Double din install, handbrake cable?

[spongebob]

Just purchased a Sony Double din stereo. Looks like a reasonable straightforward job but some cables will need to be cut as Im ditching the lousy amp in the frunk. The built in 4x45 should be good enough.
Just a question regarding the handbrake connection specified in the manual.
It does not specify the reason for this connection.
What does it do and can I supply 12 v all the time instead of routing the cable to handbrake switch?

[Stl-986]

it's to play videos and no, you can't apply 12+ to it, if you do, you will fry the radio.

dont know the law in sweden, but it's illegal to play videos while driving in most states in the US. If you want to bypass this it's best to search on google on how to do it. Newer systems wont allow the typical way to bypass anymore.

[Cunningr]

I wouldnt cut cables to install amp, I bought an old amp and dissected the connector and made a adapter cable that plug straight into the factory harness. You never know if you sell the car someone might want to go back factory.

[ike84]

Usually you need to ground the reverse light or hand brake connection in order to bypass the video in motion restriction...or so I've heard.

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[KevinH1990]

I installed a Sony XAV-AX5000 in my wife's Toyota. If you are using the same or similar unit connecting the handbrake cable on the wiring harness to ground, that will take care of that connection.

Check post #14 of this thread if you need to find the reverse signal wire:

http://986forum.com/forums/boxster-general-discussions/51283-does-anyone-know-vss-wire-02-bose.html

I agree with Cunningr - exercise caution in cutting the wiring harness. You never know when you or a later owner will want to update your work.

[spongebob]

Originally Posted by Cunningr

I wouldnt cut cables to install amp, I bought an old amp and dissected the connector and made a adapter cable that plug straight into the factory harness. You never know if you sell the car someone might want to go back factory.

Thanks, great solution.
Was just thinking of the cable diameter. The existing cables are designed for low level signals to the amp. Are they good enough also for the amplified signal directly to the speakers ?

[Stl-986]

If you are going to use the built in amp in the HU you will need to run new wires to the speakers since the wires to the speakers are wired to the factory amp....or...use the factory amp.

[spongebob]

Originally Posted by Stl-986

If you are going to use the built in amp in the HU you will need to run new wires to the speakers since the wires to the speakers are wired to the factory amp....or...use the factory amp.

Using the factory amp is not going to happen. I believe is the worst part in the system. Will create an adaptor harness of an old amp as suggested here earlier. Realise I will need to pull 8 new speaker cables through the firewall This was what I was trying to avoid by using the old cables that went to the Nokia amp

[ike84]

The frunk amp really isn't that bad, unless you are installing additional speakers. It's a 4 channel, with 2 channels going to front speakers and two to the door subs. Not the best setup but unless you're a true adiophile I'm not sure it's worth the effort. If you're adding additional speakers, that's a different story.

If you really want to improve the overall sound of your system, buy the kit to add rear speakers into the cubby. Totally worth it. You'll need to rework the amplifier situation but there are several ways of doing this that are not at all difficult.

No, the amp built into the head until will not power your speakers. Not even close. You have to have an amp between the head unit and the speakers. I know that all HUs come with built in amps, but it's purely to get a good signal to the real amp.

Where did you get your HU? If you haven't already bought it (or you can return it), buy one from crutchfield. They will do all this work for you for a very reasonable price. I'm a huge diy guy, but that was the best $40 I've ever spent.

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[ike84]

Just saw your last post - out of curiosity why do you think the factory amp is so bad?

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[spongebob]

Originally Posted by ike84

Just saw your last post - out of curiosity why do you think the factory amp is so bad?

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I have tried everything else.
Installed the PNP speakers in 2006, helped a little bit.
New speakers did some but not much, door speakers are original again.
A Becker Indianapolis connected to the amp did not improve situation at all.
Then tried a 996 cabrio amp. Different sound but not better.
But what you are saying is that the 20 year old Nokia amp is better than a new Sony head unit ?on paper same output .
Im not really disagreeing on this but when just checking the weight of the Nokia, there can not be much more in it than the new Sony HU
Not an audiophile at all but should maybe invest in a new amp as well

[Cunningr]

Originally Posted by spongebob

Thanks, great solution.
Was just thinking of the cable diameter. The existing cables are designed for low level signals to the amp. Are they good enough also for the amplified signal directly to the speakers ?

