e harmon

Hey folks,

I'm thinking about adding the following to the stock Bose system in my 2001 CL:

- Rockford 200a1 Mono sub amp
- 10" sub in a sealed box (not sure about brand yet; open to suggestions for tight sound, comparable to Polk EX 10)
- 10gauge wiring kit
- Extensive mat-type sound damping

My questions are:

- Can I tap the signal straight from the high-level outputs of the stock Bose amp into the high-level inputs on the 200a1, or do I need a LLC?

- Should I consider a capacitor, or any other add-ons for this system?

- Does anyone have a pic of where they attached the ground wire?

Probably more questions to follow as they occur to me. Thanks much in advance.

e harmon

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Silver 2001 CL-S, Comptech Springs, M-6 and other superwhite bulbs here and there

aaron

The 200a1 or 200.1, whichever year model you get, averages about 240 watts total by 1 at two ohms, which is very little, considering. if you choose to do a single sub, make it a two ohm sub or dvc 4 ohm to get the max power out of the amp without causing it to go into thermal protection. it will benefit you to go with a sub which likes a ported box to take advantage of a medium sized amp like the 200a1. Just a suggestion is to use 8 guage or larger any time that you are using an amplifier, 10 guage is usually not sufficient. A cap can't hurt but it makes your power and ground's current flow less. it is like the difference from drinking through a regular straw and then trying to drink through a coffee straw. 8 guage is big enough to solve that problem. As far as the high level inputs built on to the amp you are going to have to over compensate by turning the gain up higher because the voltage coming in the amp will be very low, in effect you are only getting a portion of the amp's wattage on the output when you choke the input. Monster cable makes a high level/low level adapter which will boost your voltage to 9 volts, that will help. or you could consider an xtant 121m, which has a voltage boost/drop module built in so the factory input causes zero threat. If you want more nerdy details, just ask i can probably help

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mods include:
Xtant 6.5" components front and rear
xta603x
2 xtant 12" X series subs
plexi box front and rear with 2way mirror, sliding amp rack
clifford avant guard 4 alarm

e harmon

Thanks for the info aaron.

Regarding the enclosure: from what I have been able to "audition" (though I'm by no means an expert, and my perceptions may be off) I really prefer sealed enclosures over ported ones. Considering that my tastes are relatively modest (I could just about live with the stock system unchanged), would I be able to get by with a sealed box and this amp?

Also, regarding the signal inputs: I wanted to make sure my previous post conveyed my question correctly... I would like to tap into the "amplified" signal (between the factory amp and the speakers) and route those into the high-level inputs on the Rockford. In this scenario, is there still a low voltage concern?

Here are some of the subs I'm considering. Please feel free to say 1) sounds good, 2) worth a try, 3) doubtful, 4) NFW

Kenwood eXcelon DB+ KFC-XW10dB
Audiomobile EVO 2210 S24 (DVC) (thanks manic for the link)

Hmm couple others that slip my mind... Thanks again, the info is much appreciated.

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Silver 2001 CL-S, Comptech Springs, M-6 and other superwhite bulbs here and there

aaron

as far as tapping into the signal, I tapped into the signal on the passenger side behind the seat, there are four wires going from the front of the vehicle to the back, up the back seat towards the rear speakers, for my amp, I just tapped in their, and it worked, but, in all honesty, we didn't have to test to put the amp in, because it was an XTANT. Therefore I assumed the factory amp was in the head unit by the way the wiring was laid out in the car, but you should be able to compensate for that and use your amp as long as your in-line converter has a voltage boost, or if you want you can get any line converter and invest in what is called a line driver. Audio Control makes one for about 130, or you can get the same thing in monster cables line converter for 70. The subwoofers you are looking at as far as kenwood db+ is a very nice sub, but your amp will run at 4 ohms and the output will be half of the total power.
Let me ask you, did you already purchase the rockford amplifier?

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mods include:
Xtant 6.5" components front and rear
xta603x
2 xtant 12" X series subs
plexi box front and rear with 2way mirror, sliding amp rack
clifford avant guard 4 alarm

e harmon

Yes, I did buy the amp already, and it is currently in transit. I'm still not sure I'm following you on the input thing... I'm looking to take the high-level signal from the stock amp (*not* the low-level signal from the head unit) and run it into the high-level inputs on the amp... or was that the question you were answering?

And keep in mind, I'm not looking to shake my fillings loose or put together a competition system... if anything, I'm hoping that what I end up with doesn't overpower the rest of the stock system .

On another note, has anyone done a really thorough job of vibration damping the current model CL/TL? If so, which areas did you find needed the most damping, the floor or the quarter panels/doors? (I'm already planning on doing the entire trunk.)

