Do it yourself? or not be Cheap?

[MX3-Life]

I'm recently considering putting the following in my MX3
1. http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/prodde ... 249&catid=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
2. http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/prodde ... 448&catid=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

May re-think the amp but that doesn't really matter...

I have basicly no experience in hooking up electronics and i was just going to pay the install guys to install it, But then i thought if i read up on it and do my homework could i do a decent job in a decent time doing it myself?

Any thoughts...?

[matt753]

First of all, don't buy car audio from future shop haha

[TREVO123]

Secound of all dont buy MTX!!! It is basic to install! just read up.

[2fazed]

I don't know about the subs, but MTX amps are solid, and cheap. Take a look on Ebay and search through all the different brands. You'll find a better deal.

[onlytrueromeo]

I put JL Audio sub/amps in my car w/ MOMO speakers.....I'm very happy with the setup. Just look for an amp that can power whatever you wanna do, but has a low THD. My friend got a free "BOSS" amp, something like 200w RMS and 1000watt peak, and it blew his P2 Punch. We all told him not to hook it up, but he wouldn't listen. I haven't experienced MTX personally, but I would look at online reviews to see other's opinions. I think that if you are willing to spend a little money now, you can spend a little more and be happier in the long run. Check out http://www.millionbuy.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. I bought most of my audio stuff from them, fast shipping and decent prices. Ebay is also good, but you have to know what to get. Just a caution on JL Audio stuff if you go in that direction, they DON'T give warranties unless you buy it from them or from Crutchfield....both of which are entirely too expensive.

A few months ago I had absolutely no experience myself either. I read a bunch of posts by *Chew on here, and some other members to see what they did in their MX-3's. I would suggest doing the same, and looking at some websites that deal with the stuff. I had a bunch bookmarked, but apparently the websites have been taken down...If you're looking for a balanced system, you really only need 1 subwoofer, heck, even if you want LOUD you really only need one subwoofer, fired rear towards the hatch. A 12" will hit lower than a 10" of the same brand, but the smaller the sub the faster the response rate. If you buy high quality, it shouldn't matter that much. I'm running a 250watt mono amp to my JL W3v3, and it gets louder than hell with my gain turned most of the way down. I mean I haven't brought it in to get tested to see the SPL, but I know that I can't listen to it at 3/4 volume for more than a few seconds before it gets uncomfortable. Sub power isn't everything, it has alot to do with overall efficiency.

As far as wiring the system goes, it's really not that hard. If you're in a nothern/cold climate, its probably not a good idea to do this outside. You will need to work from outside of the car for a little while. There are a bunch of "How-To's" on the internet that show you how to do this. All wires will be run under the carpet, so you may have to pull up some of the clips that hold it down. I mounted my amps to the back of the rear seat (screwed into the metal) then ran all the wires down the center of the car, under the carpet. You need a remote wire and a set of RCA's to go to your cd player, and a power wire to go to the positive battery terminal on your car. The amp gets grounded within about a foot of where it is mounted.

Here is a starter website to look at:
http://www.caraudiobook.com/car_audio_a ... lation.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Hope that helps.

~Romeo

[94drumx3]

Just do your homework and do it yourself. If all else fails take it in.

[matt753]

You will also save a lot of money by not buying an amp kit. Just find out what and how much wire you need then go and buy it separately. You will save a lot of money by just buying the power wire, fuses, remote wire, etc separately rather than paying for a $300 or $400 amp kit.

[SuperK]

I agree with do it yourself.

Listen, you might look at the car and be like, "umm, what am I supposed to do here" but as soon as you get into the install, everything falls in place like butter.


4 gauge fuse
4 gauge audio wire. Measure enough to run from the battery to the trunk, plus a few feet.

There's a hole in the firewall behind the battery that fits perfectly. run it up in there.

The plastic side sill on the door frame snaps right off. pull it off, run the wire under there.
Yank out the rear seat, it just pulls right off. run it behind the rear to the trunk.

hook it up to the amp (positive)
take a little 4 gauge for the ground wire. I suggest mounting it to the seatbelt bolt under the rear seat, which should be already off right now

Run some speaker wire to your sub
take some extra speaker wire for the remote and run it to your head unit. in the back there will be a single wire labeled REM or remote or whatever, connect it, turn the car on, and live happily ever after.

super easy, go ahead and to it yourself.

We believe in you!

Well.. heh.. not really.

[MX3-Life]

All very helpfull info but lets talk brands for the most decent price what decent brands em i looking at?

Thanks for all the feedback.

[SuperK]

JL Audio makes AMAZING amplifiers. I've seen some 200w mono amps of theirs kick subs so hard, very impressive.

as far as subwoofers, I would honestly recommend 1 sub, as it fills the entire car with a tremendous amount of bass and saves your trunk.
Visonik V123BP and V103BP I hear are just about the best sounding subs for the price.

[the_anj]

as far as subwoofers, I would honestly recommend 1 sub, as it fills the entire car with a tremendous amount of bass and saves your trunk.
Visonik V123BP and V103BP I hear are just about the best sounding subs for the price.

I'm haven't really been into car audio for a while, but I tend to agree. Pay a little more, get something a little better, and you only need 1. I kind of regret not spending a bit more and getting 1 really good sub instead of 2 that aren't quite as good

[chew*]

take a little 4 gauge for the ground wire. I suggest mounting it to the seatbelt bolt under the rear seat, which should be already off right now

Just some FYI super, seatbelt bolts are the worst place to ground from. I suggest in this car using the rear strutower bolts, grind the paint down to bare metal. I did extensive testing and that is THE best ground in the mx-3...

As far as brands for good sound JL's are the best bang for buck. Amps I can not reccomend anything new atm.......an old kicker kx1200.1 of ebay will smoke most of the stuff out there today, configurations with it are endless, its rated to 1 ohm stable does 1/2 stable......and if its to much power you can run it at 2 or 4 ohms.....for $300 or less used its the best bang for buck.

I would not use the new stuff for much more than a paperweight, I sold all my zx 2500's after the season. 2 zx2500.1's were only .3 db louder than my 2 kx1200.1s and that was after i dropped them below they're 2 ohm rated specs.....In order to gain 3 db you need to double your power and double your cone area, so if you double your power only real world should see 1.5db increase, Obviously the kx 1200.1 put out alot more than rated for.....or the zx2500.1 doesn't put out what its rated at...............Me personally I bought 16 more Kx 1200.1s.......I think they should be enough to power 2 subs in my festiva 2 amps per coil.

[SuperK]

Thanks for the grounding info, chew. I was recommended the seatbelt bolt by several individuals, but I never went out to test the resistance myself.

I'll go fix that on my setup now