How To: Install aftermarket sub with stock enclosure in non-factory sub 2nd Gen Ex

[kidd666]

so does the stock ford amp just power the speakers? like if i were to remove it it wouldn't effect the power supply to the radio or anything?

 

[Joe Dirt]

If you have a factory amp for the radio, that needs to stay- this would add an aftermarket amp to power the sub. You're running a new power supply, switched by the radio, to the rear amp. If your speakers need a factory amp to run, it will have to stay and get harnessed in or you would have no sound. Not really up on the Gen I sound systems...

 

[dvanhorn]

Crutchfield has a wiring harness kit that bypasses the factory amp. Haven't installed it yet but it is just a direct plug in. They sent detailed instructions with it. Maybe this will help someone. www.crutchfield.com

 

[Joe Dirt]

^ or that ^

I did notice however a pretty good difference in the volume output of my '95 with factory amp used vs. my '00 with no factory amp used. I have my volume on 20-25 now vs. 12-16 on the '95 for the same output, but that's witn an aftermarket Pioneer DEH-P2900MP

 

[kidd666]

If you have a factory amp for the radio, that needs to stay- this would add an aftermarket amp to power the sub. You're running a new power supply, switched by the radio, to the rear amp. If your speakers need a factory amp to run, it will have to stay and get harnessed in or you would have no sound. Not really up on the Gen I sound systems...

i know that i already ran new wires for my speakers from my aftermarket stereo. i was just wondering if the stock amp controlled power or anything else to the radio

 

[Joe Dirt]

That I really don't know... If you've rewired teh speakers, I would just rewire the rest and bypass it entirely though.

 

[gmanpaint]

Alright Joe, I just received an enclosure from techieman, compliments of his rolled Mounty.

I am going to be doing this mod thanks to you. Thanks for making me do more work. :

 

[Joe Dirt]

Anything I can do to help...

 

[GRNMACHINE]

Joe, did you ever move the amp to a diff location? I have a Sport and there isnt much room at all underneath the rear seats. Do you think there would be space to mount an amp to the body of the drivers rear cargo area?

 

[Joe Dirt]

I really don't think so, unless it might fit in place of the jack. But, you'd probably have to cut the jack mounts out of there.

I did mount mine to the sub enclosure, so it's behind the trim panel.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Pics are back, (sorry about that!) and added some pics at the end of the remounted amp.

 

[GRNMACHINE]

Bringing this back, finally getting around to tackling it. Still looking for a place to mount the amp (back wont do, I haul stuff too). Didnt spring for a 5 channel amp, a little on the pricey side. But from what I have read, if I ditch the Ford amp, I need to run all new speaker wires to aftermarket radio? Yeah these are pretty sad questions, but stereo's and wiring aint my bag.... Last system I had was in a 1979 Trans Am, with a Nakamichi cassette deck, A/D/S amp, and Kenwood 6x9's all professionaly installed (courtesy of the prior owner-one of my best friends). It rocked for its time!

 

[jsampsell]

I also just now got around to doing this in my wife's Explorer. I ended up going the easy route so I didn't have to run all new speaker wire and just manually bypassed the stock amp while I was back there adding the stock sub enclusure that I got from Joe. Here's what I used:

Head Unit: Pioneer AVH-P4200DVD with CD-BTB200 Bluetooth module
Factory Wiring Harness Adapter: Metra 70-5600
Double DIN Install Kit: Scosche FD1330B (yes, I had to use a Dremel to cut out the top and bottom lips of the faceplate opening. no problem.)
Door Speakers: JL Audio TR570-CXi coaxials
Sub: JL Audio 8W1v2-4 (the sub Joe used)
Sub enclosure: Stock bought from Joe (Thanks Joe!)
Amp: Jensen Power 400.2 bridged pushing 200 watts

This truck is an XLT that had the non-JBL Premium system without a power antenna.

I had originally planned on using the Infinity 5-channel amp that I took out of my car but it was too big to put in the truck without getting in the way. I could easily have put it on the carpet covered metal flap behind the passenger side rear seat but it would have been in the way of things we haul back there. So, like I said above, I ended up bypassing the stock amp and splicing the wires from the two amp connectors together. I found the wiring diagram for these connectors in this post and the colors were dead on (even though there are question marks on some of them).

