Question:::I have a 2012 MCS with the Harmon/Kardon system, will it be possible to use this connector to put in a signal processing unit like the kicker front row and have the modified signal then go to the factory amp? And continue using the H/K speakers

 

Joey, I just installed the Integral Audio 9331 harness. Note that the two male stereo RCA output lines on it are just that --outputs. They provide a clean, full range line level signal that can be processed, but the harness doesn't have a provision to send that signal back into the HK amp.

Frankly, even if one could do that, it would be counter-productive. That's because the HK amp has a bunch of built in EQ across its eight channels, all designed to tune the output to make up for the deficiencies of the various HK front and rear speakers.

From what I have seen in my research here and elsewhere into mods on the HK system, no one has figured out any way to hack that amp to bypass that processing. And even if they had, the results would be poor, because they would result in the "de-tuning" the factory installed HK speakers.

That's why those with the HK who are looking to upgrade the system are either limited to adding a subwoofer (which I just did) or end up ditching both the HK amp and speakers and replacing them with higher quality aftermarket equipment. In that scenario, the 9331 harness would allow one to still employ the factory head unit and to run the line out through whatever form of processing you want before it's fed to the new amp(s).

And one other important note for anyone with a more recent second gen MINI with H/K who wants to do mods: sometime around 2013 MINI changed what appears to be a large number of the wiring colors in the H/K system. The colors of the wires going into my H/K amp are completely different than the ones described in posts here by owners of earlier H/K second gen cars.