factory head unit problems

i hooked up component 6.5"s in the front and 6x9s in the rear, with crossovers for each corner, but no amp yet because i hadnt decided what i want and didnt want to spend the money just yet. well i had the rears in for a couple days before i had time to finish the front wiring... and they played fine. now tonight my roommate and i got the fronts in, and the head unit (factory) is acting like its fried. all we did was take the speaker outputs and run them to crossovers and components up front... we got the drivers side done and it sounded good. then we got the passenger side done and the head unit started changing volume, and now if you turn it up, it doesnt change, but if you turn it down, it flips from loud to soft... i have no idea whats going on. i disconnected the front speakers and its still doing it. and the left side of the car doesnt play either right now... any suggestions?