Joe is dead on about the install. The pictures are correct. The locations. Everything. Very easy install. I am extremely impressed with the results. I can't believe how good it sounds.

Thanks to Joe for the original write-up and to the others that have added to the thread!!!

 

[Joe Dirt]

Thanks guys!



grn- you can get the bypass harness for it rather than run new wires. You can get the correct one from the installers at BestBuy. (Not the shelf inside the store)

 

[GRNMACHINE]

Thanks Joe! Any recommendations on speaker wire for the sub? Can I use home Monster Cable wire? Went to crutchfield site and they recommend streetwires for auto..

Currently wrestling with interior panel (its diff on Sport). I want to remove it totally to give me more room to try and mount the amp. The seatbelt torx50 bolt on the floor wont budge. Been soaking it with penetrating oil and PB Blaster spray... You can see the bottom of the bolt underneath the truck, its quite rusty. Tried sanding it, wiring it, etc. Have a bad feeling its going to break... May need to rethink removing the panel from the truck. All the other bolts/screws/retaining clips etc no probs.

 

[Joe Dirt]

I had some old MonsterCable in the garage, so that's what I used. Streetwires is ok too... As long as it's a nice thick gauge, it should be fine for the signal.

 

[tommyarmour]

I also just now got around to doing this in my wife's Explorer. I ended up going the easy route so I didn't have to run all new speaker wire and just manually bypassed the stock amp while I was back there adding the stock sub enclusure that I got from Joe. Here's what I used:

Head Unit: Pioneer AVH-P4200DVD with CD-BTB200 Bluetooth module
Factory Wiring Harness Adapter: Metra 70-5600
Double DIN Install Kit: Scosche FD1330B (yes, I had to use a Dremel to cut out the top and bottom lips of the faceplate opening. no problem.)
Door Speakers: JL Audio TR570-CXi coaxials
Sub: JL Audio 8W1v2-4 (the sub Joe used)
Sub enclosure: Stock bought from Joe (Thanks Joe!)
Amp: Jensen Power 400.2 bridged pushing 200 watts

This truck is an XLT that had the non-JBL Premium system without a power antenna.

I had originally planned on using the Infinity 5-channel amp that I took out of my car but it was too big to put in the truck without getting in the way. I could easily have put it on the carpet covered metal flap behind the passenger side rear seat but it would have been in the way of things we haul back there. So, like I said above, I ended up bypassing the stock amp and splicing the wires from the two amp connectors together. I found the wiring diagram for these connectors in this post and the colors were dead on (even though there are question marks on some of them).

Joe is dead on about the install. The pictures are correct. The locations. Everything. Very easy install. I am extremely impressed with the results. I can't believe how good it sounds.

Thanks to Joe for the original write-up and to the others that have added to the thread!!!

Did you ever consider this sub? Kenwood Excelon KFC-XW800F( http://www.crutchfield.com/s_113XW8...Shallow_Mount&tab=review#reviewDynamicContent) I chose this one over the JL Audio. Ordered it today and am excited about getting it. Normally in the 150 dollar range I found it for less than 90 bucks.

Funny this is I also ordered those exact JL audio door speakers before every coming across this thread. I read a few bad reviews about the speakers right after I ordered them. Do you have any opinions on em?

I also put this deck in yesterday( http://www.crutchfield.com/S-bZXM3G6s7F8/s_105KDA805/JVC-Arsenal-KD-A805.html) realizing my double din(Pioneer Avic newer model) was missing from my garage.

 

[GRNMACHINE]

I considered all kinds of subs, until Joe said the JL fit perfectly and almost every review I read was positive.

Its been so long since I have been in the aftermarket stereo reviews etc I no longer know what is good. Every one has their favorites etc. Kenwood was the stuff way back in the day. Their non Excelon speakers seem to be in the Jensen price range though, not sure if that is good or bad. Their Excelon equip I have read about has gotten good reviews (their non Excelon stuff too). Maybe the pricing has come down so low since it is all made in China now... The sign of quality!!!!

