question on aftermarket system

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Old May 26, 2008 | 10:14 PM
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question on aftermarket system

hey i was looking into adding another sub and amp along with the stock system in the Tl. i was wondering if it was a good idea to just get the amp and sub or replace the entire system..i like the stock system except im looking to add more bass to it...any suggestions on how to accomplish this without spending a fortune??
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Old May 26, 2008 | 10:27 PM
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replacing the entire system would be costly, and a few of the electronics in the car would cease to work such as the HFL system. If you want to have a system just with more bass to it, do this:

Get a JL amp or amp that has high voltage inputs

Connect the amp to the factory wires for the sub, then install the sub in the trunk.

If you want have a system that has a lot more clarity, better soundstage and more, you would need to do this:

Take factory wires -> Rocksford fosgate 3.sixty.2 audio processor or any other audio processor -> amp -> speakers.
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Old May 27, 2008 | 12:22 AM
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amp

so a JL with high outputs eh? Any suggestions on which amp to get if i wanted to run a kicker 12 in a closed box? Just a dual voice 12 kicker with a small box enclosure. just wondering about power of the amp and possible specific amps. Thanks.
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Old May 27, 2008 | 12:38 AM
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thanks i kinda get wht to do now..i kno i wont b replacing the entire thing but ill add the amp and sub
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Old May 27, 2008 | 11:49 AM
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^^ dont forget to keep us updated, and POST SOME PICS

Vmt
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Old May 27, 2008 | 12:53 PM
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Originally Posted by csmeance
replacing the entire system would be costly, and a few of the electronics in the car would cease to work such as the HFL system. If you want to have a system just with more bass to it, do this:

Get a JL amp or amp that has high voltage inputs

Connect the amp to the factory wires for the sub, then install the sub in the trunk.

If you want have a system that has a lot more clarity, better soundstage and more, you would need to do this:

Take factory wires -> Rocksford fosgate 3.sixty.2 audio processor or any other audio processor -> amp -> speakers.
If I decided to take the speaker wires from the stock head unit, get rid of the stock amp, and install a signal processor which woudl feed into an aftermarket amp, will that still get rid of the HFL compatibility?

Which part of the OEM stereo handles the HFL function? The head unit? The stock amp? Are there any more detailed threads that address this question?
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Old May 27, 2008 | 01:21 PM
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i did the sub in the beginning.....regretted not going nuts with it from the beginning so 4 days later i got everything else and put it in.... much happier now but it all depends on ur pocket and how nuts u are about music.....im extreme about it so i went a lil out of control with it.
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Old May 27, 2008 | 01:23 PM
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as long as the 4 internal speakers are working the HFL works no prob.... u have to have the stock amp connected in order for the hfl to work though.
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Old May 28, 2008 | 08:11 PM
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Originally Posted by Tripnbeats
as long as the 4 internal speakers are working the HFL works no prob.... u have to have the stock amp connected in order for the hfl to work though.
4 internal speakers are in reference to the doors? rear panel? Does the stock amp degrade the signal quality if you hook up a signal processor to it?
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Old May 28, 2008 | 09:11 PM
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Originally Posted by tech14
4 internal speakers are in reference to the doors? rear panel? Does the stock amp degrade the signal quality if you hook up a signal processor to it?
the stock amp does not degrade the signal, the audiophiles like to get rid of the factory amp as it causes highs and lows with the signals, but a good processor should take care of that.
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Old May 28, 2008 | 10:46 PM
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replace the whole system.... i did it to mines much better then stock sound, got 2 amps 1 for bass and the other for voice will post pics up in the weekend
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Old May 29, 2008 | 12:31 AM
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ive been leaning on gettin another amp and a sub installed, instead of replacing the entire system. i like the stock system, i just want more bass...wht wud b the best way of getting more bass while spending under 500 dollars?
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Old May 29, 2008 | 08:39 AM
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Originally Posted by brownpakistud08
ive been leaning on gettin another amp and a sub installed, instead of replacing the entire system. i like the stock system, i just want more bass...wht wud b the best way of getting more bass while spending under 500 dollars?
do wat the rest of the ppl are sayin replace the stock sub with the JL 8" w6-w7
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Old May 29, 2008 | 09:02 AM
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Originally Posted by brownpakistud08
ive been leaning on gettin another amp and a sub installed, instead of replacing the entire system. i like the stock system, i just want more bass...wht wud b the best way of getting more bass while spending under 500 dollars?

