I've got the stock ford radio with external CD player in lower bay, there's an amp under the passenger seat and the speakers say 'Mach'.
Decided to put in a new stereo receiver (Pioneer), no extra amp or anything fancy, just the radio. Hooked everything up with harness, directly to the speakers, bypass amp, using black long harness pluck.
Everything works BUT it sounds horrible!! All the speakers seem to be working but it sounds like a telephone. The new radio has 4x50 watts so I know it must be capable of doing better.
What to do? Would it be better to use the stock amp? Is there a harness for this rectangular plug?
I've got the stock ford radio with external CD player in lower bay, there's an amp under the passenger seat and the speakers say 'Mach'.
Decided to put in a new stereo receiver (Pioneer), no extra amp or anything fancy, just the radio. Hooked everything up with harness, directly to the speakers, bypass amp, using black long harness pluck.
Everything works BUT it sounds horrible!! All the speakers seem to be working but it sounds like a telephone. The new radio has 4x50 watts so I know it must be capable of doing better.
What to do? Would it be better to use the stock amp? Is there a harness for this rectangular plug?
what plug are you talking about? How did u bypass the amp?
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94 Teal GT 5 spd
Offroad X pipe, 2.5" MAC catback, Underdrives, Steeda springs F/R, Lowered 2'', 3.08's, Aftermarket Cutch and quadrant. Smog delete
I used the black 7-pin plug in hope of getting directly to the speakers. That might be wrong..
My question is simply this: What do I need to do to make my new Pioneer 7100BT work in the mustang. At this point it looks like it might be my best bet to use the stock amp instead of trying to bypass- I really don't care just want to make it sound decent
I wouldnt bypass the stock amps. They arent the best amps available but they are better than nothing. Dont bypass the amps and hook up you wiring harness so it plugs into the factory stereo plugs behind the dash and you should be good to go. Thats how my stereo is wired and it sounds great
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"If you can leave two black stripes from the exit of one corner to the braking zone of the next, you finally enough horsepower" - Mark Donohue
"Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death..." - Hunter Thompson
thanks svtboy.. sounds like you know what needs to be done
so to use the stock amp, I suppose I have to somehow hook the outputs of my new radio to the grey square 6-pin plug..
three questions..
- should I use the speaker outputs of my radio or the pre-amp outputs (it has these round colored non-amplified outputs just like a DVD player or so)
- will the stock amp know when to turn on or off? There is another grey square 4-pin plug that went into the back of the stock radio.. or is that for the external CD player (I don't care about that one)
- do you use a wire harness or just cut open and get the soldering iron out?
thanks svtboy.. sounds like you know what needs to be done
so to use the stock amp, I suppose I have to somehow hook the outputs of my new radio to the grey square 6-pin plug..
three questions..
- should I use the speaker outputs of my radio or the pre-amp outputs (it has these round colored non-amplified outputs just like a DVD player or so)
- will the stock amp know when to turn on or off? There is another grey square 4-pin plug that went into the back of the stock radio.. or is that for the external CD player (I don't care about that one)
- do you use a wire harness or just cut open and get the soldering iron out?
Get the wiring harness. I have it and its simple! Just connect the stock amp connector to the harness then it plugs into the outputs on your new radio. It takes a 4 channel plug so if you only have two out puts(as i did) you will need to get the Y connectors from Radio Shack or the like. And there is a remote wilre (IIRC its blue/white stripe) and when the radio turns on it will send a tiny positve signal to the amps telling them to turn on.
Heres the link to the site where i bought mine. Just put in your Year/Make/Model
i have a question too. I installed an eclipse head unit with the right pre amp plugs in the harness but I didnt see or have an antenna plug. lol I dont have any radio stations and its bugging me. Is there another plug I missed or maybe another adapter
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94 Vibrant Red Vert 5.0, GT40 Intake, BBK 70mm Throttle Body, BBK CAI, Magnaflow Tru X and Magnaflow exhaust, MSD Distributor, Msd Coil, MGW Short throw, NEW FRPP 4.10 gears
Get the wiring harness. I have it and its simple! Just connect the stock amp connector to the harness then it plugs into the outputs on your new radio. It takes a 4 channel plug so if you only have two out puts(as i did) you will need to get the Y connectors from Radio Shack or the like. And there is a remote wilre (IIRC its blue/white stripe) and when the radio turns on it will send a tiny positve signal to the amps telling them to turn on.
This is the best way. Get a wiring harness that you can wire to the back of your new head unit and that will plug into your factory stereo harness. You shouldnt need to run any RCA cable to you factory amps you should only need them if you have an aftermarket amp
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"If you can leave two black stripes from the exit of one corner to the braking zone of the next, you finally enough horsepower" - Mark Donohue
"Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death..." - Hunter Thompson
DITTY - Look around behind your eclipse head unit in the dash and the antenna cable should be back there somewhere. Sometime they are a pain to find back there but it should be there somewhere
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"If you can leave two black stripes from the exit of one corner to the braking zone of the next, you finally enough horsepower" - Mark Donohue
"Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death..." - Hunter Thompson
ok thanks guys, harness is on order, seems this is the way to go. I guess things have changed slightly since I did this last time about 20 years ago.. cars simply had speakers, wires and a radio. I would not have guessed that there are a couple of amps sitting around in my stang that need to be dealt with!!
As for the antenna cable- I forgot this, too the first time. Look carefully with a flashlight, mine was tucked away somewhere to the right inside the upper 'black hole'. Look for a sturdy black wire- you'll find it.
Btw it is easy to get your hands beaten up pretty good by all the sharp edges.. take care.
yeah. The aftermarket harnesse make everything really easy. you can wire up you stereo harness to the aftermarket harness outside the car. then just go and plug it in.
When i got my aftermarket harness for my car ther were a few different types for my year mustang I have a 1994. But once you get the correct one everything is smooth sailing after
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"If you can leave two black stripes from the exit of one corner to the braking zone of the next, you finally enough horsepower" - Mark Donohue
"Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death..." - Hunter Thompson
thanks guys! I found it lol appreciate it i thought i lost my mind for a minute
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94 Vibrant Red Vert 5.0, GT40 Intake, BBK 70mm Throttle Body, BBK CAI, Magnaflow Tru X and Magnaflow exhaust, MSD Distributor, Msd Coil, MGW Short throw, NEW FRPP 4.10 gears
Thanks- I could have messed with this for weeks if you guys had not told me about the harness.
While we're at it.. I still got the stock CD player in the lower bay, which I would like to pull out and convert into a console to put stuff like sunglasses etc. Anybody know if the parts are available?
Yes, a storage pocket is available. What you are looking for is simply a "Din" sized storage pocket.
For the Ford look, use a Ford part. V6 stangs came with a storage pocket in the lower opening. This is what I used in my car because it looks factory. Find one on ebay, or see if you can order from the dealer.
Otherwise, you can buy a universal pocket that will work the same way. Companies such as Metra, American International, and Schosche all make them. You can find a Metra pocket at any Best Buy.
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'94 GT convertible 5-speed: fresh paint, cold air, flowtech shorty headers, o/r x, slp loud mouth 1's, smog pump delete, ford racing clutch---Totalled by an elderly driver. Awaiting lots and lots of body work.
1995 GT stereo installation questions 
