Your Complete Guide to Car Speaker Installations

Is your car in need of a new speaker system? We break down the process in this complete guide to car speaker installations.

Did you know that some car stereo systems are powerful enough to kill a person? Although most of us may not want to go that far with our car speaker installations, it’s crazy to think just how extreme you could go with it. 

Car speakers are a must-have for most people, as listening to the radio or music while on the road is such a classic pass-time. However, what happens when you turn up your speaker volume, and there is silence, or worse still, an annoying cracking sound? 

Read on to learn all about car speaker installations, types of car speakers, and all the equipment you need for speaker installation. 

Car Speaker Installations: Do It Yourself or Get a Pro?

Installing your car speakers yourself is cost-effective, but you also bear the risk of damaging your car. Using one of the best car speaker installers will ensure that no damage is done to your car, and in the unlikely event that there is, their insurance will cover it. 

Speaker installation in older cars is quite a straightforward process that may take you just about three to four hours, but newer cars are harder to take apart, increasing the difficulty. So, it may be best to leave it to a professional service like ours.

Still, if you’d rather do it yourself, follow along below.

Types of Car Speaker Systems: The Parts

First, you need to know the different car speaker systems available. All car speakers can amplify sound but vary in sound quality, volume, price, and customization options. They include subwoofers, component speakers, tweeters, midrange, super-tweeters, etc. 

Subwoofers differ from standard speakers. People install them in their cars when they desire heavy bass (frequency range of 20-200Hz). They have the often negative connotation of having obnoxiously loud music being played through them while young drivers do hot laps. But, they don’t have to be pumped to their limits to fill the soundscape on your ride. 

Subwoofers often need a separate amplifier to power them, as they require a lot more power than other speaker types.

You can usually find mid-range speakers on the doors of your car or the parcel shelf. You can’t go without these as they provide the necessary frequencies to listen to music pleasurably.

Tweeters produce the highest sound frequencies(2000-20000Hz), providing even more clarity to different sounds. These can be a smaller part of the main door speakers (known as component speakers) or are sometimes separate small speakers in various positions around the car, like in the corner between the door trim and window.

Head units are the brain of your car audio. You can upgrade them to play videos, run a GPS, and use many other apps.

Parts and Equipment You Will Need to Install Car Speakers

It is crucial to acquire or assemble all the relevant parts and equipment you need during the speaker's installation. Below is a rundown of some of the features and tools.

Parts 

Apart from the speakers, you will also need to purchase a few other things. These include:

A Wiring Harness Specific to Your Vehicle

The purpose of this cable is to connect the speakers to the car's wiring, which is usually a dedicated plastic plug located at the edge of the wiring loom. Alternatively, you can cut the cables and make soldered or crimped connections. Yet, this method is much harder.

Speaker Brackets/Adapters

If your new speakers do not fit your vehicle’s speaker mounting holes, you will need speaker brackets. Speaker adapters come in a range of sizes such as 6.5”, 6×9″, 5×7″, and 6×8″. The only way to know which one you will need is by measuring the speakers and the subsequent mounting or checking your glovebox vehicle guide.

Equipment

 The following are more tools you may need:

• Electrical tape
• Wire stripper
• Wirecutter
• Screwdrivers of different sizes (flat, star, etc.)
• Allen wrenches
• Soldering iron
• Electric drill
• Craft knife
• Crimp tool
• Soldering iron

However, it is worth noting that car speaker installation may sometimes be much simpler than others. This is mainly dependent on the locations of the speakers and the methods required to access them. 

Often speakers are in the door panel while some are located in the dashboard, on the parcel shelf, or within the car's rear ends. 

To replace some speakers, you may need to remove the door trim. Others may be much simpler. You’ll have to check for yourself or hire a pro.

A Step-By-Step Guide to Installing Car Speakers Located Within the Door Trim

Take care of the safety precautions. Before working on the speakers, it is paramount that the battery is disconnected. Remember, you want to live to get to enjoy the new speakers. 

Also, wear gloves, if possible, to protect your skin from the possibility of injury. Lastly, ensure that you keep track of all the interior components precisely as you work so you can easily put them back.

1. Ensure that you’ve parked the car in a manner that all the doors can be accessed in full.
2. Begin to unscrew the door trim by removing all visible screws to expose the inner ones, one at a time.
3. Identify the window controls and remove them.
4. Disconnect the wiring while marking their sources as you work. You may even take a picture of the wiring just to be sure.
5. Remove the old speaker. 
6. Replace the speaker with the new one using the electrical wiring in place. Make sure the connections are accurate. Refer to the photo you took or the marks you made earlier.
7. Before fully returning everything else in its place, reconnect the car battery to test whether the new car speakers are working correctly. Test the sound, volume, etc.

Testing and Reconnecting

If you’re fully satisfied, you can proceed to the final step. Testing is essential because it can save you time and effort if the new speakers aren’t working effectively.

1. Disconnect the battery once more so that you can safely proceed in remounting the door trim, window controls, speaker covers, and so forth. Make sure all the necessary parts taken out are returned securely.
   
   If you’re interested in making the door speakers sound even better, you may use sound-deadening materials to insulate the inside of the door panels.
   
   
2. Finally, you can now reconnect your battery and enjoy the glorious sound of your new car speakers. Pat yourself on the back for a job well done. 

As you can see, installing your car speakers can be pretty simple and satisfying. Yet, it doesn’t always go as planned so if you’re having doubts, book an installation from us instead.

How to Install Car Speakers in the Dashboard

Often, speakers located in the dashboard have removable grills covering them. In this case, you will need to:

1. Observe all safety precautions that are mentioned above
2. Disconnect the battery
3. Remove the visible screws holding the grills or use the pry tool to expose hidden mounting screws
4. Remove the old speakers and replace them with new ones
5. Test the speakers by reconnecting the battery briefly then disconnect it again
6. Remount the grills using the screws
7. Reconnect the battery

Replacing Speakers on the Parcel Shelf

These are accessible through the liftgate of the trunk. They may be pretty difficult to replace as the space for working Is quite odd.

However, you can often just take the whole shelf out once the cables are disconnected. Then, just follow a similar process to the other speaker types.

When to Get a Pro

When adding a subwoofer and external amplifier, you’ll have to find a way to secure them to your car, so they don’t roll around. Every car will be slightly different, so you may have to ask for some help, or you could get a free estimate for speaker installations from Boca Tint & Audio.