rswan55

Just had new head unit (jvc) and speakers installed in my 91 C4 Cab. Sounds great (when all 4 speakers actually work). Problem is, the front speakers keep cutting out - independently. I've taken it back to the audio shop that did it and they keep "tweaking" it thinking it has something to do with the amp or that the speakers are touching metal in the door. After 2 separate "tweaks" it's no better. I'm obviously going to take it back in for more "tweaks" but would love some advice from the experts here to see if I can point these guys in the right direction. Also, they don't seem to cut out when the engine is off and the car is stationary - only when driving That's why they think they have it fixed, only to have it happen again when I drive away. Of course, I won't let them drive it themselves to test it .

Thanks!!!

anto1150

Could it be a cold welding? In the signal cables?

Rocket Rob

Why not take them out for a test drive where you drive and they listen?

rswan55

That's probably my next move...

rswan55

Can you elaborate? Not quite sure I understand what you mean? Would this have been something the installer would have done?

Rally Guy

Clearly a connection is intermitent, and is only jangling loose with the movement induced by driving. It seems like the the shop didn't connect the speaker wiring correctly. Speaker wire connections should be soldered (at the head unit end) to ensure a solid "air free" connection for reliability and superior sound. Even better to do it at the driver (speaker) end too - but it's the rare shop that cares THAT much. ; )

IIRC - the factory speaker wiring actually routes under the passenger seat - where the OEM 4-channel amp is/was. They should have had to do some work under there to by-pass that amp. (If you had one - not sure which models did or did not.)

If they DID do that part correctly - then it's downstream of the HU. Check the connections at the speakers and then I'd suspect the actual factory wiring harness, unless they ran new wiring which would be admirable - but unlikely. I'm about to run all new speaker cables and am NOT excited about the effort I fear it's gonna take. But as an audiophile - I KNOW the dif cable quality makes. And I won't be crippling a SoundSteam amp and Focal speakers with the stock crappy wiring.

But any shop that's mucking about with HU set up with an intermitent output issue is a little suspect to me.

RK

anto1150

Factory wiring is not crappy at all! These cars (very rare, actually) come with good cables; I wouldn't change them.

Rally Guy

Really? In my brief experience with the 20-year-old stock wiring to the door speakers - it looks like standard low-end, tiny-gauge multistrand copper wiring used all over the car. Further - it routes all the way to under the passenger seat, which would mean a lot of extra cabling if I mount the SS in the trunk.

Compare that to new, audio-grade, OFC or silver cabling of a larger gauge, with proper strand alingment for spurious signal rejection and maximum signal transmission, routed directly from Amp to crossovers, and I think I'll hear a differnence.

But I'm the guy who can hear his Krell warm up EXACTLY 23 minutes after turning it on - every time. ; )

RK

anto1150

When I installed my new speackers (Dynaudio), I noticed original power cables where in excellent shape with no sign of oxidation (this should tell they probably are OFC) and of a decent size (could easely carry about 100W of a good amp). So, I only changed the original cross-over with a custom-built one and soldered all the terminals.

Signal cables are a different story... of course the original ones are low quality...! There you can make a noticeable difference.... I do not believe you could apreciate different power cables in a car....

P.S. Unfortunately, though, I'm not the guy who can hear his Mark Levinson's warm up 22 or 23 minutes after turning it on.... ... not everyone have the same ears....

anto1150

If the signal cables are custom-built (happens very ofter in hi-quality jobs), they could have made a little mistake in one welding... just 1 thing to check and my 0,02....

ciao

crg53

But I'm the guy who can hear his Krell warm up EXACTLY 23 minutes after turning it on - every time. ; )



Good ears, I leave mine on all the time for instant gratification.

Rally Guy

Excellent! I find the sound slowly improves for about an hour or more after that first big "low end improvement" - so "always on" must be a VERY fulfilling approach!

If I knew I could listen more often - I'd do the same!

RK