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    Subs and Amp install tips

    Just got my tax refund in the mail today, which turned out to be alot more than I expected. So, im going to buy a cheap set of subs and an amp soon. Any tips and precautions that I should take installing subwoofers in my car? I never done it before but I can rewire speakers and have the tools to do electrical work. Even have a volt meter, circuit testor, etc.
    Current rides - 1991 Ford Thunderbird 3.8 v6 (gas saver/DD) - New Heads/Headgaskets with ARP studs, Air Silencer Delete, 70mm MAF, Plasti-dipped Matte Black with a Silver Metalflake Overlay, Muffler Delete, some LED's, 30.233 MPG for high MPG average!
    2006 Jeep Wrangler 4WD (fun vehicle/backup DD) - 4.0/6spd - too many mods to list.

    Associated Panthers:
    Father's 1994 Ford Crown Victoria - Stock, 45,000 miles.
    Sold in 2007 - 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis LS "Grandpa Special" 2 door.
    http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2128327

    #2
    there not really much to it if you have worked with wiring before - use the channel under the door sill to run wires. the link in my sig has plenty of general stereo install info.
    Pete ::::>>> resident LED addict and CFI defector LED bulb replacements
    'LTD HPP' 85 Vic (my rusty baby) '06 Honda Reflex 250cc 'Baileys' 91 Vic (faded cream puff) ClifFord 'ODB' 88 P72 (SOLD) '77 LTDII (RIP)
    sigpic
    85HPP's most noteworthy mods: CFI to SEFI conversion w/HO upperstuff headers & flowmasters P71 airbox Towncar seats LED dash light-show center console w/5 gauge package LED 3rd brake light 3G alternator mini starter washer/coolant bottle upgrade Towncar power trunk pull underhood fuse/relay box 16" HPP wheels - police swaybars w/poly rubbers - budget Alpine driven 10 speaker stereo

    Comment


      #3
      Its pretty basic like 85crownHPP* said. Some things I can think of...Make sure you know how to wire the subs together. Its not hard but you can blow the amp. I've seen it done a few times. Make sure you use a grommet for the power wire going through the firewall, you don't want the metal to cut through the jacket and ground out. Keep the gain at miniumum on the amp untill the install is done. I've seen people max it out before, then turn it on, could blow the speakers. I can't really think of anything else...

      What are you planning on buying?

      Comment


        #4
        yup yup, make sure all power/volume/frequency, etc is turned down to a minimum. when installing my new subs and amp, i finished everything and when i turned on the amp on the headunit, the power was full blast and there went one of my subs (

        Comment


          #5
          Couple of other questions, might have more as I am getting all the equipment together. Do I need to dynomat the trunk lid or should I dynomat just inside the trunk, under the carpet & carboard? I will be running two 12 inch Alpines (600 watt, 300 rms?) with a 760 watt Pioneer amp but they won't be putting out alot of power right now on the stock replacement alternator.

          Also, should I put tweeters in the dash or would they be overkill? I have pioneer 6.5 inch speakers in the doors and Pioneer 6x9s and both have tweeters in the cones.
          Current rides - 1991 Ford Thunderbird 3.8 v6 (gas saver/DD) - New Heads/Headgaskets with ARP studs, Air Silencer Delete, 70mm MAF, Plasti-dipped Matte Black with a Silver Metalflake Overlay, Muffler Delete, some LED's, 30.233 MPG for high MPG average!
          2006 Jeep Wrangler 4WD (fun vehicle/backup DD) - 4.0/6spd - too many mods to list.

          Associated Panthers:
          Father's 1994 Ford Crown Victoria - Stock, 45,000 miles.
          Sold in 2007 - 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis LS "Grandpa Special" 2 door.
          http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2128327

          Comment


            #6
            Definitly do the trunk lid, Id think that would rattle more than the rest of the trunk. Also stick some on the back of the lisence plate.

            Adding tweeters at a higher level than mids is always a great idea. It will give you a more filling sound that seems to be all around you.
            Pete ::::>>> resident LED addict and CFI defector LED bulb replacements
            'LTD HPP' 85 Vic (my rusty baby) '06 Honda Reflex 250cc 'Baileys' 91 Vic (faded cream puff) ClifFord 'ODB' 88 P72 (SOLD) '77 LTDII (RIP)
            sigpic
            85HPP's most noteworthy mods: CFI to SEFI conversion w/HO upperstuff headers & flowmasters P71 airbox Towncar seats LED dash light-show center console w/5 gauge package LED 3rd brake light 3G alternator mini starter washer/coolant bottle upgrade Towncar power trunk pull underhood fuse/relay box 16" HPP wheels - police swaybars w/poly rubbers - budget Alpine driven 10 speaker stereo

            Comment


              #7
              When I wired my stereo up in the Vic, I lucked out and had a hole just big enough for an amps power cable hidden under the dash on the passenger side. I ran that though there, behind the kick panel, and then under the door sill. Coming out of the trunk are my RCAs and my remote wire. Those actually are coming up from the package tray. I have the rear defrost on the back window, and the power line goes from the bottom of the grid under the package tray. The hole is big enough to route wires through one at a time.
              Save a seal, club a liberal.

              Comment


                #8
                For wiring in tweeters, can I wire them into the headunit using the extra set of inputs or are they similar to wiring in regular speakers? I never wired in tweeters before so I'm not sure what I can/can't do with them.

