Easy Stereo Add-on
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  1. #1
    Senior Member 98valk's Avatar
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    Easy Stereo Add-on

    Hey All,
    I installed some rear speakers about a year ago. They put out only about 1/10th the volume of the front speakers. So, pretty much useless. I have tried other speakers with the same result.

    So, gave up and added a two channel amp to drive the rear speakers. What a world of difference! I am shocked! Those crappy little speakers are suddenly fantastic!

    With the four speakers the sound is so much fuller. You feel like you are in a room filled with music. Also, the little four inch rear speakers have much more bass and more punch than the front (I think that the front speaker magnets are just too small).

    The amp fits under the seat. There are four handy mounting bosses right there. Just make four zigzag angle brackets to hold the amp. The rear speaker wiring is right there (I used the high level inputs). And the speakers are attach to the hand rails - out of the way of any luggage/packing.

    It came out great. The amp has enough oomph to drive another speaker using the bridged output. I might someday cram a woofer into the glove box area. I am happy for now.

    Attachment 13825
    Amp fits comfortably under the seat.

    Attachment 13826
    Input wiring is right there!

    Attachment 13827
    Testing ....

    100_3024.jpg
    And done.
    Albuquerque, NM

  2. #2
    Senior Member 53driver's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    Hey All,
    I installed some rear speakers about a year ago. They put out only about 1/10th the volume of the front speakers. So, pretty much useless. I have tried other speakers with the same result.
    If you were using the OEM amp to drive 4 speakers, I'm not surprised. OEM amp can barely drive two...

    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    So, gave up and added a two channel amp to drive the rear speakers. What a world of difference! I am shocked! Those crappy little speakers are suddenly fantastic!
    Proper power is goodness!

    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    With the four speakers the sound is so much fuller. You feel like you are in a room filled with music. Also, the little four inch rear speakers have much more bass and more punch than the front (I think that the front speaker magnets are just too small).
    The odds are very good that the power amp you installed is providing much more oomph to the rear speakers than the OEM amp is providing to the front speakers (8 Watts). Low range demands more power.

    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    It came out great. The amp has enough oomph to drive another speaker using the bridged output. I might someday cram a woofer into the glove box area. I am happy for now.
    Check the amp manual....I would be VERY surprised if you can use the Bridged output simultaneously with the other outputs. "Bridging an amp" means linking the two stereo sections together to form a more powerful mono amplifier and by internal functionals, it cannot perform stereo functions simultaneously.

    In the mean time though...enjoy your tunes!
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  3. #3
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    I am thinking about doing just this. I haven't taken off the seat yet to look at everything. Can you give me a description of how to connect to the amp.
    Matt Russell
    First Officer
    SCRC Chapter 189
    Orangeburg SC

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    Question stereo

    What brand of speakers and amp did you use?

  5. #5
    Senior Member 98valk's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by chief212 View Post
    What brand of speakers and amp did you use?
    The speakers are Patriot Audio, I got from Vidsonix. They are VX-138BX and are labeled as 80W. That is probably peak, so maybe 40-50W RMS. I bought them for the power and the convenient housing.

    I think these are them, though he is only rating them at 50W.

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Patriot-...item51959c8110


    Attachment 13834

    The amp is a Power Acoustik RZ2-1300D. It has way more power than I need, which will keep it reliable. It is a class D amp, which makes it more efficient (less heat), at the expense of high frequency quality. I can't tell that there is less quality and figured that I couldn't.

    I don't doubt that someone can come up with a better amp. This one measures 5x7x1.5", which fit easily under the seat and runs cooler than others.

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/201178485300...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

    Hope that helps!
    Albuquerque, NM

  6. #6
    Senior Member 98valk's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 53driver View Post
    If you were using the OEM amp to drive 4 speakers, I'm not surprised. OEM amp can barely drive two...

    The odds are very good that the power amp you installed is providing much more oomph to the rear speakers than the OEM amp is providing to the front speakers (8 Watts). Low range demands more power.


    Check the amp manual....I would be VERY surprised if you can use the Bridged output simultaneously with the other outputs. "Bridging an amp" means linking the two stereo sections together to form a more powerful mono amplifier and by internal functionals, it cannot perform stereo functions simultaneously.

    In the mean time though...enjoy your tunes!
    It isn't so much a power problem with the OEM amp. We've been through this already and I have shown that the OEM amp will supply 40W per channel into 4 ohms.

    100_3263.jpg
    ~36v pk-pk ~= 12.6v RMS

    The problem was the extreme difference in speaker sensitivity between OEM and my rear speakers.

    I can run speakers simultaneously in Bridged and Stereo. My two speakers are effectively hooked up to the bridge outputs already as an 8 ohm load. The two stereo outputs (R- & L+) are permanently linked on this amp. I can connect another single 8 ohm speaker across that 8 ohms and have a total impedance of about 4 ohms. This amp will handle this. Good point, though. You are keeping me on my toes.


    On a side note for anyone:
    The front OEM speakers are labeled as 3.8 ohm. The tweeters are labeled as 4 ohm (impedance, not resistance). These speakers are in parallel. So, it would appear that it is a 2 ohm load total, at least at some frequencies. Interesting .....
    Albuquerque, NM

  7. #7
    Senior Member 53driver's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    It isn't so much a power problem with the OEM amp. We've been through this already and I have shown that the OEM amp will supply 40W per channel into 4 ohms.
    Copy. I must have missed that post. I was going by what a Honda Gold Wing mech told me about the 2012 and up stereos.

    Attachment 13835
    ~36v pk-pk ~= 12.6v RMS

    So this is with a sine wave (freq?) on the stock amp?

    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    The problem was the extreme difference in speaker sensitivity between OEM and my rear speakers.
    That'll do it everytime!

    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    I can run speakers simultaneously in Bridged and Stereo.
    Damn - amp technology is getting better and better. None of my pro-audio amps will do that.

    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    These speakers are in parallel. So, it would appear that it is a 2 ohm load total, at least at some frequencies. Interesting .....
    Aye, very interesting. I wish you would have put an Ohm meter across the speaker leads when you had her apart.
    And no, I wouldn't have thought of it either....
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    Senior Member ths61's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 98valk View Post
    ...
    I don't doubt that someone can come up with a better amp. This one measures 5x7x1.5", which fit easily under the seat and runs cooler than others.
    ...
    That is cool that it fits under the seat, enjoy.

  9. #9
    Senior Member 98valk's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 53driver View Post

    Aye, very interesting. I wish you would have put an Ohm meter across the speaker leads when you had her apart.
    And no, I wouldn't have thought of it either....
    Actually, I did try. They have a cap there probably to block the lower frequencies (an LC circuit?). So, I couldn't easily get a resistance measurement.

    I did measure .68uf at two different frequencies with a cap meter. And measured about 8 ohms impedance at 100khz with another meter. That happens to be the frequency the meter uses.

    The tweeter is marked 15w. That's not a lot of power, but a lot for a tweeter.

    Maybe next time I am in there, I'll try more testing ...
    Albuquerque, NM

  10. #10
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    98,
    although this amp runs cooler,does it get enough air under the seat to keep the amp cool and the seat from getting hot?
    thanks,
    Doug

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