grounding

**02radioflyer** · 08-06-2010 02:05 PM

Originally Posted by chris227NJ

Thank you very much "mainframe", when mounting the sub under the passenger seat, can I just drill 4 separate holes and screw it in after I remove the seat or do I run the chance of puncturing a brake line? Thank you all for the immediate response

I would remove the seat, cut both sides from front to back, lift the flap and strip out all/most the padding/ deadening (add a slab of thinner aftermarket deadening at your preference). Then having maximum vertical clearance id simply Velcro strip it to the carpet or not since it really isn't going to go anywhere.

I would not drill holes in the floor...absolutely not.

**MainFrame** · 08-06-2010 03:21 PM

Yeah, I wouldn't drill holes to mount it. For one, the housing of the amp (or in this case your powered sub) should not be grounded to the body of the car. This is not always an issue, but it can be the source of humming or whining in the output.

I didn't actually mount my sub, and I certainly didn't remove the seat to install it. I just attached the rubber feet that came with the unit (BASS600) and positioned it underneath the seat. It fits so well that it actually can't go anywhere once you get it in there. The only problem is that it is a pain to get adjusted properly because it is such a tight fit it can be hard to reach the controls, but that's something you should only have to do once.

The only problem I can see with the way I installed it is that it would be easier for someone to steal since it isn't actually bolted down. But if that happens for $90 you can get another one..

**chris227NJ** · 08-06-2010 05:03 PM

Thanks again for the help!!!!!! where do you advise me to ground it? Would one of the four bolts that hold down the seat work? Also, when wiring the control (the the sub shuts off when the car is off) to the head unit, do I crimp that wire to the adaptor or twist them together and use electrical tape?

**Sinister** · 08-06-2010 05:22 PM

that'd be fine

**MainFrame** · 08-06-2010 10:45 PM

Originally Posted by chris227NJ

Thanks again for the help!!!!!! where do you advise me to ground it? Would one of the four bolts that hold down the seat work? Also, when wiring the control (the the sub shuts off when the car is off) to the head unit, do I crimp that wire to the adaptor or twist them together and use electrical tape?

You're not supposed to use the seat bolts for two reasons. First, it is notoriously a poor grounding area, for what ever reason. And secondly, it has the potential to compromise the safety of your car should it be in an accident because the bolt is not torqued down as it was designed by the manufacturer.

That being said, that is precisely where I grounded my sub, lol. It's incredibly convenient. In fact, I didn't even remove the bolt to attach the ground. I just bought a copper lug from O'Rileys and snipped the ring on one side. After I crimped and soldered it to the ground wire, I loosened the bolt just a little bit, and then bent the ring portion on the lug just far enough so that it would fit around the bolt. Then I tightened the bolt back down on it.

I'm sure it would be better if you pulled the carpet up, sanded the paint from the bolt hole, placed the lug directly against the bare metal of the car's body and then put the bolt back through. But honestly, we're talking about a $90-$110 sub/amplifier combo here. It's not going to sound great no matter what you do.

As far as the remote wire goes, with anything like that I always twist the wires, solder them, and use heat shrink. Electrical tape just has fail written all over it. In the past I have used the little crimp things, but it's no where near as good as solder and heat shrink.

**gluis** · 08-14-2010 10:24 AM

Originally Posted by ralph958

You are totally correct. Not all MOS FETs amps are created equal. The power supply is one of the first places they skimp on.

But come on guys , the specs don't lie. You can find amps for $100 that put out 350 continuous watts RMS (20-20KHZ) into a 4 ohm load with .08 % distortion.

Actually specs DO lie. I work for Crown international (biggest, baddest pro audio amps in the world) and you might be surprised to find how competition's plays with specs. There are too many standards that give you great numbers but no correlation to real world expectations. And of course you can measure with no regard to any standards at all.

There are more amp classes than 4 btw.

In the case of subwoofers, you must also consider damping factor. The bigger the number, the better your amp is going to be able to control your cone's movement. You also don't need 20 to 20k response for subs, since they arey going to be crossed over around a 100Hz most of the times. You need a good power supply though. And if you ask me, for a car subwoofer amp, I would like a class D design since it is really efficient and have great damping factor. Class D amps have some issues for full range high powered situations (1000's of watts), but in the case of a car subwoofer we are pretty safe with it.

I don't know a lot about car amps, but I do know about amps. There is a lot of good advice in here, I just wanted to contribute my 2 cents on this topic. I had not read the entire thread though.

Regards,

GS

**mangostick** · 08-14-2010 01:20 PM

so op, how did this turn out?

The weather has finally broken a little bit and the temps are egg frying hot.. I'm toying with the Idea of installing my cap/amp and audio integrations enclosure/sub today. If I get around to it I'll start another thread with pics.

**whitegold** · 08-14-2010 01:54 PM

Originally Posted by SubaruWRC

Does anyone know of any good aftermarket brands that sound better than the factory one?

I would look into some alpine type R's competition style. they are much smaller but still produce great sound.

**chris227NJ** · 08-15-2010 07:13 AM

VERY happy with the Kenwood hu and VERY happy with the Boss Audio SUB! The install start to finish took just under 4 hours. I relocated the stock sub under the driver seat and it works with the new hu. I used the rear seat bolt for the ground and haven't had any problems. The sub also has a MAX/ MIN control and i mounted that to the right of the driver seat in between the console by my seat belt (where your commonly drop coins and other stuff). THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP !

**SubaruWRC** · 08-15-2010 07:52 PM

Originally Posted by mangostick

so op, how did this turn out?

The weather has finally broken a little bit and the temps are egg frying hot.. I'm toying with the Idea of installing my cap/amp and audio integrations enclosure/sub today. If I get around to it I'll start another thread with pics.

Hey it turned out great. I posted some pics on page 5 of the final installation. I love how the system sounds now and for just around $325, I'd say it sounds amazing. It was just what I was looking for.

I didn't want the big subs and stuff because I like having a trunk, and also this way its a good bit lighter.

In my opinion if you just want something that sounds better than the junk stock system and don't wanna break the bank this is the way to go.

Also congrats on your install chris.

**gogocricket** · 06-21-2011 07:04 AM

Can anyone tell me where they ran the power cord for the amp through the firewall? I'd like to put it through somewhere on the battery side so I don't run out of cable on the way back to the sub. I have an 02 wrx wagon, pictures or directions would be great, thanks

**MWatson17** · 06-21-2011 08:59 AM

I don't have any pictures, but if you have the factory boost gauge you can follow the vacuum line on it to a grommet in the firewall. It's up quite a bit under the dash, almost directly behind the HVAC controls. I took a wire coat hanger and clipped it so it was a straight piece of metal, taped it to the end of my power cord and stuck the hanger through. Then you go up to the engine bay and just pull it through and remove the tape and hanger once the wire has come through.

**mangostick** · 06-21-2011 10:30 AM

Here's the pic of how I did mine

This grommet looks thick, however it is not. If you use a sharp drill bit and very carefully (and slowly) let the bit nip through the diaphragm you'll be able to slip the power wire right through the drilled hole(I used silicone lube to aid the process). Make sure you use a drill bit that it smaller than the wire so that the grommet seals against the wire insulation. This location is right up where the carpet ends in the passenger foot well.

Also, make very sure to not nip the harness with the drill bit. Not sure how the routing is on the 02, mine is a '10.. but I wouldn't think they're too much different.