Speaker Question

[jezh]

Hi peeps,

I have a pretty much stock J-spec SZ (immaculate) and this weekend we installed a top range Sony Mex headunit and amp, paying particular attention to threading cabling under the carpets etc and making it look as neat as possible. The headunit doesnt come with an internal amp so it was necessary to source a good dual channel Sony Xplod amp and strap it into the boot. Nice thing about it is the fact that we threaded through a separate sub channel lead that can also be controlled from the headunit etc. so if I want to build a subbox for it in the future I can and run it with little work.

The problem is the setup lacks any bass - and I am wondering whether we have missed something. The stock speakers arnt this bad surely? The original radio cassette that came with the car sounded better than this setup even though my wallet is now £600+ lighter....

Im also having thoughts about whether we have missed a speaker out (i.e is there a 7th in the rear?) This may be the reason why there is no bass.

Also on Ebay I noticed a MKIV stock amp for sale - which raises the question whether there is an amp somewhere in the car that needs disconnecting. My previous MR2 had an "active stero system" that needed cabling rerouting round the car which proved ardous.

Hope this isnt the case as we spent most of the day threading cabling from the headunit to the rear (we spliced into the existing speakers to save time) and dont want to freeze my bullocks off again...

Any ideas?

[oxygene]

When I wired up my speakers I found, that with their curent configurations the back speakers were inverted. So instead of pos 2 pos, it was pos 2 neg and you get crap sound.

To combat this wire them the other way around, you may need to chop off some connectors to swap em round, but it should work ok afterwards.

Hope it helps :)

[Patrick_Devlin]

The stock speakers are indeed crap! Tiny little 4" ones in the front and 6" in the back. Many replace the fronts with 6".

[pulse]

Maybe this is why mine sounds so gutless? The wiring issue..

[Steve W2]

I have a GZ TT with the standard subwoofer in the boot and it sounds pretty good.

It doesn't have earth-shattering bass but for a system thats 11 years old and standard its pretty good. So much so that it has taken me 4 months to get round to fitting my head unit and, amp and sub.

I don't know what the deal is with the SZ but my car has a standard amp under the passengers seat.

You should make sure you are not still wired through that if you have spliced in the rear speaker wires?:conf:

[jezh]

Shoot - I suspected this!

So there is a standard sub and amp in the car somewhere! Is it under the rear seats then? How the hell do I get to this. I assume if this is the case we will need to disconnect this amp (this is the problem Im sure) and try and enable this speaker.

[pulse]

Dunno about sub, but there's an amp under the passenger seats (probably)..

-p

[Steve W2]

Originally posted by jezh
Shoot - I suspected this!

So there is a standard sub and amp in the car somewhere! Is it under the rear seats then? How the hell do I get to this. I assume if this is the case we will need to disconnect this amp (this is the problem Im sure) and try and enable this speaker.

Whoa there buddy!! Keep cool, it's okay (maybe). I have a GZ, which was top of the range and thus fitted with a 7 speaker stereo. This was an option on all other models.

You will find the sub in your boot right by your back seats, its only small and rectangular and looks like a plastic box.

I mentioned the amp because I don't know weather the amp is used for the sub only (where fitted) or if it is used for the back speakers as well.

If this is case then that may be where you problem lies, you shoudl also consider that your new speakers will still be operating off the existing cable rated for the power of the standard speakers, not the ones you are using.

You need the help of Mr harwood as I am no audio expert, but the above are the things I would check first to help Matt answer your questions if he decides to pop along and read this thread.

He shouldn't be long he's never very busy!:baa:

[jezh]

Thanks for the help:

Ive just had a quick gander at the car back seats to see if they can be lifterd - one side appears loose and can be pulled up a bit whilst the other is securely fixed. I assume this amp is somewhere underneath this as there really is nowhere else it can hide.

How can I get this seat lifted? Or am I looking in totally the wrong place!

I hope its not a total rewire required to sort this out. Also drivers side speaker is crackling now (Ive checked the speaker cables and all is fine) so something isnt right.

jez

[livvy]

If you have a stock amp it will be under the front passenger seat not the rear seat.

HTH

PJ

[SimonB]

I would check you've wired the speakers all in phase (i.e. the + and - for the left and right channels are wired to the same terminals on the speakers). If one is pushing and one pulling you'll get very little bass.