Aftermarket radio with Mach system?

Rootus

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Feb 8, 2003
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Portland, Oregon
Anybody here have an aftermarket head unit installed with an otherwise stach mach audio system (specifically I'm referring to the system in my Cobra, not the GT). I've got an Alpine MP3 player that I've been using in the GT, and I'd like to move it across to the Cobra, but I'm getting conflicting answers as to whether or not its even possible. On the GT it is just a simple wiring harness :shrug:. I'd rather not replace the entire audio system just to get MP3 to work :)

Dave
 
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You can do it, and they sell a harness for it. I think good guys in Tigard had one when I was looking into an aftermarket head unit. Its a pretty common part, I think car toys also has a module that lets you bypass the stock amps and run the stereo amp instead due to the fact that it will not sound that good with the stock amps and speakers. Everything was meant to work with the stock head unit. You would be better of getting new speakers and a different multichannel amp to run it. Its a little involved but it would be well worth it.
 
I need to have a harness that uses the Mach amps, because my deck doesn't have any amp at all, only pre-outs.

Oh well, maybe I'll just pick up a Ford MP3 player that will plug right in ... not anywhere near as nice as my Alpine deck, but until I'm ready to spend real money on the stereo (read: not anytime soon) ... :shrug:
 
HairyCanary said:
I need to have a harness that uses the Mach amps, because my deck doesn't have any amp at all, only pre-outs.

Oh well, maybe I'll just pick up a Ford MP3 player that will plug right in ... not anywhere near as nice as my Alpine deck, but until I'm ready to spend real money on the stereo (read: not anytime soon) ... :shrug:

Wanna sell you deck to me?
 
HairyCanary said:
I need to have a harness that uses the Mach amps, because my deck doesn't have any amp at all, only pre-outs.

Oh well, maybe I'll just pick up a Ford MP3 player that will plug right in ... not anywhere near as nice as my Alpine deck, but until I'm ready to spend real money on the stereo (read: not anytime soon) ... :shrug:
Dave>
The mach system in the newer stangs is super ghetto, there was a harness for the older (pre 01) mach systems but there is not one that works correctly with the newer style. The new system has two amps that power all the 6x8 speakers and the factory headunit powers all 4 tweets, so you would have to have a deck that had both high level and line level outputs, and crossovers built in as well. There is rumor of a harness that uses both the rca outputs and high level outputs of the aftermarket deck, i never saw this harness when i was an installer, we had a similiar style harness for a toyota/lexus and sound quality was not that great. I have the same problem as you i pulled my mp3 deck out of the 95 when i sold it and it will not work in the 02, I re-wired more of these cars then i could count when people put in aftermarket stuff and in all honesty unless there was good speakers and amps and sub put in it did not even sound better than the mach did. Hope that helps answer your questions, Dan
 
I have an aftermarket Panasonic deck in my 99 cobra and it is hooked up to the stock Mach 460 amps and speakers (done my Cartoys). I put the deck in the lower spot, and put (3) autometer guages in the upper (tape deck) spot.

The Panasonic deck sounds as good to my poor ears as the stock deck did connected to the mach 460, It was done with a pigtail adapter.
 
ccjcobra99 said:
I have an aftermarket Panasonic deck in my 99 cobra and it is hooked up to the stock Mach 460 amps and speakers (done my Cartoys). I put the deck in the lower spot, and put (3) autometer guages in the upper (tape deck) spot.

The Panasonic deck sounds as good to my poor ears as the stock deck did connected to the mach 460, It was done with a pigtail adapter.
The 99 mach system uses 3 amps and yes you can add a deck to it with the correct harness, the new mach system does not have a harness that works correctly. Dan
 
Visceral said:
What would you POSSIBLY need those for?
Well, 'cause every tenth of a second I knocked off my 60' at the track seemed to get me two tenths at the big end. Soooo... if I cut some 1.75 60' times like Keith was doing on his 315 Nittos, maybe I could see mid-12's. I'd be happy with 12.745 :D.

Dave