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#1
Jan 8 2017 10:11pm
My new car has a great looking stock head unit that communicates natively with the fun little add-ons around the car. Unfortunately, it does not have enough power to drive the sub and amp that I was using, with great success, in my old car that had an after-market head unit.

I would like to maintain the aesthetic by keeping the stock head unit. Is there any way that I can do this whilst also being able to get full use of my sub?

I did some googling and there appears to be something called a line out converter which may be the solution, however, I am still unclear on a lot of the jargon used when describing the LOC's function.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
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#2
Jan 8 2017 11:06pm
line out converter is what you want.

essentially it's just using your door speakers(rear deck usually) to treat the subwoofers like another set of speakers.

it converters regular speaker input into an amplifier rca input. then you simply run the rcas(red yellow white vcr style wires) to the subwoofer amp and you're done.

you say that the current head unit doesn't have enough power to drive the sub an amp...how exactly have you tried hooking this up so far? unhook it until you buy and install the line out converter.
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#3
Jan 8 2017 11:36pm
Quote (Subwoofer @ Jan 9 2017 06:06pm)
line out converter is what you want.

essentially it's just using your door speakers(rear deck usually) to treat the subwoofers like another set of speakers.

it converters regular speaker input into an amplifier rca input. then you simply run the rcas(red yellow white vcr style wires) to the subwoofer amp and you're done.

you say that the current head unit doesn't have enough power to drive the sub an amp...how exactly have you tried hooking this up so far? unhook it until you buy and install the line out converter.


Thanks for the help!

I had the sub professionally installed so am not 100% sure how it was hooked up. I assume it was done correctly. Sound plays through the sub, however, it is not loud and certainly does not give any of the satisfying feel that the sub was able to produce previously.

Do line out converters vary much between brands? Should I be looking for something specific or will any produce the same effect?
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#4
Jan 8 2017 11:43pm
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_46220_NVX-XPLOC2.html

what sub and amp combo specifically? i don't get how they'd hook up the subs without using one of these already.

what sub and amp models? i'd like to rule out the amp being wrong for the subs.
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#5
Jan 9 2017 12:11am
https://www.amazon.com/JVC-KSAX3201D-Class-Watts-Power/dp/B00BDTI59A

http://support.jvc.com/consumer/product.jsp?modelId=MODL028790

They worked together at a fantastically outrageous volume in my last car. The only different component now is the head unit.
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#6
Jan 9 2017 12:40am
i wonder how on earth they have the amplifier hooked up.

where do the rca cables hook up right now?
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#7
Jan 9 2017 09:05pm
I took my car in to a couple of different car audio specialists today and have a little more information that may prove relevant.

The car is a 2005 BMW E90. It has audio controls on the steering wheel and an auxiliary input available in the back seats.
After I showed each place the car and described the problem, both recommended a line out converter as a reasonable solution. Interestingly, one place said that buying one would be ~160 New Zealand dollars and the other estimated about 400. I would then have to pay for the installation.

I had a look around online and found the Rockford item that was being suggested by the dealers. The cheapest I could find was $120 NZ. Including international shipping, yours will only be around $70. I also found a couple alternatives that are already in New Zealand and would save me the two weeks of waiting for shipping.

https://www.jaycar.co.nz/2-channel-high-quality-line-level-converter/p/AA0416 at $40
https://www.jaycar.co.nz/4-channel-high-quality-line-level-converter/p/AA0418 at $55

Do either of the alternatives look comparable to the one that you suggested? The cost isn't a major factor between the three options so if yours is noticeably better than these I would be inclined to use your suggestion at $70.

Finally, the only experience I have had with car audio installation is installing a sub and amp (this exact set actually) into my previous car. It went flawlessly. Is a LOC something that I will likely be able to manage myself with a bit of time and care?
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#8
Jan 9 2017 09:32pm
the first one you linked will be fine. i can't speak for the exact quality of that brand but these things aren't that complicated tbh so i doubt you will have any noticeable difference between it and the one i linked.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=wiring+2+channel+line+out+converter

tons of youtube videos that can explain it a lot easier than i can. it's a very comparable wiring job to the one you've done before and i feel for sure you can handle installing it yourself if you choose to.
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#9
Jan 9 2017 09:55pm
Quote (Subwoofer @ Jan 10 2017 04:32pm)
the first one you linked will be fine. i can't speak for the exact quality of that brand but these things aren't that complicated tbh so i doubt you will have any noticeable difference between it and the one i linked.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=wiring%202%20channel%20line%20out%20converter

tons of youtube videos that can explain it a lot easier than i can. it's a very comparable wiring job to the one you've done before and i feel for sure you can handle installing it yourself if you choose to.


You've been amazing. I really appreciate all the help you have given.

I'll post an update once it is all done.
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