CLK-Class (W208) 1998-2002: CLK 200, CLK 230K, CLK 320, CLK 430 [Coupes & Cabriolets]

Need HElp w/ SUbwoofer

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Old Jan 16, 2010 | 05:23 PM
  #1  
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c320
Need HElp w/ SUbwoofer

I searched all night for the answer to my problem but can't seem to find any answers. Anyways I recently installed a aftermarket deck in my 01 clk320 and it sounded great with my stock speakers. However i decided I needed more bass so I installed a aftermarket amp and sub yesterday to my setup.

My problem here is that when i turn on the car to listen to my music the aftermarket sub (alpine type E) doesn't pound. As far as I know, I wired everything corectly, the amp powers on fine but the sub just doesn't pound.

Am I doing ssomething wrong? is the sub not wired properly to the amp? The sub is a dual 4ohm and i just put one speaker wire to pos and one speaker wire to neg and then ran them to my amp. Is that correct to run it at 2ohm? I also tried the alpine sub on my other car w/ a system and the sub actually hits. Is there some sort of by passed that I missed in the clk? I tried looking for the bose amp in both the left/right trunk liner fender but found nothing. I'm convinced my car doesn't even come with bose.

Can anyone help? thanks.
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Old Jan 16, 2010 | 07:23 PM
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are you getting any response from the sub? i'd make sure the input to the amp is correct. did you run rca's from the deck or hijack an existing speaker wire and tap that?
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Old Jan 16, 2010 | 11:28 PM
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If you only hooked up one coil side pos and the second coil neg then you are only running half of each coil!! Or are you only hooked into one side (one coil)then the second one isn't getting powered at all!

If you hooked up one positive of one coil and neg on the second coil then you still have to run a wire from neg of coil 1 and pos of coil 2 together. This is the only way to run both coils together at 4 ohms. I suggest you look up the user manual for the DVC sub so that you can wire them appropriately at 2 ohm.

Also, is the amp you are running 2 ohm capable?? If not then this could also be part of your problem...Some subs like Kicker ZR series and Zapco have modules that make them 4, 2 or 1 ohm capable. Maybe yours has one as well??? If your amp is only 4 ohm capable then you could mess that amp up.

There are many more variables like proper power, voltage from the car, proper wiring for optimim volatge to the amp from the car ( use a multimeter).

I would start at the sub wiring though because it sounds like its hooked up wrong to start with.

Greg
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 01:41 AM
  #4  
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I ran rca's from the deck.
As for the sub there are 2 terminals (pos/neg) on each side of the sub. I used one side and connected pos/neg which i think is 2ohm.
Yes my amp is stable at 2 ohm or at 4 ohms. I want to wire it at 2 ohms since my amp gives out more power to the sub at that impedance.
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 09:25 AM
  #5  
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[QUOTE=dv-12;3897841]I ran rca's from the deck.
As for the sub there are 2 terminals (pos/neg) on each side of the sub. I used one side and connected pos/neg which i think is 2ohm.
Yes my amp is stable at 2 ohm or at 4 ohms. I want to wire it at 2 ohms since my amp gives out more power to the sub at that impedance.

The amp must also be wired correctly for its 2 ohm load capability unless its a mono 1 channel amp. If its a 2 channel or 4 channel amp and you are running it mono 1 ohm then you must ensure that you are wiring it correctly so that you dont burn the amp out. Let us know what model amp so that I can figure out the wiring.

Greg

Last edited by gregory13lil; Jan 17, 2010 at 09:30 AM. Reason: Added pic
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 04:23 PM
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Alright...is the sub moving at all?

First, what impedence is your sub? Dual 2 ohm or dual 4 ohm? That is the most important part of the wiring configuration. What amp do you have and what are the exact power ratings and impedence load capabilities?

I'll tell you this, I have been building on my car for about a year and a half and I know what I'm doing when it comes to car audio. My CLK does over a 150 dbs with 3 12s" and 4000 watts.

One thing about our cars is that it is not easy to get them loud. I like LOUD, obviously, and it's taken me lots of time and testing to figure our cars out. They are built VERY well acoustically, but the fact that luxury cars such as ours are sealed up and built to keep sound out/in makes it very difficult to please one who wants their subs to give them a heart attack like I do. It makes it difficult to move air in our cars because of these aspects.

There are many variables that play into your problem:

So it's an Alpine Type E, they're decent. What kind of box is it in?

Is the box ported or sealed?

What is the tuning frequency if it is ported?

Which way is the sub firing?

