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Upgrading door woofers and dash tweeters.


TheBritishDerp
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Hey people,

How do I install my new speakers?

 

I've grabbed myself a pair of Pioneer TS-A1600C component speakers to replace the original speakers in my MK1 Arosa. The previous owner had upgraded them and then put the originals back in when selling it so there are plastic adapters already installed allowing enough depth for my Pioneers. I'd assume the tweeters are also back to original (not sure if previous owner ever changed them) as I haven't checked yet but if they were upgraded, they probably weren't a component set.

I also upgraded the reciever to an Alpine UTE-200BT and depending on the result of simply upgrading the standard speakers, may also install an amp, but that's for another day. I know that the woofers will fit the doors but I'm unsure that the tweeters will fit the original holders in the dash. I want to keep them hidden under the grill and facing towards me, but how?

The next bit is where I have little understanding so would appretiate any input as I am very keen to learn and do this properly!
The set comes with in-line crossovers and I have no idea how to wire them in... Or where the standard wiring runs behind the dash... So what panels do I need to remove to do this, and how do I wire it?

 

Thanks,

Sam

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You only need to remove the lower door cards. Remove the 3 screws at the bottom and then the whole panel in effect hinges up and out. There are a couple of clips at the back edge, so pull gently around there. But they are cheap to replace (hole size for replacement clips is 8mm). Don't touch the big weather seal, or it'll rain in the car. 

The OEM speakers are actually pretty good, designed for the resonance space in the door. But they're not that loud.

Remove the 4 screws or rivets or whatever the speakers have been attached to the spacer frame with and you'll see two wires. They simply need to be connected (well) to the speaker terminals. I always add a line of silicone sealant round the back and along the spacer to stop rain coming in.

You'll need the cross over wired behind the head unit. Tweeters in line with the capacitor and woofers in line with the coils.

Edited by mk2
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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey, thanks for the reply!

We managed to install them successfully yesterday and it was a lot easier than I thought it would be. When we opened up the tweeter grills and had a look at the speaker mounts, it turned out that the previous owner had left some old Pioneer tweeters in there. All be it one was mildly attached with a couple cable ties, and the other had fallen into the void below, both with dried hot glue all over them - bit of a botch job. Luckily, however, they had done a really good job of soldering the exact inline crossover wires that came with my new speakers onto the mount, ready for a hot-swap of speakers. The door speakers were some VW Isophen speakers (I thought OEM Arosa speakers were Blaupunkt?) and they had also been connected with an adapter cable to use the correct two small connectors.

Tested my speakers with the current wiring and it sounded perfect, just as it should, so I cleaned up the tweeter mounts, mounted my new ones properly, and mounted the woofers in the door with success.

Unfortunately I did find that begins both upper and lower driver door cards the foam sheets had been completely ripped out exposing the large access holes so I'll need to replace them.

Next job is cracking down on new mirrors as my current ones are an awful excuse of a pair. They're scrappy ones picked up by previous owner and are completely destroyed internally. They fail to mount to the door properly and leave gaps as they do not sit under the seal at all. I've been looking for some new ones but I want original ones that I know will fit and have the correct UK stubby & wide setup. Anyone know where to look? Is it worth making another post for them?

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