Fox Body Stereo Deck Options

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dwight - 05 Dec 2007 17:14 GMT

>rant<

Ford made over 1,000,000 Fox-body Mustangs. Today, there are probably far
fewer still out and about, but even so... How come EVERYTHING seems to be a
problem for these cars? Everything has to involve modifications or
allowances.

Take stereos. There don't appear to be any direct fit models out there. No
drop-in alternatives, they all involve some sort of modification. And, god
forbid, if you have the Ford Premium Sound system, it's even worse. Or so my
meager investigation would leave me to believe.

>end rant<

CFrog - 1993 GT convertible, currently has the base Ford stereo w/CD (and
the CD player doesn't work).

So I want to pop in a new stereo deck...

. MP3 input - can't go anywhere without my Nano. I want to be able to
connect the iPod direct to the deck (optional cable is fine).

. Good native power. I don't mind upgrading the (4) existing speakers, but
I'd rather not get into preamps or subwoofers at this point. At least, not
for this car.

. EQ - something more than a 3-band would be great

Have any of you recently had a new deck installed without significant
problems, and, if so, what model?

(TFrog, by the way, has the Premium Sound system, but AM/FM/Cassette.
Remember cassettes?)

dwight
www.tfrog.com

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Joe - 06 Dec 2007 02:02 GMT

>>rant<
>
[quoted text clipped - 33 lines]
> dwight
> www.tfrog.com

My LX had the same stereo setup - Premium Sound (amp under the passenger
seat) with AM/FM/Cassette and six speakers. Years ago I took care of
that mess with a Sony CD w/7-band EQ, a set of 5x7 Polks for the rear,
and a set of Polk 6-1/2 components for the front. The sound quality
went from piss-poor to outstanding in less than a day.

Here's what you need to get:
Head unit: http://tinyurl.com/2acggy (get the iPod adapter also)
Rear speakers: http://tinyurl.com/38r79v
Front speakers: http://tinyurl.com/2ot94h

The JVC head unit has HD radio (FM sounds like a CD, AM sounds like FM),
a 7-band EQ, SRS, and an optional iPod adapter. It's also got plenty of
on-board power. I've got one in my Dakota, and it is simply
outstanding.

The speakers are current versions of what I put in the LX years ago.
After comparing the Polks to Infinitys (I have a pair of each in the
truck), I have to say the Polks run rings around the Infinitys.

Crutchfield will give you a free head unit adapter, and the speakers
(except for the tweeters in the dash) will bolt right in. You'll have
to fabricate some kind of mounting brackets if you want to put the
tweeters under the dash grills, or you can just mount them right on top.
I went for the under-dash mount, as it looked completely stock.

If the convertible doesn't have the Premium Sound (i.e., the stock head
unit speaker leads run right to the speakers), you can plug the JVC
right into the factory harness (Crutchfield supplies the free harness
adapter) and use the car's speaker wiring. If you have the Premium
Sound, you'll have to run your own speaker wires from the JVC to the 4
speakers, but it's not that difficult.

Best of luck - I guarantee the above system will knock your socks off
for minimal investment. BTW, if you want to get away even cheaper, just
get the head unit and do the speakers another time. Sound improvement
will still be substantial.

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dwight - 06 Dec 2007 02:35 GMT

>>>rant<
>>
[quoted text clipped - 42 lines]
> Here's what you need to get:
> Head unit: http://tinyurl.com/2acggy (get the iPod adapter also)

Head unit. Not stereo. Not deck. Head unit. I have to try harder to keep up.
That JVC model looks great. The 20watt rating is good enough for you? I've
been looking at Alpines. I had a ...head unit... in my '84 LX, along with a
great little 7band EQ tucked up under the glovebox, and it was fantastic. It
also had Boston Acoustics sprinkled about. Of couse, that was ages ago, but
Alpine's got a number of iPod-ready models that look compatible.

> Rear speakers: http://tinyurl.com/38r79v
> Front speakers: http://tinyurl.com/2ot94h
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> After comparing the Polks to Infinitys (I have a pair of each in the
> truck), I have to say the Polks run rings around the Infinitys.

I'll take your word on the Polks. I could probably pop in the rear and door
speakers myself, but those little dash speakers look like a bitch. Would the
whole dash have to come out? Maybe I should save that for the inevitable
heater core replacement... :)

> Crutchfield will give you a free head unit adapter, and the speakers
> (except for the tweeters in the dash) will bolt right in. You'll have
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
> get the head unit and do the speakers another time. Sound improvement
> will still be substantial.

Princess is first. She's still driving her mom's old 1999 Mystique, with one
remaining working speaker. This is where all of this comes from. For
Christmas, she's getting a new ...head unit... (iPod-ready, of course) and
four new speakers. I was going to let the Geek Squad at BestBuy handle that
installation. If they did a good job, I was going to let them have CFrog.

BestBuy doesn't seem to offer Polks (Infinities, yes). As I write this, I'm
thinking of buying an Alpine along with a foursome of Polks and installing
those components myself. If I leave the dash speakers alone and pop the
Alpine into the harness, how bad can it be?

