A229 Pro: Hardwire splice with existing Blackvue cable

[flint350]

I have pre-ordered the A229 Pro from the Viofo website to replace a Blackvue 970X that is malfunctioning. I have the BVue hardwire cable running into the trunk where it is connected to a dedicated EcoFlow battery for long parking use, etc. Blackvue is now using a 3 wire cable that terminates in a 3.5mm plug that goes into the front camera. Viofo also uses a 3 wire cable that terminates in a USB-C connector to the camera. To avoid a full removal and new install of the power cable all the way to the trunk, I was hoping I could cut off the 3.5mm connector from the BVue and splice it onto the Viofo USB-C connector. Both use same power output and the only difference I see is that the RED/Yellow wires are reversed in function (Power-Batt). So, a splice of red-to-yellow and yellow-to-red would hopefully work to power the Viofo by USB-C, using the BVue pre-installed cable. Anyone know why this wouldn't work?? If not, I will just have to undergo the removal and a new install, but this would be so much simpler. Thanks for any input.

 

[rcg530]

In general, yes this will "work". I caution you on the fact that the BlackVue 3-wire hardwire cable uses only 24 AWG wires while the VIOFO HK3-C/HK4 hardwire kits use 20 AWG wires on their 12-volt side. At its max observed power consumption during my testing, the DR970X-2CH dash camera has a power draw of 446 mA @ 12.6V or 5.62 Watts (Normal Mode Recording / Wi-Fi On / Live View Active).

Until the data embargo for the A229 Pro has been lifted, I can't give you specific numbers, but let's just say a 3-channel A229 Pro has a maximum power load that can exceed the DR970X-2CH load by more than 250 mA @ 12.6V / 3.1 Watts and the 2-channel's power draw is slightly higher than the DR970X-2CH.

A long run of the 24 AWG wire in the BlackVue hardwire cable seems sufficient to power the DR970X-2CH. The power demands of the A229 Pro 3CH may be pushing the limits on the 24 AWG wire when the HK3-C or HK4 hardwire kit is spliced onto it. You can always try splicing the HK3-C or HK4 (whichever one you purchased for the A229 Pro) onto the BlackVue hardwire cable and see if there are any power starvation issues.

Personally, I would recommend running a 3-wire cable with at least 20 AWG wires in place of the BlackVue 3-wire cable with its 24 AWG wires to your EcoFlow battery pack.

 

[flint350]

What an excellent reply! Thank you so much for this valuable information.