A few audio installation questions

[sandrew]

I already installed an Infinity 6810cs component set in the front doors earlier this year. I recently bought some 2-way 6x8s for the rear to match and a Pioneer GM-6300F 60Wx4 (RMS) amp to power them. Next paycheck (next friday) I'll be getting an amp power kit and misc parts for the install.

1) My battery terminals are not (I hope anyway) factory. They look like !@#$, very, very cheap and badly done. I want to get aftermarket terminals. I'm assuming the car's power cable is 4 gauge? So I'm looking at a terminal with three 4 gauge outputs? (1 for battery, one for the other wire that appears to be connected to the power wire under some crappily done shrink tubing and 1 for the amp?) I plan to add a sub amp later so I will use a distribution block in the trunk near the amp(s).

2) Dual Voice Coil subs - when the specs give a wattage rating, is that PER voice coil or total?

3) Remote turn-on: I've read to tap into the power antenna lead. I've also read that lead can be a little weak, power-wise. I can get a "step up" doodad that receives the signal then amplifies it to 12v before sending it on to the amp. It's only $10. Necessary or no?

4) What's the routing for the factory wiring? I'm assuming that since the RCU/amps are in the trunk on the driver's side that the wiring follows that side of the car as well? Just trying to figure out which side of the car to run the power cable down...

5) Any recommendations for a good battery? Mine should probably be replaced before this winter. An Optima is out of my price range, though.

 

[Silvapain]

1. power cables are 6awg. I'd upgrade to 4awg.

2. I couldn't answer that

3. I used the antenna wire with no problem.

4. Yes, speaker wires run underneath door sills on driver's side. IIRC SARC and fuel pump wires run down passenger side.

5. I like my Die Hard. Nothing fancy, but gets the job done.

 

[NebraskaSHO]

1. I would just get a heavy duty terminal to replace the chinzy one on it now. Then just add the amp kit wiring to the end of it with a nut. Otherwise get a nice terminal from an audio store, like what you've looked at already.

2. I can't answer this either, besides the fact that I have 2 15" DVC Rockford Fosgate Punch subs. All I know is they are large, and powerful with only a MRP-M350 Alpine Class D sub amp.

3. Yeah it's a pink wire back at the antenna, IIRC

4. Speaker color code:

http://www.v8sho.com/SHO/SpeakerWiringColorCoding.htm

I drilled a hole in the grommet below the Master cylinder that was used on column shift Taurus/Sables, then ran the power wire down the drivers side, into the trunk.

5. I had a yellow Wal-mart battery in my diplomat and that thing had power. I've got a Ford Motorcrap that I'm looking to replace before winter hits. When I do replace it, it's going into the trunk to keep it out of the engine bay heat!

 

[keny_kimmel]

If you can find a place that will stamp on the terminals to the battery cables then do it. You are better off replacing the entire battery cables. Bad/poor quality/bolt on terminals will lead to quick corrosion and high resistance. Ultimately resulting in burned out wires, solenoids, starters, and high amounts of frustration.

As for the battery...exide is always good, diehard. As with this option of changing battery cables, ****, just go ahead and order the cables from a parts store, and get a relocation kit for the battery. I have heard it's a ton easier to hook up a stereo with the battery in the trunk. Plus, with a non-sealed battery keeping it out of the heat is a good thing.

 

[chrome_rust]

For the Subs, when you are talking DVC it is per coil, so if you have 2 4ohm coils you can have a sub with either 8ohm or 2 ohm. by running the coils in parallel or series.

As for the remote turn on, If you wanted to you can get a relay and use the power antenna wire to trigger the relay, then tap power from the 4ga wire to power the other side of the relay.

Charlie

 

[sandrew]

Apparently a DVC sub rated at 300w RMS is 150w per coil. (per Crutchfield rep, anyway) So getting a 4ohm DVC sub and wiring it in parallel for 2ohms would be perfect since mono amps that can do 300w RMS @ 2ohms are pretty reasonable.

Or I could get a single 4 ohm voicecoil sub and an amp that can push 300-350w @ 4ohms. I've found a couple that can do that AND that are 2 ohm stable if I ever want to add an additional sub in the future.

For subs I'm looking at (but by no means limited to):

http://www.cardomain.com/item/POLMM2104DVC

or

http://www.edesignaudio.com/edv2/product_info.php?cPath=1_21&products_id=30

The Polk comes in both single and dual voicecoil versions.

For amps there are more to choose from but I'm looking at

http://www.cardomain.com/item/PANCYPAD1003U for the single 4 ohm voicecoil sub and future upgradeability. It is is a bit spendy, however.

