Finally! my Aftermarket Subwoofer and Amplifier Integration into Bose Audio How To

[Paulieb81]

Of course, I'm glad to help. I am using JL Audio's 500/1 which also has a signal sensing mode, but I couldn't get it to work properly, so I just went with the tried and trued separate 12v REM wiring. It is just one extra wire and it's what I've always done when doing an install. I tapped the remote into the fuse box on an accessory fuse. I don't recall which fuse, it may be in post #1. And like you said, I also don't like extra battery drainage with keeping any power accessory on and it's just generally the proper method. You may know this already, but it's a good habit to run all power/negative cables on one side and all audio cables on the other to prevent interference and whine. All my audio is on the passenger side.

Yup, i followed this idea mostly, but with a small twist. I have the amp under the driver seat, 4ga power wires and remote turn on run under the door jam / kick plate, and the input comes from a LOC taped into the front door speakers pre-bose amp, which runs across the passenger foot well, cross the center stack, then down the center console along the floor under the carpet and pops out near the air vent under the driver seat to the amp. That way they are separated but not run down the passenger side.

Also as noted in a post above, i tapped a fuse for the remote on, can't remember which one, it was on the right side up top, second one down i think. I also grabbed my negative amp connection from a bolt that bolts to the frame right near the fuse box.

 

[Paulieb81]

(drinks) sweet! BTW, here are the pics bmarsh is referring to about the control knob/dash install

Nice, bro. I just ordered my remote bass knob on amazon, should be in tuesday. I was also thinking of adding it to that blank spot, glad to see it's possible without to much trouble. I am hoping that cures my itch for upgrading the audio, I don't really want to upgrade the head unit, but it is starting to irritate me. The amount of time it takes the Bluetooth to connect each time is ridiculous. Although the Bluetooth noise filter is pretty damn good, so not sure which way to go with it yet.

I'm reading through the road noise thread and I didn't see anyone mention anything about rattling from the overhead center console, maybe cause some do not add a sub, not sure. But do any of you have the rattle above your head when the bass hits? I'm wondering what and how to put something up there to fix that.

 

[Skorpio]

I haven't heard that issue yet, maybe I don't have the bass that loud. It'll vibrate the mirrors but nothing more. You have sunglasses in overhead? Have you smacked the overheard and heard/felt noise?

 

[Paulieb81]

I haven't heard that issue yet, maybe I don't have the bass that loud. It'll vibrate the mirrors but nothing more. You have sunglasses in overhead? Have you smacked the overheard and heard/felt noise?

Nope, no sunglasses. If I put my hand up there and hold the plastic, it stops. It's definitely the plastic area right in front of the moon roof. Any ideas of what to put up there to kill the rattles? Maybe something as simple as foam padding or cloth since its a plastic rattle?

 

[SayNoToPistons]

I'm reading through the road noise thread and I didn't see anyone mention anything about rattling from the overhead center console, maybe cause some do not add a sub, not sure. But do any of you have the rattle above your head when the bass hits? I'm wondering what and how to put something up there to fix that.

Without a subwoofer, I do get a bit of a buzz from the headliner/overhead console. I am not sure exactly where the buzz is from, but it is eliminated when I push upwards at the headliner in between the overhead console and moonroof edge. The buzz isn't loud, but it does happen every now and then. It kills me every time.

 

[Skorpio]

Nope, no sunglasses. If I put my hand up there and hold the plastic, it stops. It's definitely the plastic area right in front of the moon roof. Any ideas of what to put up there to kill the rattles? Maybe something as simple as foam padding or cloth since its a plastic rattle?

When I had my sub in my old civic trunk, it rattled the rear deck. I solved it with old mechanic rags. Maybe you can put those up there.

 

[bmarsh]

If the car is still under warranty, I would have a dealer take a look. It could be a broken clip or something like that...

 

[Paulieb81]

I don't think it is a broken clip, because it only happens when the bass and volume are turned up. I'll investigate it more sometime this week. I was thinking of putting some thin foam or similar cloth to dampen the vibration. Just wondered if anyone else had it. Glad to know i'm not crazy.

 

[SayNoToPistons]

Finished my install. Not too happy with the results.

