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Seicento Amp installation

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Seicento Amp installation

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Stuey3D

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Ill try posting this here as i dont seem to be getting any responses in the ICE section.

I have a 2001 seicento MPI which my mother in law has given me, now when I got the car it only had the basic Sony cassette head unit and polish dashboard speakers which sounded S**t lol.

I have now replaced the head unit with an all singing all dancing iPod compatible and Bluetooth Sony MEX-BT3800U which was a huge improvement in itself.

In the dash I have EDGE ED204 3way coaxial speakers, and in the boot mounted in wooden enclosures I have VIBE SLICK 69.3 6x9 speakers

Now I am happy with the sound it produces however I would like more volume as when I start to crank it up it distorts that little bit too early and I just yearn for that little extra volume.

Im thinking of maybe having a VIBE SLICK A1 4 channel amp installed just to help with the volume side of things.

Questions are:

How easy will it be to install in a 2001 seicento MPI, the head unit has a remote wire for amps to make it a bit easier.

Where is the best place to mount it, I'm thinking back of the back seats.

What is involved in the install, am I talking ripping out seats and carpet or can I tuck the wires into trim panels etc. I think the hardest part maybe getting the wires for the front speakers into the dash area as I imagine that may need to be pulled out to gain access.

Now the limit of my car install expertise is running speaker wire from head unit to the boot for the rear speakers, I am really scared of knackering my car and existing set up so I am thinking of getting it installed by a local ICE shop, anyone have any ideas on how much this may cost and can anyone recommend anyone in Northampton area to do this.

Now the big question is will the amp make a great deal of difference, I like the sound the set up produces at the moment I just need more volume before it distorts. I don't wanna win any max power sound competitions I just want volume and a half decent sound for the hour long commute to work.

Oh before anyone suggests subs etc, bear in mind I am on a budget and I need to keep as much space as I can in the car as I have an 8 month old daughter who gets transported in it so I need boot space for pram etc. Currently the 6x9s are in enclosures in the boot and I can still get the pram in on top which is nice.

Thanks for looking

Stu
 
Wiring in a Sei is easy as pie, the only things you'll need to remove are the plastics trims (kickplates) under the doors and the plastic trim under the dash on each side of the car (these meet up with the aforementioned kickplates).

Power - Look in the drivers footwell, between the acclelrator and brake pedals on the bulkhead is a large rubber grommet, you can use this pass the power cable through, tuck it under the now loosened carpet and along the wiring channel under the plastics you've just removed, tucking it under the rear seats is easy as they just lift up.

RCA and remote - run these down the channel on the opposite side to prevent any interference from the power cable.

Run the speaker cables down the same side as the RCA and remote, you can actually catch the speaker wires very easily if you drop them through the speaker holes, rather than trying to feed them up into the hole.

If there's anything unclear, let me know and I'll go take some pictures :)

As for mounting, totally your call but I wouldn't go drilling holes into the backs of the seats purely from a resale standpoint.
 
Thanks for the reply, yeah I saw that grommet so thats cool and the kickplates were where I originally had my speaker cables routed.

I am confident that I can wire it up it looks easy enough. The problem
I am worried about is running the RCA wires to the head unit whilst keeping them tidy (any ideas on getting them from kick plate to head unit without leaving them loose in the footwell) and mounting the amp as I read somewhere it might be too big to go under front seat which is where I wanted to install it really. As for front speaker wire I know where you mean now so that's not a problem anymore. I was concerned that I would have to pull the dash apart to get to them.
 
For wire routing I am thinking power down drivers side, RCA and remote down passenger side. Now for speaker cable I am thinking run each wire down the side speaker is installed so front left goes down passenger side and front right going down drivers side for ease of install the question I have here though is will the power cable interfere with the front right speaker or should I be ok?
 
if its distorting why not decrease the levels on sony low mid and hi also turn loud on makes a hell of a diffrence press and hold the dial in until u can set the clock and go through the options with music playing and adjust HF cut off LF cut off etc on the cinqi ran speaker RCA and remote lines down driver side as there is no other wires in the plate and tucked them in under the rear seats into the sub

as for to the head on the cinq there is a bar the peddles attach to wrap it round that.

as for front speakers if you can see the loom going to the speakers without removing the dash, remove the speaker and cables tie your new cable to the old ones and pull from the back to reveal your new cable :) amp id place either in the boot or under the dash if you have room
 
The EQ is off on the head unit, I never really thought of turning loudness on as I just thought that upped the bass and would make the distortion worse. I shall try turning it on next time I'm in the car and will report back.

