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Few questions for a total audio n00b

R

Rkrajnov

New member
Ok, I have a 2005 grand prix gxp with the monsoon system. I was looking to make a few upgrades to the sound in my car. Pretty much the basic, a headunit, amp, and subs. I was also wondering if I should think about new speakers as well? The monsoons are pretty good for a stock sound system, but I don't know if you guys think it would be worthwhile upgrading them. I'll probably leave them stock for a while I'm figuring though, because I can only spend so much at once.

I have another question is well which is about the GMCO integration harness. Someone awared me of this, and I'm unsure if it's really necessary or not. If not, I couldn't care less about my warning chimes, so I'd rather not pay $100 for it, but if it serves other more important functions, I will definitely get it.

Anyways, I'd prefer the head unit off of the selection they have on crutchfield as it comes with an instruction manual and free shipping (if anyones ordered a good one off there that would be great). I've also heard good things about pioneer and alpine so I probably want one of those. Just looking for reccs on a specific model (preferably one thats very ipod friendly as I will frequently be using my ipod with it).

As far as the subs and amp go, I assume they're decently easy to hook up, but any recommendations on some good ones would be awesome. I'm not looking for anything top of the line, but I do want them to be good. I'd say mid price range. I'm not limiting myself to any particular price, but anything too high end is probably a no go. I'm probably leaning towards a couple 10s as far as subs go considering i listen to a lot more rock/punk/metal then rap, so I've heard smaller subs are better for that. Also, because of my music choice, I want very good clarity on the subs. Something with very little distortion would be preferable. I mean obviously I still want them to hit hard, but I'm more concerned about a clear fresh sound rather than subs that hit really hard with tons of distortion.

Also, one last thing. With black friday coming up, do you guys know of anywhere that offers good deals on car audio and what not? Best buy comes as an obvious, but they'd probably still rip you off even on black friday, so is there anywhere else you guys know of that is a non-online store where I might be able to buy some of this?

Thanks a lot for the help guys. This is my first time ever fooling with car audio, so I want to make sure I'm getting what I want and getting the most for my money.
 
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Also, one last question. Is there anything else I need to hook this stuff all up? I'm fairly confident I can do it on my own and would rather do that then pay for a shop too (plus I'll probably have my buddy help me), but I want to make sure I got everything I need.
 
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care to expand a little on your budget for the sub and amp?

The smaller subs being better for certain types of music is total BS.

you'll definately want to run sealed subs though.
 
If I was you, i'd look into an alpine cda-117 or a kenwood kdc-x793. As for subs matt is right, He's got an 18" and i've got a 15" and love it. Picks up the lows nicely. again pretty hard to go anywhere without a budget.
 


I guess I don't really have a budget because I don't know how much I should be expecting to spend on any of this stuff. I probably don't wanna go over a grand for the subs, amp, and head unit. So I'd say 1 grand total is probably my limit.
 
josemolina2008 said:
Yeah sealed is your better choice for rock and don't forget about getting your power wires.
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What kind of power wires do I need? I have no experience with any of this stuff. If you or someone could send a link to what exactly it is and where I could get them that would be great.

Also can anyone answer my question about the GMCO integration harness. is there anything i need to do if i don't install it?
 
you will loose your steering wheel controls for sure

you will need a security bypass module to make the head unit work, those are couple hundred dollars

carpet on both sides will need to be pulled up for wires

power cable from battery to trunk needs to be run

there is more to this install then you think

be easier to get a car with a better stereo
 


tod1d said:
you will loose your steering wheel controls for sure

you will need a security bypass module to make the head unit work, those are couple hundred dollars

carpet on both sides will need to be pulled up for wires

power cable from battery to trunk needs to be run

there is more to this install then you think

be easier to get a car with a better stereo
Click to expand...

