Adding amp using existing oem speaker wiring

[ctker]

I’m sure these questions have been answered before, but I can’t manage to find a straight answer, so sorry in advanced if there are any other posts about this.

I have a 2016 Chrysler 200, 9 speakers, 3 front dash 3.5s, 2 front door 6x9s, 2 rear door 3.5s, 2 rear deck 6x9. Recently replaced all my speakers with nice new expensive coaxials, I also just purchased a sweet aftermarket head unit, and I’m looking to throw an amp in to get some more clarity.
Im going to be mounting my new amp to the back of the rear seats with my sub amp, which I previously installed before buying the new head unit, so I have a LOC from the rear deck for signal on that.
3 questions here
1. I’m aware that I can run speaker wire from head unit back to my amp. But how do I go about keeping the factory speaker wiring if even possible? Do I run the post amp wire back to the cut wiring behind the head unit?
2. Is a LOC signal quality from the rear deck as good as a subwoofer out from the head unit? With the new head unit should I run rcas back to my sub amp? I’m not sure if it matters, but I believe my rear deck speakers are full range.
3. I’m not trying to break the bank on an amplifier, but is it possible to amplify this whole setup with a 5-6 channel amp given that my speakers are only 2 sizes and are all the exact same 2 speakers literally, and play on the same ranges. I’m guessing this is unlikely, but I’m honestly just wondering how cars with a lot of speakers get amplified, do I really need to buy a 9 channel amp? I could be wrong, but I’m also under the impression that the more channels the more money.

Again sorry if this stuff has been asked and answered before, really just looking for the knowledge of a professional/enthusiast

Thanks!

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[huberoy123 10+ year member]

When I initially got into the aftermarket stereo hobby, I purchased a PAC brand harness that plugged into my head unit and retained all of the factory wiring. The bonus was that it had wiring to add an aftermarket amplifier to the system. That was a sweet set-up. Maybe it would be a good idea to check with a local car audio shop to see if such a harness exists for your vehicle or stop pass a local Best Buy to inquire.

Years later, I got the urged to try something new and I stripped all of the factory wiring and head unit. I purchased a head unit and several amplifiers. One to power my lower door speakers, one to power the upper door and rear deck speakers, and one to power 2 subwoofers. I ran RCA signal cables and turn-on wire from the head unit to one of the amplifiers and piggy-backed the other amplifiers. I ran speaker wires from the amps to the appropriate speakers. It was quite a job, but the results were worth it.
Have you considered reducing the number of speakers??

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

The factory amp in the 200 is under the right side of the dash. Not very convenient for tapping into the wires. I would not amp any of the 3.5's, as they can't take much power and they need to be hipassed, which the factory amp does already. I would focus on the 6X9's, making the front doors full range and the rear deck speakers subs (they probably are now). There are some nice 6X9 subs out there. You'll have to run your own speaker wires and I would opt for RCA cables rather than using an LOC.

 

[ctker]

The factory amp in the 200 is under the right side of the dash. Not very convenient for tapping into the wires. I would not amp any of the 3.5's, as they can't take much power and they need to be hipassed, which the factory amp does already. I would focus on the 6X9's, making the front doors full range and the rear deck speakers subs (they probably are now). There are some nice 6X9 subs out there. You'll have to run your own speaker wires and I would opt for RCA cables rather than using an LOC.

My 200 actually comes with the 6 speaker system with no sub or amp, ran off the head unit, I retro fitted to 2 rear door speakers and the center dash speaker, all speakers have been replaced with new high wrms speakers, including the 3.5s, does this still apply?

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

What is the factory speaker arrangement? And where do you intend to put an amp?

 

[ctker]

What is the factory speaker arrangement? And where do you intend to put an amp?

It’s all in my above post, amp behind the rear seats, 3 3.5 coaxials in front dash, 2 6x9 coaxials in the front doors, 2 3.5 coaxials in the rear doors, 2 6x9 coaxials in rear deck, all kicker brand, all 3.5s are the same speaker, all 6x9s are the same speaker

 

[ctker]

When I initially got into the aftermarket stereo hobby, I purchased a PAC brand harness that plugged into my head unit and retained all of the factory wiring. The bonus was that it had wiring to add an aftermarket amplifier to the system. That was a sweet set-up. Maybe it would be a good idea to check with a local car audio shop to see if such a harness exists for your vehicle or stop pass a local Best Buy to inquire.

Years later, I got the urged to try something new and I stripped all of the factory wiring and head unit. I purchased a head unit and several amplifiers. One to power my lower door speakers, one to power the upper door and rear deck speakers, and one to power 2 subwoofers. I ran RCA signal cables and turn-on wire from the head unit to one of the amplifiers and piggy-backed the other amplifiers. I ran speaker wires from the amps to the appropriate speakers. It was quite a job, but the results were worth it.
Have you considered reducing the number of speakers??

Are you saying it might be worth it to look into multiple less channel amps for my different speakers? for example an amp for just my 6x9s and another amp for my 3.5s? This is not a bad idea… would it be smart to get the same exact amp twice? Or maybe an amp meant more for highs, and one more for lows?

 

[huberoy123 10+ year member]

My suggestion is to use multiple amps. Maybe a 5-channel and a 4-channel amp. That would accommodate all 9 speakers. However, your factory wiring won't be an option. Personally. I stripped all the factory amps and wiring and started from scratch.
I would seriously give some thought to reducing the number of speakers. I had 4 speakers, with an aftermarket amplifier added on in a previous Mustang, and it was more than enough.
Purchasing the same brand amplifiers is an option. However, the amps won't control the highs and lows. They simply amplify the signals from the source. Your head unit's equalizer can control highs and lows, but not individually to all 9 channels.
This is just my personal take. Good luck on whatever direction you take.

