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New non-OEM head unit for 9000

6K views 4 replies 2 participants last post by  Mackle 
#1 ·
My newly aquired 9000CSE had it's head unit replaced by a previous owner - it's a silver cheap and nasty looking Sony entry level, which only has a Aux-In mini-jack that crackles and fizzes like crazy when I plug an iPhone in to it (and I'm using a Fiio line out adapter and not the headphone out, so the source should be clean!). Now admittidly I've not pulled it out and checked the wiring yet, but from the way that it has to be turned up, it doesn't sound like it's going through any kind of factory amp, so provided that I was okay to try the head unit's built in amp, the wiring should already be in place.

From a functionality/feature point of view, the Clarion CZ703E looks pretty decent as it has bluetooth, and both front and rear USB ports so that means I could have a HDD hidden away or an additional USB charing point, as well as plugging my iPhone in at the front to use as a TomTom and head unit controlled MP3 player. I'm sure that Alpine have something very similar specwise too, with dual USB.

As I don't fancy any sawing or cutting, a double din is out of the question, but I would hazard a guess that a fold out unit could be installed lower down than the original factory position (for example, installed in to where the ash tray or the little cubby hole is) because the additional wiring required for a non-OEM head unit would allow the stretch, and so the head unit would then be able to fold out without obstruction the heating controls. So perhaps that's an avenue for me to consider.

The only problem with modern head units is aesthetics - the old Becker units for example used to feel very solid and not plasticky or gimmicky, but as far as I know Becker aren't in that market any more and as good as the old Traffic Pro Cascades were, they won't have the advanced bluetooth or dual USB connectivity (don't think they have iPod control either).


What installs have my fellow 9000 owners got? Quite interested to see what has been done with head units and centeral consoles :)
 
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#2 ·
Hello mate, when I had my 9k I changed the full system so added an Alpine head unit, swapped the 4" dash speakers out for some "theloudest.com" co axials which were pretty decent to be fair!

Then swapped the rear 6x9's for some Pioneer TSE jobbies but didn't notice any difference here so was a waste of time.

I then fitted a pair of 8" Pioneer TSE-2095 3 way co-axials in the shelf and had these running off a small Alpine mrv-t300 v12 amp which sounded pretty good.

A bit later I fitted a FLi active trap 12" dual sub thingy which was dreadful, then swapped this for a pair of Alpine Type R 1242D subs running off a Alpine MRV-1000 amp....each! One amp blew though so had the pair of the surviving amp which was still deafening!

And finally I swapped the shelf speakers for some Focal ones from the Polyglass range which were fantastic, I had these running off another Alpine v12 amp but this time a MRV-f300.



More info/pics below (I can't upload to photobucket....again!!!)
http://uksaabs.co.uk/UKS/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=52165&start=20

Your a bit limited with the 9k due to the 4" front speakers, a 6.5" component set up would be miles better but you'd have to make some door builds.
 
#5 ·
I used to have a BMW 'vert (E93) and that brushed aluminum (genuine metal, was freezing to touch on a cold day!) and my girlfriend has already said she greatly prefers that over the maple I currently have, especially given the cockpit-type interior of the 9000.

Now if only I could get that, plus caps...
 
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