Ultra-Compact Amplifiers
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From: Jersey
Joined: Dec 2004
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I used the stock HU in the S and my other car for a while and when I finally got aftermarket HUs, the SQ greatly improved. I have a 15+yr old Nakamichi CD45z that looks great, very simple and clean, not the weird flashy stuff of today. But a better HU does make a considerable difference. The more I look at the PPI i350.2, the more I like it. Plenty of power to spare and so damn small. That should fit just about anywhere.
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From: Stanmore
Since those photos were taken, I've done a rear tray mod to stop it rattling, and have removed all the OEM sound deadening, replacing it with some aftermarket stuff and some holes! That gives even more room under there. So much so I've had to take measures to stop the amp board bouncing up and down over bumps!
Joined: Sep 2004
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From: NJ USA
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,574
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From: NJ USA
For those interested in installing a KTP-445U with the OEM headunit, but don't want to hack up
the car's harness, you can build your own adapter harness using an off-the-shelf harness such as
a Metra 70-1721 combined with a reverse harness such as a Metra 71-1721.
One harness connects to the radio, the other to the car's harness, and the various wires connect
either to each other or to the KPT-445U.
Be aware that some, maybe most, of these harnesses lack the s2000-specific dash and mute wires -
there may be unused wires/pins (such as for rear sepakers if you don't have them) that you can
move within the connector to the suitable places for the dash controls.
the car's harness, you can build your own adapter harness using an off-the-shelf harness such as
a Metra 70-1721 combined with a reverse harness such as a Metra 71-1721.
One harness connects to the radio, the other to the car's harness, and the various wires connect
either to each other or to the KPT-445U.
Be aware that some, maybe most, of these harnesses lack the s2000-specific dash and mute wires -
there may be unused wires/pins (such as for rear sepakers if you don't have them) that you can
move within the connector to the suitable places for the dash controls.
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From: tampa florida
One side of our trunk has our spare tire and the other side has a REALLLLLY tight spot to possibly put an amp depending how small it is. I was planning on trying to put my Alpine PDX-F4 amp which isn't THAT big in that spot but its just too tight for my liking. The gas tank creates a hump on that side of the trunk. I've never seen the compact amps that you listed so I don't know if those will fit in the small area next to the spare tire.
i have put some of the biggest amps out there in this spot with never an issue......
space about the gas tank is my prefered location for an amp..... 4 or 5 channel amp all fit there with no issues.
one probelm with these small compact amps is most are a class D amp, were these amps work fine for subs, the sound quality is just not there yet for mids/highs,
but the alpine pdx9 and the jl HD amps seem to have figured it out.
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Yea, I would expect the factory HU to sound fine driven with an external amp - especially one that is designed to accept speaker-level inputs (or with a LOC.)
The biggest drawback for me would be hacking apart the factory wiring. And of course lack of connectivity options.
As far as aesthetics, you never need to look at the HU - that's what the radio door is there for!
IMHO, trying to keep the stock HU is more work than it's worth if you're upgrading the rest of the system anyway.
The biggest drawback for me would be hacking apart the factory wiring. And of course lack of connectivity options.
As far as aesthetics, you never need to look at the HU - that's what the radio door is there for!
IMHO, trying to keep the stock HU is more work than it's worth if you're upgrading the rest of the system anyway.
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 1,115
Likes: 18
From: New York
For those interested in installing a KTP-445U with the OEM headunit, but don't want to hack up
the car's harness, you can build your own adapter harness using an off-the-shelf harness such as
a Metra 70-1721 combined with a reverse harness such as a Metra 71-1721.
One harness connects to the radio, the other to the car's harness, and the various wires connect
either to each other or to the KPT-445U.
Be aware that some, maybe most, of these harnesses lack the s2000-specific dash and mute wires -
there may be unused wires/pins (such as for rear sepakers if you don't have them) that you can
move within the connector to the suitable places for the dash controls.
the car's harness, you can build your own adapter harness using an off-the-shelf harness such as
a Metra 70-1721 combined with a reverse harness such as a Metra 71-1721.
One harness connects to the radio, the other to the car's harness, and the various wires connect
either to each other or to the KPT-445U.
Be aware that some, maybe most, of these harnesses lack the s2000-specific dash and mute wires -
there may be unused wires/pins (such as for rear sepakers if you don't have them) that you can
move within the connector to the suitable places for the dash controls.
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From: Jersey
Originally Posted by IHoP' timestamp='1366776762' post='22494940
One side of our trunk has our spare tire and the other side has a REALLLLLY tight spot to possibly put an amp depending how small it is. I was planning on trying to put my Alpine PDX-F4 amp which isn't THAT big in that spot but its just too tight for my liking. The gas tank creates a hump on that side of the trunk. I've never seen the compact amps that you listed so I don't know if those will fit in the small area next to the spare tire.
i have put some of the biggest amps out there in this spot with never an issue......
space about the gas tank is my prefered location for an amp..... 4 or 5 channel amp all fit there with no issues.
one probelm with these small compact amps is most are a class D amp, were these amps work fine for subs, the sound quality is just not there yet for mids/highs,
but the alpine pdx9 and the jl HD amps seem to have figured it out.
What differentiates the technology in the Alpine PDX Class-D amps from the rest of the meh mainstream ones? We were discussing earlier the limited number of manufacturers and that most of the Class-D amps themselves come from the same few sources. I wonder what makes them so good?
At the price point of the PDX-V9/F6 they has some good competition. Worth the $?