BobLoblaw Posted February 5, 2008 Share Posted February 5, 2008 Hey guys, I'm fairly inexperienced with car stereos and amps/subs so bear with me... My Pathy (94 XE), came with an aftermarket deck, amp, and 1 sub. The deck has been acting up and I want to replace it without losing the amp or sub. What should I be looking for in a deck to keep my current amp and sub? I know that preouts are the key thing to look for (I think). How many sets of preouts should my new deck have in order to keep my current amp/sub working normally? If you need more info just ask, but be sure to tell me where to look as I have no amp/sub experience. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jj big shoe Posted February 5, 2008 Share Posted February 5, 2008 Google the brand and model number of your current head unit and find the specs on it. It should tell you the number of pre outs you have, how much power the head puts out, etc. and you can go from there. In my opinion and experience Pioneer and Sony make very good mid priced ($120-$150) head units. Others may think differently, but I say stay the HELL away from Alpine. Every one I've owned and every one I've known who had one had it sh*t out on them in under two years. Pioneer also makes the best mid priced speakers, IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
95shakinPF Posted February 5, 2008 Share Posted February 5, 2008 (edited) Like JJ said for the $ you cant beat pioneer or sony. Also Check the RCA cord plugged into your amp, if there are only two plugs(one set of preouts= one left channel and one right) into your amp then one set of preouts will work on a new unit. Another thing to consider is most newer decks have high voltage preouts,which send a better signal to the amp for a cleaner louder sound. Let us know what you decide on. Good Luck!!! Edited February 5, 2008 by 95shakinPF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
packie88 Posted February 5, 2008 Share Posted February 5, 2008 i have a jvc touch screen thats about 3 years old and its still going strong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NismoSkyZ Posted February 5, 2008 Share Posted February 5, 2008 Talk to venge on this...hes an audiophile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUELER Posted February 5, 2008 Share Posted February 5, 2008 I noticed someone mentioned sony.... sony used to have high quality head units but not anymore. All their stuff is garbage, the amps are way overrated (especially the "XPLOD" series) the subs are weak, the head units suck now my 0.02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Posted February 6, 2008 Share Posted February 6, 2008 (edited) i just bought a kenwood KDC-MP238/CR and love it. it's compatible with ymolder kenwood 6 cd changer too and was almost a direct plug-in to replace my old kenwood that was acting up a bit (poor thing had a rough 7 year life) i have 2 amps and 2x12's in the back too... eeeeees allllllllllll goooooooooooood again now Edited February 12, 2008 by Slick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobLoblaw Posted February 12, 2008 Author Share Posted February 12, 2008 Here's another question. Because I already have a deck/amp/sub installed already, when I replace the deck, will the speaker/sub/power etc. plugs fit into the new deck? Are most connections "universal" for all decks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5523Pathfinder Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Here's another question. Because I already have a deck/amp/sub installed already, when I replace the deck, will the speaker/sub/power etc. plugs fit into the new deck? Are most connections "universal" for all decks? That all really depends on how it was wired. You may get away with almost a plug and play situation. But probably not. Most everything will need to be swapped over to the new head unit. If the old unit was hardwired, you will need to cut and reconnect. If it came with a wiring adapter, then all you need to to is switch over the adapter. Oh, and if it was hacked in, well, there is going to be more work. I have 2 Pioneer head units. One is in the Pathfinder and I have one in my Hardbody. Both have been great units. I have had Sony decks(they sucked) and Kenwood decks in the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUELER Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Here's another question. Because I already have a deck/amp/sub installed already, when I replace the deck, will the speaker/sub/power etc. plugs fit into the new deck? Are most connections "universal" for all decks? The RCA cables for your amp will plug right in Remote wire for the amp needs to be hooked up, might be part of the harness As far as the main wiring harness... often they will plug right in if you get the same brand head unit... even then, its still a gamble. if you get a different brand head unit than you currently have, you'll simply have to make a new harness which involves buying the universal wiring harness for yor car ($5-$15) connecting about 12 or 13 wires... youre done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Wow, no Sony love...both my Xplodes are good, only issue is some CDRs will make them pissy. 2 brands I won't buy again are Kenwood and Panasonic. I also liked the JVC I had before it got stolen. I've been looking at a Dual and another off brand for my 88 (currently has the Panasonic POS), I want something cheap with USB and both have that for $79. