[powdermadd440]

One of my friends has a 10" Visonik VB101PK sub and an amp that goes with it. He had it in his grand am but he sold it and kept the sub. He only wants 50 bucks for it so I want to buy it and put it in my truck. The link below shows the sub/amp that he has. I am just wondering what the best way to hook this up is and what kind of head unit would be good. The truck is a '98 GMC sierra extended cab, I'm gonna have the sub sitting under the back seat behind the drivers seat because the tool box is on the other side. I'm gonna see if I can have my brothers friend hook it up for me, he hooked up 2 12" kickers in my brothers car so he can probably do this.


http://www.audiosavings.com/products/10-Inch-Car-Subwoofer/VISONIK-10-SUBWOOFER-AMP-SUB-BOX-PHOENIX-GOLD-WIRE-KIT/VB101PK---RFS102.aspx

Thanks in advance

 

[jake.parker]

what you need help with like the ground or the power cable the remote wire or you need a oem box that allow you to hook your factory stereo to the amp by splicing the wires and i have one for sale if you want and i have a blazer that is loaded with four speakers and two 600 watts tweeters and one sub that runs 600 watts and peak power of it is 1200 watts so i need more detail about it

 

[powdermadd440]

what you need help with like the ground or the power cable the remote wire or you need a oem box that allow you to hook your factory stereo to the amp by splicing the wires and i have one for sale if you want and i have a blazer that is loaded with four speakers and two 600 watts tweeters and one sub that runs 600 watts and peak power of it is 1200 watts so i need more detail about it

It's pretty hard to understand your post, but if you meant you need more info on the sub click on the link, everything is listed below it.

I am just looking for suggestions on what kind of wire to run, a good head unit, and also I need to know if I need a capacitor or not. I don't know what kind of power this sub's gonna draw.

I'm pretty much new to this kind of stuff so if you guys know any tricks or anything to do with hooking this up let me know.

Thanks

 

[Quinlan]

If you're starting from scratch, it's probably easiest to go to your local audio store and get a "amp wiring kit." Hell, Wal-Mart even carries them. It will include most everything you will need...power/ground leads, remote wire, RCA's, terminals, etc. They will have different kits depend on power ratings...just find one that fits accordingly. 8ga leads should be fine for 300 watts. If you are ever going to upgrade the system, you might want to go with 4ga wire. You may also need some speaker wire to go from the amp to the sub.

No, you should not need a capacitor. People run 1000+ watts without a capacitor. Alot of times they are just a bandaid for a weak electrical system anyhow.

HU is entirely up to you. In the past I've been fond of Pioneer and JVC. Lately though, it seems Pioneers quality has gone downhill. I'm currently running a Kenwood Excelon series and have been pleased with it. Go hit up an audio store and check out some HU's in person. It will need to have pre-amp outputs, but any quality deck will. Keep in mind when installing a HU, you will probably need a dash kit, wiring harness, and possibly antenna adapter. Little things that get overlooked sometimes.

There's no need to go overboard on anything for that system. It is a cheap system, and will perform as such.

 

[quick]

totally agree witrh quinlan go to an audio store and talk to them better than you tryin to explain to us and us tryin to explain to you whats needed

 

[polarisIQmn]

I've had 3 Pioneer head units and have never been disapointed with any of them. I know my next vehicle will had a double din screen unit from Pioneer as well. I am currently running a PH-6400 in my grand prix with theh 50 watts from the stereo pushing a stock bose system. I've also got a Kicker amp and 2 10" comp setup for the trunk, but even without that the Pioneer unit moves the stock Bose speakers very nicely.

Chad

 

[powdermadd440]

If you're starting from scratch, it's probably easiest to go to your local audio store and get a "amp wiring kit." Hell, Wal-Mart even carries them. It will include most everything you will need...power/ground leads, remote wire, RCA's, terminals, etc. They will have different kits depend on power ratings...just find one that fits accordingly. 8ga leads should be fine for 300 watts. If you are ever going to upgrade the system, you might want to go with 4ga wire. You may also need some speaker wire to go from the amp to the sub.

No, you should not need a capacitor. People run 1000+ watts without a capacitor. Alot of times they are just a bandaid for a weak electrical system anyhow.

HU is entirely up to you. In the past I've been fond of Pioneer and JVC. Lately though, it seems Pioneers quality has gone downhill. I'm currently running a Kenwood Excelon series and have been pleased with it. Go hit up an audio store and check out some HU's in person. It will need to have pre-amp outputs, but any quality deck will. Keep in mind when installing a HU, you will probably need a dash kit, wiring harness, and possibly antenna adapter. Little things that get overlooked sometimes.

