Please help with radio

T1 3VOM · Dec 22, 2006

I'm trying to install a JVC head unit into my 1990 Lx. Near as I can figure, it had the "premium audio" package. I don't know if that means anything or not.

So, when I hook up the wiring harness I got from Circuit City, everything works... except, no sound. The CD spins, reads, the unit can find radio stations... I just can't hear anything. I can turn it up to nearly max volume and then I can finally hear something. It's faint, and mildly distorted from being turned up so loud. I think I've got the stock power amp hooked up right with the blue/white wire from the back of the head unit going to the blue wire on the harness.

What else should I do?

89streetbeast · Dec 22, 2006

did you get the amplifier wiring harness kit for the factory amp? if not thats why, done been through that lol. local best buy or so will have the harness. or you could hack into the main haness and run the speakers that way, kinda sucks tho as i did it that way.

T1 3VOM · Dec 22, 2006

Eh, I went to the store, and told them I needed a wiring harness for my car. I told them what year and all that good stuff. Do they need to know that it has an amp? Isn't it the same harness with or without the amp, and you just leave the amp wire hanging in you don't have an amp?

I'm confused... whatever you can tell me is great

90 · Dec 22, 2006

if you have an amp you need to hook up the RCA cables... do you have an amp im confused?

5.0 con-vert · Dec 22, 2006

You are talking about bypassing the factory amp. yes, you are. Same harness will be used but there is a small bypass harness you need to pickup. CC will have one if you go to the install department.

Wait a minute!!! This should be in tech! I want my post!!!

T1 3VOM · Dec 22, 2006

I'm always afraid to post in tech for fear that someone will scream at me that what I'm asking isn't tech... hence, I only have three posts.

My ignorance continues: What will the amp bypass harness plug into? I don't have any empty connections.

5.0 con-vert · Dec 22, 2006

T1 3VOM said:
I'm always afraid to post in tech for fear that someone will scream at me that what I'm asking isn't tech... hence, I only have three posts.

My ignorance continues: What will the amp bypass harness plug into? I don't have any empty connections.

Understood. Do you see what I'm saying in the post about the bypass harness? it is the key to all that is good.

EDIT: The bypass harness will go between the two harnesses. It will only fit one way. Its very easy to do once you have the harness in front of you. Plus, all the colors should line up

T1 3VOM · Dec 22, 2006

I talked to circuit city. They say that the amp is in the radio? They want me to bring it buy and let them look at it (hell no) so they can determine if the radio needs to be rewired, or if it's just a bypass harness. Is there any chance it's not the bypass harness?

I'm not trying to second guess you, I just want to get it right before I buy another $20 harness. Thanks for the help.

PJB · Dec 22, 2006

I had the same problem so I just ran all new wiring to the speakers. I couldnt find a factory amp in my car but still didnt get sound with a new JVC deck.

T1 3VOM · Dec 22, 2006

PJB said:
I had the same problem so I just ran all new wiring to the speakers. I couldnt find a factory amp in my car but still didnt get sound with a new JVC deck.

That is exactly what I want to avoid

5.0 con-vert · Dec 22, 2006

T1 3VOM said:
I talked to circuit city. They say that the amp is in the radio? They want me to bring it buy and let them look at it (hell no) so they can determine if the radio needs to be rewired, or if it's just a bypass harness. Is there any chance it's not the bypass harness?

I'm not trying to second guess you, I just want to get it right before I buy another $20 harness. Thanks for the help.

I understand. Have you found the factory amp yet? I'm pretty sure every mustang had one. Mine was bolted to the floor behind the factory radio. Some are under the passenger seat. Mine was a little black box about 5x6 or so. Usually if there is some sound going to the speakers, you have the wiring to the speakers correct. I know that the first time I installed an aftermarket deck, this was in my old crown Vic, I had the exact same problem you are having.

ryan218 · Dec 22, 2006

factory amp is in the dash. run it throug there is what i did.

T1 3VOM · Dec 22, 2006

Yup, I found what I'm pretty sure is the amp. It's right behind the radio bolted to the floor like you said.

5.0 con-vert · Dec 23, 2006

T1 3VOM said:
Yup, I found what I'm pretty sure is the amp. It's right behind the radio bolted to the floor like you said.

well??? fixored???

T1 3VOM · Dec 24, 2006

Not fixored

I took it to a local sound shop to get some advice, and the guy there told me I need to take the amp out and splice some wires from behind the amp fo the back of the head unit.

He showed me that the power harness (I think that's what it is) only has 6 lines going into it, but there's eight slots... so the two slots that I'm missing are what's causing tha radio not to work. So, when I manually splice the lines from the amp into the power harness, he says I'll get sound. Does that sound right?

If you know what he's talking about, any chance of getting pictures?

SteedaGT9150 · Dec 24, 2006

same thing happened when i put in my pioneer head unit. i took it to circuit city and the guy took out the amp and spliced the wires and stuff for free.

Chuckman · Dec 24, 2006

i should have taken pics when i did mine, cause this seems to come up every so often. basically, what i did was take out the stock amp completly so i wouldnt get confused with it, i still have it and just snapped a couple pics of it that ill post in a minute if anyone wants them. previous edit said two long connectors, but the amp says different, musta been thinking of my truck when i said that. what i do know is that the harness kit i got from crutchfield had hookups for both the premium and non premium stereo setup. the power harness is shared between the two, but the speaker hookups differ (non-premium was missing two speakers and uses a long connector). anyway, the new harness will completely bypass the stock amp (its only 25w anyway, my new pioneer is 50w per channel).

heres a link to the wiring harness i got, one long connector for power, the small one for the premium speakers, the other long one for non-premium speakers.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-q4oN4W...ab=morephotos&pi=2&i=120705006&display=XL#Tab

T1 3VOM · Dec 24, 2006

This is the picture from Chuckman's link

I have the two harnesses on the outside that used to hook into the back of my stock radio. Don't know what the one in the middle is for. Are you saying I should just take the amp out completely and wire up something new completely leaving out the amp?

Chuckman · Dec 24, 2006

that middle one is for the speakers under the premium setup. that darker long one is for the 4 speaker system. if youve got the amp, then you need the middle one. you dont NEED to take the amp out, but it does help with the confusion. if you look at the amp (and the old stock harness from the stock radio) youll see where that small one plugs into. theres a picture of the stock amp below that im uploading as i type, basically the way it works is that in the stock setup, the speaker harness comes out the radio, goes into the amp, and out the other side going to the speakers. youre just eliminating the amp. if youve got the wiring diagram for the car, you can skip the connector and just wire it up, but the connector makes it easier to hook up a new/different headunit in the future.

heres the stock amp btw.
View attachment 415045

T1 3VOM · May 31, 2007

Fixored! FINALLY!

So, I took the amp out, which left the two connectors shown in Chuckman's pick above. The connector on the right is for the speakers. I had to wire them straight to the speaker harness coming from the back of the head unit because no one knew of a harness to go between the two.

My crappy stock Ford speakers have never sounded so good. Thanks for all the advice!

Please help with radio

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