TomBeverlyHills

What's the best way, and where are the best places, to add woofers? I want to keep the factory head unit and speakersl; I just want to tap into it and add some amps and woofers. But exactly where/how do I tap into the factory unit to feed the amp, and where should I put the woofers?
My first thought was to add one woofer in the middle of the hat shelf where the first aid kit is. Has anyone tried this? Thanks.

King320

Do you have a CLK? your sig says 300CE. What year? Bose system?

TomBeverlyHills

I have a 2001 CLK 430. I'm not sure if it has Bose or not.
I've sold the 300CE. I need to update my profile.

bs00clk

Rear speakers say "Bose" on them if you have the Bose setup. Let us know what you end up doing and how it works. Good luck.

TresX

If you want to keep the factory head unit, you're only option is to get a Hi/Low convertor.

TomBeverlyHills

My next challenge is going to be taking the door panel off (I want to see if I can fit some small woofers in the doors) and taking apart the rear hat shelf. Does anyone have the instructions for either of those procedures?

x15jq

nahh you wont fit **** behind that door panel, the stock 6 1/2 and 3 1/4 are a tight fit in there as it is. I have a convertible, and i just put 2 10's in the trunk no problems, easy car to do since the battery is in teh back just take your signal from any of the stock speakers to feed the amp.

TomBeverlyHills

x15jq: May I ask exactly how you installed those 10s? Are they in a separate box, or mounted somewhere? Does the bass go right through the back seats? Thanks.

x15jq

They are in a sealed enclosure made from MDF wood. The amp is just mounted to my floor on the trunk. Yes the bass penetrates right through the seats without a problem. Bass frequencys are non directional unlike regular mids and highs, you can hear them even if they are not aimed at you. My box is aimed towards the license plate. Its pretty loud and will shake the side and rear mirrors at half volume. I have 2 JL W3 V2's.

TomBeverlyHills

I decided that I want to put in a subwoofer that I can easily remove if I need truck space, so I bought a Audiobahn 10" woofer tube (it's like a Bazooka tube, if you're familiar with those). I'll let you know how it works out....

clkal

those "tubes" are desgined to work well in hatchbacks, however, if you fold your seats down, you should be able to get some decent bump.

TomBeverlyHills

The Audiobahn tube sounds great. The bass comes right through, even with the rear seats in place (surprisingly so). It was very easy to install, doesn't take much trunk space, is easily removed when needed, and it cost a whopping $170. It's nice when things turn out well, unlike my attempt to add backup sensors on the rear bumper, but that's another story.....

superstar

How did you install it with the factory stereo? what did you do eaxctaly?

TomBeverlyHills

The amp has high-level inputs in addition to pre-amp inputs. I hooked up the high-level inputs of the amp to the rear speaker wires of the car (the speaker wires are still in place, I just tapped into them). I hooked the positive power lead to the battery (which is right there in the trunk). The amp has an additional "power" wire that is used for turning the amp on and off, and that wire needs to be hooked into a power wire that comes on and off with the radio. I unhooked the wiring harness from the factory amp (also in the trunk, on the left side) and checked each wire until I found a power wire that comes on when the radio is turned on, and then I tapped into that wire. That's it; pretty easy.

midget fidger

how did you secure the tube? does it move around when you're driving or anything?

TomBeverlyHills

One thing I liked about the Audiobahn is that it has a flat bottom (I think the Bazooka tubes are rounded on all sides). The tube comes with two straps to hold it down. I placed the tube against the back of the truck on the passenger side (with the amp side facing the passenger side wall), ran one strap under the hinges of the fold down seats and over the middle of the tube, and ran the other strap through the cargo tie down and over the tube on its far right side. When I tighten them up, the tube is strapped firmly against the back of the trunk (i.e. against the back of the seats) and it doesn't move. If I need to take it out again, I just have to unstrap it and unplug it.