Adding a sub to the Shaker 500
- Thread starter Evilcartman
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Nice. Out of curiosity, could you have done the following?
Install the entire unit, minus the control. Have the gain turn way up on the sub, then just turn the base down on the entire system through the head unit. That way, when you want bass, you could just turn up the head unit a little and avoid installing the sub control by the accelerator pedal? This would also keep most base away from the stock speakers, which could be good or bad.
I did this years ago with a bass tube on an Escort GT. Most of the time, the base on the head until was turned down to about 20%. When I wanted to crank it, I just turned up the bass on the head unit (usually didn't need to go above 1/2 way), and I didn't need to bother with a separate control.
Thoughts, OP? I ask not to criticize, but only to plan out something for my needs later . . .
Install the entire unit, minus the control. Have the gain turn way up on the sub, then just turn the base down on the entire system through the head unit. That way, when you want bass, you could just turn up the head unit a little and avoid installing the sub control by the accelerator pedal? This would also keep most base away from the stock speakers, which could be good or bad.
I did this years ago with a bass tube on an Escort GT. Most of the time, the base on the head until was turned down to about 20%. When I wanted to crank it, I just turned up the bass on the head unit (usually didn't need to go above 1/2 way), and I didn't need to bother with a separate control.
Thoughts, OP? I ask not to criticize, but only to plan out something for my needs later . . .
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Mounting an amp upside down is a very poor idea. They are designed to expell heat through the top. Also get some box carpet and super 77 and ditch those red wire ties lol. Nice wire running job though.
The signal for the speakers in the rear deck have the lows cut out of them. I tried a Epicenter to restore the bass, but the LC2 sounded cleaner and tighter.
I actually did turn down the bass in the head unit, but since it has 8 inch door subs, I didn't want to completely cut out them. They fill the void that the 13.5 created. I just like to have a little more control over it.
I called tech support about the amp and they told me it could be mounted in any position as log as it is in a vented area. I actually have a friend building me a new amp rack from metal. I'm going to power coat it and do something about the wiring at that time.
Do you know this for certain? I have an mtx req, and it would be soooooo much easier to tap the rears.
If I HAVE to use the fronts for the best sound, I will. But in that case, do you think it would be ok to run the wires taps all the way to the trunk, and mount the LOC there, as I've only got a couple meters worth of RCA cable.
Thanks again for the write-ups.
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Talking to AudioControl they told me it would be better to tap into the sub amp with the LC2. This is pulling a signal that is already cleaned up for subs. I actually bought the AudioControl Epicenter Plus and connected it to the rear deck speakers. The Epicenter has a bass restoration feature and this is the best option if you don’t have the Shaker 500 with the door subs. But the LC2 connected to the sub amp sounded better in comparison. Almost all stock systems have the lows blocked to protect the cheap stock speakers.
Honestly, connecting the wires to the sub amp and running the wire was very easy. The amp in the kicker panel is for the 8 inch door subs only, not the 6x8’s. The 6x8’s will have the same mid/high signal the rears do. If you look at my pictures, I did mount the LC in the trunk next to the amp. Then I used a very short RCA.
Did your car already have the harness to plug in the sub box? The Shelby/Kicker system is plug and play and uses a harness that is already there. I was thinking that you could probably use that wiring for a sub install, as it might make things a little easier.
How does the stealth box sound at that power level witht he rest of the system?
How does the stealth box sound at that power level witht he rest of the system?
Nope, no harness. I had to run all the wires myself. I don’t believe there is a harness in the car unless you are replacing the Shaker 1000 with the Shelby. I ran a 4 G wire anyway since the amp calls for it.
The stealth box has plenty of power. The amp at 2ohms is rated at 700 watts RMS and the speaker is only rated at 600 watts RMS. I have the gain a little over halfway. Then the amp runs cool because it is not being pushed to the limit and the sub is getting good clean power. It matches the Shaker 500 very well and the dash remote helps adjust it when needed in case a song just doesn’t sound right.
Alright, last set of questions....
