Wiring the speakers with new wire to the amp. The current wiring goes to the back of the head unit. If you do t like your music real loud, I wouldn't even bother amping the speakers. I mean real loud.

 

Ok well I'll try it first just straight up replacing the old speakers and leaving them wired to the head unit, and if I decide later I will change it to the amp for louder more clear sound

 

If you're going to amp your speakers you'll need a 4channel amp and a monoblock for the sub or a 5 channel amp. On the rear speakers I'd get midbasses only or disconnect the tweeters in them.
Get head unit first. See how much that changes the sound. Then go listen to some speakers to see if you like them better than your factory ones. I think most polypropylene speakers sound like ****, I prefer paper cones.

 

The factory wiring from the radio to the door and rear speakers will be fine for the output of most head units rated up to 40 watts RMS per channel. Your probably not going to fit a 5 channel amp under the front passenger seat without it sticking out somewhere. The Dual 400 watt max/200 rms 2.channel amp I have (running in bridged mode to my single voice coil sub) barely fit, but it did. From the amp, I ran 12 gauge speaker wire over to the plastic sill panels, and ran it under there all the way to the back cubby. The only bit of wire you see is about 2 inches going from under the seat to under the door sill panel. I'm not a fan of running stuff under the carpet where it may get ground around by feet or other things loaded. Keeping it under the sill panels keeps it protected.

 

Wiring setup very similar to mine. Also a 89. I have 3 sets of rcas running down the left side of dash, down and under the console,then under the carpet along the trans tunnel, then under the seat. I plan on having 2 amps since my deck has 3 sets of rcas (front, rear, sub) I went with the shortest route for power wire so I drilled a hole under the ac box and ran it all the way down my passenger side. My grounds are grounded to the frame under the backseat. I can post photos of how I did my set up if anyone would like. I'm not trying to hijack anyone's thread.

 

Guys what about bazooka tubes? I know it may sound cheese but they look like they are a decent size for the trunk area.... I'm just not sure about quality?

 

Sure, pics would be nice. Thanks

 

Iv heard they are decent

 

Here's the pictures

Kenwood KDC 352U



Wiring behind dash



RCAs and various wires running into center console



RCAs coming up from under carpet under the back seat.



Ground location







Power wire running through firewall into engine bay



Power wire running down to lower corner of engine bay heading into cab. Power wire will be upgraded when I upgrade my setup.


Also I have pioneer speakers front and rear 5.25 powered by the deck currently and a set of Sony tweeters up front mounted to the a pillars.

 

for head units, is a great RMS power rating more important or preamp output voltage? I'm looking at one with only 17x4 W rms but its preamp output is 4V, would this suffice for powering 4 speakers?

 

What are your guys thoughts on this stereo. I got an offer for it for $70.
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Aw4APWr...DSX-S200X.html

OR

 

You're not really going to find anything over 20wrmsx4.

 

Preamp is what goes to your amplifiers. Makes very little difference if you are going to use the internal amp on the cd deck

 

Probably a stupid question, but can you run coaxial speakers to a stereo? I'm looking for some good (yet not terribly expensive) speakers to run through my car stereo (yes I don't have an amp).

 

Yes, you can run any automotive coaxial or triaxial speaker to your head unit. The speakers will have built in circuitry to filter out lower notes from the midrange/tweeters to keep from damaging them. Simple two wire hookup. Unless you get what are commonly called "separates" which have an external crossover. But those are typically $100+ per pair, so I don't think you'll be dealing with those.

I know you've been working on this project for some time, and that you are new to this. I don't want this to come across the wrong way, but at times you are really overthinking this. Companies like Sony, Pioneer, etc. make products that get sold to the general public at Walmart, Best Buy, Pep Boys, etc. No special skills are required for the hook up with most of the retail stuff, and the instructions that come with any car stereo, amplifier, or set of speakers will have written wiring instructions along with an easy-to-follow diagram. For instance, the Dual amp I use shows the following diagram for using it to power a pair of triaxial (3-way) 6x9 speakers. Instead, I used it in bridged mode (one channel) to power my sub, but it really is as simple as two wires to every speaker. Everything will either be marked of color-coded. Honestly, they make this stuff so that a legally retarded person could hook it up if need be.



Reading back over this thread, it seems you've gotten caught up in "analysis paralysis". Get any name brand head unit that has the features you want and stop stressing over a difference of 2 or 3 watts RMS. It's really not going to make much of a difference. 20 watts is only a fraction of a decibel louder than 18 watts. You won't really notice. So anything in the 17-25 watts RMS will work just fine. Get yourself a name brand pair of $40-$80 6.5 inch coaxial speakers (slimline may be a good idea) and stick them in the doors. Get a set of $25-$60 5.25 inch coaxials and stick them in the rear. Then get any name brand amp that will push around 150-300 watts at 4 ohms into one channel. The Dual unit I have was $60 and has been working great for two years. Then hook that amp up to any name brand 6 inch to 10 inch sub in the $50-$100 range. You really can have an great sounding, entirely new system for $400-$500 total. Mine was about $450, including the amp wiring kit, materials to make the sub box, and a grill for the sub. My Dual head unit has an adjustable color display, front USB, rear USB, front 1/8" auxiliary, SD card slot, iPod control, source independent volume adjustment, Bluetooth, and can be equipped with a Sirius or HD Radio module. It was $119 on Amazon. Work great. Sounds great. Done.

http://www.dualav.com/mobileaudio/xdmar6720.php