There's no need to go overboard on anything for that system. It is a cheap system, and will perform as such.

Thanks Quinlan, that's just what I was looking for. My truck already has a cheap super tuner III in it for a head unit so I don't think I'll need the wiring harness, but I'm not sure about the antenna adapter.


I'm gonna go down to the audio place today and check out some head units, and see what they have for wiring kits and then ask them what else they think I'll need.

Thanks guys

 

[Empire087]

I'm running a dual head unit right now, it's the most pricey one they make and I have liked it a lot. But an audio store will hook you up.

 

[powdermadd440]

Just went to the audio store in Waterville, the 8ga. wiring kit is only 30 bucks and I need a $10 post for my battery. I also just looked at my head unit and it's not as crappy as I thought. It's a pioneer PH4100, 45 watts and 4OHM. For now I'm gonna keep it and just get the wiring and see how it sounds. Later if I get some money I might upgrade but the first upgrade is gonna be some new door speakers.

Thanks for the help guys

 

[MXZfasty02]

I have 2 12in subs and a 3000 watt mono amp for those.
I also have 4 alpine type r speakers and a 500 watt amp under my seat for those.


Get a new head unit!!!
As well as a wiring kit for it.
That is all

 

[Bobinwi]

every audio system start with 1 thing. The Source. if your deck isnt up to par chances are you will not be able to make any of the system sound good. ive always ran pioneer and alpine but my gf got a Kenwood KDC HD942U. its a pretty cheap unit with built in HD tuner ipod compatablie just plug it in and go. nice cd player and you can use flash drives for music on the wired usb cable. 4 volt preamp outs and a very nice simple display it still has tons of options such as a digital sound processor and a very nice eq and crossover's. got it at best buy on sale for 268 bucks.

next on the list is " Installation"
many people out in the world will tell you flat out that it is 70% install and 30% equipment. this is very true.using quality products to install your equipment is always a good idea. With wiring i prefer to go overkill.i like big wires. honestly its better to have bigger then not enough.

ok im sick of typing for now ill get back to this later

 

[MXZfasty02]

Dont run your wires too close. If you do, you will get annoying feedback.
I aslo forgot that you need RCAs to run to your amp. This will require an aftermarket deck, but carries the signal of music.
You can run a sub off of a factory head unit, but its messy, and the last tiime I did that in my blazer I fried everything but the kitchen sink within two weeks.

 

[Bobinwi]

yes that is a good point. always run your RCA cables on opposite sides from your power wire.

next on my list before actual installation of equipment would be to sound deaden. you can do this fairly cheap. i like to use a product called quick roof you can get it at home depot. its an aluminum backed tar substance that is the same as alot of sound deadeners out there including dynamat. quick roof is about $16 a roll and a roll is 6 inches by 25 feet. use 2 layers. a heat gun works wonders while installing this stuff. I have most of my trailblazer done with this stuff and it killed almost all road noise.i will get some pics of installing it as im about to do my tailgate and roof here soon.

whew this quite the write up.
ill write more later lol

well thats if anyone is actually listening lol

 

[powdermadd440]

Dont run your wires too close. If you do, you will get annoying feedback.
I aslo forgot that you need RCAs to run to your amp. This will require an aftermarket deck, but carries the signal of music.
You can run a sub off of a factory head unit, but its messy, and the last tiime I did that in my blazer I fried everything but the kitchen sink within two weeks.

Good tip on the wires, but should I run them on opposite sides of the truck, or just not right next to eachother? Right now I have a Pioneer PH4100 as a head unit. It's 45 watts and 4 OHM, I was told that would be pretty good for a 300 watt sub. The 4 guage wiring kit was 80 bucks and the 8 guage was only 30 bucks. I don't plan on upgrading this so I am going to go with the 8 guage.

You might call me stupid for asking this but is a deck the same thing as a head unit?
Thanks

yes that is a good point. always run your RCA cables on opposite sides from your power wire.

next on my list before actual installation of equipment would be to sound deaden. you can do this fairly cheap. i like to use a product called quick roof you can get it at home depot. its an aluminum backed tar substance that is the same as alot of sound deadeners out there including dynamat. quick roof is about $16 a roll and a roll is 6 inches by 25 feet. use 2 layers. a heat gun works wonders while installing this stuff. I have most of my trailblazer done with this stuff and it killed almost all road noise.i will get some pics of installing it as im about to do my tailgate and roof here soon.

whew this quite the write up.
ill write more later lol

well thats if anyone is actually listening lol

I probably won't sound deaden my truck for right now, maybe in the future though. I'm trying to save my money right now and the only reason I'm getting this sub is because it's fairly cheap. By the time everything is all said and done I will have less than 100 bucks into this. If you still want to put those pics up when you do it that would be appreciated.