 

[tommyarmour]

I considered all kinds of subs, until Joe said the JL fit perfectly and almost every review I read was positive.

Its been so long since I have been in the aftermarket stereo reviews etc I no longer know what is good. Every one has their favorites etc. Kenwood was the stuff way back in the day. Their non Excelon speakers seem to be in the Jensen price range though, not sure if that is good or bad. Their Excelon equip I have read about has gotten good reviews (their non Excelon stuff too). Maybe the pricing has come down so low since it is all made in China now... The sign of quality!!!!

No question JL Audio makes some superior subwoofers. I believe they are among the best in the world. However when you get down to what fits and small subs like we are made to adapt to. I believe on quality alone in the 8" shallow subwoofer range that kenwood might of taken the cake. We really only had 3 good choices. The JL you chose, the Kenwood I chose, and Pioneer shallow mount that I was really considering. If we could of had a choice and been able to have more depth for a larger magnet. I would of looked for a JL line of sub over Kenwood any day of the week. They make some amazing subs. I know from experience the larger 10-12-15 JL subs are rock solid monsters and there is no Kenwood on this planet I would choose above the newer JL Audio subs.

I tried to look at the quality and read a lot of reviews:

Now they are all close to the same RMS, something that stood out to me was the peak power. The Kenwood has far more peak power than the JL, and a full 100w more than the Pioneer. And then the pictures, the quality of the Kenwood looks far better than the other 2 in my opinion. Well enough said the true test is to hook em up and listen. I havn't been into car audio for around 5-7 years. I installed maybe 25 systems in my personal cars, and have helped several others. Getting technical is not really my goal because I probably wouldnt know what the hell I was talking about anymore. Anyway just felt I would better explain my choosing of the Kenwood over the Jl or pioneer.

Kenwood:
http://www.crutchfield.com/s_113XW8...Shallow_Mount&tab=review#reviewDynamicContent
Details:

8" 4-ohm shallow-mount subwoofer
carbon-glass fiber composite cone with butyl rubber surround
cast aluminum basket
power range: 50-150 watts RMS
peak power: 600 watts
frequency response: 40-500 Hz
sensitivity: 78 dB
mounting depth: 2-3/4"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

JL:
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_1368W1V24/JL-Audio-8W1v2-4.html?tp=111&nvpair=FFSize|[rank6]8"

Details:

8" 4-ohm subwoofer
metallic-finish polypropylene cone with nitrile-butylene rubber surround
power range: 35-150 watts RMS
peak power handling: 300 watts
frequency response: 28-250 Hz
sensitivity: 83.86 dB
top-mount depth: 3-13/16"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pioneer:
http://www.crutchfield.com/s_130SW8...8"&nvpair=AG_General_Features|FFShallow_Mount
Details:

8" 4-ohm shallow subwoofer
carbon and glass fiber reinforced IMPP cone with woven-fiber surround
Air Suspension Control System eliminates traditional spider structure
cast aluminum basket
strontium magnet
power range: 50-120 watts RMS (500 watts peak power)
frequency response: 30-1,500 Hz
sensitivity: 85 dB
mounting depth: 2-9/16"

 

[Joe Dirt]

That's all cool, problem is when the process was going on, the JL was the only sub that was in stock anywhere. If they're available and there is a better choice, run with it. I have no complaints about the JL though.

A couple of problems- peak power really doesn't matter. Continuous or RMS matters, since that's the accurate indication of what your sub will really be doing. You match the power rating of your amp to the continuous power rating of your sub, not the peak.

Biggest issue I see is the efficiency. The Kenwood is 78db, the JL is say 84db. Issue is, for about every 3db of efficiency, you need double the wattage to provide a given volume. So, in order to play a given volume with the JL, you need, say 100 watts. On the Kenwood, being that it is 6db less efficient, you need at least 400 watts going to it. (Or 300, I think it doubles though)

I like the frequency response of the JL much better than the Kenwood as well, even thought the amplitude variances aren't known, the JL is going to produce deeper bass and higher treble frequencies as well...

The Kenwood is also out of stock at Crutchfield, which was the problem in finding a sub that would both fit and be there to buy in the first place.