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PM'd back. Yeah I mean definitely go the route the others are suggesting if you're into a more complicated setup. but my recommendations are based on simplicity and cost effectiveness.
I've had elaborate and expensive setups before but I guess as I got older I realized a few things:
1) I'm never getting that money back from spending all that money on mods, so ideally I want to find a balance of sound quality, price, reversibility, ease of install.
2) A car is a terrible environment for sound to begin with. Road noise, engine noise, wind noise... yet we spend thousands for that miniscule gain in sound quality... for what?
3) My commutes are shorter than ever and half the time anyway I'm listening to talk radio MSNBC/XM/Howard Stern lol. So I need high end audio for what now?
So I felt from reading your posts, your needs were similar to mine, hence why I am recommending a cheap pair of front door speakers (Polk DB651s), dash spakers (something like JBL Club 3020s) and a cheap sub--I have a JL Audio 10VW3 (I'm 75% sure that's the model) in a box and an amp ready to go should you need.
That whole setup cost me around $300-400 i think?
In my younger days, that wouldn't even cover the front speakers.
For my new ES, I just did dash speakers (the JBL 3020s) and called it a day. I'm very happy with the sound. factory sub sucks but from what I hear adding an aftermarket sub is a nightmare cause it doesn't sit well with the Active Noise Cancellation of the ES which fights with the sub.. lol.
On my 20th car (or so) I realized my goal is simple when modding: biggest improvement i can get with the smallest amount of money and at least 95% plug and play factor. ideally not mod the car at all.
You can take my recommended setup and kick it up a notch with a simple amp. The good part is you can pop in the door speakers, get a pair of dash speakers and run it and see if you like it. if not, add an amp.
I'm telling you the sound was nice. crystal clear and loud. I miss the simplicity of the stock CT system vs. my new ES. but oh well!
Replacing only your speakers would probably make the system sound worse as they need more current to properly move the voice coils.
For me, Polk DB651 6.5 marine 2-ways worked brilliantly even without the amp. Very loud and clear. I've had them in my 3G prius, 1st CT200h F sport, and 2nd CT200h F Sport. They're 60W rms so they're easily driven by the stock HU and are a massive upgrade. When I sold my CT, i pulled the amp but left the door speakers in (The polks) and was brilliantly surprised at how clear they were. Great plug and play upgrade.
I have a feeling getting the new speakers alone in there, with a sub, will be sufficient as you described E46CT. I think we're on the same page with these kinds of things. Let me see how this setup works, if I can get it there and as PM'd may take you up on some of your items. Figure use what I got for now.
Got the LC2i hooked up with the sub, the amp, and...the amp doesn't turn on.
So disappointing. Ground and 12v power cables are fine (some shotty wire strips though) The LC2i is working and tested (hooked up to same +/- as the amp) so there is power there.
Edit: Didn't connect the remote in wire. Damn. Didn't do all my homework plus rushed it a bit as it got late. Will update tomorrow.
Last edited by HOMER350; Feb 26, 2021 at 11:17 PM.
So got every hooked up and worked. So I disconnected everything so I could get the wires where/how I wanted them for now, and reconnected the same way it was...
Now, the remote wire is not working. It is not turning on the amp like it was just earlier. Everything else has power, tested it. If I connect the remote wire from the amp to the LC2i 12V constant power then boom, everything works. But if I put the remote wire to the "remote out" where it's supposed to be it doesn't work. LC2i is on, power/ground is working everywhere....just that remote wire.
Could use some help on this. I've fiddled around with it for quite a while and want to troubleshoot before I show up where I bought the LC2 and insist on anything.
I figured if it worked before I disconnected everything so I could organize the cables then must of connected something wrong...but that's not it.
Idk if it matters but when I hookup my probe to the battery to test ans touch the remote wire with it...it comes on (because the LC2 is on). I have no remote in because of the GTO function.
Last edited by HOMER350; Feb 27, 2021 at 01:50 PM.
Tried turning off GTO mode and powering direct with remote in, remote out still didn't work. So turned back to GTO (because it does work) and just ran the remote wire from the amp back up front to the cig lighter.
now just to repair my sub and/or replace. Its in far worse condition than I thought...foam edge deterioration bad. Really nice JL sub but would never know it right now.
For a rookie whos basically never even split a wire...I'm fine with how it all came out.
Looks clean and functional so far, one thing I would personally do that I saw somebody else do, is to route the sub cable through the plastic cap on the left side of the trunk and use a cable sleeve. Much better if you could add a connector to the plastic cap and mating one on the sub wire.
