DIY: Add a sub to your Bose equipped G35 Coupe
 

I was looking at adding some more to my stock Bose system in my '06 Coupe. First I dynamatted the crap out of my car (search for my previous post for details). That set a good foundation but I wanted crisper highs and mids so I replaced the front speakers with Infinity Kappa components. There are better speakers out there, but for $125 and being a direct 2 ohm replacement, the sound couldn't be beat. I thought I would be satisfied with that, but the bass from the 6x9's left sooooo much to be desired (couldn't really hear it when my windows are rolled down)! That's when my project started. After a LOT of research on these forums, I decided with the below:

G35 Coupe w/ Bose
Jl 500/1 Amp
JL 10W6v2
4080 Sub box
JL 4 gauge amp kit
JL Bass Control Knob

Previously installed:
Sound dampening: Damplifier, Spectrum Sludge, and Overkill sound absorber (all from Second Skin).
Infinity Kappa Components from ebay.

I bought my JL components from ebay because they were SOOOO much cheaper. I just bought the extended warranty from Square Trade for the amp ($30 for 3 years). Contact 4080 for an awesome box and a great price!

The first step was to install the amp power wire. Removing the battery cover on the passenger side exposed the battery terminals and the large grommet that I needed to access. I removed the in-line fuse and disconnected the negative terminal of the battery for good measure. I connected the power wire with a round connector and made a hole in the grommet to run my 4 gauge wire through. This is best achieved by using a pair of scissors as the rubber is tough to stretch open. Once you have the correct length, make sure you put some silicone sealant on the grommet so you don't have any water leaking into that hole you made.

Underneath the glove compartment, you can pull straight down on the lower panel to expose your wire coming through. You also need to remove the door trim pieces and the kick panel to run your wire under the carpet.

As you approach the rear seat, you have to remove the bottom cushion by pulling straight up on each side. This allows you to continue to run your power wire to the trunk. Once you have the power wire running the way you want it, you can replace all the parts you had removed earlier.

The next step is to find the Bose amp underneath the trunk coverings on the driver's side. There are two harnesses that are running to the amp. The one you want is the blue harness. Remove that and identify your input wires:

Head Output Rear Right + Blue
Head Output Rear Right - Pink

Head Output Rear Left + Teal
Head Output Rear Left - Purple

Remote Wire Light Blue/ Silver

You need to be able to convert 18 gauge wires to an RCA jack to connect to the amp. One way was to get an RCA jack with a twisted pair of wires that you can cut and then splice. Another option is to get the JL line conversion that I used (pricey - $25, but I couldn't wait for mail-order). Splice them with in-line splicers available at Radio Shack and tape it up with electrical tape. You also want to splice into the Remote Wire for the amp. Although the JL amps have audio sensing power-on capability, it is unreliable (I found out the hard way) and I recommend using a direct remote power-on line.

The next step is to establish a ground for your amp. You need to attach it to the chassis and as close to the amp as possible. I found a spot that may not be ideal, but went ahead with it because I didn't want to drill into my car. There's a hole in the passenger side of the trunk that you can use as an anchor. Make sure that you sand all of the paint off it before you connect your ground.

** I will eventually redo this and use some self tapping screws to secure it to the chassis closer to the amp.

Once I had all of my wiring complete, I put all of the trunk coverings back together. I installed my W6 sub in the 4080 box with some 2" screws I bought at Home Depot. I had some issues with the fitment of the W6, but it sounds like it's an isolated problem. I turned it at an irregular angle to finally make it fit. I installed the box and laid all my wires inside the trunk. I connected all of the wires except the RCA plugs to the amp. I inserted the fuse near the battery, and THEN did I plug the RCA plugs in (the reason for waiting on the RCA's is to prevent the amp from attempting to ground through the RCA's to the head-unit, possibly damaging it).

I decided to install the optional JL Bass Control Knob in the center console. I removed the felt covered top piece and drilled a hole in it. I also had to dremmel a bit of the console for the rear of the unit to fit. I ran the wire through the center console, under the driver's side seat and carpet, and pulled it through the door seal. I then ran it under the carpet and out the back to the trunk. I highly recommend this controller because it allows a great deal of on-the-fly control from inside your car once your have fine tuned your amp.

Connect everything up and 'voilà!' You should now have some very nice smooth bass. Don't forget to disconnect the rear 6x9's so they don't muddle your sound. I used electrical tape to tape the speaker harnesses down so they wouldn't rattle. I recommend playing with the amp settings quite a bit before you mount it to the backseat. This allows much more ease of access. Also, remember to close the trunk each time you change something so that you recreate how it will sound as you're driving. Also, remember it takes several hours of moderate sound levels to "break-in" your sub so take it easy. I used my fader to control my sub output and faded to the front at F3. This allows me to push my front aftermarket components with minimal interference from the stock rear speakers.

