RE: IML: hidden stereo

Actually, that is what I should have said in my first suggestion. Chris’s suggestion is an improvement, since you can use the fader control at its extreme front setting and get more sound volume from a given main loudness setting.

Of course this way you’ll be able to use the balance “left to right” control to balance the “left” (rear) and “right” (front) channels if the acoustics of your car aren’t in balance.

Dick Benjamin (out to corral a few more strays)

From: mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Christopher H
Sent: Sunday, September 03, 2006 9:27 AM
To: IML (main)
Subject: Re: IML: hidden stereo

John and Dick,

There is one other choice here, and it’s what the factory did (to some extent) in other two-speaker stereo set-ups where there was only one front and one rear speaker:

• Connect the front left speaker output wires to the rear speaker.
• Connect the front right speaker outputs to the front speaker.
• Isolate (tape off, not connected to anything) the outputs for both rear speakers.
• Set the fader to the full front position (sending all the power output to the existing speakers and none to the nonexistent ones).

You’ll have what I call sideways stereo, which is how my 1972 Charger came from the factory. If I turn my head to look out the driver’s door window, I get the proper sound. But in the normal seating orientation (looking out the windshield, and sorry for stating the obvious there!), it’s usually only noticeable when playing recordings from the late 1960s and early 1970s when artists from the Beatles to the Mamas and Papas to Tavares felt the need to make the left and right channels play different parts of the music (such as the vocals in the left channel and the music in the right). Most of the time you’ll not notice it.

When the factory did this, the radio had no fader., just balance. Or in the case of my Charger, which has no labels on the radio knobs, I guess it’s “front/rear balance” since a normal fader controls both channels at once. In other words, the balance raises and lowers the individual stereo channels (left and right), while a fader shifts both channels front or rear. With this two-speaker set-up, it’s a hybrid that can best be thought of as stereo rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise (looking down at the car).

Hope that wasn’t more confusing, but I think leaving the rear-speaker outputs from your new stereo disconnected will give you the most simple and effective solution. Unless the much more intelligent electron herder Dick B tells us there’s a reason my idea is missing something big!

Chris in LA
(In the electron herding business, I’m at best a rodeo clown)

On 9/3/06 9:42 AM, Dick Benjamin at dickb@xxxxxxxxx wrote:

You cannot connect the wires that are intended for a 4 speaker system to two speakers without damaging the equipment. Do not connect two speaker wires together – the circuits are designed to operate independently, and connecting them will damage the radio.

You cannot get a true front/rear fader stereo operation unless you connect only the wires for the front left and right rear speakers from your radio to your two speakers - then when you adjust the “fader control” to dead center, you will get a sort of lopsided stereo effect as you will have the left stereo output in the front seat and the right stereo output in the rear seat – I suppose that is as close as you can come to what you want, but it will sound pretty strange.

Your only other choice is to connect only the wires for the left (or right) channel speakers, one to the front speaker and one to the rear speaker, then you will have a true fader control, but no stereo effect at all, which is the way your car came from the factory. If you do that, program material that requires both channels to make sense will not be pleasant to listen to! ( BUT! If your radio has an option to turn off the stereo feature, this will work OK – you will get a mixed left/right channel output, basically duplicating the original setup.)

Whichever you decide to do, leave the speaker wires that are not going to be used isolated from each other and from any other point – just tape up each wire end individually so it cannot touch anything metal.

Dick Benjamin (who has been herding electrons for about 54 years).

From: mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of JAY D'ANGELO
Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 10:45 PM
To: john sadowski
Subject: RE: IML: hidden stereo

I'm only using two speakers - one in front on one in the rear

From: jsadowski@xxxxxxx
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: IML: hidden stereo
Date: Sat, 2 Sep 2006 22:48:18 -0700

If you wire them all together, you won't be able to get left & right balance or front to rear fade. You need to run a set of positive & negative to each of the 4 speakers. The instructions with the stereo should tell you which wires go to which speaker.

John

----- Original Message -----

From: JAY D'ANGELO <mailto:cadij@xxxxxxxxxxx>

To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 10:28 PM

Subject: IML: hidden stereo

OK audiophiles - this will be easy for you:

I'm hiding a new stereo under the dash, but I'm only using the front and rear speakers. How do I wire them, since there are four speaker wire runs?

Connect both front pos leads together and then to the speaker and the same with the output leads from the rear and connect the negs togethe? If I do that, then I will have fade control. Sound right? been a long time since I've played with speaker wires.

Jay D'Angelo
64 Iml Cvt
Las Vegas

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