another stereo question

[Outlaw94]

I do not have the JBL amp(only mark VIII I've seen without it) and just bought a new HU(Sony CDX-GT660UP).It sounds ok through the stock amp but would it sound better bypassing it?.The front speakers a Infinity but the backs are just stock for now. Does anyone know how much power the non JBL amp has?.

would it sound good doing # 1 (the easiest) or # 2

1.get the bypass kit,run new speaker wire from the HU to the bypass harness. From searching around it looks like the bypass has to be cut and new wire spliced in to work on these cars. since the amp audio input uses that goofy phone looking plug unlike the Mark VII.

2.remove door panels,speakers and run new wire from the HU to the speakers?

 

[chris2523]

honestly, just rewire it all.

 

[GMAN]

I do not have the JBL amp(only mark VIII I've seen without it) and just bought a new HU(Sony CDX-GT660UP).It sounds ok through the stock amp but would it sound better bypassing it?.The front speakers a Infinity but the backs are just stock for now. Does anyone know how much power the non JBL amp has?.

would it sound good doing # 1 (the easiest) or # 2

1.get the bypass kit,run new speaker wire from the HU to the bypass harness. From searching around it looks like the bypass has to be cut and new wire spliced in to work on these cars. since the amp audio input uses that goofy phone looking plug unlike the Mark VII.

2.remove door panels,speakers and run new wire from the HU to the speakers?

It would be way more easier to run new wires to all your speakers.

 

[NoLimit95]

2.remove door panels,speakers and run new wire from the HU to the speakers?

That and the rear speakers too. Invest in a new 4 channel amp because you're asking about an amp that none of us know nothing about. A complete rewire is the way to go and don't mess with any of the stock speaker wiring. It's really not that hard but only time consuming. It's something I would wait till it's cool out to do unless you just like working in heat.

 

[87TTOPGT420]

Rewire entire stereo, you will thank yourself after

 

[Outlaw94]

Well I ran the four sets of wire from the H/U to the trunk and spliced into the bypass harness.It sounds a lot better then the factory amp(F3LF-18B849-AB) I think doing it this way was easier then running new wire to each speaker considering it's just a 17w rms H/U.

 

[87TTOPGT420]

That works...not ideal, but I'm a little more fussy about my tunes

 

[NoLimit95]

Well I ran the four sets of wire from the H/U to the trunk and spliced into the bypass harness.It sounds a lot better then the factory amp(F3LF-18B849-AB) I think doing it this way was easier then running new wire to each speaker considering it's just a 17w rms H/U.

Yes, it's easier but you're driving it and listening to it. As long as you like it, that's all that matters. I still don't understand the question to begin with...

"I do not have the JBL amp(only mark VIII I've seen without it) and just bought a new HU(Sony CDX-GT660UP). It sounds ok through the stock amp but would it sound better bypassing it?"

 

[1LoudLS]

i say factory speakers, factory amp. if you change out the speakers then is the time to rewire the car or bypass the factory amp

running new wires to the amp location and bypassing would be the quickest and easiest

a full rewire isn't that much harder, it just takes a little longer to run wires in through the door boots (the second one goes much quicker than the first) and is the better option, especially if you are running a multi channel amp.

 

[1LoudLS]

also just throwing this out there for any of you guys looking for a little better than a decks power, but dont want to go with the full 4ch amp. feel free to throw it right back if your not smelling what i'm stepping in.

http://www.alpine-usa.com/product/view/ktp-445u/

it can be found online for about $125-$130


had a guy with a pretty beat up mark in the shop a couple of weeks ago, replaced the radio years back and integrated it with the factory amp. now his factory amp was shot but only had "a few bucks" to fit it and if possible, to make it sound better and a good bit louder.

this compact amp was mounted in the OEM amps location, the amp is efficient enough to just use the OEMs power wiring, then just ran new speaker wire to the rear speakers and used the factory wiring up to the front speakers. the most work was done was running two sets of RCA's down the center console and under the carpet.

also replaced all of the speakers, nothing fancy, alpine Type S 6.5 components up front and trimmed the rear to fit a pair of Type S 6x9's in the back, just cut down a sheet of ABS for adapters to make the 6.5's and tweeters fit in their normal spots. also placed the component's crossovers in the back, near the amp right before going into the factory wiring. the type S's crossovers are not really like your standard passive crossover box, they are basically just a capacitor in shrink wrap that goes from the main woofers wire to the tweeter, the low pass coil is directly on the woofer so it makes the install even easier!

it really sounded great, great detail, crisp and clear, and played pretty loud before it started to distort, definitely enough for good listening with the windows down cruising. really surprising when looking at how much it cost overall.

anyway, just though i would throw this out their for anyone considering getting better sound with out going crazy over board, and trying to stay under a tight budget.

 

[GMAN]

I've put a system in every Mark I've owned. Everyone I've put in some kind of system. Each one has involved rewiring the entire system. I've run wires directly to amps, and I've run new wires directly to the back of the radio. Either way, you will get better sound than with the factory speakers and the factory amp. On my current system, I ran all my speakers to the back of my head unit, and ran one subwoofer with one amp to run it. It sounds great. The factory head unit is more than enough to run the speakers.

