New Audio install

[Anonymous]

Hi All,

Right, I've read through all I can find on the subject of changing the HU and front speakers in my prefacelift MR2 Roadster (UK car).

H/U
I think I'm going to go for the Alpine CDE9850RI. This seems to be a popular choice on this forum and should work well with my Ipod.

I've been looking for a head unit removal "how-to" but can't find one. Does the stock unit have the regular sony key removal?

As far as I can understand no adaptors are needed to fit the unit, just the Toyota to ISO converter for the cabling? and also a single din "cubby hole" to go in underneath? is this right?

Speakers

I'm look into the options for the speakers and can't make my mind up. I am prepared to spend up to 300 quid on the speakers (but would prefer less), but not sure what to go for? I will prob get the head unit from car audio direct, so maybe one of the ones that they stock?:

 m http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/index.p ... =5d&page=1 m

I've had some Boston Acoustics before and they were good, so that could be an option?

Sound deadening

Has anyone had any experience of any of these sound deadening products?
 m http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/index.php?cPath=73_72 m

Thanks all, any help would be greatly appreciated!

[roger]

As far as speakers go, I used Infinity Kappa (less than £100 on ebay including tweeters & crossovers). I think they are excellent. Stu (kanujunkie) swears by Rainbows, others like Focals, very much each to his own, I think.

I bought sound deadening from Matt (one of our members) here

[aaronjb]

I've been looking for a head unit removal "how-to" but can't find one. Does the stock unit have the regular sony key removal?

 m http://www.spydermagazine.com/2000/july ... stereo.htm m

[Anonymous]

Well, for speakers I quite fancy the Alpine X type (£250), Or the DLS UR6i (£450) from CAD. Or there is the Diamond M/D661 (£360). I've just put in some Pioneer TS-C171PRS into my roadster and they sound fantastic.....(£350).

I use R-blox for sound deadening..... but then that's probably cause I sell it (shameless plug time)   s:oops: :oops: s:oops:  

Iso adapter leads can be bought from  w www.autoaudioaccessories.co.uk w    s:lol: :lol: s:lol:   along with R-blox and fascia adapters. I might also throw in some free speaker wire (12 or 16AWG) for you..... depending on how much you spend in my shop   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

[markiii]

 m http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=12583 m

[Draggon]

http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=12583

Aye will vote for that guide...helped me a treat....along with Matss connector...all worked great  s:) s:)

[Anonymous]

Wow, what a quick response! Thanks all!

Ahhh I see, please forgive my stupidity at the removal. Reading through the threads I thought this wasn't needed. I'll get onto MrT now.

Matt,
whats the difference between "R-Blox Extreme Speaker Kit" and "R-Blox Extreme Custom Kit" any idea how much of either would I need to line both doors?

Still not sure about the speakers though. Any further insight would be helpful. Can't find anyone who stocks the focals either.

[Anonymous]

...whats the difference between "R-Blox Extreme Speaker Kit" and "R-Blox Extreme Custom Kit" any idea how much of either would I need to line both doors?....

Speaker kit is 2 sheets of 12inch x 12inch = 2sq foot.
Custom kit is a roll measuring 36inch x 18inch so about 3.5sq foot.

It depends on how crazy you want to go...... For the MR2 I just used one of the cutom kits and it seems to do the job just fine   s:) s:)

What kind of sound do you want from your speakers? What kind of music do you like? Sparkling treble? Mid bass? Do you plan on putting in subs later? Are you going to amp them?

[Anonymous]

No subs, I need the storage space.

Wasn't thinking of using any amps.

I listen to very varied music (Rock,pop,electronic etc etc) , which isn't a lot of help. I favour good mid range to thumping bass. I do like a nice clear sound (good treble).  any help?

My thoughts (maybe wrongly) is that the MR2 is a great car, but not exactly the best choice for an audiophile. It's a bit too noisey in my opinion. So I'm not expecting the world and I don't see the point of going down the route of subs, amps etc. (Although I'm not knocking people who have) So just a decent head unit, linked up well to a nice pair of speakers.

