2005 and up Amp question

[cseoni]

It appears that the 2005 amp located in the front trunk has a different wiring config than previous years. The amp (if it is in fact the amp) is located in the front trunk behind the panel holding the air compressor (no spare tire). This amp has a large black plug.

I believe that the rear speaker wiring is preinstalled regardless if you have rear speakers. The question is: where do these speaker wires terminate on the other end in models with no rear speaker option. I would assume somewhere near the rear storage compartment.

I am installing rear speakers and would love to save myself sometime running cables all the way to the front, if in fact they are pre-run.

RIGHT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A6 blue/ blue

- A16 blue/ brown

LEFT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A7 white/ white

- A17 white/ brown

[cseoni]

It appears that the 2005 amp located in the front trunk has a different wiring config than previous years. The amp (if it is in fact the amp) is located in the front trunk behind the panel holding the air compressor (no spare tire). This amp has a large black plug.

I believe that the rear speaker wiring is preinstalled regardless if you have rear speakers. The question is: where do these speaker wires terminate on the other end in models with no rear speaker option. I would assume somewhere near the rear storage compartment.

I am installing rear speakers and would love to save myself sometime running cables all the way to the front, if in fact they are pre-run.

RIGHT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A6 blue/ blue

- A16 blue/ brown

LEFT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A7 white/ white

- A17 white/ brown

I spent 2 hours tearing up the car and looking for this staged harness...no luck.

Surprised that nobody has no advise?! :P

[jjlehman]

I am installing the same speaker kit. It is not pre-wired for the rear speakers (nice assumption though). I have the base CDR24 radio. I cannot find an amp, if there is one. If you are talking about the black box that is in the same area as the access dor for the CD changer I don't think that is an amp. It would have heat sinks and a thicker wiring harness. Right? The instructions on these speaker kits are VERY confusing. Back to the car to get this resolved.

---------------------------------------

It appears that the 2005 amp located in the front trunk has a different wiring config than previous years. The amp (if it is in fact the amp) is located in the front trunk behind the panel holding the air compressor (no spare tire). This amp has a large black plug.

I believe that the rear speaker wiring is preinstalled regardless if you have rear speakers. The question is: where do these speaker wires terminate on the other end in models with no rear speaker option. I would assume somewhere near the rear storage compartment.

I am installing rear speakers and would love to save myself sometime running cables all the way to the front, if in fact they are pre-run.

RIGHT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A6 blue/ blue

- A16 blue/ brown

LEFT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A7 white/ white

- A17 white/ brown

[cseoni]

I am installing the same speaker kit. It is not pre-wired for the rear speakers (nice assumption though). I have the base CDR24 radio. I cannot find an amp, if there is one. If you are talking about the black box that is in the same area as the access dor for the CD changer I don't think that is an amp. It would have heat sinks and a thicker wiring harness. Right? The instructions on these speaker kits are VERY confusing. Back to the car to get this resolved.

---------------------------------------

It appears that the 2005 amp located in the front trunk has a different wiring config than previous years. The amp (if it is in fact the amp) is located in the front trunk behind the panel holding the air compressor (no spare tire). This amp has a large black plug.

I believe that the rear speaker wiring is preinstalled regardless if you have rear speakers. The question is: where do these speaker wires terminate on the other end in models with no rear speaker option. I would assume somewhere near the rear storage compartment.

I am installing rear speakers and would love to save myself sometime running cables all the way to the front, if in fact they are pre-run.

RIGHT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A6 blue/ blue

- A16 blue/ brown

LEFT REAR SPEAKERS

+ A7 white/ white

- A17 white/ brown

The amp is in the front trunk located behind the compartment containing the compressor and tire change kit. Remove that panel and you will see the amp attached ...this is for a 2005 and (i assume) above...PM if you have additional questions...you may not have an amp unless you chose the i490 option. I dont believe they are standard. If there is no amp, you can connect the speakers directly to the back of the stereo...it should be described in the instructions that came with the kit.

[jjlehman]

Here is what I know about installing the rear speakers on a 2005+ Boxster. If you'd like a PDF of this please e-mail me at jjlehman [at] earthlink [dot] net. I don't have any pictures but when used with other instructions the below might be helpful.