I may still get an Amp to take the strain off the head unit but if loudness makes it sound better then I won't be in too much of a hurry lol. From what I have read separate amplifiers come highly recommended as you can get loud volumes with little - no distortion plus the one I am looking at I can tune the speakers individually so I can send bass to the 6x9's and mid and high to the dash speakers to stop them going pop under the strain of bass.
 
the EQ on the head unit is really good having it off is the same has having it all set to 0 if you want extra gain increase the EQ's if you want less gain more noise drecrease the EQ
 
Well I have put loudness on and it seems to be good. I notice I appear to have more bass and volume at lower settings so hopefully it means I shouldn't have to push it up as loud on the volume dial hopefully avoiding distortion I think it sounds louder but I have only tested it on the driveway the real test comes when I get it up to 70mph on the commute to work and all the other road and engine noises start to drown it out.
 
Ahh cool the head unit is almost identical to mine except mine has bluetooth as well which is handy.

I didn't realise the sei had optional factory fit speakers at the back whereabouts are they mounted as there ain't much room to stick speakers in unless you chop up the parcel shelf.

cool nice to see another forum user that is local, I think I may have been stuck behind you in traffic once. Does your sei have a forum sticker in rear windscreen?
 
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Sony BTX3800: edge 3way coax 10cm front, 6x9 mutants rear off the headunit 7inch sub amped

when playing through ipod & BT i use EQ Edge with Bass +4 Mid -2 High +3 sub +4 BT +6
Loud on Fade Rear +3 can goto about 35 before front speakers start distorting but if i turn bass down and gain on the amp down can get into the 50's but its V LOUD!
 
Last edited:
slugworth1987 said:
Sony BTX3800: edge 3way coax 10cm front, 6x9 mutants rear off the headunit 7inch sub amped

when playing through ipod & BT i use EQ Edge with Bass +4 Mid -2 High +3 sub +4 BT +6
Loud on Fade Rear +3 can goto about 35 before front speakers start distorting but if i turn bass down and gain on the amp down can get into the 50's but its V LOUD!
Click to expand...

Ahh a similar set up to me except I don't have sub and amp.

When I first installed the 6x9's I had low+2 mid+0 high+0 fader to rear6 and I could get upto about 35 before distortion, however the problem was I used to have it in the 30's at all time on the way to work as I commute along 40 miles of 70mph dual carriageway so I've got quite a bit of road noise to drown out lol.

I have now turned EQ off and loudness on and I can get it into the 40's before the distortion hits so it's a little louder, although I would still like an amp so I can set up the front and rear speakers bass and treble individually hopefully reducing distortion more and giving me more volume :D
 
unfortunatly the Edge speakers are crap from what ive noticed they are quiet anyway, if i where you bring ur fade back to the front slightly and try

Bass +1 Mid -5 High 0 Fade Rear +2 Balance Right +2 Loud on might give you more volume that you can hear! problem is if you need gain to create volume but once gain is to high you create distortion much like a guitar amp using "overdrive" i dont think amps will help much as then your HU wil then act as a "Pre Amp" which will have to be kept low amps on about 3/4 power with EQ preset if you want real volume upgrade the Edge fronts to a much more expensive brand as they will handle the volume better but u may want to look into 1inch tweeters and go Mid/Bass cones only 4inch drivers
 
also the speakers are only rated to 150w which is 75w RMS so if you add to much you will rip the cones i dunno dude i would defo jusy play with the headunit somemore before splashing out on a 4way amp
 
slugworth1987 said:
unfortunatly the Edge speakers are crap from what ive noticed they are quiet anyway, if i where you bring ur fade back to the front slightly and try

Bass +1 Mid -5 High 0 Fade Rear +2 Balance Right +2 Loud on might give you more volume that you can hear! problem is if you need gain to create volume but once gain is to high you create distortion much like a guitar amp using "overdrive" i dont think amps will help much as then your HU wil then act as a "Pre Amp" which will have to be kept low amps on about 3/4 power with EQ preset if you want real volume upgrade the Edge fronts to a much more expensive brand as they will handle the volume better but u may want to look into 1inch tweeters and go Mid/Bass cones only 4inch drivers
Click to expand...


Yeah I was a bit disappointed with the edge in the end when I heard them in halfords they sounded good and quite bassy, now I got them in the car they are far too clear on the mid and high and I had to set the fader to rear 6 to stop the treble giving me tinnitus lol.

I can't seem to find any 10cm components as I have considered that option as well. I think if I can get more volume up front without it sounding crap I will be happy.
 
Would it be worth paying stupid prices for 10cm component speakers for the dash as the cheapest I have found is 64 quid

VIBE Lite Air 210w Component Pro Speakers 4" 10CM: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

I imagine the same problem would occur they would sound crap due to vented dashboard.

I wonder if I pad out the speaker holes in the dash with some soundproof material like what's in my 6x9 enclosures if that would help bass response.
 
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