[Anonymous]

I'd go for the Diamonds then. Lovely crisp, clear treble and vocals with good mid range but if anything a little lacking on the bass front. If you can afford them go for the D661

 m http://caraudiosecurity.com/shop/produc ... /5172.html m

You have 90mm to play with between the door card and window just in case you wondered.

[Anonymous]

I'd go for the Diamonds then. Lovely crisp, clear treble and vocals with good mid range but if anything a little lacking on the bass front. If you can afford them go for the D661

 m http://caraudiosecurity.com/shop/produc ... /5172.html m

You have 90mm to play with between the door card and window just in case you wondered.

Thanks Matt, I think I need to go and hear some.

Thanks for the info too, I had thought about that, but knowing the exact dimensions is very good info.

[MRMike]

Hi All,

Right, I've read through all I can find on the subject of changing the HU and front speakers in my prefacelift MR2 Roadster (UK car).

H/U
I think I'm going to go for the Alpine CDE9850RI. This seems to be a popular choice on this forum and should work well with my Ipod.

I've been looking for a head unit removal "how-to" but can't find one. Does the stock unit have the regular sony key removal?

As far as I can understand no adaptors are needed to fit the unit, just the Toyota to ISO converter for the cabling? and also a single din "cubby hole" to go in underneath? is this right?

Speakers

I'm look into the options for the speakers and can't make my mind up. I am prepared to spend up to 300 quid on the speakers (but would prefer less), but not sure what to go for? I will probably get the head unit from car audio direct, so maybe one of the ones that they stock?:

 m http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/index.p ... =5d&page=1 m

I've had some Boston Acoustics before and they were good, so that could be an option?

Sound deadening

Has anyone had any experience of any of these sound deadening products?
 m http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/index.php?cPath=73_72 m

Thanks all, any help would be greatly appreciated!

Boston Acoustics are great speakers! I had some in my car and they were fantastic! Heath has some in his car as well

[Anonymous]

speaker wise for 300 I woudl buy the DLS UP6s - oh wait I did!!!

THats a good guide looks scary but straightforward, the missus is not too happy at me taking her brand new car apart but hey!!

[Leeber]

Ian, from what you've said about your tastes in music etc. I reckon that you may well find that you need a sub of some description. A good pair of door speakers driven by a decent aftermarket HU will be a huge improvement over the stock sound, that is until you decide to drive over 60mph with the top down. At that point most of the bass and a lot of the mid will be drowned out by road/wind noise.
I am by no means an expert on this subject and I do hope that you find a sound you are happy with without having to go down the sub route but like you I have a very varied taste in music and I found that even a small "space-saving" sub in the storage bin behind my seat made all the difference.
Mind you, my door speakers (Rainbows) only cost about £100 as opposed to the £300 that you're looking at spending, it might be that for that sort of money you can get a pair of speakers that can squeeze a decent amount of bass out of the space in the doors although I suspect you'll need more than just the output of the HU to drive them properly. As I say, I'm no expert but this was my experience.

HTH

[heathstimpson]

Hi All,

Right, I've read through all I can find on the subject of changing the HU and front speakers in my prefacelift MR2 Roadster (UK car).

H/U
I think I'm going to go for the Alpine CDE9850RI. This seems to be a popular choice on this forum and should work well with my Ipod.

I've been looking for a head unit removal "how-to" but can't find one. Does the stock unit have the regular sony key removal?

As far as I can understand no adaptors are needed to fit the unit, just the Toyota to ISO converter for the cabling? and also a single din "cubby hole" to go in underneath? is this right?

Speakers

I'm look into the options for the speakers and can't make my mind up. I am prepared to spend up to 300 quid on the speakers (but would prefer less), but not sure what to go for? I will probably get the head unit from car audio direct, so maybe one of the ones that they stock?:

 m http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/index.p ... =5d&page=1 m

I've had some Boston Acoustics before and they were good, so that could be an option?

Sound deadening

Has anyone had any experience of any of these sound deadening products?
 m http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/index.php?cPath=73_72 m

Thanks all, any help would be greatly appreciated!

