JBL GTO939 Coaxial Speaker Installation guide

Car Electronics Resource Center
Speaker Installation Guide
Difficulty Level: Moderate to Difficult
In This Guide: Installing car speakers
often requires removal of door, dash
or rear window shelf interior panels to
access the speaker mounting points.
Component speakers require the
additional steps of installing a separate tweeter and passive crossover
network. Follow these easy installation
steps to ensure proper installation of
your speakers.
Average Installation Time: 1-3 Hours
Tools and Supplies Needed:
Wire Cutters
(Crimpers)
Sockets or Open
End Wrenches
Torx Socket
Cordless Drill w/ Drill Bits
Zip Ties
Important
This content has not been verified by Amazon for
accuracy, completeness, or otherwise. Consult
your vehicle’s owner’s manual and the product’s
manual before attempting an installation. Contact
the product’s manufacturer or consult a Mobile
Electronics Certified Professional installer if you
are uncertain about how to properly install your
product. Amazon attempts to be as accurate
as possible; however, because of the number of
vehicles and products available to consumers,
it is not possible to provide detailed installation
steps that apply universally to all vehicles and
products. Amazon does not warrant that product
descriptions or other content of this site is
accurate, complete, reliable, current, or error-free.
Further, Amazon disclaims any warranties, express
or implied, as further set forth in the ‘Conditions
of Use’ for Amazon.com.
Wire Strippers
Utility Knife
Phillips Screwdriver
or Allen Wrenches
Panel Removal Tools
Digital Multimeter (DMM)
Blue Painter’s Tape
(protects dash surfaces)
Before You Begin
1
Product Owner’s Manual
Installation Manual(s)
2
Electrical Tape
3
Towel
(protects console)
Read all instructions carefully
Disconnect the negative battery cable
Protect interior surfaces
Note: Accessories, such as oval-to-round speaker mounting adapters and speaker wire, may be required to complete the installation and are available for purchase on Amazon.com
Page 1
Upgrading Speakers
Coaxial or Component Speakers
Match RMS Power Ratings
Sound Deadening Treatment
Coaxial speakers combine a cone speaker for
midrange frequencies with a tweeter for high frequencies in a single speaker chassis. Many coaxial
speakers use high quality materials and fit directly
into factory locations, simplifying installation and
delivering upgraded sound quality.
RMS power ratings represent a realistic expectation
of a product’s performance. To ensure quality sound
production, match the amplifier’s RMS power output
with the speaker’s RMS power handling. Overpowering speakers can overheat the speaker’s voice coils
causing premature failure. Under powering speakers
may cause sound distortion. As an example, if the
speakers are rated at 50 watts RMS, choose an amplifier that provides between 40 to 60 watts RMS to
each speaker. A little more power (up to +25%) over
the speaker’s RMS power handling is okay, as it adds
‘headroom,’ or reserve power, to the audio system
when the music gets complex and/or loud.
Consider installing sound damping and vibration
control materials in the doors, trunk, rear shelf and
floor of the car. These adhesive sheet materials
install easily on metal and plastic to reduce the road
noise and vibration from interior panels to create a
quieter, more enjoyable listening environment. By
adding mass (weight) to the panel, any vibrations
are suppressed, transferring energy from the speakers into great sound rather than annoying buzzing,
vibrating and rattling of interior panels.
Component speakers have separate midrange and
tweeter drivers providing the flexibility to mount
tweeters at the listener’s ear level. Components
also have a passive crossover network that routes
appropriate frequencies to the midrange and
tweeter respectively, which improves power handling of the speakers and optimizes sound production. Consider component speakers when you are
in pursuit of the highest caliber music experience.
Speaker
RMS
Power
Handling
Component Speakers in a Kick Panel Location
Close
Match
Amplifier
RMS
Power
Output
Closely match CEA-2031 Speaker Power Handling
Wattage with CEA-2006 Amplifier Output Power Wattage.
If CEA ratings are not available, always look for the ‘RMS’
ratings to guide product matching.
