Found these mysterious wires in my Z
 

I'm pretty sure they're for a previous system that an owner before me took out, can anyone help me figure out what these wires are? I'm really new to car audio so sorry if this seems like a dumb question :x

Going to update this post so people don't have to read through the entire thread. Giving a little background to my situation as well.

So here's my story, I bought this car used a few months ago and I want to put in a system now. I was told my the previous owner that I bought it from, that there may have been a previous system because the tweeters look aftermarket and there were speaker hole cutouts in the carpet. I decided to check around the car today and saw some wires and I think I've figured out what most of the wires are.

First were these wires, http://i.imgur.com/uEvPU0P.jpg, I found them in the trunk tucked away where the foam piece was and I pulled them out from the trunk and put them behind my passenger seat for now. They come from the center console, so I think they're for the Polk DB6501 components to connect to an amp, if someone can verify this that'll be great!

Then there was this, http://imgur.com/a/sgvpD which I and some other forum members believe to be the power wire. It's connected to the battery so I'm pretty sure we've got this one. Someone mentioned something about a fuse inline, do I need that?

Lastly, there was this, http://imgur.com/a/ADE02 and I believe that's the remote turn on wire that hooks up to the HU that detects if it's on and powers on the amp.

Definitely wires from an old system. Probably subwoofer and speaker wire.


Where did you see them?

:iagree:

I saw them behind the passenger seat, tucked away and wired to the back underneath the foam piece in the trunk. I also think I see a ground coming from my battery that I'm going to follow.

Heres a link to my battery:

imgur: the simple image sharer

Don't just yank them out. You can use them to pull your new wires. Or re-use them, if they are long enough.

Oh, you are wise, indeed, Mr S....

I haven't yanked them out yet in hopes that I could use them for a new amp/sub. The four wires are currently sitting behind the passenger seat with about two feet of exposed wires.

Edit: I think I found the ground from the battery as well, but it looks cut and electrical tape is covering it. Would this be too short to ground it anywhere?

http://imgur.com/mYm737v

Hi, your Z color is called platinum graphite.

You don't really need a ground back to the battery - find a nearby spot on the frame/body. Doesn't hurt to run a ground to the battery but you don't gain any thing *if you have* it grounded to the frame properly.

Edit: *over having*

yeah, running back to battery is merely wasting wire.

Okay, a little update.

So I did some more digging about the blue wire from the battery and found that that's the wire that actually goes to the trunk, anyone know what it's for? Some of you guys said that I didn't need a ground from the battery, could I use that as a ground for the amp?

Maybe this is a power wire?

imgur: the simple image sharer

I found one last wire, it's a really thin, long wire (about 1mm in diameter and about 6ft long) and it wasn't connected to anything, just hidden under the trim near the seats and door next to the power wire, anyone know what this wire would be for?

Is this a remote turn on wire?

imgur: the simple image sharer

At this point, I kind of want to buy a new wiring kit. Anyone have some good suggestions for some?

That is a power wire not a ground. And it doesn't appear to have a fuse inline. First thing is to get a fuse installed. Check and make sure it is big enough to feed your equipment. If not, use it to pull your power wire.

You can also re-purpose the wire for grounding. If it's big enough for power, it's big enough for ground. And vice versa.

Possibly a signal wire for something like turning on the amps when the HU is turned on.


BTW, wire doesn't wear out (unless it is abused). If the wire is of sufficient gauge, I'd go ahead and use it.

Thanks so much for the help so far!

How do I check if the wire is sufficient enough to power my equipment? Any good guides you know of?

A wire gauge chart (search for "AWG chart") will tell you diameter of wire, gauge, ampacity, &c (make sure you look for the number of strands in your wire as that will affect measured diameter). A dial caliper or micrometer will tell you what you have.

Edit: Some electricians/audio-installers can give you a close estimate by eyeballing it.

Edit 2: There is a power distribution block on the front left side of the battery. It may make a better place to attach the power wire than the battery terminal. Oops. Looked at the pics again and you are using the block. Doh!

So do I need the fuse inline thing?

Also, another question about the first wires (http://i.imgur.com/uEvPU0P.jpg)

Seems like those are coming from my center console, which I think means that they're connected to the Pioneer HU or they're coming from the aftermarket Polk components that are installed in the doors. Would those hook up to an amp as well? Would the four wires be for tweeters and two components? Makes sense to me.. haha

It will work without a fuse but it won't be safe. Put the fuse as close to the battery as possible.

Without knowing more about what goes where, all I can tell you are some generalities:
Zip-cord, is usually used for speaker wires; sometimes for high-level connection between HU and amp. Single conductor wires are usually power (big wire) or on/off signal (small wire).

I think there may be an inline fuse, I'll double check again. There's definitely this clear plastic thing from the blue power cable in the hood of the car before it gets routed into the car. I wasn't sure what it was but it may be a fuse.

