Aftermarket Headunit vs Stock - (Got the JBL Factorys)

AbrahamLincoln

AbrahamLincoln

Dedicated LVC Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2007
Messages
1,461
Reaction score
0
Location
Allentown
Anyone have an aftermarket head unit with the premium factory JBL speaks? Do you have to bypass the amp like bose? If not, how do they sound if you just throw a head unit in there? I have the 10 disc, and its always givin me :q:q:q:q from time to time - but however the factory stereo does sound incredible - it is just a little bit on the quieter side for my liking, but the quality is there.

Not sure what to do here - I know I definetly want a "system" but is it worth it to just do it with out getting a head unit?
 
I put a alpine cda 9853 in my car and it made the JBL system louder. Still not enough bass for me but, it sounded better. You just need to buy a $10 adaptor for the cd player and it hooks right up. It's really easy. I added a couple of 10's and it sounds really good.
 
it made it sound louder? thats what im looking for. With the bass all the way up on the stock head unit it sounds pretty bassy at mid volume. Also, the jbls have a amp right, do you have to bypass it? or did you hook the wires right up to the factory wires?
 
go to someone like best buy or someone that does lnstallations and buy adapter harness for a jbl system it plugs right in to factory harness and powers the amp make sure they know its a jbl harness
 
is this what you mean when you said you hooked up the head unit with the adapter? how much is the adapter?
 
depends on what you are looking for. I'm kind of an audiophile, that's how i have mine hooked up right now but i'm not happy with it. At low volumes you can hear a constant hissing sound along with some alternator noise. The reason for this is because you are amplifying and already amplified signal. The factory head unit doesn't have any amplified output really, it relies on the factory amp in the truck to boost the output. But when you put an aftermarket head unit it that has it's own amplifiers built-in, then the factory amp just amplifies the output even more. A person could go in the trunk and splice all the wires together and take out the factory amp but then you end up with something like a 3 ohm load which will likely overheat the amps in aftermarket head unit. Not something you want to do on a new head unit. So without essentially running wires from the dash to the speakers and replacing the speakers, you're stuck. Thank you for reading my novel!
 
so you didnt get the jbl adapter thing that this other guy above is talking about? do you like the louder sound? because i think the factory is not that loud, but sounds good. won't that burn out the amp in the trunk (running a amplified aftermarket head unit)
 
i had the stock jbl sys in my 98, and changing cd's in the trunk sucked so i tossed in a pioneer headunit and a couple 10's and i thought it sounded great (for a cheap tossed together sys) till i ended up blowing all the speakers after a couple years of abuse. i used the connectors as stated above (NOT bypassing the amp) just the 2 plugs at the back of the stock radio. had a hell of a time finding the correct ones to fit the jbl sys, i believe its a green 16~ish pin rectangle (what you want to buy) and just be prepared to go back to the store and just keep repeating JBL!!!!!!! always check to see if the connectors you bought fit before doing ANYTHING so if you need you can drive back again (and sometimes wait a couple days) with a working stereo
now +2 on the slight hissing that 96hotrodlincoln is talking about. since then i put a all new sys in it ive noticed its funny, you never know how bad your sys is till you replace it and hear how it should sound.
 
I purchase the Scoschs wire harness and put a Kenwood in my 94 and a JVC in my 95 all running through the factory amps. 95 has the JBL system.. all seem to work fine and better than the stock system...

I have a kenwood 10 disc changer to match my in-dash cd head unit and I have a JVC 12 disc changer to match my JVC in-dash cd head unit. Don't recall the numbers... But they work great... through the stock amps..

Personally I'm thinking about fixing up my 94 better because the non-JBL system really is bad when it comes to bass...
 
so what you guys are saying is that get an aftermarket head unit, hook it up to factory wires?
 
chickenviii said:
yes aftermarket HU through the factory wires, and it sounded good but then i replaced it and everything was much clearer not so garbled, it was good enough for 3 years till i blew everything
Click to expand...


replaced it with what? anyone recommend doing this? or should i just keep the factory unit? Looking for louder sound, and retain the same bose like quality
 
i replaced EVERYTHING when i redid the sys, now i have a pio HU, a clif design 6.5 component set in the front doors, bluapunkt 5x7's in the back 1/4's, 2 mtx amps a mtx crossover, and 2 10's in the trunk with all new wiring (decent amount of work) as for you just get the adapter to use the stock wiring with your aftermarket HU and just go with it for now, unless you wanna drop a grand or more
 
I replaced my whole system. It surprisingly is not that hard to do. The factory system is a nice sound, but I wanted navigation in my Mark. I have an all Infinity system with a Pioneer Avic D1.
 