Thanks for the help guys

 

[polarisIQmn]

^^^Yes a deck is the same as a head unit, just another term for it. A good deck helps dramatically in making a good system and should not be under estimated.

I hear you on keeping the costs down on the system. When I did my system 5 years ago when I was 17 I bought my deck, Kicker Amp, the 2 Kicker Comps, and build my first box for under 400 bucks. I had the knowledge and the resources to build what is now my 3rd box for my subs in the trunk. The box plays a big part of how the sub will perform too.

Chad

 

[The_Mad_Warrior]

If you have an aftermarket head unit in your truck it will have RCA out puts. (You have pioneer so it will have outputs)

Run the RCA on the opposite side as your battery. (The power wire will be ran on the side WITH the battery).

Run the power cable threw your firewall right at the antenna hole. (I believe you truck should have one?)

IF not LOOK for a hole to run it threw. Do not ever drill. There is ALWAYS a hole. (Trust me).

I would run 4 guage wire or bigger/smaller. (Bigger meaning bigger size wire smaller meaning smaller guage.)
(This is incase you decide to go bigger you do not need to run new wire. Plus your wire can never be too big to your amp. You will not blow up an amp if your wire is too big. You can blow up your amp with the wrong ohms. But thats a different story.)

Run your ground wire at a MaXIMUM 2 feet long. (No longer then 2 feet.) The ground wire MUST be the same gauge OR BIGGER as the power wire.

Make sure your wiring kit has a 20 amp fuse. (Once you get into bigger amps bigger fuses can be used.)

IF you have a CD player that DOESNT have RCA you DO NOT need to buy one. Go to Future Shop or Best Buy and you can pick up this adapter that you hook up to the speaker wires in the truck and it will run out RCA. I am finding the link for it as we speak. Why buy a $300 cd player when you have one when you can spend $20 on this part.

Make sure your ground and power wire are not too close.

You need a remote antenna from your stereo. Doesnt have to be anything bigger then 16 gauage. BUT if you use bigger then 16 gauge you can use your remote terminal on your amp as an out put for any cool lights you want to instal. So when you turn on your truck and the amp comes up the lights will come on (just incase you want to later on.)

I have hooked up many amps and subs and stereos in back yards and front yards and in the grass and dirt. And non of them have ever blown up and they all sound great. I am NOT licensed but I do know a lot about it.

Also you need a good box for good sound. Everything is key in the box. Dont have a good box you wont have good bass. IF you are making a box try to be exact to the cudic inches it recommends.

If you want anymore advice pm me. I might be missing stuff (more then likely I am.)


EDIT: 4 Guage wire is 4 gauge wire no matter where you buy it. So if people say dont buy it from Wal-Mart or Canadian tire they are wrong. Try to find Copper wire (my dad the electrician has told me this ever since I started.) So if you can find 4 guage wire that ios copper from wal mart buy it. Thats where I got mine and it does great. (Even if you want to change the fuses around from that scoctch thing or whatever wal mart brand stuff is called now.) It will still be worth it then spending $100 on the wire you can spend like 40.


Here are the converters Im talking about. It has wattage ratings? BUT I dont think that matters. I had the 20 watts on a 600 watt system and you couldnt tell. The only things about these are people will say "Thats not the best way of doing it" and stuff. It works and its cheap.

http://www.stingerelectronics.com/productDetails.aspx?ProductId=111&CategoryID=3 (This is the one I used for the 600 watt system.)

But I found on the site 2 other ones with different wattage? I have no idea why they would bother as all it is is music output. But regardless This one will work great. Well does work great. But here are the other ones.

http://www.stingerelectronics.com/productDetails.aspx?ProductId=110&CategoryID=3
http://www.stingerelectronics.com/productDetails.aspx?ProductId=109&CategoryID=3

 

[Quinlan]

If you have an aftermarket head unit in your truck it will have RCA out puts. (You have pioneer so it will have outputs)

Not always true. I have seen cheap aftermarket decks without outputs. Any "quality" deck will have outputs, like I mentioned earlier.

