

garethrees

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Hello All,

I've searched a few threads and most seem to be quite old now, I have a UK 2009 S3 with Audi Navigation System Plus RNS-E and the AMI iPod interface, with the voice and volume controls on the wheel which worked okay for a while, however the bluetooth and voice control have just stopped working all together so I thought about replacing the OEM unit with something a little newer.

In my searches of the internet I found this Dynavin DVN-A3:
Dynavin DVN-A3 (D99) Android Multimedia/Navigation System for Audi A3 Dynavin

Which looks like a simple replacement to the OEM unit, but with an Android or Windows OS and much more functionality.

Does anyone have any experience of this unit, comments, reviews or otherwise before I take the plunge.

Cheers Gareth
 
Why not just fix the issues on the oem system mate, I don't rate these aftermarket systems, always hear of problems people complaining about radio issues or this that problem, they may have updated things to improve upon but not a system I would install.

Give me a shout if you want your systems looking at.
 
NHN & garethrees

whats the actual sound quality like coming outta the newer oem nav systems, is there much sound tweaking offered?

ive got the old concert system and the actual quality of sound is quite rubbish. music seems really dull and flat.
i really need to change the unit but unsure whether i should change the actual head unit or speakers first? (non bose)

cheers.
 
Depends on if you're a real audiophile or not, tbh changing head unit & sound system is maybe the move, Yannis has a rather impressive spec system with the audi rns-e as a head unit, I will see how it sounds next week when I visit him to do some work.
 
well, i had a good alpine head unit in my previous car running on the box standard speakers and the sound was superb so perhaps the head unit needs to go first. something with an equaliser etc would be idea.

let me know how you get on.
thanks
 
RNS-E has clearer better sound for sure, the concert has far to much bass for my liking, symphony even worse.
 
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garethrees said:
Hello All,

I've searched a few threads and most seem to be quite old now, I have a UK 2009 S3 with Audi Navigation System Plus RNS-E and the AMI iPod interface, with the voice and volume controls on the wheel which worked okay for a while, however the bluetooth and voice control have just stopped working all together so I thought about replacing the OEM unit with something a little newer.

In my searches of the internet I found this Dynavin DVN-A3:
Dynavin DVN-A3 (D99) Android Multimedia/Navigation System for Audi A3 Dynavin

Which looks like a simple replacement to the OEM unit, but with an Android or Windows OS and much more functionality.

Does anyone have any experience of this unit, comments, reviews or otherwise before I take the plunge.

Cheers Gareth
Click to expand...

Do you have a nav disk for your oem
 
That after market android unit just looks like too much and why would you want half it's features in a car. Surely no one would want to read their email whilst driving around, same as been able to watch TV, never understood why some people have this in a car. Maybe if I was travelling a long distance with the scum in laws in the back they could peep through and watch corry lol. Pricey unit at nearly £700.
 
converting to RNS-E + AMI would cost considerably more than £659 and Dynavin have been around for ages.

The SQ question is the stickler though, the RNS-E isnt as highly featured but it works well and does pretty much all youd need. Id defo get a MK2 one though. I changed from a MK1 to a MK2 to get the 2x32GB SD card slots. No need for an ipod then.
 
pablo said:
converting to RNS-E + AMI would cost considerably more than £659 and Dynavin have been around for ages.

The SQ question is the stickler though, the RNS-E isnt as highly featured but it works well and does pretty much all youd need. Id defo get a MK2 one though. I changed from a MK1 to a MK2 to get the 2x32GB SD card slots. No need for an ipod then.
Click to expand...

Thanks Pablo, I already have the RNS-E + AMI so I would be converting from it. I might be tempted with the MK2 if that was a plug and play swap, no drilling or extra wires.

I believe the 2009 came with a MK1 as the 2x SDcards in mine can only cope with 2GB at a time max.
 
sorry I thought you said you had concert :(

straight swap no messing. the satnav is much better too. Money well spent imo. NHN should be able to sort you out with a unit. The MK2 says MEDIA instead of CD/TV on the bottom left button beside RADIO, think mine is a 2012. I didnt bother with AMI.
 