I am running a Alpine 5 channel amp, cant remember the rms at the moment but I haven't had a any issues. Honestly the cab is small so I don't really crank the system, but I am running a separate line to a sub From a 996 cabriole, if I remember that channel is 300 watts rms. I did melt down a pioneer 8” sub driver showing off to my son.

[Stl-986]

Here is my take on it.

original speakers I believe are 8 ohm (threw all my old ones away so I can't verify). Installing new speakers and using the oem amp is going to cause issues. New speakers are going to be 4 ohm. Quality wouldn't be much a issue, but power will be connecting things up.

The better setup would be to just run rca cables to an aftermarket amp and ditch the factory amp. You could connect the low level wires from the HU to the factory amp to the new amp, but rca cables would be better. It really isn't that difficult and is pretty quick to do. You also dont need to run a turn on wire as there is already one at the HU & amp, just use it.

I am also not a fan of using the Metra or others wiring harness. Not that expensive, but it's just easier & quicker to just cut off the factory connector and wiring things. if you use an afttermarket amp you only need 12+, switched 12+, ground, antenna power, illumination and turn on wire. The rest can be capped off.

What you need to do though is to look at the entire system, your goal, budget, etc and plan accordingly. For example, if you get a HU that only has front/rear rca pairs & a single sub output you need to plan your amp accordioning as well as your wiring. Some amps will have a pass through for connecting a sub amp, some wont. if you only have a single sub output you should connect it to an amp with a splitter so you get the amp to output both left/right for the door speakers. If you want to eventually add the rear speaker tray & speakers, take this into consideration. Wiring isn't that difficult either. You will pay more for HU that has all 6 channels out but it isn't that much more.

There are just so many more options available if you ditch the factory setup when replacing the HU.

When you do want to do the rear speakers let me know I have a kit that is way cheaper then factory.

[spongebob]

Originally Posted by Stl-986

Here is my take on it.

original speakers I believe are 8 ohm (threw all my old ones away so I can't verify). Installing new speakers and using the oem amp is going to cause issues. New speakers are going to be 4 ohm. Quality wouldn't be much a issue, but power will be connecting things up.

The better setup would be to just run rca cables to an aftermarket amp and ditch the factory amp. You could connect the low level wires from the HU to the factory amp to the new amp, but rca cables would be better. It really isn't that difficult and is pretty quick to do. You also dont need to run a turn on wire as there is already one at the HU & amp, just use it.

I am also not a fan of using the Metra or others wiring harness. Not that expensive, but it's just easier & quicker to just cut off the factory connector and wiring things. if you use an afttermarket amp you only need 12+, switched 12+, ground, antenna power, illumination and turn on wire. The rest can be capped off.

What you need to do though is to look at the entire system, your goal, budget, etc and plan accordingly. For example, if you get a HU that only has front/rear rca pairs & a single sub output you need to plan your amp accordioning as well as your wiring. Some amps will have a pass through for connecting a sub amp, some wont. if you only have a single sub output you should connect it to an amp with a splitter so you get the amp to output both left/right for the door speakers. If you want to eventually add the rear speaker tray & speakers, take this into consideration. Wiring isn't that difficult either. You will pay more for HU that has all 6 channels out but it isn't that much more.

There are just so many more options available if you ditch the factory setup when replacing the HU.

When you do want to do the rear speakers let me know I have a kit that is way cheaper then factory.

Thanks, I have the Harvey PNP kit installed, powered directly from the old HU.
Think I will take a stepwise approach on this to see what level that is enough for a decent sound
Sony xav is already in the garage. Will use the low level output to existing 996 cabrio amp. Found a cheap cable for this. New coax in dash but keeping door speakers. Rear kit can be powered from HU I think. These speakers shouldn’t need to be connecter to the frunk amp
If this doesn’t do the trick, an aftermarket 4 channel will be next step along with coax also for the doors.

[Stl-986]

coax? What do you mean?

