Bad head unit?

I just bought a 2016 OR and the radio works fine at low volume but when turned up even slightly the audio cuts out and/or I get static. Even when I have the volume at
Zero I still get static periodically. this is frustrating considering I just bought the truck and I am having issues.

Any thoughts on what it could be?

Thanks for any responses!

 

I’ll try to record a video tomorrow for reference.

 

If I were you I’d pop it out and check the connections on the back.

 

To be fair, it’s used, but still I understand your frustration.
If it’s the headunit, you can probably find a stock one for cheap, as many replace them.

 

Rip that POS out and throw it away. Install something like this. You will love it! https://www.crutchfield.com/S-eNYbR9s8nZh/p_500ILXF509/Alpine-Halo9-iLX-F509.html

 

You can try to reset the radio. I believe you hold the power button in for a while. Search this forum.

 

Would be sick but $1200 is a tough pill to swallow after just buying the truck lol.

 

I tried that and no luck. I think I’m just going to bite the bullet and put in a new stock one or a decent aftermarket one.

 

Check out the Sony head units from trail grid pro.

 

Since this is a new to you vehicle, it is possible the previous owner had an aftermarket HU in there and swapped in the factory HU to sell. I would suggest removing and confirming the wiring behind the HU is in good working order and try @TRDRed 's suggestion of cleaning the rheostat contacts.

 

Do all of the above for sure. wait till the weekend or when you have an hour or two to mess with it. to be fair it could be something really simple so I'd give that a go first.

second if that fails it's gonna be good money spent to have a radio with android auto and apple car play so getting something new from Crutchfield will in the end make you very happy. I've delt with Crutchfield for 25+ years, you can't go wrong with them. The unit @MyBBPYota suggested would be awesome but they have many other less expensive ones they can help you pick that you'll likely be happy with. Also you'll need install parts and some additional equipment to make the factory steering wheel controls work with it and that adds to the cost. Then you might want new speaker too because if it still all factory they are not very good.

There are HU's as low as $299 by good brands available that have AA & Carplay.

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_500ILXW650/Alpine-iLX-W650.html?tp=5684
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_113DMX4707/Kenwood-DMX4707S.html?tp=5684
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_158XAV3200/Sony-XAV-AX3200.html?tp=5684
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_130DMW2770/Pioneer-DMH-W2770NEX.html?tp=5684
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_500ILX407/Alpine-iLX-407.html?tp=5684

 

Pull the head unit out and look at the connections. As other mentioned there may have been an aftermarket radio in there but previous owner returned to stock. Also, pop of the door panel and look at connection to the speakers.

 

Second that! https://trailgridpro.com/pages/toyota-tacoma-accessories#toyota-tacoma-sony-bundles

 

I like how they set it up ready to go in the truck for you and only a few bucks more than Crutchfield's pricing including pre wiring the harnesses

 

Those are pretty cool. OP should still pull the radio and make sure the stock wiring is intact and not hacked up, though, which might render the nice plug-and-play harness useless. That cheap bundle at $498 is an awesome solution for someone that just wants tunes and nav from their phone.

I just replaced the HU in my wife's 2017 4Runner with a Pioneer DMH-WT3800NEX from Crutchfield. Install gear was another $250, but made it completely plug-and-play. Nice, clean install and sounds great, retaining the JBL amp with control over every speaker. Gone are the days of free installation gear, but the Maestro stuff has gotten a lot better.

 

this won't do any good, as the volume knob on these units is a rotary encoder, not a potentiometer like old-school radios. rotary encoders can and will fail, but they generally exhibit failure by spotty rotation, ie: turn the knob 3 clicks, one second it will never adjust, the next, it will max out the volume.

his issues indicate a problem within the volume circuit/amplifier chip, not the volume knob.

i'll also mention, the radio's in this truck are extremely easy to replace. aliexpress/temu have basic $30 bluetooth head units, could easily replace the head unit for under $100 with one of those, including the dash kit and wiring harness. and despite the cheapness, they'll likely still sound as good as the stock head unit!

 

Good to know.

 

Yeah, that is a good kit and can't go wrong but yeah I agree check out what the current issue is first. I know we are all suggesting the new equipment because having the phone integration is what a lot of people eventually want. I been lookin at replacing the HU in my significant other's 2015 Wrangler Unlimited Because it doesn't have any modern phone integration, the stock Mic is shot and you can't pair with UConnect. only the usb media port sees an iPhone as an iPod and lets you play music. I'm shopping Crutchfield for it

I was thinking the volume knob was not potentiometer type, as the volume is also controlled by the steering wheel buttons and the volume knob doesn't move when you use the remote like my old Sony Receiver's did that had a potentiometer volume control. I think your right the OP head is probably going to be replacing the Head unit. I don't know about the Aliexpress and Temu electronics. Everything I've seen from Temu is cheap knock-off chineeseiun junk. You get what you pay for so i'd likely buy the sony kit from trailgrid or something from Crutchfield.

 

You don't need to pay $1200... Check on Crutchfield.com for a radio in your price range. Very easy for you to replace with the right wire harness. The CF experts can hook you up. Their support alone is work $$$ and it's free!

 

Since it working fine at low volume, but sometimes gets static, I would look more at short to ground in the speaker leads. If a speaker lead is shorting, as you turn up the volume you are increasing the power going into that short. At a certain point the radio says fuck it, and kills output to save it self.

Best way I have found to test this is to unplug door harnesses until you find one that lets you turn the volume up. Unplugging the speaker usually wont help as the short will be in the door harness or in the body side harness.