New Head Unit and Setup Advice

[Toothy]

Hi guys. Been thinking about upgrading my stereo for a while, and have been reading up loads on the forum. I told myself there was no real need, but since my new Samsung Galaxy S4 will not stay paired with the Bluetooth (I have Bose with Bluetooth), I'm taking it as a sign and investigating what I can do to change my setup. If anyone can get their S4 paired successfully by the way, let me know!

 

Looked at some head units. I can get a staff discount through a friend at Halfords, and was looking at the Pioneer AVH-X2500BT or the AVH-X5500BT.

 

I've never wired in a head unit before so a pretty new to all of this, so please be kind if I ask silly questions

 

I'm not sure how far I delve into changing things. I think I have a few options:

 

New HU + stock Bose amps / Bose speakers

- Good starting point. But will I be disappointed with the sound? (Bose system does little to impress at the moment). Does using the Bose amp bypass the inbuilt HU amps?

 

New HU + stock Bose amps but with new speakers

- Just new front speakers? Or all round? Plus a new sub maybe? Can people recommend me some please, and where to buy from. I know I'd need 6.5"/17cm, but know not all will fit.

 

New HU, amps and speakers (the lot).

- Have a feeling this might be way too expensive. But trying to establish the 'best bang for my buck'. Possible option of just running front speakers and a sub to cut costs? Would this route mean wiring in a whole system, separate to the stock wiring/system?

 

It would be nice to be able to revert back to stock when I come to sell on the car too. How feasible is that?

 

Not after silly bass or huge power. Just a clean sound with good depth. Quality over quantity. Whilst keeping costs reasonable.

 

Any recommendations, suggestions, comments, etc. Welcome

[wmr1980]

I'll be keeping an eye on this thread - as I'm getting closer to getting my Zed, this is something I plan on doing.

 

Personally, from the list you've given, I tend to plan on doing #2 - but perhaps without the sub.

 

I'm a fairly n00b to car wiring/audio, I've always paid others to do it for me!

 

For the wiring loom to be able to use the steering wheel controls you need to get the cables from here:

 

http://incartec.co.uk/nissan/1929/1034/2056/radio/Browser.aspx

 

That's as much as I know!

 

I believe the only issue with 6.5" aftermarket speakers is the depth of the speaker and how it sits in the door - you may need a spacer to fit it. However, again, I don't know from experience, just from my browsing of this forum!

 

Good luck , and please can you post pictures of what you do so that I can learn from your experience!

[spursmaddave]

Looks like you have done your research

 

If you don't want to take the plunge and get it all done at once I would suggest the following order as you have detailed...

 

1. HU - adds functionality mainly but also a little extra clarity

 

2. Speakers - the mexican Bose speakers really are the weakest link, so swapping them out even for modest priced speakers will make a decent difference.

 

3. Amp - amp your new speakers to add decent clarity, obviously better speakers/amp combo the better

 

4. Sub - new sub/amp is the final piece of the puzzle, the bose sub is pretty poor, amazing the difference when changed even for something modest

 

Good luck with it all, well worth all the effort

 

 

[Toothy]

Great feedback guys. Sounds like a good starting point, getting the HU and speakers.

I'll look at replacing the front and rears, but keep the current sub. Don't think I could change that without changing the amp too...

 

Once that's set up however, how would I go about wiring in a new amp? Would it mean changing all the wiring and adapters I will be putting in at the first stage? Or is it far more simple than that?