2023 CX-5 Non-Bose Factory Amp Location?

I recently purchased a CE CX-5 that has a non bose factory stereo. I'm looking to install a 4 channel brick amp to power after market speakers. I've searched everywhere (even the forum) as to where the amp is located. Some say under the passenger front seat while others say it is under the passenger glove box. Ive looked in both places and nothing looks like an amp. I also went to 2 installation shops and both say there isn't an amp at all. My question is:

1. Does anyone know if it has an amp?

2. If so, where is it?

3. If not, do the make a harness for the back of the unit that will allow me to tap into the speakers without cutting wire?

This is for a 2023 with the new infotainment screen not the old one.

Thank you
 
I can't say for sure with your '23 CX-5, but for my '23 CX-50 (same screen/audio) I just downloaded a big chunk of the service manual (24hr subscription). For the CX-50 it's under the passenger (front) seat. There seems to be a cover over the amp, so it may not look like an amp at first glance.

I should add that it says to remove the seat for access and you should take of the battery -ve cable first because of the built-in airbag. This is from the manual:

Warning

• Handling a front seat equipped with a side air bag improperly can accidentally operate (deploy) the air bag, which may seriously injure you. Read the service warnings/cautions in the Workshop Manual before handling the front seat (side air bag integrated). (See AIR BAG SYSTEM SERVICE WARNINGS [STANDARD DEPLOYMENT CONTROL SYSTEM - MEXICO SPEC.].) (See AIR BAG SYSTEM SERVICE CAUTIONS [STANDARD DEPLOYMENT CONTROL SYSTEM - MEXICO SPEC.].) (See AIR BAG SYSTEM SERVICE WARNINGS [TWO-STEP DEPLOYMENT CONTROL SYSTEM - US/CANADA SPEC.].) (See AIR BAG SYSTEM SERVICE CAUTIONS [TWOSTEP DEPLOYMENT CONTROL SYSTEM - US/CANADA SPEC.].)

1.Remove the head restraint (RH).
2.Remove the front seat (RH) installation bolts. (See FRONT SEAT REMOVAL/INSTALLATION.)
3.Remove the front seat belt lower anchor (RH). (See FRONT SEAT BELT REMOVAL/INSTALLATION.)
4.Perform the following procedure.

(1)Switch the ignition off.​
(2)Disconnect the negative battery terminal and wait for 1 min or more. (See NEGATIVE BATTERY TERMINAL DISCONNECTION/CONNECTION.)​

5.Remove the front seat (RH). (See FRONT SEAT REMOVAL/INSTALLATION.)
 
I can't say for sure with your '23 CX-5, but for my '23 CX-50 (same screen/audio) I just downloaded a big chunk of the service manual (24hr subscription). For the CX-50 it's under the passenger (front) seat. There seems to be a cover over the amp, so it may not look like an amp at first glance.



I should add that it says to remove the seat for access and you should take of the battery -ve cable first because of the built-in airbag. This is from the manual:

Thank you for the level of detail. I will check and post my findings.
 
Hey. You are right. The amp is under the passenger seat with a black cover over it. Thank you! There are 3 harnesses attached to the amp. A blue one and 2 white ones. The white one in the middle looks to be from amp to speakers. The white one on the end has power and ground wires and a set of other wires (about4). Are these the signal in cables? There doesn't seem to be enough wiring. If that is the case, how would I connect a 4 channel amp without still using the existing amp to provide the signal? Normally I would connect the signal wires to the new amp or an LOC and connect the speaker cable that was connected to the old amp to the new one.
 

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Many new cars have digital inputs from the head unit to the amplifier, because the music, door chimes, and other sounds are carried by the CANBUS to be played through the speakers.

Again, no idea if Mazda has started doing this yet, but it is very common. You really need to measure the signals both into and out of the amp.

Car stereo installations in the 2020's is a brave new world.
 
Many new cars have digital inputs from the head unit to the amplifier, because the music, door chimes, and other sounds are carried by the CANBUS to be played through the speakers.



Again, no idea if Mazda has started doing this yet, but it is very common. You really need to measure the signals both into and out of the amp.



Car stereo installations in the 2020's is a brave new world.

Thank you for that information. I may need to re-think this and just go the sub only route.

