SATX_Si
Member
- First Name
- Matt
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2021
- Threads
- 1
- Messages
- 21
- Reaction score
- 16
- Location
- TX
- Vehicle(s)
- 2019 Si Sedan
- Thread starter
- #1
Hi all,
Like many of you I find the stock Si audio system lacks bass, and set out to improve it. Thanks to all of you who have posted your Honda Audio discoveries as they helped me out A LOT! Here's my contribution, and I hope y'all find it useful. Goal was to add good clean bass using parts I had on hand, and buying only what was necessary. I did all this work early in 2020 before the AXXESS DSP and amp bypass connectors were available.
Note: This post is not all inclusive, and assumes one already has some basic car audio installation experience. I aimed to expand upon what others have already done and how I went about improving the Premium Audio system's bass. This factory system is a PITA to modify and upgrade. Wish the head unit had pre-outs.
Amp Power and Ground Wires:
I pulled the battery and ran my 8 AWG OFC power wire through the big rubber boot in the firewall. There are a ton of wires in it so don't poke a hole in it! I unwrapped the black tape on each end of the boot, and that gave a ton of wiggle room to fish the cable through. 4AWG would fit easily. I used new electrical tape to seal the boot back up inside the car and in the engine bay. Easy, much safer, and less cursing than poking a hole in it!
I attached the power wire to the fuse box since the +battery terminal has a plastic cover that got in the way. I mounted the fuse block with a homemade bracket, and used a rivet nut in an existing hole between the shock tower and fuse box. The ground wire was attached in the trunk above the driver side wheel well.
Getting a signal:
Thanks to ScopeSys(?) and others for their hard work sorting out the signals our factory amp outputs. Based on their research I knew I needed to tap the front door mid-bass signals and use an LC2i to achieve a decent signal for the subwoofer amp. Not wanting to cut the factory harness I bought an Acura RDX amp off of eBay that included the male 18pin connector with maybe 3 inches of wire left on it. I de-soldered the female 18pin from the amp's circuit board and made my own straight through harness with a "Y" for the front right and left door woofer wires. I ran those 4 wires to my LC2i with a 9-wire speed cable.
Mounting the amp and LC2i:
My JL Audio 250/1 is too large to fit under the front seats, and a Kicker Key500.1 sure would make life easier by taking the place of this amp and the LC2i while fitting under a front seat easily. Originally I mounted the amp and LC2i to the back of my DIY speakerbox, but this made it difficult to remove if I needed to haul stuff. Just this month I relocated those components to the back of the 60 side of the 60/40 split rear seat. The board is just 1/2" plywood I had on hand that is spray painted black. I lifted the seat carpet to gain access to the metal seatback and drilled 6 holes for M5 rivet nuts. Be careful when drilling and go slow so you don't accidentally punch through the metal so quickly the drill pops through your seat fabric!
I drilled tons of holes in the board for cable management zip ties taking cues from Dean and Fernando at Five Star Car Stereo. There's enough slack in the wiring to flip the seat up and down if needed, and the components are far enough left that I can fit 8ft long 2x6's into the car without scraping them up, lol!
Subwoofer:
I had this Kenwood 12" laying around and a bunch of plywood, so I made a .9 cu/ft sealed box with a double thick front baffle. All the edges are rabbeted so it is glued and brad nailed together. I'll carpet it in the future. It meets my needs for now and makes stuff rattle!
Like many of you I find the stock Si audio system lacks bass, and set out to improve it. Thanks to all of you who have posted your Honda Audio discoveries as they helped me out A LOT! Here's my contribution, and I hope y'all find it useful. Goal was to add good clean bass using parts I had on hand, and buying only what was necessary. I did all this work early in 2020 before the AXXESS DSP and amp bypass connectors were available.
Note: This post is not all inclusive, and assumes one already has some basic car audio installation experience. I aimed to expand upon what others have already done and how I went about improving the Premium Audio system's bass. This factory system is a PITA to modify and upgrade. Wish the head unit had pre-outs.
Amp Power and Ground Wires:
I pulled the battery and ran my 8 AWG OFC power wire through the big rubber boot in the firewall. There are a ton of wires in it so don't poke a hole in it! I unwrapped the black tape on each end of the boot, and that gave a ton of wiggle room to fish the cable through. 4AWG would fit easily. I used new electrical tape to seal the boot back up inside the car and in the engine bay. Easy, much safer, and less cursing than poking a hole in it!
I attached the power wire to the fuse box since the +battery terminal has a plastic cover that got in the way. I mounted the fuse block with a homemade bracket, and used a rivet nut in an existing hole between the shock tower and fuse box. The ground wire was attached in the trunk above the driver side wheel well.
Getting a signal:
Thanks to ScopeSys(?) and others for their hard work sorting out the signals our factory amp outputs. Based on their research I knew I needed to tap the front door mid-bass signals and use an LC2i to achieve a decent signal for the subwoofer amp. Not wanting to cut the factory harness I bought an Acura RDX amp off of eBay that included the male 18pin connector with maybe 3 inches of wire left on it. I de-soldered the female 18pin from the amp's circuit board and made my own straight through harness with a "Y" for the front right and left door woofer wires. I ran those 4 wires to my LC2i with a 9-wire speed cable.
Mounting the amp and LC2i:
My JL Audio 250/1 is too large to fit under the front seats, and a Kicker Key500.1 sure would make life easier by taking the place of this amp and the LC2i while fitting under a front seat easily. Originally I mounted the amp and LC2i to the back of my DIY speakerbox, but this made it difficult to remove if I needed to haul stuff. Just this month I relocated those components to the back of the 60 side of the 60/40 split rear seat. The board is just 1/2" plywood I had on hand that is spray painted black. I lifted the seat carpet to gain access to the metal seatback and drilled 6 holes for M5 rivet nuts. Be careful when drilling and go slow so you don't accidentally punch through the metal so quickly the drill pops through your seat fabric!
I drilled tons of holes in the board for cable management zip ties taking cues from Dean and Fernando at Five Star Car Stereo. There's enough slack in the wiring to flip the seat up and down if needed, and the components are far enough left that I can fit 8ft long 2x6's into the car without scraping them up, lol!
Subwoofer:
I had this Kenwood 12" laying around and a bunch of plywood, so I made a .9 cu/ft sealed box with a double thick front baffle. All the edges are rabbeted so it is glued and brad nailed together. I'll carpet it in the future. It meets my needs for now and makes stuff rattle!
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