EB_1920

I know that there has been some discussion on this board about hooking up an aftermarket stereo, but I still have a few questions about how to do it right.

Can I use my factory Bose speakers with an aftermarket deck? I have heard that they are on 0.5 OHM. Can I get an adapter of some sort? Would that fry them?

Ideally, I just want to ad a decent CD player and 10 inch sub in the back of my wagon.

I have talked to a couple stereo shops in the Seattle area (where I live) and I have heard different opinions. Some say that I need to scrap the whole system and go with new speakers completely, and some say that I can get an adapter for the Bose speakers. Anyone know what the right answer is?

Thanks for the help.

Adam

KaMaKaZieP -ALUMIN8-

I ended up scrapping my whole thing but you can get adaptors that will allow you to use the RCA pre outs on aftermarket headunits as the line to the bose amps. The Bose speakers are i think 1 ohm but all of the amps are inline. so the speaker leads off the stock unit are actually pre amp leads. Depending on what you want to spend you might want to scrap it all. I havent tested the RCA pre amp theory yet but i have heard from a number of people that it works rather well.

SicAudiTool

I'm pretty sure I've seen the adapter that you need. Perhaps in the Tweeter (Formerly Bryn Mawr Stereo) Check around. If not making your own adapters is really not all that difficult to as long as you've got a decent volt meter ($50 at Radio Shack)

PS Why just a 10" --go all the way do the two 12"ers You've got the space...

TimI

Sorry to break the news. I had Innovative Audio (Bellevue), probably the best shop in the area, take a crack at mine.

I'm currently running a Kenwood 8017 MP3 player hooked up to the Bose in my '97 A6q wagon. After about $700, 8-9 hours in the shop (I paid for 3 hours), and all of the brands of adapters they could find (it takes 2), it's still not quite right. Front speakers sound good, but will distort at higher volumes with certain frequencies (soprano in Beethoven's 9th). Rear speakers don't work well if at all. I'm sure Innovative would be willing to work some more on my system to get it right (it's that kind of shop), but I'm not in Bellevue much anymore. It's OK for my purposes currently.

At some point I may get some decent speakers for the front and run them off of the head unit or a small amp, but I have a Miata to spend money on right now.

EB_1920

I think that I will probably just live with the Bose system. I would love to do a complete overhaul of the system and put in all new speakers and head unit, but I don't want to spend the $1000 necessary to do that.

The next car that I buy will definitely NOT have a Bose radio. No ability to upgrade.

RufJat

I suggest you all find a better shop. I live in Toronto. My buddy Fernando at Audio to Go in Mississauga installed a Rockford Fosgate 9100 deck into my car, works awesome with the stock 10-speaker BOSE sound system as well as my fosgate subs in the trunk (2 12" Punch HX2)
I suggest you find a better shop than the "Best" in town

Ruf Jat

TimI

Actually this is a nationally recognized shop, and my $700 system is really a pittance for them. Some of the problems may even stem from their reluctance to take shortcuts. If I was still working 10 minutes from there, I would leave it for them to tinker with some more, but it's not an option for me anymore.

Unfortunately BOSE has some basic problems hooking other systems in, and the problems can even be specific to that particular car.