Recently bought a Rockford Fosgate PMX2 as installed in an aftermarket (Reckless) fairing.

Sounds amazingly good with no amp for the 4 Polk DB522 speakers.

But.....that said....having issues with some of the technical aspects of the PMX2.

The Bluetooth features like skip and browse that the unit clearly states it should be able to do in the documentation (for Android 4 and up) do not work.....at least not for me. That's annoying since the reason I chose this unit was that it said it could do this....I hate having to stop and access my phone to change music lists etc.

So I tried Pandora. Even sprung for the paid version, thinking it would be an easy fix. A little better in that it does display album art and lets you change "stations".

But.....only when it works. LOL

I have an issue where I can be on a ride for 30-45 minutes and then the music stops.....the PMX says "no connection with device".

At first I thought this was due to losing cell data altogether...but when I would pull over to see what the phone says, I have bars.

The only way to get Pandora running again is to shut the PMX2 off, reboot my phone and then turn it all back on. It will not reconnect on its own.

And if I dare to try and switch between Pandora and Bluetooth or Pandora and FM, Pandora freezes and a complete reboot is needed again.....it will not connect by itself automatically.

Also, the FM reception is poor. Riding in the same areas I drive all the time, the FM stations are often static-y and some dont tune in at all. I only found out THIS issue because the Pandora quit working on a ride and I didnt want to stop to reboot everything so I switched to FM. I did not install the unit to know for sure how the antenna is hooked up but I believe its an antennae inside the fiberglass fairing that Reckless put together.

Anyone else have similar issues?

 

Hey Shad,

Did you try to contact the tech support team to see they have heard of this problem?

 

When I called them about the "no browse with bluetooth" issue they told me the guy who handles the android stuff wasnt in. They eventually emailed me back saying that the browse feature isnt available with Android, even though it is advertised as such.

I figured it might be easier to get good answers from folks who use the equipment. If anyone does. I know this unit is more of a marine unit.

 

There are a couple specific features that Android does not support on Bluetooth & Pandora. It's very frustrating, especially since Apple seems to have no problems supporting the functions. I will get with our technical support to note those incompatibilities based on the current Android software on the website.

We have heard a lot about Android + Bluetooth connectivity issues caused by inferior chipsets being used on various Android models. We have several FREE software updates available for the PMX-2 to help fix this. Always be certain that "Location Services" are turned on since that activates the Bluetooth radio.

As of this post, the PMX-2 software has this latest software: RELEASE: 25-OCT-2017
MODEL: PMX-2
VERSION: 090817
MCU: 1709080230
GUI: 1708170E23
Decode: 1709070047
Bluetooth: 410B023If your radio is outdates, you can download FREE PMX-2 updates here:
http://rftech.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1205

 

Thanks for the reply.

Just to beat a dead horse a bit more RE: the features not supported.....when I researched the unit all advertising, including that on the RF website, indicated that while even still on the RF website it states:
"Additionally, with features such Pandora control capabilities and Bluetooth audio streaming with album art support for Apple and Android products, this unit becomes a true command center of any system."
https://rockfordfosgate.com/products/details/pmx-2/

Crutchfield even says SPECIFICALLY:

Bluetooth Music Streaming: The Rockford Fosgate PMX-2 offers built-in Bluetooth (version 3.0+EDR) for wireless music playback from your Bluetooth-enabled Apple iPod/iPhone/iPad, Android smartphone/tablet, Windows phone, Blackberry, and more. You are able to stream stored music and music apps from your Bluetooth device to the PMX-2 marine receiver. You can control basic playback functions like Play/Pause, Previous Next/Track and Repeat/Shuffle for stored music and music apps on your device. When using a Bluetooth AVRCP 1.4 compatible device like the Apple iPhone (iOS 5.0+) or an Android smartphone (OS 4.0+), you can even browse your stored music by category (Playlist/Artist/Song/Genre). The PMX-2 will also display your device's song/artist information with album art.
https://www.crutchfield.com/S-OsMk5S...ate-PMX-2.html

Android 7 is indeed, I am told, AVRCP 1.4 compatible.

So it was a surprise when I was told after the fact that it DOESN'T allow for bluetooth album art or more importantly control features like browsing folders in Android , a real let down as this was the reason I chose the PMX2 to begin with. I have tons of songs stored on my android and was hoping to be able to browse etc as should be the case. It really would have been nice to know up front that browsing Bluetooth under android was NOT possible. It does look like a few tweaks to the RF site have been made to reflect that now, though its still foggy...it says "Android: Bluetooth only" -- which again is very non specific.

Anyways, to move on -- When I called tech support last time they had asked about the version of the PMX2's firmware and it was up to date......actually the one on my PMX2 apparently a slightly NEWER version (per the tech I spoke to) than what is listed on that link for updating. he told me to NOT change it.

My PMX2 firmware is as follows (again, the tech said I was up to date when I called)
MCU 1709180230
GUI 170911OE24
Decode 1709250049
Bluetooth 410B023

AM I up to date??

FYI I tested the Bluetooth functionality with several devices and they all behave the same......My usual phone is a Moto G5 Plus running Nougat. I tried a Samsung Note 4 running Marshmallow....and what I think is an LG running Lollipop....actually the "lollipop" device allowed shuffling, whereas the others did not if I recall right.

After discussing my disappointment in the whole Bluetooth folder thing, the tech also said that Pandora works fine under Android Nougat and supports all the features. So I decided to give it a try and signed up for Pandora ( paid version) only to find I have the constant disconnection issues.

