Wiring sound systems!

[83 WB_Ute]

There should be 3 wires to hook up, not counting speakers:

Eng on/Acc-Main Power Wire
Constant 12v-Memory
Earth


The wire for the head units memory, needs constant 12v. This lets it save your settings, so to speak.

Accessories is where the blinkers,wipers etc work, but the reds aren't lit up yet.

Is it a forwards turn on these for Acc? My Torana is a backwards turn for Acc and I couldn't tell you what my HX is. It's not something I've taken any notice of as it has no stereo lol


EDIT: Just read Taily's post and he pretty well said all that already lol

As it's working, I can only guess the memory wire doesn't have a constant power feed.

Yep, thats exactley right. I have all those wire hooked up.

- Eng On/Acc-Main: to the back of the fuse box
- Constant 12volt: to the back of the fuse box
- Earth: to the bottom of the cowel panel

Yeah, the only reason I can think why it is losing the settings is that when its turned off, or accessories are turned off there may be a short loss of power to that constant spot on the back of the fuse box...
I've tried it multiple times, put the CD in, set the clock, let it play for 5mins then turned it off. Then back on, and it will come back on with the saved settings sometimes and others not :/
Any ideas on that crazy one? lol

As for the position of accessories, yes it is backwards.. I have never noticed that before :/ hahaha

[V8VAN]

Only thing I can think of is that the memory wire is intermittently/randomly losing power, hence losing memory.

What fuses did you hook into to power it?

[buck]

I have found with late model head units on old cars to hook the 12v constant straight to the battery with an inline 15amp fuse, because if you turn them up with an amp or somtimes on there own its to much for the old fuses espiecally the original 3 amp radio fuse. i have always used the cig lighter fuse for acc as it also uses a large fuse. also did you scrape the paint off when you connected the earth?

[83 WB_Ute]

Only thing I can think of is that the memory wire is intermittently/randomly losing power, hence losing memory.

What fuses did you hook into to power it?

Thats exactley what I think is happening! I did some searching this morning and found that the 12volt power wire that I have connected to the fuse box does not lose power (test lamp stays on..) when the key is turned to Accessories, On or Winding the motor over.. :/
I had a fiddle with the cd player aswell, put the settings/radio stations in and then turned it off, then back on. It kept the memory for about 4 times and then lost it on the 5th! :(
That makes it even more weirder :/

The ignition/accessories wire is attached to the cigarette lighter fuse on the top left hand side of the fuse box, while the 12volt constant power wire is connected to the bottom right hand side of the fuse box (off the top of my head, I don't know which fuse..)

I moved the earth this morning to a better spot, and I did notice that when the glovebox was open (head unit is mounted in there..) it held the information, but as soon as the glovebox was closed and the ignition turned off, it lost it.. :/
Any idea as to why it's doing that?

I have found with late model head units on old cars to hook the 12v constant straight to the battery with an inline 15amp fuse, because if you turn them up with an amp or somtimes on there own its to much for the old fuses espiecally the original 3 amp radio fuse. i have always used the cig lighter fuse for acc as it also uses a large fuse. also did you scrape the paint off when you connected the earth?

I'm considering doing that with mine now, cause I'm having shitloads of problems with it the way it is now :/

Yep, the cigarette lighter fuse is what the ignition/accessories is connected to. I'll have a look and get back to you as to which the power wire is connected to..

Yep, I took the metal right back to bare metal and them connected it up. I repositioned the earth to a better spot this morning aswell..

[83 WB_Ute]

Just had another go at working it out... Checked every wire and all of them were right, 12volt power wire has constant power all the time, and the ignition/accessories wire has power when its meant to, earth is connected, each speaker is working aswell...

Checked the head unit, added/changed some settings. Turned the ignition off, then back on and it worked. Tried it with the glovebox lid closed and it worked. It worked like it should for the next 5 times and then the next go it lost all the settings! :(

I've got no bloody idea why the hell its doing that, I'll just call the auto electrician friends tomorrow and see if they can shed some light on what/why it is happening..

I'm sooooo damn close to having done it all myself, and then have something as little as this hold me up..

[playwme]

What head unit are you using? Is it secondhand? Might have an internal fault. Run a temporary wire from the back of the head unit to the battery and try it. That way you narrow down to either your wiring or the wiring in the head unit. If the stereo harness plugs into the head unit check the pins and plugs there too. The yellow one might be loose.

[83 WB_Ute]

What head unit are you using? Is it secondhand? Might have an internal fault. Run a temporary wire from the back of the head unit to the battery and try it. That way you narrow down to either your wiring or the wiring in the head unit. If the stereo harness plugs into the head unit check the pins and plugs there too. The yellow one might be loose.

I'm using a brand new Sony Xplod head unit Yeah, that was the last attempt to fix it myself. I'll go and run it now and see how we go.. Hopefully it will shed some light on the situation..

Thanks for the ideas, I'll let you know how I go

[83 WB_Ute]

Finally fixed!!!!! It turned out to be one of the most simple things ever!

I had the ignition/accessories wire and the power wire connected and taped up individually and then taped together. When I taped them together one rolled over the top of the other and losened the connection of the power wire so effectivley it was barely making a connection, which explains the loss of power.. hahaha

Fixed that up and made sure the two wires stayed parallel to each other when I taped them back together

Then I whacked the rest of the dash back in and hooked her up, and away we go! Perfectley functioning sound system that hides the head unit in the glovebox, speakers almost completely hidden aswell

Cheers for al the help guys, cruisin' time now! drive:

I'll post a picture of my wiring diagram sometime tomorrow...

[Blocker]

Coool. I didn't do any work in my shed this weekend, but reading your thread made me feel like I did something productive

[mook]

Coool. I didn't do any work in my shed this weekend, but reading your thread made me feel like I did something productive

Terrible Blocker!

Can't wait to see how you set it all up [MENTION=763]83 WB_Ute[/MENTION] I'm thinking of trying to stuff in two 8", two 6x9" and two 4" speakers and have the head unit/something similar hidden as well! Love to see some inspiring photos.