The Sc400 Factory Amps Can Be Used With Aftermarket Equipment

[Micah]

Hi, just following up from a previous question I posted. I decided to just go ahead and try it. I took out my factory unit and jumpered a1 to a3 (radio/amp output plugs) and presto, I had sound. Hooked a mini jack to the low level inputs to see if it would do OK with my IPOD, and it sounded beautiful. Long story short, it is possible to patch into the factory amps. It was very easy after I got the radio out (that was the hardest part. . .that and soldering me a 1/8" jack to be plugged into the factory harness). Onward now to finish my carputer. Just butchered and gutted my factory radio to install a 7" LCD in its place. Looking good so far!

[lexusalex]

Hi, just following up from a previous question I posted. I decided to just go ahead and try it. I took out my factory unit and jumpered a1 to a3 (radio/amp output plugs) and presto, I had sound. Hooked a mini jack to the low level inputs to see if it would do OK with my IPOD, and it sounded beautiful. Long story short, it is possible to patch into the factory amps. It was very easy after I got the radio out (that was the hardest part. . .that and soldering me a 1/8" jack to be plugged into the factory harness). Onward now to finish my carputer. Just butchered and gutted my factory radio to install a 7" LCD in its place. Looking good so far!

so your using an after market radio but with an existing amp right??

how does it sound?

[Micah]

It sounds great. At least as good as factory. I'll post pictures of my setup later this week. I am using a laptop computer for my sound system (which I've yet to complete, but it's almost done). I fabricated a touch screen lcd monitor into the original pioneer factory head unit and used its cage as the mount. worked quite nicely and looks almost factory (would have looked better if I were better with fabrication). It looks very nice though. I'm waiting on a power supply for my laptop so I can use it in the car. This allows me GPS, MP3's, DVD, OBD2, or anything I want to do. The sky is the limit. so far I've spent less than 500 dollars on the whole setup (including the laptop which is an 1100mhz amd duron by HP). Just working out the bugs right now. It would be going faster, but I'm buying a new engine for my boat right now too (200 hp mercury, whoo hoo). Anyways. Long story short. The amplifiers take a low level signal input. This means that you can play pretty much anything you want through them from aftermarket heat units to ipods to computers. The only catch is that you have to tap into the wiring (I haven't spliced any wires). I used wire taps to tap into the inputs in the trunk. The hardest one was the subwoofer b/c it isn't stereo and my outputs were stereo. This means you either have to build a mixer out of resistors or hook up only one channel to the input meaning you loose half of the bass. I plan on building the mixer in the near future once the computer is totally in the car. No radio for now, just a screen.

[SuperCoupe400]

Sounds like you've got your hands full with that install. But if it works like you've described, then you'll have a nice new toy to keep a passenger's attention on those long road trips. This all sounds like stuff I probably would have gotten heavily into had I not lost that audiophile bug.

I'd love to see some "during" & "after" pics.

[Micah]

Well, I can get you some pictures of the bezel next time I take the radio apart again. I didn't take pictures. I wish I had, but my sister has my digital camera. It was an interesting project that is now almost complete. Just ordered the power supply for the computer. I still have to figure a way to install the laptop in the trunk, but shouldn't be too difficult. Plan on putting it where the cd changer was. I did it only b/c I got tired of listening to the radio and wanted to be able to listen to mp3s. They make no adapter for the sc400 radio, so I decided to go this route instead of aftermarket or used radio. I don't like the look of aftermarket. I wanted a factory look preserved, so I decided on this route. The main thing I'll use it for is mp3's. It will also hook up with a bluetooth phone and do hands free functions if I set that up, but I don't have a bluetooth phone. Biggest hassle is making the bezel which is still not totally finished. My cousin did some of the work on it, but it looks too amateurish. It doesn't look bad, just not perfect. I want it to look totally factory after totally complete. I plan on sending it off somewhere to get it finished. He did a great job matching the paint to the original factory black trim, though.

[Micah]

Some preliminary pics. Everything isn't finalized yet. . .still have to hook my lcd to the carnetix psu that powers the computer, finish mounting computer, other odds and ends.

[downsouth]

Some preliminary pics. Everything isn't finalized yet. . .still have to hook my lcd to the carnetix psu that powers the computer, finish mounting computer, other odds and ends.

dude, that is beautiful work. Good Luck with everything else. B)

[Moltenburn]

Wow. That is turning out quite well. Good luck w/ that. :) I was thinkining along those lines. Something Like the full screen Piuoneer unit $650 and interlinking my MP3.

[Micah]

Thanks, It has taken a lot of reading and planning to accomplish, and I'm still working out bugs (such as ground loops and such), but it sounds crystal clear and I love it. I have about 450 to 500 into it right now (and that was with me having to replace the mobo on the laptop). If you need any type of info on the topic, try www.mp3car.com

They have loads of information, faqs, and howto's to help. There is so much you can do with this. . .interface with engine and show engine statistics, gps, dvd, mp3, hands free telephone interface, xm radio, sirius radio, 5.1 surround sound, the sky is the limit, and it will still look factory if done right. The main reason I didn't go with an aftermarket solution is that it wouldn't look factory. This was very important to me. I am never happy with the look of aftermarket, even if it has been professionally installed and such. That's just my opinion. Many people love aftermarket equipment and look, but not me. I considered a full screen pioneer unit with the accelerometer and all b/c I could have bought one off ebay for just a little more than what I spent on this project, but I opted for the factory look.

[ricky-E 89]

Thanks, It has taken a lot of reading and planning to accomplish, and I'm still working out bugs (such as ground loops and such), but it sounds crystal clear and I love it. I have about 450 to 500 into it right now (and that was with me having to replace the mobo on the laptop). If you need any type of info on the topic, try www.mp3car.com

They have loads of information, faqs, and howto's to help. There is so much you can do with this. . .interface with engine and show engine statistics, gps, dvd, mp3, hands free telephone interface, xm radio, sirius radio, 5.1 surround sound, the sky is the limit, and it will still look factory if done right. The main reason I didn't go with an aftermarket solution is that it wouldn't look factory. This was very important to me. I am never happy with the look of aftermarket, even if it has been professionally installed and such. That's just my opinion. Many people love aftermarket equipment and look, but not me. I considered a full screen pioneer unit with the accelerometer and all b/c I could have bought one off ebay for just a little more than what I spent on this project, but I opted for the factory look.

What kind of monitor is the one you used. I have been researching different In-Dash monitors but I also think like you, I want everything to look like it has always been there and suppose to be there. And exactly how did you make it look so factory?

[TA in KC]

That has got to be one of the best-looking aftermarket installations I have ever seen. Nice work! ;)

[Michael0711]

Micah,

OUTSTANDING work ! Very impressive.

Michael