How to Replace Bulbs in a Bose Head Unit
11-09-2002, 05:10 AM
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How to Replace Bulbs in a Bose Head Unit
Never got around to posting this when I thought I would, but maybe this will help someone searching later...
How to Replace Bulbs in a Bose Head Unit
Necessary Items:
1. Set of small sockets
2. Soldering Iron
3. De-soldering Pump or Braid
4. Solder
5. Appropriate Bulbs:
- 3 for Backlit Face Radio Shack Part #272-1154
- I believe there were 4 that covered all the buttons not sure which bulbs (they are larger in size than the bulbs listed above.)
Getting the job done:
First you need to pull the head unit out of the dash and bring it inside to a clean place to work. Next remove the top of the metal casing that houses the head unit. It is fairly straight forward how to do this when you look at it. Removing this metal panel will open up the head unit enough for you to get at the front face. Once you have the top panel set aside you will want to remove the circuit board that is now exposed on the side of your head unit. It is held in by some small bolts (You may not have a socket small enough. I had to use a small adjustable wrench.) This board is also held in place by some wires. You can disconnect these fairly easily by moving the board. The main wiring coming off the back of the head unit will make this a little difficult, so be careful. The wires and the board have male/female connections. There are four of these connections and each pair seem to have identical connectors, so you should mark them for reassembly. Once this board is out of the way, you will want to remove the ***** from the face of the head unit. This is a great time to clean the head unit and *****. You are now ready to carefully remove the face of the head unit. It is held in place by little black plastic tabs. You are now getting to the fun part. Unbolt the board from the backside of the face of the head unit taking care not to let the buttons and everything fall of the face. (I know you don't want to mess with putting them all back in place.) Now you have your board with the bad bulbs. I would inspect the board for any signs of bad joints (soldered connections). If you see anything that doesn't look to great, you may as well just touch them with the soldering iron to re-flow the solder. You will also see the bulbs that we are trying to replace. De-soldering them can be tricky, because of the tight workspace. I recommend searching on google for a site explaining the basics of soldering if you have little or no experience. Its really not very hard if you are patient and have a steady hand. De-solder the bulbs carefully, and they should drop out or be easy to coax out with some needle nose pliers. When you solder the new bulbs to the board you should try to cut the leads on the bulbs before soldering them into the board. They will be a little long when you buy them, and there won't be much room to cut them once they are soldered in place.
Good Luck!!!
[Modified by kspurr, 3:12 AM 11/9/2002]
[Modified by kspurr, 3:12 AM 11/9/2002]
How to Replace Bulbs in a Bose Head Unit
Necessary Items:
1. Set of small sockets
2. Soldering Iron
3. De-soldering Pump or Braid
4. Solder
5. Appropriate Bulbs:
- 3 for Backlit Face Radio Shack Part #272-1154
- I believe there were 4 that covered all the buttons not sure which bulbs (they are larger in size than the bulbs listed above.)
Getting the job done:
First you need to pull the head unit out of the dash and bring it inside to a clean place to work. Next remove the top of the metal casing that houses the head unit. It is fairly straight forward how to do this when you look at it. Removing this metal panel will open up the head unit enough for you to get at the front face. Once you have the top panel set aside you will want to remove the circuit board that is now exposed on the side of your head unit. It is held in by some small bolts (You may not have a socket small enough. I had to use a small adjustable wrench.) This board is also held in place by some wires. You can disconnect these fairly easily by moving the board. The main wiring coming off the back of the head unit will make this a little difficult, so be careful. The wires and the board have male/female connections. There are four of these connections and each pair seem to have identical connectors, so you should mark them for reassembly. Once this board is out of the way, you will want to remove the ***** from the face of the head unit. This is a great time to clean the head unit and *****. You are now ready to carefully remove the face of the head unit. It is held in place by little black plastic tabs. You are now getting to the fun part. Unbolt the board from the backside of the face of the head unit taking care not to let the buttons and everything fall of the face. (I know you don't want to mess with putting them all back in place.) Now you have your board with the bad bulbs. I would inspect the board for any signs of bad joints (soldered connections). If you see anything that doesn't look to great, you may as well just touch them with the soldering iron to re-flow the solder. You will also see the bulbs that we are trying to replace. De-soldering them can be tricky, because of the tight workspace. I recommend searching on google for a site explaining the basics of soldering if you have little or no experience. Its really not very hard if you are patient and have a steady hand. De-solder the bulbs carefully, and they should drop out or be easy to coax out with some needle nose pliers. When you solder the new bulbs to the board you should try to cut the leads on the bulbs before soldering them into the board. They will be a little long when you buy them, and there won't be much room to cut them once they are soldered in place.
Good Luck!!!
[Modified by kspurr, 3:12 AM 11/9/2002]
[Modified by kspurr, 3:12 AM 11/9/2002]
Last edited by kspurr; 10-12-2012 at 02:08 PM. Reason: removed e-mail
