Doing a stereo in the Bird...list of parts...
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TECH Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
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Doing a stereo in the Bird...list of parts... Hi all. My buddy and I are going to install a stereo in my Formula this weekend. Here's the list of stuff I bought...
- Kenwood Excelon KDC-X789 deck
- Alpine SPR-17LP seperates up front
- Alpine SPS-171A coaxials for the rear
- Alpine MRV-F340 55x4 amp for the speakers
- 3 MTX "Blue Thunder" 10's. I don't know the specs on them because I bought them used but they are in a tri-box that fits like a glove in the T-top area of the hatch.
- Hifonics BX-1500D amp for the subs. Supposed to make 500x1 @ 4 ohm. I'm 90% sure the subs are wired for 4 ohm...I think they are 12 ohm subs.
Any suggestions or tips for the install? This is pretty much what I am going to stick to as far as the hardware because it's paid for and most of it is non returnable at this point. I haven't bought the RCA's or speaker wire yet though. Any suggestions? I have the amp kits with an 8 gauge and a 4 gauge power wires. Both are Fosgate. Will this set-up sound decent? I love Alpine's amps but never had their speakers before.
- Kenwood Excelon KDC-X789 deck
- Alpine SPR-17LP seperates up front
- Alpine SPS-171A coaxials for the rear
- Alpine MRV-F340 55x4 amp for the speakers
- 3 MTX "Blue Thunder" 10's. I don't know the specs on them because I bought them used but they are in a tri-box that fits like a glove in the T-top area of the hatch.
- Hifonics BX-1500D amp for the subs. Supposed to make 500x1 @ 4 ohm. I'm 90% sure the subs are wired for 4 ohm...I think they are 12 ohm subs.
Any suggestions or tips for the install? This is pretty much what I am going to stick to as far as the hardware because it's paid for and most of it is non returnable at this point. I haven't bought the RCA's or speaker wire yet though. Any suggestions? I have the amp kits with an 8 gauge and a 4 gauge power wires. Both are Fosgate. Will this set-up sound decent? I love Alpine's amps but never had their speakers before.
Launching!
Joined: Mar 2005
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From: H-Town
Having that stuff will sound better than factory, no doubt about it. The assumption is made that you have the factory Monsoon system, but that will become obsolete with this install. The only reson I mention it is because you'll probably save yourself the headache of running all new wire by re-using what's already there. My suggestion is to remove the Monsoon amp, and if possible mount the Alpine amp in that location (space permitting). This saves you from chasing wires all over the place, and takes care of hiding/mounting one amp. Run your 4 gauge thru the grommet behind the PCM, with a fuse as close as possible to the battery. The rest should be cake-work. Ask any questions you have, and I'm sure someone in here will help.
as far as the RCA's go, if you're somewhat experienced with a soldering iron, you can easily make your own RCA's with Cat5 ethernet cable and solder-on RCA connectors from Radio Shack. that's what i did with my stereo, and it sounds great. and it's WAYYYY cheaper than buying any "high-end" pre-made RCA cables. they key to keeping noise out places more emphasis on where the cables are run. don't run them anywhere near any power cables. if you look at any "high-end" RCA cables with a clear insulator sleeve (Rockford Fosgate at Best Buy is a perfect example), you'll see that all they are is twisted-pair cables with fancy connectors on the end.
and depending on if you want to take the time to do it or not, i'd highly recommend running new 16-gauge or 14-gauge speaker wires, as you may want to upgrade to a higher-powered amp in the future, and if you do, the stock wiring is grossly inadequate. but for the power level you have now (55 watts), you could probably get away with using the stock wiring.
and depending on if you want to take the time to do it or not, i'd highly recommend running new 16-gauge or 14-gauge speaker wires, as you may want to upgrade to a higher-powered amp in the future, and if you do, the stock wiring is grossly inadequate. but for the power level you have now (55 watts), you could probably get away with using the stock wiring.
Oh hell yeah. I love installer tricks like this. The is the Way to go if you can solder.Cat 6 is worth the money also. It features larger internal wire and has Plastic guides inside. Might help out a little more. Keeps the wiring a little better protected. I'm not entirely sure if they sell Bulk CAT 6 at a Home Depot or something like that. I have seen CAT 5 though. Lowes, Home Depot, Radio Shack, Fry's (Texas rocks).
Alpine's are pretty Decint speakers. I like their sound for the Cash.
Speaker Wire; again, Lowes, Home Depot, Radio Shack, Fry's.
Run the 4 guage either, Behind the PCM or from Drivers side through the Gromet there also.
Run the RCA's down the Sides if you are not gutting the Car for Dynamat or other stuff.
Oh. Roofers peel-n-stick/spot repair. It's a cheap form of Dynamat that myself and a couple other people have tried. Something like $11 for a 6" wide 10' roll.
Put some on the Back of the License plate. Cuts down on the Rattle.
Thread Starter
TECH Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
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Hey guys, thanks for the replies. My buddy and I never got around to installing the stereo this weekend. We did go to the local stereo place and looked at some of the RCA's. They were anywhere from $25 to $60 a set. I never knew that you could make your own...I will look into that.
the two best features of using cat5 or cat6 ethernet cable for the RCA's is that there are 4 pairs of wires in the cable, allowing 2 pairs of right/left RCA connections in the same cable (and thus, a much lower profile under the carpet), and it's a lot cheaper than the pre-made stuff.
