Apparently just like all your appliances die as soon as the warrenty expires, as soon as I bought this car problems began to pop up in an otherwise mint condition Max. My stock Bose CD player has decided to no longer read CDs. That is fine with me, since I wanted to replace the head unit anyway. Any suggestions for the best looking (and sounding) head unit for our cars? oh, and is there any sort of conflict with replacing the Bose receiver without changing the Bose speakers? Thanks.

Drew

 

Wow, I think I have been answering this question weekly since I joined Maxima.org. My original BOSE unit also went, and I did a lot of research to figure out what you can and cannot do. Here's a copy of my post from the last time (it was a thread from last week):



The BOSE head units are known to have problems after a number of years of use. I had to replace mine when the power stopped turning on for good. Unfortunately, replacement can be a little complicated because the BOSE speakers in the car run on an unusual 1 Ohms resistance (normal stereo speakers take 4 Ohms). So it's never a direct swap with a regular unit from the store.



A few ways to go for those of us who are not electrical engineers:

1) Send the head unit in to BOSE and spend $300 to repair an old head unit (DON'T DO THIS). BOSE does not give out repair manuals for their stereos, so stereo shops do not have the necessary information to make repairs. you'd have to get lucky and find a place that really really knew BOSE units particularly.

2) Buy a used one on EBAY (no guarantee that one will last for very long)

3) Get a converter piece (about $40) and install any aftermarket head unit of your choosing. (I got a nice one that plays mp3 CD's for ~$120) If you go this route, you will lose the "fine tuning" that BOSE built into the headunit to adjust the sound specifically to our cars. But, as most other people have found out, you will not notice any change in sound quality. Maybe the most perceptive of audiophiles can tell, but I certainly cannot.

4) Buy another head unit that will accomodate the wierd resistance of the original BOSE unit (Ask on the stereo forum about this. The BOSE speakers need 1 Ohm signal, while most aftermarket stereos put out 4 Ohms. Thats why I bought the adapter before installing my regular head unit). These are usually higher end units, so expect to pay $200+ for one of these.

 

BOSE sux. I'm having problems with my BOSE hu as well. The lighting for the hu is out and the volume control is broken. There are days when my volume control and lighting are not working, I can't tell if my radio is on or off.lol I really loved my bose system at first but now it's just a piece of junk.

If I were you just buy a microvision tv to fit into the 7inch din space where the BOSE hu would go and buy a Pioneer DVH-P5000MP reciever. This cd/dvd player would fit into the cubby hole that we have.

 

Yes, when you go to a normal HU, you will have empty space beneath it because the BOSE takes up two "slots".

If you're going inexpensive (no televisions and dvd players for the poor) you can:

1) Get an ordinary looking "CD-storage shelf" to fit the slot. It would hold 3 regular CD cases (or six of the skinny ones). It's a standard $5 part from any place that sells or installs stereos, even the chain stores, like Best Buy. It's just like a mini-CD rack and covers the opening so it looks pretty reasonable.

2) Get a slightly fancier ($20-$50) sliding drawer compartment with a finish/color that matches your dash.

The key here is that it's a standard size opening, so you have lots of options for filling it in that wouldn't involve expensive electronics. Of course a TV and DVD player would be kind of cool. Not in my budget, though...

I'd ask around the stereo forum to find out what other people used (who weren't looking to spend $3000 to fill the hole). I did option #1 because it lets me store 6 of the half-height CD cases. That's 1200 song's (MP3's)sitting there in that little little compartment!