Sound Deadening Reduces Vibrations and Rattles
from Sheet Metal and Plastic Panels
Car Electronics Resource Center
Speaker Installation Guide
Page 2
Speaker Locations
If you are unsure of the factory speaker sizes and locations in your vehicle, visit Scosche or Metra to get fitment information.
Dash Locations
Speakers located in the dash may require
removal of the protective speaker grilles to
access the speaker. This may be as easy as
direct removal of the grille, but may require
additional dash top panel disassembly. Short
screwdrivers or socket wrenches are usually required to remove the speaker given
the limited space between the dash and
windshield. To avoid cracking or scratching
the glass, place a towel on the inside of the
windshield in the areas near the speakers.
Rear Shelf Locations
Speakers located in the rear shelf (also
called ‘package tray’) may require rear seat
removal to access the speaker mounting
points. There are two styles of rear shelf
speaker mounting; top mount and bottom
mount. Top mounting is done from the inside
of the car and requires removal of the protective speaker grill or the whole rear shelf
panel. Bottom mounting is done from inside
the trunk and may only require releasing a
bracket holding the speaker up against the
shelf. New speakers may require additional
mounting hardware and new brackets if their
depth exceeds that of the factory speakers.
With the rear shelf panels removed, this is an
excellent opportunity to install sound deadening materials.
Dash Location
Door Location
Top Mounting in
Rear Shelf
Bottom Mounting in
Rear Shelf
Typical Car Speaker Locations
Door Locations
Speakers located in doors typically require
removal of door panel(s), unless the protective speaker grill is independently removable
and provides direct speaker access. If door
panel must be removed, use non-scratching
plastic panel removal tools to carefully pry
the outer edges of the panel and gently
release the pressure fit clips. Most door panels have screws placed around door pulls,
window cranks or armrests. Remove these
screws, and then disconnect any electrical
wiring plugs behind the panel before removing the panel. With the panel removed, this
is an excellent opportunity to install sound
deadening materials.
Other Locations
There may be additional speakers behind
side panels in trucks and SUVs, in rear strut
tower panels in hatchbacks, or in the floor
(under seats) in luxury cars. It may be necessary to remove seats and large interior panels to access the speaker mounting points.
Use care and take your time when disassembling any of these speaker locations.
When to Consider a Professional:
Before attempting speaker installation, assess your comfort level with
the required disassembly of your vehicle. Consider a professional
installer if you are not comfortable disassembling vehicle interior
panels.
Car Electronics Resource Center
Speaker Installation Guide
Page 3
Component Speaker Considerations
In addition to the midrange driver, component speakers have tweeters and passive crossovers that need be installed. These may be new components to your audio system
without a factory location, so the installation location choice is important. Review the speaker manufacturer’s installation instructions for specific details.
Tweeter Locations
Passive Crossover Locations
Tweeters should be installed higher up in the vehicle to ‘lift’ the sound off the floor. Recommended
tweeter locations include the top triangle area at the front edge of the door panel (near the side
view mirror), the ‘A-pillar’ windshield trim, or the upper front area of a door panel forward of door
pull hardware. Many component sets offer more than one mounting hardware option including
surface mount, flush mount, or mounting brackets for installation behind an existing speaker grill.
Review the speaker manufacturer’s installation instructions to choose the appropriate hardware for
the tweeter installation.
The passive crossover is a critical part of the component
speaker system. Avoid installing it near high current power
wiring where radiated noise can enter the crossover components. Also, avoid wet or moist locations, such as inside
a vehicle door cavity with window and locking mechanisms.
Recommended locations include under seats, in the trunk,
or (for door mounted component speakers) on the inner door
skin outside of the moisture barrier plastic between the door
panel and inner door skin metal or in the kick panel area.
Additional speaker wiring may be needed to connect the
amplifier and speakers to the passive crossover. Verify if extra
speaker wiring is included with the component speaker set.
Typical Tweeter Locations
Top of Dash
A-Pillar or Sail Panel
Top of Door Panel
Possible Passive
Crossover Locations for
Door Mounted Speakers
Car Electronics Resource Center
Speaker Installation Guide
Page 4
Using Factory Speaker Wiring
To find factory speaker wire color information for your vehicle visit DIY wiring resources like www.eAutoRepair.com or www.AllDataDIY.com. Review the manufacturer’s
installation instructions for the component speakers for specific details of wiring connections on the speaker.
