I have an emblem above the stero thet says premium sound what does this mean? I herd that it ment it had an amp built in. Is this true and is there any way to hook the amp up to a new cd player?

 

You basically got an upgraded radio and maybe speakers. Radio probably has the equalizer on it.

 

depending on the year, the performance sound came with a subwoofer hidden in the back hatch area just in front of the spare tire. There was also usually Subwoofer control on the dash to the left of the rear hatch defogger buttons. The option was around from somthing like 85 -88 or 89. I once saw 2 birds with the options and I did not grab any of the parts, I kick myself...

John

 

I found where the sub was but i cant find where the amp was. Is the amp in the dash near the control. I have the same setup i as your picture. Thanks for the help.

 

Here's some pics of the factory amp.

 

The other pic.

 

Hmmmmph, never knew that. Was that available on Camaro's too??

 

I'm not sure--but I don't think this option was availabe on the Camaros--I think that's where the Bose system came in.

 

From what I remember, it wasnt even really that great as far as speakers go. I think the only change they did to the front speakers was a cloth grille instead of a plastic one. Dont know about the backs though.

 

The rear setup was a 4x6 and a little midrange that everyone is calling a sub--that's what mine had in it. Also the piece that the speakers sit in(rears)is a plastic housing of some kind--I guess that made the bass sound deeper--for those "booms".

 

my friends 86 TA is the same as TonyRodz. there isnt a sub in his system.

 

I have a Camaro and I have the same thing.. But of corse now everythings been changed so i dunno what came with mine now.. I dont think it had an extra sub or anything..

 

This is from the 89 booklet on the standard sound

 

and the 88 booklet for the performance sound, which is also the last year offered...

The pic does not seem to show exactly where the speakers were located, but it indicates somewhere back in the wheel wells. The Amp location in the picture is not accurate since it was located in the dash, the reason for this is more than likely that the lines are to indicate a wiring diagram not the location of each of the parts.

hope this clears anything up, probably makes more questions than anything...

John

 

Sheesh...

The 'amp' is located behind the 'glove box' on the dash. Its a silver box as pictured above. The 'subs' are located in a large plastic enclosure that sits where a 6x9 usually sits on most other cars. In the plastic enclosure is also a 4x6 speaker. The 'sub' is a 4" speaker, thats why I call it a 'sub', its pretty much a joke IMO. I see in the pic above it says its 5 1/4", either my ruler is wrong or GM was being overly generous about what they put in there. The enclosure is ported and is probably the only reason it sounded even remotely good for an old factory stereo setup with such tiny speakers. The design of the setup itself never changed over the years it was available. IMO its not worth looking into getting if you dont have it, and mine has long since been replaced with some good 6x9's.

 

it is technically a "sub" but its designed for midranges, like in a component system. Thats what the performance sound is in these cars. a "component" set of a 4x6 and a midrange "sub". subs arent always 8, 10, or 12+ inches.

 

when i bought the car ther was a cd player hooker up. can i hook into the amp and the subs? I would really like to do this since the gain switch is so acessable. I think i found the amp behind the glove box.

 

You can, just have to wire it up right. It seems to me if you leave the factory wiring intact and hook up to the stock wiring the setup still works. I know I had it setup on my car with an aftermarket radio like that for a while until I came to my senses and took those speakers out and replaced them with better ones. IIRC it just takes the signal off of the speaker wires and amplifies that. I'd be surprised if that amp put out more than 20 watts.

 

Not worth the effort!! Rip it out and put in an aftermarket HU w/6x9's--just my opinion.:lala:

 

I checked the potentiometer on the slider and there is a slight problem...

The Pot will work fine, but it only adjusts for one channel. thats why I have not done anything with it yet... If you have a bridged amp then it migth not matter...

It is possible to use it I just have not taken the time to figure it out so it works well and the way I want it to...

John