Alexei Voloshin (1988 sedan)
"I have found that the non-Bose system in the 1st generation Legends is superb. Being somewhat electrically and mechanically inclined I have
tested the response of the amp and found its specs to be excellent. The speakers also, are one of the best I have ever seen. The rears can
handle anything from 35Hz to 22kHz easily. They're also tuned to the trunk, so that the system is able to reproduce bass down to 20Hz with
minimal loss of intensity and clearity. And these are ONE-WAY speakers! And NO, this system is not good for shaking up the people in other
cars or side walks. This system is for listening in the car. The front speakers are two ways and VERY good.
There is only one problem: no CD!!! This problem can be solved! The deck is actually made for CD input. There is a CD connection in the back
of the deck. So I hooked a 10 Disk Sony changer to it (Sony is the easiest because it has nice RCA outputs). It sounds pretty good now... :-)
Minimal modifications to the changer and the deck are required."
Chris Kam (1995 coupe)
"Alpine would be the way to go. You could get any Alpine changer, the CHA-S601 seems to be the most popular one to interface with OEM because it
has the 8 pin DIN (M-Bus) cable. You would need an adapter, or modify the existing plug because Alpine inverts the gound signal on one of the
output channels (for Honda/Acura OEM) so your music would be out of phase. Any Alpine install shop should be able to do this. You could also get
the other Ai-Net changers (CHA-S604), same mods apply but you would need the KCA-130B (Ai-Net to 8 pin DIN) adapter. Either should cost you less
the the OEM unit from the dealer."
Dominic (1993 coupe)
"To be perfectly honest, my degree is in EE and my best solution would be to a) stick with the Bose deck and get the Alpine changer, that way you
could still use your steering wheel controls, or b) screw the steering wheel controls and get either a wireless remote or one of those Sony joystick
remote controls! In my opinion, it's not worth the hassle."
Jim Trinh (1991 sedan)
"I too yearned for better quality sound from my car. There's nothing more relaxing. So a trip to the Good Guys, the local eletronics store,
resulted in a Denon 30x4 watt CD player head unit. This was a high-end model which depleted a good $500 from my bank account. Later into my
ownership experience, I switched over to an Alpine TDM-7545 casette head unit which connected to an Alpine CHM-S601 6 disc CD changer. The CD
changer was custom intalled by me by cutting out the back of the glove box to fit it in there. This way I didn't have to stop and make a trip
to the trunk everytime I wanted a change of discs.
For the rear speakers, I got a pair of Sony XS-6939 6" x 9" 3-way speakers, which were decent (cost: $100/pair). The front stock speakers
were chucked in favor of MB Quart QM 218.02 CX seperates with the titanium-domed tweeters (these were nice!) for $350. For extra bass, I ended
up with Redline 12-inch subwoofers wrapped in a ported wooden enclosure.
Even though the head unit was good, it wasn't powerful enough to give the clear, powerful sounds I demanded. So I bought a Kenwood KAC-745
30x4 amplifier ($350) to power all 4 speakers. As for the subwoofers, that was taken care of by a Kenwood KAC-923 250x1 watt amp ($350). With
450 watts of sound pumping out, I was pretty much satisfied. The Denon and later the Alpine both provided clear, precise sound. Being more
powerful, the Denon sounded a little warmer and more inviting with deep, rich tones. Not to say that the Alpine was any slouch. The functions,
buttons, and controls on both units were well placed and easy to reach and push.
The MB Quarts were excellent, providing very clear highs and a powerful mid-bass. The tweeters were crystal clear, and can even get piercing.
I guess you don't really need titanium tweeters at such close range! Unfortunately my amplifier isn't powerful enough to properly power the
Quart speakers, so I must consider a more powerful amp in the future or downgrade my MB Quart speakers. The Red Lines are very good, producing
powerful low frequency sounds. Because the box was placed in the trunk, the subwoofers used the whole trunk as an additional sound chamber,
allowing for deep, powerful bass. Perhaps too powerful because my car is falling apart from the vibrations! The only thing I was disappointed
in were the Sonys. They were clear but didn't provide much in terms of mid-bass for 6x9's. I think it's due to the fact that most 6x9's use
the trunk as a chamber to produce greater bass. Unfortunately for Legends, a metal sheet seperates the trunk from the speaker chamber. All my
speakers are power hungry, so they're rated for high power outputs. Even though this is great for high volume audio blasting, it's not very
effective at low volumes. So when I have passengers and the stereo isn't turned up very loud, it sounds very distant and weak. Only at my
passengers' request do I dare turn my system up to ear-bleeding levels. And the subwoofers really haul ass! They displace quite a lot of air
and rattle the entire car and all the passengers with low frequencies.
