Hey,
has anyone added an auxillary input to our cars? If so, how difficult is it? I would use the cassette -> aux cord thing, but my cassette player is stuck in "chipmunk" mode where it plays everything fast forwarded lol
my car has premium sound, but no EQ slidey thing
-Kyle
i recently swapped in an older Sony CD player into my 87 Tbird. It has an AUX port right on the front of the radio. Works great for me, i see no reason why something like that wouldnt work great for you as well.
About the only think I know you could do with that factory radio is something FM modulated which the sound quality is only as good as your FM tuner which in this case is not so bueno. I would just do what is suggested above and put a $100 aftermarket Sony or Pioneer in the hole and you will be amazed how good it sounds.
If I remember correctly.....isn't there a separate plug behind our dash that would let him use to go around the factory amp in trunk? I remember going after market in my old 88 and it sounded like , until i went around the factory amp. It was actually trying to pull from factory amp and new stereo amp at same time.....
If his car was equipped with a factory amplifier and he wants to use the 31 year old wiring factory speaker wires then they do make a factory amp bypass harness. This allows a person to remove the factory head unit install an aftermarket unit, bypass the amp (if equipped), and utilize the factory speaker wires going to the factory speaker locations. If the OP does not have an amp then there is another wiring kit that allow the installation of the aftermarket head unit utilizing the factory wiring going to the factory speaker locations.
My personal opinion is that a person should buy the kit for no amp and only use the one harness for batt, key power, ground, illumination, and power antenna (if equipped). From there run new speaker wire to the doors & rear package tray, get some Pioneer speakers from Walmart and install them in the doors and rear package tray, install the head unit and enjoy. If you have the 3-1/2" dash speakers install them with a 99uF cap on the (+) lead at the speaker and wire them in parallel. This will take the load in the upper frequencies to a 2 ohm load (replacement speakers are typically 4 ohm) to which you can turn the treble down a bit and it will sound really good for what it is.
Again, that is just what I would do based on the fact that the wiring is 30+ years old and I am guessing so are the speakers so if you put a new head unit in the car the power will most likely kill the factory speakers if you listen at any kind of volume. This is only due to the surrounds most likely giving up the ghost.
On mine I unplugged the amp in trunk and used the "non-amp" connector taped to harness above EQ(or well if you don't have EQ)... For speaker & power connectors I used the wired plugs from a mid '80s head... Had 6x9" aftermarket speakers and straps from LSC on hand I used... Sounds far better than the orig setup and other than JVC unit, I spent zip...
Note if you do not disconnect amp, first time you crank up tour new unit you'll get smoke from it...
This is what I eventually ended up doing...better stereo, speakers,tweeters, all new wiring, amps, subs = nice sounding system......
If you have the EQ you could do this: http://www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com/showthread.php?32798-Aftermarket-head-unit-with-stock-premium-sound-amp-and-eq&highlight=
I have the stock amp with Polk 6X9s in the rear deck, Polk 6.5s in the doors, and Polk 3.5s in the dash. Sounds good to me.
somehow i believe ^this^ is the most noteworthy part of this thread!!
i was considering head unit swap on my 20th and that amp in the ckt made me wonder if i should proceed or not,,, you answered it.