In retrospect, I probably would have went with the JL 250/1 and W3 combo and save some cash. My current setup is more than I could ever use, but I'm still very happy with it. I have the '06 with Bluetooth, so I don't want to go messing with the front amp any time soon. I would like to add an amp there, but I'm waiting for some brave soul to replace the bose amp altogether and preserve all of the features of the Bluetooth phone connection.

Feel free to add comments or question my install. I will edit it as necessary. Hopefully this helps out someone who was in my shoes but didn't know where to start. Here's a link to some reference material that may be useful:

http://www.g35frenzy.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1044


:cool:

Nice write up!

Sweet...thanks for the write up...it looks a lot more complicated than I thought...I'm in the process of doing the same thing and probably will be using the same amp/sub combo...I'm still a newb to all the audio stuff though, so I'll probably be taking it to an installer.

Did you think about mounting the sub underneath near the spare tire? And is there a huge difference between what you have now compared to using the 250/1 and W3 combo?

BTW, the last 3 links you posted aren't working.

Did you just mount the amp directly onto the back of the seats? Or did you have install some sort of mdf board before the amp install? i'm still deciding where to put my amp. Not too sure if the back of the seats are sturdy enough for 2 amps.

looks complicated... i think im gonna get mine installed by a professional.. i don't trust myself.. lol good job though, ur trunk doesn't look all cooped up and it still has a nice clean look to it..

To tell you the truth, the install wasn't that bad. I just went slow and was meticulous with everything I did. As for the sound of the W3 vs the W6, I have not personally heard the W3's. My JL dealer told me that the W6 was the best at reproducing things such as snare drums, but also at delivering solid/tight bass in the lower frequencies.

The 4080 box is meant to slide in the corner of your trunk. It takes up a minimal amount of space and sounds great. I have seen custom boxes that go down under the trunk mat, but they are custom and are probably pretty $$$$$. The amp is mounted right on the back of the seat w/ some wood screws. I think one 500/1 amp is ok, but anything heavier might need some support.

Thanks for the heads up on the links... I'll have to search for them again and update accordingly. Let me know if you have any more questions. :)

Nice work. I've been using the auto-sensing turn-on and it hasn't given me any problems. What problems were you running in to? I'm very happy with my 250/1 and 10W3.

Thanks for the compliments guys. As for the autosensing, it wouldn't detect the line level inputs. It would only kick on if I turn the auto sensing switch off, then on. But if I left it on, and turned the ignition, the amp would not power up. I spent 5 minutes splicing in the remote lead and that took my 30 minute frustration away. :D

Do you know if there is a difference in the harness for a 06 G35X sedan? I was trying to install an amp in my friends car, and his harness looks different then your picture. I guess maybe because he doesnt have 6x9s in the rear, only a small sub. Any insite on this?

Great writeup BTW. =)

Nice write up. Too bad I already paid somone a buttload of money to install my components :)

Did you consider adding an eq to moderate levels between the bose and your jl amp? Nice install and write up by the way.

-Vin

Thanks Vin. The stock Bose fader does a remarkable job of allowing me to control each amp relatively independently. That, along with slight changes in the JL amp gain and JL bass control, gives me more than enough adjustments than I can use.

I have a similar set-up but I went with two JLw3's. Wondering if your set-up hits harder and cleaner than mine. Thoughts?

I have no clue about the sound comparison. Maybe, the audio experts can chime in. I'm glad I only went with one W6 because I can still use my trunk for groceries, etc. since this is my daily driver.

Hey Guys, I just had some subs installed to my 06 G35 but i found 1 small problem. My FM radio started working like crap! When the amp is on, the FM radio signal gets really weak and I hear a lot of static. However, if i detach the power wire from the amp so the Amp won't turn on, the FM radio get normal reception and it works fine.

Would anybody know how I can fix this?

Thanks.

It seems like you may be experiencing the dreaded FM interference from the D Class amplifiers. If you do a google search for it, you'll find lots of information. I think a lot of people tried to move their amps as far away from the power antenna as possible. I'm not saying that this is a fix, but it may be worth a try.

I was very concerned about this also. Luckily, when I installed my JL 500/1 amp, I had no FM interference whatsoever. If it becomes a big problem, maybe a new amp might be in order.

Hmm yeah it is a D class i guess. It's a Hifonics Brutus BXi1606D. Currently its mounted on the back of the back seat. Where would be a good location to move it to?

This is a great write-up, but I have 1 question. How long was your power cable? I want to do my install, but my 4 gauge power cable is only 15.25' long. Do you think that will be long enough to get to my trunk?

Thanks.

Hmm... I'm not sure about that power wire. My kit came with a 20ft power wire and I had to trim some of it. I don't think I had too much extra with that 20ft wire so you might need to do a trial fit to see if it will work.