Looks clean and functional so far, one thing I would personally do that I saw somebody else do, is to route the sub cable through the plastic cap on the left side of the trunk and use a cable sleeve. Much better if you could add a connector to the plastic cap and mating one on the sub wire.
So that way the power cord is not in the spare tire areas? Or what was the objective?
I still have some finishing up to do...planned at least to shorten the power cord (left it spooled up in there) and add a sleeve, and fasten it to whereever I fun it along. Also need to add a fuse to the LC box power cord before I really test it out on a functional sub (have fuse on amp power cord of course).
I meant the speaker wire, here's a thread with a similar setup, I loved how this looks well integrated, what I would change is to add a connector to where the speaker wire goes into the side wall to easily unplug the woofer.
I meant the speaker wire, here's a thread with a similar setup, I loved how this looks well integrated, what I would change is to add a connector to where the speaker wire goes into the side wall to easily unplug the woofer.
ohhh I see. Yeah that's a great idea. I knew I'd likely do something with that cable or at least have it out of sight but havnt got that far yet. Looks great what they did.
Thanks for sharing!
Hey man, I literally never stripped a wire before the day I did that. I guess I've just always had an electrician nearby (in fact I have). Funny cause I read people dreading taking apart headunit or door panels and having no issue understanding their components/wiring. I'm coming into this completely from the opposite direction being my experience is in taking things apart.
So got every hooked up and worked. So I disconnected everything so I could get the wires where/how I wanted them for now, and reconnected the same way it was...
Now, the remote wire is not working. It is not turning on the amp like it was just earlier. Everything else has power, tested it. If I connect the remote wire from the amp to the LC2i 12V constant power then boom, everything works. But if I put the remote wire to the "remote out" where it's supposed to be it doesn't work. LC2i is on, power/ground is working everywhere....just that remote wire.
Could use some help on this. I've fiddled around with it for quite a while and want to troubleshoot before I show up where I bought the LC2 and insist on anything.
I figured if it worked before I disconnected everything so I could organize the cables then must of connected something wrong...but that's not it.
Idk if it matters but when I hookup my probe to the battery to test ans touch the remote wire with it...it comes on (because the LC2 is on). I have no remote in because of the GTO function.
Do note that the LC2i only turns on the amp if it sees a constant signal NOT power. Their algorithm will turn the amp on and off automatically based on the speaker inputs. It's usually pretty good but once in a blue moon it won't turn on my amp and I would have to restart my car.
Install looks good. Nice find on the JL W7, that amp is ehhhh but it will get the job done.
Do note that the LC2i only turns on the amp if it sees a constant signal NOT power. Their algorithm will turn the amp on and off automatically based on the speaker inputs. It's usually pretty good but once in a blue moon it won't turn on my amp and I would have to restart my car.
Install looks good. Nice find on the JL W7, that amp is ehhhh but it will get the job done.
Thank you.
ok that makes some sense. I figured if the LC had enough signal to turn on then it should turn on the amp. I played with it for over an hour before I just decided to hook amp remote directly to its own source.
Yeah a little ironic with a $1200+ JL 12w7 sub and I think a pretty cheap amp but if it works I'm fine. Changing the sub this weekend to something much smaller anyways.
Mfg backorder on foam edge for the sub (Noone had one). Once I can get it I'll clean that thing up like new and likely sell it.
Thank you.
ok that makes some sense. I figured if the LC had enough signal to turn on then it should turn on the amp. I played with it for over an hour before I just decided to hook amp remote directly to its own source.
Yeah a little ironic with a $1200+ JL 12w7 sub and I think a pretty cheap amp but if it works I'm fine. Changing the sub this weekend to something much smaller anyways.
Mfg backorder on foam edge for the sub (Noone had one). Once I can get it I'll clean that thing up like new and likely sell it.
What are you replacing it with?
I would still give it a chance after the surround re-foam. W7's in the right size and tuned box plus the correct power will produce unbelievable sound. But I do get they are massive and are very very picky with the box and amp they're paired with.
I would still give it a chance after the surround re-foam. W7's in the right size and tuned box plus the correct power will produce unbelievable sound. But I do get they are massive and are very very picky with the box and amp they're paired with.
muxh smaller box with pretty cheap JL 10" sub. From what I read produces the sound I'm looking for.
I do look forward to using the w7 and I've heard it tuned right with this same amp (in a exact same car space/hatchback) and it's numbing, literally.bim sure I'll like it and just turn it down a bit for my tastes but the size I suspect will be an issue. It's half my cargo space and cuts into my rear view-view a bit.
