(This is for anyone familiar with the internals of 96-98 Civic interiors)

Hi. I plan to purchase a regular CD-Receiver with an auxillary input for which I would hook up an Empeg unit. The CD-Receiver will go in the place of the factory radio.

The 96-98 Civics do NOT have double DINs. However, there is an area behind the cupholder that appears to have a half DIN cup extending into the dash. (I think it's there for hooking up an equalizer or a Honda CD player.) I am wondering if I can remove the half DIN cup and the region of plastic that holds it in, would there then be room to fit the Empeg unit?

I am wondering if I can remove the half DIN cup and the region of plastic that holds it in, would there then be room to fit the Empeg unit?

I thought the same thing with my 94 Civic but there isn't enough clearance for the cords and you would need to build a custom mount for the second DIN unit.There is some space behind the cup for cords but not nearly enough for all the connections the Empeg needs. You would be better off putting the Empeg in the existing DIN slot and using it as the master and slaving the second head unit through the Empeg. That way, you have fewer cords going up and you should be able to store the unit in the space. Removing the cup holder is a must though for this project.

You might want to take it to a Pro Installer and get their opinion as well. They may have a more crafty way of putting the second head unit in.

Greg

http://www.gregdemetrick.com/empeg.html

My advice: ditch the CD receiver altogether. Use the empeg as your only head unit. Trust me, you won't miss the CD receiver.

If you only intend to use the CD receiver just for listening to the occasional right-after-the-record-store CD purchase, then a portable in the glove box will do. Just run the aux-ins somewhere you can get to 'em.

___________
Tony Fabris

Well a couple of reasons for the Setup. My plan was to avoid buying and installing an amplifier (for the time being) and just run the output of the empeg through a high powered receiver instead. (I know it's blasphemy to the audiophiles out there but I would rather just settle for "good enough". It's an improvement over what I have already)

Also, I wouldn't want to subject my passengers to my quirky tastes so the CD player has to stay.

I check the archived thread on rec.audio.car below.
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&safe=off&th=7e95967e57a8814e,2&seekm=8its6n%24l1o%241%40nnrp1.deja.com#p

Someone was able to do this for the Accord. I am hoping there is more room in the newer models. They did modify the dash somewhat in 96.

I guess I will know this weekend. I'll try to post an update on my progress.

I seem to recall that there was a difference between the Accord dash and Civic dash. If you have a digital camera, a photo might help.

___________
Tony Fabris

Also, I wouldn't want to subject my passengers to my quirky tastes so the CD player has to stay

Is this because your passengers bring their own CDs, so they subject you to their quirky tastes?

The absolute best number-one greatest thing about the empeg is that you always have all of your music with you, just a button-press away. You have so much storage capacity, you can even put music you don't like into it, just to keep your passengers happy.

I have both an empeg and a very good CD player in my car. The only time the CD player is ever used is during IASCA competitions, where the judges don't allow me to use my empeg because of the possibility of re-mastering the competition disk and gaining an unfair advantage.

As Tony has said over and over... leave the CD player out of the car. You'll never miss it. Then, all you need is an amplifier or two, some subwoofers, get rid of those Honda speakers and replace them with MB-Quart... add a nice 30 band third-octave equalizer, a good crossover network, and... and.... uhhh, sorry, I get carried away sometimes.

tanstaafl.

"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"