factory f-body monsoon amp swap?

[Guest]

i dont think anyone is trying to shoot you down man, its just a 'live and learn' thing. A lot of people have tried stuff like this before and remember how frustrating it is to try so hard to do something and then have it not meet our expectations or not come together at all. We dont want to see someone else go through this as well.

EXACTLY!!!

I'm not shooting you down, trying to steer you in a WAY more rewarding direction.

You're not happy with the way an aftermarket deck looks in your dash? You need to keep looking until you find one that DOES suit your fancy.
You don't like how it sticks out, make a new mount or use a different mount. I'm sure I could flush just about ANY aftermarket deck in your car, I'd just have to see which dash you actually have.

BTW, there is a specific deck, that IIRC will NOT fit in your car anyway to work with that amp. It's been a while, but I don't recall any other Bose OEM deck being able to run that Amp, and the average deck is not directly compatible with the Monsoon amp, due to them being slightly higher power, may not be a problem perse at lower volumes, but you won't have much control over the output to either keep it low and/or before distortion starts to occur.

I have people all the time that want to do similar things to what you want to do, and in each case I will explain to them why it's pointless to do so, especially when I start showing them aftermarket equipment that does so much more, for less than it would cost to adapt thier OEM equipment to a vehicle that it was never supposed to have. Add in the fact there are warrenties, and the equipment is NEW, just makes the decsision that much easier.

Trust me I had some OEM Bose components around that I atepted to adapt to another vehicle, and while it worked, the final product was not worth the time, effort or expense I put into installing it.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

i think i looked into trying to flush mount what was in there. if i recal the climate controls are under the deck which puts all kinds of stuff in the way behind the oem location. it almost seemed like it would be easier to swap the deck and the heater controls around.

if it doesnt work this way, i'll try something else. i'll already have the speakers, just need a new amp and head unit. this isnt realy a waste of time for me since its taking up the time that i would be wasting before work and on my days off.

I understand your trying to save me from making the same mistakes you or someone else did, but that sounds like something parents do . and honestly, who actually listened to them?

[bszopi]

I've been involved in car audio for more than half my life (I started building boxes when I was 14) and have been through so many different phases of the "sport". There were a few years there where I would redesign my entire system every 6 months. And my goal, since the beginning, has always been to keep everything stock looking. The flashy installs are nice to look at at shows, but I don't feel they are practical in everyday life. Unfortunately for me, I was "raised" by some of the top names in the industry - Rob Rice (4 time IASCA and 2 time USAC world champion?) and Gary Biggs (the mastermind behind Rob's car, as well as his own multi-time World Champion Buick... who now works for Kicker). It was good and bad at the same time. At one point in time, I had over $10k in just equipment installed in my car. Right now, I have $400/ea 7" midbass and $350/ea 4" midrange running off of (gasp) deck power. Do I want to change it? Yes. Do I have other more important things to do? Yes.

Now that I've gone waaaaay off topic, lets get back to the topic at hand.

As Chris stated, more speakers doesn't always mean better sound. In fact, more speakers not properly matched and positioned will make the entire system sound worse than even just 2 moderately powered coaxs. If I was an installer, I would ask you what is your goal for the end result. You have stated that you want to be able to drive around in summer with the top down and be able to hear the music. You have also stated you want a near-factory appearance. So that is the starting point... easy enough.

I will actually agree with you on the deck situation... I can't stand the majority of the current decks. They are too gaudy looking. So do some shopping on ebay for a used deck in good condition and that suits your desires. Or go with a lower-end deck. The lower-end ones, although not offering as many gadgets, are also simpler looking. Either way, an aftermarket deck with always provide more possibilities than a stock (even high end) deck. And just because the standard adapter sticks out 1" or so doesn't mean it has to. Mine originally did the same, but I'll tell you how I fixed it. There is a metal brace in the back that the stock deck normally gets support from. Hack out that support and you'll gain your inch back. There are always ways aorund things, you just have to take the time and look "outside the box."