I am noticing a fall off in mid-range coming from the front door speakers. The speakers that are responsible for most of the mids and some low. The speakers are active (seemingly to a lower degree) and the mid range still exists, but definitely a huge gap missing between the highs and the lows.

My set up is a powered Rockford Fosgate P300-12 subwoofer. It does not require a LOC as it already has one built in for speaker level input, but it can also be switched to lo-input if desired. For input, it uses a red and white RCA to a 4 pin connector into the amp. So I assume it will need two + signal and also two - crimped to the two RCA's middle signals and outer grounds.

I tapped into the Bose amp's top connector. Using the front LH speaker Brown and Green/White for one RCA. Brown (3F) as + and G/W (3E) for -. The front RH blue (3C) wire to + of the other RCA and light green (3D) for -. Keep in mind that this is from the TOP connector which I think is an AMPLIFIED OUTPUT to the speakers, not a signal input from the headunit. See 0920-515 of the Bose wiring diagram.

All the connections are solid and crimps were checked for breakage of wires. No problems there. I also tried swapping in between Hi and Lo input on the amp and messing with the crossover. Hi input is better than Lo. Unfortunately none of the settings on headunit or amp fixes the missing mid-range.

I was wondering if I should have tapped into the headunit output to the Bose amplifier, which I think is the bottom connector. I was looking at the diagram yesterday, but decided against it and go with the instructions as per this thread. I also checked that the 2013-2015 headunit hardware, wiring, amp, and speakers are identical. I suspect that the crimped amplified wires to the speakers are getting their signal/current split to the amp/subwoofer, thus losing some power to the front door speakers.

Any ideas what this could be? Anyone else noticing the same issue?

Edit: The highs from the dash speakers are more harsh and pronounced as well. Though this might be a suspicion as the lack of mids might create that effect. Or perhaps the highs were increased and the new lows are over powering the mid's which may be still retained at factory levels?

Edit 2: After a long drive and listening closely to familiar tracks. The high frequency speakers on the dash are operating at a much higher level with dramatically more harshness. It is almost shrill and fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. No head unit treble tuning could fix this.

 

[bmarsh]

SayNo,

First, try switching the polarity on the amp. I had to put mine at 180 even though I made sure to observe polarity.

I connected my RF 500 to the low level signals going into the Bose, but used the rear inputs. I'm not totally pleased with that setup. I looked at the signals on an o'scope and they had a DC offset on them? I do get sound through the sub, but it's really dependent on the music playing. I did have high level inputs on the amp, but I decided to get a good loc and try to connect to the Bose output. I was going to connect to the rear speaker outputs as they are full range (supposedly). I'm suspicious of what the Bose processor does to the front channels when it splits off the front speakers from the door speakers.

The loc should be here next week. I'll give an update then. I'm waiting to post my pictures/comments until I'm completly happy with the results!

 

[SayNoToPistons]

I am not 100% about the "lack of midrange" now. After a long drive and listening to familiar tracks I am DEFINITELY SURE on one thing. The highs from the dash speakers are extremely harsh and almost shrill, but no distortion. The sound signature is completely different and worse than factory. It is almost fatiguing to listen. Not pleased at all.

The sub bass is somewhat muddy, granted I tried adjusting the crossover and gain as best as I could. I know the powered sub should sound more balanced than this as it is one of the better units with a decent amp, driver, and an actual large wood cabinet. The power, ground, and RCA cables are high quality as well with thick gauge and double shielding.

When I was messing with the amp setting right after installation, I tried switching the phases between 0* and 180*. Not much difference between the two. It made a very slight difference in crossover only for the subwoofer. Turning Bose AudioPilot2 on in the headunit audio setting made the highs even more harsh/shrill, so I left it off.

If if I don't have a solution for this to retain factory Bose sound signature only with an addition of real sub-bass. I will tear everything out and go back to factory as it definitely sounds better how it was compared to how it is now.. Unfortunately all the equipment was bought new and can't be returned.

I was thinking about switching to the rear speaker signals and see what that results in. Though I have second thoughts after reading your post. Why are you not pleased with that connection? Do you think using the signal source from the headunit will result in more suitable output since it is before the Bose processor/amp?

