I keep sitting on the fence about replacing my head unit, and I've decided to keep it for now. Once I have replaced the amp and speakers it will be a simple matter to connect a head unit if I decide to do so at a later date.

I haven't pulled the factory amp on my 996, but are there 6 sets of speaker wires running to the 6 speakers int he system? Does anyone have the color codes for which wire color goes to which speaker? I'll be replacing the wire going to the sub in each door as I'm placing 2 8" subs behind the back seats. Also, what is running to the factory amp from the head unit? Is it an RCA cable, or are there line-out speaker wires running to the amp? If the wires feeding the signal to the amp are speakers wires, are there two sets or only one set? (I need to know so I can buy either a stereo or mono line converter).

Lastly, I have the navigation system in my car (the double DIN unit). I didn't know if the wiring for it might be any different. Thanks!

 

I found this over on Pelican Parts it may be of help to you:
If your car does not have an external amplifier, then the speakers for the Carrera will plug directly into the brown connector B on the back of the radio. If your Carrera has an external amplifier, then there will be a smaller yellow connector that outputs the signals from the head unit to the amplifier.
http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...stallation.htm

 

Thanks for the input. Yes--mine does have the external amp, and I thought this would likely make things quite a bit easier. I'll be sure to post back with my results when I finally get around to getting it done!

 

Be sure to measure the impedance of the existing speakers. If I recall correctly, the impedance of the Bose system in my 986 Boxster was REALLY low - low enough that it would have torched an 8-ohm amp. I have a recollection of 2 ohms, but maybe that was the subwoofer...

I wound up using an Alpine PDX-5 (http://www.crutchfield.com/S-fkPoZ9H...ine-PDX-5.html), as it was one of the few that was stable at very low impedance with the number of channels I needed. It was also stupid expensive at the time...

 

Yes, please post anything you find as I'm also interested in some stereo mods in the future.

 

Will do. The amp I have is a Kicker ZXM700.5. It's a marine amp that I used previously in my boat, and is capable of driving 2 ohm loads on the 4 full-range speaker channels (85w per channel) as well as on the sub channel (400w there). It's a massive amp, which is the primary drawback. About the only place it will fit is in the front of the trunk mounted vertically. It's also way, way overpowered for such a small enclosure, but I don't want to spend more money knowing I have a great amp that I can use.

I do intend to replace the 4 full-range speaker in the car with Alpine SPS-410 speakers, and I'll be building a custom enclosure for two 8-inch Kicker 10C8-4 subs that I'll wire in parallel to give me a 2 ohm load (so I'll get the full 400w of power from the amp).

As for time, right now I'm burning the candle at both ends along with a big blow torch in the middle. I hope to have some free time open up at the beginning of December, and when I start my project I plan to document everything in great detail. I'll be sure to post the impedance for the factory speakers as I replace them.

 

excellent! Please keep us posted on your progress.

I just picked up a '99 myself - also with the M490 stereo which uses an external amp.
Not Bose.

I do want to swap the HU to pick up BT and iPOD connection.

My thought was to upgrade the front 4 speakers initially and keep the factory amp.
Maybe eventually replace that - I have a decent 4x60W amp from a past stereo that could be used - I think eventually that would be the plan and throw some woofers in the back somewhere. I have a nice sub amp sitting around collecting dust, may as well use that.

I think this car will be easier to upgrade than my M5 with the M-audio, and that one doesn't sound too bad anyway.

I may even have some speakers sitting around that might fit somewhere in the 996 - I need to dig through my attic to see what may be lurking around from a long past custom install.

 

Make sure you check the docs to ensure vertical mounting is acceptable. With the Alpine amp, mounting it in any orientation other than horizontally voided the warranty.

I mounted it vertically, BTW. F the warranty.

 

Here's a link to a DIY for replacing he dash and rear speakers (the rear 996 speakers are the same as the dash speakers)
http://986forum.com/forums/diy-proje...placement.html

I made an adapter so you dont have to destroy the factory speakers
PM me and I will send it to you

Also look at the Infinity speakers, they are a little more efficient than the Alpine speakers and sound great. I used them as well as some others I know