Another option is a Rockford Fosgate P325.1, but it is only 325w RMS into 2 ohms so I'd need to get the dual voicecoil sub.

Don't really want to get into a bigger is better debate so don't go dissin' my 10 inch sub(s), yo. I'm not a basshead.

My rear speakers finally showed up today so I'll be shopping for new battery terminals and an amp kit this weekend. It would be nice to find stuff locally for a decent price but I'm not too optimistic about that...

 

[NebraskaSHO]

I have the MRP-M350, and this is the MRP-M450, so just the updated version of my amp. I highly recommend the M350 so I hope this one would be as good. Mine as stated pushes two 15" DVC RF subs with ease.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-lbt8iIvdYgN/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?g=120&i=500MRPM450&c=3&tp=115

 

[K-Dawg]

For battery terminals and other wiring stuff, check out www.knukonceptz.com

You are right about the wattage and voice coil deal.

I've been using a DieHard battery. Can't complain.

Elemental Design stuff isn't bad. It is hard to beat for the money.

 

[chrome_rust]

i am running a single American Bass DX15 in a 3.5cuft sealed chamber off a Infinity Reference Series 610a. Mids and Highs are handled by a PPI Power Class 2400. Mids and highs are: Front Crystal CPE60 6.5 Component Set, Rear is a Diamond Audio M5 6.5 Component Set, HU is a Kenwood KDC-x889w/ Sirius Sat Radio (Octane ch20 Rulz me!)

 

[S-H-O-Man]

If you can locate them, look into the DEI amps (Directed Electronics) They are awesome for the money. I had an 1100 in my Silverado before selling it and getting my 99 TR. That amp was a 5 channel with 600 of it dedicated to the sub side and the remaining 500 into the 4 channel sides. It made for a simple clean install with extremely low distortion. I still have a DEI 400 sub amp I am considering putting in the SHO if I fing the "right" radio dashplate kit. Anyone seen a "nice, professional" looking one?

 

[S-H-O-Man]

1100 = watts. 600 = watts. 500 = watts

sorry I left that off in the post.

 

[1 Silver SHO]

I had to eventualy get an optima to keep the car from not starting after some heavy music playing. Got 1600+watts + 240w headunit going so it sucks some juice and dims my light pretty well if im not carefull. I went through a few that just couldnt keep up (dont remeber what they were) put the optima in, and was alot better off. It still went dead a few times when my interior lights wouldnt turn off (stupid door sensor thingys) but i know it will come back without going bad from tottaly flat.

 

[sandrew]

Well, plans have changed somewhat thanks to cardomain/soundomain's current sale...

I had always wanted to either put in an aftermarket head unit or use a Cleansweep with the stock one but both options were around $200. (I wanted a decent head unit if I was going aftermarket) I've been thinking what a right PITA it's going to be to get the stock HU to sound like I want it to. I don't like how the JBL system cuts out the lows to the rear speakers and was going to have to use a LOC converter using signals from the fronts only, split that 2 channel signal into 4 via y-cables and then use the gains on the amp to set the rear fill volume because the crossover on the rears is so high that crossing over an aftermarket sub that high to blend in with the rears would sound like crap. Either that or be stuck with a gap in coverage.

Bah.

I've had my eye on this head unit http://www.cardomain.com/item/PIODEHP5900IB for awhile and during the sale it's now down to $118. It can be had on Ebay for about that much nowadays but only from un-authorized dealers so warranty issues could be problematic. I feel much better ordering it from an authorized dealer.

Amp kits and install supplies are on sale, too, for anyone interested. So is the Panasonic amp I listed earlier in the thread for use with my sub. Darn thing is down to $94 and depending on how long the sale lasts I'll probably pick it up a week from Friday. Maybe sooner if nothing else pops up that I need to spend $$ on.

I'll be going with the Elemental Designs 11kv.3 sub and one of their boxes, to be ordered next payday also. (unless somebody can find me a good .5cu sealed 10" box for cheaper)

I bought some Stinger battery terminals that have two 5/16" ring terminals on them to replace the factory terminals. I had a helluva time finding 6 gauge ring terminals to attach to the factory power and ground cables.

So a few more questions from the n00b:

1) For those of you who have aftermarket head units in the ashtray - where did you hook up your constant and switched power? Is there a good spot under the dash to ground it to?

2) Subwoofer placement. I am really a n00b when it comes to subs. Most of the installs I've seen have the subs facing the rear of the car instead of firing towards the cabin. Is there a good reason for this or is it just so the "thump" can be heard better outside the car? I'm only going to be running 300-350w RMS into a single sub so I don't want to waste any energy.

