another "I want to keep my stock h/u thread"

So the title pretty much says it all. Im pretty new to this whole car audio thing, all of my cars in the past have been very fast with no sound. Gonna keep this truck for a while and want some decent sound. Been doing a lot of reading on here the past week or so and it seems that everyone still running the stock headunit is experiencing some hissing even with the controller. Now onto my main concerns. One of my main concerns is keeping the steering wheel controls, I use them all the time and love them. That's one of the main reasons I was trying to keep it "easy" with the stock headunit. I would normally kick the stock headunit to the curb but its so nice and does everything I want it to. So I guess my main question would be has anyone had any luck keeping the stock headunit, and if I do HAVE to replace it can I keep my steering wheel controls.
btw I have a 2013 without the audio package.

 

Yes, you can use the steering wheel controls with nearly every aftermarket head unit out there. You just have to buy an adapter. They're around $70 on Crutchfield I think. But if you're happy with the stock head unit then go ahead and keep it. It'll save you quite a bit of money. And welcome to TW

 

This is the same thing i'm running into. Want to keep the head unit but want better and louder sound without cutting and splicing a hole lot of stuff. 2222222 many wants I guess.

 

Thanks riverdog. And thanks for the welcome Ugh that makes my decision harder Haha. The only thing I'm worried about is the hissing everyone is reporting using the stock head unit even with a controller. Do you have any experience with this?

 

what you can do is, buy the reverse radio harness for your radio from scosche and use a higher end line out converter or processor like an Audison Bit.One or Bit.Ten and you can keep all those functions.

 

When I had my stock hu with audio control lc6i there wss a slight hissing that was only noticeable at low volumes.
I have the lc6i uniy used for 6 months if anyone's interested with rca cables and a bass adjust knob.

 

I am wanting to keep my stock h/u as well. The route I am going to go (since I dont want to add a sub) is to add in the

$290 Alpine KTP-445U Universal Power Pack

Alpine KTP-445U power pack which produces 45w x 4 rms and replace all the speakers. I have not installed it yet as I am waiting for the speaker mounts. I did find 6x9 components (focal iss 690) which I was surprised about since I have not been able to find any other 6x9 components out there. The Alpine power pack may be something to check out...I have not seen any bad reviews.

 

I've never used the CleanSweep or the LC6i so I don't have any personal experience. I've just read about them and have talked with people about them. Like pcabinatan suggested, you could go with the Audison Bit One or Bit Ten. It'll cost more, but you'll more than likely get that sound quality you're after. Another good suggestion by marcitron88 was to use the Alpine Power Pack. It's cheaper than the Bit One and Bit Ten and it seems to have good reviews.

 

I have the lc7i in my tacoma with the non-jbl head unit. I do get a hiss at low volumes but once you turn the volume up past 8 or 10 it goes away. Doesn't bother me much because i never really listen to it that quiet. I'm really happy with my setup.

 

Awesome so this sounds like its gonna be better than i thought. As long as the hissing isnt so bad.

 

Hey, i didnt want to replace the factory head unit so i added a alpine pxe-h660 processor that i got for cheap. With the processor/amp/speakers it sounds great. I do get the hiss at lower volumes, but as mentioned why listen to your radio that low lol. One thing i've heard is to relocate your factory deck ground and this might solve the hiss, but with school i haven't had the time. Anyone successful been successful at eliminating the hiss? or tried regrounding the stock deck?