INSTALLING REAR SPEAKERS ON A 2005 BOXSTER WITH THE CDR24 RADIO AND NO EXTERNAL AMPLIFIER.

I just spent a frustrating 8 hours doing what I was told was a 2.5 hour install job of rear speakers on my 2005 Boxster. This Boxster has the CDR24 radio. All 2005-2009 Boxsters that don’t have navigation have this radio. There are two additional sound system enhancements (meaning additional speakers and amplifiers), one of them being BOSE.

I read the instructions carefully and read some of the forums before starting. I thought I knew what I was getting into.

As I said, my Boxster has the base radio with no additional amplifiers. You will have to remove the radio to wire up the speakers, but I’ll get to that later.

Here are some pointers that I learned while doing the install:

You will need more tools than the installation brochure says.

You will also need:

Torx 30 screwdriver

Wrench to disconnect the battery

Dremel tool with a round “drum” sander (3/8”-1/2” approximately),

Dremel cutting disks

A ¼” round Dremel grinder bit

A penny to use as a screwdriver for fasteners on the foam piece under the glove box

Pliers

Adjustable wrench

Two non-marring hand clamps.

“L” shaped Allen wrench that it the same size as a Torx 30 screwdriver

I recommend a glue gun over epoxy because you could well make a mistake placing the speaker wires inside the storage compartment and need to re-do them.

Getting the storage tray out isn’t too bad but your glass window will impede you a bit. The illustration shows it standing upright. I couldn’t get it there. I disconnected the UPPER ball end of the tension cable because it’s easier to get to. I highly recommend laying a big beach towel across the back trunk lid.

Once you get the storage compartment out the fun begins. I’d suggest that you put it on a blanket on your workbench while working on the storage unit. This will protect it. You’ll also need to be very careful when removing the existing cubby holes from the storage unit. Note that the glue that was used in the original install of the cubbies has leaked down the side and it is very difficult to tell that there are some side clips to hold the cubby holes in. You might damage them while you are trying to hack away the glue. You have to be very careful finessing the glue to break free of the plastic.

Fitting the speaker grills takes some time. I had to knock off and smooth out the outboard tabs (closest to the car doors) of the grills. I also had to take a Dremel tool with a sanding drum and slightly increase the size of the opening at the outboard end of the storage compartment where the speaker grills fit. It wasn’t that much of an increase in the opening. You just need to take it slow and keep refitting the piece. It will never just pop right in but when it pushes somewhat easily into the speaker grill opening you’ll know you are done.

Once I got the grills so they would fit I used a hand clamp to hold them tight at the outboard corners while I used the glue gun to glue them in. The grills have a tendency to want to pop away from the housing at the outside corner. The glue gun worked great.

When you put the speakers into the appropriate place in the storage compartment there is really no way to put them in incorrectly. There is a way to wire them incorrectly however, something that even Eurospeed did in their instructions. Start with the left speaker and make sure you leave almost no slack in the line when you stick the left side speaker wire in the wire retaining clips. You will need as much wire as possible when it comes to positioning the right speaker.

As you run the speaker wires from the left side of the unit to the right side you will want to take the Dremel tool and, with a ¼” round grinder bit rout out two small spots so the wire can run freely from the left speaker compartment through the storage area with the slider doors and into the right speaker compartment. Once you press the speaker wire into the retaining clips on the left side of the storage compartment it will become obvious where each rout will need to be made. (It’s right where the inboard clip is located. It will look like the wire has to go over a plastic ridge.) You’ll do one rout on each side. This is so the storage compartment doesn’t cut into the wires when it is re-installed. Dabbing some hot glue in there is a good idea. Clamp the wire across the back of the storage unit and put glue in at least 3-5 places to secure it. This is where the glue gun is better than epoxy. You can remove the glue of necessary.

On the right side of the storage bin you will see a ¼” notch right near the location of the outboard Torx screw that holds the speaker unit in and the edge of the carpet. (This is from figure 3 in the three page Porsche installation instructions.) This is where the wires should exit the unit. There should be just enough speaker wire to get to the edge of the notch. All you will see once the storage unit is reinstalled is the tube that covers the wires and the connector plug. Before you put the right speaker assembly in place the two speaker wires under the right speaker assembly so they exit at the notch. They should not bind on anything. Then use the four Torx screws to secure the assembly.

