I am trying to replace a Bose head unit and CDM in a 91 coupe. My plan was to install a Kenwood DPX503 as it had the features I was looking for and not a ton of money. Finally got that in after cutting out the back of the box it mounts in and seeminly tearing out half the interior. I bought some 'good used' bose speaker enclosures with amps as I knew I had at least one complely dead and a right rear that made weird noises. I also could not really check originals as the antenna was broken and CD player would not accept a disc. On power up I get an occasional pop from one or both of the rear speakers and no sound from the front unless I switch from Zone 1 or Zone 2 on the head unit.Then the rears go out and get alittle sound from one of the front speakers. Do I have something messed up in the setup of the HU as it has dozens of menus with little explaination as to what they really do. I have no subs just the stock 4 bose speaker amp assemblies. If someone gets a minute would it be possible to give a quick read to the doc at the attached link and give a clue as to how to set this up so i can button the car back up. Thanks for any help someone might have in advance. If I have more dead Bose things that are not returnable can i use the stock bose wiring to wire up non amplified speakers? Is it a large enough gage is the real question I have no problem loping off the wire pigtail on the bose amp end of things rather than change car wiring and plugs..
Dave
Here is the link you have to put in DPX503 to get the manual..
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/Support/Ca...ers_Manuals/#_

 

Im not 100% sure but dont you need an adapter to make the bose wrok from an aftermarket h/u?? call up crutchfield and ask them about the adapter

 

its in ur wiring somewhere being that u need something like a peripheral sven4 or some other harness/adapters to get bose going

 

The Kenwood HU will not power the Bose speakers. The Bose speakers are 1 ohm, the kenwood puts out 4 ohm. You will need an adapter as Penta has said, but the best thing to do is get some aftermarket speakers and install them, and to run new wire to them.

Did you read the C4 FAQ at the top of the section? Everything you need to know is there. And remember that you can sell all of the old Bose equipment to places that repair them like Dr Dons.

 

Read the C4 FAQ I am running the Bose amps and speakers. The HU has pre amp outputs for that purpose. I should say was as i am going to get some speakers that fit the bose enclosure and just get rid of the amps and use the HU amp outputs. It is what I should have done in the first place. I will get some sort of budget speakers that are as good or a bit better than the OEM ones for now. Speakers are easy to change and i want to put the car back together and drive it as it has been apart for a couple of weeks and it is spring. If it was winter i wouldn't care and wait to find the correct speaker and have my budget there to buy it. Metra makes the harness adapter for the use of the Bose speaker amps to the pre amp outputs. In the end I am not an audiophile I just want a reasonable radio and CD changer.
Dave

 

OK still had a bad bose amp so bought aftermarket speakers problem with that is front and rear speaker - are connected together and it does just not work right. anything over 50% volume and there is static and clipping so suspect it is trying to drive 2 ohms instead of 4.. does anyone know where the speaker - wire splices are located so I do not have to do a complete rewrire that I am really not up for after removing the old poorly installed alarm system??
Dave

 

if i follow correctly u are totally bypassing bose and it requires a rewire

 

Where is the best place to run them to the rear? I was thinking down under passenger sill then under the edge of the carpet along the edge of the hatch and finally across the rear for the left rear speaker. if i knew where the splices are for the speaker negative connections I would not have to route anything as that is what is wrong with the factory wiring.
Dave

 

I've got an 89 where the PO put in an Alpine HU and 4" Memphis speakers in the front and back. He reused the Bose wiring. I know the PO hacked into the wiring harness that plugs up to the factory harness going to the HU.

I know the sound was pretty crappy. I checked, and noticed one of the speakers was wired out of phase.

So, I decided to just rewire the whole car instead of trying to figure out what the PO did. As some of the wiring from the car didn't match up with the wiring coming from the HU. Right now, I've got new wires going from the front bose pods to the wiring harness. I used 16 gauge wire.

Tommorrow I'm gonna rewire the rear speakers. I was told to wire it along the passenger door seal. I think you need to remove the trim beside the passenger door and remove the door sill and run the wire under the carpet.

I'm putting 6.5" speakers in the rear. I bought a 6.5" adaptor from ebay that you bolt into the rear mounting ring.

I pulled the front amps out, and I'm pulling the rear bose pods and have the amps in them but will reuse the mounting ring. I still have the original HU the PO gave me. I went ahead and cut out the Bose wiring going into the door.

One thing I was needing to figure out is if any of the bose wires going into the door have any power on them? I just cut the 4 bose wires under the dash that were going to the door, taped the ends up and zip tied them out of the way. I didn't check to see if they had any juice on them, but probably should have.

 

On a 91 the orange is +12 from the bose amp relay under the dash and black is ground the other two of various colors are speaker + and speaker -
Dave

 

If you have the Bose HU disconnected, do the Bose wires even how power on them? If I've read it right, then the HU sends power to the bose relay, which then sends power to the amps. I guess I'll get my multimeter out and see if the orange wire has power.

Reason is cause I've also heard the Bose relay can be a battery drain.