The I'm poor and new Volvo 744 build thread!

[ThisWasWrought]

Argh I can't post pictures/links yet so pretend there's pictures here.

Just like the title says I'm new and I'm poor and I'm budget building a 1990 Volvo 740 Turbo for hopefully decent sound. Any advice, especially criticism (if it's constructive) is more than welcome. This is my starting point. A previous owner "upgraded" the sound system. It has a JVC head unit that has a weird buffer fault that makes it skip randomly. Speakers are hacked up "Boston" 5.25. The front passenger speaker works when I hit a bump. The speakers for each side are hooked up only to the FRONT channel of the HU lol. When I fade the sound to the rear I get nothing. It does have a Bazooka tube subwoofer that I think is decent, but there's no woofer out on the HU so it sounds gross when I crank up the bass. The install is pretty poor all the way around. The amp is an oldschool Alpine 4.1 channels. 4 channels at 35w each and the sub is 80w.

[Pictures of butt turrible speaker installation and wiring]

Now for the interactive section!

Is that old amp worth keeping? I mean 35 watts is at or below what most HU's put out these days, but then I'd have to get two amps to replace it. a 4 channel for the speakers and one for the sub.

Also I'd love to hear your opinion about these speakers I found in a junkyard, They were a fairly pricey option for Volvo 7XX series back in the day. They're in a cast metal case with dual crossovers. The speaker cones are all intact and I use a set as my computer speakers. They're pretty heavy, about 5lbs a piece, heavy means expensive right? :-D

[Pictures of awesome junkyard speakers. google ht-161 volvo speakers for pictures or PM me for much better pics and pics of the guts]

I was planning to get this set of speakers Powerbass 5.25 component from Teptronics [directlink to Power Bass S5C 5.25 Component speakers] (I'd post a link but apparently I'm too new to be allowed such luxuries) and use the speakers above for rears. They're both 4 ohm. The Powerbass is 50w per side and the Volvo speakers are allegedly 30w (according to a sticker on the back), but if you add the wattage rating together of the speakers it comes out to like 41w so they're somewhat evenly matched.

Click to read more...

 

[dbjunior 10+ year member]

Id get a new hu and run all new wiring. The alpine is fine if its 35w rms its more than double hu power most hu are 15-18w rms. Bazooka tube is junk if you want to use the 80w from the alpine id look into a lower end 12 from a decent company. The aq sdc2.012 rated at 250 rms is only $69. Then make your own enclosure. Have buck do a design for you. The speakers might be decent off the alpine after a new hu is installed and you fix the wiring.

 

[Joe89 10+ year member]

1st step is to fix wiring so you don't have an electrical fire / damage your equipment / and so you have some progress to show for the 2nd step.. which is to POST PICS!!!

Good luck with your Volvo!

 

[ThisWasWrought]

I would love to post pics but I don't have the authorization yet. I fully intended to but it wouldn't let me. how many posts do I have to have to be able to post links and pics? I fixed some of the wiring today and ordered the component speakers. I spent and hour sitting in my trunk cutting out all the double splices I could find and soldering them instead. The good news is all of my speakers work now! Unfortunately that's more of a bandaide because I found out that it was wired with bi-metal zipcord yuck! (BTW what is the specific name for that kind of speaker wire? It has copper on one side and a silver metal on the other I assume is aluminum) I have all copper wire I plan on running when I install a new HU and speakers. Another question, the amp I have is a 4.1 amp with subwoofer out, but no supwoofer input just an LP crossover. When I get a a new HU with a specific sub out should I get a separate amp and a new subwoofer? In other words how much better would it be to run a dedicated sub amp than the LPF?