thefed

96 LS400, head-unit says "Lexus Premium Sound"

I'd like to just keep the factory head-unit and 6 disc changer, AND even the 8" sub...but ADD an amp and my 15" kicker.

How would I get RCA's to the amp? I assume i'd need those little converters to convert from regular speak wire to RCA's....which isn't ideal....but i imagine I can tap into the low-level inputs for the OEM sub to do this?

any reason not to try to run both subs?

Any ideas, suggestions (other than to buy another head unit LOL)

Thanks!

trukn1

This has been discussed many times here on the forums. Before anyone else jumps on ya, the search feature is your best friend. NOt to mention, there is an LS audio sticky at the top of the page.

In a nutshell, cause I had the same thing done when I added my 12's. If you want to keep the factory headunit, you will need to also get an inline converter in order to tap into the factory system. The factory headunit, is dependent on the factory amp to work, and if not converted and bypassed to the new amp, will not work properly. Not to mention the factory amp does not have nearly enough power to run the subs. Best advice tho in order to make the best of your system, especially since the factory headunit puts out little to nothing powerwise, and your amp WILL generate alot of heat trying to compensate for the underpowered headunit is to get another headunit.

thefed

Thanks for the reply! I did search, but didnt quite find what i was looking for.

When using the inline converters, what exactly makes the amp heart up? I thought the amp would AMPLIFY the signal...weak or not....to what it needs to be.

Are you saying that i cant run both amps? I figure the factory sub and amp would run off the stock headunit, and I would only need to tap into a speaker output to convert to the low output RCA for the new amp and subs....am I missing something?

Thanks!

mkorsu

Remove the factory 8". It will be adding nothing to your new setup. With the 15" in the trunk (reagrdless of the enclosure design) you will also be creating an enclosure of sorts out of the trunk. The 8" will be moved by the pressure built up in the trunk effectively nullifying the response from that speaker and most likely damaging it over time. The 8" will be attempting to work as a passive radiator AND a powered speaker at the same time which wont work. It wont work as a passive radiator either since the radiator has to be one size larger than the powered drivers to begin with.

dashan

Actually, you could put the 15" sub inside the car (cabin).

thefed

I might try a little experiment then. Leave it in for starters and compare to the sound without it. Perhaps leaving that hole would be like adding a port to my 'trunk' box and make it really bump?

Big Mack

iTrader: (1)

I agree.

This is 100% not correct. Passives do not need to be larger, but they do need to be correctly matched from a mass standpoint to actually be effective. Take a look at many different home speaker manufacturers - they use a passive the exact same size as the driver in order to lower the tuning frequency. Some (Klipsch, for example) have even used passives that were smaller than the driver.

I do agree with consensus - dump the factory 8 if you're putting in a 15" woofer. It will do absolutely nothing positive toward your goal.

Big Mack

thefed

would it be best to leave the hole, or plug it up?

GSteg

iTrader: (15)

Leave the hole. You'll get more bass through the cabin.

SCLexxxy

I found that if you have a ported box in the trtunk, that if u have holes (sucha s the stock sub) that it allows air to passs thru there and in turn makes it sound better...

IDK about sealed tho...