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Hey folks. Twelve years into owning my T/A the car has finally developed sound system issues.
The system is stock other than a Pioneer head unit that I installed a few months ago. Just recently, I noticed that the sound level will play at a normal level, but will suddenly drop to a very low volume, but the strange thing is the sound isn't just low, it sounds muffled, as if someone put a pillow over all of the speakers; this happens randomly, I never know when it's going to happen. The second issue is that there is no sound coming out of my left door panel speakers. I tried installing the stock head unit, just to see if the Pioneer was the issue but the randomly dropping volume and dead left door panel speakers remained. I examined the wiring and connectors in the dash to see if there was any damage, but everything is fine.
What can I do to diagnose these two issues further? I was hoping to get ideas from you folks before I tore the door panel off to look deeper into the wiring for the dead door speaker issue. As for the randomly dropping volume level, I have no ideas. Any suggestions and help are appreciated, and I thank everyone in advance...
If you have one laying around then I would try it. Otherwise I am kind of lost after that. Try and get ahold of WhiteBird00 on this site. He is probably the most knowledgable person for this problem.
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
I agree that the Monsoon amp is the most likely culprit except for the left door problem... when you say that there is no sound from the left door, do you mean none at all or just not from the 6.5" mid? If the tweeter still works then it still points to the amp as the problem but the tweeters are powered directly by the head unit in Firebird systems so if the tweeter isn't working then the amp is not the problem. In that case, I would disconnect both left door speakers (mid and tweeter) and see if the rest come back to life. You could have a short in one or both of the left door speakers causing the amp (and/or head unit) to go nuts.
I agree that the Monsoon amp is the most likely culprit except for the left door problem... when you say that there is no sound from the left door, do you mean none at all or just not from the 6.5" mid? If the tweeter still works then it still points to the amp as the problem but the tweeters are powered directly by the head unit in Firebird systems so if the tweeter isn't working then the amp is not the problem. In that case, I would disconnect both left door speakers (mid and tweeter) and see if the rest come back to life. You could have a short in one or both of the left door speakers causing the amp (and/or head unit) to go nuts.
I am certain that there is no sound at all coming from either speaker on the left door panel. I guess the next step is to take off the door panel, check the wiring and then see what happens. In case I do need to replace the amp, should I just buy another monsoon unit or would you recommend aftermarket? If I went aftermarket, would I have to change the speakers as well, and how would I connect the amp to the wiring harness?
Ultimately the stereo system isnt critical to me, I just want everything to work properly . Thanks again guys...
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
Well if neither speaker is working in the left door then it's probably not the amp. But if you should need to replace the amp, getting another Monsoon amp would be the simpler solution. Aftermarket amps are a good upgrade but they involve rewiring and a bunch of other changes so it wouldn't be the best choice if you just want sound without needing a big upgrade. Just make sure you get a Firebird Monsoon amp - the Camaro one has a much different configuration.
I think you'll find that the problem is in the left door speakers or their wiring. Fixing that will most likely also solve the muffled sound problem with the other speakers.
Yesterday I popped off the speaker covers in the left door and the tweeter was gone! Rather, it was hanging inside of the door by its speaker wire. I noticed that there was a small, metal rectangular shape on the metal bracket bolted to the door panel that the tweeter assembly had once been glued or otherwise attached to. Is this tweeter broken in half? Broken for good? What the hell happened to this thing...
Well if neither speaker is working in the left door then it's probably not the amp. But if you should need to replace the amp, getting another Monsoon amp would be the simpler solution. Aftermarket amps are a good upgrade but they involve rewiring and a bunch of other changes so it wouldn't be the best choice if you just want sound without needing a big upgrade. Just make sure you get a Firebird Monsoon amp - the Camaro one has a much different configuration.
I think you'll find that the problem is in the left door speakers or their wiring. Fixing that will most likely also solve the muffled sound problem with the other speakers.
Months later I hit a ridiculously large pothole and the left door speakers started to work again-clearly a wiring issue in the door. But now I've noticed something else: the speakers in the hatch area dont work at all. Am I correct in my guess that both the head unit and the amp power the speakers in the hatch area, thus pointing towards another wiring issue? Thanks again. Maybe I'll have this problem sorted out before 2021 or the next global pandemic...
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
The hatch speakers in a Firebird are wired like the doors - the mid is powered by the Monsoon amp while the tweeter is powered directly by the head unit. That would indicate that you probably have a wiring issue although it is possible that it's a head unit problem (the right rear channel of the head unit powers both - the tweeter directly and the mid via the amp). A wiring problem is more likely but if you have access to another head unit, it would be easy to plug it in and see if the problem goes away.
The hatch speakers in a Firebird are wired like the doors - the mid is powered by the Monsoon amp while the tweeter is powered directly by the head unit. That would indicate that you probably have a wiring issue although it is possible that it's a head unit problem (the right rear channel of the head unit powers both - the tweeter directly and the mid via the amp). A wiring problem is more likely but if you have access to another head unit, it would be easy to plug it in and see if the problem goes away.
Im going to plug in the old Monsoon head unit and see what happens. It has to be the head unit-everyrhing worked fine until the new head unit showed up. Other than the head unit, it seems that the amp is a common factor here also. Couldn't it be causing problems also? Thanks again...
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
It's not likely that the amp is the problem since the tweeters (front and back) don't go through the amp so they would continue to work even if the amp was completely dead.
Did you use a wiring harness adapter when installing the Pioneer head unit? Please tell us you didn't cut and splice the wiring. I would double check the wiring at the head unit (splices or adapter harness connections) since you seem to be losing entire output channels (left front, both rear) rather than just individual speaker elements.
It's not likely that the amp is the problem since the tweeters (front and back) don't go through the amp so they would continue to work even if the amp was completely dead.
Did you use a wiring harness adapter when installing the Pioneer head unit? Please tell us you didn't cut and splice the wiring. I would double check the wiring at the head unit (splices or adapter harness connections) since you seem to be losing entire output channels (left front, both rear) rather than just individual speaker elements.
No splices; I used crutchfield's premade wiring harness to install the head unit. And today, the left door speaker for my 97 Camaro stopped working lol...
Not sure if you would need it, but if you find that it is the amp, I have one that has been sitting on a shelf in my garage taking up space forever (I sold my last 4th gen 7 years ago). It is one of two parts I've still got from my 4th gen days that after several failed attempts to give away has never found a home (the other is a factory radiator overflow / battery tray). Worked last time I tried it.
It's yours for free if you end up needing it as long as you pay the shipping to get it to you. Let me know (I'm almost never on here so forgive me if I'm slow to respond).
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
If that amp is from the '99 Camaro in your signature, it would work in the '97 Camaro he just mentioned but not in the Trans Am he started the thread about. Both are 8-channel setups but the channels are wired and filtered quite differently between Camaro and Firebird.
No it was not from my car. It was from a Trans Am. I got it because the Trans Am's were advertised as having a 500 Watt Monsoon system verse the 200 advertised in the Camaro's. I installed it and there was no difference so I took it back out, stuck it on the shelf, and there is still sits. I can get the PN off of it if that helps.
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
You're right, there is no difference between the so-called 500W Monsoon amp and the 200W version. The 200W rating is RMS while the 500W rating is a purely marketing peak or ILS (If Lightning Strikes) rating. They wanted the Firebird system to appear more upscale even though they actually produced the same amount of power. As I mentioned, there are differences in configuration but not in power.
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Monsoon issues... 
