I to have a sony marine unit and its all screwed up....sometimes the buttons work, sometimes they dont. I was just hitting the reset button for a while....It has always worked with the remote even when face plate wouldnt but last week we went out and nothing now....buddy had same unit and same issue....i think these sony decks are crud!

My marine Sony (also in the cabin) has the same problem. Been through 2 face plates. Switching to alpine this winter. As for changing the harness, its not rocket science. Several manufacturers us the same plug as sony, so you may not even need to change it. Don't buy more junk just to avoid 10 minutes of wiring.