mounting sub and amp

Jay

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Just received the enclosure for my sub and was surprised to find it doesn't have pre drilled holes to mount the sub.

Before I drill the holes I just wanted to check whether the I should drill all the way through the MDF or just half way through? The reason i ask is because I dont want air leakage round the sub edges just incase the it isn't secured properly.

Which is the easiest route for the RCA cables are they best down the drivers side? and will I need to remove the seats to get both power and rca cables to the boot?

Wheres the best place to mount the amp in an A3 and where can I find an earthing point?

I haven't connected the aerial to my new HU How do I make a connection for the amp's remote turn on?

Sorry for the many questions but its my first install and i'd like it to go smoothly.

Thanks for your help
 
I would drill 2.5mm pilot holes, then use short drywall screws to secure the sub. Drywall screws work really well in MDF as they have an exagerated thread. MDF isn't great at holding regular screws.
You can either use doublesided foam tape (normally supplied with the sub) or even silicone round the speaker cage to prevent any possible leakage.
You can mount the amp behind the rear speaker panel if you want a really neat install, with both the amp and all the wiring hidden. Downside is it's a bit tricky to make adjustments to the settings after its mounted. Route the RCA's down the passenger side along with the power. I know this is a blasphamous suggestion if you listen to the audiophiles, who will rightly say the RCA's can pick up interference from the power cable, but in my experience any interference has never been cured by running them down alternate sides. Any interference is always due to bad components, bad earthing or bad installation. Ideally run them down the drivers side, but then depending on where you mount the amp, you then have to run them back across the car again, usually under the back seats.
The only seats you need to remove are the bases of the rears which is a 1 minute job.
If you mount the amp behind the rear panel then you can earth it on the seat belt guide harness.
Amps remote on should have a seperate feed from the HU. If you mean the aerial amps power then this is from the power antenna feed from the HU.
 
Sorry :sorry: if this sounds like a daft question but i'm still confused on whether or not the screws need to go all the way through the MDF. Is 2.5mm the diameter of the pilot hole or do you mean 2.5mm deep?

I also dont understand which rear panel you mean. Is this where the cd changer sits?
Would the back of the rear seat make a good place to mount the amp?

Thanks
 
The rear panel is where you sit in the back of your car. Where your rear speakers are is the rear panel (If you have a 3 door). that pulls off and you can hide the amp behind there as there is loads of space. you can mount the amp on the back of the seats as i have done in the past and it is not a problem but if you don't want people to know what you got then the stealth install behind the rear panel is good but as Andy says the only draw back is you'll need to tune your amp 1st before you put the panel back on unless you have one with a remote for adjustments later on.

Your new headunit should have all the wire connections detailed on it and you just match them up to the corresponding wires.
 
yes you can drill all the way through as the screws are bigger, the treads will bite into the MDF and seal the unit. If you use the silicone or something like draft excluder tape to make a gasket around the edge of the driver it should be sealed tight.
 
Makes sense now. Its a 5 door, which is why i wasnt sure about the back panel.
Probably try the back of the seat for the amp.
i'll see how i get on.

Many thanks guys
 
So far so good. Managed to get the power cable to the boot, surprisingly, without any problems.

Just a few question the power cable is running along side alot of other cables. Is this dangerous due to the power cable getting too warm or does it now warm up.

Andy you mentioned that its not a problem running the RCAs next to the power cable Is this really recommended because everyone I've spoken to seems to think that running them down the drivers side is a better option. I wouldn't mind running them down the same side as the power cable as the trims already off.

Also the speaker wire I have is about 3 meters long would I just cut it to size as the amp and sub are next to each other. Does the same go for the earth cable? or is it the longer the better.

thanks
 
Hi guys i have an aftermarket HU and want to add a sub this weekend if im fitting it myself is it as easy as it is in any other car?

Ie: i want the speakers working and the sub as it currently has the bose sub and amp installed.

Dont want to buy the sub and not be able to fit it thats all


Jason
 
Jay, it is the correct method to run power & RCA's down the opposite sides of the car, so that you don't get any interference in the RCA's induced by the power cable. However in my experience I've never had interference issues that were caused by running them down the same side. It really only becomes an issue with hugely powerful amps on show cars. If the RCA's are reasonable quality then they are more than capable of shielding the low level RCA signal from any interference. If you do experience interference it is far more likely to be caused by bad earthing or crap connections than from the power cable.
The power cable does not get hot at all. If it does get even warm then it is either the wrong gauge for the amp or there is a some other problem, but then that's what the fuse is for.
 
On all cabling, especially the earth, then the shorter the better. The longer the cable then the more losses induced to whatever it's carrying = higher load on the amp, more pron to interference or clipping.
Earth leads should be ideally no more then 1m in length. Cable to sub should be as short as is practically possible.
 

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