subs

[red92rs]

I have upgraded to a jvc cd/mp3 player, 3-way 6x9's in the rear, and a pair of boxed 6.5" speakers with tweeters in the rear floor boards but still have stock speakers in the dash.... sounds alot better then stock, but would like to add more bass to it.
Was thinking of adding a sub or two, prolly 10" since i listen to mostly rock/metal and have read somewhere that 10s are better for that type of music but if 12's would be fine too if quality isnt affected much; im not into the whole thing on wanting my car to be heard from miles away, atleast not with stereo thats what exhaust is for... what are some choices on subs, & amps, dont want to spend alot maybe under $150 for 1 or 2 subs & amp. what would be some good choices on subs & amps.
For a temp. fix for some bass i was thinking of getting just a cheap sub and hooking it inline with my 6x9s would that work or would it not produce much noticable difference without an amp?
I was going to make a custom box for the sub when i decide on what im doing. i found a 300watt amp for $55 and 12" spl 500watt subs for $40 each. it will be a month or more til i can afford to get the amp & good subs, but would just hooking a sub with the 6x9s work or would it be bad for the sub? a quick fix would be nice for now until i can afford to do it right.

[ViperJ]

You aren't going to be able to hook a sub up to your headunit, it just doesn't have enough power for the sub. For your type of music 1 10" or 1 12" would be enough, as for amp probably 250-400 watts would be about right.

The amp and subs you found should be good, what are the brands? Also for your budget remember that an amp wiring kit is $35- $100.

[red92rs]

VR3 300-Watt Subwoofer Amplifier, and the subs are SPL 12" 500-Watt Peak Subwoofer, ELF12... found wiring kit for $20 for 300 watt amp..... another question to go with this is what gauge of speaker wire to use, i currently have 18 gauge ran to my 6x9s, & 6.5"s is that to small, or about right, and what gauge should i use for the sub? would hooking the sub up to the unit itself still give me some bass, just wouldnt have as deep & powerfull tones as with an amp?

[ViperJ]

I would say go for it, you know its not going to be competion level but it should be a fairly good system. As for speaker wire if possible 16 gauge (although 18 should be fine). I have 350 rms, 1000 peak going through 12 guage speaker wire and its fine. As for hooking the sub up to the headunit it won't probably work, headunits produce 20-50 watts, your sub wants 250 rms so there would be virtually no bass.

[red92rs]

how hard is it to wire up an amp? should i run the power wire under the car, or snake it thru the cab some how like along the console/trans hump? was thinking of attaching the amp behind the back seat if it would fit there and not get to hot, i never use the seat behind me anyway.. how close is the gas tank under the hump so i can drill thru to attach the amp? i want to have it on a toggle switch too so i can turn it on & off for when i have any kids with me or someone who doesnt like it load... how would i hook it up to a togle switch, run the power wire into the togle or what?

[ViperJ]

Originally Posted by red92rs

how hard is it to wire up an amp? should i run the power wire under the car, or snake it thru the cab some how like along the console/trans hump? was thinking of attaching the amp behind the back seat if it would fit there and not get to hot, i never use the seat behind me anyway.. how close is the gas tank under the hump so i can drill thru to attach the amp? i want to have it on a toggle switch too so i can turn it on & off for when i have any kids with me or someone who doesnt like it load... how would i hook it up to a togle switch, run the power wire into the togle or what?

Don't run your power wire under the car, bad idea. I ran mine under the door sill's, remember to keep the power wires seperate from the speaker wires. As for a toggle switch make sure your power wire has a built in fuse, that takes 10 seconds or less to remove, theres your easy toggle switch.

As for wiring this is easier than me trying to explain it, its hard to type out the directions for wiring an amp. http://www.electronixwarehouse.com/e...installamp.htm

[justlearning]

not really too hard to type it out u run a power wire from the hot battery terminal to the amp (this is where the inline fuse or circuit breaker goes) a ground wire to a piece of the frame or to the neg. terminal (i used the seat belt braket on mine for ground) a remote wire from the ignition wire in back of the cd player (itll be hot only when the key is moved to on position. could also be called memory wire) and then the speaker wires oh yeah and the rca wires from the amp to the deck also and thats it not hard and the intall kit is usually much more expensive then goin and buyin the wires your self. if your runnin a 400 watt amp all youll need is 8g wire for power and ground, and around 16-18g for the remote wire

[justlearning]

not really too hard to type it out u run a power wire from the hot battery terminal to the amp (this is where the inline fuse or circuit breaker goes) a ground wire to a piece of the frame or to the neg. terminal (i used the seat belt braket on mine for ground) a remote wire from the ignition wire in back of the cd player (itll be hot only when the key is moved to on position. could also be called memory wire) and then the speaker wires oh yeah and the rca wires from the amp to the deck also and thats it not hard and the intall kit is usually much more expensive then goin and buyin the wires your self. if your runnin a 400 watt amp all youll need is 8g wire for power and ground, and around 16-18g for the remote wire

[red92rs]

would a more pricy(name) brand be better then that vr3-300 watt amp... it is made by roadmaster and have heard that they were cheap brand, but only heard that for roadmaster speakers... but my friends roadmaster speakers sound good and thats what i have in the back floor boards is roadmasters... i know you get what you pay for, spending 100+ on amp of lesser power but a more popular brand

[DaMoNe6969]

watts mean very little when your looking for subs/amps.. Dont let a big sticker that says 1000 watts make you think that amp is any better than one with 200.. anybody that says different doesnt know what they're talking about.. Look for wellknown brand names and you cant go wrong (alpine, kicker, Eclipse etc..)

Dont go with 12's.. The hatchspace is too small for 12" subs (dont wanna get into details) 2 10's or 2 8's would be fine in a small sealed enclosure..

not a good idea power wire with your RCA's or speaker wire.. Keep the ground wire as SHORT as possible.. and with speaker wire, 18 gauge is too thin for subs.. use 10gauge, 12gauge minimum..

Try to spend more and get a good quality amp, and spend a little less on the subs.. a shitty sub in a Good box with good clean power will sound a lot better than a high end sub in a shitty box w/o enough power..

[bag91]

Originally Posted by red92rs

would a more pricy(name) brand be better then that vr3-300 watt amp... it is made by roadmaster and have heard that they were cheap brand, but only heard that for roadmaster speakers... but my friends roadmaster speakers sound good and thats what i have in the back floor boards is roadmasters... i know you get what you pay for, spending 100+ on amp of lesser power but a more popular brand

It's cheap but it actually sounds decent.

[red92rs]

thanx for all this nice info.. would this be a nice starting package, even if subs would blow its still a mono amp & 2 subs for $100 http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Bazoo...oductDetail.do

[ct91rs]

that doesn't sound bad for $99, whether or not it is worth it depends on what kind of sound you are looking for. with the type of music you like, and if your not looking to just be annoying it may be fine. however, if you just want some bass to compliment your component speakers, one twelve would be more than enough, and would provide deeper bass than a 10".

[DaMoNe6969]

If you put them in the proper box, that would probably make a pretty good starter system..
a sealed box with seprate chambers, no more than a cubic foot per side would be perfect for the music you listen to..

but you cant really build on a system like that.. if you wanted to upgrade, you'd have to start from scratch again..

[bag91]

That's not a bad deal, won't be blasting, but enough for the driver to enjoy.