Coaxial Speakers
If you are replacing factory speakers with coaxial speakers, use existing factory wiring.
1) After removing the factory speaker, cut the factory speaker plug, leaving 2-3 inches of extra wire for the connector. This is recommended in case you ever want to reinstall the factory speaker.
2) Crimp a female .250” push-on terminal to each speaker wire by inserting the bare wire into the terminal, positing
the terminal in the appropriate gauge setting in the crimper jaws and squeezing the crimper on the terminal to
secure the wire.
3) Gently pull each wire to ensure a good crimp connection. The wire should not pull out of the crimp terminal.
Crimp standard .250” female
4) Connect the positive (+) factory speaker wire to the positive (+) terminal of the speaker.
push-on terminals to factory
5) Connect the negative (-) factory speaker wire to the negative (–) terminal of the speaker.
speaker wiring and connect
to the coaxial speaker
6) Repeat steps 1-5 on the remaining speakers to install in factory locations.
Component Speakers
If you are installing component speakers into a factory location, use existing factory wiring for the input to the passive
crossover. The midrange and tweeter outputs of the passive crossover will use new speaker wire. Note: you may need to
purchase additional speaker wire separately.
1) After removing the factory speaker, cut the factory speaker plug, leaving a 2-3 inches of extra wire for the connector.
This is recommended in case you ever want to reinstall the factory speaker.
2) Connect the positive (+) factory speaker wire to the positive (+) ‘input’ terminal of the passive crossover.
3) Connect the negative (–) factory speaker wire to the negative (–) ‘input’ terminal of the passive crossover.
4) Speakers lacking spring-loaded binding post terminals may require crimping female .250” push-on terminals to connect the speaker wiring.
5) Connect the positive (+) ‘midrange output’ of the passive crossover to the positive (+) terminal of the midrange
speaker.
6) Connect the negative (-) ‘midrange output’ of the passive crossover to the negative (-) terminal of the midrange
speaker.
7) Connect the positive (+) ‘tweeter output’ of the passive crossover to the positive (+) terminal of the tweeter. If there
are multiple level settings (0dB, -3dB, etc.) choose the 0dB terminal connection.
8) Connect the negative (-) ‘tweeter output’ of the passive crossover to the negative (-) terminal of the tweeter.
9) Secure the wires with zip ties and the passive crossover with the included mounting hardware.
INPUT
Passive Crossover Connection Example
Car Electronics Resource Center
Speaker Installation Guide
Page 5
Using New Speaker Wiring
If you are using new wiring, connect the new speaker wire to the positive (+) and negative (–) speaker output of the receiver or amplifier, then connect it to the corresponding
positive (+) and negative (–) terminals on the speaker and (if applicable) passive crossover following the manufacturer’s installation instructions. Secure all new wires to factory wiring harnesses using zip ties.
Test and Reassemble
Test the Speakers
Test the new speakers by turning on the audio system and playing dynamic music. You should notice a definitive sound quality improvement over the factory speakers. To
verify that both left and right speakers are working properly, use the receiver’s audio controls to change the speaker balance to left only, then center, then to right only. If low
frequencies seem more evident when balanced only on the left or right channel, the polarity may be incorrect. If a speaker is connected incorrectly, meaning a positive (+)
wire is connected to a negative (–) terminal, it will create cancellation with other speakers, causing a deficient low frequency effect when the balance is in the center position.
To fix this, ensure that you connected the positive (+) and negative (–) wires to the corresponding speaker terminal.
Reassemble the Vehicle
Once you have tested and verified the performance of the new speakers, reassemble interior panels in the reverse order of removal. Pay careful attention to panel clips and
pressure fit hardware to ensure all clips are securing the panel from unnecessary vibrations. Verify all wiring is securely tied down with zip ties and routed away from moving
parts or heat sources.
Car Electronics Resource Center
Speaker Installation Guide
Page 6