Running a system off a stock HU...help

[williams22 10+ year member]

So I recently bought a 2003 Mazda 6s that came with a factory Bose sound system in it. I am planning on replacing all four speakers (comps in front and coaxials in rear) but I need to keep the HU the stock unit. Will this affect my sound quality greatly? The reason I am keeping the stock unit is that I would need to buy a $170 new piece of dash trim in order to put in a new HU. The Bose unit is also an in-dash 6-cd changer which is nice. Will my speakers suffer at all from this? (I will be using a speaker amp)

Thanks.

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[Trey803 5,000+ posts]

Most likely yes b/c bose uses a lot of signal processing to make their not so great speakers sound good. This processing would be different for all speaker and probably wont sound good on a new set

 

[williams22 10+ year member]

Most likely yes b/c bose uses a lot of signal processing to make their not so great speakers sound good. This processing would be different for all speaker and probably wont sound good on a new set

Can someone give a more clear answer? I won't be using the bose amp or speakers. Should the head unit just be sending out the normal signal?

 

[styldaccordngly 10+ year member]

I use a JL cleansweep..

all aftermarket amps and speakers but retain the factory indash.

No noise issues and it sounds **** good...

 

[fwb_1234 10+ year member]

hey here is a mazda 6 forum. I have a '04 6 and am planning on doing the metra console kit sometime during the summer.

I'll give you a link to the site, but you need to register to use the search feature. I've read through about 5 threads on the issue.

http://forum.mazda6club.com/index.php?

 

[path2spl 10+ year member]

the bose radio doesnt have a internal amp in it. just get the dash kit and call it a day im sure you can find it cheeper.

 

[tbasile1 10+ year member]

screw bose!!! it is so overated and wayyy overpriced

jus go aftermarket, you'll find out too that bose isnt that good

 

[williams22 10+ year member]

You guys aren't listening....because of the layout of the Mazda6 dash the new dash piece would cost almost $200. This doesn't seem worth it at all. From what I read on the Mazda6Club forum, the Bose head unit put outs flat low-level signals which should work fine. This has nothing to do with whether Bose is overrated or overpriced. My car came with the Bose system which is certainly better than a fully stock system but now I am upgrading it.

 

[Rich B 5,000+ posts]

What you really need to know is where Bose does their EQ/signal processing, in the amp, or the HU to know which would be the best way to integrate your own speakers and amp with it.

If its in the Bose amp, you can probably get by with a LOC of some kind.

But if its in the HU you might end up spending $300 or more on a signal processor like an RF 360.2 to re-EQ the system to sound good.

 

[dyabolical 10+ year member]

Everyone is right...it is worth the extra money for a dash kit. Go aftermarket.

 

[williams22 10+ year member]

What exactly is an LOC? sorry for the noob question

 

[Rich B 5,000+ posts]

What exactly is an LOC? sorry for the noob question

Its a line out converter.

You would have to get a wire harness to plug into the HU (they usually have a plug on only one end, bare wires on the other), then that wires up to something like this-

http://cgi.ebay.com/Scosche-LOC80-LOC-80-Line-out-Converter-adjustable-80W_W0QQitemZ230100436536QQihZ013QQcategoryZ50552QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

 

[fwb_1234 10+ year member]

ok to answer some questions and other potential ones.

the processing is in the amp.

the bose speakers are 2 ohm SVC in the door.

he probably doesn't want to do the kit because its $170 for the kit a HUGE undertaking (or an expensive as hell install) and he will lose the steering wheel controls unless he buys this. http://www.pac-audio.com/products/productsCatagory.asp?mmSearch=Steering%20Wheel%20Interface

The real question is, since he is ripping out the bose amp and speakers, will the lack of processing result in any problems?

 

[williams22 10+ year member]

If I'm putting in a speaker amp I think it should work fine right? How much will an LOC cost me?

 

[williams22 10+ year member]

For the LOC, do I just splice into wires coming out of the factory deck?