JVC option

I just installed a JVC KD-BT1 head with the correct adapter cables to run the factory amp and speakers. It sounds good, is several times as loud as stock, no distortion, but it definitely needs bottom end. I've posted a thread called "subwoofers" on this site and got several recommmendations. You have to decide how much thump you want. Creative Car Audio in Pittsburg, KS can help spec what they did for me.
This head unit has electronically adjustable crossover points and equalizer in it. It also has bluetooth capability to sych up with your cell and run all you phone functions through the stereo. Pretty sweet going down the road hands free talking to someone over the stereo. Voice dialing and all.
After the thump project s done, my next deal is GPS- I travel for work- 30K driving this year alone. P.m. me for further info.
 
above one says the same one says several times louder.... 6.5s??? so removing the whole speaker system? the question i really got is, is it worth it to put in an aftermarket head unit in the mark... because the factory is pretty good jbl. i jsut want louder sound. it sounds that with the right hook up its louder...
 
AbrahamLincoln said:
above one says the same one says several times louder.... 6.5s??? so removing the whole speaker system? the question i really got is, is it worth it to put in an aftermarket head unit in the mark... because the factory is pretty good jbl. i jsut want louder sound. it sounds that with the right hook up its louder...
Click to expand...

I would say its louder...Depends on if you can live with the stock system. If you plan on doing something better later then start with a good cd player. It will be the main point of any further work done

I recommend spending a decent amount on a cd player because you get what you pay for. The more you spend now the better off you will be for later if you want to upgrade everything else.

You just have to decide if you are happy enough with what you have or if you want to pursue something better.

Thats my 2 cents
 
if you just put an aftermarket stereo in hooked to the stock amp and speakers it will be louder, the stock stereo is regulated, it only goes so loud, i had a kenwood head unit in my 98, hooked to the stock amp and jbl speakers in the car, then i ran rca's from the stereo to the trunk and added a rockford fosgate punch amp to a pair of 10 inch kicker comp vr's and it sounded awesome. if i wanted huge sound, i would have taken all the stock stuff out and replaced everything, a nice 4 channle and 2 sets of infinity component speakers inside and then leave my subs in the trunk, but if you just want a little more volume and clarity, putting in a nice head unit to the stock amp and speakers will satisfy you just fine. there is no cutting of wires needed, just go to any place they sell car stereos and ask for a harness for 95-98 lincoln mark VIII with jbl. its all plug and play, and then you can put it back to stock easy if you decide to sell it later.
 
how much of a difference do the components make? i like the idea of getting a new head unit... but music doesn't make your car go faster :)
 
I have a 5900 series pioneer head unit all new speakers 2 12s and a four channel amp. All i did was rewire the speakers to the new amp And even just changing the speakers made it four times as loud. It is definatly worth it. if you want cheap loud subs go with pioneer premiers im setting off car alarms with a couple hundred dollars in subs
 
Just for fun i went out and got a sony indash and wiring kit and put it in today. the tape deck in my 93 wasn't working, and no way to tastefully integrate and hide an ipod.

i got the lincoln hi-level metra kit, wired it up with a new sony/sirius/ipod/mp3 head, flushed it in to the factory location, and wham. works great. next i'll be hiding a couple of low-airspace 10s in small boxes in the trunk under the package tray out of sight, and hiding an amp for them.

maybe next summer i'll pull out all of the factory wire but i doubt it, it's hard for me to get excited about stereo crap anymore.

I'll get a pic of the install tomorrow. the hi-level wiring kit works fine, you won't be able to tell the difference in sound quality thru the factory jbl amp and speakers.
 
Last edited:
93zzzt said:
i'll be hiding a couple of low-airspace 10s in small boxes in the trunk under the package tray out of sight, and hiding an amp for them.
Click to expand...

i think there might be a small prob with this, not sure what all you have under your package tray (i believe the compass module, and the stock amp and maybe some other goodies) gen 2's just have the jbl amp up there, i used the tray for both my mtx amps
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Members online

No members online now.
Total: 96 (members: 1, guests: 95)
Back
Top