first time posting, and i have some questions that hopefully will relate to my empeg install in a few months :) i am somewhere around 1400, but i guess that much time will give me time to save up some $$$, seeing as how i dont have any yet.

here is my question. what is the deal with an additional head unit. i have a really new pioneer head unit. not sure of the product number, but it is about the newest pioneer available. for those audiophiles out there, it is the one with the really cool display that has the planets and stuff in entertainment mode. if i have this head unit, can the empeg hook up to it and allow it to play in aux mode, or do i need something with different rca stuff on the back. i.e. i dont know if the rca jacks on the back are output only, or if some can be used as input, or if that even matters. also, if i can do this, can i use the internal amplifier in the pioneer instead of hooking the empeg up to a seperate external amp? kind of confusing, but hopefully this will make sense to someone out there.

lastly, is this thing hard to install? i am no car audio expert, but i can handle putting in a head unit. i did the pioneer and it works fine, but i have never done anything with a seperate amp. just sottering wiring harnesses to the radio and plugging it in. is it harder than this? any help would be appreciated. anyone out there got $1400 they dont need? ;)

thanks in advance,

jeremy strain

I have a JVC MD/CD with line in, and the empeg works great..
You'll only need to fit the power somewhere (Not the switched output from the Pioneer) and one set of output leads to your Aux in on the Pioneer.
It took me about 10 mins to pull out my tape player (which I was running in the same way as above) and fit the empeg, it's that easy.. =)

Jazz
(List 112, S/N 00030, 4 gig blue)

Pioneer make an adaptor, Part No. CD-RB20, which allows you to feed an external source into any 'P' series head unit via the IP bus. This should work OK with the Empeg but, you might have to reduce the Empeg's signal level by fitting resistors in line, as the adaptor's probably not designed for the sort of signal level the Empeg can kick out, and you might also have problems with noise - Pioneer's latest units seem to be a lot more prone to floating ground problems than most other units, and in combination with the Empeg's floating ground output stages, it could cause a few headaches. Definitely worth considering though, especially as it'd mean not only keeping your existing unit, but also avoiding the need for external amps.

Dominic

Cambridge Car Audio
http://www.cambscaraudio.co.uk

ok. here goes. i took my head unit out. (actually i had to. some people that think they don't have to work for stuff they want ripped my top open on my miata. didn't get the pioneer, but now i can't leave it in there with a big hole in the soft top). anyway, my head unit is procuct number DEH-P8000R. i looked on the back and there are rca jacks for sub out, front out, and rear out. just a basic question. can i run rca wires from the empeg into one of those outs and have things work properly? lastly, i am assuming that if i can do this, i will not have to buy an external amp. is this correct? thanks for the help so far. just hope i can come up with the $$$ by the time my number is up.

jeremy

Your head unit doesn't have a direct rca line in. Don't even think of connecting the empeg to any of those rca outs. =)
You need to use the CD-RB20 adaptor to patch the audio in via the IP-Bus.

Jazz
(List 112, S/N 00030, 4 gig blue)

probably another stupid question, but how does wiring the pioneer into the empeg work? do the rca outs go into the empeg? if they do, how does the empeg connect to the amp? i would like to do this myself. i can install a car stereo competently, but all of this floating ground and external amp stuff is confusing me. maybe i would be better off just getting a shop to do it. has anyone ever gone to brynmar stereo/video? they are a chain i think, but not as big as best buy, circut city, etc. so maybe they will do a better job. anyone know of a good install shop around the philadelphia area? i went to one, but they did not do that great of a job. stuff like twisting the wires and taping them instead of sottering them. i would like to avoid them if possible. thanks for all the help so far.

jeremy

This is kind of an araound-the-barn approach, but if you were to go to the website iasca.com, you could look up the competition schedule for your area. If you went to one of the competitions, you would have opportunity to talk to a lot of shop owners and employees, and competitors with very fancy stereos. You would find lots of people who would talk your ear off about stereos, and offer all sorts of advice - some of it might even be correct. ;-)

Alternatively, the stereo shops listed on the iasca site as sponsoring competitions would be among the better shops in the area and you could start there.

If you're spending $1400 on your empeg, it would be well worth your while to spend another $100 or so and have the job done correctly.

tanstaafl.

"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"