Very nice work, and awesome write-up. Whenever I see a good write up like this, I wish I had done the same with my install. I've got a 10w6v2 in a 4080 box, with a 500/1 pushing it, same as you. I've got very different signal connections, due to the complete removal of the Bose amp on my setup, but I've got an 05 (with no bluetooth) so I could do that. Not sure what the solution for the 06'2 is.

Dave

I ended up installing it with the 15.25' feet of wire and it was more than enough. Your write-up made the install very easy!

Awesome. I'm glad I could be of some help! :cool:

I just wanted to say thanks for writing up this DIY! I had a little different setup as usual, but using your post as a reference helped me out significantly.

i second that
i had a professional install of a basslink ii, that sounded like crap
with your DIY i re did what was done and it sounds 100% better

thanks

Thanks guys! I'm glad I could be of some help. :D

Mods: Is there any way we can move this to the DIY section so it doesn't get lost? I would like other people to be able to find it easily.

This one should be a sticky. (Great DIY for the Newbies)

I'm an audiophile myself and this DIY is the same way I plan to add some Bass to my system. (Once my 2006 Athens Blue 6MT comes in.) Only difference is that I'm planning on matching the same system output as the stock system. I will run a woofer in the 200-250 RMS power range and an Amp that matches or sligthly over powers the woofer. (Note: For the purest Bass its always best to run at 4ohms and stay in RMS power or slightly over power the woofer. Subs tend to distort and blow faster when under powered.) After installing the Sub all that's needed to get the perfect balance is to buy yourself a sound meter cheap at RadioShack and center stage it to the front of the vehicle. (Between Driver and Passenger for overall uniformity or slightly ahead of both for proper front staging.) Then chose a decent volume level and leave it there. Now only run the stock portion of your system. After this make a note of the db that your system was at on that specific volume setting follow by running the sub alone. (Unplug the stock Amp but leave Sub.) Match the sub to the overall system db at same volume. Your done. Now your Sub is perfectly matched to your stock system. For the Hip Hoper in yah I recommend using a 12" and for the rest of you stick to the 10". One woofer of either size will be more than sufficient. Now if you really want to be a picky bastard as I am then you’ll adjust all your speakers to match the sound meter and then setup the Sub.

Oh yeah I also recommend all of you to get at least a ½ Farad Cap. (1 Farad would be best though.)

Damnit, almost forgot... To run the sound test use a Sound Testing CD. You can get these at most music stores.

Once again, great job DR6

awesome write up...good job on the install as well

Awesome writeup. I want to do the same to my '03 sedan, but I'm missing a few of the wires that you mention.

Specifically, I don't have a purple or teal wire.

Where can I find information on what wires I need to splice into on an '03 model sedan?

Thanks!

goodd ****ttz man!!!

Thanks for the compliments guys.

As for the sedan wiring, I remember that someone had a previous post that outlined what the colors were on the sedan. It's also in the service manual but I can't seem to find a link to it (could only find the coupe manual). Try a search for either on this message board and via google and it should come up pretty easy. Good luck with the install!

dr6, this is a setup in a g35 coupe that i saw at HIN l.a. last saturday 8/19... how much u think it costs? its nice as fuc*!
Attachment 224959

Attachment 224960

Wow, that's really nice... put's my 2-bit garage project to shame! :o

BTW, nice screen-name :D

haha na but u did urs urself and its best for bang for buck, and plus that setup is probably worth around 4-5k...

Thanks. I'll give this a go.

How does the 500/1 jl sound with stock speakers? Does it make u want to upgrade them too?

my 500/5 with stock speakers sounded horrible. the stock speakers really depend on the equalization contributed by the bose amp to sound anywhere near acceptable.

Where did you get your 4080 box?

There's a member by the name of 4080 that custom makes those boxes. PM him.

I think this should be stickied in the Audio DIY section! I've been looking all over the forum for instructions on installing an aftermarket amp/sub, and the search feature in this forum isn't the best around!

How much harder would a 2-gauge power wire be than a 4-gauge? I wanted to run the 500/1 amp and add a 300/4 down the road.

The larger gauge shouldn't be any harder to run if you get a flexible piece. I'd get a distribution block since you plan to have 2 amps and use the correct gauge to branch from the distribution block to the amps.

I'm happy to see that dr6 tapped into the Bose head unit signal BEFORE it reaches the Bose amp. Tapping into the speaker leads AFTER the Bose amp will add unwanted Bose equalizing.

For you guys that have an installer do this install for you, make sure they tap into the signal BEFORE the amp. They probably don't know about the sound EQ shaping that the Bose amp does. I have come across a couple of installers who planned to just tap into the rear 6x9 signals before they were advised of the shortcomings.

sweet setup man