Ok before anyone tells me to go to the audio section, I have already been there and I cant find any information for our 3rd Gen. I have a pretty big USX 4ch amp and a smaller MTX 6500 amp that I'm wishing to install. Problem is, I don't know where to put them. On top of that I also have a capacitor that needs to be mounted as close to the amp as possible. Talk about finding space....My first idea was to mount it on the back of the seat in the trunk, but the equipment is heavy and I don't think the flimsy cardboard will support it. Unless someone knows a trick??? I still want to keep as much storage space as possible (since I also have 2 10's in a box). I can't mount them under the seats because they are powered. And if I catch a flat, I would really like to ride home instead of being stranded because I'm too cool to have a spare so. So could you guys help me out, I'm trying to keep the installation as simple as possible yet neat looking.

Mad thanks,
-J-

daKID

 

I am having the same problem. I am mounting my sub inbetween the back speakers. So what I was thinking was about building a slanted box that is connected to the back of the seat and mount my two amps on there.

You could also build two platforms on the sides of your trunk and mount the amps there.

 

Here's the dilly, be creative man. You could mount the amps on the back of the seat in the trunk if you build a rakc out of MDF or plywood if you are on a budget. I suggest under the seat if it fits, that way your power and RCA cables ar shorter (save money on long RCA's and power wire and reduces chances of interance). This is the way I usually go if they fit. NEVER SCREW THE AMP DOWN DIRECTLY INTO GROUNDED METAL. Always mount the amp to wood then screw the wood to metal. Just in case you didn't know. It will cause the worst noise you ever heard. I would build a board that fits nicely behind the back seat in the trunk, well supported and secured, cover it in carpet and mount the big one there if the under the seat thing is not an option do to size. Also, it is a bad idea to mount amps directly to a subwoofer enclosure..not only will you put holes in the box, but vibrations are death to a printed circuit board. I have seen it done a million times and done it myself, just passing on a piece of advise given to me a by a friend and professional installer.

 

i just mounted my amp on the side of the box. it gets the job done until i find a better place to put it. btw i also have two tens.

 

Mine is just in the trunk behind the box. I would mount it somewhere, but that would make me unlazy if I did some actual work

 

lol. mine's mounted behind my sub box which is wide. i have 2 12s.
other place you can put it is utilzing the whole trunk floor by mounting them on there, and also adding a hinge so you can lift up to get ypour spare tire out, if you're worried about that.
happy bassing.

 

You can mount a piece of plywood to the rear seat structure and bolt your amp to it for the interior speakers. And mount the sub amp on top of the sub enclosure

 

forgot to mention it in my above reply but where ever you mount the amp, make sure it got enough space for it to cool off by its heatsinks.

 

I have a huge 1000 watt eclipse and a 4 channel eclipse both of which I mounted flat on the floor of the trunk. It seemed the only way to go, really.

 

well that's cool considering there's a lot of space on top of your amp...allowing air to circulate. my friend put his somewhere cramp and his amp overheats many times because no air can get to it.

 

aslo if you want you can mount the amp in a sunken compartment in the spare weel well. ____ amp ______ ya know what i mean just make a small box out of mdf or something...
|_______|

and maby put some clear plastic over it (hard plastic at that)
with some neon lights in it..........ya know?


it would look kinda cool!

 

my diagram ****ed up


_____ amp _____
|______|

 

Hinging it is a good idea.

 

several options... you could do it like this:

http://www.ee.utulsa.edu/~mblehm/pic...ed_amprack.jpg

or you could do it like this:
http://www.ee.utulsa.edu/~mblehm/pic...ood_pics/4.jpg

(and yes, there's still room for the spare...) http://www.ee.utulsa.edu/~mblehm/pic...od_pics/10.jpg

With my luck, I always keep the spare in useable condition. My wife has actually blown TWO tires on the drive home from car shows when I was too tired to drive.

 

I mounted my amp on a custom made piece of plywood I made myself and painted black. My amp was rather large (22 x 12, 6 channel), but fit on the board just fine. The board was then secured with two bolts that I got from Home Depot, sawed in two parts at close to an inch in length, and joined by a hex joint. This makes the system easy to remove and secures the whole thing to the car nicely. I then cut out a hole for a 10 inch sub, and mounted an MA Audio 200 oz DVC strontium magnet dude there. Works fine for me, and I even had enough room left over for a 1 farad power cap, and possibly an electronic crossover.

I do have one suggestion about wiring up an amp in your Max (in case you didn't know): ALWAYS run the power lines independent of the audio lines. I ran a 4 ga Monster Cable (Red) cable down the passengers side into the hood, and the amp turn-on cable there too.

All audio cables were ran down the drivers side. Works good and provides alot of thump..

Happy hunting.

 

wow!! are those pics from your ride? that's nice!!! given me another idea. thanx!

 

yeah.. the top one is my current one.. the mirrored stuff on the floor of the trunk was in my GXE.. it was nice, but too restrictive on trunk space. this system has twice the power and twice the trunk space.
just don't copy it.

 

The pics of the amps on the floor were hot. It looks painfully long to complete. Is that fiberglass on top? If so, how was it too restrictive on space? Could'nt you just put your stuff on top of it? Where were the exits for air, didn't you have any overheating problems? Anyway...it's hot but a little more work than I know how to do. I'll probably work with the plyboard bolted on the back of the seat. I'm thinking of making one thats long enough to fit all of my components on it and just cover it in grey carpet to make it look as neat as possible. Think that would work for me? Did you guys have to drill much?

-J-

daKID

 

Not really.

I just did some cutting. Getting the board to remain rigid in the car was my hardest part. Friend recommended using a piece of cardboard, but I ignored that and went straight for the board. Mounting the components was one of the easiest parts.

 

problems: my sub box took up 3 cu ft of space back there, and my amprack took up the bottom 7" or so of the floor... once you opened the trunk, there was about 1.5" below the lip of the trunk, and only about 2 ft back. there barely enough room to throw a tire on top of the amp rack with the covers on.
FYI, it's a clear plexiglass cover, then I put a piece of carpeted plywood over that when I wanted to protect everything.

if you'll look at the sides of the rack, you'll notice three black circles about 1.5" in diameter... those are the vents.. I had two fans on each side- one set pushing, the other pulling, then there were vents in the corners (where you can't see) to vent the air into the trunk. other stuff you can't see is the 1F cap hidden in the side of the rack under one of the covers.

the new amprack takes up less room than the sub box with the JLs, and I still have the entire floor in addition. much more room in there now, AND it's over 100lb lighter than the old system.