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUELER Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 I had a Sony xplod amp which claimed "1000w" but really pushed out about 150-200w Im just syaing sony xplod is garbage The 1990's Sony ES series of head units was one of the best head units ever..... Sony just slipped and fell off when it came down to xplod.... I would like a ES CDX-90 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Both of mine are about 7 years old no trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobLoblaw Posted February 14, 2008 Author Share Posted February 14, 2008 The RCA cables for your amp will plug right in Remote wire for the amp needs to be hooked up, might be part of the harness As far as the main wiring harness... often they will plug right in if you get the same brand head unit... even then, its still a gamble. if you get a different brand head unit than you currently have, you'll simply have to make a new harness which involves buying the universal wiring harness for yor car ($5-$15) connecting about 12 or 13 wires... youre done Fueler. I have never done this before, so please bear with me (I'm extremely noob when it comes to car stereos). Where would I get the universal wiring harness you speak of? What do you mean "make a new harness"? I did get a different brand (I got a Panasonic and I have a Clarion installed). Are the wires connected with a special type of connector? I can get it installed by a shop for $55. Should I just save myself a headache or is this a do-able job, even for me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUELER Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 (edited) The radio wiring harness is quite easy. it has a plug on one end and bare wires on the other end (it might be 2 plugs, depends on your car) you can buy this harness at any stereo shop for about $5. its vehicle specific so get the one for YOUR car. You new panasonic deck will come with a similar harness. All you have to do is connect the wires off the Panasonic harness to the harness you bought at the stereo store. The best is to solder them but ghetto crimps will work fine if its not your car. When you're done, you will have a wiring harness with plastic plugs on both ends. One end will plug into your Panasonic deck (thats the end that came with the deck already) and the other end (that you bought at stereo shop for $5-$15) plugs into the Nissan radio plug in your dash, that your previous stereo was plugged into. (Hopefully your Nissan harness is still intact - if you bought the Pathfinder with a deck already in it, you might find that the previous owner did a hack job and cut off the Nissan plug to hardwire straight to the car, so they can save $5 buy not buying the harness, and make future installs really painful) - hopefully thats not the case. heres some help if the colors dont match http://www.installdr.com/Harnesses/Nissan-Wiring.pdf Heres more great info for 89-95 Pathfinders http://www.installdr.com/InstallDocs/Nissan/PDF/647029.pdf The harness is roughly $5. If you need to buy a plastic trim or cubby thats another $15 The enitre process would probably take me an hour (including removal, soldering, and reinstall) For a first timer, i'd say take it's a very feasable job. I find it fun, and its even rewarding to know that its done right (some shops could quickly do a hack job). Also, once you do one, you'll never forget how to do it again. It shouldnt take a newbie more than two or three hours for the whole sha-bang Oh, $55 isnt bad for the install.... they will probably add parts on top of that price. It will take the shop about an hour, so $55 for that hour of easy work sounds about right when you consider all the overhead costs they have All you need is a screwdriver... some wire cutters.... soldering iron.... heatshrink for the soldered connections..... personally i invested in all these ever since my first install and it has definitely paid off..... Edited February 14, 2008 by FUELER Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUELER Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 (edited) That all really depends on how it was wired. You may get away with almost a plug and play situation. But probably not. Most everything will need to be swapped over to the new head unit. If the old unit was hardwired, you will need to cut and reconnect. If it came with a wiring adapter, then all you need to to is switch over the adapter. Oh, and if it was hacked in, well, there is going to be more work. Yes. If you do it my way, it will be plug and play not only now, but in the future as well. Hopefully it wont be hacked. I remember telling my buddy how easy it was to do, in his 1992 Ford Ranger. I pulled out his old Kenwood only to find that whoever did the last install decided to skip the whole $5 harness thing.... they just cut off the OEM Ford harness and hooked up all the wires right there in the dash. This makes future installs a true pain in the a$$, as y ou end up having to do all your soldering and connecting with both your arms all in your dash, while you are sitting in your drivers seat.... gets frustrating really fast Do it my way (the right way) and you can do 90% of the work on a workbench... or on your living room coffee table.... then you just go to your car and plug it in.... "plug and play" like 5523pathfnder said Hopefully all this made sense.... if you attempt it, i suggest you invite a friend who has done it at least once... I didnt have such an option, i remember my first time ever i did it by myself and i did it very quickly (in the dark too), just twisting the wires together and covering them in electrical tape, the connections werent that good so sometimes a speaker would cut out, I would jiggle the deck and the speaker would come back to life... i remember fixing it a few days after Its just important that you do good, solid connections, take your time Good luck Edited February 14, 2008 by FUELER Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 Yeah plug and play, hardest part of the install is trying to find a place in the dash to cram all the wires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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