How to Connect a Car Amp
- 1). Locate a spot to mount your amplifier. You want this space to get plenty of air so the amp doesn't overheat; ideally, it should be conveniently close to your other components.
- 2). Screw the amplifier to the mounting point using the drill and screws. Make sure the amplifier is solidly mounted so it doesn't move around the interior.
- 3). Run the 25 feet of 8-gauge wire toward the engine compartment of the vehicle. You can push it under the carpet or interior panels with your hands, and if you need to, pull off panels using the screwdrivers.
- 4). Run the 8-gauge wire into the engine compartment through the firewall. There is usually a rubber grommet in the firewall that you can push the wire through, but if you have to, drill a hole in the firewall using the drill and drill bits. Install a rubber grommet to help prevent the wire from fraying and shorting out.
- 5). Pop the hood and pull the 8-gauge wire towards the battery, securing the line using zip-ties. The wire must be secure and away from the exhaust and other moving parts.
- 6). Cut the wire 1 foot from the battery and insert it into the inline fuse holder, but remove the fuse.
- 7). Strip 1/2 inch of the shielding off of a 1-foot-long piece of wire, and crimp a ring terminal to the end of the wire.
- 8). Connect one end of the 1-foot wire to the inline fuse and the other end to the positive terminal of the battery using an open-end wrench.
- 9). Run the 20-gauge wire from the wire labeled "remote" on the back of your stereo to the amplifier. There is a spot on the amplifier labeled "remote" that this wire attaches to using an Allen wrench.
- 10
Find a piece of the chassis around the amplifier and sand it down to bare metal. - 11
Cut a section of black 8-gauge wire that's the same length as the distance between the bare metal and the amplifier. Crimp a ring terminal to the end of this wire as well, then connect the other half to the amplifier using the Allen wrench. - 12
Screw the ring terminal into the chassis using the drill and screws. This is now the ground for your amplifier. Secure the ring terminal to a bolt in the chassis if that's more convenient. - 13
Run speaker wire from the amplifier to the speaker or speakers to connect. One wire is red for positive, one is black for negative.
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