 
Thank you for that information. I may need to re-think this and just go the sub only route.

@theblooms is correct. There are signal inputs from the Comms unit as well as canbus connections (for chimes etc) AND signal (or maybe tuning) outputs to the radio tuner. It would be pretty difficult to simply replace the amplifier. You could check Crutchfield to see if they have a device to insert that would pass the signalling and allow you to replace the amp.

If not, PM me and I'll send you the wiring page so you can splice into the sub outputs from the amp. (Prob not reqd if you simply splice at the existing sub speaker wires themselves.)
 
iDataLink does has a mystery box called the Maestro AR that allows for some tightly integrated factory amps to be replaced, but they don't have software for Mazdas yet though, so unfortunately not yet an option there. :(

You'll need to tap into a flat and full range signal coming out of the amp to add a subwoofer. And, if you can't find an output that's flat and full range, you'll need a DSP like a JL Audio Cleansweep to create one. There are obviously other brands of DSP's, but that is a common one.
 
@theblooms Thank you for your advice. I'm going to start with just a sub tapping into the output from the speakers and amp. I will test the results for a few days. If it sounds like crap, I will try a DSP.
 
All finished. Connected an LOC to the front speakers coming out of the amp. Meant to use the rear but oh well. Everything sounds as expected. In a few months I will definitely do a 4 channel installation. Few things that may help the next person.



* Remove the seats. It is EXTREMELY difficult to work under the seat. Make sure to disconnect the negative terminal from your battery to prevent airbag warnings. Wait about 20min before disconnect it from the seat.



*All the fuses have constant power so you can't use them for a remote connection. The LOC I have has a remote connection for an amp however, since the door chimes coming through the factory amp, the LOC will leave the amp on for about 5 to 10min after your last interaction with the vehicle. Locking and unlocking the door will cut on the amp through the LOC method as well.
 
All finished. Connected an LOC to the front speakers coming out of the amp. Meant to use the rear but oh well. Everything sounds as expected. In a few months I will definitely do a 4 channel installation. Few things that may help the next person.



* Remove the seats. It is EXTREMELY difficult to work under the seat. Make sure to disconnect the negative terminal from your battery to prevent airbag warnings. Wait about 20min before disconnect it from the seat.



*All the fuses have constant power so you can't use them for a remote connection. The LOC I have has a remote connection for an amp however, since the door chimes coming through the factory amp, the LOC will leave the amp on for about 5 to 10min after your last interaction with the vehicle. Locking and unlocking the door will cut on the amp through the LOC method as well.
What color wires did you tap into? I'm trying to install a sub as well. I had bought the PAC but it didn't fit.
 
What color wires did you tap into? I'm trying to install a sub as well. I had bought the PAC but it didn't fit.


Here is a diagram for the cx5. There are 3 harness connected to the amp. The white one in the middle is for the speakers. On that harness, the top and bottom inner wires are the front. The top and bottom most outer wires are the rear. I tapped into the inner which wasn't my intention but it worked out. I was going for the rear but tapped the front. Didn't feel like changing it. The diagram for pos&neg are correct but the location of where they run to could be different so test if you can.
 

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I added a 4 channel Alpine KTP-445U and a Rockford R500X1D. Wasn't happy with the sub only setup.

What I did was cut the speaker out harness from the amp. I connected the harness end to the inline of the Alpine and connected the outline wires from the Alpine to the cut end of the factory speaker wires. For the Rockford, I tapped into the rear speaker wires before the connection to the 4ch. I also installed 4 Alpine S-S65 speakers. The KTP is set to 60hz HPF. For the sub I'm using is a down fire Pioneer 12".

Everything sounds fantastic! It wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. Some things to mention that might help.

*Again, take the seat out to work with the amp under the passenger front seat. Make sure to disconnect the neg side of the car battery before getting started. I had no trouble reconnecting the neg side from time to time for testing as long as you don't move the seat while doing it. I managed to work under the seat after removing the 4 bolts and keeping all the wires connected to the seat by tilting the seat back and propping the seat with a vacuum cleaner hose.

* I connected all the wires from the cut harness and the 4 ch amp to Nilight 2pin plug sockets. This will make it easy to switch it back to stock. I connected male and females to the cut factory harness and factory speaker wire side and connected male and females to the inline and outline of the amp.
 