Both amplifiers provided smooth, clear power, with low distortion and static. I haven't had any problems or failures with them, so I'd have to
say Kenwood has been a very reliable brand. All in all, the whole system shakes the car to it's very foundation. People say they can still
hear me bumping at highway speeds even with the high wind noise and the windows rolled up on both cars! So now, whenever I have a heavy commute
and I'm not in a rush to get anywhere, I just kick back and enjoy the sounds. This makes for less stress in an otherwise stressful situation."
Khalid Wahab (1992 sedan)
"I got the Kenwood 8007 CD player. I highly recommend it for the following reasons. The 4V preamp output sounds sooooooo much better than the
regular crap. It has internal crossovers which come in very handy. Let's say you are listening to song with a lot of bass. You can cut out
certain frequencies from the front and the rear speakers which makes the vocals and the rest of the stuff very clear and you can pump it all
the way up if there are no cops around. In my case I've got the factory 6X9's in the back and they are running from the deck power. So when I
crank the volume you can't hear the rear speakers because the Kicker 12" kicks some major ass. So I cut out some of the lower frequencies from
the back and suddenly you can hear the rear fill which can arguably help out with the sound imaging. However, I rarely reduce the bass from
my front 6½" Boston Pro separates (I love these!). The display is so very cool. The chicks love it. When you are playing a CD it shows a
CD spinning which by the way chicks dig!"
Luther Ward (1989 coupe)
"I have the stock Bose system with a few mods. I replaced the rear speakers with some three-way 6x9's using the original amps taken off the
removed speakers. I wanted more highs in the back to round out the sound. Then, I added a Bazooka tube between the fender wells in the trunk.
Also, mounted to the underside of the rear shelf storage box is a Toshiba 6 disc changer. While I'm on electronics, the sending unit for the
phone is mounted to the trunk floor on the right side under the carpet. The phone is in the center console. That's it for now. Keep your car
clean and remember, it is better to back off and race another day then to win and wreck your baby. (this is in no way promoting or justifying
street racing - just food for thought)."
Margus Männik (1989 coupe)
"I do have about 10 years experience in digital and car audio systems so I hope I can help you some. As I've seen in cars and digged out from
the Internet, there is no such thing as a Bose Sound System. There are at least ten different head unit/amp combos around. I made out some simple
answers for upgraders :) Hope it will help some.
- Bose/Blaupunkt head units.There are versions that use the car chassis as a signal or/and speaker ground wire (or signal ground connected to
chassis). It's simple to check using an ohmmeter. If there is anything but power GND connected to chassis, you've got one. My compassion. Those
systems can not be upgraded by adding new components that use separate signal/speaker GND wires, and the S/N ratio of those systems is bad as well.
Pull it out and buy something better. Upgrading is expensive and will need special components. Performance will be poor anyways.
- Bose speakers. Again, there are different speakers around. Most of them (but not all) are 2 Ohm speakers matched to a Bose amp. Installing
new speakers will not harm the amps, but you can lose something in the sound (most certainly: volume, also "tone" can differ from originals).
Otherwise - before using 2 Ohm speakers with a NEW AMP you must check if this amp can handle the 2 Ohm load. Most new amps can, but some of them can
do it only to the subwoofer channel. Be careful. There are 4 Ohm ("normal") Bose speakers also. They work safely with aftermarket heads and amps.
- Amplifiers. Those Bose amps are CAPABLE of handling 2 Ohm loads. It means you can use those amps with higher impedance speakers (4, 6, 8 or
16 Ohm), but you'll probably lose sound volume. Additionally, Bose amplifiers frequency characteristics are designed to match Bose
speakers. You can get pretty weird results with other speakers (for example: overamplified middle frequencies).