 

[Spree]

Re wired everything here!

 

[Sapperfire]

For $120
4 channel amp...

That pushes these (front and rear are the same)

At full volume there is no distortion at all

 

[Outlaw94]

Well time for a rewire as I just bought two amps and a sub.I got them from a pawn shop for $260. The sub came in a box too so not to bad of a deal.Am I gonna need a cap and will 16 gauge speaker wire be good for the Alpine?.The sub box fits perfect under the plastic tray in the trunk,good thing I didn't a 12" sub.Will the amps be ok mounted up there?.

Alpine MRP-F250 40 watts RMS x 4 http://www.crutchfield.com/S-SSGoyTnRGw7/p_500MRPF250/Alpine-MRP-F250.html#customer-reviews-tab

Kicker ZX400.1 400 watts RMS x 1 at 2 ohms http://www.crutchfield.com/S-JTWSY6QlZZa/p_206ZX4001/Kicker-ZX400-1.html#details-tab

Kicker CompVR 07CVR102 10" subwoofer with dual 2-ohm voice coils http://www.crutchfield.com/S-8XbPqMtXzk6/p_2067C10VR2/Kicker-CompVR-07CVR102.html#details-tab

 

[the1andonlyGR81]

as long as your running the stock sound system through the HU, leave it alone sound quality wont change. if your going to upgrade rewire all of it. i left the stock in car system alone changed the HU and put amp and subs in trunk.since you bought the amp the alpine 40 x 4 i would leave the stock system in still and use the 40 x 4 to add 4 more or bridge it for 2 maybe 6" mid or sub for kick panel or lower door. that 10" will give you a little bass but dont expect to much from it, and you will be seriously underpowering it with that amp unless you put it on one voicecoil. you bought a dual 2 ohm voicecoil sub.your amp putsout pek 400 watts at 2 ohm. so if you wire your subs voicecoils in parallel you will present a 1 ohm load on the amp and blow it. if you wire the voicecoils in series you will have a 4 ohm load which will work with the amp.

 

[Outlaw94]

Ok I got it all hooked up and I went the easy way and didn't rewire the speakers.I mounted the Alpine where the stock amp was and just used the bypass harness and it sounds a lot better then the Sony HU.The Kicker amp has plenty of power for the sub but the Alpine amp is making a buzzing noise through the speakers.The grounds are good to the amps but where to start to eliminate the noise?. Gonna check engine grounds and try splicing in the ground from the factory amp right to the Alpine hopefully that works. Any ideas on what else to try?. Oh yeah behind the passenger side kick panel I saw two big connectors black and gray but there not connected to anything what are they for?.

 

[Outlaw94]

It helps if the RCA cables are away from the power cable problem fixed.

The Sony HU has a nice feature that lets you fine tune the colors to match the dash lights.And it was the best one in that price range with 6 pre amp outputs and options.

 

[NoLimit95]

It helps if the RCA cables are away from the power cable problem fixed.

The Sony HU has a nice feature that lets you fine tune the colors to match the dash lights.And it was the best one in that price range with 6 pre amp outputs and options.

Kenwood eXcelon KDC-X993 also lets you change colors to match any dash lighting. That's one of the reasons I bought it plus the other options that come built in. Diesel Dan has the same HU that I have and he loves his too. It answers the phone for you and that can be set to answer it within 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 seconds after it starts ringing. Has many many setting for a single din HU.

This is a night time pic taken by phone. Not a very good pic but the phone wasn't set for night settings.

Another night shot

Daytime shot

In the trunk

60 blue LED strip connected to the trunk light harness, so when the trunk is opened, the strip comes on just like the normal light would.

Everything completely rewired. JL Audio 2-way's in the doors and Kicker 6X8 2-way's in the rear. I rarely ever listen to it but it does sound good for what it is. My 10 year old plays it when he's with me. Either on Pandora from the phone through BT or the iPod Touch that remains in my console.

 

[Outlaw94]

That Kenwood looks good in your dash. Too bad you can't mount those amps on the sides of the box.Looks good and I bet it sounds even better.

What's a good starting point for the LPF and HPF plus the slope settings which I believe are 1 = 6dB/oct, 2 = 12dB/oct, and 3 = 18dB/oct. These are on the HU as the Alpine xovers are off and the Kicker is around 100hz but set at 60hz LPF on the HU and the HPF is set at 50hz.It sounds good and has good mid bass and the bass is clean without being boomy.Not sure how to set the slope settings though.

 

[Outlaw94]

I got noise again after putting the tray back up.I'm sure the amp is touching the rear deck and maybe that's causing it but it's not as loud but it's still there.If that is the issue then I have to lower the amp some how.Maybe cut the tray so the amp can fit upside down in it and maybe cut a hole in the tray/backseat cover to help keep it cool.

I'm probably gonna do the big three upgrade soon as well.At least the battery is new(Motorcraft)and the alt is just two years old(Napa) so no problems there. What size fuse will I need from the alt to battery?. And what's good spots to ground from the battery?. I was thinking one to the shock mount and the other to, I think there's a stud on the front of the engine by the PS or to the alt bracket.