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Old 07-31-2017, 03:40 PM   #1
cubansubby
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Default Red Starlink light with new AMP/speakers installed

So I had an Alpine powerpack and 4 upgraded speakers installed last week at a pro shop, and the Starlink light has been red since. This is with the oem 7" headunit. I have gotten two emails now from Subaru about it asking me to take the car in for service to get it fixed. Has anyone here had this issue? Is there a way to fix it without a dealer visit? Car has about 800 miles. Thanks
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Old 07-31-2017, 06:53 PM   #2
SVXdc
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Did the car audio shop run new speaker wires from the Alpine amp to the new speakers? Or did they hard-wire the amp into any of your car's speaker wiring rather than using aftermarket harnesses? I'm guessing one of those is the case.

The STARLINK Safety and Security system will generate an error if it no longer sees the front speakers connected.

Quote:
The system consists of a telematics module (Subaru's wiring diagrams refer to that as the Data Communications Module), dual cell phone antennas, and a dedicated GPS antenna (separate from the audio head unit's GPS antenna, if the car has the OEM nav system). The system uses the front speakers/tweeters and microphone from the car's audio head unit. The DCM is the thin box that is docked to the bottom of the 7" OEM HU.

The wires for the front speakers/tweeters and microphone are wired into and out of the DCM.

During normal operation (when the system is not active), the DCM simply passes through the connections for those speakers and mic, so that the OEM HU can use them as if the DCM were not present.

When you press the SOS or Info button (or after an airbag/impact event), the DCM "hijacks" the car's front speakers/tweeters and microphone -- it breaks those connections to/from the OEM HU, and connects those speakers and mic directly to its own internal cell phone. The DCM contains its own amplifier to drive those speakers. It also signals the OEM HU to mute all of the other speakers.

In cars with the harman/kardon amplifier and speaker system, the only speakers that SOS system uses are the dash tweeters.

You might also get the errors if the speakers change so much that the DCM no longer recognizes them (say, if the impedance becomes too low or too high).

That will likely happen if you wire an aftermarket amp between the output of the DCM and the speakers. To avoid the problem, you would need to connect the amp between the speaker outputs of the OEM HU and the inputs to the DCM. Best place to do that is at the 10- and 6-pin power/speaker harnesses at the rear of the HU.
The system might also generate errors if you don't reconnect all of the factory harnesses to the DCM and OEM HU. So you should check this too.

Last edited by SVXdc; 07-31-2017 at 07:03 PM.
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Old 07-31-2017, 07:15 PM   #3
cubansubby
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Thanks for the info. I have no idea what they did. I'm bringing it in tomorrow since the guy that did the work was not there today. One more thing I found is the driver side window's auto down doesn't work and the passenger side window doesn't go down or up from the driver side control. So far not impressed with this place.
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Old 08-01-2017, 07:06 PM   #4
cubansubby
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Well apparently they have done a lot of 2017's and never had this issue, so the owner is going to call Subaru and find out whats changed on the new 7" HU (non-nav). I provided the info above (thanks SVXdc!) and he said that they always install a "device" that is supposed to make the OEM HU and Starlink system work together with an aftermarket amp and speakers.
The windows up/down issue was just that they needed to be "re-programmed" after unplugging the battery which they forgot to do.

EDIT: I did test the "I" and "SOS" buttons and both placed a call which I could hear (very loud!) through the front speakers, so the system appears to be working.
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Old 08-03-2017, 03:12 PM   #5
SVXdc
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cubansubby View Post
Well apparently they have done a lot of 2017's and never had this issue, so the owner is going to call Subaru and find out whats changed on the new 7" HU (non-nav).
[CORRECTED:] The difference is 2017 was the first year Subaru offered the STARLINK Safety and Security system in WRX/STi, but not all models have it. The 2017-2018 HUs themselves are mostly the same as comparable ones (6.2" or 7") in 2016 models.

Quote:
Originally Posted by cubansubby View Post
I provided the info above (thanks SVXdc!) and he said that they always install a "device" that is supposed to make the OEM HU and Starlink system work together with an aftermarket amp and speakers.
...
I'd be interested to hear more details on what he meant.

Quote:
Originally Posted by cubansubby View Post
EDIT: I did test the "I" and "SOS" buttons and both placed a call which I could hear (very loud!) through the front speakers, so the system appears to be working.
Sounds like they connected the amp between the DCM and the speakers, which is exactly what I said won't work.

The simplest solution is to connect the amp between the OEM HU and the car's 10- and 6-pin power/speaker harnesses. Then the DCM will be connected directly to the front speakers like it was from the factory, and it won't complain -- the DCM won't detect the modifications you made, meaning you won't have to take any extra steps to "trick" it into working.