- CD-Changers. Generally, all changers use the same signals (wires), but connectors and signal levels can be different. This is what those
adapters are for. Before buying any new CD-C, you should critically rate your head unit. Maybe you should begin from there. (I noted, that
old heads sometimes work fine only with expensive CD-C plus adapters that cost more than a new, good head unit and CD-C for it)
My personal opinion? If you have something older than 4-5 years, it's already technically out-of-date. There are always many useful and
useless "wonders" worked out during the last one-two years that improve (or make you believe it improves) your car's sound. I've pulled out ALL
of my Bose (Blaupunkt) system (including speaker cables that are too thin to handle some "good" power) of my G1 coupe. You guys talk much
'bout Alpine, but test reports from many magazines show that other companies (especially Pioneer, Sony and even Panasonic (Matsushita)) have
much more innovative and agressive politics PLUS much lower prices. Take a look :)"
Margus Männik (1989 coupe)
"We tested my amps yesterday night with a Pioneer TS-W1200C boxed subwoofer in my car and one BMW735 (which was left at the shop to put some
'real' sound in it, so it was simple to change amps). We had for comparing Pioneer GM-X904, GM-X404 and Alpine MRV-F505. The BMW had Pioneer
TS-E2090's as rear speakers and the TS-W1200C sub; don't know exactly about rear ones (some TS-E Pioneers for sure). So, first we tested subjective
soundscape. I was sitting in the drivers seat, shop's owner in the passengers seat and guys changed amps so we didn't know what they were installing.
First (as we got to know afterwards) they installed the X-904. Sound was good, but basses were a little overpumped (not this deep, low sound but rised at 80 - 150Hz). Next came relative disappointment (no crisp highs, no definite bass) - the X404. This amp should never be installed without an equalizer. The next installation was impressive. I haven't heard this clear and soft sound before. After the guys closed the trunk, there appeared even more powerful, deep thunderbass.
The shop owner raised a finger and said, "Now it's Alpine, can you hear it?". I had to agree. Then guys attached the last amp. It sounded good, close to the previous amp.
Clear, but midbasses were a little strange (ok, it's easily correctible - needs eq). Then installers said it was ... Alpine. So the best was Panasonic!!!
Needless to say I was happy.
Afterwards we measured sound pressures in different frequencies (in BMW, measure mic in center of car). Panasonic had the most equal curve at output powers over one
third. Alpine was better at low volume, but at max power it turns most energy to low frequencies and highs would need an additional equalization. For the last
test we measured the max relative energy to subwoofer (i.e. bass volume at max rated output power) in my car. Subwoofer box in closed trunk and measure probes
in front headrests. Winner was ... bridged X404. (Maybe I should take M7002 with me and try it.) Then came other amps (also bridged to 2-channel mode and one
channel loaded with woofer, other one with 4Ohm voice coil without cone and magnetic system) with practically identical results. Panasonic had best tone, but
need a little higher input than others to achieve best result (seems to be more dedicated to have 4V input than others)."
Monte Fontenot (1991 sedan)
"This is a list of equipment I use and highly recommend:
 Alpine 7914 CD Player
Alpine 3555 4 channel Amp (50 X 4)
Alpine 6660 6.5 front Speakers
Alpine 6960 6x9 rear Speakers
AutoTek 7100 On subs
2 JL Audio SW4 12's"
Steven Hodorov (1991 coupe)
"My 1991 coupe's stock audio set up was bad (as in crap)! I was surprised that a car of this class would have such a bad audio setup.
First thing I did was getting rid of those horrible paper stock speakers. I chose Polk 693's (94 dB! -means almost twice louder at same
wattage input then 90-91 dB speakers) for the rear deck and Polk 602's for the doors.
Installation took about 2 hours and was very easy. The difference was immediately noticeable. Highs were crystal clear and mid-low bass
response doubled. Yet, the perfectionist in me noticed that the stage was offset toward the back, maybe b/c of the 693's great sound.
I went ahead and got the Polk 652's for my doors, which are designed as a higher range speaker. I though I was done at that point, but a
couple of free hours on a sunny Saturday afternoon let to discovering stock tweeters in the forward dome light housing. The wiring was
there, but the stock tweeters were shot. In went a pair of Polk tweeters.
The resulting sound cannot be described, one has to listen to it appreciate it. Its very loud for a set up that includes no after market
amps because all the speaker that went in have high sensitivity dB. I used to think that my Lexus ES300's stock sound system was amazing,
but that is no longer true. (ps- I'm still using the non-Bose stock Alpine headunit)"
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Bumping (at least that's what it used to be called) was cruising down the street with your sound system blaring and your subwoofers
assaulting the masses. Even though I probably won't be able to attain that level of obnoxiousness, those folks do have the right idea: having
a great audio system wouldn't be so bad. Nothing wrong with cruising with your favorite tunes at full volume.
