I just got a 97 Acura CL 3.0.
The car comes with a full BOSE sound system. I want to switch my BOSE head unit with a Sony Xplode head unit. When I took my car to the sound shop they said it wouldn't be as easy as switching them. They told me they would have to do some re-wiring to get the system to work.
I didn't really believe them, because all those guys want money.

So.... I called the BOSE company and asked them about it. They said if I took out my BOSE head unit I would have to take out every single BOSE speaker in the car. This is because each BOSE speaker is self-amplified and won't work with my Sony Xplode head unit. When I went online to this forum I asked some people about it. They said that all I gotta do is rip-out the old head unit and install the new one. So I got people online saying the BOSE speakers will work with the new head unit, And I have the sound shop plus the BOSE company(unless it was some uninformed prick) telling me that I can't install the new head unit and use the factory speakers? *Keep in mind i have a 97 Acura CL 3.0* So it might be different from some of the new CL's

If anyone knows the real answer to this question please help me out! I will be forever in your debt. Thank you!

 

locusin,
I got your PM, however, I cannot answer your question since I'm not familiar with the 1st Gen setup. I can only point out a thing or two.
1. I dont think Bose speakers are self-amplified. They are powered by a Bose amp located somewhere in your car. The guy may be right about rewiring but it's a simple operation, nothing complicate.

2. There is always a way to get your Sony HU to work with your stock. I hope 1st Gen guy will chime in and show you how.

Get a 2nd and I'll help you as much as I can .

 

you can install a new deck in your car... running the new deck to the stock amp will create noise in the system though. The speakers are not self amplified... rather there is a seperate amplifier in the trunk... next to the jack, behind the trunk linning. Some cars with Bose stereos have small amplifiers mounted to each speaker, but thats not the case with Acura's.

To get the best possible sound quality out of your new deck, removing all the Bose equipment is the best idea.

I have never added a new deck to the stock amp/system... so I am not sure what will happen. If you run the speaker outputs of the new deck to the bose amp, you will get a lot of noise in the system and possibly damage the amp in the sony deck over time. You can try to run the RCA pre-amp outputs of the deck to the bose amp, and see what happens with that...

sorry i cant tell you more... but good luck with it.

 

SumkidwithaCL

Thanks for the info. What if I take out the BOSE amp entirely and put in my own Logic 600W amp, and connect my BOSE speakers plus my new head unit to the Logic amp?

 

Love the old saying..."No highs, no lows, must be BOSE"

 

a different amp only creates its own set of problems... the bose speakers do not handle much power, so you'd either end up with really crappy sounding results or blow the speakers...

Bose does suck, and its very difficult to add on to and make it sound good... unfortunatly the best bet is to start fresh with everything.

 

Amen.

 

i dunno. i put in a new alpine high power deck and everything sounded fine. all i did was connect it, and all the BLOSE speakers sounded hella better. but once you start tinkering, you want a sub, then some components, then some 6X9s, and a powerful amp to drive them, then a cap...

 

Mikeonay I might just put in the head unit and see what happens. I got another question though. What if i keep the factory head unit and speakers to my BOSE system but add a AMP and a SUB. Can i turn down the bass on my speakers but keep my SUB bumpin, or is the BOSE system gonna fuck wit dat too ?

 

You will never be happy trying to add to the Bose system and unfortunately the only real option is to remove it all together and start over.
A sub will improve the bass, but the Bose headunit is still sending signal to the sub amp and sub, so the quality of bass will be poor.
You may be happy at first with a few add ons, but will eventually be disappointed as I was.
Bite the bullet and spend the money to replace everything or leave it the way it is.

 

Yah i've finally decided to remove the whole entire PIECE OF SHIT BOSE SYSTEM!!

What are the best speakers ever made ? What brand and model # !
Who makes the best subs ?

 

I recommend Focal Polykevlars or Utopias (the Utopia is Focal's top of the line, the Polykevlar are next in line...the only difference btw the 2 is the tweeter & cone design, they sound almost the same though). As far as subs...I recommend the JL Audio 13W7's. They're costly but they're clear and hit HARD .

 

You sure? No adapters or converters? Do you know if it has 'V-Drive' intrnal amplifier? I'm thinking about getting an Alpine head unit for my first gen.

I found these here people on acura-tl.com forum: http://www.linkmeup.com They offer BOSE conversion adapters for all cars and purposes.

 

bose is ok for stock, it is bearable, but not enjoyable.

 

Damn, you guys are right on with this BOSE blows shit.

I do not consider myself an audiofile by any stretch of the immagination, however, I do like the sound coming out of my freiking radio to have a little "depth" to it. The stock radio system in my wife's Jeep Cherokee and my Sebring Convertable make the sound in my 99 CL 3.0 sound like a hand held AM radio.

That sucks. SO, I have one question, can I take out all the bose
shit and keep the integrity of the dash. Or will no matter what I switch to look like its aftermarket.

 

I don't think you can afford the best speakers ever made...that's a pretty uneducated sounding question.

You want something that satisfies your requiremeets and that of the music you listen to most, while staying relatively affordable.

MB Quart and McIntosh make some of the best IMO.

 

ok, I will rephrase my question in a more educated format. Which brand of speakers are known for reliability? I am a big fan of the music genre known as Drum n Bass. Which speakers utilize the sounds of this genre?

 

i use rockford fosgate amps, i love em and theyre always more powerful then they say they are on the box.