This technique only applies to cars that do not have the OEM harman/kardon amplifier and speaker system. In cars with the h/k system, things will be more complicated (and that should be discussed in a different thread).

Last edited by SVXdc; 08-07-2017 at 09:13 PM. Reason: realized OP has a 2018
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Old 08-14-2017, 03:57 PM   #6
MooseNYC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cubansubby View Post
Well apparently they have done a lot of 2017's and never had this issue, so the owner is going to call Subaru and find out whats changed on the new 7" HU (non-nav). I provided the info above (thanks SVXdc!) and he said that they always install a "device" that is supposed to make the OEM HU and Starlink system work together with an aftermarket amp and speakers.
The windows up/down issue was just that they needed to be "re-programmed" after unplugging the battery which they forgot to do.

EDIT: I did test the "I" and "SOS" buttons and both placed a call which I could hear (very loud!) through the front speakers, so the system appears to be working.
Hi Cubansubby,
Thanks for confirming that your system works again.

I am in the same boat, I bought a 2018 WRX limited and just had an aftermarket head unit installed (Pioneer AVIC 8200 NEX) with a Phoenix Gold amp & all new speakers & sub installed.

I now have the red light illuminated and I'm getting the emails from Subaru Starlink about the lack of connectivity to their system.

Did your audio techs confirm what they did to resolve the issue?

Thanks for the information!

Regards,
Dave
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Old 08-14-2017, 04:23 PM   #7
heymonroe
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This happened to me, there is a connection for starlink that they disconnected accidentally and didn't reconnect, make them go back and verify all the connections.
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Old 08-15-2017, 08:41 AM   #8
phd12v
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disconnect the battery and reset the windows btw...happens all the time

make sure also that the starlink module is plugged back in like SVXdc said earlier
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Old 08-15-2017, 04:20 PM   #9
cubansubby
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@MooseNYC: The system works, however, the light is still red. I haven't had a chance to check with the stereo shop if they've found a way to fix this. As long as the system is working, I'm fine.
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Old 12-15-2018, 04:43 PM   #10
Pittsburgh Car Audio
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Default Warning & Solution

Hi, it is correct to obtain the output signal from the star link communication module. If you connect before the module and send an amplified signal through it, you will damage the component. The star link communication module is not designed to passively handle the additional wattage provided by aftermarket amplifiers.

To eliminate the red trouble light do the following:

Connect two small 4ohm speakers in parallel with the left and right front outputs (one on each output). These should be the same wires being used for the front input into the line-output converter. Something inexpensive to use are the S-275CF by Powerbass. Wrap/tape them individually with 1 to 2 inches of foam and tuck back behind the radio inside of the dash. After the communication module and the radio are reconnected, disconnect the negative battery terminal, drain the computer and reconnect. (Or leave the Battery disconnected for 3-5 minutes).

Alternatively, the front signal output can be obtained before the Starlink communication module. However, do not send amplified power back into the module but run speaker wires to the left and right front speakers. Then, connect two small inexpensive speakers, such as the ones mentioned above, to the front outputs of the starlink module. Mount these speakers somewhere in the dash where they can be heard. Or, use the factory dash speakers for the starlink communication module only, and add the aftermarket tweeters to the desired location for the system upgrade.

Hope this helps
Mark
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Old 03-12-2021, 11:00 AM   #11
ILSMKU2
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I am looking to teach my son how to install an amp in his 2020 STI base with no NAV. In my day, we would tap off the rear speaker line out for a LOC to get RCA's to the AMP.

In the limited info I have read. It seems the rear speakers are not ideal to get a line out from because they are not full range?

But taking the line out from the front speakers.... I am confused on where to get the line out from. If I just take a front speaker line out from BEHIND the deck, to an LOC, will that give me the red light error on startlink?

If SO, where do I pull the front speaker line out from?


Thanks in adfvance.
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Old 03-18-2021, 05:58 PM   #12
gunz4me
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ILSMKU2 View Post
I am looking to teach my son how to install an amp in his 2020 STI base with no NAV. In my day, we would tap off the rear speaker line out for a LOC to get RCA's to the AMP.

In the limited info I have read. It seems the rear speakers are not ideal to get a line out from because they are not full range?

But taking the line out from the front speakers.... I am confused on where to get the line out from. If I just take a front speaker line out from BEHIND the deck, to an LOC, will that give me the red light error on startlink?

If SO, where do I pull the front speaker line out from?


Thanks in adfvance.
Unfortunately, when the speaker outputs are not full-range, you need a summing device like the Audiocontrol LC6i. Long gone are the days of just tapping speaker wires and connecting a $20 LOC...
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Old 04-30-2021, 07:46 PM   #13
brodio123
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following
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