CHP you inbox is full! (So I put my questions in this thread instead)

[BurnMac42]

Chp (or any stereo guru's),

Got a few questions for ya:

1. When assembling the battery terminal connectors onto the 1/0 wire do you sodder + crimp and then use the heat shrink or just crimp and then heat shrink?

2. Do you run the 1/0 cable straight from the house battery to the distro blocks or do you run the 1/0 cable from battery --> Perko Switch--->distro blocks? My dealership told me to just run the wire straight from the house battery to the distro blocks but I thought you said to link it into the perko switch somehow.

3. In regards to the amp racks....I plan on using 1/2" spacers underneath the rack to hide the wires. When you do this, do you also use 1/2" spacers on the amps to "elevate" the amps off the rack to promote airflow?

4. What gauge wire do you recommend running from the sub to the amp? Also, do you sodder the speaker wire onto the sub terminals?


Thanks!

- Matt

Edit: Also what do you guys use to cut sub (under the helm) and speaker holes (in fiberglass) in your boat? Do you guys all use a rotozip or the jigsaw or a tool I'm unaware of?

[chpthril]

1) I prefer solder. Did you find any solder pellets in the baggie with the terminals and heat shrink? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXDkNMDDrBs

2) The amp ground trunk 1/0 terminates right to the battery NEG post. Amp trunk B+ terminates to the switch common output post.

3) Standoffs under the amp serves a couple of purposes. allows for a cleaner look when we can bring the cabling up from behind amp and wall and then connect to the amp. 2nd, it gives us a little air flow between the amp and carpeted wall.

4) 12ga cabling and push on terminals, no soldering.

5) for a typical speaker with a 5.0 cutout, I use a 5" hole saw and 1/2 power drill. For larger holes, I typically cut free hand. A roto works just dont let it get away from you when cutting in gel coat. A jig works good if you have room to swing it. Use a fine tooth metal cutting blade not course wood. For gel, tape off all the way around so the base of the jig doesnt scratch. What I found that works the best is a body tool used for cutting sheet metal. Its a mini saws-all basically with a fine tooth blade.

[BurnMac42]

1)

5) For larger holes, I typically cut free hand. A roto works just dont let it get away from you when cutting in gel coat. A jig works good if you have room to swing it. Use a fine tooth metal cutting blade not course wood. For gel, tape off all the way around so the base of the jig doesnt scratch. What I found that works the best is a body tool used for cutting sheet metal. Its a mini saws-all basically with a fine tooth blade.

I guess I was blending two boats. I was thinking the area under the helm was wood but I'm probably wrong on that with a 2017. The 2017 is probably fiberglass with carpet laid over under the helm so I assume I'll be cutting fiberglass the entire time (I was thinking wood becuase of my 21v vs my R21)...

When you say free hand what tool are you using to cut the hole? I'm just trying to figure out the best tool to cut the 12" hole for the sub under the helm since I can't "remove" the piece under the helm that I'm cutting into....