Thanks again
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Silver 2001 CL-S, Comptech Springs, M-6 and other superwhite bulbs here and there

[This message has been edited by e harmon (edited 04-23-2001).]

aaron

i was answering your question about the highlevel input, the only thing, that i am not totally sure of is if the amp is in the deck or external, but someone else said it was external, so to be sure to use high level go as close to the rear speakers and tap in right their, i have dynamated most of my vehicle, and the rear deck still floats because there is nothing really holding it down. There are two side impact-type beams going vertical between the plastic panels and the body on the outsides of the rear seats, that is a definite must for dynamating, i hit it with a screwdriver and it resonated for about 10 seconds, which is disgusting. I would definitely recomend dynamating the roof(if it is worth the effort to you)My roof flexes and my front and rear window flex about 1/8 of an inch. Obviously like you said your not looking for that type of bass. The flooring(at least under the rear seat) already has soundproofing, and you loose the least through your floor because it is made of much thicker material than your doors, trunk and roof. About your subwoofer, since you are already getting the amp, you really need to be able to run it at two ohms, and a subwoofer that i neglected to mention was jl audio. I don't sell them but i have plenty of experience with them, they make many models suited to your needs.

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mods include:
Xtant 6.5" components front and rear
xta603x
2 xtant 12" X series subs
plexi box front and rear with 2way mirror, sliding amp rack
clifford avant guard 4 alarm

e harmon

The info is much appreciated, aaron. I'll look into the JL subs; I still have my eye on the Audiomobile EVO though. I'll let you know what I end up with.

Thanks again

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Silver 2001 CL-S, Comptech Springs, M-6 and other superwhite bulbs here and there

drod267

The stock amp IS NOT in the head unit!! I found mine in the trunk on the right side (passenger side) behind the plastic moldings on the side of the trunk. All the low level inputs, remote wire, front/back speaker wires are all there! There are even helm schematics somewhere on this forum that will tell you which wires are what for the entire stereo system. I added a six channel zapco amp with two 10"s and kept the stock speakers in for now. My amp drives everything and I removed the stock anp and used the wires that were right there going into the stock amp for my new amp (except for power, of course). I think I might need some kind of voltage booster for my low level inputs going from the deck to my new amp because I DO have to turn the gain up and I get a tiny bit of static. Anyone know what I can use to boost the signal?? Or should I just leave it alone? The static is not great... but you can here it at low volume.

1997Acura30CL

hey Harmon... if you are able to get a hold of them, give Boston Acoustics a shot, they are great in small sealed boxes, especially for tight bass, and they are extremely efficent. I would not recomend the Kenwoods, my friend had them in his little truck and it sounded horrible. I have the same amp, the Rockford 200a1 with a single Boston 12 in a sealed box, and I am actually beating ppl with 2 or even 3 10's in their cars. Its all a matter of preference though... what you like goes... but it seems that either Polk or Boston may suit your needs very well. The best place to get some sound is right at the rear speakers... just tap off of those wires, the more colorful wires will be the positive (reds and blues) and the duller wires are the negatives (usually brown). Or as someone else said in here, go right to the amp itself, its already in the trunk and all your good wires are there... just figure out which ones are sound and turn on wires. Do what best suits your taste... you have a rock solid amp on your hands... and if you run one 2 ohm sub on it, your going to be giving it about 550 watts from the amp. Let me know what you decide... and good luck to you.

Drod267- The fact that you ran the sound from your deck right to your aftermarket amp is where your static is comming from and there is no real way to get rid of it, unless you change the deck or re-install the stock amp and run that to your zapco your gonna have static... thats bose's little way of keeping you from playing with their stuff... although we all want it gone! Try putting your stock amp back in, as stupid as it sounds then run the outputs to the high level inputs on the zapco and your sound will be fine. The bose decks put out so little sound that any aftermarket amp or line level converter barely even notices the sound... thats where the static comes from. Good luck to you too and let me know how things work out.




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1997 ACURA 3.0 CL PREMIUM

Apex-i cat-back Exhaust, AEM Intake, Clear Bumper Lenses, 18" ADR Cyrax rims, Ground Control Coilovers, Wings West Chin Spoiler, Acura Rear spoiler, Piaa Fog Lights, Tinted Windows, Boston Acoustics tweets, mids and subs.

hankie01

I went to www.linkmeup.com and purchased a Bose interface wiring harness. Added a Rockford Fosgate amp with 3 8" subs. Sounds better than system costing $$$$. Steering wheel controls still work too.

GorayOMD

Hankie, how much did that harness cost you?