Have i messed up ?

[audionoob3223]

I have recently bought a powered sub, 4 50 watt speakers and a pioneer MVH-S520DAB stero which has 4 channels and a dedicated sub out, I'm OK with how the sub works but it appears I need 4 single ended rca cables for the 4 rca outputs and the 4 speakers which are spade connectors ? This does not seem to common practice as I cannot find any cables of good quality and correct gague, am I really just misunderstanding something, or have I just bought the wrong setup ? Or do I need to bridge ? Thanks

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[Doxquzme Premium Member]

Nope, you're okay.

What is the powered sub and are you intending to power the 4 speakers with the MVH-S520DAB or do you have a seperate 4 channel amp for them too?

What is this going in (year, make and model/trim)?

Just need to know what the powered sub is and if you have an additional amp and I can help you with the wiring setup.

 

[audionoob3223]

Nope, you're okay.

What is the powered sub and are you intending to power the 4 speakers with the MVH-S520DAB or do you have a seperate 4 channel amp for them too?

What is this going in (year, make and model/trim)?

Just need to know what the powered sub is and if you have an additional amp and I can help you with the wiring setup.

Hi mate it's a in-phase xtb-8 nothing high end but not a pos. It's 600w peak and 200 nominal, of course its powered, the pioneer is rated for 4x 50w at 3 ohms, speakers are well within spec just confusion about the rca situation, it's going in my 2014 fiat panda, pretty much 100% of the oem audio stuff is going out the window. I bought the Pioneer as it was the most powerful radio I could find within reason and I wanted to avoid an external amp.

 

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

Pretty Straight forward. I think that you'll find that the sub overpowers the HU and adding an external 4 channel amplifier is really a must.

As for the wiring, pretty straight forward. Get a 4 or 8 gauge OFC wiring kit for power/ground. As for the rest, all you need is a long pair of RCA cables, L/R. They will go from the subwoofer outputs off the deck straight into the back to the L/R inputs on the powered sub. These will do fine. I did my searches on Ebay UK. if you can find them for less, just make sure they are shielded/twisted pair RCAs that reject noise.

I believe that if you use that Auto Start feature (ON), you won;t need to run a remote turn-on lead from the HU to the amp as it will sense the signal from the RCA inputs and turn the amp on. Sometimes they don;t work as advertised and the remote is needed (cutting off to soomn when signal is not present, or just not working as they should). Personally, you have the HU out and it has a dedicated remote turn on lead, that is the route I would take, remote out from the HU to the remote lead in on the sub. Make sure you select the Auto Start accordingly.

RECOIL RCI217 Echo Series Premium Twisted RCA Phono Oxygen Free Audio Cable 17ft | eBay

2-Channel Echo Series RCA Interconnect Cable, Length 17ft. Featuring Twisted Pair Technology for Maximum Signal Transfer without Static or Popping. Utilizing 99.99% Oxygen Free Multi-Strand Copper Wire Construction.

www.ebay.co.uk

If you should elect to get an amplifier, get the six channel RCAs instead.

Here in green are some pointers.

Here are a couple of smallish amps that will vastly improve the system (night and day) from the actual 18-20 watts x 4 that head unit actually puts out.

This one is rather large but a good buy and quite powerful.

1040 Watts Amplifier AB Full Range Four-Channel High Speed MOSFET Power RECOIL | eBay

Class A/B 4-Channel Amplifier. Soft Turn on Circuit. RMS Power at 2-Ohms: 130W x 4 Channels (14.4v). RMS Power at 4-Ohms: 95W x 4 Channels (14.4v). Frequency Response: 20Hz – 20kHz. RMS Power at 4-Ohms (Bridged): 260W x 2 Channels (14.4v).

www.ebay.co.uk

This is very reasonable

Alpine BBX-F1200 4 Channel BBX Power Class A/B Amp 600 Watts Car Amplifier | eBay

Amplifier Type: Class-A/B. In the event that Bass Junkies, at its discretion, may agree to accept the goods back the following conditions will apply End of Line Clearout. Land Rover. Pick Your Car. Car Stereos.

www.ebay.co.uk

Sony XM-N1004 - 1000 Watts 4 Channel Stereo Car Amplifier Amp | eBay

Driving is always more fun when you've got your favourite music pumping. Land Rover. Pick Your Car. Car Stereos. Car Sat Nav. Car Speakers. Car Subwoofers. Car Amplifiers.

www.ebay.co.uk

Budget banger

Taramps TS Car Amp 400x4 High Level Input Car Audio Amplifier Multichannel | eBay

This makes the use of adapters unnecessary, which is ideal for this type of application. Quantity: 1 Amplifier Number of Channels: 04 Max Power at 13.8 VDC 2 Ohms: 400W (4 x 100W RMS) Max Power at: 13.8 VDC 4 Ohms: 252W (4 x 63W RMS) Bridged at 13.8 VDC 4 Ohms: 400W (2 x 200W RMS).

www.ebay.co.uk

If you don't get another amp for the 4 speakers then you just wire them from the HU using their respective labeled leads, Right front, left front, right rear,left rear as is documented with the HU.

 

[some dude]

Your 4 door speakers will not be powered by RCA cables. RCA cables are signal only, not used to drive speakers.

Your head unit will have a bundle of wires coming out of the back of it.

4 of those wires are used to drive your door speakers.

 

[audionoob3223]

Your 4 door speakers will not be powered by RCA cables. RCA cables are signal only, not used to drive speakers.

Your head unit will have a bundle of wires coming out of the back of it.

4 of those wires are used to drive your door speakers.

Right so basically unless I get an amp those 4 rca outputs are kinda pointless for now ?

 

[some dude]

Yeah. They are there if you get a 4 channel amp for your interiors.

 

[audionoob3223]

Yeah. They are there if you get a 4 channel amp for your interiors.

Ah yeah, makes sense now, I can still utilise the sub out I think, bit of trial and error going to be performed. Only way to learn

 

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

Ah yeah, makes sense now, I can still utilise the sub out I think, bit of trial and error going to be performed. Only way to learn

Yes, that is correct. Use the HU designated speaker outs unless you decide to add a 4 channel amp. Use the RCA sub out to connect to the powered sub.

 

[audionoob3223]

Yes, that is correct. Use the HU designated speaker outs unless you decide to add a 4 channel amp. Use the RCA sub out to connect to the powered sub.

That's what I'll do, I don't know if the stereo will still act as a crossover and designate the lower frequencies to the sub out or not, only one way to find out !

 

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

That's what I'll do, I don't know if the stereo will still act as a crossover and designate the lower frequencies to the sub out or not, only one way to find out !

Your HU allows you to set the crossover as does the amp on the sub. I would set the one on the samp to as open as it can be and do use the electronic x-over settings on the hu to set it where it sounds best. Around 80-100hz.

 

[some dude]

Turn the crossover knob on the amp all of the way up (higher frequency).
Go into the crossover settings in your head unit and set subwoofer crossover to 80 or 100 hertz. Try a few different frequencies in that area and see what sounds the best to you.

If there is a slope option (6db, 12db, 24db) I'd suggest 12 as I middle of the road.

Read up on crossovers and different decibel slopes.