Hey guys so I bought my 03' MCS last Friday night and love it. People think I am gay because it's electrc blue but they all drive obnoxious lifted trucks so who's compensating? Little man syndrome much?

Anyways enough ranting. The husband and wife who owned this before didn't enjoy the non-hk system so they opted to swap for a complete overhaul, well minus a HU/real subwoofer and second amp.

Fronts are Infinity Kappa Perfect 5.25in components.

Rears are Kappa Perfect 6x9 3 way comps.

All are wired to a Kenwood 4 chan but they are ran up to the STOCK HU using an in line low level converter I am guessing since there is no alternative hooked up (cleansweep etc.).

Oh and some Clarion 6.5 in powered sub woofer with an internal 125wt amp lol.

Long story short I ordered a new deck/2 chan amp(bridgeable) and have a leftover 10in JL in a slim box.

Well I have never re-wired a system in a newer car like this I have always just installed a complete system from the ground up. There are RCA's plugged into the 4 chan and I am assuming into some type of low lvl converter.

How long of RCA's will I need to run in order to run from the hidden trunk space to the dash? Has anyone stuck an aftermarket amp in the stock amp location(side rear passenger panel)? There is currently an aftermarket SIRIUS amp/receiver stuck in there right now that I am going to sell (shoot me a PM for details if interested).

Will a small 500 watt 2 channel dissipate heat well in there? The 4 channel Kenwood is already secured and so I will just leave it there.

I have never removed the front dash panels in a mini and am assuming there are many people who have done so...I will find it in search bar but am wondering real quick if there are any tricks to not snap tabs etc?

So just a recap on my ranting.

Can I stick a small amp in the stock amp location?

How long of RCA's would you suggest I need to purchase in order to run from hidden trunk space to HU location in dash?

I am running some low level converter setup that has crazy feedback I am guessing because the power wire is zip tied to a couple other "live" wires at the rear battery location.

Please do excuse my long story/novel as I am new to installing aftermarket stereos in newer cars and just wanted to cover everything before moving on.

Thanks,

Christopher.

 

You'll need a small amp. I have an Alpine PDX 4.100, it is mounted to the carpet in the trunk, passenger side. But it could have easily fit behind the panel. Even out in the open, it can have cooling issues on long long road trips. It is because of the exhaust heating the whole trunk.

I used 10 ft. But you might need 12 if you are going to the HU, my line-output converter had some leads of it's own and was mounted under the glovebox.

I had some feedback noise too, until I moved the crossovers and disabled daytime running lights, oddly enough. I have Infinity Kappas all around too, no sub (I hate bass vibrations but still want to hear bass notes), stock head unit with a line-output converter.

About the dash panels. You don't need to take the whole dash apart to get to the head unit. You just need to loosen the shifter console, then undo the downtubes. The glove box undoes with, I think, 3 screws, and the driver's knee plate thing just pulls down (hinged at the bottom). After the downtubes are slid down (each has only two screws on the top end) you'll see the head unit screws. Odds are that the line-output converter that they used is behind or under the glove box.

 

Quick question. I havent really torn apart my dash or door panels/rear panels, where are your line out converters located? I just ripped my seat out and all the wiring was done with monster wires L O L. Do you know anything about preouts? Can I hook my two channel to the four channel using the preouts provided on both amps? Thats the way the powered sub is hooked up so I am assuming thats how I do it.

 

So what if they 'think you're gay'?
That is an antiquated cultural assignment.
You made a good car choice, regardless of sexual orientation.

 

I'm Gay. Just not Homosexually :-)

 

Gays REAL definition means Cheerful/Beautiful/Happy.

 

For some reason I am never gay up here in Minot, North Dakota. None of you would be cheerful being stationed up here. Hey one quick question after the positive battery terminal is removed will it reset the auto down windows etc.?

Any of you guys dynamat your interior? I find that the mini is quite well insulated but I want to keep my bass to myself unlike most people on this base.

I found some dynamat copy on ebay for 50 bucks that contains enough to cover just about the inside and outside of my house.