1999 C43 Stereo Upgrade

[oaktownc43]

Hello..Im new to this board and I am the proud owner of a Silver/Black 1999 C43 AMG. Unfortunately the original owner when he purchased the car didnt buy the optional Premium Bose sound system. I have the Standard Electronic Audio System and in my opinion it sounds terrible..especially with the radio on.My question is has anyone upgraded the Stereo System in their W202 chassis car and hopefully a C43? If so what have you done and how does it sound? Im looking for a crisp/clear/excellent clarity even at low volumes system with good tight bass...but not overwelming like the kids have. Any suggestions? Or maybe someone removed the complete Bose system from their car and would like to sell it. Im open to any all feedback for a good sounding system.I have received a lot of suggestions from stereo shops and they ALL have their opinions on what i should do for upgrading.If I can find someone that has actually done the upgrading on their W202 car then that would be great.
Thanks for your time
Phillip
Oakland ca
1999 C43

[MBATF]

Originally posted by oaktownc43
Hello..Im new to this board and I am the proud owner of a Silver/Black 1999 C43 AMG. Unfortunately the original owner when he purchased the car didnt buy the optional Premium Bose sound system. I have the Standard Electronic Audio System and in my opinion it sounds terrible..especially with the radio on.My question is has anyone upgraded the Stereo System in their W202 chassis car and hopefully a C43? If so what have you done and how does it sound? Im looking for a crisp/clear/excellent clarity even at low volumes system with good tight bass...but not overwelming like the kids have. Any suggestions? Or maybe someone removed the complete Bose system from their car and would like to sell it. Im open to any all feedback for a good sounding system.I have received a lot of suggestions from stereo shops and they ALL have their opinions on what i should do for upgrading.If I can find someone that has actually done the upgrading on their W202 car then that would be great.
Thanks for your time
Phillip
Oakland ca
1999 C43

If you are going to upgrades teh speakers, then go for Alpines or something better then the OEM BOSE system, cuz it cost money and not worth of teh time.

Which part of Oakland r u from? r u anywhere near the lake?
i m in oaklnad liek every day almost

[Denlasoul]

Greetings and welcome!

You might find these threads useful:
Click me

Also, try and look up in the members gallery. LOTS of members have nice sound systems. pnsji, jirwan, luwin, and many others can give you a good idea.

Also, at the bottom of the "Electonics" forum there is a search option. You will get a lot of info there.

[98_Benzo]

I have only upgraded the headunit in my car twice. I went from DVD player to just an MP3 player. It is very easy to do, the only problem is, when you change the headunit your going to want to do the speakers at the same time. Supposedly Mercedes speakers can not handle that much wattage, if you get an older stereo the speakers will with stand it, but if you get a newer model stereo the speakers can not take it (I found that out the hard way). I, like you, do not have the Bose stereo system either, so I know where your coming from. Altough, I didn't find the stereo that bad...I will let everyone know, the stock system in the Mercedes' are way better then the Harmon Kardon system in the M3's. So, if you look at it that way, it could be worse. Every M3 owner I know, complains about the stereo system in those, so we should only be lucky to not have Harmon Kardon. Anyways, welcome to the board and good luck!!!

[Luwin1026]

Couple of questions that would help us out in giving opinions and advice -


What kind of budget are you looking at?

What kind of audio/visual formats are you looking to utilize? (mp3s, satellite radio, DVD, navigation, etc.)

What kind of music do you generally listen to?




I listen to mostly country and hip-hop, and I like to watch the occasional movie, but I don't have a crazy budget like some audiophiles here, so I opted to go with a multimedia head unit (Alpine CVA-1003), and an in-dash DVD player mounted in the glovebox. I kept my Bose speakers and added a 4-channel amp as well as a 12" sub mounted in an enclosure in the spare tire well powered by a 2-channel amp.

I'm don't know much about audio stuff, though - pnsji would be a great resource to ask, but he's getting his wisdom teeth out today, so he'll probaby advise when he's feeling better.

Welcome aboard!



Here are some pics of my system, courtesy of kameraguy -

[IMG]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0QgDyAqcSTFUbfJMgHBIyPsYDN*dF6J9Q7n9gwYFHKlqMYxdQn EMO!JNL8hLQDfC8fd!MmgX5kwDPTmbZhHjCHvN11UXJF35fQfF yUiBF49M/CRW_0971.tif?dc=4675417755170838892[/IMG]

[davis449]

If you are on a low budget, for now, you would be amazed what an aftermarket deck and a sub coupled with the factory speakers will do for your system. Once you put good wattage behind those factory speakers, they will sound better. You can probably get a good sub, box, amp, and deck installed for about $800. Watch for the specials at best buy where they package the sub and amp and box all into one. I've actually seen an Rockford Fosgate package go for about $300 and it was like a 300 watt amp and two 10's.

[CKlasse]

I think PNSJI / susanto is selling his OEM BOSE plus AMP for extremely GREAT price. He is one of the regular here..shoot him an email..just don't low ball him

I really wish I could get these BOSE.. but I ll have to wait until my on going project is totally finish!

[Denlasoul]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by CKlasse
[B]..just don't low ball him

LOL!

[nokia8860]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Denlasoul

hahah dork.

[Denlasoul]

**hangs head in shame** Yeah, I know.

[pnsji]

ROFLMAO

[oaktownc43]

Well I bought a Kenwood head unit model #KDC X-469 and it worked well but was a bit immature for me with the flashy light bar.On a recomendation from two different stereo shops I decided to get a Eclipse model #CD 8443 and the accompanyng 8 disk CD player.The Eclipse is supposed to have a special feature to capture FM stations even if they are far away and close together with good clarity.It is supposed to be a higher end head unit.I had it installed today and immediately on my drive home got a lot of staic from almost all FM radio stations unless the station had a very strong signal. The CD changer is very noisy and you can hear it as it goes from CD to CD sounds like a robot is in the trunk and also when switching from FM station to CD mode it is noisy and I hear a low level but loud noise coming from the right side speaker area! I never had any problems of this nature with my Mercedes factory setup or the Kenwood! So much for upgrading!!My factory unit and the Kenwood were both 100% quiet. Im taking it back to the stereo shop in the morning to get another installed.Maybe I should have just kept the Kenwood that cost less but worked well.I will see what happens..I almost wish I had left the factory setup alone! This is becoming a nightmare a simple upgrade on recommendations from pro shops.They both claim the Eclipse head unit that I bought is better than Alpine unless you go very high end over $1,000.00 for the head unit alone in Alpine line.Has anyone out there used a Eclipse head unit.Any feedback is very much appreciated.
Thanks
Phillip
1999 C43

[pnsji]

Hi Phillip,

Sorry to hear you are not happy with your install.
Why don't you come to SF and let me show you my system.
If you like it, We can talk about it.
I can help you in installing just about any stereo in your car.

Email me, susanto_irwan@hotmail.com

[oaktownc43]

Hi..I just wanted to say a very special thank you to all that welcomed me to this board with open arms..very much appreciated. Also thanks to the guys that responded to my thread with suggestions and help..also very much appreciated.

I got the problem with my Eclipse head unit/CD changer repaired earlier today...bad cable/fauly CD changer..works fine now.
Got to meet pnsji earlier this evening and hear his awesome stereo system. Very nice guy and very knowledgable and talented. Nice C36 also!
Thanks again
Phillip
1999 C43