All this plays a MAJOR roll in order for you to reach satisfaction. I also highly suggest you remove the ski-hole panel in the arm rest or fold your back seats down to let as much sound from the trunk into the cabin as possible.
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 06:26 PM
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Nice..another DBDrag competitor!! I stopped competing years ago but I did hit my all time high of 154.4 db's on the dash with an audiocontrol mic in a 97 Tahoe with 2 12in Kicker L7's and 2 Zapco 9.0's. The box was HUGE..3.25 cubes for each sub ported. I did have to upgrade my alt to a 240amp and a red top in order to have consistent voltage. I can't remember what I had it tuned to but it was extremely low..it felt kick *** inside when you couldn't catch your breath. I miss those days!!! Now I ride completely stock

I do want to add a small sub so that I can feel some bass when I feel the need!! Did you upgrade the battery or alternator? We need some pics!!! Congrats on the 150!!! I know that it was my first goal to hit it and it was SWEET!!

Greg
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 07:35 PM
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99CLK320,
154.4 db's

OMG! did it make your ears bleed?
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 08:15 PM
  #9  
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LMAO Nahhh but I did have to limit my time inside while I was blasting it though. Or...maybe it did and thats my I keep saying HUUHHHHHHH all the damn time LOL. I quit competing because it got way too expensive to stay at the top. I helped a friend of mine go to Nashville for World Finals and he ended up making 3rd place with 8 Zapco 9.0s and 2 18in Strokers.

Anyway OP sorry to hijack your post man, but between dlbehrns and myself we should be able to get your tunes up!!

Greg
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 09:32 PM
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Originally Posted by gregory13lil
Nice..another DBDrag competitor!! I stopped competing years ago but I did hit my all time high of 154.4 db's on the dash with an audiocontrol mic in a 97 Tahoe with 2 12in Kicker L7's and 2 Zapco 9.0's. The box was HUGE..3.25 cubes for each sub ported. I did have to upgrade my alt to a 240amp and a red top in order to have consistent voltage. I can't remember what I had it tuned to but it was extremely low..it felt kick *** inside when you couldn't catch your breath. I miss those days!!! Now I ride completely stock

I do want to add a small sub so that I can feel some bass when I feel the need!! Did you upgrade the battery or alternator? We need some pics!!! Congrats on the 150!!! I know that it was my first goal to hit it and it was SWEET!!

Greg


Greg, you *******! This whole time you know about the audios too! Man...I thought I was alone. And man...3 cubes per 12? That is huge! Were you tuned in the 40s or what? Technically since you were on an Audiocontrol mic and not a TL you were probably more like 151 or so? That number is sealed on the dash, right?

Anyhow, no, I don't compete and that 151.3 is OUTLAW in the kick. I only do a 146.2 sealed. Our cars DO NOT meter well at all. I'm acutally about to attempt to do a 4th order bandpass with my three 12s". Should be nice.

As far as my upgrades, yes; I have 2 Batcap 2000s but everything else is stock. Our factory electrical systems are very stout. The 150a alt will take you a long way. Here's what I got and the box actually matches the car now: (sorry OP for the thread jack, we're still going to help you out so come back)





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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 09:55 PM
  #11  
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99CLK320,
HOLY CRAP BATMAN! Where do you the groceries? I guess there is room for a bag either side of the box. don't buy eggs.(i crack me up)
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Old Jan 17, 2010 | 11:04 PM
  #12  
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Originally Posted by falls profet
Greg, you *******! This whole time you know about the audios too! Man...I thought I was alone. And man...3 cubes per 12? That is huge! Were you tuned in the 40s or what? Technically since you were on an Audiocontrol mic and not a TL you were probably more like 151 or so? That number is sealed on the dash, right?

Anyhow, no, I don't compete and that 151.3 is OUTLAW in the kick. I only do a 146.2 sealed. Our cars DO NOT meter well at all. I'm acutally about to attempt to do a 4th order bandpass with my three 12s". Should be nice.

As far as my upgrades, yes; I have 2 Batcap 2000s but everything else is stock. Our factory electrical systems are very stout. The 150a alt will take you a long way. Here's what I got and the box actually matches the car now: (sorry OP for the thread jack, we're still going to help you out so come back)





LMAO Nice man!! Thats brings me back a bit!! I didn't know anyone else here was into that either.

I couldn't get any worthwhile SQ out of the box I made so it was made specifically for hitting the highest SPL possible. And now that you mention the mics...it was at an official DB Drag event so it had to have been on the Termpro lab mic after all. And yes it was sealed and on the dash. I have my certificate somewhere in the house so I will have to look for it and post it later. I kept it because I knew that it was my last event. I was active the entire time I was in Germany and DBDrag was HUGE there as well. The small cars starting kicking my *** so I just decided to give it up. I sold all my equipment there in a couple of weeks and I kick myself for doing that now. I would love to have my 9.0's in the CLK for Sound Quality now.

