[kaigoss69]

Guys, the L7 amp is actually a very good signal source for the MS-8. First, the D/A conversion happens inside the L7 amp in the trunk, so there is no chance of induced noise between the head unit and the amp. Second, the signal coming from the amp is extremely strong with a low noise floor, which again means in the short run between the L7 amp and the MS-8, there is very little chance of induced noise. I used this set-up in the beginning and there was little to no hiss even with the HU volume cranked all the way. Some people have to use line drivers between their signal source and the processor, because the signal is too weak, which of course is not necessary in this case. The MS-8 was built to work with this type of signal. This is the easiest and cheapest way to integrate the MS-8 in this system. Disadvantage is turn-on/off pops caused by L7 amp. It can be annoying. You can eliminate one of the pops by adjusting the MS-8 delay, don't remember which one.

The alternative is recoding to HiFi to work with the balanced output of the head unit. In this case you will have to run RCA cables from the head unit to the trunk which can cause some noise to be picked up by the wiring on the long run to the trunk. Consider the costs of coding 2x, once now and once again before you sell the car, and the extra work to run the signal wire(s). If you have to pay for the coding and the work to run the RCA, it's easily $300-$400.

Alternative #2 is to get a DA-2 from Mobridge to get rid of the L7 amp altogether, while still being able to do the D/A conversion in the trunk. The unit seems expensive (about $600), but consider the fact that you can resell it later on and the worst you can lose is probably $250. I think this is the better and more elegant option compared to recoding to HiFi.