Began for Installing Speakers

Began for Installing Speakers

When using stock-speaker locations, installing car speakers is a pretty straightforward process. As mentioned, if you are simply swapping out stock speakers for aftermarket ones, try to find speakers that install with a minimal amount of modification and hassle. You can even use the factory speaker wire to avoid having to run speaker wire — and to save a few bucks.

Here are some general tips for installing speakers: 

Get proper clearance: Your new speaker may fit into a stock opening, but you’ll also want to make sure it doesn’t impede on parts of the car.

For example, check to see whether the back of a door speaker interferes with the window mechanisms or anything else inside the door

The same goes for running wires to the door speakers: Make sure that the wires are not going to get pinched by, say, the power-window mechanism. With rear deck speakers, you may have torsion bars to contend with. Make sure the speakers are not in the way.

Avoid bad vibrations: When installing speakers in a door or rear deck, it’s best not to mount them directly to the metal body of the car because this can creates unwanted resonance (vibrations that are transferred from the speaker to the body of the car). Some speakers come with gaskets to prevent this, or you can order them from installation-accessory companies such as Metra and Scosche or even make your own.

Damp It: One way to cut down on unwanted resonances is to use damping material, a substance that’s usually applied in self-adhesive sheets to the metal parts of the car (See Figure 15-10.) Damping material adds mass or weight to whatever it’s applied to, and lowers the resonance frequency, the point at which the object (in this case the part of the car the speaker is mounted to) tends to vibrate. Damping material is also used to create a quieter car interior

Secure that speaker: Think about how often you and others who ride in a your ride slam the doors. Now think about the speakers in the doors and how often they get violently jostled. Car speakers take a lot of abuse over the long haul, so make sure they are secure.

read MP3 Player Invasion of the Apple’s iPod

You can use nuts and bolts instead of the usual screws to secure a speaker. Also, you can apply a bead of liquid silicone to create a solid seal between the speaker and mounting surface. 

Figure 15-10:

Dynamat damping material applied to the interior of a door.

Courtesy of Dynamic Control