basslink
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Old May 29, 2008 | 10:08 AM
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Originally Posted by RBP_04TL
do wat the rest of the ppl are sayin replace the stock sub with the JL 8" w6-w7
would that have any effect on the bass even though the amp is the same?
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Old May 30, 2008 | 11:03 PM
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to keep it simple, I kept the stock HU, got a good quality LOC, connected all speaker wires AFTER the stock amp to the LOC. Then from the LOC, I ran the highs to 1 amp which I mounted under the rear deck, and the lows to another amp which is under the drivers seat. Then the high amp feeds the interior speakers, and the low amp feeds a 12 inch kicker installed in a custom enclosure that fits into the corner of the trunk and it THUMPS!! The only issue I have is that when I turn the radio off, the amps remain on until the car is completely off, so I hear the hiss thru the speakers. That was getting annoying so I installed a simple switch under the dash to cut the LOC off manually - I think the HFL sends out a constant signal so the LOC doesn't know when to turn off automatically - but if I get a call I see it on the display but I don't hear anything until I flip the switch - bit of a PITA but I can live with it.
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Old May 30, 2008 | 11:15 PM
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I put a sub and amp into my car....

cost me 1k...

now u wana replace all the speakers?

hmmm

stock deck? if so add about 600 bucks

due to EQ
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Old Jun 1, 2008 | 12:44 AM
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Originally Posted by RBP_04TL
replace the whole system.... i did it to mines much better then stock sound, got 2 amps 1 for bass and the other for voice will post pics up in the weekend
If you take out the factory amp, and run the stock HU wires to the aftermarket amps, will that take away your HFL capabilities, or anything else?
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Old Jun 1, 2008 | 02:30 AM
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I think you need the stock amp to keep HFL.
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 05:28 AM
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How do you know which wires are high frequency, and which are low? Or all the wires the same level output after the stock amp?
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 06:26 AM
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Originally Posted by JCL622
basslink
Yup
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 07:57 AM
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ok first HFL works only through the 4 speakers in the car 2 in the deck one in each front door. 2nd you cannot replace the stock sub with a w6 or w7 because u have the trunk spring in the way and even if u could you'd blow that speaker to kingdom come.....u cant use the airspace in the trunk for anything more than an isobaric speaker.... anyway all the internal speakers have 4 ohms pushed to all of them and the front speakers are bridged to 2 ohms because they are tied in with the tweeters. those are pushing mid bass - highs. The sub is obviously at low end frequencies and is at 4 ohms. everything and anything u do to the radio as an "upgrade" HAS to be wired through the stock amp....dont bypass it.... you wont get volume just low noise and lose a lot of capabilities of the radio or anything else thats tied in.
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 07:59 AM
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Originally Posted by VmtSquad
I think you need the stock amp to keep HFL.

You don't need the stock amp to keep HFL... the HFL is handled through the Audio Unit (Radio) it's basically 4 wires into the Radio from the HFL unit... HFL mute (BLU/RED), HFL (+) (BLU), HLF (-)(PNK) and HFL SHD(LT GRN/BLK or BLK) on the Grey Connector behind Radio... then the sound is transfered to the Front Left and Right Speakers through the factory amp...

If there's anyway to connect those wires coming from the HFL unit into an aftermarket radio via an auto muting and switching system, then it'll function exactly like stock...

Good Luck...
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 08:39 AM
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ok so you still need the stock amp to process whatever is coming out of the radio because nothing else will....it's like raw format being pushed to the stock amp to convert to sound.
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 08:51 AM
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Originally Posted by brownpakistud08
ive been leaning on gettin another amp and a sub installed, instead of replacing the entire system. i like the stock system, i just want more bass...wht wud b the best way of getting more bass while spending under 500 dollars?
i kept the stock head unit on my 05 TL and deleted the factory sub and just added subs and an amp..got power from the factory amp and hfl works no problem. got a sweet deal on subs and an amp form my cousing who works at fry's...spent about $170 on 2 15" subs and a 1000 watt amp and it bumps like no other..just aks some of the SoCal Guys
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Old Jun 2, 2008 | 05:44 PM
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thank you all for ur help..i kno wht i gotta do now
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Old Jun 3, 2008 | 09:08 AM
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yea spend a few$$$$$$$ lol
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 05:35 AM
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If you tap into the fusebox for your remote turn on wire, do you need a relay if you are running three amplifiers?
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 06:49 AM
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i wouldnt tap into a fuse box for a remote lead....the amps need a very small 12volt signal (500mA) and can then turn on the remote turn on for the stock amp is 9 volt... I installed a peripheral electronics lvt2 and it took care of it.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 06:51 AM
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Originally Posted by tech14
If you tap into the fusebox for your remote turn on wire, do you need a relay if you are running three amplifiers?
No relay required. What size of wire are you running from the fuse box to the first amp? Depending on the total load, which is what that log run will see, that wire could require upsizing to a 14 gauge or a 12 gauge. All you will need to do is jumper that lead wire to the other 2 amps. For a clean install, you could add a small box to use as a splice box and run 3 seperate wires from there.