3) Amp rack. What did y'all do with yours? I'm going to have 2 amps that are going to be roughly 11"x13" or so each. I don't think both will fit on one of the seat backs and I really don't want to cover up both seat backs and lose the fold-down function on both sides.

I also bought a square yard of black vinyl (what the heck, it was on sale, too) to cover the fabrication of the DIN opening in the console/ashtray area. I'm hoping that I can make something that won't look TOO out of place. One of the reasons I chose that particular Pioneer is that it's mostly black where a lot of the newer head units today have a lot of silver in them and I think would stick out too much. Well, that and the 3 pre-outs, sub level control, etc, etc.

edit: For anyone who is interested, the coupon code for the soundomain/cardomain sale is BLOWOUT

 

[NebraskaSHO]

1. Constant, ash tray wire. My radio's red wire is hooked up full time as well. Allows me to turn on my radio when ever I want to with or without the key.

2. Point the sub with the face towards the trunk lid. Better sound that way.

3. My amps are mounted on my sub box.

 

[1 Silver SHO]

1: Cant help ya, mines in the arm rest.

2: Got alot of different things involved in it. Since your only going with one 10 inch, try it both ways, see whats better. Every car ive had, it was better facing backwards. And rember, just because the subs seem to face one way, dosent mean they only make noise one way.

3: I have 2 amps also. 1, 1200.1 jbl amp on the passenger side seat and the other one... well see my pics up the page a bit. You could also just attach it to the back of the box if its big enough (the sub amp that is).

 

[SC and SHO Blazer]

First things, I thought we had 6.5" in the front doors...I know MINE did! You've already gotten these answers, but just to reiterate...

1) I'd upgrade the car wires to 4ga and the amps would get 0/1ga

2) Both

3) You CAN use the power antenna wire, but if you have a changer, the subs won't play when you use it. There is BOTH an accessory 12v wire AND an amp turn on in the trunk at the tuner...you should use one of those instead.

4) Doesn't really matter where the car's wiring is run, it'll be well covered and cladded with insulation...you run your wires wherever you find the easiest passage through the firewall. I found a nice gromit on the driver's side, so my power cable runs that side of the car.

5) A couple other companies make good dry cell audio batteries now...Optima is the leader, but Metra has one as well as EFX, Streetwires...****, there are alot of them, but NONE are cheap.

SECOND SET OF INQUIRIES:

1) I'd say catch the power at the fuse panel or at the ignition harness. You'll have 12V constant, Ignition, AND accessory there.

2)Best cabin gain for subs is achieved facing them towards the back of the car.

3) Try the backs of the seats FIRST, if they don't both fit, then make a rack for one and place it to the side...you don't want to impeed your fold-down pass through. I would definetly NOT recommend mounting them on the box...theives have a field day when they can just snatch one thing and get EVERYTHING!


James E.
[email protected]

 

[NebraskaSHO]

V8 section, not V6 SC, in regards to the front speaker size...

But otherwise you're correct.

sandrew, come to Lincoln sometime and I'll set you up. Preferably on a Wednesday or Friday.

 

[Silvapain]

3) You CAN use the power antenna wire, but if you have a changer, the subs won't play when you use it. There is BOTH an accessory 12v wire AND an amp turn on in the trunk at the tuner...you should use one of those instead.

In the V8 the antenna is always energized when the stereo system is on, no matter whether it's radio or CD.

 

[SC and SHO Blazer]

V8 section, not V6 SC, in regards to the front speaker size...

But otherwise you're correct.

sandrew, come to Lincoln sometime and I'll set you up. Preferably on a Wednesday or Friday.

LOL...I like YOUR nerve...the SCs have 5x7s all the way around. Moreso, I've got 7 TIMES as many SHOs as I do SCs....LOL. Again, MY V8 SHO had 6.5" components in the front doors and I replaced them with another set of 6.5" components...that means I actually LOOKED at them with my own two bi-focals. :laugh_ti:

 

[sandrew]

There are adapter plates to put 6.5" in the V8 front doors but I don't think any came stock that way. Not that it matters anyway, I replaced my stock front speakers earlier this year with Infinity 6x8 reference series component sets.

The arguing over the antenna is moot, too, since I'll be going with an aftermarket head unit which has it's own remote turn on lead and I'll be hooking the antenna up via a Scosche (sp?) longass adapter purchased at the same time as the head unit. Which, hopefully, will be in today if UPS tracking info can be trusted.