I have a 1998 LR Disco I LE. The previous owner(s) have cycled through their own preferences of sound systems and aftermarket stereos. When I got it it only had a crap aftermarket cassette player, but I was planning on putting in something new anyway.

I got a new Pioneer cd deck and had it installed by Best Buy. The rear subwoofers appear to not be connected to the stereo at all. I followed the wires down to the radio amplifier behind the glove box, and it looks like none of the wires are connected to the amp at all. My understanding is that if you put in an aftermarket amp, you must bypass the factory amp for quality sound.

My question is, how can I find the subwoofer wires, and what procedure would I take to make sure they can hook up to my new radio?
The CD deck has pre-amp outs, is there a way to hook up the RCA outputs to the factory amp?
Am I thinking along the wrong lines completely?

 

factory amps on anything usually have a different line voltage than anything aftermarket. Using the RCA's from your aftermarket deck will not push the inputs for the factory amp. I would just run new cables back there and get another amp and add a different sub. The ones in the door are crap, no matter what you do...There are a couple of people on here that are really into their sound systems. Maybe they will chime in...

 

Actually, right now I'm running the HK system with the pre-amp outs from my KVT-617 into the factory amp fine. You just need to figure out which wires are the input wires on the amp and solder on some RCA connectors. The idiots who did my original install used the amped outputs from the Kenwood and the double-amp noise was horrible... it doesn't sound too bad now but I'm replacing everything next week anyway and will post an overview.

 

I would avoid using ANY of the factory installed amps, hardware, or wiring. if you have the time, patience, money, and ability... I would replace all the wires running to any of the speakers and after-market amps. the factory amp do run on a diff signal voltage and have a very bad signal-to-noise ratio. if you want your sound system to be worth the money you plan on spending on it, do not use the built-in door sub-woofer box in the rear... I'm not sure, but I think there are replacement casings you can use to put standardized speakers in the rear. if you are hell-bent on using the OEM speaker box, try looking into "studio monitor" replacement speakers, as they come in a LARGE variation of circular sizes; in doing though, you will need a separate amplifier.

 

Ideally of course. I'm picking up a HSK163.3 3-Way Component set, a 165.3 2-way, and an 8" sub (may go with 2, but wanted to see) thinking about still using the rear door location but it will required building a box and some door cutting but I really don't want to lose any cargo space so I'm willing to sacrifice sub performance to keep those. I'm considering doing an entirely new rear interior panel (lower) though, to maximize storage and cargo space so that I can hide things like my amp (Audison LRx6.9), 1000W power inverter, air compressor, etc. Though I'm going to try to make it all work with the factory interior for now and save that expense for when I know exactly what I want to accomplish. So much noise comes in through the area behind the rear seats a nice custom interior will let me fit proper studio-grade foam in there as well.