I bought my van from the equipment manager for a band....a few years ago
but the sound is just terrific.

Key to the system is a set of  4 retangular ADS 300i speakers combined with
a subwoofer.  These speakers are not made anymore but a few years ago were
considered state of the art for car systems. They work great in a Vanagon.
They are retangular and so a hole has to be cut out to fit them in the
overhead cabinet in the back.....no big problem.

They also require a special mounting ring and a bit of sheet metal trimming
to flush mount them in the stock locations in the door panel.   They are a
fair bit larger than the round stock speakers....but they look really great
once installed.

I also have an amp and an 8" powered Bazooka subwoofer under therear
seat.   My Sony head unit is a bit dated now....and I agree that an MP3
integrated head unit is the way to go.  CD players and decks are dying
technology.  Alpine leads the way with systems integrated with the
Ipod...but more manufactures are jumping in.

Here's some photos ADS 300i's on eBay.  They go from  $75-$125

http://cgi.ebay.com/a-d-s-ADS-300-300i-Plate-Speakers-Car-2-way-
Vintage_W0QQitemZ5841482011QQcategoryZ14942QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZView
Item

I'm almost 60, so don't listen to any heavy metal or hip-hop...mostly I
listen to jazz, old jazz standards, some older rock an roll classics, Diana
Krall, Nora Jones, etc.... even an occasional opera.

This system sounds terrific with all these and will please almost anyone
except those who want to rattle windows with bass as they go down the
street.

Also....I like a remote.....just go to bed w/some nice music....read for a
bit...control the system from the bed...lights out....snoooooozzze.

Warren Chapman
90 Syncro Westy / Subaru powered
Founder /Moderator
SubaruVanagon Yahoo Group
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/subaruvanagon/