Alright you guys, this is completely in my dreams but... I like to plan things out.

Once I acquire my MCS 07 I plan on modifying the sound system more than anything and adding a Lojack alarm system (I live in a border town so Lojack may help in certain situations). (Oh yeah, and the damn sport button).

Now, I currently own an American Bass SQ480, which is currently driving some Pioneer 6 x 9's in my Ford Focus. I also own a Bazooka amplifier which runs my sub, but that can go to hell (it sucks).

My idea is to get some very good tweeter/mids and connect them each to their appropriate channels on the amp. I would then proceed to test out the sound quality. If it's great, then i'll leave it as is, if not, then I would look into adding a stealth 8" or 10" sub (if possible).

Now you may be asking, "How the hell are you going to get sound to the amp"? Well the solution is still in the works, but goes something like this:

Step 1 - Get a high level to low lever line converter and run the stock stereo that way. Connect it to a line splitter (more info on this later/like the one you use on your Nintendo and PS2) and then use the low level inputs on the amp.

This would allow me to use the stock stereo for things such as regular driving/FM radio, etc. The only problem with this is the loss of an equalizer, so that would probably be added in somewhere. It has yet to be determined where i'd put it.

Step 2 - Install my current Pioneer head unit (I don't remember the model number right now, but it works like a champ and supports anything I want to throw at it) in the "secret compartment" because of the size of the compartment. (it's a freakin DIN with a faceplate), perfect for concealing

Now the audio connections for this are a bit odd. The Pioneer has 3 pairs of outputs, High, Mid and Low. I would connect the Sub(Low) output of the Pioneer (if it was to be installed) to the signal splitter installed earlier and I would also connect the Mid/Highs together and send them through another pair of RCA's.

They would all travel to the amp and be happy. Now the nice part of this setup is that the Pioneer has VERY good ipod funcionality and a built in equalizer. I would NOT lose the ability to switch over to the stock stereo and I would keep the car looking "stock", which is what I want to achieve ultimately.

While using another stereo other than the stock one may be a little bit of a hassle, it will definitely be worth it in the end. The Pioneer is MUCH better than the old stock stereo at just about everything. Oh yeah, and the Pioneer also has a remote control, so reaching for the volume **** wouldn't be that much of a hassle.

Oh yeah, and one more thing, the antenna for FM/AM would have to be connected to one stereo or another because I would then risk a ground loop. I will definitely have to look into this, but for now, that's the whole situation.

Oh yeah, the car would also get an Optimus battery

Any ideas, comments, modifications, opinions, questions, etc. are all greatly encouraged and welcomed!!

I've got about 6 months untill I get my car, so that should give me more than enough time to perfect all of this :D

Peace!!
-war6763

 

That was far too much to read.



Good luck with your plans though.

 

If you're sticking with the factory head unit, go with a Rockford Fosgate 3Sixty processor. It seams expensive at first but believe me, it's well worth every penny for making a stock head unit sound good! It takes care of all the high-low conversion and equalization, as well as other processing nessisary to make the uneven output of the factory head sound good. Plus if you have a PDA it can be programed directly from your PDA via wireless bluetooth (the website says it has to be palm OS, but I've been told that they came out with a windows based version as well), so you can adjust it while sitting in your seat instead of back in the trunk. It even has an auxiliary input for your Ipod or similar device.

check it out here:
http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/produ...s.asp?cat_id=1

(no, I'm not a Rockford salesman, but I used to be an installer)

 

Hmmm that converter seems a bit pricey for what it does... I don't know... but well, I was thinking, maybe installing a 2nd head unit is a bit of overkill, I really havn't had time to play with the stock stereo, so I havn't made my final decision yet.

Anyone have other opinions?