I added a 4 channel Alpine KTP-445U and a Rockford R500X1D. Wasn't happy with the sub only setup.

What I did was cut the speaker out harness from the amp. I connected the harness end to the inline of the Alpine and connected the outline wires from the Alpine to the cut end of the factory speaker wires. For the Rockford, I tapped into the rear speaker wires before the connection to the 4ch. I also installed 4 Alpine S-S65 speakers. The KTP is set to 60hz HPF. For the sub I'm using is a down fire Pioneer 12".

Everything sounds fantastic! It wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. Some things to mention that might help.

*Again, take the seat out to work with the amp under the passenger front seat. Make sure to disconnect the neg side of the car battery before getting started. I had no trouble reconnecting the neg side from time to time for testing as long as you don't move the seat while doing it. I managed to work under the seat after removing the 4 bolts and keeping all the wires connected to the seat by tilting the seat back and propping the seat with a vacuum cleaner hose.

* I connected all the wires from the cut harness and the 4 ch amp to Nilight 2pin plug sockets. This will make it easy to switch it back to stock. I connected male and females to the cut factory harness and factory speaker wire side and connected male and females to the inline and outline of the amp.
Hi, this sounds hard but worth it. I'm thinking of replacing the speakers and tweeters and add an amplifier. I'm really new to this but I might rely on professional help.
So just to make sure, I don't need to remove the head unit to add an amplifier? Only work with the box under the seat. Also, for the rear door speakers, Crutchfield recommended only 1 model for a 2way speaker since the mounting height might be an issue. Did you face any issues with mounting the rear speakers? Any recommendations?

Thank you!
 
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Hi, this sounds hard but worth it. I'm thinking of replacing the speakers and tweeters and add an amplifier. I'm really new to this but I might rely on professional help.
So just to make sure, I don't need to remove the head unit to add an amplifier? Only work with the box under the seat. Also, for the rear door speakers, Crutchfield recommended only 1 model for a 2way speaker since the mounting height might be an issue. Did you face any issues with mounting the rear speakers? Any recommendations?

Thank you!

You do not need to remove the head unit. One of the reasons I did it myself is because every professional shop I went to kept telling me it didn't have a amp if it wasn't a Bose. At the time, I didn't know the location of the amp but I knew it had one. If you do go with the pros, show them the amp location.

For the speakers, I had no issues what so ever. I used mounting speaker rings meant for Nissan but they worked because the holes from the ring line up with the attachment holes on the doors. I also used speaker harnesses. I'll attached the links.

Speaker Harness- https://a.co/d/2aFAuSq
Mounting Rings- https://a.co/d/8i6sZLb
 
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You do not need to remove the head unit. One of the reasons I did it myself is because every professional shop I went to kept telling me it didn't have a amp if it wasn't a Bose. At the time, I didn't know the location of the amp but I knew it had one. If you do go with the pros, show them the amp location.

For the speakers, I had no issues what so ever. I used mounting speaker rings meant for Nissan but they worked because the holes from the ring line up with the attachment holes on the doors. I also used speaker harnesses. I'll attached the links.

Speaker Harness- https://a.co/d/2aFAuSq
Mounting Rings- https://a.co/d/8i6sZLb

































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































For the speakers, I had no issues what so ever. I used mounting rings meant for Nissan but theyctly because the holes on the riew holes. I also used speaker harness. I'll attach the links.































































































































































































































































































































































































































































Accessory Compatible with Nissan TEANA https://a.co/d/3ZILEZN
Thank you so much for this!
 
I have a 22 with the standard 6 speakers. I want to upgrade just the front components but wondering what to do about the crossover that it comes with since I'll be retaining the factory amp. I'm thinking about the Morel Maximo 6. From looking at the diagram it looks like the front tweeters just tap off the mids and doesn't have it's own dedicated channel. Is that correct?

Thanks,
Long
 
I have a 22 with the standard 6 speakers. I want to upgrade just the front components but wondering what to do about the crossover that it comes with since I'll be retaining the factory amp. I'm thinking about the Morel Maximo 6. From looking at the diagram it looks like the front tweeters just tap off the mids and doesn't have it's own dedicated channel. Is that correct?

Thanks,
Long
Hi Long,

It does just tap off of the door speakers.
 
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