AndyK

I did a search, but didn't find what I needed, so...

If I buy a sub with built in amp, and try to wire it in myself:

I would have a power wire from the battery (where on the battery?), a fuse (probably 20amp), then go through the firewall, to the back where the sub is, plus 4 RCA cables running from the head unit's line outs to the sub. Where do all these wires get routed to reach the back hatch area???

I would hate to buy a sub, and have to pay someone $200 to install it for me, but if it's too complicated, it may be the best thing to let someone who's done it before do it.

Thanks.

Andy

PS--I would probably buy that Inifinity Basslink on ebay.

kevin Dubois

ok to start, these questions are way to basic to be doing it yourself, but with a little guidance, we can get you through it.

to wire an infinity basslink you need:

power wire off of battery. that would be the positive terminal.

next, you need an inline fuse, and 20 amp is much to small for an amplifier. you will need a 60 amp fuse. the basslink has a smaller amp in it, so you might be able to get away with a 50 amp fuse.

you need a short grounding wire from the basslink to chasis. anywhere that is solid and metal will work.

you need a remote turn on wire. this will be an output wire on your aftermarket radio.

next, you will need only 2 channels of RCA becuase the basslink is a single speaker. technically you could get away with just one channel, but typically subs can be run in "stereo".

to route the wires you want to go go through the passenger carpet. you can pull off the door trim, and pry back the carpet there. route the wires under the carpet all the way to the back. any othe questions about that just ask where your stuck at. iwent through the firewall directly behind the glovebox. the hole goes into the battery compartment so it is easy to route the wires there.

as far as paying someone to install it. i work at circuit city, and you can get the infinity basslink there. it will cost you 64 dollars to have it installed there. you will also have a lifetime warrenty on the install, whereas if you do it yourself and short out a wire causing your car to explode, tough ****.

W88951

Huh?? A 20 amp fuse is plenty for a single amplifier in the car. Most inexpensive power amps may have a 10 or 15 amp fuse rating MAX. You always want to mount a fuse within 1 foot of the battery before it goes through the firewall. Remember, a fuse is there to break before you break something expensive. A 60 amp fuse would not break before your amp was already toast.


I am assuming you meant Can't be run in Stereo. 99% of the time, subs are run in Mono. Also, you cannot run a single sub in stereo. Well, you can have a device that mixes both the left and right signals, but the output is still Mono.

That explains everything about your previous statements.

AndyK,

What kind of a head unit do you have? Does it have any RCA outputs for a sub, or does it have any RCA outputs at all? If it does not have any RCA's then you will have to convert the Speaker level output to a line level. Unless the sub you are buying has speaker level inputs. Also, where do you plan to instal the sub in the car? behind one of the seats, in the cargo area? Please be aware that if it is installed visibly in the cargo area you are greatly increasing the risk of it being stolen and your rear hatch broken.

Essentially Kevin has the correct procedure for wiring the sub.

Positive power cable from the battery with a 20amp fuse.
12awg wire will be plenty
12awg ground wire the the chassis. Should not be a painted surface. If there is paint, remove it.
Remote turn on from your head unit. May also be the lead for the activate the power antenna.
RCA output from your head unit run to the input on the sub amp.

If you are this much of a novice I would highly suggest spending the money to have a proper installation performed. But insist on being able to watch the install.

Kevin, not to be rude but claiming your electronics knowledge base is from Circuit City, Best Buy, Ultimate Electronics or other simular store generally does not indicate a knowledgeable person. Because honestly, once you feel you have enough expierence won't you go someplace else with a better reputation.

AndyK

Thanks for the advice/guidance.

I am leaning toward getting it done. I installed the Blau Toronto (it has sub outs) myself by buying a converter kit from Crutchfield and butt- connecting the wires to the harness. Not an expert wire router though! Never installed a fuse between two wires before...etc.

I would just hate to have someone punch a hole in the firewall, and then get a puddle of water on my feet in the next storm!

I can get the Basslink for under $200 brand new on ebay. Circuit City sells them for $349!

W88951

AndyK,

I am not certain if it is there on the S2, but on my 88 there is an unused rubber gommet in the Firewall by the battery. In order to route the wire inside you will have to remove the glove box. Just poke a hole through that grommet (if it is there) and run the wire down the passenger side. Also, they make wiring kits that already have inline fuses the correct distance from the battery. They usually come with everything you need to install an amp. Less than $30.00

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-axERjTo...=0&cc=01&avf=N

If you installed your own head unit then you are capeable of installing the amp.

I also posted to use 12awg wire. I should have posted to use 10awg or 8awg. The 10 Will be plenty. If you plan to install more amps in the future then use the 8.

