mazda 6 and sony install help

[ritzthekracker 10+ year member]

hey there ok i just bought a 03 mazda 6 and wanted to replace the stock deck. now when i do this what would i need i need to get in order to keep the buttons on my steering wheel to work as well as the little display they have for the cd player? btw the deck i am going to be installing is the sony cdx-m8810. any help will be greatly appreciated

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[Pineapple 10+ year member]

i just test drove the Mazda6 yesterday. the salesmen told me they sell a differant bezel for installing aftermarket HU's. the bezel relocates the major buttons.

 

[freshbondoscent 10+ year member]

if the sony has a remote you can get a peice from PAC that converts your factory steering wheel buttons into "remote" buttons. thinking itts like 45 bucks? probably the most cost effective solution.

http://www.tune-town.com/Cars/stuff/steering_wheel.htm

well its like 85 but here is the unit

 

[XtrmAudioCncpts 10+ year member]

that sounds like a pain in the *** to try to do why dont you just by a head unit with a remote and not screw with the button you your searing wheel. OR dont pull the factory head unit and run everything off of the it

 

[ritzthekracker 10+ year member]

yea it does seem like a big hassle but the thing is i have some diamond speakers and amp and everything else that i wasnted to put into it as well so i mean would it be worth it without the aftermarket deck???

 

[Slody4Futbol 10+ year member]

you could buy a few LOC's and do it that way... but if you take out the factory radio... **metra keeps recalling the kit so who knows when it'll be out for good** the display will not work for the radio anymore...

 

[PhatalOne 10+ year member]

Well there is no simple way to get an aftermarket stereo installed in this car. Metra has had a kit to be released "really soon now" for months and it looks horrible. If you are planning on installing an amplifier for your Diamonds then what I would do is get a Navone LOC and convert the stereo level outs into RCA outputs. Now this is provided that you have the non-Bose system. You will still have to pull out the stereo unit. to do this you have to be VERY careful since those panels are very fragile and the circuit board behind them is prone to breaking... a replacement panel will set you back nearly $250-300. Now if you have the Bose system you can remove the Bose amplifier and then tap into the preouts coming from the Bose HU and turn them into RCA inputs. They provide a 2v source and you can either use them as is or get a good line driver to boost the voltage to something a bit more respectable.

If you aren't planning on running an amp then best of luck becacuse the stock unit's built in amp is ok but not great and the Bose system amplifiers are optimized for 2 ohm speakers.