My Adventures in Upgrading the Subwoofer and Center Speaker

[Frank 60th Anniv. Mustang]

Im assuming you know, but you never touch on it..
With the dual 4ohm voice coils..
Theres 2 ways to wire the sub which changes its performance & puts more stress on the amp depending if it can handle it or not.
Does anyone know the ohm specs on the stock sub speaker in this scenario?

A dual 4 ohm speaker can be wired in either 8 ohm or 2 ohm load,
depending on how you feed the wires through all the voice coil connections.

If you run it at 2ohms, it will be louder, if the amp can handle it.

I have no idea if it can or cant...
Just when it comes to subs, amps, etc, ohm load is important.

The stock subwoofer in the Ford Mustang S650 Bang & Olufsen (B&O) system is a dual 4-ohm voice coil (DVC)

If you are planning to swap out the factory speaker driver while still using the stock B&O amplifier, keep these pointers in mind:

• Match the Impedance: Look for an aftermarket dual 4-ohm replacement. The factory B&O amplifier expects a 4-ohm load per channel/coil and is generally unstable if forced down to a 2-ohm or 1-ohm load.
• You can replace the factory dual 4-ohm voice coil subwoofer in an S650 Mustang with an aftermarket dual 4-ohm replacement.
• Because the factory B&O audio system utilizes a dual 4-ohm speaker structure, a dual 4-ohm (D4) aftermarket subwoofer provides an exact mechanical and electrical match to the vehicle’s original wiring scheme.
  
  Crucial Wiring Instructions
  The original S650 B&O enclosure receives power from the factory amplifier via two independent factory connectors. There are four total wires:
  • Positive Wires: Green and Yellow
  • Negative Wires: Black and Purple
• Do not bridge or wire the new sub in series or parallel down to 2-ohms or up to 8-ohms. Instead, map each factory wire pair directly to its own independent voice coil on your new subwoofer:
  1. Connect the first factory channel (one positive/negative pair) directly to Voice Coil 1 on the new sub.
  2. Connect the second factory channel (the other positive/negative pair) directly to Voice Coil 2 on the new sub.
• OR... Get the $10 wire harneses discussed in past posts for an easy, no worry connection. See pic!

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[slater]

Thats my point, good info...
Im not claiming to be an expert, I have my systems installed...
That being said, I just texted a very knowledgeable old guy that I met on the 2 car audio forums I frequent.

You post says its important to keep the sub at 4 ohms, that makes sense,
He confirms my thought, that a DVC 4ohm, its either 2 ohms or 8 ohms.

Is there 2 amp channels going into one individual sub, is that such a thing?

 

[slater]

I was just trying to make you guys aware & hopefully youre not wiring down to 2ohms as most chinzy factory audio system amps cant handle the load.

 

[Frank 60th Anniv. Mustang]

I was just trying to make you guys aware & hopefully your not wiring down to 2ohms as most chinzy factory audio system amps cant handle the load.

Understood and I appreciate your concern. Here is the info I've gathered for this system. As long as you are replacing a stock dual 4-ohm (D4) voice coil subwoofer with an aftermarket dual 4-ohm subwoofer (like the DD Audio SW10A-D4) and connecting it via factory plug-and-play harness adapters, each factory amplifier channel continues to see the exact same 4-ohm load PER COIL!

Why the Impedance Remains the Same...

• Direct Channel-to-Coil Architecture: Most Bang & Olufsen (B&O) factory sound systems (such as those in modern Ford and Audi platforms) drive the stock subwoofer using two dedicated amplifier channels—one channel per voice coil.
• Factory Harness Adapters: Plug-and-play harness adapters keep the channels separated. They take Channel 1 directly to Voice Coil 1 (4 ohms) and Channel 2 directly to Voice Coil 2 (4 ohms).
• No Series or Parallel Bridging: Because you are not bridging the channels or internally tying the subwoofer's coils together in series (8 ohms) or parallel (2 ohms), each factory channel operates safely within its designed nominal 4-ohm impedance range.

So, yes... you are correct. Make sure it is wired using factory harness adaptors OR by the correct color wires going correctly to each voice coil to maintain 4ohm to EACH coil. One positive/negative to each coil. Again, for $10 on Amazon, make life easy and get the 2 harnesses!

• Positive Wires: Green and Yellow
• Negative Wires: Black and Purple

 

[glenng6]

Frank: Good info!

Sig: Your dog can always go to a community college....

Or become an electrician or plumber and make more money than the doctors who hire them! Glenn

 

[jeetee]

Is there a newer version of the DD subwoofer? I cant find the 10 or the 10A redline series in stock anywhere

 

[Cobrakit]

Is there a newer version of the DD subwoofer? I cant find the 10 or the 10A redline series in stock anywhere

I have a lightly used Pioneer i'll sell if your interested.

