Quick Moon and Tunes wiring question...

Stereo, security systems, vehicle electronics, and electrical-related discussions
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Jhiller
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Mar 21, 2017 10:58 am

Quick Moon and Tunes wiring question...

Post by Jhiller »

So, I put my Pioneer head unit in my '03 vibe, using a Metra factory harness, and everything seems to be working fine. However, my front door speakers are bad, and were before I swapped out the head unit. The driver side tweeter isn't working and both front door speakers/woofers (not sure if they are two way or just woofers, as I haven't had the doors apart yet) are rattling, I assume from either foam dry rot or just being nearly completely blown. Anyway, since I know I have the amp working properly and I know the amp is designed to run 2-ohm loads.... would I be better off getting a pair of 4-ohm door speakers and a pair of 4-ohm replacement tweeters, and wire them in parallel (with a crossover between them, of course), to keep the load in the doors at 2-ohms? Are the factory tweeters in the doors wired in parallel to the woofers or do they have their own, crossed-over output from the M&T amp? Back door speakers are fine. They don't sound great, but they sound good enough that I can't be bothered to replace them at the moment, so I am going to just keep using the OEM speakers in the back doors for the time being. Anyway, if someone knows the answer to my questions about the front door speakers that would be a BIG help to me. I want to have an idea what I am getting into and have the parts I need to do it right the first time.

I am sort of surprised that I don't hear the amp breaking up from being run off the speaker outs from my head-unit, but I don't usually crank it up loud, I just listen to music or talk radio going to and from work, and the rattling front speakers are driving me crazy, LOL. But, I don't hear any breakup in the back speakers at all, so I am pretty sure I'm not overdriving my car's factory amp.
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joatmon
Posts: 10018
Joined: Fri Mar 21, 2003 5:19 am
Location: SMC MD

Re: Quick Moon and Tunes wiring question...

Post by joatmon »

Welcome to genvibe

I'm not much use at audio stuff, but from http://forums.genvibe.com/files/importe ... eradio.gif I can tell that there are separate distinct amp outputs for each of the six speakers, if there is a crossover, its inside the amp. I had to replace the front speakers in one of mine, and used 4 ohms speakers, but I do no longer have a discerning ear, and can['t testify to any impact on audio quality, and accept no liability if you do the same and problems ensue With an aftermarket headunit and the potential replacement of most of the speakers, you might consider just bypassing the factory amp.

The door panel is relatively easy to remove, you might want to verify the speakers are blown before you buy new ones

Hopefully someone with better audio experience will give some valid info ;)
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Jhiller
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Mar 21, 2017 10:58 am

Re: Quick Moon and Tunes wiring question...

Post by Jhiller »

OK, so I took a chance and ordered two pairs of Rockford R165X3 speakers, which are 6.75", from Crutchfield, since they send you the speaker harness adapters and the mounting adapters... I have to say that I'm impressed with these speakers for the money, they really have a great sound. I have a Pioneer DEH-X5500HD head unit wired into the factory harness with a Metra harness adapter, and I haven't bypassed the factory amp, but I am not experiencing any overdriving of my M&T amp at all, that I can tell, and I have to say again, for just being a 6.75" speaker, the Rockfords carry a good bit of low end. I didn't use dynamat or anything of that sort, I just mounted them up in the factory positions, although I DID use a bead of gray RTV sealant around the Metra mounting adapters to make sure they were tight to the door and don't rattle. Made a HUGE difference from the factory speakers, which had 100% of the foam dry-rotted off the front woofers and the back door speakers weren't in very good shape either. I unhooked the factory tweeters, as the Rockfords have plenty of highs on their own. I did leave the wiring in place for the tweeters, though, so if I ever want to use tweeters, I can just mount some up in the factory location and there's already wiring for them.

I was under the impression that the M&T amp is designed for seeing a 2-ohm load, but the back of my factory tweeters were clearly labeled 4-ohms, and if I am reading the wiring diagram for the amp correctly, there's a pair of separate wiring outputs for the tweeters from the front woofers, so maybe the amp isn't designed to run 2-ohms... it seems to have zero trouble getting plenty loud with 4-ohm speakers all the way around, although the Rockfords are rated at 91db sensitivity, so I'm sure that helps them out...
302LVR
Posts: 56
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2016 2:04 pm
Location: South Florida

Re: Quick Moon and Tunes wiring question...

Post by 302LVR »

Not sure what combo speakers you're running but sounds like u went with Fosgate 2 or 3-ways. I'm in the process of installing 2-way components on mine but had an unfortunate setback n i'll get back to it soon. I'm pretty sure if you're only running a 1 way speaker for lows on the door, it will sound a lot better with tweeters mounted up higher away from the low door speakers. Go for it and let us know how it sounds. Thanks.
Jhiller
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Mar 21, 2017 10:58 am

Re: Quick Moon and Tunes wiring question...

Post by Jhiller »

Yes, the speakers I installed are Rockford 3-ways, and they sound really good, even without the tweeters hooked up in the sail panels. I was guessing I would want to install new tweeters, but I don't think I need them after hearing the Rockfords.

The Rockfords have enough bass for the average listener, in my opinion, that you don't really need a sub. They carry a lot more low end than the factory speakers did, although I'm not going to say that they bring the BOOM like a sub, because I've owned systems with a sub on them, and they don't. They do sound very nice, though, and have enough lows that you can feel them if you turn it up a little while driving. Highly recommended as far as speakers go, well worth what they cost. And, other than having to find shorter screws to mount them to the Metra door adapter plates, the installation was a breeze, too. The Rockfords come with screws that are between a quarter and a half-inch longer than the Metra door adapter plates are thick, so if you use the Rockford screws, you'll have to cut them shorter with something. I just rounded up sixteen shorter screws, I was fortunate in that I have a box of assorted screws I bought for around the house from our hardware store, so I didn't have to go scrounging for any...LOL. I already had my doors apart before I discovered I needed shorter screws...that's what I get for not reading all the instructions first... oops. :lol:
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