Hey all - new owner of a 2005
Boxster base
! Woo!
I know that this doesn’t pertain to my question, but this car is *amazing*! I’ve had faster vehicles, but nothing has ever been this much fun to drive.
Anyway, I’ve read lots of posts on switching the radio and speakers. My
Boxster
has the
Bose system
without a changer/nav.
I’m not looking to dynamat anything, the sound of the engine is just fine. What I’m looking for is a bit better tone from the system, and to move the head unit into this decade. There are lots of options, and I’ve installed car stereos for some time. I’m looking to y’all to let me know if I’m off base.
One thing that’s really nagging me - if I get an adapter to retain the MOST system, will any data from the aftermarket head unit make it to the instrument cluster? I know that’s trivial in many respects, but it’s a nice feature.
The plan (which is more of a brainstorm with no direction) is to replace the factory speakers with JBL Stadium series, as a first step. They are 2.5 ohm, and I can still find the optional midrange with additional crossover that would fit in the current slot. I imagine the sound would improve incrementally, getting a bit better as things are switched out for better gear. The
next
step would be a new head unit, and maybe/maybe not aftermarket amps, depending on cost/retention of factory integration (whose only redeeming feature seems to the song and radio data being displayed on my instrument cluster as there are no steering wheel controls for the stereo, and I don’t want to add any. It just feels that a minimum of a 300 dollar investment to retain scrolling info on the dash may not be money well spent, so I’m open to advise. BTW, $1000 speakers are not in my budget.
I guess the direction that I go with aftermarket amps is dependent on how well the MOST adapters work with aftermarket integration. If the data isn’t displayed in the dash, really I see no point in keeping any part of the system, and may do drastic things, with a scalpel as opposed to a sledgehammer...and if I go with aftermarket amps, then creative mode will kick in and the
Bose
bar in the back will need a bit of work.
I’m considering a
Kenwood
or
Pioneer
head unit (with nav), since my Vehícle did not come with nav as a feature, will there be installation problems for which planning is needed?
I apologize about being so long winded. I tend to see many possibilities and different solutions for different scenarios as a lifelong hobby, and I hope that this isn’t too much for a first post...
I wasn't aware the
987.1
had any dash info. My '08 doesn't, with the
CDR24
(no changer) at least. I recently replaced that headunit with a
Pioneer
NEX unit, and a MOST adapter
https://www.crutchfield.com/p_120PO90052/Axxess-AX-PO90052-Wiring-Interface.html
. The process was pretty straight forward. Stock speakers still, which work fine for me.
Your choices are basically three:
1) Get a Dension unit to add bluetooth and USB connectivity to your radio system - acts as a CD changer in your MOST loop.
2) Get a MOST adapter unit like the NAV-TV HUR module or something like it (cheap Chinese copy) - you keep your
Bose amp
and speakers.
3) Replace the
Bose amp
with an aftermarket 5-channel amp. You can keep the original
Bose speakers
or replace with your favorite models.
Any replacement of the head unit will result in losing the display information on the instrument cluster. I don't miss it. I went with Option 3 keeping the original
Bose speakers
including the "Bassbox" sub that goes on the read deck under the roll bar.
I think that I’ll be replacing the whole deal. Crutchfield carries the JBL Stadium 2 way component system that can be changed to a 3 way system using a JBL midrange as a separate item. Most of the JBL tweets seem to be a little harsh, but for the price compare to Focal, there isn’t much room for argument. Amps are covered - Kicker, RF (please don’t yell), and if I can find a functioning USA Soundstream on fleabay...They made good amps when they were assembled in America...
I have an idea about the sub box in the back...more to follow with this
Stereo selection is a whole different ball game. I’ve been looking, looking, and, well, looking. Onboard nav might be the thing as there are reports that nav through Car Play are laggy. There have been a few reports that other apps routed through this tend to be choppy. Not to veer way off topic, but does anyone have experience with Car Play and nav (Waze or Apple) being slow?
CO987s - I don’t know what to say about lack of radio/CD info on your dash - it shows the info from FM, song/artist/station info or track # from a CD as a scroll...which is nice, but it displays like 1.5 words every few seconds. I’d like it to be *much* faster as I’m staring at the dash instead of glancing at it :/
Moot point, as of now, for me. Maybe I never looked into it through the info screen. I'm really happy with the AVIC-8400 I picked up through Crutchfield. Got it on sale/clearance for I think $750ish. Haven't tried the
android auto
/
carplay
, since it's got nav/traffic built in that works really well.
I changed out the head unit to a nice
Kenwood
and bought the adapter kit for the
Bose amp
.(also added a back up camera) for about $750. I watch several You Tube videos and it made the process fairly simple. The sound is so much better, I used the equalizer in the
Kenwood
and it really increased the performance of the speakers. Eventually, I going to change out the front speakers, for a 3 way system, add a 2 channel amp, run the amp, to the 3 way crossovers and change the rca input going to the
Bose Amp
, to continue to power the sub and the two rear speakers.
I replaced my
Bose amp
with a 5-channel amp.
One thing to look at is the
Cayman
sub - I believe it is in the passenger footwell. My Mercedes SL has its
Bose
sub there as well.
