AJRX8

Hey everyone. I have an '04 Eight with factory Bose, and I'm elbows-deep in a project you all might be interested in: replacing my factory stereo with a Pioneer 808 DIN. I see all over the forums there are many different ways to go about this, so when I'm done I'll be happy to share photos of my particular project.

First, I need a wiring diagram of the main stereo plug for the factory headunit. This I will tap to supply power to my Pioneer DIN. If anyone has a diagram, please let me know. I realize that red is hot and black is ground, but I still want to know what all the rest of the wires are.

I am going to install the Pioneer to run overtop the factory system, leaving the original headunit in place for its heater controls (and resale value of the car; some buyers are funny about custom wiring and they like to see the original stereo in place). I bought a dash panel from Taiwan that replaces the center section of the dash and provides an area to house the DIN headunit. For all intents and purposes the factory headunit will think it's still in place, just not wired to any speakers.

I am running fused four-gauge wire to the trunk, through a 2-amp Soundesign cap, to drive my 800w Soundesign 5-channel amp. The sub will go into a custom MDF/carpeted box to fit the low area of the trunk, a 10" Kicker Comp sealed speaker. The rest of the speakers I will wire out through the factory amp connection, so if anybody has that diagram let me know as well.

Rear 6x9's will be replaced with Kicker equivalents (you should see the magnets on these things). Front speakers will be replaced with 5" Kicker active-crossover mylar speakers, and I will probably leave the Bose tweeters in place in the doors and drive them from the Kicker crossovers. Normally I would take the Bose tweets out and replace them with Kicker components, but I actually think the Bose perform pretty well and I want to keep this whole thing as minimally invasive to the car as possible.

WikkedOne

Thread about Wire Harness n stuff

That should help with your wiring questions.

as for the other things --
I would reconsider the trunk well subwoofer. Because then you are either going to have zero trunk to use. Or you're going to risk damage to the subwoofer by trying to come up with some way that you can put stuff on top of it.

and the well is so small it will be hard to build a box that has enough airspace for a good woofer.

There are alot of better solutions that give the same results. I'm going to guess your looking to use as little trunk as possible. In which case you should get a 4080 box. They are awesome boxes that don't take up much trunk. And you can use them when you have stuff in your trunk!

I also think you should reconsider putting some aftermarket tweeters in the doors. It really will make a big difference, trust me.

what model of amp and sub are you going for?

oh yeah and Capacitors are measured in Farads not amps.

AJRX8

Farads rate the capacity of a cap. Amp rating refers to the strength of the internal wiring, which also plays a part. I believe this is a 1.2 Farad cap, rated to 2 amps... I could tell you more but I threw the box away. It's a really heavy-duty friggin' cap, I can tell you that, and it's designed to match my amp.

I already have all the equipment. I'm not sure which model number amp I have; I'd have to look it up. The sub is a 10" mylar Kicker Comp built for a sealed box.

The sub is currently mounted in a cube box which won't fit into the trunk... won't even fit through the lid opening in fact. What I'm planning to do is calculate the interior space of the sub's current cube, then reproduce its volume by adjusting the height of an MDF box built to fit the footprint of the trunk well. I already have Ocite carpeting to match my Eight's trunk color. If need be I will add polyester pillow ticking to acoustically "fake" extra space inside the box. I have a heavy-duty grille to cover the sub, not that any Eight owner is a big user of trunk space anyway; I just don't want something to poke through the cone accidentally. Of course, that'd just be an excuse to buy one of the new Kicker aluminum cones ;-)

If you have a link to that 4080 box you mentioned then send it by all means... might just save me some time.

One other thing I should mention is that I'm planning to buy a replacement fold-out door that goes between the rear seats. I will then take a Dremel tool and cut out the center section, leaving just the outside as a frame, then stretch acoustic speaker cloth over it. This should theoretically allow the signal from the sub to reverb in the trunk and pass through into the passenger compartment, hopefully giving me a nice mellow low note. The sub is on its own independent channel which I can control through the head unit, so I can fine-tune the sub's response without having to get in and fiddle with those tiny little crossover adjustment screws on the end of the amp.

I'll look into replacing the Bose tweets in the doors; my Kicker fronts are active-crossover which is way better then those dinky little caps most factory systems use. Judging by the size of those tweets they look exactly like the Kickers I have now.

WikkedOne

Thread with 4080 in action

I don't remember the internal volume of the 4080 but I think it's .6 or something..
You can PM the member "4080" to order or ask questions..

But sounds like you have a sub that needs alot more airspace than that.. and i'm too lazy to look up the specs so i'll leave the call up to you..

you might also consider this box you can get on
Ebay

you can get it for just about any combo of subs and sizes...

and I wouldn't worry about cutting the center peice of the rear seat door out.. the bass passes pretty well whether you do that or not.. but if you want to see if it will make a difference just take the door off and see how you like it before you do anything drastic.

AJRX8

That's a good idea; I'll wait 'til I get the sub in before I go buying any replacement parts to hack up.

The volume of my current box is around one cubic foot... not especially big, but awkwardly shaped enough to prohibit its going into the trunk in one piece. Like I said, you can stuff a sealed box with pillow ticking and it will create artificial space... good trick to remember; I got that from an Alpine tech bulletin years ago from an autio installer friend of mine.

I'm still looking for a wiring diagram for the stereo plug and amp... if you or anyone has a link I'd appreciate it.

AJRX8

Doh! Just noticed the link to the wiring diagram two posts up you sent. Thanks a million!