OGM-1 Installed in a 2009 Avalanche w/ BOSE (Review)

Klyde32 · January 24, 2012

I can not tell you enough how much this unit rocks. I drove around all weekend and have found that the layout of everything is very smooth and makes it very easy to navigate through the menu's allowing you to keep your eyes on the road. One of the things I like the most about this unit is that it has physical buttons as well as a touch screen. Too many nav/dvd units I looked at had very little, if any real buttons or knobs and you had to rely on the touch screen for everything. This unit does a great job of balancing the two (physical and touchscreen buttons). The look of this thing is phenomenal. You would think that this was part of the truck from the factory. And not only does it look factory, but it feels factory too. Everything integrates with the steering wheel and rear controls.

DISC

The unit will automatically detect whether the disc is a DVD or CD. I have a MP3 player hooked up to the unit so no need to put MP3's on a disc. Played a CD and sounded just as you would expect a CD to sound. If it has metadata for the songs it will display it. The DVD playback looks great. I like the onscreen controls also. To pull them up, all you do is tap on the screen as the movie is playing and they appear. Then you either touch the screen again, or wait a few seconds and they go away. You can also control them from the main disc screen, which also gives you an option to view the movie in 4:3, 16:9, or full screen on the unit. I did find the volume on the unit to be lower while playing a movie compared to anything else on the unit. In comparison, a comfortable level while listening to the stereo is about 28-32 on the volume. When watching a DVD, it is closer to 40-42. This is not that big of a deal, but would be nice to know if this is something others experience as well. (Edit: Since speaking with a few members on the forum it seems like this is something that is present on all in car dvd players)The OGM-1 will blank out the video option if not in park, but will keep the video playing in any other screen you may have hooked up to it. There is a way to put the unit into "test mode" which allows you to play the video on the OGM-1 screen while not in park, but that of course is not recommended.

Radio

The radio works fine, I do not have a whole lot to say about it because I have a XM subscription and never really listen to the local radio stations, but I did tune into a few local stations and they sounded crystal clear.

XM Radio

If you have an XM subscription, this unit really shines. Being able to see a channel guide really helps with all of the channels. I have had my subscription for over 3 years and still have no idea what 90% of the channel names are. Now, I can easily scan through the channel and see there names at the same time. Also something that I like is that when using the upper right hand knob to change the stations, it does not change the station immediately. The screen will show the stations as they change but there is a delay on when the unit actually tunes in. I love this because if I am trying to manually tune to a station real quick, I can start turning the knob and make sure I land on the correct channel, before it actually changes the station. This might be a bug to some, but is a feature in my eyes.

iPod

I am going to be getting a 160GB iPod classic soon so that I can fit all of my music in it and have room to be able to have a few movies on it as well. I tested the unit out with my old 5th Gen iPod and loved the integration. Had about 40GB worth of songs and the unit was able to load the metadata quickly when searching by song, title, artist, or genre. Sound quality was great as well.

Rear LCD

I do not have any other screens yet so I am not able to comment on this, but looks very simple once the screens are connected to the unit. There is a button on the main menu that allows you to be able to turn on and control the external screen from the head unit.

Navigation

I found the navigation to be nice. I have not gone on any trips just yet so I have only put in routes that I knew were I was going as a test. I do like the feature of the nav chiming in on whatever else you are doing (watching movie, listening to music) to let you know your turn is coming up. I found it annoying while in town because it chimes in every couple minutes, but for long road trips would be very helpful if you are on a 2-300 mile stretch. I also have not played with the navigation to much because I am anxiously waiting for the iGo Primo update. (Any day now I hope)

AV IN

I have not used this yet, but plan on seeing if I can get a RCA to 3.5mm connection and hook up a WD TV Live to it so that I an have a large hard drive filled with AVI's to watch while on the road. i will update this when I get a chance to try that out.

USB

Have not used this either because of having the iPod hooked up. I would like to see some additional video codec's in the future. That would allow me to put a bunch of video files on a hard drive and be able to play them though the usb. That way I would not need an external device like the WD TV Live and be able to control the media from the HU. (This would be huge, I have all of my movies backed up onto hard drive and would allow me to have all of my movies on long trips)

Bluetooth

I have used this quite a bit and unless people are lying to me, I am coming in loud and clear during phone conversations. I used the sticky back clip that came with the microphone (there were a few optional clips that came with it) and placed it right over the rear view mirror. I like this spot because I can still swivel the microphone from one side to the other depending on if I get a call or my wife. The Bluetooth streaming comes in handy also. I use it mainly to stream Pandora from my phone. When streaming music from this feature, it only gives you the option to control the music. It does not show any metadata on the screen, but does allow you to control the tracks. The sound comes in very clear. i am sure there is a bit of sound loss from streaming, but i would bet that most people would not be able to tell.

I am sure I have missed some stuff because there are so many cool things about this unit. I am going to be patient on the factory backup camera integration until I know for sure what wire to splice into. If you have any questions about the unit please let me know and I will answer/take pictures of whatever can help.

gawillet · January 24, 2012

Awesome! I'll be ordering mine today!

Klyde32 · January 24, 2012

I have also discovered something that might help with the members who have asked about the OEM mic integration. I noticed today that while driving around, if I hit the transfer button on the OGM-1, it would transfer the call to the trucks OEM bluetooth. I can only assume that it starts using the factory mic. I have an iPhone 4 so I cannot talk to any other phone, but if you are having issues with the sound quality of the OGM-1 mic, you can use the touchscreen to place the call and have access to your contacts/call logs. Then hit transfer and be able to utilize the factory mic. Of course this is only if you have bluetooth from the factory. I know it is an extra step, but at least gets you back to the factory mic. Again, I have had no issues with sound quality on the mic from the OGM-1, just thought I would share the tip.

RAK80 · January 25, 2012

Man great review and nice find on the transfer button in the Bluetooth section!

wottenad · January 26, 2012

Man great review and nice find on the transfer button in the Bluetooth section!

Ditto on the transfer function - this is why I love this forum!

Mind if I share this tip on the OGM-1 tech page on our website?

Klyde32 · January 26, 2012

Mind if I share this tip on the OGM-1 tech page on our website?

Not at all Walt, please do.

j-ten-ner · January 26, 2012

RAMMSTEIN yeah...

so long

j-ten-ner

Tony1970 · January 28, 2012

Nice job on the install !!

Tony

Klyde32 · January 29, 2012

COMPLETED!!!

I finally hooked up the OGM-1 with the factory backup cam. I gave up on trying to find the wires under the dash and went right to the source. (Thanks Walt for the advise)

I heard the next firmware is supposed to make the black box disappear behind the "Check your mirrors" text on the bottom of the screen. People have mentioned that this blocks the hitch, but I can use my rear view mirror for that if necessary.

One thing that I love about having it hooked up to my HU is that it now turns down whatever I am listening to when I back up. That is an awesome feature.

I also reran the wire from the OGM-1 bluetooth microphone since I was running the RCA wire up through the factory grommet above the rear view mirror.

I am now 100% finished and satisfied with my purchase and install of the OGM-1... Until I decide to add head rest monitors.