I have a 98 max and want to replace the entire stock bose system (HU & speakers). My only questions are:

#1) how easy is it for a complete newbie at car audio to take out the stock equipment & put in aftermarket equipment?

#2) after taking out the bose HU & speakers, how do i connect the aftermarket HU to the aftermarket speakers? can i just use the speaker wire & connectors that the bose unit used? if not, how do i go about getting new wires & connectors?

I really need to determine if i can do everything myself so that i can plan out everything. Thanks!

 

1) If you're a complete noob, you'll need some assistance, but there isn't anything terribly different. The H/U is kind of tedious, fitting it in the dash kit and wiring it up. Taking off the door panels, swapping out speakers are both pretty easy.

2) if you're using an amp to power the speakers, all you'll need is rcas and remote wire from the HU to the amp. If you're powering them with the HU, you'll need a wiring adapter to use the stock wiring.

 

I plan on using the HU's amp. What is this adapter that i need? do i have the option of swapping out the stock wires, or is this too difficult to do. Whatever you guys suggest is best.

 

check out www.crutchfield.com you will usually be able to get the wire harness and radio kit to install, along with step by step instructions on how to install.

 

I am kinda confused from the #2 answer. I know the stock speakers are amped individually in our Max. Do you have to bypass or rewire around these amps if you aftermarket everything??

 

I found that it was a lot more simple to just run new wire to the speakers than try and rewire thru the factory harness..... plus if I want to return the car to stock.... all I have to do is reinstall the amps and headunit... and plug them in

 

A lot of people argue that running new wire is easier based on the fact of uninstalling. But you have to uninstall the speaker wire you install, which takes more time, and if you install correctly, everything will still be plug and play to the factory stuff. Plus, if your using the radio's amp, you dont really need thicker gauge wiring than factory. Install the radio normally, with an aftermarket wiring harness for your car. The speaker wire runs from the back of the deck to each Bose amp, so all you have to do is have ~6 inches of spare speaker wire per speaker. Tap into the speaker wire before it goes into the bose amp, and run it about 6 inches over, connect it to the aftermarket speaker, and your done. And as for uninstalling, the deck is still 100% plug and play, and your speakers all you have to do is reconnect the 2 speaker wires as inputs to the bose amps. Much easier, and for a newbie, its gonna give you much less of a headache.

Overall, if you have a few basic tools and can follow instructions to figure out how to take off your dash and door panels, youll be fine.

-Kevin

 

Thanks for this info. I have 2 questions, can you recommend an exact part # for the aftermarket wiring harness from a local electronics store (e.g. Best Buy or Circuit City) so that i don't make a mistake when buying it? And 2, I thought that when we take out the stock Bose speakers, they are attached to the Bose amps and so we would be taking out both the Bose speakers & amps?

 

the metra part number from BB or CC will end in 7550.

I dont quite remember because theyre different on different year maxes, but even if they are, the harness that goes to the bose amp will still be right there since you have to unplug it to take out the bose amp, so your speaker connections will still be there for you to tap into.

 

You will not be using your Bose amps anymore. They run at a very low impedence and will not run your aftermarket speakers well. They will need to be bypassed in the doors and rear deck. Removing them alltogether is an option, just be prepared to spend some time doing it.

 

So to replace my whole Bose stereo :

1) Buy a double DIN HU
2) Buy 4 6.5" speakers
3) Buy Metra 80-7550 wiring harness
4) Have some extra speaker wire & wire wire taps at hand
5) Remove Bose HU & speakers according to the instructions found on the .org
6) Install aftermarket HU & speakers using instructions found on the .org as a guide
7) Attach aftermarket HU to stock wiring via Metra wiring harness
8) Attach aftermarket speakers to stock wiring by tapping the extra speaker wire into stock wires

... did i get this all straight? this seems straightfoward - why do installers charge 100's of dollars ?

 

you can use single din with a filler ... it will look fine I am sure. It is what I am doing at least. Goto Crutchfield.com and do a "What will fit my car?". Select Kits and Harnesses and look at all the cheap things you can buy off of them. I am getting a filler space, wire harness, and antenna adapter off them.

 

What is the antenna adaptor needed for?

 

they charge a 100 dollars because its still time consuming

 

You can buy a single din head unit, but just get the universal nissan pocket from anywhere. Again, if you go metra, the part number is 88-00-9000.

Nissan uses a two-pin antenna and any aftermarket radio, and a lot of other cars, use a single pin. The antenna adapter converts it at the back of your radio so you will get reception. Without it you wouldnt get any signal if you were right next to the radio tower.

Yes, but if you think about it, shops have a ton of overhead to pay for.

-Kevin

 

i have a 96 GLE with the bose system, where are the factory amps located?

 

about the antenna adapter, i just got my system put in and my antenna is up even when CDs are playing. is this right? i thought the adapter changed it to not do this.

 

If you replace the stock bose speakers, can you still use the tweeters or do you have to replace those as well?

 

No, the antenna adapter only changes the two-pin antenna to a single pin to fit into the aftermarket radio. Your power antenna wire is wired to a remote turn on, so its on whenever the radio is on. No big deal. Some radios have a dedicated power antenna separate from remote turn on and some dont.

 

I have a 2000 Maxima and purchased a used stock Bose stereo. The only difference I can see from the front is that on my stock stereo in the Maxima, it doesn't have the 'Bose' logo on the cassette door. The dealer informed me that my Maxima has a Clarion stereo. Does anyone know of the harness and connectors will match between a 2000 Bose and a 2000 Clairion, or are they basically the same? Thanks in advance for your help. I hate to take it in and pay the labor, only to find that one has 12 pins and the other has 15.

 

if you have bose in your car the same wire that is used to turn on the amps for the speakers is used to power up your antenna, so if your speakers are on your antenna is up.

 

if you buy from crutchfield they will give you the wiring harness for free i think, but when you are "outfitting your car" (telling what type of car and stereo you have) you have to select the non boes because otherwise they will think that the normal wiring harness wont work and they will suggest you buy a sosche adapter so that you can use your stock speakers, but since you plan on replacing your speakers you wont need the adapter, just the wiring harness.