[jrock645]

Sure it is! If I really wanted to, I could install a headunit in the headboard of my bed and wire it up to 4 car speakers and it would work. How is that any different than installing it independently within a car. The original radio would be happy, as its' ego would be getting stroked on the daily as you gawk at his ability to calculate MPG and all. Unbeknownst to him, his smarter and much sneakier little brother is having his ego stroked as you jam out with your clam while he hides only inches below his big brother's schnozzola.

I enjoyed your choice of words there. You should check out my blog, I think you'll appreciate my way with words.

 

[XMan714]

Here's my opinion on the lower pocket install, since I referenced keep_hope_alive's install when I had my custom lower pocket done.

1. I didn't want to cut or splice any of the factory wiring. The only thing done was remove the factory speakers. Nothing else was changed from the OEM stereo.
2. I wanted massive sound improvement. I've always had aftermarket systems in all my cars. My baseline is always 2-12 inch mid-level subs running 500 watts for bass. I had my 2 JL Audio 12w3v3 subs from my last car, so I used them in the Accord.
3. Removing the factory door and rear deck speakers with the speakers I had in my previous car would provide the mids and highs. This was some work, but nothing more than others have done. The biggest work was around running 14 gauge speaker wire through the doors to not use the factory wiring at all. Second challenge was using Scosche SAHC634 speaker adapters for mounting. These are cheap plastic that required some cutting and drilling to fit. They're general purpose speaker adapters. There are much better options that many have done, I chose the simplest way at the time and may change later.
4. I didn't care about losing any of the steering wheel controls, but I did care about keeping the iMid functions. Really, I just wanted to keep the fuel economy and the system controls. I use bluetooth through the aftermarket Alpine CDE-154BT. I haven't decided whether or not I wanted to buy the module to integrate with the steering wheel. The lower pocket area is so easy to access, it's not missed. Also, the Alpine head unit did require antenna adapters, which I couldn't find my receipt to confirm the make and model of. I think others have posted anyway. I have the Alpine microphone mounted along the roofliner to the right of the rear view mirror. It works great, calls are clear. Oh I forgot to mention, power for the Alpine is taken from the same line that would have been used for the interior footwell lighting.

Everything else is common work. Installing an amp will require you to run power and ground. You need to run speaker wires, RCAs, and HIGHLY recommended to sound deaden. DON'T SKIP THIS.

 

[dkm16]

He doesn't need to, but he has wired it up so he can use the factory bluetooth for phone calls so he can use the built-in mic array (no aftermarket mic needs to be sticking out) and for text notifications.



The calls and notifications will still appear on the iMid like before.



The negatives of this is that requires a bit of extra wiring, changing the source before answering a call and that calls won't automatically interrupt the music. However the visual indication on the iMid should be fine.



Integrating the factory bluetooth is completely optional.

That's his decision to make, I suppose. You could very easily swap out the factory mic, and install the aftermarket headunit's mic and, VIOLA! No need to turn down volume, change inputs/swap sources, or any of that nonsense.

The Pioneer unit I'm referring to is a pretty bare-bones double-DIN unit. The music fades out when someone calls, and you can set the unit to flash different color patterns of your choice to indicate the incoming call. Its also android compatible and Siri eyes free enabled. I can only imagine what capabilities the higher end units have.




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[@ndy]

That's his decision to make, I suppose. You could very easily swap out the factory mic, and install the aftermarket headunit's mic and, VIOLA! No need to turn down volume, change inputs/swap sources, or any of that nonsense.

Agreed.

However, I looked into putting the aftermarket mic in place of where the stock mic is located. All that I could conclude was that people who put their mic in a stock location enclosed behind a grill (not specifically our cars), the mic did not sound very good compared to mounting on a visor or headliner.

 

[dkm16]

Agreed.



However, I looked into putting the aftermarket mic in place of where the stock mic is located. All that I could conclude was that people who put their mic in a stock location enclosed behind a grill (not specifically our cars), the mic did not sound very good compared to mounting on a visor or headliner.

Hmm... Interesting. In the Toyota I did, the stock microphone position behind the dash had a cube-like shape to it. So I just grabbed a ball of Crayola Model Magic, wrapped it around the base of the mic, and then formed it into a cube so it fit snugly and blocked out any noise that could potentially be picked up from the engine Bay Area.

It worked great and quality is not an issue at all. Even at highway speeds.


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[@ndy]

Hmm... Interesting. In the Toyota I did, the stock microphone position behind the dash had a cube-like shape to it. So I just grabbed a ball of Crayola Model Magic, wrapped it around the base of the mic, and then formed it into a cube so it fit snugly and blocked out any noise that could potentially be picked up from the engine Bay Area.

It worked great and quality is not an issue at all. Even at highway speeds.


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That is good to know.

The limited references of installing the mic like that that I had found, it was mainly people just gluing the mic in place and not using anything to block any additional noise out.

I'd much rather just use the aftermarket BT mic hidden than integrating with the stock head unit.

I'll try to test that out this weekend.