Guide on How to Connect Subwoofer to Car Speakers

Do you love road trips or listening to music when driving your car? If so, you can listen to your favorite jam clearly and enjoyably by learning how to Connect Subwoofer to Car Speakers.

Installing a good sound system in your car makes your car look classic and makes a big difference in the bass response of the car.

You could pay someone to do this, but you could save money if you did it yourself. Remember, though, that you will need to be careful when making the necessary connections to avoid paying more.

In this post, we have all the details you need to know and a step-by-step guide on connecting a subwoofer to your car stereo without hassle.

Before we dive into how to connect a subwoofer to car speakers, we’ll start with a basic understanding of what a subwoofer is and the types you can install on your car.

What is a Subwoofer?

A subwoofer is a type of speaker designed to enhance the sound quality of the lower frequencies that your car’s radio produces.

Manufacturers use heavier materials when making subwoofers than full-range stock speakers, like the ones that come with your car.

Hence, they can keep the cones moving at a much higher level and produce a bass response that is both more focused and full. So, they are great for improving the low end of the music without turning up the speakers’ volume as a whole.

This makes the sound better and keeps the factory full-range speakers in your car from getting damaged by playing too much bass through them.

Types of subwoofers

Although there are many different subwoofers, the most common ones are under-seat subs, bass tubes, spare wheel subs under-seat subs, and other models. All these subwoofers models are though categorized into active and passive subwoofers.

Active Subwoofer

Active subwoofer refers to a subwoofer that has a built-in amp. It is a self-contained unit where the speaker and amplifier work together to improve your sound’s lows.

Most of the time, active subwoofers are sold as a single unit. The subwoofer and the amplifier are both housed in the same box.

The setup keeps the head unit and receiver from working too hard by leaving the mid-range and high-frequency sounds to them.

Passive Subwoofer

Passive subwoofers are sub which is built without the amplifier. Rather it uses an external amplifier to get more power for the lower frequencies.

The passive subwoofers must get a lot of power from the external amplifier. Also, since yours will probably only need one amplifier to work, you will have to provide one with enough power.

The major difference between active and passive subwoofers is whether or not they have an amplifier. Also, the compartments in passive submarines are often smaller than those in active submarines.

Thus, they are the best option for use in small vehicles. On the other hand, active subwoofers usually come in bigger boxes that can be put anywhere inside the car, even under the seat in some models.

Most people prefer passive subwoofers because their performance is better than active subwoofers, as long as they are paired with a strong enough separate amplifier.

Tools to use when connecting a subwoofer to Car Stereo and speakers

You need basic tools to use and connect subwoofer to car stereo. You can complete the connection in a few hours. Below are must-have tools to connect a subwoofer in your car correctly:

• subwoofer mounting box
• A subwoofer amplifier
• A 50 amp in-line fuse
• A wiring kit
• A screwdriver
• A socket set
• Gauge insulated wire

Step by step on how to Connect Subwoofer to Car Speakers 

There are several reasons why an subwoofer and amplifier need to work together. But this can be a different way to do things all the time.

One option is to do a “bypass,” which lets you connect directly to the stereo instead of through the amplifier. This is another choice besides the first one.

Only one subwoofer should be used when the amplifier is not being used. However, this should be done carefully to avoid making critical mistakes.

This is done so that the power supply from the car’s different systems doesn’t get overloaded with too much electricity.

Also, it eliminates connections that are too complicated and could be hard to understand or manage. below are steps to follow and connect Subwoofer to car speakers.

Find the best spot to install a subwoofer.

The first step is to decide the best spot to install the subwoofer in your car. Finding the right place depends on how well it works, how much space you have, and where you want to put it.

To put it another way, you have to place your subwoofers so that they sound good and are in the right place.

For example, many car owners have found that the subwoofers in their cars make the best sound when they are in the trunk or behind the back seat.

If you need help figuring out where to put your subwoofer, so it sounds best, try moving it around the car while listening subwoofer output.

 The shape of the outside and inside of the car and the materials used inside all affect the sound quality.

The best way to figure out how well the submarine works is to move it around in a few different places before deciding on one.

