# Fosgate Head unit



## Mil132 (Aug 15, 2005)

Can someone tell he that owns a Fosgate system in the truck does it have a seaprate power amp or does the head unit have the power built in?


Thank you.


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

Mil132 said:


> Can someone tell he that owns a Fosgate system in the truck does it have a seaprate power amp or does the head unit have the power built in?
> 
> 
> Thank you.



Yes, it has a separate amp. The head unit isn't made by Rockford Fosgate -- the amp (and probably the sub) are. I don't have the RF system, but I believe the amp is beneath the rear left seat with the sub.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong.


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## Slubgub (Mar 17, 2005)

I have the RF system, the amp us inder the front passenger seat, and the sub is under the rear seat behind the driver. I believe rockford makes the sub, amp and speakers.


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

Slubgub said:


> I have the RF system, the amp us inder the front passenger seat, and the sub is under the rear seat behind the driver. I believe rockford makes the sub, amp and speakers.


Thanks for correcting me. I think you're right about the components that RF makes. They certainly don't make the head unit, since the KC has the same head unit without the RF logo, and the Pathfinder has the same head unit with a Bose logo.

Slubgub -- Since the amp is under the front passenger seat, do you have the heater duct under the seat that blows into the rear floorboard???? Just curious, as this seems like it would keep the amp pretty hot. Just curious...


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## earl1z19 (Nov 16, 2005)

The amp and the sub are Fosgate while the door speakers are Clarion. FYI


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## Slubgub (Mar 17, 2005)

I was not sure on the speakers, I thought I read that somewhere else, but that would make sense. Clarion also makes the new ipod interface for that head unit. Are the Clarion speakers still paper?

As for the amp, yes, it sits on a metal bracket above a heating duct to the back seat. There is about 1/8" clearance. I do not think the heat really affects it, but then again, I never checked ot see how hot the plastic got when it is on high.


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## 05 NISMO 4X4 (Jun 4, 2005)

I've been told the 6CD/MP3 that comes with the Audio Upgrade package in the King Cab have a built in amp where the RF and Bose labeled units don't, thus the amp under the seat. I always thought the RF/Bose Amp only drove the RF/Bose Sub, not the rest of the speakers. I guess what I'm asking is, will the RF/Bose labeled head units power the speakers in the King Cab (no sub) without having to add an external amp?

There have been discussions on other forums where folks with the King Cab wanted to buy an RF or Bose head unit from eBay and were told they would not work without the external amp. Just trying to get some clarification on this... Thanks. :thumbup:


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## BakedCookies (Sep 18, 2005)

05 NISMO 4X4 said:


> I've been told the 6CD/MP3 that comes with the Audio Upgrade package in the King Cab have a built in amp where the RF and Bose labeled units don't, thus the amp under the seat. I always thought the RF/Bose Amp only drove the RF/Bose Sub, not the rest of the speakers. I guess what I'm asking is, will the RF/Bose labeled head units power the speakers in the King Cab (no sub) without having to add an external amp?
> 
> There have been discussions on other forums where folks with the King Cab wanted to buy an RF or Bose head unit from eBay and were told they would not work without the external amp. Just trying to get some clarification on this... Thanks. :thumbup:


bump because ive been waiting on this answer myself, i dont want an aftermarket unit because no one seems to match our dash lights well.


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

Just found this in another thread on this forum by a member named "trudolph"...



trudolph said:


> I swaped out the single disc for the 6-disc RF in my 05 SE Crew. I bought the unit off ebay and the seller said it came out of a 05 xtera. The connectors (speakers and power) on the back of the unit were the same but the speaker outputs were pre-amp so i also had to install an amp (behind the driver side rear seat). Also the brackets that held in my orginal unit need to be modified to fit the RF. For me the screw holes on the FR unit were an inch closer to the front than on my stock radio.


This doesn't answer the question about whether or not the KC version of the head unit has an amp built in (somehow, I doubt it does because it would require Nissan to purchase two different versions of the HU from Clarion).


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## 05 NISMO 4X4 (Jun 4, 2005)

msubullyfan said:


> This doesn't answer the question about whether or not the KC version of the head unit has an amp built in (somehow, I doubt it does because it would require Nissan to purchase two different versions of the HU from Clarion).


That's what I was thinking, and I don't have an external amp that I can find, unless it's hidden under the dash someplace! And that raises the question of can I just connect a Sub to my HU? Other than the question of whether one has an amp and the other doesn't, or not, they are identical on the face and in function!

Where are all the stereo expets?


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## symbology (Dec 14, 2005)

FYI

Aftermarket HU's with Red lights look pretty good in the dash. There is a lot of red already.


