vavs said:
Okay, let me give you my advice. If you have some time junk the factory wiring and put in your own. By putting in your own you can install bigger speaker wire(better sound), better power and ground wires(more power to your speakers-better sound), and plus you will know where it all goes. All a stereo achually needs for wiring is a red power wire(through ignition), black gound wire, yellow power wire(always on), and speaker wires. If you want to hook up the dimmer light you can do that too, but I have found a dimmer can cause a cut in power to your speakers and decrease sound quality. This is just my opinion, you can do as you wish, but it is nice to know where the wires achually go. Hope I helped.
Vavs
Ahmmm NO, thats a big NO NO.
changing to all new wires will not improve the sound. the factory wires are 18 gauge wire, even if you upgraded to a 16 ga, there is not enough current in the wires to be able to tell the difference in the sound. As for the power wires, the radios are designed to have 18 gauge wire, if you put something bigger (numerically smaller) you run the risk of breaking (frying) the radio. A deck is not a amp, it is not designed to with stand that amount of ohms like a amp is.
Installing a dimmer can does not effect the sound quality when done correctly, there are two different types of dimmer switches, neggative trigger and positive trigger. If you hook them up backwards, they will either blow the radio fuse, or blow the park light fuse. If it is effecting sound quality, you need a new radio.
here is your best option. Get all the wires out of there except the factory ones.
First all jeeps have a black ground wire that was ground to the back of the deeck, and is not found in the wiring harness. so this should be your first connection.
Next check all of the fuse. there should be one under the dash labled radio (you never said what year or make jeep so I will assume it is a yj) Next under the hood, check to make sure all the fuses labled accessory are in good shape. now with the ignition off, use a multi meter to find a 12 volt source. it should read some where around 12.24 volts. attach this to the yellow wire in the new deck. this is the constant, and is what allows the deck to keep memory. next turn on the ignition, test for 12 volt. when found, attach this to the red wire in the new decks harness. this is the switch power and is what turns the deck on and off. So now the deck should be able to go on.
Now you need to locate the dimmer. some jeeps are pos trigger, some are neg trigger, so here is what you do. with the ignition off, turn on the park light, if you get a wire that reads 12 volt, you found a positive trigger. this gets attached to I believe the orange wire in the harness. if you don't feel confident, leave it alone. just cap the wire. if you don't find a positive dimmer, switch your meter to continuity. turn off the park lights, put black meter line to ground and the other to a wire (pick one) turn the park lights on, if you meter starts to buzz, you have a neg trigger dimmer. this goes to the orange and white wire off the deck. I might have the colors for the dimmer mixed up, heads a little foggy. so just cap it off.
To find speakers, it is fo easy. get a 9 volt battery, you know the one you used to stick you tonge to when you were little to get a shock. put one wire on one terminal and another wire on another terminal. keep doing htis till you hear a little thud sound. those are the wires for that speaker. to test for phase, which is positive and which is a neg speaker wire. when you hear the thud look at the speaker. if the cone potrudes out, the wire that is on the positive terminal is the positive wire. if it sucks the cone in, the the opposite. soilder and electrical tape is great, butt connectors are easier and quicker. just don't use stuff like masking tape or duct tape. bad move. if you have any wires left over just cap them off (like rear speakers, if you don't have them, you won't hook them up, as well as the blue wire off the dec, this is the remote/power antenna, if you have no amps then ths is not needed)
Good luck It is not as hard as it sounds. I was a proffesional installer for many years so have confidence in what I told you.
