Well make sure you choose a sub that's efficient enough to run off the bridged connect of the alpine. I've used Alpine amps and they are good but if you're using a single sub then get a 2 ohm version. The JL12 W3 V3 2ohm is excellent. If you want more base out of it then get a ported bandpass box. It'll have a tuned range some where around 80hz. They sound pretty good and it'll help out considering you won't be running a ton of RMS watts to the sub. The nice thing about the above setup is you can add a sub amp later with minimal effort and expense. With that said run 4 gauge now so you can add a distro block and also run an extra set or RCA from your rear out on the deck. You'll want to use the sub out on the deck to the rear RCA input on the amp. Later if you decide to add a sub amp it''l be a 10 minute job consisting of adding a power wire from the distro block, A Capacitor, A gound wire and switching the RCA setup. No tearing out the seats and carpet.

 

One other thing I forgot if you decide to add the sub amp later the JL 12W3 will handle the added power!! JL ROCKS!

 

Another thing is if you're planning on using the stock location in the front you may want to add a set of 6.5 in the doors instead. Most of the mids and high you're going to hear come from the front speakers the provide all the imaging and the rears are mostly for fill. So what i'm saying is the front speakers are more important in a listening enviroment than the rears. If you do want to add the fronts in the doors then they'll want to be on the amp as well. I think at that point you'd want to add the second amp. I've seen some people run both sets on the front channel of a 4 channel amp with a sub on the rear but it's usually a stepping point for when they want to add to the system later. The Alpine should be able to handle that for a while but in the long run it's a little hard on it with the subs sucking all the power from the rear channel and the funky ohm load of two sets of speakers on the front channel. I also would recommend using the HP filter for the fronts and the LP for the sub. THe Alpines are nice since they have an adjustable HP and LP filter not just a flick the switch and you're done. Also don't crank up the gains all the way and then turn the bass all the way up on the radio. Set the gains at about 1/2 to 3/4 and use the amps base boost settings to add flavor to your subs. I usually leave the bass at 0 on the radio and then tune a little depending on the types of music. The treble I adjust from the radio.

 

John101477:

I too am a MECP certified installer. I went to RITOP in Watertown, MA, one of the best schools in the country. I did not say that you don't know what you are talking about. In fact, I agree with pretty much everything you've said in this thread. About the "slow blow" fuse thing, you want the fuse to blow the instant it's overloaded. I've never actually heard of a "slow blow" fuse so I may have jumped the gun on that one. I recommended a larger ga ground wire because it is, just as if not, more important than the power wire. Arguably, the ground wire should be fused. The current flows from - to +, you know that.

I didn't mean to come off as a a**hole in my previous post

 

Sounds like you will have a solid setup with those components. Good luck with the install, hope all goes well.

Thomas

 

I run a set of 6x9's in my runner. i am not saying 6x9's are bad just that a set of 6 1/2 seperates will out perform a set of 6x9's in the same class. I have had the oportunity to test a very wide range of speakers and do the write up for them. I sat with Tom Gaza and metered several different size speakers. For perfect reproduction as intended by the artist, round speakers were cleaner than others. now if we wanted to get down to nuts and bolts one speakers, the horn speaker is still the clearest cleanest reproducing speaker there is. such as Image Dynamics horns. the problem that many companies face is that they are not cost effective. as well as locating them inside a car.... the same could be said with enclosures the bast sounding enclosure is a box that is about half the size of a truck, where a simple 10 in sub tuned to 60 hz takes a passage way of roughly 33 ft. it's the best but not economical?!?

 

Thanks!
I'll post pics when I complete everything in a few weeks.

 

i wouldnt suggest making your ground wire larger than your power wire and i would suggest keeping it around 12" as mentioned

just my two cents as an installer

 

So your an installer huh? MECP cert? What level? where'd you learn your trade? who have you worked for?

 

yes mecp basic set to expire in 3 months, and mps certified. worked for circuit city, best buy and a private owned company until the owner passed away. have been installing since 1997. not currently an installer by trade but still an installer none the less. did my post touch a nerve?

