Car Stereos: 02 Suburban rear seat audio bypass, power antenna, antenna wire

Question
My car is non-Bose, external amplifer behind glove box, rear seat audio controls. I have installed an aftermarket head unit that turns amp on, but I do not get any sound at rear speakers. How do I bypass the rear audio controls?

Answer
Hi Jon,

I've never had to do anything with the rear seat audio controls in these vehicles.  If you're getting rear speakers that aren't playing, I'd question whether the factory amp is actually turning on.  In some of the GM full-size SUV's, the factory amplifier only drives the rear door speakers, while the rest of the speakers are driven by the head unit.  So when I find a case of rear speakers not working, I generally suspect a factory amp problem.

In some vehicles, the stock amp is turned on through the "power antenna" wire in the radio plug (located right next to the accessory power wire).  However, if the vehicle was originally equipped with Onstar or a separate audio component (ie, a CD player or tape deck mounted below the radio) then the amp turn-on wire might be in the smaller secondary radio plug.

Hope this helps!

Brian