hey guys i just got a sweet deal on a 500 watt 4 channel jensen amp. i have never installed an amp before and need some pointers from the guys that have done this before. i have mechanical skill and have appropriate tools. i have T-tops so where do i mount my amp so i can still use my stock t-top bag? how do i mount it to the floor? where do most of you guys run the hot cable and the ground cable? these are simple questions, i hope someone can help me.

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86 IROCZ
T-Tops
700R4
305 TPI
3.23 gears
shift kit, manual TC switch, manual fan switch, flowmaster exhaust with edelbrock TES headers& hollow cat, gutted MAF.

 

You can try to mount under a seat, or maybe in the storage compartment...
It is best to pull the seats when installing and tape the power wire down under the carpet.
Run rca's on the oposite side as the power wire...
Hope this helps.

 

yeah but i gotta run the power wire to the battery right? how do i get it through the firewall? i was gonna drill a hole in the floor and run it under the car.

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86 IROCZ
T-Tops
700R4
305 TPI
3.23 gears
shift kit, manual TC switch, manual fan switch, flowmaster exhaust with edelbrock TES headers& hollow cat, gutted MAF.

 

There's an article in the tech section of this website that will tell you most of what you need to know.

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ok yeah i guess i shoulda looked there first

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86 IROCZ
T-Tops
700R4
305 TPI
3.23 gears
shift kit, manual TC switch, manual fan switch, flowmaster exhaust with edelbrock TES headers& hollow cat, gutted MAF.

 

I wouldnt run the power wire under the car. I would drill a small hole in the firewall and put a rubber grommet in the hole. Run the wire through the grommet and seal it with some silicone.

Dont run the RCAs right next to the power wire. You will get engine noise if you dont have some "GOOD" cables.

Make sure you have a really good ground. Strip paint off of surface and make a good connection. (Dont skimp on the ground, it will cause problems in the future.)

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L98, 3.27 9-bolt, Hooker shorty headers, custom 2.5inch Y-pipe, no cat, 3inch 2chamber flowmaster, JET AFPR, Ported MAF, Best ET: 13.86 @100mph. 1.99 60'
17 inch ROH "ZS" wheels. 17x8.5(front) and 17x9.5 (rear). Firestone Firehawk SZ50s. 245/45/zr17s and 275/40/zr17s. T56

On the way... Radar Blue 89 Formula, T56, Ram Jet 430, Ram Air, 17inch ROHs.

 

Ok, the Jensen amp you have is an extremely sensitive piece of equipment, but will actually last if you treat it with kid gloves. You have to keep it very cool, so you can forget about mounting it underneath the seats (like there would be room) or mounting it upside down anywhere I would take some velcro and stick it to the bottom of the amp and put it face up in the well in the hatch. You also want to make sure that you do not run your amp at anything less than 4 ohms, meaning one speaker to one channel and nothing more. Also keep the gain to about half, you don't want it to get too hot. Run the shortest ground you can. The best place if the amp is in the well is to ground it behind the back plastic piece, where the latch is. Run a pretty thick gauge wire, regardless of what your amp is. You may want to upgrade later. I found a 0 gauge power cable at Autozone for $20.00! It is a battery relocation kit. I don't know if they still have them. Also make sure that you have a high quality set of RCA cables and run them down the opposite side of the car as your power cable.

Just my $.02

Chris

 

you'll get engine noise if you dont ground the amp properly. If you run the RCA's and Power Wire right next to each other, you'll get a nice blue shocking sensation.

really wakes ya up

kev

p.s.- dont try it

 

sweet guys thanks for the advice. i was gonna velcro it to the top of my axle hump between the t-top bag straps, if it will fit. so i should snag a battery relocation kit huh? sounds like a plan. oh and where should i get a fuse, what kind or RCA cables do i need, and what speaker wire is good? thanks again.


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86 IROCZ
T-Tops
700R4
305 TPI
3.23 gears
shift kit, manual TC switch, manual fan switch, flowmaster exhaust with edelbrock TES headers& hollow cat, gutted MAF.

 

Monster Cable, Pheonix Gold... its all the same. Your Local Car Audio shop should sell it by the foot.

kev

 

Battery relocation kit/vs. amp wiring kit:
The wiring kit for the amp will probably have more flexible cable, and therefore be easier to install. Also, the outer jacket is slippery, and easy to pull through tight places. Most amp kits come with the fuses and wiring terminals you need too. On the one hand, amp kits are expensive. On the other hand, they're easy to use and include everything you need. You make the call there.

RCA cords: Several times, I've used generic $7.99 RCA cords with no hassles, no noise, and good sound. While I don't think you'll hear any difference in sound quality with expensive RCA cables, they do look nice, and they're usually very durable and well-constructed.

Speaker wire: It doesn't really matter too much, just avoid that super-thin 24-gauge stuff...it's junk. 18-gauge is good, 16-gauge is even better. 12-gauge is nice, but unneccessary. It's thick (and therefore harder to install).

There's also an installer's trick so that you hardly need to run any speaker wire at all. On the harness, behind the radio, splice the front and rear wires together. Then, you'll only need four short pieces of speaker wire...just run them to your rear speaker locations. It's very simple...I'm probably just not doing a good job of explaining it.

 

Chris Luongo-
From what I got from your old installers trick is you are actually doing more harm then good.
While this may save you time, it will drop the ohm load on the stereo and eventually burn the outputs......

 

thanks for the info guys.

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86 IROCZ
T-Tops
700R4
305 TPI
3.23 gears
shift kit, manual TC switch, manual fan switch, flowmaster exhaust with edelbrock TES headers& hollow cat, gutted MAF.

 

As a bonus for not cheaping on cables, you'll have the benefit of not having to change the cables when you buy a better amp!

I have my power running down the driver's side of the car, the RCA's down the center of the car, and the speaker wires down the passenger side. When you go by the door sill, don't put the power cable under the plastic of the sill. Reach down, under the carpet. You'll feel a spot where the bottom seems to "drop out"- there's a rectangular wire duct under the carpet. Once you get past the duct, you can nestle 4 ga wire in that spot very easily. You also don't have to remove your seat belt retractor, which is a nice bonus.

I drilled a hole thru the firewall, used a grommet, and used "black silicone" as FormulaJoe did.


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
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