38 replies to this topic

[Andy!]

So a year again when i bought my car, it came with a big 10" sub ina box with a amp ontop, i asked what it was and someone valued it at about 50 quid, i just bunged it in the garage and forgot about it... now i'm thinking about installing it, as it's quite big only place i can think to put it is in the boot but idk if it'll be very good there? (i want my rear seats) also, it came with no wiring, so i dont even know if it works or not, is there a way i can test without buying a wiring kit? And speaking of wiring kits, are they all universal? can i just buy anyone? also what do you recomend??

As mentioned, i'm a COMPLETE novice, and have absolutely 0 clue... so be gentle :S

[Andy!]

Just to clarify, it's a qxt 250 amp, i can only find a few online and they all say they're rare? im guessing thats another way of saying they're poo? haha, anyway i can't find the watts or voltage or anything so if anyone can link me a wiring kit and tell me what i'd need to connect and to where that would be so helpful

EDIT: Also i just have a pretty standard radio from our landrover discovery that we scrapped, do i need a head unit or something? because if so i might forget the idea as 2 speakers would probably satisfy my needs, i just thought since i got a sub/amp i may aswell try install it if it's not going to be too much hassle/money

Edited by Andy!, 26 May 2012 - 11:38 PM.

[Ruckus]

Pics please.
Also a pic of the amps connections would be helpful.

[Andy!]

http://imgur.com/a/jdO12

Hope you can see all the words. on the sub itself it says...
QXS 12Vi
VENTED CHASSIS
BASS
325W RMS . 650W PEAK

Again, i have no idea how to install, whether it's worth installing, where to install or if it even works. and i also measured it and i think it's a 10 inch sub (rubber bit to rubber bit)

Everything you see is what it came with, there are no other wires or speakers or anything else that came with it, just that ina cardboard box hidden under loads of bags and spare parts in the back seat (when i bought my mini it was a tip, the seats were'nt even bolted down)

I just undid the screws to have a look at the box, it is just pieces of MDF, does it need padding or something, also i could easily take the amp/sub/the bit on the side off, so maybe i could build my own box to fit the boot (like you have done ruckus) but i'd only be able to use MDF and maybe sheets of silentcoat or something? i'd like to be able to install it, but i'm unsure about it
http://puu.sh/xm57

so many edits but i keep finding stuff i took the sub/side bit/amp off the box as if i was to fit it, i'd prob make a new box (i kept all the wires connected to the right terminals and stuff) and found this sticker underneath the amp (was hidden before) idk if it's useful

http://puu.sh/xmnw


Andddd last one of the parts out of the box so it's easier to see whats there without all the MDF and carpet

http://puu.sh/xmvo

Edited by Andy!, 28 May 2012 - 08:52 PM.

[Andy!]

The sub is 12 inch by the way, i looked on the back last night (looks like new)

It says on the back...

Maystar bass
12"(300mm) subwoofer 4.0ohm 91dB double stacked magnet 325 w rms 650w peak

[Jimmy Hat]

Well for that you'd be needing a 10 gauge wiring kit probably, they're really cheap on ebay,'fraid it isn't a known make of amp but looking at the fuse it should be powerful enough.

You'd need either a head unit with RCA outputs (red and white) or a converter to make speaker wires into RCA outputs to connect to the amp.

I did have my sub running in my house off a computer power supply so if you have one of them you won't need a wiring kit to test it, otherwise you probably will..

boot will be fine as long as there's no speakers in the shelf..
Hope that helps, anything I've missed out?

[Andy!]

Ah nice so something like this? http://www.ebay.com/...=item4603e3125c

Also, i have a cheap sub connected to my pc at home, it just runs off speaker cables in the back of the pc, does the wiring kit have cables like this? also i'm really unsure what the amp does or head unit or anything so, would it be easier to not use the AMP? or do i need it? also could you link one of these converters? the cars at the garage so i cant look at the radio atm...

Is this the converter you mean? so the red/white plug into sub and black into radio? if so why are the plugs on the sub red and black?
http://www.ebay.com/...=item230b925ec3

Also my speakers are in pods up front so boot should be okay then aslong as i get sound deadening?

Edited by Andy!, 31 May 2012 - 01:00 PM.

