[scp616]

My 6 cd changer in my stang finally died, and rather than replace it with the stock radio, i would like to install a sony CDX-GT730UI so that i can hook up my mp3 player, and get rid of the whole cd changer mess. However, i would like to use the stock speakers and amps, but i'm a little unsure of which adapters i need so that everything will work with the new radio. Unfortunately crutchfield and the local radio shops haven't been able to give me a straight answer
Apparently there are several different radios that were available in the mustang, i have the 460 system that has 3 plugs on the back of the receiver and it seems that all of the adapters only have 2 plugs...
Any help on finding the right adapter is greatly appreciated!

[scp616]

additional info:
here's the 2 plug adapter from crutchfield
Ford Receiver Wire Harness For select 2001-03 Ford Mustang and 2003 Lincoln LS models at Crutchfield.com

and here's one i think may work from a different site
PAC AMP-FRD3 (pac-ampfrd3) Premium Factory System Adaptors In-Dash Receiver Accessories & Installation Car Accessories and Installation Car Audio and Video - Sonic Electronix

will either of these work?

[01 RED GT]

should be a metra 70-5519 harness thats for the mach 460 system still only has 2 harnesses, one harness has the power for the radio and speakers the other harness is to power the factory amps that 3rd plug you are talking about on the back of the radio is probably just the 6 disk changer harness which you wont need anymore, what makes you want that sony radio if you dont mind me asking? just from experience with owning 2 sonys that both crapped out and working at circuit city for 2 years i just dont really recomend sony head units or speakers or subs for that matter lol

[scp616]

I'm worried about the harness only having one set of RCA adapters though, and this review on crutchfield seems to prove my point =P "...My only disappointment was that the adapter only has one set of rca outputs . This causes both the door and rear speakers to be on the same channel, which lowers the tuning capability of the system. Other than that the adapter works fine and was easy to install."
If the door and rear speakers are on the same channel, does that mean that it's a high level output going to the rear amps?
I'm surprised you haven't had good luck with sony stereos, i've put them in 3 cars after having several pioneers let me down, and i've always had really good luck with them. Can't beat the simplicity of the interface too, i like my stereo to be pretty basic in that regard lol

[01 RED GT]

should be low level, are you talking about the signal from the factory amps in the back? b/c those power the 5x7s which are basicly subs only produce lows, the mids and highs are getting power straight from the head unit, and yes i did like the simplicity of the sony head units thats why i got my mom one for her she needs simple, but i prefer alpine and pioneer now, just have more settings to fine tune the system especially with having a subwoofer

[wraitherx]

01 is correct those amps only power up the subs, there are actually 4 tweeters in our cars. 2 on the sailpanel and then 1 on each side of the rear subs that are run off of the H/U

[scp616]

I know the output of the amps is high level, i just can't figure out if the input to the amps is high level or low level. They guy at crutchfield said they would accept either signal, but he also said i didn't need the third plug, and that review of that harness kinda worries me.
I agree that they should be low level, and the rest of the speakers should be high level.
So how do i get a low level input to the amps?
The radio i ordered has three RCA jacks, but the harness i ordered only has two RCA plugs... so will that still work correctly or am i going to have the same problem as the guy that bought his harness off crutchfield?
Sorry for all the questions, i just want this thing to sound right lol
I appreciate all the input!

[wraitherx]

correct, you are not going to need the 3rd plug. the harness's that you showed up top are the correct harness's to use. ive been using that harness for the past 4 years and never had a problem with it unless you radio does not have sub outputs. in order to get low level into your amps you are gonna take that plug with the RCA connections and put it into the sub output on the back of your head unit. this is a "non-fading" output so there is no advantage to have the 2 sets of subs on seperate channels. the only thing you need to do with the subs is to either turn the gain down or up depending on your listening preference.