 

[Skorpio]

Not sure what could be going on there, and I'm not sure if an LOC will change the signal quality. For me, I don't notice any changes in the front speakers. With my bass controller set properly I have it blended well enough that it sounds factory, only with more low end bass. Keep us posted.

 

[SayNoToPistons]

I have made a thread at diymobileaudio.com . So far no hits, but hopefully someone can pitch in.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...powered-rf-subwoofer-speaker-level-input.html

 

[bmarsh]

As I listen and adjust my setup, it is sounding better even without the loc. I wonder if the Bose really has separate amps for the dash and front door channels, or just a passive crossover? If it's just passive, there could be some interference from an external connection, I suppose. I don't know any other way your setup could affect the dash speakers.

The fact your sub sounds muddied is probably due to the connection to the front door speakers. To my ears they sound muddied to start with, and you amp really can't make them better.

After adjusting my crossover, I'm now much happier with the result, and I may not install the loc after all. Early Beatles songs just don't have a lot of bass!

 

[SayNoToPistons]

Think I should try crimping into the rear door speakers instead?

I think it could be passive. I am looking at the diagrams and there is nothing that indicates that there is another amplifier. Also, Bose stated this:

 

[bmarsh]

I would recommend moving to the rear channel to see if their is interference. I know it's a pain to get to that connector. You could try the system after disconnecting to see if the harshness has cleared up too.

 

[SayNoToPistons]

Finished my install. Not too happy with the results.

I am noticing a fall off in mid-range coming from the front door speakers. The speakers that are responsible for most of the mids and some low. The speakers are active (seemingly to a lower degree) and the mid range still exists, but definitely a huge gap missing between the highs and the lows.

My set up is a powered Rockford Fosgate P300-12 subwoofer. It does not require a LOC as it already has one built in for speaker level input, but it can also be switched to lo-input if desired. For input, it uses a red and white RCA to a 4 pin connector into the amp. So I assume it will need two + signal and also two - crimped to the two RCA's middle signals and outer grounds.

I tapped into the Bose amp's top connector. Using the front LH speaker Brown and Green/White for one RCA. Brown (3F) as + and G/W (3E) for -. The front RH blue (3C) wire to + of the other RCA and light green (3D) for -. Keep in mind that this is from the TOP connector which I think is an AMPLIFIED OUTPUT to the speakers, not a signal input from the headunit. See 0920-515 of the Bose wiring diagram.

All the connections are solid and crimps were checked for breakage of wires. No problems there. I also tried swapping in between Hi and Lo input on the amp and messing with the crossover. Hi input is better than Lo. Unfortunately none of the settings on headunit or amp fixes the missing mid-range.

I was wondering if I should have tapped into the headunit output to the Bose amplifier, which I think is the bottom connector. I was looking at the diagram yesterday, but decided against it and go with the instructions as per this thread. I also checked that the 2013-2015 headunit hardware, wiring, amp, and speakers are identical. I suspect that the crimped amplified wires to the speakers are getting their signal/current split to the amp/subwoofer, thus losing some power to the front door speakers.

Any ideas what this could be? Anyone else noticing the same issue?

Edit: The highs from the dash speakers are more harsh and pronounced as well. Though this might be a suspicion as the lack of mids might create that effect. Or perhaps the highs were increased and the new lows are over powering the mid's which may be still retained at factory levels?

Edit 2: After a long drive and listening closely to familiar tracks. The high frequency speakers on the dash are operating at a much higher level with dramatically more harshness. It is almost shrill and fatiguing to listen for long periods of time. No head unit treble tuning could fix this.


View attachment 208700

I am not 100% about the "lack of midrange" now. After a long drive and listening to familiar tracks I am DEFINITELY SURE on one thing. The highs from the dash speakers are extremely harsh and almost shrill, but no distortion. The sound signature is completely different and worse than factory. It is almost fatiguing to listen. Not pleased at all.

The sub bass is somewhat muddy, granted I tried adjusting the crossover and gain as best as I could. I know the powered sub should sound more balanced than this as it is one of the better units with a decent amp, driver, and an actual large wood cabinet. The power, ground, and RCA cables are high quality as well with thick gauge and double shielding.

