Adding an Amp to a stock HU - Help!

rastlin

Ok, so I have a 2000 Lincoln LS which has a stock HU and 4 speakers (one per door). I've decided to replace the speakers with the Alpine S-type speakers and adding a 4ch Amp, as well as adding some subs and a mono amp to power those up. My problem is: Since I do not want to replace the stock HU (got a 6cd changer and a stearing wheel controlls), at first I though of running wires from HU (as signal wires) back to the trunk (to the amp(s) ) and then run new wires to each speaker direcly from the amp. Then I thought of just running wires from the HU to the AMP(s) and back to where the HU is and connecting them to the harness and using the original wiring to get signal back to the speakers. (I think it would save me a lot of time). Which way would be better...and how big of the difference would it make (I assume rewiring everything would be better... just not sure how noticable). Also, should I run speaker wires from the HU to the amp ??? or convert them as close to the HU into the RCA cables and run those??? Not sure which would provide more shielding and pick up less noize... Here is some additional info about my car and system:
There is no factory amp in the car, the speakers that I getting will be running at 40rms (250peak) so not very high power, and there is no RCA outputs in my HU and the amps have both high and low signa imputs:

Here is what I am getting:

Alpine MRP-F240 40w x 4 car amplifier
Alpine SPS-57C2 5"x7" 2-way 250w car speakers
Boss Audio GT1000M 850w
2x 10" JLs for the custom closed box.

Any help would be very appreciated!!! Thanks in advance!!!

exalted512

You can get some line out converters from www.davidnavone.com. They are some of the better converters you can get and theyre very cheap. My personal recommendation would be getting a rockford fosgate 3sixty.1. Its a device thats made for keeping your stock radio but still being able to tune it like you would with a more high end head unit. This unit accepts speaker wire inputs so you will not need any line out converters.

If youre only running 40w rms to each speaker, the stock wiring will be fine, just run speaker wire from the deck to the amp.
-Cody

hrdhtdvr

What ever you do don't let Cody know that you are getting JL amp.:D

JK Cody, I couldn't resist.

exalted512

jl subs are bad enough
-Cody

Vestax

On the same note, if your Alpine amps have high level signal inputs, you can utilize that as well.

Are your rear speakers easily accessible? Here's a nice little trick:

If you used a harness, you can loop your front speakers to the back speakers at the head unit. When you get to the back speakers, unplug it, and wire those as front speakers on the amp. Then run new speaker wires for the back speaker. It's clean, and you don't have to worry about running speaker wires through the car.

MacLeod

Dont buy anything from David Navone!!!

Go to Radio Shack and pick up a line level converter. Same thing.

rastlin

Thanks for all of the response!!! I've done a lot of research on bunch of forums... and I am leaning toward just running speaker level wires from my HU to the amp using the LOC which is build into my alpine amp and then running the speker wires back to the front of my car and connecting to the harness. Since I am only running a 40rms for each speaker and my car is newer w/ the pretty good stock system I think the original wiring will be enough. I am suppose to get my stuff in the mail today at some point but I am leaving for the long weekend so I wont get to do the install untill Monday or Tuesday. I will post some photos once I am done.
Thanks again!!!
:rolleyes:

Custom Jim

rastlin wrote:

I've done a lot of research on bunch of forums... and I am leaning toward just running speaker level wires from my HU to the amp using the LOC which is build into my alpine amp and then running the speker wires back to the front of my car and connecting to the harness.

I don't know if you saw my post in another forum ( http://www.caraudioforum.com/vbb3/showthread.php?t=247362) as that was your first post but here's what I wrote:

I would get two harness adaptors (the Metra 70-1771 and 71-1771 OR the Aamp Of America's harness adaptors BHA1771 and BHO1771) to where now you will have an input and output plug for the radio.
Get some wire called speedwire also from Aamp of america in the 9 conductor version and run two lengths of these from the radio opening to your amp location. One 9 conductor will wire to the outputs of the radio AND the power antenna wire and this will then go to the amp and if the amp has high level speaker line inputs use those. The power antenna wire will connect to the amps turn on terminal. If the amp does not have high level inputs put the line output convertors back by the amp (less chance of induced noise compared to having them up front witj long rca's to the amplifier's input).
Now use the other 9 conductor and use that from the output of the amplifier to connect to the speaker wires on the harness adaptor in the radio opening in the factory loom.
Take both harness adaptors and connect the battery 12 volt from one to the other (yellow to yellow), the accessory wire from the one to the other (red to red), the ground from one to the other (black to black), the illumination wire from the one to the other (orange to orage), and so on (orange/white to orange/white).
Run a fused power wire from the battery to the amp location and ground the amp and you should be good to go with amplifying the system.

For the speakers, get the metra harness adaptors for them also (it's like a 72-???? number). It makes it nice to be able to plug into the funky factory terminal end and then have the proper sized terminals on the wires of the adaptor to where the polarity is kept proper.

Jim