Thought this might inspire you a bit.

This is what I have in my 122.

Surround Sound in a 1966 Volvo 122s

Best money I ever spent on that car, aside from the Sway-bars.

Get something more modern. Unless you are a stickler for totally stock (And there is something to be said for that), you'll be much happier. Trust me!


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http://Dylans544.blogspot.com

I replaced my head unit with a junkyard unit twice (wore out the tape adapter mechanism twice haha) and added a factory 7-band (I think) equalizer. It makes things sound SO good compared to before. The model is TD-6141 or something-6141.

As for speakers, they really are not bad. Volvo did something nifty and basically made a 4-way speaker setup in every 700 I've ever seen. The rear woofers have lower tones and larger dome tweeters (meant to be mids I think), the front woofers have higher tones and small plastic-film tweeters. This is great because the downfall of most round door-mount speakers is having too much frequency/pitch spread on one woofer. Splitting it up really improves the stereo system. The stereo amp and speakers are actually quite nice if paired with something that can give good quality input to it - like an aftermarket unit, or the stock unit with the 7-band EQ.

If you're really going to do up the car, I'd say keep the stock speakers, get a new head unit, add an amp and drive 6 speakers including a pair of 6x9 (or 5x7?) speakers in the rear deck. There's space for the speakers and to mount an amp in the back. That's getting pretty deep into it though.

Cheers!

PS: It's also worth mentioning that if the cables to the back of the stereo unit are loose, that can cause this lack of sound. There are 2 fuses in the back of the stereo too that can blow, but I've never seen them blow. The round DIN shell cable runs to the amp, and there should be a beige rubber cap with 4 pins stuck into another port on the back of the stereo. That's where the 7-band EQ plugs in. If that plug is missing, you'll get no sound. Same with the DIN shell (like an older keyboard plug)

Unless you insist on a stock-looking interior (not a bad thing, as who would break in to steal an old Volvo head unit?) you're farther ahead to buy something modern and replace the original. I bought a modern unit from Crutchfield for my 89 745, and they supplied a wiring adapter along with it. Removal of the Volvo unit was fussy, but do-able, and the harness adapter made it truly plug-and-play. It bypasses the separate Volvo amplifier and connects the new head unit to the speaker harness.

Sound is at least as good as the original, and FM radio reception is better. As another poster mentioned, you can connect your iPod, phone or other music player. Some units have Bluetooth capability.

It's tough to find a modern unit that doesn't have a dazzling, video-game display. First of all, I'm way too old to be impressed by that goofiness, and it is totally out of place in the blocky, old, black Volvo dash. You can try visiting a place like Best Buy or Fry's, etc., to view units in action before you buy.

Re: speakers...my inspection of those OE units says they are a rather cheap setup, with paper cones and tiny magnets. After 20-plus years they probably have deteriorated. If not, great, but listen closely for any distortion, buzzing and so on. New speakers can make an absolutely huge difference in sound quality.
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Bob: Son's XC70, daughter's 940, my 83 240, 89 745 (V8) and S90. Also '77 MGB and some old motorcycles

If you want to stay stock I have a good radio/head unit and amp that you can have for $25 plus shipping. lgspooner@verizon.net

Yes, it's worth keeping old speakers. Later you may find replacing fronts worthwhile but for now upgrade head unit. I second looking into Crutchfield.
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I own a Volvo or Does Volvo Own Me? Try the easy to search Expanded Style FAQ Index http://40mph.com/Brickboard_700-900_FAQ_Expanded_Index_Version/

The amp in my '90 was near the light switch to the left of the steering wheel. The head unit quit and we replaced the whole thing with a much more modern unit that takes a pre-amp analog input so it could play output from iPods and other MP3 players.

Stereo equipment now can do MUCH more than what you'd find in a 25 year old Volvo. You can link it to your phone, play MP3s or any other digital music file you can think of. Check out companies like Crutchfield as they sell harnesses to connect new stuff even to your old Volvo with no problem. The speakers in 740s are decent and will work well with most any high quality head unit with built in amplification.

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'90 745T(Sold), '88 744 GLE (Going), '90 744T, '04 Saab 9-5

Get a used unit from the Junkyard,,,The electronics have improved incredible since that radio was made?? it does have an amp under the glove compartment.