When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
You need to use the Skar Audio subwoofer linked several posts up as it has 2 voice coils (same as the stock sub) which allows use of the 4 wires. It is also on Sale for $63.99! https://www.skaraudio.com/products/v...-car-subwoofer
The Earthquake SWS subwoofer from Amazon won't work as it is single voice coil and can only accept 2 wires. Return it and get the Skar.
The skar unit is a 600W sub, the stock amp cant push anywhere near that. Wondering if I will not hear any difference at all with the skar by itself in the oem enclosure and stock amp. Did not want to run a lead all the way from the battery to the back for another amp. But I get what you are saying about the wiring. If I increase the base level by 35% over stock that will be enough for me. Will try with the skar as its half the price and will return the other one. The earthquake did have a 300W max with 150w nominal so needs way less power to push it.
The stock sub should (hopefully) have the wire terminals marked + and --. And so should the Skar.
Note which wire goes to which terminal and note the pairs of wires for each pair of terminals and keep them separate.
The person who has done this install may have better info, but that is how I would do it.
FYI positive wires are often the one with a stripe.
Note how he modified the stock speaker box with a dremel to make the Skar fit and then used foam backer rod and foam pieces to stop vibrations as shown in the photos above.
The stock sub should (hopefully) have the wire terminals marked + and --. And so should the Skar.
Note which wire goes to which terminal and note the pairs of wires for each pair of terminals and keep them separate.
The person who has done this install may have better info, but that is how I would do it.
FYI positive wires are often the one with a stripe.
Note how he modified the stock speaker box with a dremel to make the Skar fit and then used foam backer rod and foam pieces to stop vibrations as shown in the photos above.
Correct, will do the same, does anyone have the link to the actual subwoofer removal steps? cannot seem to find it and starting this project this weekend.
You need to use the Skar Audio subwoofer linked several posts up as it has 2 voice coils (same as the stock sub) which allows use of the 4 wires. It is also on Sale for $63.99! https://www.skaraudio.com/products/v...-car-subwoofer
The Earthquake SWS subwoofer from Amazon won't work as it is single voice coil and can only accept 2 wires. Return it and get the Skar.
Well, the SWS will work if you use an aftermarket amplifier. I will use the 8in SWS as an replacement subwoofer for the stock 8in subwoofer, but I will use a Kicker amp to power it. The Kicker amp only needs one of the stock amp sub channels to tap into for a line signal.
I bought the exact same subwoofer earthquake sws 8xi and just want to replace the stock sub as this is a 150w 300wmax subwoofer that does not need as much power to drive it. Hoping the stock system is enough especially at 2ohms. What wires do I hook up to the speaker if there are a set of 4?
You will need to use an aftermarket amp with the SWS single voice coil subwoofer. The stock amp will not provide enough power off one channel. I will be using an aftermarket amp to power the SWS 8xi 4ohm speaker I will buy.
To be honest you will need an aftermarket amp to power any 8in subwoofer replacement since the stock system only put out about 300 watts max for the 12 speaker system and maybe about 400 watts max for the 15 speaker setup. Therefore the subwoofer output is probably no more than about 50w-70w rms. Not enough power for an quality aftermarket subwoofer.
tobusy4 - Have you experience taking apart a car interior? Do you have trim removal tools? Do you have a drill with grinding attachments or a dremel or files etc which will be needed to modify the sub box for the Skar as indicated above. Plus foam backer rod and loose foam which you can get at Lowes or Home Depot.
The sub is behind the left rear quarter panel in the cargo area. You need to unscrew some stuff, remove some tabs to find some screws and pull (hard) some panels out. You need to remove a lot of stuff to get at it. You have to remove the floor covers, spare tire etc. Do fold the rear seats down.
A car stereo shop can do the job of replacing the sub and adding an amp rather quickly as they know what to do. Making this a learning experiment is setting yourself up for frustration. Having said that here are some links to the few prior posts that show interior removal and some have photos. Good Luck.
Yes I have taken apart interiors before, and I have done wiring before. I have all the tools. I can run the amp line for a spare amp and hook everything up but just really dont want to spend the extra time and $ here as I am only looking for a 35 to 45% improvement in base over stock at low to mid volume levels. I think the premium sound system is pretty good, just needs a little extra base. I probably will end up running a small amp down the road.
Just wanted to see the step my step process of getting to that sub box if someone had it before, it saves time, Thanks for posting the link.
Yes I have taken apart interiors before, and I have done wiring before. I have all the tools. I can run the amp line for a spare amp and hook everything up but just really dont want to spend the extra time and $ here as I am only looking for a 35 to 45% improvement in base over stock at low to mid volume levels. I think the premium sound system is pretty good, just needs a little extra base. I probably will end up running a small amp down the road.
Just wanted to see the step my step process of getting to that sub box if someone had it before, it saves time, Thanks for posting the link.
We seem to have similar goals in regards to the stock premium system. I purchased a Kicker KEY 500.1 amp. The amp is small but can put out 500w rms at 1 ohm. The amp power varies with the speaker ohm. 2 ohm=300w rms and 4 ohm=150w rms. The amp will work perfectly with the 4ohm Earthquake 8in SWS low profile speaker since the speaker only has a 150w rms rating. The amp is only about 8in long and about 4in wide.
The Kicker Key 500 amp is very powerful for its size.
I like the stock 12 speaker sound quality,but want a deeper bass response. I will try the Earthquake SWS low profile speaker to get better bass without reducing my cargo space with a add-on subwoofer box .
The Earthquake SWS speaker review. It puts out some deep space for a shallow subwoofer and "should" fit in the stock sub enclosure without much modification if any.
I should have kept the earthquake subwoofer as I have only 2 wires connecting to the stock subwoofer, and remember I am still using the stock amp and wiring. So now I have the skar with dual voice coil and have to run it in series or parallel? I am assuming that the factory hot is the red wire with the white stripe and I am guessing to run it in parallel as the skar diagram states below?
So if you trace further down to the sub box plug in there are 4 wires which are run from the amp to the sub box. Then those 4 wires are broken down to 2 to connect to the speaker box and then run up to the speaker. I decided to do this the right way and bought a skar 350.1D amp to power the 8" sub in the stock enclosure, Going to use a LOC off the 4 speaker wires to convert to the RCA signal for the amp. Does anyone happen to know which of these colors are right and left pairs and what is plus and what is negative? It's a 2013 RX350 premium sound (not ML). So far assuming Left + is black, Left - is yellow, Right plus is red, and Right - is white. if anyone knows if this is correct or not let me know?