[scp616]

cool, thanks for all the help guys, i really appreciate it!
I ordered everything, and the people at sonic electronix saw that i noted i had the mach 460 system and added the correct plug kit to my order for free, so i should be good now, we'll see how the install goes lol

[wraitherx]

its not hard at all, once you start doing it and see how easy it is you will laugh

[scp616]

Does all the wiring for the stereo go to the front amp? this site
Mach 460 Information
says that the front amp sends a signal to the rear amps for the low signals, which would make sense based on the wiring diagrams.
Does anyone know if the diagrams on this site are accurate or if there's diagrams available elsewhere that are a little more clear?
thanks

[wraitherx]

it is correct, and nice find on that site. you might want to make a seperate thread about that site and title it "Sticky this" and post the link in this section so that others can gain from this site.

[texas96gt]

Originally Posted by wraitherlx 01 is correct those amps only power up the subs, there are actually 4 tweeters in our cars. 2 on the sailpanel and then 1 on each side of the rear subs that are run off of the H/U

I bought my 96 GT last year and it has the mach 460. It came with a Sony head unit, and infinity referance 5x7's. The head unit has 2 wiring harness, 1 for speakers and one for power. For some reason only the 4 tweeters are working and the 5x7's are not. I've checked all my fuses and they are good. I've got power to both amps. So why are my speakers not working? They have never worked since I've owned the car. Any thoughts?

[wraitherx]

they probably didnt wire it up right. easiest way in your car is to take the radio out and look inside the cavity and on the right you will see a metal frame. there will be a gray plug and a black plug. go to best buy and ask for a FD02AB wiring harness for a ford. this will contain the female versions of those 2 that i mentioned above. this method totally bypasses the amps but still powers up all speakers. they probably used the gray harness (power) and then a small black, square, elongated plug and wired it up to the radio. this is good too but the proper way to do it (as these are your low level wires for your subs) is to take some RCA connections and splice them into those wires and put them on the front and rear RCA outputs on your H/U. also how do you know that you are getting power to the amps? did you actually test them? reason being is cause if you already tested them and they are getting power the only thing left is either the amps are all blown or you have something not connnected/disconnected somewhere.

[texas96gt]

Well, I took the plug with 3 wires out of the amp and checked them with my meter. 1 had 12v, 1 had 5v, and the other did not have any voltage. Behind the head unit there is a gray plug with an wiring adapter that the speakers wired into it. Then there is another plug that is back with the all the power and ground wires.

[scp616]

Hey guys, i finally got my radio in today and everything working properly, i ran into a few problems, but i figured it all out now, so i think i'm gonna post a "how to" for it, so anyone else that's putting an aftermarket radio head in with the stock 460 system doesn't have the same problems

[wraitherx]

Originally Posted by texas96gt Well, I took the plug with 3 wires out of the amp and checked them with my meter. 1 had 12v, 1 had 5v, and the other did not have any voltage. Behind the head unit there is a gray plug with an wiring adapter that the speakers wired into it. Then there is another plug that is back with the all the power and ground wires.

if i remember right the Gray plug (elongated and rectangular) should be the one for power and should not be any speaker connections on it. there should be a black square plug with 8 wires going into it and this is for the speakers wires. Unless this is a different harness all together (which alot of companies use the gray as power as it matches the stock plug color and then black for the speaker as this matches the stock plug color) i think that someone messed up somewhere. IDK.

if you are getting power to the amps then you may have a loose connection somewhere leading to the speakers or on the speakers. also your speakers could be blown. one thing that you can do is to check the resistance of your speakers if you are good with a multimeter. set it to ohms then touch both the negative wire and positive and it should read whatever the ohm rating of your speaker is. if you have a multimeter that has the beeping function on the ohms setting you can touch both the negative and the positive and it should beep. if it doesnt then it is blown, bad connection, or pinched somewhere.

Originally Posted by scp616 Hey guys, i finally got my radio in today and everything working properly, i ran into a few problems, but i figured it all out now, so i think i'm gonna post a "how to" for it, so anyone else that's putting an aftermarket radio head in with the stock 460 system doesn't have the same problems

good to hear.

[95black bullett]

Anyone have any ideas for the 460 setup for a 95 mustang.Who ever owned my car before me decided to just hack wires rip out the radio left the cd player took the amp i was told should be under the seat and left a mess of wires just hanging.PLEASE HELP ANYONE