Question on Wiring/compatibility

Alert69 · Post by **Alert69** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 5:36 pm

Hey guys,
I'm new to the forum but already have some questions, I've read as many of the FAQ's and articles as I thought would be relevent so hopefully I dont restate any odvious facts.
I want to know if I have a compatible system without buying any more pieces. I bought the truck (1990 Toyota) with a RDB325D (clarion 30W*40) and two KFC-1654 kenwood 80 watt speakers at 4 ohms each (currently wired independed of each other). I have decided to add a subwoofer so I assumed I needed an amplifier. I got the package at the link (posted at bottom of message) which comes with a (inexpensive I know) 1000 peak watt subwoofer and amplifier (plus the kit shown).
If I buy nothing else would I have enough pieces to make the system work adequatly? What would I need to wire to where? If I was pointed to the correct diagram that would also be great :)

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_3522.html

Thanks a lot :)

Darthness · Post by **Darthness** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 7:11 pm

You should just know that "systeM' wouldn't be worth the trouble...

my suggestion to you (as you seem to be on a low budget, as i am) would be to go with something like Resonant Engineering. Its great, high quality product with really good prices. Ie, their RE line's 12" subwoofer is around $80 (to your door maybe?!) directly from RE. (Note: i havn't heard them, but they've been getting great reviews)

http://www.reaudio.com, you buy directly from them. For prices and ordering and etc, just call them up.

for an amp, you could get away with a ~300w (single sub is 250W Peak, i think 175 RMS) amp for a single sub, and then either build your own box or have a shop do it.

I myself am planning on going with 3 of those if i can't find Alpine Type-R's

Scarrell · Post by **Scarrell** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 7:16 pm

that is all fine, it should/might have a manual onto how to wire the amplifier, if you dont know how to already.. you need to find out the model numbers on the subs and amp... also Peak means nothing... look at the rms... as for the subs find out if they are dual 2 or 4ohm(dual voice coil) or svc(single voice coil). and then we can go from there once we get that and the amps RMS at 2 and 4ohms.... hmm... also i cant find anything on that amp... just a used faceplate on Ebay.. but not much else... but by looking at it seems kind of old, and i did a little searching and they seem to have an issue with the volume control not working.. but if it works fine, then you can use it.. but id look into upgrading... look into the Alpine 9845... you essential want a cd player with some preouts, i think 3 would be great because you can use your sub amp And if you ever want to put an amp on your speakers you can hook it up to the front or rear preouts.. which would in turn give you fuller crisper sound(assuming you have/are getting aftermarket speakers..), anyway if you need anymore help, I, or plenty of others are here to help.

Alert69 · Post by **Alert69** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 7:50 pm

First, Why wouldn't this "System" be worth it Darthness? I don't mean to sound like I dont appreciate the help but I don't understand why it is so poor.

Second, Scarrell, here is the manufacture site:
http://www.visonikcaraudio.com/sub/prod ... rbass.html (left column)
The RMS wattage isnt stated (I assume 1000 was the peak for the subs) so would that be roughly half of the peak wattage? 500 rms?
The subs also have a lack of information unfortunently.

As for the volume control I'm not concerned (2 year warrenty).

Also, I dont think I made it clear that the kenwood speakers are already installed, they have been there for 2-5 years. I just want to add an sub and I think in order to do that I need to add a amp.

If at all possible I really like this sub/amp/wiring combo and would like to continue with it (keep in mind I don't care if this sounds perfect, i just want a little noise). I will email the manufacture for the model numbers on the subs, modle number on the amp as well as rms for the amp and find out if the sub is a dvc or svc and at what ohm rating.

Overall I'm extremely happy with the responses, thanks guys :)

lotas · Post by **lotas** » Mon Jun 13, 2005 9:32 pm

Alert69 wrote:First, Why wouldn't this "System" be worth it Darthness? I don't mean to sound like I dont appreciate the help but I don't understand why it is so poor.

Second, Scarrell, here is the manufacture site:
http://www.visonikcaraudio.com/sub/prod ... rbass.html (left column)
The RMS wattage isnt stated (I assume 1000 was the peak for the subs) so would that be roughly half of the peak wattage? 500 rms?
The subs also have a lack of information unfortunently.
As for the volume control I'm not concerned (2 year warrenty).

Also, I dont think I made it clear that the kenwood speakers are already installed, they have been there for 2-5 years. I just want to add an sub and I think in order to do that I need to add a amp.

If at all possible I really like this sub/amp/wiring combo and would like to continue with it (keep in mind I don't care if this sounds perfect, i just want a little noise). I will email the manufacture for the model numbers on the subs, modle number on the amp as well as rms for the amp and find out if the sub is a dvc or svc and at what ohm rating.

Overall I'm extremely happy with the responses, thanks guys :)

hey, welcome

He said that because Visonik is not a very reputable brand. I dont have personal experience with them so I can't really say anything bad about them, but from what I have read and understand they are unreliable and cheap. Its common for an amp, two subs, a box and wiring to cost around $500 (for cheap cheap stuff) and this package is $170.

If you already bought this package, and you want to stay with it, then its a mute point. But most people will probably try to get you to bring it back or steer you away from it. Another reason for that is that if you get stuck in the car audio hobby, you will quickly find yourself wanting to upgrade your system. If you buy what is satisfactory the first time, you dont have to buy again.

Anyways you are correct, you do need an amp to power the sub(s). If all that is in a package I would assume everything matches up as far as power requirements and wiring compatibility goes. The only thing you have to worry about is your HU, and if it has RCA pre-outs.