Alpines all seem to be HD-ready (which requires a separate HD tuner), while
your JVC has HD built in. Are you able to use it, and, if so, is it all that
superior? (I only know of one station here broadcasting in HD and it's -
naturally - the all-news station.)

dwight

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Joe - 06 Dec 2007 12:33 GMT

>>>>rant<
>>>
[quoted text clipped - 46 lines]
> keep up. That JVC model looks great. The 20watt rating is good enough
> for you? I've been looking at Alpines.

20watts RMS/channel is about all you'll get from any stereo (or head
unit), and it's plenty. With all 4 speakers, 80watts RMS is decent.

> I had a ...head unit... in my
> '84 LX, along with a great little 7band EQ tucked up under the
> glovebox, and it was fantastic. It also had Boston Acoustics sprinkled
> about. Of couse, that was ages ago, but Alpine's got a number of
> iPod-ready models that look compatible.

The Alpines are very nice, but they're a bit on the expensive side.
Depending on your listening needs, you may not need to go that high.

Try comparison shopping on Crutchfield.com - you can plug in your car
and compare different head units' features and prices. If nothing else,
it gives you a good idea of what you get for your money.

>> Rear speakers: http://tinyurl.com/38r79v
>> Front speakers: http://tinyurl.com/2ot94h
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
> bitch. Would the whole dash have to come out? Maybe I should save that
> for the inevitable heater core replacement... :)

If you put the tweeters under the dash grills, all you have to remove
are the grills themselves. I fabricated mounting brackets for the
tweeters out of Erector set parts that were held in by the screws that
held the original speakers in place. The grills themselves just snap in
and out.

>> Crutchfield will give you a free head unit adapter, and the speakers
>> (except for the tweeters in the dash) will bolt right in. You'll
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> BestBuy handle that installation. If they did a good job, I was going
> to let them have CFrog.

It's not that hard to do the installation yourself, because Crutchfield
provides all the mounting brackets and wiring adapters. They even tell
you what tools you'll need for the job. If you can catch one of their
sales, you can come away with a decent bargain.

I've never had anything installed from BB, but who knows who'll be
messing with your car?

> BestBuy doesn't seem to offer Polks (Infinities, yes). As I write
> this, I'm thinking of buying an Alpine along with a foursome of Polks
> and installing those components myself. If I leave the dash speakers
> alone and pop the Alpine into the harness, how bad can it be?

Exactly. The head unit's no problem, as that just pops right in. The
worst you'll have with speakers is removing the door panels and messing
with the power window/lock switches. Not bad at all.

> Alpines all seem to be HD-ready (which requires a separate HD tuner),
> while your JVC has HD built in. Are you able to use it, and, if so, is
> it all that superior? (I only know of one station here broadcasting in
> HD and it's - naturally - the all-news station.)
>
> dwight

Eclipse, Alpine, Kenwood, and now Sony all have HD-ready front ends, but
the HD box ranges from $150 to $400 extra (over and above the cost of
the head unit itself). The JVC's got it built in, and now Dual has a
couple units with built-in HD, but they're a bit on the cheap side. I
didn't want to mess with an external box (and the extra expense), so the
JVC was my obvious choice for HD. For $140 and no sales tax, you can't
go wrong. The JVC will sound every bit as good as a $250 Alpine.

Receiving HD is a bit more tenuous than analog, but the sound quality is
unbelievable. Here (South Florida), almost all the stations are HD, and
the terrain is relatively flat, so reception is not a problem. More
than half the stations are also broadcasting multichannel, so you get
two stations (sometimes three) where you only had one on analog. And
all the HD2/HD3 stations are commercial-free. For instance, the local
jazz station broadcasts classical on their HD2, and the local new rock
station broadcasts classic rock on their HD2. All without commercials
in CD-quality sound.

Here's where you can find out who's broadcasting HD in your area:
http://www.hdradio.com/find_an_hd_digital_radio_station.php

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GILL - 06 Dec 2007 02:53 GMT

> My LX had the same stereo setup - Premium Sound (amp under the passenger
> seat) with AM/FM/Cassette and six speakers. Years ago I took care of
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> get the head unit and do the speakers another time. Sound improvement
> will still be substantial.

Hey Joe, I bought that same JVC
head unit, maybe off your
recommendation from an earlier
post, I'm not sure.

It's true what you say about this
unit and Crutchfield, except it
only took about 30 minutes to
install. (Ranger supercab)

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Tropic Green Y2K Mustang GT
W/bits & pieces
http://tinyurl.com/2uqoat

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Joe - 06 Dec 2007 12:35 GMT

>> My LX had the same stereo setup - Premium Sound (amp under the
>> passenger seat) with AM/FM/Cassette and six speakers. Years ago I
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> only took about 30 minutes to
> install. (Ranger supercab)

Yeah, and now Crutchfield's got it for $140 w/rebate; my neighbor got
one for $150 last year. But even at full price it's a deal.

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