Run the cabling

After deciding where to install the subwoofer, you now run the cabling. If you are installing an active subwoofer, you’ll have to wire through the firewall hole into the cabin and the engine compartment.

You should install the in-line fuse as close to the car battery as possible without damaging the wires. This will make sure that it is working right and won’t hurt your amplifier in any way. You’ll connect the wires to the battery at the very end of the process.

The next step is to run the red and white RCA cables with your subwoofer wiring kit under the dashboard and then under the carpeting to where your amplifier will go.

Make sure that all the cables you are running have some slack at both the beginning and the end.

 By doing this, you won’t have to worry that you won’t have enough room to connect everything when you get to the end of the process.

Wire the car stereo system

After you’ve put in the cables, you can start wiring the car audio parts of the system. Take out the stereo that came with your car and put it somewhere else. The red and white RCO cable outputs should be on the back of the device.

Once you’ve put the RCA wires through the back of the console and into these slots, you’ll be able to connect them.

If you notice output on your car stereo is missing, you’ll have to take off the connector cables and then connect them to the speaker’s cable output. Skip this step if your car stereo already has these outputs.

As you go through this process, remember that red means the good and white means the bad. This information was very helpful when it came time to hook up the amplifier and install the subwoofer.

You will also need to connect a wire to the stereo’s output, marked “Remote” or “Amp.” This will let the amplifier know that the stereo is now turned on, which will make the amplifier work.

Subwoofer Installation 

You will need a portable mounting box when installing and mounting your car subwoofer. Most of the time, these mounting boxes are made of pressed particle board and have a layer of dampening felt on the top. This helps keep the bass tight and focused.

Many subwoofers come with this enclosure and are already mounted when you buy them. If you have one of these, you won’t have to worry about putting it in yourself because it will do everything for you.

If there is enough space in your car trunk, thus it is the best place to install the subwoofer. If your car doesn’t have a trunk, you can often put the enclosure in the backseat in the middle, so it doesn’t get in the way of people’s legs.

Wire the amplifier

After you have put the subwoofer in place and connected all of these wires, you can finish wiring the amplifier.

Set up a connection between the “Power” or “Batt” terminal on the amplifier and the wire from the battery.

Then, connect the wire already connected to the terminal on the stereo that says “Remote” or “Amp” to the terminal on the amplifier that says the same thing. Then, use the right connectors to connect the RCA cables to the amplifier’s RCA inputs.

In the last step, connect wires to the amplifier’s positive and negative speaker outputs. These will go to the back, where you decided to put the subwoofer. Connect them to the subwoofer’s + red wire and – terminals black wire , which are the right spots.

Connect the power cables

When you are done connecting everything, you can finally move on to the next step: connect the power cable from the car’s battery to your amplifier.

Unhook the battery by taking the positive end off. If you choose this one, it will be the red wire with the bigger metal connector.

Turn the amplifier back on after you have twisted the power line from the amplifier around the positive terminal and reattached the connector to secure the wire between the terminal and the connection.

Now is the time to turn on the car and ensure everything is working correctly. When you turn on the music, the amplifier should turn on automatically, and the engine shouldn’t mess with the sound. The subwoofer should be giving you deep, rumbling bass.

Conclusion

Installing a subwoofer is a great way to improve the sound quality of your car. You can spend a little money or put in a lot of work to get a better sound.

If you know how to connect a subwoofer to a car and the steps you need to take, you can learn a lot about how your car’s radio works and how it can be improved.

After installing your subwoofer, you’ll be able to get the deep, rumbling bass you’ve always wanted without hurting the speakers in your car or your hearing.

If you want to connect a car music radio to a car audio-powered subwoofer, you shouldn’t take any risks that aren’t necessary.

Even though it’s not hard, especially if the amplifier is not built in, the connection itself could be dangerous. It could easily cause someone to get electrocuted, and over time, it could damage the electronic parts of your car.

We hope now you have learnt how to Connect Subwoofer to Car Speakers? If you need help with what you are doing, consult a technician to avoid damaging your car’s music system.