burntorange Posted March 13, 2018 Share Posted March 13, 2018 (edited) Hi all, I have taken a look around the forum and cannot find any information all in one place that explains a few things which i will list below 1. why I might want to keep the Bose Amp in place over the new head units amplifier as i notice you can get leads for either occasion. 2. Do i really need these iso cable adapters? headunits always come with there own iso cable which surely i can just solder into the existing wiring right if there is information on what cables do what? 3. I have read somewhere that soldering improves speaker volume, though wasnt really clear to me what cables these were. 4. retaining steering wheel controls, again can i not just solder the cables from the new headunit into the existing? 5. Pac roem, No idea what these are for other than i believe you need them if you are keeping the original bose amp, on the websites that sell them doesnt really say why id need them either. Any help with this would be extremely helpful cheers Edited March 14, 2018 by burntorange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burntorange Posted March 19, 2018 Author Share Posted March 19, 2018 (edited) anybody out there who's ever done this know any of the above? a lot of the links on this forum all have dead image links now so a lot of the guides are hard to follow Edited March 19, 2018 by burntorange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben–350Z Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 Sounds like you've got some of the questions I came up with after ripping out my Bose stereo because it didn't work… Starting with question 2 - When I did mine, I got the ISO leads but, rather like you're suggesting, cut them up, together with the one from the new stereo, added some solder and ended up with an Alpine -> Nissan cable. That way I _could_ revert it, if needed. But soldering the aftermarket one straight into the car should also be fine if putting it back to stock is never going to worry you. Making your own adapter cable is also a good time to remove any stuff that isn't needed - there's a remarkable lack of space in the dashboard. With regard to which wires to connect, take a look at the workshop manuals here: http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/350Z/ : find the right year, and IIRC the “av.pdf” should have everything you need somewhere in it. Now back to your first question - as I understand it, if you have the Bose system, there's no cables from the back of the stereo to the speakers. It takes an unamplified signal from the stereo to the boot, then it's amplified there and sent to the speakers. There's various discussions about using the pre-amplified outputs on the aftermarket stereo, vs hacking into the amplified ones to send to the Bose amp - see "Buster's mod" (https://www.350z-uk.com/topic/58947-reduced-sound-out-put-after-replacing-oe-bose/). I guess that's what the pac-roem in your last question effectively does - boost the signal to the Bose amplifier a bit. I didn't do that, because sending a speaker level signal into an amplifier input just seems wrong to me, so used the pre-amplified outputs from the stereo. I did find it a bit quiet, and also didn't sound that great so ended up replacing the whole lot not long after. Having said all that, it shouldn't be too much effort to run speaker cables out from the stereo, if you don't want to get into separate amplifier territory. Just getting across into the doors that's a pain. Point 3, I don't know - as long as its a good connection that won't shake apart (i.e. not twisted together and electrical tape), and the cables aren't too thin it should all be fine. Though FWIW, when I was looking at where to put my replacement amplifier, I measured the impedance of the cabling from the Bose amp in the boot to the speaker in the front door - I seem to remember the round trip being about 2 ohms - so with a 4 ohm speaker, that's a third of the amp's output power just heating up the speaker cables. I found somewhere else for the amp, and ran bigger cables. For steering wheel controls, I think you do need a box to translate what the car's "saying" to what the stereo can understand. Guess there'd probably be no harm trying to just wire it straight up and see what happens. If it helps, here's the kit I bought: https://incartec.co.uk/Pages/Product.aspx?P=4487, and then spliced into the harness that came with my stereo. Left the steering wheel control bit as it was. Hopefully at least some of that clears things up for you… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burntorange Posted March 26, 2018 Author Share Posted March 26, 2018 Cheers Ben, After reading your comments and the links provided I have now successfully fitted my new Android Head Unit WAHOO! I did not purchase any ISO lead adapter set as i am happy soldering them together for a stronger fit. I originally soldered up the pre amp to the speakers wires but this was wayyyyyyyyy to quiet. so decided to do the "Buster" Mod and this worked a treat, the loudness was back!!! My neighbours will hate me for another day HURRRAAAHH Thanks again 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben–350Z Posted March 26, 2018 Share Posted March 26, 2018 No problem, glad you got it working! Fair enough soldering it straight in - I just like keeping things reversible as much as possible. Best not annoy the neighbours _too_ much. I hear moving house is even more expensive than owing a Zed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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