Thread: Monsoon (VW) I'm sure it's been answered but......

....dude, what?

I'm really confused by this question, are you asking if you can change your speakers and head unit? If so... why wouldn't you be able to?

yes people have changed out they systems, although there are some other issues you might have, so some searching on vwvortex, there are several posts about monsoons. i have mine connected to my computer, with no head unit, and it sounds great.

it depends on the year, i know in the earlier years if you pull the factory head you have problems with the check engine light, you can't pull codes with out the factory head. you definately integrate despite what people say, just don't hook up the remote turn on. the factory amp is voltage sensing. if you hook up the remote turn on it will cause problems, some times expensive problems

Mainly I am concerned with the mounting depth, if I go with an after market deck. I am getting mixed info on the wattage and ohms that the stereo presents. Some shops here say that it is pulled down to a 1 or 1/2 ohm load due to the fact that multiple speakers operate off of each channel. I read in the owners manual that it only puts out 20 watts per channel. If any of this is true, than....what would be the purpose of installing high power speakers against a low power supply?

Oh yeah...Sorry for the confusion. I have been very sick lately and running a high fever. My thought processes are not all that great.

Thanks Tdub, but I am sure that it has OBD of some sort so I could always snatch codes at home or at work.

The problem with VW's and after market stereos is the 'K' wire. The K wire connects the HU to the vehicle electronics for some diagnostic and trouble shooting in regards to the radio itself. An improper aftermarket installation will actually connect this K wire to something it shouldn't, when it shouldn't be connected to any non-VW HU at all. You can put an aftermarket unit in there, just don't connect the K wire and everything will be fine.

IIRC... The Monsoon HU puts a high level (speaker level) input into the Monsoon amp, so it doesn't matter what ohms the speakers will present, they still only present them to the Monsoon amp. Whatever HU you pick up will be putting it's speaker outputs into the Monsoon amp.

If your Jetta has component speakers from the factory, they'd most likely be at 2ohms to whatever amp is powering them.

Thanks everyone for your input. I will consider all of your info when finally making a decision. Maybe I will just replace everything with aftermarket components and not deal with any of the factory installed items.
After having great stereo systems in our other cars, the Monsoon just doesn't compare.

I work as Car Audio Specialist at Best Buy, and I have also owned a 2003 Jetta (I recently traded it in). I replaced the factory stereo with a Pioneer headunit (DEH-P7800MP), and I loved it. Only problem is if you replace the deck, you should replace the speakers too, because you'd need to bypass the tiny factory amp. I recommend the Infinity 6.5" 2-way component speaker system (retail, around $200), but the regular 2-way 6.5" Infinity speakers without the crossover are like $100 if you don't want to spend that much. Also, Alpine Type-R's are pretty good too. The good thing, I've found, with a component system is that it provides enough bass so that you don't necessarily need to invest in a subwoofer (unless of course, you reall really love bass). Honestly though, take it from me - ANYTHING is better than a stock VW Monsoon system!

you can interface to the stock amp there are quite a few posts on this site on how to build a circuit to turn the monsoon amp on and off...

however... I would replace it... as well as the stock speakers...

most of your monsoon problems lie in the headunit and the lack of clean bass and clear highs from the amp.. you can get around that by adding a sub to the monsoon system and a aftermarket headunit...