As I wrote above, when using Pandora on the PMX2, it works great for 25-45 minutes then stops....I check my phone when it happens and there is plenty of signal....but it never reconnects. The only way to get the tunes flowing again is to close Pandora, turn off the PMX2 and then turn them both on again. Not a huge deal I suppose if you are a passenger on boat playing with the radio. But on a motorcycle, one has to stop and pull over and do all this. So its mighty annoying.

Also, I do NOT see the same issue when using Pandora on the same android device in my cars via bluetooth......they never disconnect. So it does appear to be something SPECIFIC to the PMX2 and not "inferior chips" in my device.

Also, you said "Always be certain that "Location Services" are turned on since that activates the Bluetooth radio."....are you referring to a setting on my Android device or in the PMX2? If you can direct me to the location for that setting I would appreciate it.

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

 

This is the same information that I keep getting told and I keep telling you IT DOESNT HELP.

It says :
"Android + Bluetooth + Pandora
When using Pandora, the album art and browsing options should work. However, if the below display is shown on your PMX radio, you can fix it with this: Open up Pandora app, Go to Settings, Go to Advanced, Enable AutoLaunch (turn off then back on)"

I have done this ONCE and it doesnt reconnect.....and are you suggesting this has to be done EVERY time it drops? That would be ridiculous on a bike.

It also says :
"Android + Bluetooth:
Using Android over Bluetooth, album artwork and song data should be displayed, but you cannot browse. "

While it is correct I cannot browse, it also doesnt show album art. it DOES show the song info.

I already have it set as On/ high accuracy.

I did discover that when the PMX2 stops playing in Pandora mode, the Pandora app is still running fine on my android, and is paused. If I switch to BLUETOOTH on the PMX2 it will now start playing again (it did not do this originally) but only in bluetooth mode....no album art, but it does show the song info and I can skip. CLEARLY there is some command or something happening that the PMX2 can not handle or does not like which causes it to lose connectivity in the PMX2s Pandora programming rather than just ignore it. NO SUCH ISSUES in my car or shop stereos where I connect the same android device to them.

Again, this is not an issue with Android or Pandora playing on an Android. I can change stations, browse, skip forward etc all day long when using this android device paired with my car or workshop stereo. ONLY when I have it playing over the PMX2 do I experience this issue. If I dare change stations in pandora via the PMX2 it typically results in a disconnect.

I am not the person you reference, but IMHO you should not publicly post people's email addresses unless you have their OK.

 

You are not alone, I agree, there are some serious issues with this receiver. Most of the functionality stated is not true. I called in to support. Support told me to email them. The guy replied to the email telling me to read the manual.

In the user manual, under USB, Page 9, it states that...

After your device is connected to the source unit, this feature allows you to control playback from your device directly from the unit. Select the USB source option on the source unit. To play or pause a song, short press the PLAY/PAUSE button. To skip a track forward, short press the FWD button. To skip a track backwards, short press the REV button. To access USB specific settings, short press the MENU button for the list of settings (BROWSER>REPEAT>SHUFFLE). Use the encoder to select the option to change. BROWSER Short press the encoder button to access the BROWSER options (PLAY LISTS>ARTISTS>ALBUMS>GENRES>SONGS>COMPOSERS>AUDIOB O OKS>PODCASTS). Using this feature allows you to search for tracks or songs by different types of categories.

That does not work. It does not allow the browser options shown above and it only allows a total of two directory levels. So you have have music copied to your USB device like most people and devices expect, you would have something like this.....

Root Folder
......Artist Name
------------Albums
-------------------Songs

But the PMX-2 dumps you directly into songs. You can only go up 1 level to Albums. So no, you can't browse PLAY LISTS>ARTISTS>ALBUMS>GENRES>SONGS>COMPOSERS>AUDIOB O OKS>PODCASTS
As a matter of fact, short pressing the encoder only selects an item/song or whatever.

USB operation constantly pauses while it loads more USB data. I only have 59 songs on my USB and it takes forever and locks up.

Below, you can see it's locked up, trying to access song 535 of 59 songs? Humm, Memory pointer issue!



Yes, I am using the latest firmware posted on the RF website.

I removed an Infinity that worked fine because I always like Fosgate products, but I'm not feeling the love on this purchase!

Richard

 

rwskinner,
Be certain to let our Technical Support know about any/all issues found versus logging them here on a 3rd party forum. I forwarded this thread to technical support and they were able to reproduce the unexpected USB folder browsing issue, so they are looking into that. However, they were not made aware of the PMX radio locking up, so that is an issue that will need to be reproduced.

Also regarding the below comment, this does not apply to USB thumb drives, only Apple devices when browsing. We may need to revise the manual to state "USB (iPod) Operation" so it's crystal clear what topic is being discussed:
“So no, you can't browse PLAY LISTS>ARTISTS>ALBUMS>GENRES>SONGS>COMPOSERS>AUDIOB O OKS>PODCASTS”

 

That is great, except for a few items!
1) Support over the phone told me they had no idea so I needed to email them. WTF?
2) When support emailed me, they told me to "read the manual" which I already quoted! WTF! So after a slap in the face I come here!
3) You can fix the manual, that's fine for people that didn't buy this receiver YET, but Crutchfield ain't taking it back Ranger Stage 1 Kit because I cut the switch holes out of the panel already!

So, I pulled out a nice, working Infinity 350 receiver that actually worked for something that was suppose to be WAY better according to the manual only to find out the manual of Full of SH*t.
Come n Rockford, You all had bad *** products all these years, why screw us now? I've always been a Rockford fan since the Punch 75 days, back in the early 80's so now, I'm not picking on you, I want whats right!
I want a fix ! Fix the receiver to be a real media receiver as you advertised. Sooner than later, people are going to catch on to all these revised specs!
Step up, and fix it! I bet I can make this thread spread quick on Youtube if I can't get a commitment to fix this Cr*p.


Richard