My initial response included a reference to a PAC wiring harness. It is literally plug and play. This would save you lots of money and time. You can contact them or crutchfield.com for more information.

https://catalog.pac-audio.com/catalog/amplifier-integration-harness/aph-ch01

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

Again, I would not bother amping any 3.5's. I've blown out the best of them with just HU power.

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

It’s all in my above post, amp behind the rear seats, 3 3.5 coaxials in front dash, 2 6x9 coaxials in the front doors, 2 3.5 coaxials in the rear doors, 2 6x9 coaxials in rear deck, all kicker brand, all 3.5s are the same speaker, all 6x9s are the same speaker

That's more than 6 speakers. If you have 9 speakers, there's a factory amp somewhere.

 

[marc2112 10+ year member]

Again, I would not bother amping any 3.5's. I've blown out the best of them with just HU power.

I used to give 240w+ to my tweets without issues. On my last build, both my tweets and 3.5s had 150w. What am I doing wrong?

 

[ctker]

That's more than 6 speakers. If you have 9 speakers, there's a factory amp somewhere.

Like I said above, I have a 6 speakers system stock, I retrofitted 3 3.5s in the locations they would be with a higher package. Stock has 2 3.5s in the front dash, 2 6x9s in the front door, 2 6x9s in the rear deck, I added 1 3.5 to the center front dash position, and 2 3.5s in the rear doors.

 

[ctker]

My suggestion is to use multiple amps. Maybe a 5-channel and a 4-channel amp. That would accommodate all 9 speakers. However, your factory wiring won't be an option. Personally. I stripped all the factory amps and wiring and started from scratch.
I would seriously give some thought to reducing the number of speakers. I had 4 speakers, with an aftermarket amplifier added on in a previous Mustang, and it was more than enough.
Purchasing the same brand amplifiers is an option. However, the amps won't control the highs and lows. They simply amplify the signals from the source. Your head unit's equalizer can control highs and lows, but not individually to all 9 channels.
This is just my personal take. Good luck on whatever direction you take.

My initial response included a reference to a PAC wiring harness. It is literally plug and play. This would save you lots of money and time. You can contact them or crutchfield.com for more information.

https://catalog.pac-audio.com/catalog/amplifier-integration-harness/aph-ch01

I’ll probably take your advice and start with one amp, I would like to amplify all speakers, but it would be smart to just start with the front setup and see how I like it, and maybe down the line grab another amp for the rear, and after that a DSP. Any advice for getting speaker wire through those factory door grommets?

 

[ctker]

Again, I would not bother amping any 3.5's. I've blown out the best of them with just HU power.

I’m not crazy into very loud music, I’m just looking for very crisp, clean audio. And the highs in my stock system bother me a lot, I definitely want them amplified. I don’t plan on sending them absurd amounts of power, just more than they would get stock.

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

Like I said above, I have a 6 speakers system stock, I retrofitted 3 3.5s in the locations they would be with a higher package. Stock has 2 3.5s in the front dash, 2 6x9s in the front door, 2 6x9s in the rear deck, I added 1 3.5 to the center front dash position, and 2 3.5s in the rear doors.

What I asked you was what the stock system was. 6 speakers, OK. How did you wire the center speaker in the dash? AFAIK a head unit won't accommodate that. And was the wiring already in place for the rear doors? I'm having trouble understanding how a factory head unit could power all those speakers.

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

On my last build, both my tweets and 3.5s had 150w. What am I doing wrong?

Maybe I'm behind the times with what's available today. Please show us what 3.5's you had that can handle 150 watts.

 

[ctker]

What I asked you was what the stock system was. 6 speakers, OK. How did you wire the center speaker in the dash? AFAIK a head unit won't accommodate that. And was the wiring already in place for the rear doors? I'm having trouble understanding how a factory head unit could power all those speakers.

Maybe I'm behind the times with what's available today. Please show us what 3.5's you had that can handle 150 watts.

What I asked you was what the stock system was. 6 speakers, OK. How did you wire the center speaker in the dash? AFAIK a head unit won't accommodate that. And was the wiring already in place for the rear doors? I'm having trouble understanding how a factory head unit could power all those speakers.

Okay so my factory head unit is the FCA unconnect 5.0, which wouldn’t be able to handle all these speakers, but before I even replaced any of these speakers, I upgraded to a Uconnect 8.4 which is the head unit they use in the upgraded sound package. I simply tapped into the other 3.5s in the dash for the dash speaker, and the rear doors are tapped into the rear deck. Don’t get me wrong they work, they obviously just don’t sound amazing, and I can tell the head unit is working harder than it should. This doesn’t bother me because I have a new headunit on the way, and plan on amplifying asap. The only reason I did it so early was to give me an excuse to ‘fabricate’ the speakers in place and get all my speaker locations deadened. Which i didn’t feel comfortable doing without the speakers already in place.
Wiring was not in place in the dash nor the rear doors.
Sorry for the confusion, and thanks for the input

 

[marc2112 10+ year member]

Maybe I'm behind the times with what's available today. Please show us what 3.5's you had that can handle 150 watts.

About to pump 280w into these in my current build and no one can stop me.

 

[maylar 10+ year member]

About to pump 280w into these in my current build and no one can stop me.

I'm happy for you. But that's not a 3.5 inch car speaker.

 

[marc2112 10+ year member]

I'm happy for you. But that's not a 3.5 inch car speaker.

What.. since when? I got scammed again.