 

[slater]

Is there a newer version of the DD subwoofer? I cant find the 10 or the 10A redline series in stock anywhere

Try emailing or calling DD direct?
They are a small operation so would imagine they have supply chain issues, tariff issues, etc....
Xchit, bilstein has been having some serious supply issues lately.....

 

[exm]

Looks like they might have replaced it with the more expensive Digital Designs DD Audio 510E-D4?

 

[dusman59]

The old Redline was discontinued for awhile. You could only find it from some supplier that had left over stock. I don't see the db sensitivity for the 510 plus high $$. You just need to get a high db (uper 80's)rating 10" sub 4 ohm. There has been some that that has used other manufactures on the forum with good results.

 

[jeetee]

Any reason why most of this forum opts for swapping out to stock subwoofer versus getting a preloaded enclosure such as the Skar ($280 custom loaded enclosure + $100 amp)? Sure it needs an amplifier installed and less Plug-N-Play, but for a couple $100 more, it seems it would be a bigger improvement without investing significantly more.

 

[slater]

Any reason why most of this forum opts for swapping out to stock subwoofer versus getting a preloaded enclosure such as the Skar ($280 custom loaded enclosure + $100 amp)? Sure it needs an amplifier installed and less Plug-N-Play, but for a couple $100 more, it seems it would be a bigger improvement without investing significantly more.

Im guessing not everyone wants the next level audiophile sound stage & sub....
I sure the hell do & im not young, im 54.....
In San Diego theres alot of audio shops that do professional quality installs, so theres options.
Im guessing that isnt the case all over the US, but maybe im wrong,
Yes as a kid, I did my own installs, had no choice.....
Today, ill pay....
With the invention of a quality DSP amp, you can have an amazing system.....

 

[exm]

Any reason why most of this forum opts for swapping out to stock subwoofer versus getting a preloaded enclosure such as the Skar ($280 custom loaded enclosure + $100 amp)? Sure it needs an amplifier installed and less Plug-N-Play, but for a couple $100 more, it seems it would be a bigger improvement without investing significantly more.

I think the preloaded enclosures are great for cars without the stock B&O. My $99 DD Audio upgrade is perfect, why spend $300-$400?

 

[D/\rK•650]

Any reason why most of this forum opts for swapping out to stock subwoofer versus getting a preloaded enclosure such as the Skar ($280 custom loaded enclosure + $100 amp)? Sure it needs an amplifier installed and less Plug-N-Play, but for a couple $100 more, it seems it would be a bigger improvement without investing significantly more.

I would guess it's because with the setup you mentioned you still have to wire that up. With what is being discussed it's just a center and sub swap. Much easier and requires less time to do. Essentially it's an upgrade that's cheap and doesn't have to be done at an auto audio shop. But I do agree on your point, I would just take mine to a shop and get it done up. Mine sounds pretty good to me. I would need to spend probably a decent amount to get it significantly better than it is now in stock form. One thing I saw on Amazon is a pretty decently rated sub enclosure I think it was a JBL or something with an amplifier built in and that might be something I'd get to get some thump on mine. I do wonder though if I took mine to a shop if I could get a high end DSP installed and then maybe down the road up grade the speakers and then get a more powerful amplifier. I don't know if that is even a thing that people do? Getting a high end DSP i would think would make even the stock setup light years better no?

 

[slater]

I would guess it's because with the setup you mentioned you still have to wire that up. With what is being discussed it's just a center and sub swap. Much easier and requires less time to do. Essentially it's an upgrade that's cheap and doesn't have to be done at an auto audio shop. But I do agree on your point, I would just take mine to a shop and get it done up. Mine sounds pretty good to me. I would need to spend probably a decent amount to get it significantly better than it is now in stock form. One thing I saw on Amazon is a pretty decently rated sub enclosure I think it was a JBL or something with an amplifier built in and that might be something I'd get to get some thump on mine. I do wonder though if I took mine to a shop if I could get a high end DSP installed and then maybe down the road up grade the speakers and then get a more powerful amplifier. I don't know if that is even a thing that people do? Getting a high end DSP i would think would make even the stock setup light years better no?

a dsp / amp combo, fine tuning the stock speakers & adding more power to them, would make a MAJOR improvement over a stock system....
throw a real sub & real power to the sub even if its the oem box, on top of that & its a bonus...
My installer does custom tunes all the time using a DSP on stock speakers along with adding a sub...
That being said, youre going that deep, stock speakers are junk regardless what system you have.

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