OT but I didnt think AMI worked with the MK1 unit?
 
My two cents...

A dead cat would perform better than a Dynavin unit. The amount of these units we have taken out of all different brands of cars is incredible.

I would rate a Windows 95 PC better than the Dynavin.

The only really decent aftermarket systems I have seen have been made by Pioneer and Alpine. Yes you pay a bit more for the name but they are pretty decent!

By far our most popular aftermarket system is the Alpine W925R. Navigation, DAB, Bluetooth, iPod etc. All to a really high standard. You can get Steering Wheel and CAN integration depending on the vehicle. Fully fitted to an A3 with all the necessary is going to cost around the £1200 ex VAT mark.

Alpine INE-W925R Sat Nav DAB Bluetooth iPod | Advanced InCar Technologies

My advice regardless of where you go or what you fit... Don't go cheap, it will only bite you on the backside at some point. If you can't afford the better system just wait an extra month or two it's not going to kill you and you will appreciate it so much more.

Oh and in regards to OEM, if you see something too cheap, especially on eBay then its more than likely it's stolen...
 
Cruiser89 said:
My two cents...

A dead cat would perform better than a Dynavin unit. The amount of these units we have taken out of all different brands of cars is incredible.

I would rate a Windows 95 PC better than the Dynavin.

The only really decent aftermarket systems I have seen have been made by Pioneer and Alpine. Yes you pay a bit more for the name but they are pretty decent!

By far our most popular aftermarket system is the Alpine W925R. Navigation, DAB, Bluetooth, iPod etc. All to a really high standard. You can get Steering Wheel and CAN integration depending on the vehicle. Fully fitted to an A3 with all the necessary is going to cost around the £1200 ex VAT mark.

Alpine INE-W925R Sat Nav DAB Bluetooth iPod | Advanced InCar Technologies

My advice regardless of where you go or what you fit... Don't go cheap, it will only bite you on the backside at some point. If you can't afford the better system just wait an extra month or two it's not going to kill you and you will appreciate it so much more.

Oh and in regards to OEM, if you see something too cheap, especially on eBay then its more than likely it's stolen...
Click to expand...

That alpine head unit looks fantastic.
what extras would i need to purchase to get it all working on an 57 plate?

are thieves just nicking the OEM units these days?
 
JoeS3 said:
That alpine head unit looks fantastic.
what extras would i need to purchase to get it all working on an 57 plate?

are thieves just nicking the OEM units these days?
Click to expand...

Thieves will nick anything these days - Even £2 in your ashtray.

Yeah it's pretty cool and like I said, it's our best selling after-market unit. You would need:

Alpine W925R
Audi A3 Fitting Kit (Fascias, Antenna Adaptors etc)
Steering Wheel Interface
iPod Lead

Then it's just installation
 
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thanks

yeh, it makes me think twice before purchasing a head unit. its just so open for thieves to see.



around 1200 with installation?
 
garethrees said:
Hello All,

I've searched a few threads and most seem to be quite old now, I have a UK 2009 S3 with Audi Navigation System Plus RNS-E and the AMI iPod interface, with the voice and volume controls on the wheel which worked okay for a while, however the bluetooth and voice control have just stopped working all together so I thought about replacing the OEM unit with something a little newer.

In my searches of the internet I found this Dynavin DVN-A3:
Dynavin DVN-A3 (D99) Android Multimedia/Navigation System for Audi A3 Dynavin

Which looks like a simple replacement to the OEM unit, but with an Android or Windows OS and much more functionality.

Does anyone have any experience of this unit, comments, reviews or otherwise before I take the plunge.

Cheers Gareth
Click to expand...


Sorry to be so cynical but you could **** in a pot and get me to mould it into your dash and get better functionality than those units, another company also make something similar and they're just c*ap mate, forever fannying around getting stuff to work that is alledgedly plug and play. You may be a lucky one who gets it, fits and it it works dandy and I'll be happy to eat my words but in my experience they aren't worth the grief.