Alert69 · Post by **Alert69** » Tue Jun 14, 2005 1:04 pm

Aright, thanks for clarifying why he said that :) But I think Ill stick with it for the following reason:
1. It has a 2 year warenty (in 2 years ill be in a new car@ college)
2. I won't be uprading it... parents said I can't spend more money on it
3. It doesnt have to cost more than my car.
4. I dont care if it sounds perfect.. as long as it lasts 2 years sounding reasonable im happy :)

Anyway, as you said I assume the amp has enough power for the sub that is included in the package with it. The thing I dont know however is...

Would it be possible to take a wire from one of the speakers that is already working (kenwood 80watt) and run it through the the speaker... then amplifier, then subwoofer?

Or

Should I try to wire a seperate wire from the dash to the amplifier to the subwoofer and not touch the two kenwoods?
If so... I dont understand quite how its set up now, the dash says its a 30w*4 and each of the kenwoods are 80watt... are they running low on power or would I even have an available channel to plug into the amplifer?

If this doesnt make sense I can draw some pictures.

Thanks again for the help guys :)

***EDIT*** I created a picture but cant upload it even when its compressed 100% in jpeg format at 15-20k due to size limitations, any ideas welcome :) ***EDIT***

lotas · Post by **lotas** » Tue Jun 14, 2005 8:24 pm

Alert69 wrote:Aright, thanks for clarifying why he said that :) But I think Ill stick with it for the following reason:
1. It has a 2 year warenty (in 2 years ill be in a new car@ college)
2. I won't be uprading it... parents said I can't spend more money on it
3. It doesnt have to cost more than my car.
4. I dont care if it sounds perfect.. as long as it lasts 2 years sounding reasonable im happy :)

Anyway, as you said I assume the amp has enough power for the sub that is included in the package with it. The thing I dont know however is...

Would it be possible to take a wire from one of the speakers that is already working (kenwood 80watt) and run it through the the speaker... then amplifier, then subwoofer?

Or

Should I try to wire a seperate wire from the dash to the amplifier to the subwoofer and not touch the two kenwoods?
If so... I dont understand quite how its set up now, the dash says its a 30w*4 and each of the kenwoods are 80watt... are they running low on power or would I even have an available channel to plug into the amplifer?

If this doesnt make sense I can draw some pictures.

Thanks again for the help guys :)

***EDIT*** I created a picture but cant upload it even when its compressed 100% in jpeg format at 15-20k due to size limitations, any ideas welcome :) ***EDIT***

hey, just read your post and I think I should try to help clarify how the sub setup will be, well...setup.

Basically you will wire the amp. You will run two large wires. One will be the +12v wire, coming from the battery. This wire will be fused within a foot or so of the battery. It will run through your firewall, under your carpet, and to wherever you mount the amp. The other large wire will be your ground wire. This wire will be grounded (or connected to) the chassis of your car. To install this wire you will want to crimp a ring terminal on the end and try to mount it with a bolt for a solid connection. It is important that you do mount this wire to the chassis of the car, and that the part of the car where the wire is connected to is sanded down to pure metal, free of grease, paint, and anything else. A bad ground can induce system noise, i.e. hearing funky noises from your deck, hearing a "whine" when you rev your engine, which follows your RPM's. The next two wires will run from your deck (or dash as you were calling it) to your amp. One is the remote turn-on wire. This wire receives current when the HU(head unit, or deck) is turned on, and basically "tells" the amp to turn on when your deck turns on. The other wire is your RCA's. These are the signal wires that tell your amp/subs what to play. You've probably seen this wires in home audio/video setups, with gaming systems, with video cameras, etc. They are red/white on the ends (typically). The last wires will be your speaker wires from your subs to the amp. Depending on how you have to wire the subs (in series or parallel, if its a package, probably parallel as its the easiest to understand) you will probably just connect each + and - of the sub's voice coils to the + and - of the amp.

That is all of the connections you should have to make. As you can see, you don't have to mess with your speakers at all.

By the way, your kenwood amp is most likely 30w peak power. It is more realistically probably around 15w. So it is giving 15w of power to your Kenwood speakers. Then again your kenwood speakers might be 80w peak also. The numbers don't have to "match" exactly. Giving a speaker that is 100watts RMS 75watts is typically going to be about the same output as if you did give it 100watts. The RMS rating is just a rating of how much heat the voice coils can take before frying, not how much power the speaker needs to move to its full potential.

Darthness · Post by **Darthness** » Tue Jun 14, 2005 8:44 pm

Also, the reason i say its crappy because i've heard simular setups before... not to meniton, it should just be expected that you're not going to get a great system out of that for the price... thats a typical gimmick. Its like comparing an offbrand home electronics thing from walmart to a highquality equivilent from tweeter or something.

Alert69 · Post by **Alert69** » Tue Jun 14, 2005 10:20 pm

Thanks for clarifying Darthness and lotas, that last post was EXACTLY what I needed :)

Ill post here if i have anymore questions but you guys were super helpful :)

Post by **GlassWolf** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 6:13 am

off topic, but scarrell, I wouldn't list an email address in your sig, were I you.
spam bots troll for email addresses in open forums like this looking for spammable addresses. You're just asking for more junk mail this way.
If you want to list an e-mail address, do it a bit creatively and say something like [email protected] (remove the xxx to mail me) the bots are set up to find obvious ones like [email protected] or bob at home dot com

consider this a public safety announcement.

Alert69, welcome to Central.