Finally putting my stereo in...Thank God

[dworakj]

First Post, after reading many I couldn't find exactly what I wanted to know.
Anyways, next weekend I am going to be putting my stereo in my 89 LX-i. I can't stand the stock anymore and I'm wondering if the alternator can handle what I am taking out of my S-10 (I want something more in my S-10 as it is a nicer vehicle).

I have a 10-inch Infinity Kappa Perfect (350 watts RMS, 1400 Max) With an MTX amp rated at 340 watts. I also have Infinity Kappa 6-1/2's (63.5's, I need to modify my door brackets) and Infinity Kappa 6 X 9's (693.5's). The 6-1/2's are about 75 RMS and the 6 X 9's are about 110 RMS. I have a 4 channel MTX amp that will be running at about 65 watts for the front channels and a shade under 80 watts on each rear channel. Now, will I have ample amperage to power this? I know the stock alternator doesn't have the highest current ratings but I wanted the more experienced members input. Thanks for all the help in advance.

Oh, I checked into the Legend upgrade, I will probably get more serious about that after I get out of the spring semester...

[ghettogeddy]

ya it should be fine i was runnign 1 1800watt fosgate amp a 500 watt fosgate amp and a 400 watt audiobahn amp with a s2.5 farred cap and never had a prob with the alt or battery i did replace my alt but it was almost 20 years old lol it was just its time lol that was like 2 years ago

[MessyHonda]

yeah if you have a good batt and alternator you should not worry about it.


i had a 900 RMS kicker amp with 2 alpine Type Rs...and my headlights would blink alot. but it was too loud for everyday driving....you should be fine...just remember to get a nice big power wire and a good ground

[dworakj]

Yeah, my other thing is I'm not a huge fan of caps unless I have the components to make them work properly. They are perfect if you use them correctly, they can get rid of unwanted noise etc. Also, I get wire super cheap so I am going to do an upgrade on the wires. I use 1/0 gage, which sounds rediculous but it only costs me about 1.13 a foot. Plus at that wire thickness there is virtually no loss along the length of the wire...so why not?

And on upgrading the engine wiring, I saw the how to with 4 gage(?) but if I can get 2 gage and all of the interconnects for cheap, is it worth it over those distances? The difference in cost is probably about 10 cents a foot. I work at an engineering firm/machine shop so I get all of the perks of OEM discounts...

Also, when I run my accessory wire to my amps where can I tap off of from the fuse panel. I haven't really looked into it yet, instead I came on here and started reading my eyes out because I figured it would save me the tylenol and excessive amounts of alcohol later.

[mkymonkey]

if youre talking about my how to on the ground wires, i used 4g wire because its what came with the kit i bought. but i dont see why you cant use 2g. for the accessory wire, if youre going to put in an aftermarket radio in the car...the head unit should come with an accessory/remote wire to turn the amps on.

[dworakj]

Yeah I understand that, but my S-10 requires me to run an auxiliary accessory wire myself. It's obnoxious. It's nice to know that other car manufacturers put it right in the harness. Oh and about the wiring harness. Does anyone have a part number or website that has the aftermarket harness on it? Thanks

[MessyHonda]

Yeah I understand that, but my S-10 requires me to run an auxiliary accessory wire myself. It's obnoxious. It's nice to know that other car manufacturers put it right in the harness. Oh and about the wiring harness. Does anyone have a part number or website that has the aftermarket harness on it? Thanks

are you going to run the stock deck or an aftermarket one?

[ghettogeddy]

after market deck should have ur aux wire on the deck u can eather use the antenna wire or the amp wire one will be all blue the other will be blue with a white stripe also caps dont have a lot to do eith clearing the noise more used to make cleaner power so the amps arent sucking the life out of the system.

[redrocks]

anybody have pics of these systems?and for the altenater thread up above.I have two rockford 2400's and one jvc 800 with two- 3 farad caps and 4- 12inch audiobahns, 2 tvs and a playstation.The lights blink like a cop car but all I have had to do was get a battery with a higher reserve.

[MessyHonda]

anybody have pics of these systems?and for the altenater thread up above.I have two rockford 2400's and one jvc 800 with two- 3 farad caps and 4- 12inch audiobahns, 2 tvs and a playstation.The lights blink like a cop car but all I have had to do was get a battery with a higher reserve.

damn....i want to see pics of your set up...sound like something crazy they would put in pimp my ride.

[dworakj]

I understand that my aux wire can provide power but the problem with my s-10 was that it had no accesory power from the factory harness to the accesory on the aftermarket, not that it matters this is an accord website. Anyways, thanks for help I will have to make sure to keep my DMM around.

Oh and also, caps can be a large drain on an underpowered system. They act like another component in the system, instead of facilitating the system they contribute to the mess. According to what everyone is saying I shouldn't have a problem otherwise, just a bunch of soldering and some type of brackets to make up.

One more question, how critical will it be for me to damp my doors, etc. I know the basics of sound and wave motion (Hooray for physics) but I don't want the weight in my stock LX-i. Any tips?

Redrocks what type of battery did you replace with?

[mkymonkey]

depending on how much power and boom boom you plan to run in this car you REALLY dont need to use the sound dampening material. i have infinity components, 6x9's and had an infinity 12" 300rms watt sub in my coupe and never heard a rattle....inside the car that is. outside you could hear the trunk plate rattling but not much. road noise is minimal as well....until you get a cai haha

[dworakj]

Yep, I've already taken the rattle into consideration. I stole this two sided foam ultra tape from this guy that worked at 3M. It is rediculously sticky and I am going to put it around my liscense plate before bolting it down to cure the rattliness. Last thing I need to be doing is subbing with an obnoxious rattle around the streets of Milwaukee...

[ghettogeddy]

ya i dont notice to much rattle form my doors in eather of my 3gees one has polk audio 5 1/4's the other has mtx 5 1/4's even when i was running 3 10" i didn't notice much inside noise as i did out side

[MessyHonda]

yeah outside it sounds like crap but inside it sounds good. i wonder why...lol

[dworakj]

haha, does anyone have a link to a site or a store where I can buy the aftermarket harness install kit. And also is there a mouting kit or can I just slide in my stereo because it's a DIN to DIN switch.

[ghettogeddy]

npo mounting bracket needed just the sleeve that came with the radio as far as harness go just go into walmart any honda harness from like 99 and down will work
also any of those should work Shameless ebay plug

[dworakj]

Excellent, thanks for all the help ghetto, and who doesn't enjoy the occasional ebay. I will have to update with the results of the install and pics hopefully.