First u don't need a security bypass My system works fine w/o it. Carpet on both sides is too much dam work b/c of all the plastic you have to pull up run it down the center of your car under the carpet. (also where I have mine) But yes there is a lot more then more ppl think there is to installing a audio system and getting it right. Not only do you have to install it but you also have to tune it. Adjusting frequency and whatnot but most of that is idiot proof now. Just turn a nob on your amp. As for a head-unit use whatever you like. Just don't pay for stuff you wont use. But you will loose door chimes and stuff like that unless you pick up a good harness. (mine was **** and my chimes stoped working 3 days after I put the harness in) If u get a decent head-unit u can wire in your steering wheel controls
 
izup69 said:
First u don't need a security bypass My system works fine w/o it. Carpet on both sides is too much dam work b/c of all the plastic you have to pull up run it down the center of your car under the carpet. (also where I have mine) But yes there is a lot more then more ppl think there is to installing a audio system and getting it right. Not only do you have to install it but you also have to tune it. Adjusting frequency and whatnot but most of that is idiot proof now. Just turn a nob on your amp. As for a head-unit use whatever you like. Just don't pay for stuff you wont use. But you will loose door chimes and stuff like that unless you pick up a good harness. (mine was **** and my chimes stoped working 3 days after I put the harness in) If u get a decent head-unit u can wire in your steering wheel controls
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Eh, well honestly, I don't use the steering wheel controls anyways. Actually to be honest they're kind of annoying cause sometimes I flip songs while turning the wheel. So I really don't care about losing those. Same thing with the chimes. Someone told me that if I don't put in the gmco integration harness that i still need a 12v accessory wire connecting to a true accessory wire location. i didn't know exactly what he meant by that, so could anyone clarify the situation.
 
You need a 12v turn on. The system is typically referred to as RAP on the 04+. I'm not quite sure what the older models use. Anyways, VERY simple...you just need a 12V turn on wire in addition to a 12V always on wiring directly to the H/U. Essentially, the car is "smart" and separates accessories from the rest of the electrical system. This allows the radio to play after you turn off the car until the front door opens, etc.

Anyways, you could even put a switch in-line with a power source that is always on; i.e. run directly from the battery. Bottom line, you don't want the radio to be on forever.
 


I800C0LLECT said:
You need a 12v turn on. The system is typically referred to as RAP on the 04+. I'm not quite sure what the older models use. Anyways, VERY simple...you just need a 12V turn on wire in addition to a 12V always on wiring directly to the H/U. Essentially, the car is "smart" and separates accessories from the rest of the electrical system. This allows the radio to play after you turn off the car until the front door opens, etc.

Anyways, you could even put a switch in-line with a power source that is always on; i.e. run directly from the battery. Bottom line, you don't want the radio to be on forever.
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ok so where do i get one of those and what should I connect it to?
 
Rkrajnov said:
ok so where do i get one of those and what should I connect it to?
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It's already built into the wiring harness that connects to your stock radio. You purchase a "wire harness" that connects to the factory...then you splice the wires together that are necessary for your h/u to function.

In my vehicle I only connected the dash lights dimmer wire, 12V always on, 12V turn on, a ground wire, and um...that might be it?

But I utilize the RCA outs. There's also wires for the internal amp to connect to the factory speaker wires but they aren't used in my install and I have the option to turn off the internal amp for my deck.
 
I800C0LLECT said:
It's already built into the wiring harness that connects to your stock radio. You purchase a "wire harness" that connects to the factory...then you splice the wires together that are necessary for your h/u to function.

In my vehicle I only connected the dash lights dimmer wire, 12V always on, 12V turn on, a ground wire, and um...that might be it?

But I utilize the RCA outs. There's also wires for the internal amp to connect to the factory speaker wires but they aren't used in my install and I have the option to turn off the internal amp for my deck.
Click to expand...
ok so how do i know which wire is which? do i just match up the colors? And why didn't you use the internal amp wires? did you run your speakers through another amp? if so how do I go about doing that?
 
Check my "signature" for my links and answers concerning my install...

My vehicle used the gmos-04 wire harness initially. I scrapped it because it was stupid. I ended up getting a $30 harness I found at a local audio shop instead since I didn't need all the features of the gmos-04. There's a schematic that breaks down the wire harness into function for you. It should come with the harness you purchase. Crutchfield will supply it with your purchase too. Or you can go to places like the12volt.com and see if any installers have posted one for our vehicle.



EDIT: The first link won't show you pictures from my initial install so scroll to the bottom and see my update. You can see my original install in the second link.
 
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