Connecting to Hex exCan

[adamgiles]

Yes, your black and red cables need to be connected to a constant live.

The yellow cable is used as a signal to the K6 so it can start up and shut down correctly. (Start up takes approx 10 seconds, shut down about 25 seconds)

[Hans]

Hi Dan,
You need to connect K6 so that the yellow wire is switched. This switches K6 on and off. The red and black wires should always be supplied with constant voltage. However, you can switch them off when K6 is completely switched off using the yellow wire. Switching off K6 takes about 25 seconds. So, after about 30 seconds, the power (red and black) can be switched off.

When switching on the power, the yellow wire should only be switched on once the red and black wires are powered. Otherwise, there’s a chance K6 won’t switch on.

To avoid any problems, I recommend connecting the red and black wires of K6 directly to the battery. You can then switch the yellow wire using the Hex exCAN.

[Frostie]

Hi Dan

Normally, the HexCan is the ideal way to connect the K6 (or any dashcam). But since you are powering the HexCan via the Thunderbox, you are depriving it of its capabilities.

Each port on the HexCan has three cables. If you configure a port as an “accessory,” the third cable acts as ignition switch.

So my suggestion are as follows:

• Remove the Thunderbox.
• Connect the Hexcan directly to the battery, not via the Thunderbox. As the Hexcan is connected to the Canbus, it knows when Ignition is on and does not draw power then.
• Connect the K6 to one port of the Hexcan, using all three cables. The yellow cable of the K6 goes to the striped one on the Hexcan port.
• Configure that port as “Accessory” with a delay of 30 secs.
• That’s it.

Now, when you turn on ignition, the Hexcan delivers power to the positiv and the striped cable, thus starting the K6. When you turn ignition off, the Hexcan cuts power to only the striped one, which is interpreted by the K6 as “Ignition is off”, thus making the K6 to shut down. This shutdown takes around 15-20 secs. After 30 secs (the configured delay for the Hexcan port), the Hexcan cuts off power to the positive wire. That will prevent the K6 could drain the battery if anything goes wrong.

I am using this method to power my dashcam(s) on my R1250GS since more than two years without any problems.

But please note that any method that does not connect the K6 directly to the battery will prevent you from using the parking mode. If you want to use the parking mode, you will have to connect the K6 directly to the battery and the yellow cable to the positive of the Hexcan Port. In any way, the Thunderbox is obsolete when using a HexCan.

[Dan]

Thanks for the responses. It is installed and working fine.