add an amplifier to the oem headunit

Hello,
I want to add a subwoofer on my 08 tacoma but want to keep the oem headunit, do you think I can plug an amplifier with the original head unit?
Or I must change with another one?

 

you can but you have to get a HIGH to LOW freq converter.

 

Correct you can get a line out converter, but it won't sound as good compared to an aftermarket deck.

Any reason why you want to keep the stock deck?

 

I am going to go ahead and confirm what has been said. Searching this topic will yield plenty of threads, but I am bored and possibly drunk so I will type some more here.

You will need either a LOC or another piece of electronics that works as an LOC but also has some tuning function to get around the bass limiting that is present in the stock HU. All of them have some draw backs. The JL clean sweep will process the sound that the stock HU puts out and will equalize it back to nearly flat. It is a bit expensive $300 and the add on for AUX input is $50 more. Despite popular belief, you can change the volume of the stock HU with this and still keep some of the bass restoration, but at other volumes it isn't as effective. It comes with a dash mountable volume controler that is more effective as it keeps the bass restoration at the same level. The RF 360 is very expensive at $500. The audiocontrol Epic is only 2 channels and has no AUX input but only cost $130. The audiocontrol epicenter has 4 channels and an AUX input built in and costs around $250.

You can get a regular LOC for between $25 and $50. But it will not do anything to control the bass limiter... but some of this can be overcome by setting the gains on your amps higher so that the volume gets to your listening level quicker, there by avoiding some of the bass limiter processing.

None of these options will sound as good at a reasonable price point as a new decent HU.

 

Wow seems to be very complicated to keep the original head unit
I want to keep it because I don't want to lose the steering wheel control and I don't know if other head unit can take the all 6 spekaers of our tacoma
How can it be plug I know how to plug four speakers but not six speakers
And do you think the pac swi ps on crutchfield is very reliable for other head unit like pioneer?

 

You can get a steering wheel controller for any deck you purchase to be used with the factory stuff. As far as the speakers the tweeter and speaker in each front door counts as one because they are wired together. Also almost every deck comes with its own remote, so there really isn't a need to use the ones on the steering wheel.

 

So true.
Tried the amp,new speakers with stock radio.Slight improvement and bought a head unit after stock radio volume control broke..

 

This may not be entirely true. The AVH line of Pioneer decks are not compatible with the PAC steering wheel control adapters.

The front door speakers are wired in series and do act as one single channel.


I personally like the stock steering wheel controls versus a standalone remote. This is mainly due to accessibility as well as it not getting lost under my damn seat while I am driving.h Pioneer used to have a remote that you attached to the steering wheel that was also handy.

 

actually the front door speakers are wired in parallel and yes they are a single channel.
all toyota did was run the speaker wires to the tweeter plug then on the way to the tweeter spliced another pair of wires back through the plug to the woofer. the tweeter has a capicator wired in series to cut the low freq from getting to the tweeter. in the audio world this is also know as a high pass filter and because it only uses 1 capacitor its also a 6db per octive crossover.

on my install i just cut the tweeter wires and left the splice and plug itself intact so i could get audio to the wires closer to the speaker hole

 

I agree.
The remote for my radio is in the house.
I find it useless.The steering wheel controls are great and I wouldn't give them up.

 

I've done it. I used an MTX Audio ReQ, and it works fine for me. I won't win any competitions, but the sound is loud and clear. I can still hear all the lyrics with the windows down on the freeway if I want.

The MTX ReQ is less expensive than the JL unit, but does the same thing. With enough tweaking of the amps and ReQ the stock headunit sounds great from volume level 5 all the way to 55.

 

stock stuff is junk replace it.

if you need steering controls than get an adapter

my stereo has 6 pre amp outlets to run front, rear and subs

to summerize, stock is junk

 

I have a JL Audio Cleansweep and a 4 channel Phoenix Gold amp for my system. It sounds pretty good with a sub. I had the JL Audio's volume control mounted in the little pull down door by your left knee. I use the front two channels for the front door speakers (Polk Audio Momo) and the rear two channels bridged for the sub. I went with this system because I wanted the stock look. I park in a carport and we've been known to have break-ins. A stock radio looks less tempting.

 

Yes I agree with you guys, I need to change my factory headunit but do you think there are some double din headunit with also 6 cd changer like the original one?

 

No, but you could just do a single MP3 CD or DVD and have a much larger selection all on one disk.

 

Pioneer makes one.

 

Touche, they do. Just noticed it on thier website.

 

I am also considering keeping the stock HU but I want to get rid of the stock 8" sub and add a 10" sub with an amp. I am not too sure how I was going to wire up the MTX re-Q. Is it possible to use the speaker outputs coming out of the stock amp to the MTX re-Q or should I completely by-pass the stock amp?