[DanFuke]

Where abouts are you based?

I'm sure someone local could always pop over and lend a hand.

All subs work best is they have a clean signal. So you will need to set up the amp properly with a filter (should be a dial on the side)

Imo a sub is always worth it lol

[Andy!]

So im guessing an amp is essential? i couldnt just wire it up to run like PC subs, just wired up like speakers haha?

[TfcIan]

The amp provides power to the sub, if you haven't got a dedicated amp and connect the sub directly to the HU, you'll be using the small amp in the HU. This is generally good enough for normal speakers, but no where near enough for a sub. The HU amp will probably provide something like 50w, so that's nothing for your 325w rms sub, and it will be sharing that 50w with the speakers up front.

I'm sure people on here can help you find a suitable amp for the sub, it can be quite confusing with the different power ratings of subs and amps, not made any easier by peak and rms power (always ignore peak, it's just manufacturers trying to make their equipment sound good..). You don't want an amp too powerful for the sub, but then you don't want one without enough power, because you'd have a similar problem to not having one and just using the HU.

A simple setup would be this:
HU connected to speakers via speaker cables.
HU connected to an amp via RCA cables and remote cable (switches the amp on and off with the HU).
Amp connected to the sub via speaker cables.
Amp connected to the battery via power cable, going through a big fuse.
Amp also needs to be earthed.

I found it made a lot more sense when I had it installed, rather than all these different cables flying about. You don't need more speakers than that, two decent ones at the front are good enough, maybe a pair of tweeters to go with them if you want.

If you put the sub in the boot, make sure you take the board off the parcel shelf if there is one (a couple of mm thick, but it makes a huge difference!), remove speakers if there are any there, and if the holes are small, drill more/bigger holes in the parcel shelf. Ideally you'll want at least the same amount of holes as the sub cone (12", so 2 6" holes or more smaller ones). Make sure you at least sound deaden the back of the rear bench in the boot, although you should do more, most the panels in the boot space could need doing to avoid panel resonance.

If you need any help, just ask, somebody will be able to help you. I knew virtually nothing before I put my system in. I was put off by all the power ratings, not knowing what to buy but I got a second hand amp cheap on here and spent days trying to find a good sub to match it.

Oh, and you don't need super long RCA and remote cables, the distance from the HU to the boot is not very far in a mini. I think I bought a £15 kit from car audio centre and that was enough (included all wires and fuse etc).

Sorry to the ICE experts if I've made any mistakes there, I'm not a pro at this, just trying to share my fairly limited knowledge from my install.

Edited by TfcIan, 31 May 2012 - 09:36 PM.

[Andy!]

Thankyou so much tfclan! your 'simple' way to look at it is so helpful :) makes it sound alot more do-able, when i have enough money to spend on this luxury (doing the important stuff first) i will look for a new amp as my one looks crap and old and confusing, and when i have a good amp for my sub, i will get to work fitting, this is exciting :) how much money would you say im looking at spending on buying an amp on here and all the cables?

Also any recomended power settings/amps to look into??

Edited by Andy!, 31 May 2012 - 10:06 PM.

[Boomboy77]

Maystar sub maystar amp! Havent seen that stuff around for a while.

[Ruckus]

Just to clarify, headunits might state they are 4x 50 watts etc but this will be made up max power figures.
The ONLY figures to look at are the RMS figures.
Most headunits will put out 5 to 10 watts rms per channel...

Edited by Ruckus, 01 June 2012 - 08:50 AM.

[Jimmy Hat]

Think Tfclan's covered everything really, just as a final point though what model cd player/radio does your car have, if any?

I'd also say theres probably nothing wrong with your amp so may as well stick with it?

[Andy!]

The radio was one we took out of land rover discovery before we got rid of it... cars at garage so i will check and take pictures when it comes back (in about a week) and when people talk about headunits, is a radio classed as a headunit? or are headunit the flashy touch screen things i see in some cars? Also i only said i might look for a better amp as it looks very confusing, but if it works and someone can help me with the wiring, i'll happily keep the happy duo together And thankyou ruckus, i will look at the RMS and not the peak fiqures, that seems a bit misleading to be honest that companies show the peak when it isnt even the important fiqure