When I was messing with the amp setting right after installation, I tried switching the phases between 0* and 180*. Not much difference between the two. It made a very slight difference in crossover only for the subwoofer. Turning Bose AudioPilot2 on in the headunit audio setting made the highs even more harsh/shrill, so I left it off.

If if I don't have a solution for this to retain factory Bose sound signature only with an addition of real sub-bass. I will tear everything out and go back to factory as it definitely sounds better how it was compared to how it is now.. Unfortunately all the equipment was bought new and can't be returned.

I was thinking about switching to the rear speaker signals and see what that results in. Though I have second thoughts after reading your post. Why are you not pleased with that connection? Do you think using the signal source from the headunit will result in more suitable output since it is before the Bose processor/amp?

I have made a thread at diymobileaudio.com . So far no hits, but hopefully someone can pitch in.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...powered-rf-subwoofer-speaker-level-input.html

So the output signals are definitely processed by the Bose processor/amp. I might have to tap into the rear door speakers to correct the issue. Seems like the rear doors are the only real full range that should be used for a LOC or hi-level input. Hopefully tapping into them won't interfere with the Bose set up.

Some good information here:
http://adalrico.net/audio-upgrade-in-mazda-cx-5/
Though the post's color indication of the rear speakers' connections might be different from US models or perhaps wrong.


Bose AudioPilot2 will make it worse as it uses a microphone to record cabin noise, then it is processed by the Bose processor, which tunes the eq/level to try to match factory sound parameters. Hence the reason it made the high frequency harshness even worse with it on after detecting low-midbass coming from the new subwoofer. So it is left off, but I still need to figure out how to retain factory sound signature from all 9 Bose speakers but with the addition of a subwoofer.

 

[thejono]

Wiring Clarity

So the output signals are definitely processed by the Bose processor/amp. I might have to tap into the rear door speakers to correct the issue. Seems like the rear doors are the only real full range that should be used for a LOC or hi-level input. Hopefully tapping into them won't interfere with the Bose set up.

Some good information here:
http://adalrico.net/audio-upgrade-in-mazda-cx-5/
Though the post's color indication of the rear speakers' connections might be different from US models or perhaps wrong.


Bose AudioPilot2 will make it worse as it uses a microphone to record cabin noise, then it is processed by the Bose processor, which tunes the eq/level to try to match factory sound parameters. Hence the reason it made the high frequency harshness even worse with it on after detecting low-midbass coming from the new subwoofer. So it is left off, but I still need to figure out how to retain factory sound signature from all 9 Bose speakers but with the addition of a subwoofer.

So is there a consensus on which wires to tap in to, and their color? Also, is there a way to tap in to the wires without having to take the glove box off? I cannot seem to get the connectors out of the Bose amp. I have a LC2i with a 2 channel amp. Just trying to hook up a sub. I haven't found a consensus on how to approach this part of the install and am thinking of just having someone else find the wires.

 

[SayNoToPistons]

I assume you have the Bose system?

From what I have discovered, tapping any output from the Bose processor/amp will yield poor results. Not only will the sub-bass sound muddy, it will also hinder the Bose system to produce very harsh highs with a loss in the mids as well. I assume this has to do with the Bose processor EQing the signals out to the speakers to the point where it is not suitable to be used for sub-bass even with a LOC. Also the Bose processor somehow modifies all system signals (especially the highs) when there is a draw from tapping into one of its outputs, which is the most significant problem.

I haven't tried tapping in between the headunit and Bose processor/amp. Check the diagrams and you will see a connector with (if I recall correctly) 8 wires. Those 8 wires are not labeled, so you would have to find out which is for the two rear full range signals. This might be the last experiment to see if we can get a proper full range signal without hindering the rest of the system. Perhaps use a multi-meter to find the purpose of each wire of that connector as you fade the headunit to the rear left and right.

Please refer to my thread over at this car audio forum for more information. I have yet to get any good into on the issue from mazdas247:

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...wered-rf-subwoofer-speaker-level-input-2.html

 

[Skorpio]

Finally! my Aftermarket Subwoofer and Amplifier Integration into Bose Audio H...

I'm not sure about the consensus, but I've been having no issues with my set up, and have been enjoying full range music with great lows for the last 3 months so far with no problems. My only problem is that I can't find the missing pictures that are gone from Photobucket that were on here.