its not installed yet. i was going to get it installed but so far its either too expensive, or when i went there it was already booked out for the day... so ive been attempting to install it myself.

i have a few questions. i have a 1996 cavalier sedan 2.2l

where did you put your power wire from the battery to the amp? did you have to drill a hole in the firewall? what are RCA cables?

on the amp it has 3 slots for (12v) thats for power cable. then it has (REM) whats this for? and (GND) thats ground, yes?

im sure ill have more questions as i attempt to install my stuff ;b

Power wire goes directly from the battery to the amp. Be sure you use a fuse and holder close to the battery. You shouldn't have to drill through the firewall, if you look under the drivers side there should be a rubber grommet that you can go through. Run it to the amp under the door sills or however you wish to do so. The ground gets grounded to bare metal somewhere around the amp. I recommend using sandpaper until you get to bare metal, then drill and hole and use a screw to hold the ground wire in place. The rca cables run from the CD player or head unit back to the amp. You can run those under the door sills as well, or wherever you can hide em. If you have an after market head unit then there should be a wire that comes out of it (usually blue) that you can connect a wire to which needs to be ran to the REM on the amp. Otherwise you need to hook the REM(remote turn on) to a switched power source such as your windshield wiper fuse or power windows. These fuses are located on the drivers side of the dash behind a small door. You can use a simple fuse tap (found at local car part store) to tap into the fuse. Hook up speaker wires to the subs and you're done. Any questions? then just ask. Hope it helps.

nothing against you....... but if you dont even know wut RCAs are you really dont need to be trying to install a system...

dirty elf wrote:nothing against you....... but if you dont even know wut RCAs are you really dont need to be trying to install a system...

I agree with him. If you are unsure about what you are doing, it's best to find someone to help who does. Just thought I'd try to help you out either way...

Also, make sure that where ever you run your power wire, you run your RCA's on the opposite side of the car.

Might as well buy a Prewired Amp wiring kit, it will help a bunch.

Got back to the Walmart where you bought your sub and amp and get a fire extinguisher before you do anything else.....


09 HHR LS, Wife's Car
05 Cavalier, Clarion DXZ375MP, Autotek MM8000.5 & 13Kv.2, wife's old car, updates coming soon

^ ...

but be nice

hey thanks a lot, david. im at work right now... but i remember looking for rubber garments before posting this thread and i didnt find any. but my search probably wasnt as thorough as it should have been.

yea i do realize im new to installing subs. but that doesnt mean i dont know how to work with my hands and tools. and i tend to be a quick learner.

thanks for the help everybody. if anything else comes to mind, please tell me. i will probablyu come back with some more questions tonight or tomorrow. ;b

not to jack the thread... but i tried to hook up my amp this summer just to get it in my car and it seemed like my rca's werent sending the signal. this was only a temp. hook up just to see if my old amp still works, so wires were not on opposite sides of the car... could this have been my problem?? i know the amp works fine cuz it worked just fine and dandy in my friends cherokee

ok ive made some progress. a little, but its progress. i got the power cable through the firewall... i made a little hole through an existing rubber garment..

now... I did put the powerwire on a inline fuse holder... but im not sure if i did it correctly.

i cut the power cable and on both ends which would go into the fuser i took some of the outer "rubber".. (the red stuff that covers the wires) off and stuck the ends in the sides of the fuser and used the little screws to tighten them in there.



now to my next question. i checked all my stuff, and i dont even have rca cables.. i have power cable, remote turn on, speaker wires, and ground wire. and where i bought it from (AUDIO EXPRESS) they said its everything i need to install.

Godspeed - Running RCAs on the same side of the car will not cause the amp to not receive the signal, it just may cause the RCAs to pick up some interference if you're using cheap cables. Sounds like the output on your radio may be bad.

Oryan - Sounds like you hooked up the fuse holder correctly from what you're saying. I'm not sure what the question is in your last statement, but if you're asking if you need to RCAs, yes you do, around 15 feet of cable. Twisted pair is a wise investment.


-Chris

^^^ agreed. Running rcas along next to the power wire isn't going to cause much noticeable difference unless you are setting up a very extensive set up or are going for competition. It shouldn't cause any problems, but if you start to hear some noise or static type of sounds it could be the reason. I've ran them together in many different cars and have never had any problems with it. But I split sides in my own car.

Oryan- Sounds like you are on the right track. You DO need rca cables. Like Beese said 15 feet should cover it, but it never hurts to get more than needed. You also have a sedan, which may mean you need a bit more to maneuver around everything. The last thing you want is to run all of your wires and have your cables show up a foot short. If you already have the power wire hooked up to the battery... be sure there is no fuse in the holder until you are ready to turn the amp on. God only knows what could happen. If you are unsure about something... ask. And be sure to take your time and think everything through since this is your first install.

Oh, and Godspeed... I know you are located around Indy, as I am as well. If you need any help about this sort of thing sometime I'd be glad to try and help you out. I've also got 3 12"s I need to get rid of .

Sorry to triple post, but THIS link may also be helpful.

again, im very thankful for your help. i just glimpsed at the site you linked to and it seems to be very helpful as well.

im at work right now, but could you give me an estimate of the cost of Rca cables? are they universal? or is there a specific type i have to buy? id like to pick some up on the way home.

Thanks

RCA cables are going to range in price from 5-10$ on up to whatever you want to spend. They are universal, and there is no "specific" type you need to buy. Depending on where you go to get them, the people there should be able to show you what you need. I'd say to go with a 15-20 foot cable. As Beese said, you can buy a "twisted pair" which may run you a little more than just normal rcas. I would say use your judgement and obviously don't buy the cheapest thing you find, but you also don't need to go spending an outrageous amount on some rca cables for a basic install.

right now im stuck at trying to remove the head unit. im guessing theres a trick to it that i dont know. whats the best and easiest way to get it out?

Easiest way to do it if you have the keys that come with it is to slide them in both sides and the deck will just slide right out.


-Chris

Head unit as in aftermarket or stock?

Aftermarket - Refer to Manual
Stock - Requires removal of dash

yea. I totally forgot about checking the box i had for it. (its a pretty cool pioneer one. $250)

it came out easy as pie w/ the provided keys!

right now im trying to see where the remote turn on goes ... and do the speaker wires look very much like RCAs?

RCAs will go into plugs, most likely built into the back of the deck. The remote turn on needs to be attached to the blue/white wire coming out of the back of the deck.


-Chris

ok thanks ive found this myself, too. but i have a question. you know how all the other little wires that go into the plug stay tight in there? they have the little bronze or whatever (looks golden) piece on the end of it so it fits right in there tightly.

well is there a way to buy those? how else do i fit the wire in there tightly.

I am a little confused about your question. Are you talking about the RCA cables, or the REM wire? The RCAs should just simply plug into their corresponding "plugs". If you are having trouble connecting the REM wire, you can use a butt connector, or you CAN strip both wires, twist and tape them together, although it wouldn't be considered the best way to do it.

Here is a picture of a butt connector(can be found basically anywhere...)
wires go in either side and you crimp each end.

You will only get noise interference from running the rca's on the same side as the power wire when running a 4 channel setup.

need urget help! so i got everything connected... i got the power running to the amp.. the red light turns on so i know that was right. i got the remote turn on connected, the RCAs, and groundwire. now this is probably a very stupid question, but im not sure where to put the speaker wires and if i even have speaker wires.. lol!

i have wires that look just like RCAs.. and i tried putting them into the Output in the amp, right next to the input, and plug the other ends in the sub, but so far i havent managed to get the sub to get power from the amp. it hasnt omitted sound yet.