[ike84]

I don't think I've ever seen a car audio system without an external amplifier of some sort. This article does a good job of explaining the difference between the two. The devil is in the details when it comes to power (max vs rms, advertised vs real, etc) and advertising is an evil devil when it comes to"power ratings". Just paruse Amazons selection of 1000w about that actually will run 200ish Max output. Should it be simple to design a sound system based on trusting the manufactures claimed outputs? Absolutely! Is that the way this game really works? Not at all. https://www.crutchfield.com/S-MahHPK8AyuS/learn/reviews/20030722/power-power_comparison.html
I'm only telling you this to save you time and frustration. I'm no expert in audio equipment but I've wired enough systems to know this stuff. When I recently installed rear speakers in my 986, I temporarily wired them directly to the unit for ****************s and giggles. It's a boss head unit with a built in 50x5 amp, you couldn't even hear the sound out of the speakers. In order to get good sound on 4 50watt pioneer shakers weird on 2 channels, I had to use a 1000w pyle 2 channel amp at 60% capacity to match the factory amp output intensity.

Btw, the reason you're not happy with the door speakers is because the factory amps have a built in low pass filter for those outputs, which couples with the boxy enclosure, is supposed to emulate a subwoofer. They don't, obviously, but that's why.



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[Stl-986]

Originally Posted by ike84

Btw, the reason you're not happy with the door speakers is because the factory amps have a built in low pass filter for those outputs, which couples with the boxy enclosure, is supposed to emulate a subwoofer. They don't, obviously, but that's why.

Quality/filters/amp/HU aside....they are actually woofers.

Agree with IKE with the qualification of it meaning non factory system. But, any decent HU is going to put out decent sound without the need for an external amp provided that everything is matched correctly & wired correctly (Ohm's Law followed).

I'm still wondering what the OP is meaning by coax. Could mean something across the pond by here in the US that is the kind of cable we use to run cable TV (among other things).

[paulofto]

I might be pointing out the obvious here but a standard RCA style cable is coaxial 2 conducter shielded cable used for low level interconnect from head unit to an amplifier. TV coax is also shielded but has a threaded connecter. They are both 'coax'.

[Cunningr]

Originally Posted by Stl-986

Here is my take on it.

original speakers I believe are 8 ohm (threw all my old ones away so I can't verify). Installing new speakers and using the oem amp is going to cause issues. New speakers are going to be 4 ohm. Quality wouldn't be much a issue, but power will be connecting things up.

The better setup would be to just run rca cables to an aftermarket amp and ditch the factory amp. You could connect the low level wires from the HU to the factory amp to the new amp, but rca cables would be better. It really isn't that difficult and is pretty quick to do. You also dont need to run a turn on wire as there is already one at the HU & amp, just use it.

I am also not a fan of using the Metra or others wiring harness. Not that expensive, but it's just easier & quicker to just cut off the factory connector and wiring things. if you use an afttermarket amp you only need 12+, switched 12+, ground, antenna power, illumination and turn on wire. The rest can be capped off.

What you need to do though is to look at the entire system, your goal, budget, etc and plan accordingly. For example, if you get a HU that only has front/rear rca pairs & a single sub output you need to plan your amp accordioning as well as your wiring. Some amps will have a pass through for connecting a sub amp, some wont. if you only have a single sub output you should connect it to an amp with a splitter so you get the amp to output both left/right for the door speakers. If you want to eventually add the rear speaker tray & speakers, take this into consideration. Wiring isn't that difficult either. You will pay more for HU that has all 6 channels out but it isn't that much more.

There are just so many more options available if you ditch the factory setup when replacing the HU.

When you do want to do the rear speakers let me know I have a kit that is way cheaper then factory.

This kinda how i went but used a adapter for power into the factory harness, power tweeters with hu amp, rca to alpine amp in frunk, made adapter for speker connect back into dash and doors, ran speaker to sub in footwell. Head unit acts as a DSP mid channel gets balanced on the amp between 3 inch dash and 6.5 inch doors. Low channel sub. I cut none of the factory wiring.

I did run a 6 channel from a cabriolet if you trim a tab plugs in no problem, gives you some balance control, i ran my hertz 6.5 with it fir a while with coaxial in dash. Sounded pretty good.

I think the factory door speakers are 4 ohm wired in parallel for 2 ohms and seems the dash was either 4 or 6 ohm. Fell apart though.

[spongebob]

Originally Posted by Stl-986

coax? What do you mean?

Sorry, coaxial speakers