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So I recently purchased a car and, while I'm not an audiophile by any stretch, the head unit currently installed is completely **** and just has to go:
I know next to nothing about stereo systems and am normally happy with factory setups but this aftermarket unit is just so bad. I did some research and apparently this car accommodates a "1.5 DIN" but I presume that I can just go with a single din and some face adapter.
I found a how-to online for pulling out this head unit and it seems easy enough but I'm worried about having to mess with wiring. My question is are these things normally plug-and-play? Even if I remove this 1.5 DIN unit and go with a single din? Are all the 1.5 to 1 face adapters universal?
I am also wondering if anyone has any suggestions for a basic and affordable head unit in the $60-80 range that I can replace this with. Here are my wants:
- Knob for push on/off and volume control
- Preset buttons for saved radio stations
- AUX/USB input so I can play music from my iPhone
- Color scheme to match my car's interior (black interior and the dash backlights are green/teal colored). I would be happy with a black screen with green lettering or maybe a black screen with white lettering.
Go to best buy, they have stereos tht do that. JVC has a line of h/us that can change color, my mama has the hd model, has usb and audio jack, they also have a bluetooth model. They are usually plug and play, although I did have to do some splicing on my bronco, but that is an isolated situation. I can't think of any unit that doesn't habe what you want, except the knob thing, most have moved away from knobs.
Since your car already has an aftermarket radio you could already have a mess of wires back there. It could be something nice like factory harness/connector retained and an adapter used.
Or something like the factor connector was cut out and your left with a electrical tape mess. I would pull out the head unit and see what is going on back there.
If the factory connection is still there something like Crutchfield and their install kits are great. But if the factory connection is gone and you are good with wiring you can do the install with out an install kit.
It will only be 'plug and play' if the HU you choose uses the same connector, which unless you get another Jensen, is highly unlikely.
Like wankel7 said, the amount of headache you'll have will be determined by how the installer went about the wiring. HOPEFULLY, the installer was not a hack and used an adapter harness. In this case, you'll need to unplug the adapter, then either cut off the half that plugs into your car and wire it to your new HU harness or buy a new one and start the whole thing over. You'll have to splice the two harnesses together, which means either crimping or soldering (I always get by using crimps, but it's up to you). It's pretty simple since you typically only have to splice together like-colored wires. No guess work necessary. However, if the installer cut off the stock harness, you're in for some fun.
As for stereo options, there are so many options out there that I'm sure you can find exactly what you want. As you've already determined, you don't need to buy a 1.5 DIN, a single DIN with an adapter will do just fine. I recently installed a Pioneer HU in my old pick-up that has all the features you're looking for and also has Bluetooth. I use Bluetooth to connect to the stereo instead of a headphone jack. It's less wires laying around and allows me to make phone calls hands-free. The unit does NOT have a CD slot, which I thought I might miss at first but that has not proven to be the case. Best part was the price. It was only $100 from Amazon:
At some point, someone will jump in here and recommend Crutchfield. While their prices are not the most competitive, their customer service simply cannot be beat. They'll get you set up with all the adapter and wiring you need if you buy the HU from them, and their tech support folks can walk you through the whole thing.
Thanks everyone for the responses and good point on the mystery setup behind the unit. If I pull the unit forward and snap a pic of the wiring, would that allow any of you guys to get a good idea of what I'm in for?
So if I understand it, harnesses and head unit plugs are not universal? As in a car's 1.5 DIN harness plugs can't be paired with some sort of "universal" 1.5 to 1.0 adapter and then plugged into any single DIN head unit? Nothing is standardized?
Last edited by StriderTacticaL; 02-08-2015 at 12:11 PM..
Thanks everyone for the responses and good point on the mystery setup behind the unit. If I pull the unit forward and snap a pic of the wiring, would that allow any of you guys to get a good idea of what I'm in for?
So if I understand it, harnesses and head unit plugs are not universal? As in a car's 1.5 DIN harness plugs can't be paired with some sort of "universal" 1.5 to 1.0 adapter and then plugged into any single DIN head unit? Nothing is standardized?
The electrical harness in the back is totally independent of the size of your DIN hole. Just google 1.5 din to 1 din to find the brackets to get a single din stereo to fit properly.
So I recently purchased a car and, while I'm not an audiophile by any stretch, the head unit currently installed is completely **** and just has to go:
I know next to nothing about stereo systems and am normally happy with factory setups but this aftermarket unit is just so bad. I did some research and apparently this car accommodates a "1.5 DIN" but I presume that I can just go with a single din and some face adapter.
I found a how-to online for pulling out this head unit and it seems easy enough but I'm worried about having to mess with wiring. My question is are these things normally plug-and-play? Even if I remove this 1.5 DIN unit and go with a single din? Are all the 1.5 to 1 face adapters universal?
I am also wondering if anyone has any suggestions for a basic and affordable head unit in the $60-80 range that I can replace this with. Here are my wants:
- Knob for push on/off and volume control
- Preset buttons for saved radio stations
- AUX/USB input so I can play music from my iPhone
- Color scheme to match my car's interior (black interior and the dash backlights are green/teal colored). I would be happy with a black screen with green lettering or maybe a black screen with white lettering.
Thanks!
Just call "crutchfield" and save yourself a lot of time and effort.
Just call "crutchfield" and save yourself a lot of time and effort.
Agree on Crutchfield. The last 3 vehicles I have had I purchased from them. They will show you what fits your vehicle. And then a selection to choose from. Even get a plug to connect to your vehicles wiring harness. You will have to wire it up from that, but the wires coming off the new unit should be marked.
Most installs use a adapter from the factory harness plug to the new stereo wires. They are so cheap it's stupid to try and hack the factory harness to adapt it to the aftermarket stereo.
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