What gauge is the wire that you tap for the 8" doors? I'd like to go ahead and buy the appropriate tap and wires.
Lastly, you have any good suggestions for amp grounds in the trunk? I'll be using the spare tire compartment as I have a brembo car and thus no spare.
Any just for reference, here's a great link on a very thorough write-up for removing interior panels, etc. to supplement this, already superb write-up!
http://forums.themustangsource.com/f803/how-disassemble-your-car-stereo-install-detailed-lots-pics-494868/
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It is just normal speaker wire that came with the amp kit. The shielding is the important part, more so than the gauge of the wire. Just figure, it is tapping into a very small factory wire and the factory wires on the speakers are small. You just don’t want to pick up noise with thin shielding. I don’t really like those blue wire clip taps, but I didn’t want to cut the harness. They seem to be working perfect.
I also have the Brembo package, but I didn’t want to do anything with the spare tire chamber. I actually used an ohm meter to find a good ground, which happened to be the bracket that I bolted to the frame for the Stealthbox. On my ’03 I grounded the amp to the trunk latch bracket. Either way, I would test for a good ground since the protective coating on these cars protects the metal. You definitely want to sand/grind the surface.
Thanks for the link. That is very useful.
That's kind of the point I was wondering about with those blue taps. I have used them once in the past and remembered the wires had to be very similar in gauge/diameter to work properly. Did you have any problems with those blue taps using the tiny gusge factory wires on one side, and the heavily wrapped thick speaker wire on the other?
Nope, they worked perfectly. I did strip the wire down though so that the sheilding was not inside the blue tape. All four snapped right on with no problem. I figured if anything didn't work right with them, I would cut and splice the wires in, but I'm leaving them for now. They seemed to make a good contact.
Little trick I used to mount my remote gain, using the random plastic cover in the cubby.
Simply disassembled the remote gain know, removed the bracket, and used the plastic cover in it's place. Remote and hidden, tada:
Also Evil, could you give me some pointers on how to use a ohm meter to hunt for a ground. I'd like to use something under the carper or in the tire well. Or if you're feeling super ambitious maybe you could point me to one so I don't have to buy an ohm meter myself!
Simply disassembled the remote gain know, removed the bracket, and used the plastic cover in it's place. Remote and hidden, tada:
Also Evil, could you give me some pointers on how to use a ohm meter to hunt for a ground. I'd like to use something under the carper or in the tire well. Or if you're feeling super ambitious maybe you could point me to one so I don't have to buy an ohm meter myself!
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Little trick I used to mount my remote gain, using the random plastic cover in the cubby.
Simply disassembled the remote gain know, removed the bracket, and used the plastic cover in it's place. Remote and hidden, tada:
Also Evil, could you give me some pointers on how to use a ohm meter to hunt for a ground. I'd like to use something under the carper or in the tire well. Or if you're feeling super ambitious maybe you could point me to one so I don't have to buy an ohm meter myself!
Sorry this is late.
With the meter set to ohm, first test the leads on the meter to take account for any drop in the wires. Just touch them together (my Fluke 88 DVOM was .02). Then you basically just touch one lead to a known good ground (under the car on the frame) and the other to a ground you want to use. My result was .03, then I subtract the .02 equals .01, which it a excellent ground. I would always test it, but you could just make a good physical connection. The ground I'm really using is a bolt through the brace that my stealthbox bolts to. If you tap and drive a bolt into any part of the car, you should get a good ground. I have used existing bolts/screws in the past, just make sure you have a good contact to the bolt/frame. I have also used seat belt bolts before and trunk latch bolts. They make great grounds. I hope this helps. I would not hesistate to buy a meter. You can find very cheap ones that will work just fine and they are very handy to have anyway.
Here is a very cheap one.
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Volt-Meter-Voltmeter-Multimeter/dp/B001RSREKI/ref=sr_1_1?s=lamps-light&ie=UTF8&qid=1311991890&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: Digital Amp Ohm Volt Meter Ac Dc Voltmeter Multimeter: Lamps & Light Fixtures[/ame]
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