 

I came here with questions about the charging system on my '06--read your questions and had to share my audio system experience with my '93 runner--may it rest in peace. I had 4" Infinity Reference's up front and 5 1/2"s in the back, driven by an older Alpine head unit putting out 50w per channel. Lows were provided by a pair of 10" Phoenix Gold RS10d's powered by an old school Punch 75. It wouldn't win any contest, but it sounded alright. When I put the Infinity's into speaker enclosures from a stock Premium Sound system that I found on ebay the mids came up to par with the bass--You simply will not believe the difference those little plastic boxes will make in the range and loudness of those 4" Infinity's until you hear it for yourself! When I replaced the head unit with an Alpine CDA-9887--with it's active crossovers and Audssey Imprint sound sculpting capability--I could not believe the difference in the sound, it was clear and loud, the mids were full and the cymbals were crisp, and of course the PG's thumped hard--with well under $1000 invested.

 

just the mention of 12 in on the ground, while your right on it not needing to be bigger search your MECP hand book and it clearly states that 18 is the longest you want to use. if you can hide the wire in less and still have a proper ground so be it. shorter is better but many times what happens is some one attaches to the seat belt bolt which is neither safe or acceptable - in a lawsuit you'd loose because you tampered with a part of the saftey system the same apply's when you have to mess with an airbag such as in the 2005 impala where you have to disconnect the airbag to re - locate the head unit. thats one reason curcit city stopped installing on those years of impala's same with best buy.
Other than that, glad there is another ex pro here. I am actually getting ready to re vamp my system. hoping to score some horns from Image. hoping they remember me. I have not installed in about 4 years besides an 05 ram. you ever go to CES? dang those were the days. I used to love that show.

 

very valid point about the length of the ground. i just out of habit say 12" for the ground and try to keep the fuse 12" or less from the battery. easier to remember lol. good luck with those image horns i can only imagine how awesome that would sound. never made it out to ces but that is a dream of mine. was supposed to go the year my friend/old boss passed away but that never pulled through after he passed. regardless of how long its been since you have installed you will remember as soon as you kneel down to take off that first door panel. yota's are pretty easy to work on. and remember if you pull and it stays in place you forgot a screw haha

later

 

hahaha yeah yotas are easy. i still say the worst vehicle to work on is the old 70's model chevys. don't matter what model. to much cutting lol. although i worked on a few boats and one RV. the RV's i'll never touch again, the boats were fun but lots of screws cubbys and stuff in the way.
CES is awsome for all electronics but SEMA had a lot of awsome mobile stuff. the models are hot at both and vegas is awsome that time of year for CES (plus the adult convention three streets over), you get to see alot of stuff lol.

 

sorry to the OP for jacking your thread. or how about every thing you try to remove on the old chevys that just crumble in your hands no matter what you do. i worked on a big house boat once and itched for about two weeks afterwards because everything i drilled into/through was fiberglass, and of course it was all above me so i had no option but to lay in it. they had a SEMA show out here in jersey a few years back, i went to it but wasnt all that impressed. i did however me stephen papadakis (sp?) and funk flex as well as got to see the awesome alpine bmw X5 with all the airbrushing on it. that thing was sick

 

Speaker enclosures?? Tell me more!

 

hey Texas. The "plastic boxes" he is talking about are called baffles. they are for your mids. they are really a good idea for a few reasons. 1 helps keep dust out of the speaker motor giving it a longer life. 2, they help increase the midbase by giving the speaker an air base rather than free air, also giving you a cleaner sound. here is amazons link so you can check them out. http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&key...l_7dxdjc02kw_b

 

Yeah I felt the same way about the import show (HIN) in San Metao Ca. it was cool but not the best. You have to go to the big Sema show for it to be good. I hear ya on the rust and glass man. I was building a three sub fiberglass inclosure that fit into the spare of a honda accord shaped like a bio-hazzard symbol (what a pain in the rear) I spent a lot of time on this because it was in a show car so sanding and making sure there were no imperfections was a pain. I was itchin for a few weeks.

yeah sorry texas fo jackin ur thread hope i have been of some help though

 

NOT baffles, not aftermarket, these are ported speaker boxes that came out of a 4Runner that had the Premium Sound System installed from the factory. The OEM boxes are plastic and L & R are different shapes so they can make use of the limited space available under the dash--but they made those 4" Infinity Reference's sound amazing! They just produced a lot more sound from the lower end of their frequency range because of the ports. I found them on ebay a couple years ago, you might have better luck in a salvage yard. As a last resort, I did salvage my entire system from my rolled '93--and they are not much use to me in my '06.

 

Would it happen to be these??