LOVE THAT 0 GAUGE!!
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Old Jan 18, 2010 | 07:44 AM
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nevermind...I figure it out. You were right Gregory I had the sub wired incorrectly. I rewired it and it pounds now.Thanks!

My next challenge is to install a 2 channel amp to run my components. I kind of have an idea of how to run a sec amp for my speakers and kind of don't.

Correct me if i'm wrong, but this is what i'm planning to do to try and make the speakers work
1.Run new speaker wires from the input of the crossover of my components to the trunk and to my sec amp.
2. Buy a terminal splitter and run the power and ground from the vehicle to the splitter and then run 4 new power/ground (2power and 2 ground) cables to each of the 2 amps.
3. connect a rca cable from my mono amp to the 2 channel amp

Not sure if the speakers will get the signal to power on but I figured I can't run another set of RCAs from the aftermarket deck to the sec amp since I used up the sub output on the deck already.
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Old Jan 18, 2010 | 10:40 AM
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hey profet what would be the best way to set up a JL w7 10" in our cars.
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Old Jan 18, 2010 | 08:17 PM
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Holy crap, profet! That looks insane. I can't even imagine 150 db. I'd like a little bit more bass, but am nowhere near going to something that serious. Could anyone point me to a newbie (simple) subwoofer tutorial on the web?

TIA.
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Old Jan 23, 2010 | 04:03 AM
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Got my speakers working, however when I turn on the car there is a clicking or ticking sound coming from the front speakers. When the car is off and in the on position, there is no clicking sound. I tried everything to get rid of this sound. I rewired everything, checked the connections to the amp and still nothing.
Any suggestions to how I can fix this?
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Old Jan 23, 2010 | 01:14 PM
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Originally Posted by dv-12
Got my speakers working, however when I turn on the car there is a clicking or ticking sound coming from the front speakers. When the car is off and in the on position, there is no clicking sound. I tried everything to get rid of this sound. I rewired everything, checked the connections to the amp and still nothing.
Any suggestions to how I can fix this?
Ive used ground loop isolators to cure whine problems but never had the click. May be the same sure though???
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Old Jan 23, 2010 | 03:29 PM
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Originally Posted by dv-12
Got my speakers working, however when I turn on the car there is a clicking or ticking sound coming from the front speakers. When the car is off and in the on position, there is no clicking sound. I tried everything to get rid of this sound. I rewired everything, checked the connections to the amp and still nothing.
Any suggestions to how I can fix this?
Does the sound get louder as you REV the engine..in others words as the RPM's go up does the noise get higher as well??

Greg
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Old Jan 23, 2010 | 04:51 PM
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Yes it does.....as I rev the engine the ticking sound gets higher
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Old Jan 23, 2010 | 06:31 PM
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It sounds like you didnt ground the signal properly either from the amp or the Inline Converter. Are you using RCA's straight from the head unit or are you using the existing speaker wires connected to an Inline Converter that has RCA's going to the amp?

I can almost guarantee you that the noise is ground related.

Edit: If you can draw us a diagram it would be most useful in troubleshooting this. Or at a minimum let us know the wiring schematics. Also, give us the model of the inline converter is thats what you are using.

Greg

Last edited by gregory13lil; Jan 23, 2010 at 06:34 PM.
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Old Jan 24, 2010 | 03:02 AM
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OKay i'll do my best to explain, this is what I have set up right now.

-Pioneer F700bt
-focal speakers
-alpine e sub
-audison srx3

THis is what i did:
-ran 4 new speaker wires from front focal components to the audison amp
-ran new rca cable for speakers from pioneer deck to amp
-I also ran a set of rcas for the sub rom the pioneer deck to the amplifier
-I by passed the deck (took ground and parking wire of deck and wired it to ground of vw harness) There was also a yellow mute wire from the pioneer deck that was attached to the ground and parking wire, but I took it off since I dont think it would serve any purpose to the deck
-I ran the power from the deck to the cig lighter in the car so that the deck would turn on. I also ran the remote cable from the cig lighter to the audison amplifier to get the amp to turn on.
-Next I taped up all the front speaker wires from the pioneer deck so that it wouldn't interfere with any of the wires

In the trunk
-I connected 4 (2 wires for each component) Speaker wires and 2 subwoofer wires to the speaker output terminals of the amp
-I also ran another set of rcas from the pioneer deck to the amplifier
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Old Jan 24, 2010 | 12:08 PM
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hey man u never got back at me with the trims... lmk...
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