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## MrFancypants (Nov 18, 2005)

05 NISMO 4X4 said:


> That's what I was thinking, and I don't have an external amp that I can find, unless it's hidden under the dash someplace! And that raises the question of can I just connect a Sub to my HU? Other than the question of whether one has an amp and the other doesn't, or not, they are identical on the face and in function!


The FSM says the amp is under the front passenger seat and the sub is under the rear drivers side passenger seat.

When I installed my tow package wiring, the instructions mentioned an "AMP" under the passenger side kick panel cover, but I cant find any mention of it in the FSM.

Regardless, if you install a sub, it will have to be a powered one. Ive never seen a head unit that has a powered sub output. Even if it did, it would be way too underpowered to get any bass. Good aftermarket decks will provide sub preouts that you wire into an amp. If you dont have preouts (sucks to be you in that case), you can get an amp that accepts line-level inputs and wire it into your rear speakers with an appropriate crossover.


- Greg -


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

MrFancypants said:


> The FSM says the amp is under the front passenger seat and the sub is under the rear drivers side passenger seat.


That's for the CC RF package... he has the KC, which doesn't have a sub.


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

05 NISMO 4X4 said:


> That's what I was thinking, and I don't have an external amp that I can find, unless it's hidden under the dash someplace! And that raises the question of can I just connect a Sub to my HU? Other than the question of whether one has an amp and the other doesn't, or not, they are identical on the face and in function!
> 
> Where are all the stereo expets?


Here's a suggestion... I bought and installed a Kenwood KSC-SW1 self-powered subwoofer after a friend of mine who is an installer remarked that it was the first self-powered sub he had ever installed that sounded decent. He was right -- it sounds pretty darn good. Not as good as a traditional 8-10" sub with an external amp, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper, and the sound blends well with the stock head unit output (I have replaced the door speakers, too). It's pretty easy to install, too.

Here's more info on the sub...

http://www.kenwoodusa.com/products/ListProduct.aspx?k1=2&k2=43&k3=158&pr=2024


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## Q-Tip (Sep 10, 2005)

msubullyfan said:


> Here's a suggestion... I bought and installed a Kenwood KSC-SW1 self-powered subwoofer after a friend of mine who is an installer remarked that it was the first self-powered sub he had ever installed that sounded decent. He was right -- it sounds pretty darn good. Not as good as a traditional 8-10" sub with an external amp, but it's a heck of a lot cheaper, and the sound blends well with the stock head unit output (I have replaced the door speakers, too). It's pretty easy to install, too.
> 
> Here's more info on the sub...
> 
> http://www.kenwoodusa.com/products/ListProduct.aspx?k1=2&k2=43&k3=158&pr=2024


That really isn't a whole lot different from the sub in the Crew Cabs. It's just a little boxy thing under the back seat, firing forward. If you take out the storage bin you could probably install it in the same spot even.









If I remember correctly it has a couple of 6" speakers in it.


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

Q-Tip said:


> That really isn't a whole lot different from the sub in the Crew Cabs. It's just a little boxy thing under the back seat, firing forward. If you take out the storage bin you could probably install it in the same spot even.


Probably could. I didn't want to lose my storage space, so I put it under the front seat.


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## 05 NISMO 4X4 (Jun 4, 2005)

msubullyfan said:


> Probably could. I didn't want to lose my storage space, so I put it under the front seat.


Where did you connect the cables to feed the audio to the amp? I've been considering this very sub/amp, but wasn't sure what it would sound like!


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## msubullyfan (Jul 24, 2005)

05 NISMO 4X4 said:


> Where did you connect the cables to feed the audio to the amp? I've been considering this very sub/amp, but wasn't sure what it would sound like!


The sub comes with generous lengths of wiring. I tapped the speaker wires in the harness for the head unit, and found a heavy-gauge 12V source in the wiring underneath the steering wheel. 

I routed the wires underneath the driver's kick panel and the door sill trim and to the underside of the seat.

It's easier to install if you remove the seat. I was too lazy to do that, so I removed the bolts anchoring the seat and then just leaned it back a bit.


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## y2klowrider (Dec 11, 2005)

Has anyone checked the wattage from the RF amp? I know that it's supposed to 380 watts, but how much of that goes to the sub and the speakers? 

If anyone has RF audio, the equipment, the knowledge, and the time, check your wattage and please post the results!!


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## scuba91ta (Aug 19, 2005)

well, there is nothing fosgate about the speakers in the king cab, that i can tell ya... the 6x9's in the doors were weak... my 16 year old pontiac had better stock speakers than that lol...


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