FD head unit thread

[Cp1]

so i got sick of the factory head unit cause a. the cd player didnt work and b the tape deck was melting tapes. What are tapes?

so i got as a replacement the JVC KD-R600
paid only $129 for the deck itself plus about $15.00 for the harness adaptor and another $15 for the install kit that includes the pocket.

I also took the time to replace the door speakers with Alpine Type S 5.25" with directional tweeters built in at $99.99

and the rears with Alpine Type S 5x7s which came free from a friend but i think retail for less $100

Result NIGHT AND FRIGGIN DAY i can hear sound now and the deck install was clean and the pocket fits nicely though it did need some shimming to get it to fit tightly. and an overall pretty easy install. and the speakers are rated higher than the deck can put out un-amplified so theres no risk of blowing them. No amp or subwoofer this time as my basshead days are well behind me.

I chose factory sizes cause i dont want anything major and the bonus i was looking for? it has a front USB hub so i can plug in my 16gb memory stick (what are CD's???) also the color options have the perfect match for the FDs gauges so im pretty darn happy.

Ill edit and post pics soon.

HOW TO ACCESS YOUR DECK AND SPEAKERS (short write-up)
=================================

to even get to the a/c panel theres a bit of work to do and if you have some patience and a few hours you will have no problems.
first thing is to remove your shift panel and console then working under the dash take out the 3 screws in the steering colunm plastics and remove the light for your ignition. with those off you then need to remove the side cover from the drivers side of the dash then the lower vent panels underneath, i think theres another 3 screws or so. disconnect the vent and put the cover off to the side. then there are 3 more screws holding the gauge cluster in place from the bottom unscrew these then gently wiggle the entire gauge cluster out and up at the same time, you dont have to completely remove it but you will be able to see two screws on the right that connect the ac panel. those are the only two left you have to take out, then unclip the harnesses as you pull out the a/c panel and it should just slide right out. whamo you have access to the gaping hole in your dash. if you need a ground point like i did for the new deck i just used a ring connector attached to the shift boot bolts you find under the console.

to get to the rear speakers you pretty much have to remove all the plastics, door sills, speaker covers, seatbelt panels etc. you find this to be pretty easy.

pics from camera phone:

[Signal 2]

A little late to the thread but......
Nakamichi 400 looks almost stock as well. Lights match the rest of the dash almost perfectly at night. Quality unit and sounds good. I'm old(er) and not huge into stereos, but if I had it to do again I'd spend the extra for the Nak 500 with MP3 capablity.
IIRC, you have to be a little careful when buying speakers for the doors. Some are too deep to fit well or something. I went with Eclipse which had no issues.
One other thing, my OEM dash speaker was shot and I replaced it with two tweeters aimed at the windshield.

[GreatShamanGT]

Where did you get the harness adapter? Can you post a link?

[Cp1]

i believe the adapters and dash pocket came from (READ ON IF YOU HAVE THE BOSE SYSTEM)
http://www.crutchfield.com/m_750/Car...n.html?tp=1385

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_003UPK7...t.html?tp=2114

(this was the exact kit i used though it did require shimming to fit tightly and it comes with 3 different sized bezels to match the deck, i used the largest which also made it flush with the ac panel)

the under pocket did need shimming to fit tightly otherwise the plastic clips have too wide of a gap and were allowing it to shift slightly, you can shim it with tape which i did and you wont see it and it tightens up nicely, if your worried that it will look shoddy dont it looks better than any other dash kit ive ever seen and fits better too.

But were sold through Futureshop/Bestbuy you should be able to call bestbuy and get the same kit(s)

It was a perfect match.

LINK FOR THE INSTALL COMPONENTS IF YOU HAVE THE BOSE SYSTEM:
http://www.crutchfield.com/m_750/Car...on.html?tp=457

[GreatShamanGT]

Don't you need the scosche adapter too? I see a Ford/Mazda Receiver Wire harness, and a Scosche OEM Amplifier adapter. Do I need both?

[Cp1]

the scoshe adapter is for keeping your factory bose speakers, because each bose speaker has its own attached amp you cant just hook up an aftermarket deck because they put out too much power to the speakers and will burn out the bose amps (or the reverse?!).
hence the scoshe adapter, which basically cuts down the signal strength.

If you are replacing all the speakers with aftermarket like i did (although i did not have the bose system) it wont matter anyways and you can run the speakers directly from the deck (most small scale systems like mine you will never need an aftermarket amp, only when you start making bigger power like adding subs etc.)

otherwise all the adapters are the same with the exception being the scoshe unit.

Now if you do plan on keeping the factory bose speakers and acoustic wave components may i ask why? Ive met people who are nostalgic about keeping that bose system and all i can say is that the bose speakers still used a paper/fibre cone and at the age they are at they are deteriorating quickly. to argue about the quality of a 15 year old speaker is absolutely retarded compared to todays much cheaper yet much more advanced components, true the bose system on these cars was a thing of beauty 15 years ago but nowadays pretty much any no-name, made in china, off the shelf speaker will out perform them in quality and clarity. age does some terrible things to metal cars and even worse things to paper products so i honestly advocate switching over to all new components which can be done easily for pretty cheap. plus with newer speakers most are rated for much more power than most decks can put out on their own (unamplified) which means you have no risk of blowing a speaker by cranking it all the way up. just for fun we hooked up the one old working speaker we had from my car to the new deck and turned it up and now it doesnt make any noise other than intermittant static. the new speakers are heard loud and clear!

[GreatShamanGT]

Ok, I didn't understand before. Thanks for clarifying it up =D

So I just need to buy the Ford/Mazda Adapter to attach the stereo?

I have aftermarket speakers that I have yet to install. They are pioneer speakers, however, I was thinking about replacing them in the bose wave unit. Is that where the bose speakers went? Would the bose unit still work with the aftermarket speakers? Would I need a scosche adapter then?

I appreciate the help!!!

[Cp1]

correct me if im wrong anyone, but i dont think you can use the factory bose deck with unamped aftermarket speakers simply because the bose unit has such a low peak power output.

yes if you want to do a single din deck you will need the ford mazda adaptor so you dont end up cutting up your harnesses.

The scoshe adaptor if you are keeping the amped bose speakers

and the install pocket if you want to fill the gap left by the double din factory head unit.

[MAZDABATION]

Unsure about the ford harness, but Metra makes a plug and play harness also specific to the FD.

[Cp1]

that ford mazda one is bang on i personally guarantee it. but ive never heard of the metra one

[GreatShamanGT]

Well, I'm going to be using an Aftermarket Head-Unit, but I want to keep the bose tubing, hahaha. I was wondering if I could still use those. That's my main question.

Can you show me pictures of your harness? Not the aftermarket one but the main one that is attached to the whole entire car. I need to find out if I have the right one because I have previously taken the dash apart and I've never had a headunit in mine before. Can you also show me what your AM/FM Antenna line to the headunit looks like?

I'd appreciate it =D

[ppritchard]

Another option is to go OEM -- we put in a CD/cassette Bose deck from a '02 626. Helped to update the look and works great!

[Cp1]

Originally Posted by GreatShamanGT

Well, I'm going to be using an Aftermarket Head-Unit, but I want to keep the bose tubing, hahaha. I was wondering if I could still use those. That's my main question.

Can you show me pictures of your harness? Not the aftermarket one but the main one that is attached to the whole entire car. I need to find out if I have the right one because I have previously taken the dash apart and I've never had a headunit in mine before. Can you also show me what your AM/FM Antenna line to the headunit looks like?

I'd appreciate it =D

The antenna cord is a thick black wire with a plug on it. doesnt connect into the harness just plugs into the back.