I will be the first to tell you that Chris and I will probably be more than willing to help you pick out components that will best suit your needs/desires. And don't take our comments as anything but comments. We have both been through just about anything and know that everyone has different ideas, especially when it comes to audio systems. We are just trying to tell you what we have seen work best, and what things to stay away from. If you choose to listen, its up to you. I'm sure Chris has done many installs where he didn't agree with what the customer wanted, but the customer was handing over the $$, so he did it anyway.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

honestly i cant realy tell the difference in sound between a high end competiton setup, and a good stock setup. i thought the trans ams stereo kicked ass, so that should tell you how good my ears are, to much playing with guns without ear protection i suppose. i even think the stock setup in my explorer sounds pretty good.

this is just getting way off topic. the topic is getting a monsoon amplifier to work in a different car, not what the better more realistic route would be. fitting a square peg in a round hole, with switching to a round peg...

[Guest]

honestly i cant realy tell the difference in sound between a high end competiton setup, and a good stock setup. i thought the trans ams stereo kicked ass, so that should tell you how good my ears are, to much playing with guns without ear protection i suppose. i even think the stock setup in my explorer sounds pretty good.

this is just getting way off topic. the topic is getting a monsoon amplifier to work in a different car, not what the better more realistic route would be. fitting a square peg in a round hole, with switching to a round peg...

You're missing the point completly.

I can understand your desire to make this work, but th epay off will be less than what you want.

The "500 watt" rating is no where NEAR accurate, IIRC the actual output of those systems was closer to 100 watts over all and even then it's not clean, meaning you'll probably be going through speakers, not knowing why, continuously blaming the speakers when it's the amp and/or the deck that are actually causing the problems.

I've been into Car audio for well over 16 years now, since before I could drive, I've seen many things evolve, I've seen many things attempted.

To modify your anaolgy...

Sometimes the best route to fit a square peg in a round hole is to use an oval peg.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

Well i got everything to hook it all up already. so monday my brother and i are gona wire it up and see how it sounds. if its gross i'll go your route and search out a better head and try to find an inexpensive amp that sits my needs. but as i stated earlier, anything has to be an improvment over what my car had. 2 stock 3.5's in the dash, and 2 pretty sunburned and drowned infinity 6x9's. they were so abused the surrounds were truning to powder and there wasnt a whole lot holding them together.

whats you opinions on pyramid stuff? the car came with a pyramid head unit. and im not sure if they all suck or just the one i got.

even if it doesnt work out my way, im really out only $70 or so since the oem head unit was free from a junker and the monsoon amp only cost me 50-ish plush 15 for its connector.

[bszopi]

Pyramid is crap.

[RednBlack]

Pyramid is crap.

What he said.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

you told me so. bet you didnt think i'd admit defeat, but ,eh, big deal.

i ran into the problem of the stupid connector on the amplifier was labled all wrong, after i hooked it up once. i went through the manual and nothing matched up pinwise. wire labled "12v constant" on the connector was labled "front left return" in the helms manual, nothing matched. i sorted it all out according to the book and nothing works, the radio comes alive and nothing makes noise but the 4 tweeters hooked to it, and just barely. pretty sure i annahilated something.

i still got an as load of speakers so i'll be scouring the aftermarket for an amp or 2 and a good radio that doesnt look like a tumor in my car.

thanks for whatever

[Guest]

What features are you looking for in the source unit?

Also what speakers do you have? I'm sure that some of them may be used to get you some decent sound.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

looking for headunit that doesnt have a lot of features, like all kinds of rounded shapes and has flashing leds and color dot matrix screens. Preferably Something square and doesnt have a whole lot of different colors, a lcd display back lit in green would rock...

my collection of speakers is:

2 Kicker CVR8 8" 4ohm DVC subs
4 Audiobahn AT69 tweeters
4 Audiobahn AS31Q 3.5" 2 ways
2 Kicker KS525 5.25" 2 ways
4 Pioneer TS-g1047 4" 2 ways (probly going to use in the shelf stereo)

[bszopi]

Not that I'm an Alpine backer (only ever owned 1 Alpine thing, and it was an EQ), but here is a pretty basic unit with green lighting and cheap ($150).

http://www.alpine-usa.com/en/products/product.php?model=CDE-9842&lang=en&tab=D

[Doubt_Incarnate]

that might work, i could change the color scheme for my interior a little bit so the silver doesn't stand out.

what kind quality is Pyle, or Legacy?

[bszopi]

Right up there with Pyramid. With the names you are listing, I'm starting to think you are looking through a JC Whitney catalog.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

lol yeah, something to look at on the john. it also pops up a lot on yahoo searches, the fact i cant find reviews for them should be answer enough.

im doing the interior in black and blue, and the instruments are green... kinda trying to avoid reds and the like.