IF not LOOK for a hole to run it threw. Do not ever drill. There is ALWAYS a hole. (Trust me).

Why? I've ran systems in vehicles where accessing holes were difficult or were too crowded to run a 4 gauge wire, and simply drilled a hole through the firewall. If you use proper grommets to keep the wires from rubbing on bare metal, you will not have a problem. You had better be sure there is nothing on the opposite side of the firewall where you are drilling though.

Why buy a $300 cd player when you have one when you can spend $20 on this part.

Sound quality. I've used the line converters on stock decks and were never impressed. A quality aftermarket deck always sounds better, and is safer in the long run. My sister had a line converter professionally installed in her '96 Grand Prix, and eventually had it burn out (literally). You can get a nice deck for under $200 these days. Cheap insurance, IMO. Potential electrical fires are no joke.

Run the RCA on the opposite side as your battery. (The power wire will be ran on the side WITH the battery).
---
IF not LOOK for a hole to run it threw. Do not ever drill. There is ALWAYS a hole. (Trust me).

So, if this is always true...what do you do if your battery is on the passenger side of the vehicle, but any access hole is on the drivers. Do you drill a hole, or do you NOT run power on the side with the battery?

 

[sledcrusher]

Here's what I have:

Same thing as this, without the bluetooth or usb input. But everything else is the same. That was $120. It has the RCA hookups on the back.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Dual-200-Watt-AM-FM-CD-MP3-WMA-Receiver-With-Bluetooth/11973997

Dont remember exactly what amp, but its a 200x2 watt ( 400 total ) amp.

For subs I went cheap ( so when they blow, im not to worried about it ). They are made by Dual, and are 2 12" subs.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Dual+-+12%22+Single-Voice-Coil+4-Ohm+Subwoofer/9771787.p?skuId=9771787&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=9771787&ref=06&loc=01&id=1218170523300

I dont bump hardcore though. If I did, I would have went a little more costly on the subs and amp. The head unit is fine for whatever I need though. It also has a direct sub control ( no more adjusting the bass and making your speakers sound like crap ).

 

[Bobinwi]

EDIT: 4 Guage wire is 4 gauge wire no matter where you buy it. So if people say dont buy it from Wal-Mart or Canadian tire they are wrong. Try to find Copper wire (my dad the electrician has told me this ever since I started.) So if you can find 4 guage wire that ios copper from wal mart buy it. Thats where I got mine and it does great. (Even if you want to change the fuses around from that scoctch thing or whatever wal mart brand stuff is called now.) It will still be worth it then spending $100 on the wire you can spend like 40.

now there you are WRONG. 4 gauge wire is NOT 4 gauge wire no matter where you get it from. walmart 4 gauge(scosche or efx) has less strand count then more expensive wire. the higher the strand count the better it is. it will be more flexible and have a lower resistance rate then less strand count wire.
now since you said your on a budget you can hit up a welding supply company and get GOOD wire for fairly cheap. they will also have any of the ring terminals you might need. ive always chose soldering the terminals on as opposed to crimping them. crimps fail and wire can wiggle loose.

 

[MXZfasty02]

EDIT: 4 Guage wire is 4 gauge wire no matter where you buy it. So if people say dont buy it from Wal-Mart or Canadian tire they are wrong. Try to find Copper wire (my dad the electrician has told me this ever since I started.) So if you can find 4 guage wire that ios copper from wal mart buy it. Thats where I got mine and it does great. (Even if you want to change the fuses around from that scoctch thing or whatever wal mart brand stuff is called now.) It will still be worth it then spending $100 on the wire you can spend like 40.

now there you are WRONG. 4 gauge wire is NOT 4 gauge wire no matter where you get it from. walmart 4 gauge(scosche or efx) has less strand count then more expensive wire. the higher the strand count the better it is. it will be more flexible and have a lower resistance rate then less strand count wire.
now since you said your on a budget you can hit up a welding supply company and get GOOD wire for fairly cheap. they will also have any of the ring terminals you might need. ive always chose soldering the terminals on as opposed to crimping them. crimps fail and wire can wiggle loose.

Absolutely.
I ran 4 guage from wal mart (I think it was Scosche). I blew my 600 dollar amp. Then I switched to Rockeford 0 guage, which is bigger of course and has over twice the strands of Schosche.
You wont need 0 guage, I think 4 should work.
As long as your not running huge pwer (which your not) you should be ok