j2tha0e

i've put in new speakers and an aftermarket amp in my car, and i know for a fact, from the headunit to the amp, i've done everything right. (according to wiring diagrams)
after the amp, is another the kuestion. for some reason, the same colors used in the factory amp harness isn't the same as the wires that actually connect to the speakers, so i think i may have some speakers out of phase.
i have a multi-meter, is there any way to use that to figure out which lead is positive (+) and negitive (-)?
is there another method?

engin_ear

iTrader: (1)

Yes.
Get a 1.5V AA battery. Attach the positive side of the battery (with the bump) to one speaker wire, and the negative side (flat bottom) to the other wire (assuming you've removed the wires from your amp output connections first !) As you do this, watch for the initial movement of the speaker cone. If it moves outward, then the wire connected to the positive side of the AA battery is the (+) speaker lead, otherwise (if the cone moves inward) that wire is the (-) speaker lead. DO NOT USE A BATTERY WITH A GREATER VOLTAGE, SUCH AS A 9V RECTANGULAR, ESPECIALLY FOR TWEETERS, as speaker damage can occur. (Obviously, even though you have a multimeter, the speaker wires need to remain connected to the speaker during this test.)
Hope this helps.
Jerry.

stevie

A related question - in the stock Pioneer system are the door speakers wired in or out of phase with the deck mounted bass unit?

Stevie

Mean Gene

Stevie - My GS came with the Pioneer system & all my speakers were wired in phase. Didn't figure it was worth the old trick of wiring the rear door speakers out of phase since I was changing them anyway but I remember checking all of them beforehand.

stevie

Thanks Gene. I've just swopped out the first front door drivers and wasn't quite as thorough as you.
(I can't believe how bad the stock speakers are).

Stevie