Amp Bypass ?

[espnfreak]

I got the back torn apart and i see the factory amp, and I got the amp bypass from metra for the 96 explorer with premium sound, and it has 2 black connectors but they don't look like they will fit anywhere on the amp. Everything seems to match up right but i dont know whats goin on.

 

[jimbo74]

the 2 connectors are for the stereo to car harness...... there is another connector that is the amp bypass connector and it is a big fat pug with like 10 wires on it

 

[espnfreak]

yeah, but do you have to modifty them at all? both of them don't look like they would plug in anywhere in the back

 

[leenjen]

Originally posted by espnfreak
but they don't look like they will fit anywhere on the amp

the bypass harness doesnt plug into the amp. you disconnect the wires from the amp and plug the harness inline. the amp shouldnt have anything attached.

 

[espnfreak]

well i checked it again and theres a small connector on one end of the amp and a bigger connector on the amp wires, and the connectors on the harness look the same. do they make more than 1 bypass kit? maybe i don't have premium sound?

 

[leenjen]

if you have an amp, then you have premium sound. the base sound system has a 15X4 radio/cassette player.

will the harness plug into the plug on the wires going into the amp?

 

[AQexplorer]

i was in your situation when i was doing my install...and i finally ended up totally rewiring everything. That way you know the wires can handle the power going to the speakers( the factory wires are really small gauge 18-20 or so), and you know exactly where certain wires start and end. It also gives you the ability to easily remove anything you have added, and put all the stock stereo equipment back in.

 

[espnfreak]

Arg, nothing looks like it works :-( I can't find much info on the board or pics to help me out. So i gotta have the premium sound then? maybe he gave me one for the wrong year?

 

[B94Sport]

You could do what I did... Just cut off the connectors on either end of the wires and splice the input wires into their respective output wires. Just be sure to connect them very well and reinsulate them (solder and heat-shrink tubing is what I used).

You can find the wire colors here:
Dead Link Removed

It worked perfectly for me, and saved some money.

 

[espnfreak]

wow thats a big help! i got the harness, and everything looks like that, but the harnesss really has nowhere to go, can you post a pic of the harness?

 

[B94Sport]

A pic of which harness? I am confused. I don't have any harnesses, I just cut the wires on both ends of the amp, pulled out the amp and threw it away, then stripped the wires and spliced them all back together, using the colors from that page as a guide.