Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Audio Amping interior speakers?

if i change my speakers inside, how would i go about amping them, meaning where do i run the power to them and the speaker wire ?

all suggestions/experiences would be greatly appreciated

If you have premium sound, then you have an amp behind the glove box. The speaker wires come right into that, as do a 12v line and ground wire. The speaker wires/power to the amp is the big plug and the line in (preouts from your head unit) are the smaller shielded cable.

I don't have any experience on these cars w/o premium sound.

I assume you have the factory stereo/HU. In the w/o premium sound models (you'll find "stereo" printed on the speaker grills in the front doors) your deck has a built in amp. There is no pre-out that stereo, the signal is amplified (a tiny bit) and then sent on to the door speakers. I highly highly recommend that if you don't have an aftermarket HU, you buy one with your speakers first. Then if you want to add a separate amp later, you can look around. From what I have read here and my personal knowledge, I can highly recommend JBL. They seem to have a great power/$$ ratio.

In terms of buying and powering your speakers, I suggest you only buy speakers for your front doors. The rears do almost nothing for your sound stage, and you shouldn't waste a lot of money on them. Besides, no one can fit in the back anyway. Similarly, don't bother amping the rears, just buy a 2/1 amp and use them for the front speakers. It will also save you money with the amp (not just the speakers) by leaving out the rears.

Hope that's enough to get you started.