Boston Acoustics are great speakers! I had some in my car and they were fantastic! Heath has some in his car as well

Oh yes I have the Bostons and they are extremely good  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

[Anonymous]

Ok, as I'm stuck in the states at the moment working, I'm going to give the credit card some exercise. I think it would be rude not to spend a little money on the '2 whilst I'm away neglecting it.

basically I cn't get the head unit over here due to the difference in radio frequencies. But I should be able to get some speakers. But I won't be able to check fitment prior to putchasing or returning back to the uk.

So just to check I'm after a set of 6 1/2" speakers with a depth of less than 90mm?

Thanks all.

[Anonymous]

Correct

[Anonymous]

right, after some extensive research I think I'm going with the following:


Speakers Focal Access 165 A1
 m http://www.focal-america.com/Products/I ... 1_info.pdf m
$250.00 - About £135.00

Amp Alpine PDX 2.150
 m http://www.alpine-usa.com/en/products/p ... =PDX-2.150 m
$350.00 - about £190.00

What is everyones opinion? good combination? good prices? I need to order these on Monday, so anyones opinion would be welcomed and valued.

[enid_b]

sorry, im a bit late on replying to this,

i have the 9850ri and it works an absolute dream with the ipod.

if u need any more help then pm me with pleasure

E

[Anonymous]

Thanks Enid, I've not bought the HU yet. Anything I should look out for?

[enid_b]

no, its dead easy to fit - even for a electrophobe like me.  

things to watch for/might need

-the wiring harness that converts the toyota plugs to standard ISO ones,
-fascia adaptor - rubbish ones from halfrauds, good ones from matt
-dynamat the insides of the doors, and behind speakers - makes a huge difference
- cable ties to hide the HU to glove box wire

- the only down side is that this HU (as with most aftermarket ones) will mean that your aerial is in the up position when the HU is powered up. this is irrespective of whether u are actually using the radio or not - a pain in the derriere in my opinion.

my next mod will be to convert the pax window seat switch into an antenna up/down switch - actually giving it a purpose in life.

overall i am over the moon with this HU, it sounds the business, and is simple to use, there are lots of advanced features to tinker with.  It sounds like we have similar tastes in music style, so you wont be disappointed.

got mine off ebay - about 160 quid new and delivered.

let me know if i can assist further

focal speakers should be good too, i have heard very good things bout them, but im too tight to fork out for em.

E

[Anonymous]

Thanks Enid,

Some really useful info. Can't wait to get it all fitted now, but could be a few weeks before I get the time.

With regards to fitting it I was going to go for the bits from mrT as in below:
 m http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=12583 m

I guess you didn't go down this route?

The arial always being up doesn't really bother me too much, but I may do the switch mod anyway.

Car Audio Direct have the HU listed as 163 quid, so I guess thats a good price looking at what you paid.

Thanks again for all the info.

Ian.

thanks again

[enid_b]

someone may correct me on this ian, but im not sure u need all the parts listed on that thread.

that thread relates to an install starting from scratch.  i had to ditch the two metal covers on the sides, as the new HU would not fit with those in aswell without bending the two bars.

mine is bolted straight into the support pillars there are some nifty holes in the HU that line up wonderfully.

i think you may be best waiting til you have whipped out your stock HU and then you will see exactly what you need.

the main thing required is the ISO adaptors for the wiring loom.

E

[Anonymous]

Excellent. Thanks that's probably saved me buying a whole load of stuff I didn't need.

So did you just buy the fascia then? how much was it? does it look stock?

Sorry for all of the questions.

[enid_b]

you keep askin mate, its about time i gave info instead of just takin it.

the fascia is from matt.  a quick search will reveal his location (wud do it but im working and am short of time just now.)  it was £18 i recall.  it looks pretty good, you get a storage tray under the HU.  there is some discussion on whether the old rim (double din) will fit under or over it. personally i could not get it to fit so i nobbed it off.

depending on how much of a perfectionist you are will decide whether you need it on or not.  im quite happy without the outside edge, it doesnt look bad.

the screws n stuff, i just used the ones that came out of the stock unit.

keep askin if u need more, i can even take some piccies of mine if u want, its no trouble.

E