AndyK

My goal was to install the least amount of extra "stuff" as possible. I dont want to have a competition stereo system...just a decent head unit, OK speakers (I installed the Blaupunkt 4x6's in the front), and a little more bass. So a sub would be it.

I would get the cubby hole sub offered by KLA...but I don't want a seperate amp sitting in the trunk. I don't like the thought that a Basslink in the back will lead to break ins and theft attempts??

W88951

Depending on the size of Amp you buy, a small one can be mounted in storage compartment opposite where the KLA sub is installed. This way you will have a better amp, your choice of sub and everything is hidden from view.

I had a Contour SVT with two Xtant apmlifiers, Focal 6.5 Seperates in the front, Macrom 6.5 Midbas in the rear, a JL Audio Dual Voice coil 10" in the trunk and an Eclipse CD Player in the dash. The only visible component was the CD player. When you opened the trunk you would see the Sub, but you never saw the amps.

It is possible to install an incredible stereo in the 944, it just takes time and the willingness to lose some storage space or carrying a spare tire.

Dave

Andy, IIRC, KLA has a version of their sub with an internal amp.

marky522

http://www.klaindustries.net/sparetire/sparetire.htm

The one for $199 has a built in driver (amp)
Mark

Dave

Drive=speaker, not amp.
I just checked the site and don't see the one to which I was refering.

Pearceman3

wouldnt a 20 amp or smaller fuse blow right away....

AndyK

KLA says they don't sell the self powered sub anymore (Rockford doesn't make it anymore).

Can't see running an amp to one side of the hatch, and the sub on the other. Not in the mood to have wires all over the rear hatch area.

All Porsche had to do was make the rear speakers bigger...but NOOOO!

Charlie

This weekend I changed my rear speakers from the 4" by 6" to 6.5" with separate tweeter. I really don't care for deep bass, my goal was to obtain some mid bass. I also ran wires for an amp in the drivers side cubby hole in the hatch area. I think I am going to put Infinity 4 by 6 plates in the door.
I am going to experiment and try to make the 6.5's produce maybe up to 150 hz and let the front Infinity's take over and do the rest. I don't like the instruments and vocals coming from the rear. Not sure how this is going to work, it is an experiment in progress.

kevin Dubois

i need to make some corrects here.

first off, i didn't realize how the amp on the basslink was setup. it does only need a 20 amp fuse, but sense most kits come with a 30 amp fuse, might as well use that.

next definately use power and ground cable bigger then 12 guage. that is to thin for that application. you want 8 guage cables. and if your going to expand with more amps, don't start with 8 guage, start with 4.

next, subs are run in "stereo" mode. notice the quotes around the stereo. this means it is kind of stereo but not. because it is only a single speaker it can't be stereo by definition, but sense it takes both and left and right channel input and sums them, you have a "Stereo" output. a mono output would be a single channel input, like left channel, or right channel.

next, by some crazy reason the basslink actually has 4 channel input. although i am not to familiar with this product (as it is expensive for what it does), it uses a servo system which runs on the additional two inputs which adjusts the volume of the box essentially to keep the size so compact. that is why it needs 4 inputs. it can be run with two, but the sound quality might suffer.

as for my car, i have a 951 with a system. it has a clarion 835mp cd player, an mtx 895 amp, infinity kappa 4" with 1" tweet seperates in the door in custom kickplates, kappa 6.5" in the rear, and a perfect 12 DVC in the spare tire wheel. there is also a 1 farad cap. next, you can't see any of it. it is all hidden. the sub is in the spare tire well, in a sealed enclosure custom fit to the hole, with i believe a little less then 1 cubic foot volume (never measured it precisely, just did a rough estimate when i started making it). the amp is hidden in a custom made enclosure where the rear seat was.

as for where i learned: i learn on my own over the past 7 years. circuit city only introduced me to the various products they sell (and the basslink obviously is not one of the big sellers). i don'y consider myself an expert, but i do feel my earlier post grossly misrepresented my knowledge. see my cardomain page in my sig for the stereo install i have.

next i have no idea what this means:
" Because honestly, once you feel you have enough expierence won't you go someplace else with a better reputation."

but if your assuming that once i understand how car stereo works i would go to a custom installation shop? well i don't do car stereo as a career. i will be an engineering grad in 2 weeks and circuit city is only for the discount and some extra cash for the porsche. besides, the custom install shops don't always know what they are doing either. i have seen some pretty horrible alarm installs done at custom shops.

marky522

I am going to have to agree also, i didnt quite liek how you clumped all the electronic stores together there, when i worked at best buy there install guy was supposed to be one of the best in the area, and did a VERY nice job.

Mark