believe it or not i am in the same situation that lanestar is in. the decision to change everything in my car for the empeg or just run the empeg. i opted for the change everything. i went this route: pioneer deh-p930 to a ip-bus/rca to empeg. not one iota of sound loss and they look fantastic together. nothing but smiles and lots of music. i would suggest going with the extra $35 and a little more hassle.