new reciever

[person_12341]

I am looking for a new in dash reciever for my 99 grand am. I don't know much about about car audio in general. Right now I have the stock one. It is double the size of most of the recievers I have been looking at. Do I have to buy another one that is this same size, or is it an easy task to make one of the standard recievers fit. I also would like an uxiliar in so i can run my ipod into it with out any of the cassett adapters or fm transmitters. I would like to spend about 100$ to 150$. Any suggestions???

thanks

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[Prowler573 5,000+ posts]

I am looking for a new in dash reciever for my 99 grand am. I don't know much about about car audio in general. Right now I have the stock one. It is double the size of most of the recievers I have been looking at.

A stereo that size is known as a Double-DIN chassis head unit. Most, but not all, aftermarket stereos are a Single-DIN chassis.

Do I have to buy another one that is this same size, or is it an easy task to make one of the standard recievers fit.

You have a choice ~ you can buy an aftermarket Double-DIN receiver to fit the stock dash opening (the options for that size are somewhat limited) or you can buy a standard Single-DIN receiver and use one of the commercially available adapter kits to fit the smaller head unit into your larger dash opening. These kits are available most anywhere that sells car audio gear (including WalMart) and run between $15-$25 on average.

I also would like an auxiliary input so i can run my ipod into it with out any of the cassette adapters or fm transmitters.

There are a few receivers out there that come with iPod inputs since iPod has so taken the world by storm and more and more people have them. Some other receivers have an optional input adapter (available at an additional cost) that allow you to hook up an external source such as an iPod, audio from a game console, etcetera. Some receivers do not allow for any external source to be input at all. be mindful of the various features of whatever you look at while you shop around.

I would like to spend about 100$ to 150$. Any suggestions???

I would suggest that you do some hunting on eBay and/or the Classifieds section of this forum or any others similar to it that you might frequent. Unfortunately that sort of budget is somewhat limiting. If you buy new at that price it simply won't get you much of a stereo. Additionally you need to consider any accessories you might have need of - if you buy a Single-DIN chassis head unit you'll need that adapter I mentioned to install it. When going from an OEM head unit to an aftermarket unit it's normally easiest to hook it up using a factory wiring harness adapter (generally $8-$15 or so) so you don't have to hunt/cut/splice wires behind the dash. Things such as this can eat into that $150 budget pretty good and leave you insufficient $$$ to buy much of anything. If you're willing to buy used, however, it opens up the possibilites considerably. Nothing wrong with buying used audio gear as long as it was previously owned by someone who takes good care of their equipment. Hope this helps at all //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif Good luck with your hunt.
thanks

 

[DiamondFanatic 10+ year member]

I don't really know what you needed in terms of expandability, but you could get a Sony GT-100 for 100$ brand new at crutchfield along with all the parts you need to put it in. It has an input right on the front for an iPod. If you wanted MP3 playback, you could get the GT-200 for 30$ more.

 

[Prowler573 5,000+ posts]

DiamondFanatic ~ I didn't know if you knew this or not but Crutchfield doesn't supply the free install gear to each and every HU they sell anymore. You can get it with any HU you buy but the HU itself has to be priced at $129.99 or more to get the install accessories free.

I think I'd have to go the GT-200 out of the two options you gave the original poster. It adds the MP3/WMA/ATRAC3 playback like you said plus it comes with a remote. That added to the fact that it costs enough to get the install gear for free and Crutchfield currently has free shipping on all HUs regardless of cost makes it a fairly decent buy, IMO. The single set of preouts being switchable to subwoofer preouts with an LPF and dedicated level control isn't bad either. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif I don't know how it sounds but on paper it looks a pretty good buy for $130/shipped. Good call, DF //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/thumbsup.gif.3287b36ca96645a13a43aff531f37f02.gif

 

[DiamondFanatic 10+ year member]

Thanks for pointing that out to me about the less expensive units not coming with parts. Looks like the GT-200 is the one I would sugguest then its worth the extra 30$ for the free parts and shipping, like getting MP3 playback for free //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif .

 

[person_12341]

Alright so this may sound a little dumb, but what is the purpose of having a remote in a car?

 

[adam71 5,000+ posts]

Alright so this may sound a little dumb, but what is the purpose of having a remote in a car?

So you can keep your eyes on the road and not on the head unit.

 

[person_12341]

Well I bought the sony gt 200 like you all recomended. So now I am working on installing it, which will be a timely and confusing task. I am currently working on trying to take my dash off but its a one piece so I have to remove the entire thing. So that should take up most of my day. It should be installed and working as long as I have no major problems by midday Sunday the 8th. I'll get back to you all on how it turned out.