International Questions on HU (and some others)

[naiku 10+ year member]

Hello, I am new and have a few questions which I am hoping people can help me out with. I am currently in the UK but am moving to the US at the in the next few months, so at the moment things are a bit hectic with packing etc. I realize half of this post could end up in the speakers section, but decided to stick everything onto the one post for now.

So onto the questions, I am selling my car in the UK and depending on the price I get for it may or may not remove the existing HU. It's an Alpine 7893 (the black one, not silver) and if I take it out I am debating then bringing it to the US with me (I have a Jeep that does not have a CD player) so will it work Ok in the US? are the ISO connections the same? will I lose any functionality? (RDS? etc) I heard someplace that the FM tuners in the US are slightly different to the UK, does that make much difference to everyday use? etc etc.

Secondly, I also have a 2000 F150 with the 6 CD changer, however I want to take out the Ford HU and fit an aftermarket one. Are any compatible with the Ford changer? I am hoping to get another Alpine, although have been reading good things about the Eclipse 8455 (can't get these in the UK) and like the looks and price of this unit. Will I lose out on some of the Eclipse features if I only run 4 speakers off the HU? (I plan on getting a sub/amps eventually, but they will come later down the line).

And last of all, what 5x7 speakers (or other speakers that fit) can anyone recommend for use in the F150, looking to spend no more than around $100 a pair. But that can be spread across front/rear (eg: $150 on fronts, $50 on rear) I liked the look of Polk DB570's, but have not yet heard them and don't know how comparable they are to other brands.

Thanks.

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[3.5Max6spd 10+ year member]

I woudnt spend the cheddar on a cd8455 to run speakers off the internal amp, however if you plan on eventually running an active system with external amplification you could have one less piece to worry about. If not, i'd look into a lower model.

 

[mikegett 10+ year member]

I agree. I have had the 8053, 8454, and currently the 8455. I love the decks but it is a waste of money to spend it on a non amped system. If you are using a F150, ditch the rear speakers and go spend the money on a nice set of comps and amplifier to boot. You can get a 100 to 150 watt 2 channel for pretty cheap.

The difference between the tuners is in the frequencies. Your tuner won't work as is in the US. Everything else will be fine. However, some manufacturers produce models for various countries. In this case, they have a button sequence that switches the tuner frequencies. Your best way to find out is contacting alpine customer service and asking. eclipse upper end models have had the dual frequency for quite a few years but only recently started to post it in the manual.

 

[naiku 10+ year member]

Thanks for the replies, its a tough decision with the 8455, I do plan on getting an amped system at some point. But how far into the future that is I don't know. I think I will check out some other HU's first, try to plan exactly what system I eventually want, and then go from there.

mikegett can you recommend any components that would fit into the F150? I thought that the speaker sizes are 5x7 and don't see too many components in this size. Although I do realize there will be adaptors available to make them fit. I would prefer components (currently have a set of Alpine's in my Renault), but to be honest have not looked into them much for the F150.

Does anyone know anything about the Ford CD Changer compatabilty? I would prefer not to lose a perfectly working changer if I can keep it running on an aftermarket HU.

 

[mikegett 10+ year member]

Many cd changers can be made to work with aftermarket radios. You will need a converter to change the bus singal so that they can communicate. I believe that most ford HU's are produced by panasonic. Crutchfield could answer that question much better than I can. Eclipse shares the same signal as Toyota only. I don't believe you would be able to find anything that can allow it to communicate.

Where would the speakers be located? If the 5x7 is rear fill then go with a very cheap pair. Running off of HU power don't expect much. If you are refering to front fill as in a door, then look for a pair with a high efficiency. 90 or better would be great. I have been very pleased with my JL's. They have a xr line that carries a 89 or 91 efficiency. They even make a 5x7 componant set.

 

[naiku 10+ year member]

I sent Crutchfield an email and they basically told me that the Ford CD Changer is not going to work with an aftermarket radio. Sucks really. I might have a bit more of a hunt around, but at the moment its not looking too good. Will have to try and persuade the other half to let me sell the CD changer and factory head unit...........

I was thinking of getting a cheapish ($50 max, will probably ebay them) pair of coaxials to go in the rear, and then spending a decent amount on front door components, with a 4 channel amp to power all 4 speakers (either coming later, or at the same time as speakers depending on budget). Thanks for the JL recommendation, someone else has recommended that brand to me before. Obviously all this hinges on being able to get a new head unit, if I can't change the factory Ford one then am not going to bother.

Thanks for the replies.