I ran a 16 gauge from my head unit to the trunk and first amp, then a short jumper from there to the second amp. No problems at all. the wire isn't even a bit warm. The rule of thumb, size your wire for the total amperage of the circuit, then size your fuse accordingly.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 01:36 PM
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I'll document my recent experience to provide a bit of insight.

I just got an old 15" sub I had laying around and a new 600 watt digital Alpine amp put into my car on Tuesday. The installer basically disconnected the factory sub, ran a line out from the remaining wires and dynamatted the entire trunk for me.

Everything sounded super until I totally toasted the old sub within 3 hours 'cause the amp was too much for it. Went the next day and picked up a $370 Alpine Type-R 15 to replace it and it's beating my doors off. I had an old Ford Ranger with 2 JL Audio W6 12"s and this puts it to shame (with only 600 watts too!).

A lot of people will suggest that you replace the factory radio because of the 'low' voltage that comes from a factory unit compared to the pre-amped high voltage aftermarket radios. However, the TL is a unique case because it has what Acura describes as a 'high-voltage' sub out that isn't quite as high as an aftermarket one but much higher than other brands' stock radios.

For cost purposes, use the factory unit, disconnect the factory sub, and add something in your truck to replace it. You'd be amazed at what a high-quality 10 or 12 would do in what is a relatively small cabin space. Always fire towards the rear of the vehicle because you want to elongate the area in front of the woofer as much as possible. Directing the sound against the back of your rear seat will only give you the impact of the sub and not the true sound.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 01:38 PM
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hey thanks for all the input. i just went today and did basically wht you just wrote up. they disconnected my stock sub and i got a 12 inch infinty kappa along with a 800 watt sony xplod amp powering it and it sounds great, using the factory head unit.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 01:50 PM
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Originally Posted by Tripnbeats
i wouldnt tap into a fuse box for a remote lead....the amps need a very small 12volt signal (500mA) and can then turn on the remote turn on for the stock amp is 9 volt... I installed a peripheral electronics lvt2 and it took care of it.
What wire did you hook up the LVT2 to? I have one of those, but I am not sure of how to hook up the wires.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 01:56 PM
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i believe yellow to constant
black to neg
blue to amp
green to oem amp trigger

im not 100% but i do have the box at home. ill verify tonight.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 03:02 PM
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What wire did you use for your OEM trigger?
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 03:12 PM
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color of the cable off the top of my head i dont remember but i used the 9volt trigger from the oem amp.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 04:45 PM
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I just tried to do what you all did today.. Need some insight..

2007 TLs w/NAV
Tapped into the stock sub for my Hilevel Input Into a Kicker ZX750.1
I didnt want to get a hi-lo converter so the amp has a high level input. So Tapped into the stock sub and got a remote from the fuse box...

It sounds awesome when the car is off.... BUT

When the car is running the subs start to hummmmmm and go bazerk... THEN when I open the door. It stops! then close it.. and it goes again. Only when the car is running.. What is going on!!!!! I've messed with the gain and everything. Even turning off the sub on the OEM Nav Unit doesnt stop it.

PLEASE HELP
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 05:03 PM
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DH22G...

Search the forums for Active Noise Cancellation or ANC...

This is an issue run into by many type-S owners before you... basically you need to disconnect two microphones that feed the ANC system (which plays a low frequency hum to factor out road noise which is amplified 10 fold when you add an aftermarket system).

One is located in the sunroof switch/front map light assembly and the other is in the center dome light assembly... You're looking for green clips that need to be disconnected.
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 05:05 PM
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oh and just for search purposes...

the ANC issue is only on Type-S models. I had an explanation of how to disconnect the mics ready for my installer who informed me that he couldn't find what I was describing.

Then... I did some more reading to find out that ANC is only on the newest Type-S model.

Just fyi
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Old Jul 24, 2008 | 05:10 PM
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i would def change out the stock speakers before i add a sub..
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