Personally I'd get NHN to supply and fit a RNS-E and then get the AMI stuff for iPod/iPhone connectivity and etc etc.

Also I dunno who said it but I agree that the newer RNS-E gives better sound than the older units and also better than the other style out unit, can't remember what it's called (the one without a big screen). The output level of the RNS-E is much better.
 
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have you used a dynavin? They do get good reviews and are NOT like the chinese junk on ebay. Ive no experience of the audi one but the bmw ones were always well regarded vs the chinese crap getting constantly slated.
 
Cruiser89 said:
My two cents...

A dead cat would perform better than a Dynavin unit. The amount of these units we have taken out of all different brands of cars is incredible.

I would rate a Windows 95 PC better than the Dynavin.

The only really decent aftermarket systems I have seen have been made by Pioneer and Alpine. Yes you pay a bit more for the name but they are pretty decent!

By far our most popular aftermarket system is the Alpine W925R. Navigation, DAB, Bluetooth, iPod etc. All to a really high standard. You can get Steering Wheel and CAN integration depending on the vehicle. Fully fitted to an A3 with all the necessary is going to cost around the £1200 ex VAT mark.

Alpine INE-W925R Sat Nav DAB Bluetooth iPod | Advanced InCar Technologies

My advice regardless of where you go or what you fit... Don't go cheap, it will only bite you on the backside at some point. If you can't afford the better system just wait an extra month or two it's not going to kill you and you will appreciate it so much more.

Oh and in regards to OEM, if you see something too cheap, especially on eBay then its more than likely it's stolen...
Click to expand...

Thanks! that Alpine looks great, did not think that would fit, the last two cars I had, I replaced the OEM with Alpine units myself and the sound quality was so much better.

Is it possible to buy the adapters and face place to swap out the units, I'm assuming that the iPod and Bluetooth interfaces are a complete swap out also.
 
pablo said:
have you used a dynavin? They do get good reviews and are NOT like the chinese junk on ebay. Ive no experience of the audi one but the bmw ones were always well regarded vs the chinese crap getting constantly slated.
Click to expand...

admittedly only once but yes I have. Reflecting on my post maybe I was a little too negative but I'd still go for a "proper" aftermarket unit rather than this type of thing, assuming you don't go down the RNS-E route.

I understand there is a cost implication of the RNS-E and not everyone's budget will suit...
 
garethrees said:
:huh:Oh maybe mine is a MK2 it has the Media button not the CD/TV.
Click to expand...

TBH mate, without trying to get work, I would try & resolve the issues as if its been good enough for you for this long & its just minor issues, I think confidence will be restored to you when its been fixed, seems a shame to boot the lot when its actually a fair system for what it is.

I had a client/friend Sam in Ramsgate, who had a long list of issues with his car from interior to engine, exterior, he was absolutely sick & tired, fedup with things being noisy, broken, I spent a day fixing all these things & he was happy as pig in shxt since then & loves his car again as it just all works without any such issues, plus it cost him a hell of allot less than replacing the car or some of the issue parts, I cant promise it will have a small cost, but maybe worth a look at some point.
 
NHN said:
Why not just fix the issues on the oem system mate, I don't rate these aftermarket systems, always hear of problems people complaining about radio issues or this that problem, they may have updated things to improve upon but not a system I would install.

Give me a shout if you want your systems looking at.
Click to expand...

Thanks to everyone for the input, much appreciated, decided to take another look at the broken unit and discovered the problem.

After much testing and trying, it appears that the RNS-E does not cope well with more than 200 address book entries to sync between the phone and unit, having more than 290 cause the sync to fail and the voice command to stop working all together!

I also found that only a partial sync would occur leaving some phone entries missing or corrupt. Slowly removing phone book entries to smaller numbers and re-pairing the phone each time resolved the issue.

Now the unit is 100% working okay, sync's perfect with the use of an bluetooth sync app which replaces the standard Phonebook Access Profile (PBAP) with a application: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.android_rsap.irmc

I know it's a little off topic but its the reason I started looking to replace the unit, hope this helps others down the line.
 
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