installers

[Freestylin59]

Best Buy won't be able to install my subwoofer system until late march. is there any other place you guys know of that could install everything for a fairly cheap price?

[dmw319]

do it yourself. its not hard. if you lived here id do it for you for 20 bucks.

[CAMAROWIDBASS]

Originally posted by dmw319:
do it yourself. its not hard. if you lived here id do it for you for 20 bucks.

most fbody people settle for a meal. ;)

[Freestylin59]

what does installing an amp and sub involve? is there any tutorial?

[CAMAROWIDBASS]

Installing Amps: Power wiring only

Supplies needed:
heavy power wire
light (20ga or heavier) remote turn-on wire
ring or fork connectors to fit each size wire
fuse holder and fuse
heat shrink tubing or electrical tape
plastic wire ties
rubber grommet
sandpaper
self-tapping sheet metal screw (approx #8 x 3/4")
grease or silicone sealer
appropriate crimping tools


The first step to hooking up the power to your amp is to figure out where you're going to put the amp. Find a path from the battery to the amp that you can fish your wire through; this may be through the firewall, under the car, over the headliner, through the fenders, etc. Measure the distance that your wire will have to run and add a couple feet. It's very maddening when you carefully run your wire through all the holes under the dash, take up your carpet and door trims, then find out you're a foot short, so plan ahead and add extra, then add 3 to 4 feet extra to make your ground wires.


Buy a fuse holder that will handle the size of wire you've chosen and a fuse large enough to handle everything hooked to your power wire. You can get such a fuse and holder at local stereo shops, Best Buy, Circuit City, Radio Shack, etc. (editor's note: The Radio Shack one is identical to the RF one, except for the logo, but only about a third the cost.) This main fuse *MUST* be placed as close as practical to the battery, usually less than 12-18" away, to keep the car from catching on fire if the power wire shorts out or is overloaded. If your amp doesn't have a fuse built in, also get another fuse and holder sized for your amp's expected current draw, to be placed close to the amp.

To hook the wire to the battery and the ground to the body, you will need either ring or fork type connectors large enough to handle your heavy power wire. You may also need a similar connector to fit your amp's power terminals if your amp won't accept bare wire.

You're now ready to begin wiring.

Cut a piece of wire long enough to go from the positive battery terminal to where you're going to mount your main fuse holder. Crimp or solder a ring or fork connector on one end that will fit the bolt on your battery terminal. Slip a piece of heat shrink tubing (red preferred) over the gap between the connector and wire and shrink it up tight. Slide one end cap from your fuse holder over the other end of the wire and fasten the fuse holder's contact to the wire. Make sure these connections are tight and neat without any stray pieces of wire hanging out because this short, heavy piece of wire will not be fused.

Mount your fuse holder and install the short piece of wire between the battery and fuse holder. DO NOT INSTALL THE FUSE YET! The fuse will be the last thing installed at the end.

Slip the other end cap from the fuse holder over one end of the remaining heavy wire and connect the other fuse holder's contact to the wire. Screw this to your fuse holder just to keep it in place, leaving a couple inches of slack, and start running the power wire to your amp. Wherever your power wire goes through a piece of metal (i.e. the firewall), it should be surrounded by a rubber boot or grommet to keep the sharp metal edges from wearing through the insulation. Tie the wire out of the way as needed to keep it away from hot, sharp, or moving parts or wherever it might get pinched or stepped on.

When you get the wire to where the amp is going to be, cut it to length and install the appropriate connector to fit your amp. If your amp doesn't have a fuse built-in, add one shortly before the amp's power connection to protect the amp in case of an overload.

Find a nearby place, within about two feet of the amp, to attach a ground wire the same size as your power wire to a solid piece of metal on the car's body or frame. Crimp or solder a connector to the wire that will fit your amp. Cut the wire long enough to reach your chosen grounding point and attach a ring or fork connector to make the connection with. If you are using an existing bolt, remove it. Sand the connection point until you have about a nickel-sized patch of shiny bare metal. Bolt the ground wire securely to the shiny spot with either the existing bolt or a self-tapping sheet metal screw. Spread some grease or silicone sealer over the connection to help prevent rust.

Now that you have a power and ground wire to your amp you're done, right? Not quite. You need to make one more wire to go from the battery ground terminal to the body. This oft-forgotten wire should be at least as large as your amp's power wire, if not larger, because it will carry all the current for your amp AND your car's electrical system. Most new cars come with only a 6 or 8ga wire here. Such a small wire obviously won't carry the current that an 0, 2, or 4ga wire is trying to deliver to your amp, let alone the additional load from your car. This wire should be as short as practical and made with clean, solid connections. Sand the body and bolt the wire down securely just like the ground wire you made for the amp. Coat the connections to prevent rust and you're done with this part of the install.

Next, run the remote turn-on wire from your head unit to the amp and use appropriate connectors to make the connection. If you are running more than one or two amps, or if you have more accessories (i.e. fans, signal processors, eq's, neon lights, etc.), you must use a relay to protect the hu's remote turn-on output.

Double-check all your connections: power and ground at the battery, both sides of the fuse holder, power, ground, and remote turn-on at the amp, ground wire from the amp to the body, ground wire from the battery to the body, and remote wire at the head unit. If everything is safe and secure, NOW you may install the fuse under the hood and turn your amp on knowing that you've done the job yourself and done it right.

A last thought you may want to consider, when all is done, and you are about to install the main fuse, may be a good idea to use a low rated fuse as a "sacrificial" lamb first.

Say you have your main fuse of 75 amps, try initial fuse install, using a 15-25 amp test fuse. With amp(s) off and all other devices off too, put in the fuse.. if it does not blow, you are doing good (no shorts) so far. If it does blow, look for a short in the power line. Your nose and fingers are your best tools here. Smell for burnt wire insulation and touch for overheated wire segments.

Now hit the power to each device that is connected to that main power line, in a sequence. Bring up the power on your HU and listen for all amps/devices, doing their respective jobs. Use low power as you have a very small fuse in the line right now.

If the fuse remains in tact, you are good to go. Install your primary fuse and finish the install tweaks.