Go Back   986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners > Porsche Boxster & Cayman Forums > Boxster General Discussions

Post Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 07-26-2018, 07:33 AM   #1
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Go back to stock head unit?

The previous owner of my 02 put in a single DIN Sony head unit, presumably to gain Bluetooth connectivity. My car came with the Bose system and has the amp and CD changer in the frunk. The system sounds like complete garbage. The bass is distorted, there's a constant hiss and it just sounds flat.

I know very little about audio systems and their wiring. Is it safe to assume that the amp isn't being utilized with the aftermarket head unit? If so, I would be willing to forgo Bluetooth for better sound and would consider buying a replacement OEM head unit.

Any advice or suggestions? How can I determine if the amp is being utilized? Thanks!

ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 09:08 AM   #2
Custom User Title Here
 
particlewave's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Ft. Leonard Wood
Posts: 6,163
Garage
That hiss and distortion is the stock amp. Get rid of it, as it is weaker than the Sony HU built in amp, and sound will drastically improve.

Unplug the connectors from the amp. If you get no sound after that, the stock amp is being used.
particlewave is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 09:33 AM   #3
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by particlewave View Post
That hiss and distortion is the stock amp. Get rid of it, as it is weaker than the Sony HU built in amp, and sound will drastically improve.

Unplug the connectors from the amp. If you get no sound after that, the stock amp is being used.
Interesting! So if I find out that the amp is actually still connected (and therefore the source of the issues), and I unplug it and get no sound, how to I reconnect things, avoiding the amp? Sorry if that's a stupid question. I'm pretty ignorant with car audio.
ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 09:36 AM   #4
Custom User Title Here
 
particlewave's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Ft. Leonard Wood
Posts: 6,163
Garage
If that's the case, take pictures of the wire connectors coming out of the amp and I'll write up some instructions for you.
particlewave is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 09:57 AM   #5
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by particlewave View Post
If that's the case, take pictures of the wire connectors coming out of the amp and I'll write up some instructions for you.
Very kind, thank you sir! I'll get the car back tomorrow from the shop and will take a pic.
ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 11:08 AM   #6
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Arizona
Posts: 178
I have a Sony HU along with alpine 150w a channel amp and high end speakers and sounds amazing.
azlvr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 11:12 AM   #7
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by azlvr View Post
I have a Sony HU along with alpine 150w a channel amp and high end speakers and sounds amazing.
Did your car originally have the factory Bose system? If so, are you using the Bose sub?
ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2018, 04:31 PM   #8
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Arizona
Posts: 178
Quote:
Originally Posted by ScottAZ View Post
Did your car originally have the factory Bose system? If so, are you using the Bose sub?
No I didn’t have the Bose system but I have the 6 channel system.
I have hi quality 6.5 in speakers in doors that have lots of bass. I also don’t use the rear deck speakers.
azlvr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 08:00 AM   #9
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by particlewave View Post
If that's the case, take pictures of the wire connectors coming out of the amp and I'll write up some instructions for you.
Here is what I'm working with. The amp is connected (pulled one of the wire harnesses and the sound was killed). After messing around with the EQ, the sound isn't completely terrible. FM and Bluetooth have more distortion and hissing than using a direct aux connection. I think that can probably be blamed on an weak early Bluetooth receiver and a less than ideal FM antenna.

Still, do you think bypassing the amp will help? The Bose sub is rattly and sounds like a fart even with the bass turned down and there is some hissing no matter what I do. I wonder if it's worth going around the amp. Thanks for the help!





ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 08:49 AM   #10
Registered User
 
Cunningr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Spain
Posts: 985
My opinion is to bypass the amp and disconnect the bose sub if its making that much noise.

Just a visual the bottom connector are the wires that go to your speakers.
__________________
2000 Boxster S Ocean Blue Metalic
Cunningr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 08:50 AM   #11
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cunningr View Post
My opinion is to bypass the amp and disconnect the bose sub if its making that much noise.

Just a visual the bottom connector are the wires that go to your speakers.
Is bypassing the amp just a matter of moving wires around? Any guidance?
ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 09:11 AM   #12
Registered User
 
Cunningr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Spain
Posts: 985
Well probably the easiest methid would be to run speaker wires from the speaker outputs on the head unit to where the connector is on the amp.

You could then just unplug the connector and go 2 or 3 inches back from the connector and splice into the wiring harness.

I am not familiar with the Bose wiring so might wait on Particle Wave to give some advice.


The other option would be run new speaker wires from hu to the speakers. The dash wings are easy enough. But getting into the door cavity is a pain.


I did a full upgrade:
Pioneer HU
Alpine pdx 9 amp
Hertz 3 way components 6.5 door, 3 inch mid and 1 inch tweeter dash.
Modified an old 996 cabriolet subwoofer box installed an 8” pioneer shallow mount sub driver. Had to stuff the box and use dynamat to clear some buzz in the box. Sounds really good now.
Cross over duties handled by the head unit.
__________________
2000 Boxster S Ocean Blue Metalic
Cunningr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 09:15 AM   #13
Registered User
 
Cunningr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Spain
Posts: 985
so are the head units outs in use now to amp are the RCA connections? If not that could be some of your problem, the amp needs the lower power signal otherwise can inject noise.
__________________
2000 Boxster S Ocean Blue Metalic
Cunningr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 09:43 AM   #14
Custom User Title Here
 
particlewave's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Ft. Leonard Wood
Posts: 6,163
Garage
That Sony HU will definitely sound better on its own. I'll write up some directions for you tonight. It will involve splicing wires at the amp connector (no need to remove the stereo...all can be done in the front trunk).
particlewave is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 11:41 AM   #15
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
Posts: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by particlewave View Post
That Sony HU will definitely sound better on its own. I'll write up some directions for you tonight. It will involve splicing wires at the amp connector (no need to remove the stereo...all can be done in the front trunk).
Awesome, thank you VERY much!
ScottAZ is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-28-2018, 12:54 PM   #16
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: So Cal
Posts: 299
Garage
I had a similar problem with my E34 BMW, I bypassed the issue by wiring the factory amp to be fed by speaker wire signals, ignoring the HU pre-amp outputs and letting the amp take simple feeds from the speaker outs.

mgfranz is offline   Reply With Quote
Post Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On




All times are GMT -8. The time now is 09:53 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2024 Pelican Parts, LLC - Posts may be archived for display on the Pelican Parts Website -    DMCA Registered Agent Contact Page