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amp install


40oz

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Im looking to move my amp from under the starbord side dash to the dry storage on the port side. My question is what (if anything) will need to be done to mount the amp to the wall on the port side. My fear is that the screws will poke through the gel coat. Anyone else have there amps mounted like this? If so how shallow are the screws?

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Don't even think about drilling into the hull.

Mount an HDPE or resin-coated and marine-grade carpet-clad birch amp panel to the hull via several mounting blocks.

My preference is to use resin-coated .75" thick birch blocks. Cut away two or four patches of carpet, sand the interior gelcoat of the hull and clean it up with paint thinner (easy does it). Then glue the blocks to the hull with a figerglass bonding compound. The easiest to procure would be something like Kittyhair. You can even drill shallow holes in the backside of the blocks to increase the mechanical bond. Then after that has cured for a day, mount the amp panel to the individual blocks with the appropriate length of screws. You could even countersink and double nut bolts from the backside of the blocks and use these as studs where you mount the amp panel with a few washers and nuts.

David

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Thanks for the advice guys. The older threads with pics really helped out.

Last question: When running the speaker wires up to the tower speakers (im re-wiring the whole system) do i use heavy duty speaker wires and just cover with lume where they are exposed (about 6" from boat to tower) or are there marine speaker wires that are protected with a thick case already on the market that i shoud use?

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Many use a jacketed multi-conductor wire for the tower just like what is routinely pulled for home applications. The slick jacket is purposely low friction and easy to pull. Plus, the interior insulators and exterior jacket are not so thick so they are not as bulky. Much of the vinyl insulation of 2-conductor speaker wire is for show (makes the wire appear larger than it is) and is unnecessary.

David

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Thanks for the advice guys. The older threads with pics really helped out.

Last question: When running the speaker wires up to the tower speakers (im re-wiring the whole system) do i use heavy duty speaker wires and just cover with lume where they are exposed (about 6" from boat to tower) or are there marine speaker wires that are protected with a thick case already on the market that i shoud use?

they make jumpers just for that... here is a cheapie version:

http://www.diywake.com/shop/shopexd.asp?id=673

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  • 1 month later...

12-22-12 Update:

Rewired amplifier.

13ft of 4 gauge power wire, straight from the amp to battery with 200A inline fuse 6” from positive terminal.

13ft of 4 gauge ground wire, straight from amp to battery.

2 17ft RCAs from amp to head unit.

1 17ft remote from amp to head unit.

While boat is off, sound is crisp and crystal clear. With boat running and volume set at 0, both amplified speakers have motor noise. With boat running and volume up, one speaker is very distorted. Any suggestions for my next step will be appreciated.

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I would do a quick search within the forum. There are a number of threads that are dedicated to addressing this very issue. 9 out of 10 times, it comes down to how the head-unit is wired. Also, I think a 200A fuse might be a bit large for 26ft of 4gs. Whats the peak potential load of your amps? You only need to fuse to that point, but not exceeding the capacity of the cable. The intent of the fuse or breaker is to be the weak link if a short occurred. If you need a 200A fuse to carry the load of your amps, 4ga is too small. Just something to consider.

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200A fuse is just what came with the 4gs install kit. I thought it seemed like overkill.

I have read through the forums, and they have been helpful, but I havent found a solution to what i am seeing yet.

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Well, bad news is, I cant get any threads to come up using the forum's search tab either. I know they exist. Good news is, theres only 12 months of threads to sift through :surprised:

Try this thread http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?/topic/37203-ground-loops-and-proper-wiring-home-run-hum-hiss-pop/

http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?/topic/37009-engine-noise-in-speakers/

Edited by MLA
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Day 3 of this project and I think I got it figured out. I was actually having 2 problems that I thought was one. One problem was a bad ground connection on the aux switch that turned power on/off to my head unit. Second problem was some sort of short in the right channel of my amp. The channel plays fine until volume is increased, then sound becomes distorted. Solution will be to order a new amp (that was on my todo list anyway) and rewire all componets of the stereo, (switch, power, ground, headunit and amp).

This project has allowed me to rewire my whole system, which i wanted to do, just been putting it off. Once I get my new amp, I will have peace of mind knowing my system is hooked up right.

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Day 3 of this project and I think I got it figured out. I was actually having 2 problems that I thought was one. One problem was a bad ground connection on the aux switch that turned power on/off to my head unit. Second problem was some sort of short in the right channel of my amp. The channel plays fine until volume is increased, then sound becomes distorted. Solution will be to order a new amp (that was on my todo list anyway) and rewire all componets of the stereo, (switch, power, ground, headunit and amp).

This project has allowed me to rewire my whole system, which i wanted to do, just been putting it off. Once I get my new amp, I will have peace of mind knowing my system is hooked up right.

Sounds suspiciously like a shorted speaker or speaker lead. Did you by chance swap the suspect speaker wires with the next door channel? If the problem is the amp,the problem will stay with that chnl. If the problem is the speaker or its wiring, the problem will move to the properly functioning chnl.

The bad ground on your rocker switch is only for the switch's illumination. Has nothing to do with what the switch is going electrically for the stereo turn-on.

Is the head-unit's yellow B+ wiring sharing the same battery B+ as the amps? If not, this seems to be the single biggest contributor to engine noise.

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Head unit yellow + is now sharring the same + as the amp. Direct to the battery.

I re-ran the ground on the rocker switch as well as a direct lead from the rocker to the red ignition wire for head unit.

Took amp out of boat, replaced with a spare that i had and both tower speakers work great. Bench tested the amp and the right side has major distorion on both RCA inputs. It is a 4 channel Twister amp.

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Great. Sounds like you found the problem with the distortion at higher outputs. Amp's are usually pretty reliable in my experience, but they break like everything else.

You've probably seen the other related thread floating around, right? Essentially, be sure you're using distribution blocks with a direct (and heavy gauge) wire to the battery. I actually draw my heavy lead for the (+) distribution block off the 1-2-Off battery switch (from the Comm post) so that I can run the stereo off either battery when parked, but that's just my preference (this allows one battery to stay fully charged).

Good work!

Edited by CliffB
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  • 2 weeks later...

Follow up:

Pulled back the carpet, used adhesive to stick marine plywood to fiberglass, put carpet back and mounted amp. I wish I would have ran the wires under the carpet, but trust me, this is a lot better than what I had before.

IMG_0709_zps07cf4ef6.jpg

IMG_0774_zps9ca3acb7.jpg

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