I guess when I get time I'll open up the car a little and see where all the cables are running to. Thanks for the help so far! :)

Does it look like this? I put mine on the screw and just tightened it up, Simple.
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...05CD5C4480.jpg

No, mine looks like this:

http://i.imgur.com/A2VikgY.jpg

Looks like a fuse, the wire is connected to both sides of it. I can't pull it out any further as it's pretty tight in there right now without me opening anything up.

Edit: When comparing them again, they look really similar. Just different colors and locations.

That frame over the battery is pretty easy to remove. Take out the rivets and then pry the rubber gasket up and off the frame. Pull the frame up and wiggle it out from under the windshield. See some of the "pull the SLU fuse" threads for details and pics.

Yep thats the fuse, but why the hell anyone would stuff it back there so tight is unknown to me cause if it pops and you have to change it, then what. A song and dance just to get it out, but it seems like all your wiring is in place, you should be a happy camper, plug and play from here.

First thing you wanna do is remove the fuse from that holder before something not so nice happens.....

Looks to me like the silver colored wires are rca cables...Is there a center conductor in there? and the 2 speaker wires would have been from an amp to your kickpanels, where you are likely to find the crossovers for the polk woofers and tweeters. The wires would split into 4 sets from there. The last single wire would have been your turn on lead

To the best of my knowledge, it's been this way for about three years now. Kind of sketchy...


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Seems like a lot of problems can arise from this as it is. I think from here the best way for me to go is to just get a new wiring kit. Do you have any recommendations?


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The only problem there could be is worn insulation. If the insulation is in good shape, there is no need to replace the wires. It's a PITA to pull wires in the Z (and most other cars).

If you have enough slack on the cabin end of the power wire, pull it back into the battery compartment enough that you have access to the fuse holder. As has been mentioned, you really ought to remove the fuse while working on the wiring.

Looks like I'll try it out. I definitely have enough wire to mount an amp under my seat or something, then I can just get RCA wires (or can I buy the ends to the ones I have?) And a new ground wire for the amp.

I'll remember to pull the fuse. I don't know how to yet but I'm sure I'll figure it out. Now I just need to figure out what my power wire can handle


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You can buy RCA connectors.

But you gotta have tiny fingers, and be a whiz with a soldering iron to use them. you need short,short,short leads on them. I've made a few sets in my day, and its not easy with construction worker gorilla mitts...

heehee Yeah, a lot of times it's easier just to buy cables with the ends molded on. Having someone hold things in place while you solder is a BIG help.

No one told me I had to solder anything. I'm buying new cables lol. Any recommendations for RCA cables?


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I dont really see the need for new cables or soldering anything as of yet. Hell, your power and ground wires can be tested before hand and even a bad set of RCA wires wont damage anything. You might be doing extra labor and spending money where you dont need to unless you just want all new wires that you installed for your own sense of security.

Except possibly your head units outputs, and your amplifiers inputs. If your rcas are questionable, get out your DMM and test continuity. If you replace an end on an rca cable, test continuity before putting into service. Bad means Bad for a reason.
Reading the prior posts, the OP's rca cables appeared to have been cut.
his choices are to repair or replace. there is no other option here.

I don't understand how a bad input cable is going to hurt anything. I've made some real good antennas but never any harm done.

Always a good idea to test DIY or unknown cables/wires before installing/using. :tup:

Given their low-voltage nature, I tend to agree, but you wouldn't believe some of the things I've seen over the years, so I choose to consider all possibilities, and whether I would risk my sensitive electronics over a $15 set of rca cables....Much less recommend to someone else something that I see as questionable.

A different forum I go to suggested that I get this KnuKonceptz 4GA kit.

Looks like it doesn't come with a remote turn on, where can I buy that? Car Toys or something?

I ended up picking up 2 12s and a JBL amp from Craigs for $200. Everything looks pretty new and I tested them out and they're great. However, I think I'm going to just go with 1 12 and sell the other. I'm trying to figure out what sub box I should go with now as well. Can't seem to find good ported ones so I might have to try making one myself..

Knu makes a decent amp kit. Odd that it doesn't come with a remote lead. You don't have to get that anyplace special, its just an 18ga stranded wire. What brand are the 12's? trust me, one is plenty for the Z.
Building a ported box, if its something you've never done before can be tricky. Be sure to follow the specs for it to the letter. dimensions on a ported box must be pretty accurate. Good luck with it, and get some pics up when its finished.........

They're JL Audio. I believe they're JL W4's, and the amp is a JBL GT0601.1. Here's an album: imgur: the simple image sharer

I picked them both up for $200. They seem pretty new, and the subs feel pretty good. They sound great to me.

The only remote lead wire I can find online is like 50ft and it's like $10, I don't really need that much. I'll probably stop by car toys or radio shack.

Also, I was talking to an audio shop and they said to build a ported box, it'd have to be pretty big. So I'm going to have them build me a sealed box.

Edit: Another thing, the Knu kit says it comes with an 80A fuse, is that sufficient for the amp I have? I'm not really sure about this stuff, but the amp has two fuses. Should that be a concern?