To all those LS owneers with systems...

LoSo

LoSo

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First off i'm not a big fan of a lot of bass and bump, but I recently upgraded the door speakers to pioneer and the bass still doesn't sound good to me. So I found a good deal on a pair of Audiobahn 12's in a box with a 1200 Watt amp. I know thats gonna be pretty loud, oh well its a great deal. Anyways what i'm wonderin is how did your run your RCA cables and remote wire to your head unit?? I figure the amp lead should be very easy. And also do you have a capacitor? I don't plan on running one for now but does it bog down too much or are the lights too dim when the bass hits? Thanks in advance!! :cool:
 
i tapped into the rca's feeding the stock subs and the new sub remote into the remote for the stock subs. No capacitor for me, just running one alpine 10".

Good luck!
 
well if you are running the amp off the factory head unit then you are going to have to get a step down which converts speaker level inputs to a rca input. For the remote wire you will have to go to eaither the switched acc wire from the radio or go to the fuse block and find something that is acc power that you can tap into that is not a main power feed for your car. As far as a cap goes they are useless they where designed for a quick burst of power like door speakers.
 
I guess I left out some pretty important info lol. I'm currently running an AVIC-D3 for the head unit so I won't need to tap into any factory wiring (I hope) Thanks for the info though!
 
nope are u just looking for info on routing the wires through the car then. Other than that u just need to tap the remote wire to the blue with white stripe coming from the h/u and plug the rcas straight in.
 
Yea I just want to know the best/easiest route. I was thinking along the drivers side and above the foot pedals. But then again that's why i'm asking for advice lol.
 
yeah that is most likely the easiest way to go then along the floor board. But someone might be able to help you more.
 
Here's your easiest route:

Take out the center console. Really easy. Like 6 bolts and the whole thing comes out.

Then, take out the back seat. Just the part you sit on. It's just held in by 1 black clip on each side. You'll see it when you open the rear doors.

Then run your RCA's and remote wire right down the middle. You only need to go under like 8 inches of carpet between the center console and back seat.

Works like a charm :D
 
Oh, then get an HID kit. They don't have as much continuous power draw as halogens. I have an 1800W max amp (running 900 watts continuous), no capacitor, and no dimming of the headlights.
 
i have a modded mtx 1502d putting out around 1700 rms and a mtx 4004 4 chsnnel putting out around 400 so around 2100 with vary little dimming and a 140 amp alt and a decent batt
 
http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/showthread.php?t=50906

Get an RCA inline converter and splice into the positive and negitive in one of the back speakers. Pic of the RCA inline coverter in the link (little black box in the corner of one pic) You can run a remote wire to the fuse box and wire up a switch like i had (Im not a HUGE fan of bass either so the switch is convient for turning the bass off whenever your tired of it) or follow the instructions from some other members here on running the remote. Good luck
 
Thanks for the great info fellas! Pektel your idea sounds good, I think i'll go with your advice. I'll check back in this weekend and let yall know how it goes. I'm really excited to test out my crossover and all the subwoofer options on the D-3
 
LoSo said:
I guess I left out some pretty important info lol. I'm currently running an AVIC-D3 for the head unit so I won't need to tap into any factory wiring (I hope) Thanks for the info though!
Click to expand...

lol my bad, I neglected to read the whole post... I was under the impression you were still using the factory unit. Good Luck! Take a few pics while doing this if you dont mind.
 
While we're on the topic of lights dimming. Has anyone tried to do the "big 3" upgrade on their LS? I know it's fairly common with GM trucks. If you aren't familiar it's where you add bigger wire to the engine to frame ground, a wire from the battery to the alternator, and a wire from battery to ground. Usually people use 0 or 4 gauge speaker or welding wire. It does help with dimming lights for people who have systems in GM trucks. Just google it if you want to know more.
 
If you're running a big power wire to an amp in the trunk I would recommend running it down one side of the car and the rca's down the other side.
This will assure you don't get any buzz from the speakers.
 
04SCTLS said:
If you're running a big power wire to an amp in the trunk I would recommend running it down one side of the car and the rca's down the other side.
This will assure you don't get any buzz from the speakers.
Click to expand...

batt is already in the trunk...no big wire needed in pass compartment...:)

I did like petkel and ran my wires under the console, seat into the trunk.

I ran 4 12's with a 800watt fosgate the a 400watt high amp with a 5 farad cap.

not only did the headlights dim, but all the interior lights, dash lights, and at idle sometimes it would thow a check charging system light.

I upgraded to an ultima batt and this fixed the error message but the lights still dimmed bad.
 
jolinc01 said:
While we're on the topic of lights dimming. Has anyone tried to do the "big 3" upgrade on their LS? I know it's fairly common with GM trucks. If you aren't familiar it's where you add bigger wire to the engine to frame ground, a wire from the battery to the alternator, and a wire from battery to ground. Usually people use 0 or 4 gauge speaker or welding wire. It does help with dimming lights for people who have systems in GM trucks. Just google it if you want to know more.
Click to expand...

done it, it does cost a bit more on an LS since the ALT to BATT wire needs to be a tad longer than normal, helped out quiet a bit
 
1LoudLS said:
done it, it does cost a bit more on an LS since the ALT to BATT wire needs to be a tad longer than normal, helped out quiet a bit
Click to expand...

Enough to almost eliminate the lights from dimming you think? I am getting ready to install a 250w mono amp to run 1 12 and a 4ch 240w for the mids and highs thats the one thing I am afraid of.
 
Just do the big 3 and get a good dry cell battery. I reccomend a Yellow Top Optima. or a smaller Kinetik Powercell battery (HC 1800).

This should be able to provide extra for your systems within about 1000 Watts or a tad more before you are looking @ alternator upgrades and/or multiple batteries.
 
I though the multiple batteries are only for show cars, where they can't have the vehicle running while they are competing?

I mean, if you don't have an alternator strong enough to charge 2 batteries continuously, there's really no point in putting 2 in. I agree that upping the alternator would be beneficial. But you would also want to do the big 3, since you can get more power through the bigger guage wire.
 
There's alot of people who run multiple batteries on stock alts, it puts more strain on the alt, but you have that extra battery to tide you over until you can afford a HighOutput alt.

I used to run 5 batteries in a competition vehicle with a 200amp HO alt on a Nissan.

But you can defintely run multiple batts on the stock. I just recommend getting one good battery that is a deep cycle to hold you down. In most cases it would work with the stock, unless your talking like 1000+ watts while your at a stoplight with the blowers on full, defrost working and your headlights on.
 
04SCTLS said:
If you're running a big power wire to an amp in the trunk I would recommend running it down one side of the car and the rca's down the other side.
This will assure you don't get any buzz from the speakers.
Click to expand...


Battery is in the trunk on an LS.
edit--Can't delete my post. Guess I should have read the next message before posting--
 
So did the install last night, and it sounds great! Just enough bass and absolutly no rattle :D and no dimming :D . I know a couple people wanted pics but I forgot my camera sorry. But I ended up running the remote and RCA cables down the drivers side of the car and above the gas/brake pedals. Looks clean and was a easier then ripping up some carpet. Only PIA I came across was getting my AVIC D-3 back in. There's not much room for wires in the head unit compartment. I still need to make some adjusting to it so it fits flush like it used to. All good though. Thanks for all the advice!! :cool:
 
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