Now is a good time to disconnect the battery. If you don’t you can create a potential airbag deployment.

After you remove the carpeted seatbelt retractor cover you’ll see on the roll bar that there are a series of small rectangles punched into a small cross member between the two tubes. I installed the white connector clip there in the small middle rectangle. You will need to install it so the channel runs vertically. You will need a pair of pliers to give it a twist to lock it in. I positioned the connector for the long cable that goes to the front of the car facing downward on the clip. The storage box connector comes in from the bottom. That way it can be fairly easily unclipped for removal.

When you route the long speaker cable down the side of the roll bar the white zip ties that were included in the kit won’t help you. They are too short. I didn’t use them as the speaker cable was pretty easy to tuck behind the roll bar and then route along the door sill.

Once you remove the door sill/umbrella holder there is a nice ridge right along the edge of the sill to route the speaker cable. Clips won’t be necessary. When you get to the kick panel you’ll need to get creative. (Make sure you have put tape on the end of the harness that has the exposed micro clips!) The panel is glued in place so you’ll have to push the wire around a bit.

Removing the foam under dash protector is easier if you use a penny as a screw driver. You’ll continue routing the wire behind the carpet.

This is where you say: Where the !@#$@ is the amplifier the directions were talking about? If there is one it is located in the front luggage compartment, behind the tire inflation kit. If it’s not there then you have the base radio set up and the radio has to come out.

Here is how you get the radio out:

Remove small carpeted trim piece from each side of center console using Torx 30 screwdriver. It takes a lot of turns to get it out. Must be to discourage thieves and people installing rear speakers.

Remove the piece of panel that covers the head unit on each the side of the console.

There are two Torx 20 screws per panel. This is the hard part: gently (but forcefully) pull each side panel forward. There are three clips that hold them in. The bottom two are fairly straightforward. The top one is a total pain. If you twist it upwards and don’t pull it forward you will probably break the top clip. It’s hard to get leverage on this piece because it is wedged between the radio and the dash.

On the right side of the radio there is a small screw that needs to be backed off so the radio can slide out. (Another security feature.) Don’t unscrew it all the way (but there is no way to tell if you are!).

There are 4 black plastic rotating locks that hold the radio in place. You will need an Allen wrench the size of a Torx 30 to unlock them. The upper one on the left side of the radio is a pain because it’s hard to see. You have to do it by feel.

The radio should then slide out. The connector cables are short so make sure you have a towel to protect the radio and the dashboard. I’d move the shifter down to give the radio some extra room.

On the back of the radio you will be looking for the brown connector. The directions refer to the rear speaker cable wires as red and green. They aren’t. On my kit they were white and black, and yellow and black. Use an AA battery to determine which side is right and which is left. Just connect up the leads and listen for the slight popping sound. I determined that Yellow was R and White was L. Double check that. Had to do the same thing with the main speakers since nothing is labeled!

You will need to push the pins from the speaker wiring harness into the brown connector. What no one tells you is that there is a thin yellow restraining strip that keeps you from pushing the pins in. You will need to pry that out first from the side of the brown connector. Make sure you put the new pins in with the same orientation as the existing pins so you can slide the yellow strip back in. It’s redundant because the pins lock in anyway.

Once everything was connected I re-installed the radio and reconnected the battery.

The fader feature doesn’t work, but the surround sound is great. Euro Motorspeed apologized for the misleading advertising and offered a refund…which is not possible once you have installed the speakers!

Needless to say, the speakers are worth the effort, but there are multiple theories on where the amps are, or aren’t, whether you need to remove the radio - or not, and even with the Porsche, Euro Motorspeed, PNP, and some forum instructions the project was still a cluster-f--k because the 2005+ Boxsters are just different enough from their predecessors and the documentation is pretty thin.

Jeff

[cseoni]

I didnt need to dremel anything in my 2005. The grills popped in. They are tight by design and you need to ensure you have one side set before putting the other side in...

Edited November 20, 2008 by cseoni