Car audio - what do I need to hook up 2 amps

[psteng19]

I already have an amp and sub hooked up with an amp install kit, done myself.
Now I want an amp to power the 4 speakers.

I think need some sort of distro block to distribute the power/ground...
Do I need another set of fuses before each amp?
How do I split the remote lead to each amp?

TIA

 

[white]

if you already have the amps installed then you only need speaker cable to go to your speakers. but your second paragraph makes it sound like you don't have them installed already. if you're going to power two amps you need a distro block for the power but not the ground since you'll just ground the amp wherever it is on your car. if you only have two amps you could have your deck power the remote leads, but you could also use a relay.

 

[Spoooon]

You need this. Though, you can get a cheaper one. You don't need to fuse them. Atleast, I don't. I used to run 3 amps in my car. As for the remote wire, since you are only running two amps you can just do the wire in a series.

if you already have the amps installed then you only need speaker cable to go to your speakers. but your second paragraph makes it sound like you don't have them installed already. if you're going to power two amps you need a distro block for the power but not the ground since you'll just ground the amp wherever it is on your car. if you only have two amps you could have your deck power the remote leads, but you could also use a relay.

3 "things" is usually the limit. In my old car, I had 3 amps and an active crossover. So I built a relay. I used a Radio Shack project box and some barrier strips to try and make it clean looking, without having wires all over the place.

 

[MichaelD]

What size (gauge) is the wire going from the + terminal of your battery to the amp in the trunk? This is very important. Also, what size fuse is up there under the hood, on that cable going to the trunk. <-also very important.

Car audio is my thing. For a $2K system, my rig sounds pretty good. <---as said by people who have $$$$ (I don't) into their cars. I can help you.

If you want another amp to power your four speakers, you will need to run wires to all four speakers. This may be more effort/difficult than you're willing to take on. You'll have to run wires up to the front of the car, under the doorsills/carpet, under the dash, into the rubber boots that carry the wires from the car body into the doors, and finally attach them to the speakers. This is not for the faint of heart and will take you about 6 hours to do. There's a lot involved.

If you have a Japanese car, most probably it uses Molex connectors (plastic plugs...like an ATX power connector on a PC PS) to connect the door to the body. This is a PITA, b/c there's little room to run wires. I'll give you more advice if you need it, later.

You will need a piece of 4-gauge wire, minimum running from the battery to the trunk. There should be a fuse (equal or greater than the combined rating of fuses on the amps) no farther than 18 inches from the + battery terminal.

In the trunk, you split that piece of 4-gauge w/a fused distribution block to the amps. The turn-on lead from your HU (head unit) will power two amps, no problem. Anymore than that, you will need a relay.

PM me if need be.

 

[psteng19]

OK, I guess I wasn't clear enough in my original post.

I already have 1 amp installed.
It powers my sub (MTX Thunder series ~250 watts).
It's using 4 gauge wiring, with a 60 amp fuse I believe.
Yes, it's about 18 inches away from the battery.

The amp is currently mounted on the back of the rear seats.
Ground cable is also 4 gauge about 18 inches long as well.

I have another amp now, Pioneer 4 channel amp 35x4 watts.
This is not hooked up yet.

What I needed to know what kind of distro block I'll need, and whether I'll need a fused distro block or not.
And if I need 2 distro blocks, one for power, one for ground?

The remote lead question was answered I guess.
Series means from HU to 1st amp, 1st amp to second?

The wiring to the speakers itself is going to be a PITA, but very straightforward I think.
RCA pre-out from HU to amp, amp to speakers...

I've already taken apart the door panels once when I replaced the stock speakers with slightly better stuff.
I'm not trying to build a killer system... just something a little better than stock

 

[psteng19]

A little help?

 

[NutBucket]

Alright, I glanced over your last post. You can get away with one fused distro box if you want. Running another chassis ground shouldn't be a problem if you choose to go this route.

For the power turn on lead, wired in series means you run the wire to one amp and chain it to the other one, one after the other, in a series

Uh, I think that should be it. Feel free to PM for more info if needed.

 

[Lucky]

distro block, eh? Before I yanked my sub and accompanied amp last week, mine wasnt setup like that. It was just the sub amp and the 4 channel amp, each having a power wire running to the battery. Odd.

 

[Spoooon]

Originally posted by: Lucky
distro block, eh? Before I yanked my sub and accompanied amp last week, mine wasnt setup like that. It was just the sub amp and the 4 channel amp, each having a power wire running to the battery. Odd.

A power distribution block amounts to the same thing as that, just makes for a neater, less cluttered appearance. I have a power block and a ground block. It makes adding and removing stuff much simpler.