                Paul229, was there a hole in the firewall that you put the amp power cable through or did you go through one of the big grommets in the firewall?
                Current rides - 1991 Ford Thunderbird 3.8 v6 (gas saver/DD) - New Heads/Headgaskets with ARP studs, Air Silencer Delete, 70mm MAF, Plasti-dipped Matte Black with a Silver Metalflake Overlay, Muffler Delete, some LED's, 30.233 MPG for high MPG average!
                2006 Jeep Wrangler 4WD (fun vehicle/backup DD) - 4.0/6spd - too many mods to list.

                Associated Panthers:
                Father's 1994 Ford Crown Victoria - Stock, 45,000 miles.
                Sold in 2007 - 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis LS "Grandpa Special" 2 door.
                http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2128327

                Comment


                  #9
                  It was just a hole. I'm assuming a grommet had been there at some point. It's real low in the dash too.
                  Save a seal, club a liberal.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Bringing this thread back from the dead. So, for those who have wired up subs or an amp, where did you run the ground? Would I be allright grounding it to the trunk lid supports?

                    Also, my amp has some settings I'm not familiar with. Such as the crossover setting, sub sonic, etc? Its an Audiobahn intake series, most people are surprised how powerful they are. I have a friend that uses the same one in a neon and it pushes two older JBL 12's very hard. I will only be running one 12 for now.
                    Attached Files
                    Current rides - 1991 Ford Thunderbird 3.8 v6 (gas saver/DD) - New Heads/Headgaskets with ARP studs, Air Silencer Delete, 70mm MAF, Plasti-dipped Matte Black with a Silver Metalflake Overlay, Muffler Delete, some LED's, 30.233 MPG for high MPG average!
                    2006 Jeep Wrangler 4WD (fun vehicle/backup DD) - 4.0/6spd - too many mods to list.

                    Associated Panthers:
                    Father's 1994 Ford Crown Victoria - Stock, 45,000 miles.
                    Sold in 2007 - 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis LS "Grandpa Special" 2 door.
                    http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2128327

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Subsonic would be for frequencies below audible. Its for that earth shaking feeling that the super stereo cars have. You can't hear it but your chest will vibrate and its very possible to fry speakers with that.

                      The crossover is a high pass, low pass, or full pass deal. For subs you want low pass, so it cuts off anything above a certain frequency, high pass is for mids and tweeters so they don't get overpowered by bass. Full just amps everything.

                      Ground in the trunk should be fine. Mine is attached to some bolt on the rear wheel well, but any solid body part should make a good ground as long as its clean and paint free.
                      86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
                      5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

                      91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

                      1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

                      Originally posted by phayzer5
                      I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

                      Comment


                        #12
                        scott and I both have our grounds on the trunk hinge support bracket thing and so far so good. Im outting 600 watts of power through it tops, probabaly a lot less though.
                        Pete ::::>>> resident LED addict and CFI defector LED bulb replacements
                        'LTD HPP' 85 Vic (my rusty baby) '06 Honda Reflex 250cc 'Baileys' 91 Vic (faded cream puff) ClifFord 'ODB' 88 P72 (SOLD) '77 LTDII (RIP)
                        sigpic
                        85HPP's most noteworthy mods: CFI to SEFI conversion w/HO upperstuff headers & flowmasters P71 airbox Towncar seats LED dash light-show center console w/5 gauge package LED 3rd brake light 3G alternator mini starter washer/coolant bottle upgrade Towncar power trunk pull underhood fuse/relay box 16" HPP wheels - police swaybars w/poly rubbers - budget Alpine driven 10 speaker stereo

                        Comment


                          #13
                          my ground is on the trunk hinge, it's perfect.. also make sure that your gain is turned way down on your amp until the install is finished, then you change your gain back to your desired level..

                          also, i have 2 15" rockford stage 1's in my trunk with a rockford amp and my trunk rattles like crazy.. i've already had to sillicone the trim back onto my trunk twice, but my liscense plate does not rattle.. it sounds good in the car but i can't find the rattle outside, it sounds like it's inside the trunk.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            I did my entire trunk except the lid with home depot duct insulation, which was similar than dynomat and only $16 for a huge roll. It worked great for me, but you might need something better for sound competitions.

                            I would check the gas door, it rattles badly with the one 12 im running with only 400 watts to it. I insulated it and haven't had a problem with it since. Also, check the trunk lid itself and the hinges.
                            Last edited by 87mefull; 08-17-2006, 06:08 PM.
                            Current rides - 1991 Ford Thunderbird 3.8 v6 (gas saver/DD) - New Heads/Headgaskets with ARP studs, Air Silencer Delete, 70mm MAF, Plasti-dipped Matte Black with a Silver Metalflake Overlay, Muffler Delete, some LED's, 30.233 MPG for high MPG average!
                            2006 Jeep Wrangler 4WD (fun vehicle/backup DD) - 4.0/6spd - too many mods to list.

                            Associated Panthers:
                            Father's 1994 Ford Crown Victoria - Stock, 45,000 miles.
                            Sold in 2007 - 1987 Mercury Grand Marquis LS "Grandpa Special" 2 door.
                            http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2128327

                            Comment


                              #15
                              We want to do something like this on the benzo it has a sony Xplod head unit and a alpine 6 disk changer stock
                              YouTube. FaceBook Crown Vic Group

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