Install guide

ManualsBrandsRadio Shack ManualsAutomotiveFlat-Face Car CD Player

Luke's definitive I.C.E. Install Guide for the GTV

:: Well, it doesn't come any more comprehensive than this. Luke has replaced almost every component of the

internal sound system and added some superb hardware. If you have any questions about any aspect regarding

I.C.E for the GTV, its most probably answered here!

1 - Planning

2 - The head unit

3 – Wiring modifications for the head unit

4 – Fitting a CD Changer

5 – Replacing the speakers

6 – Fitting an external amplifier

7 – Fitting a subwoofer

It seems that when Alfa Romeo built the GTV, they decided that the sound of their glorious engines

were musical enough and neglected to fit a quality stereo. For those of us who own a GTV V6, the

charms of that wonderful, warbling V6 are evident, but sometimes we do want to listen to some

music, and let’s face it, the standard fit equipment is just appalling. There is only one thing to do –

change it.

What I have tried to do here is to create a step-by-step guide on how to install a new sound system

into your GTV. I have built it up over a number of chapters, each one getting more and more high-

end. You can read on as far as you like, depending on your budget and the results you want to

achieve from upgrading your in-car entertainment (ICE) system.

1 – Planning

Before you do anything, you need to figure out how far you are going to take things. There are two

key elements to consider here. The first is budget, think about how much you really want to spend on

a project like this and stick to it. If you like, you can stagger your investment, slowly adding

components as you go along, but if you do, make sure that the components you fit now will be

compatible with the ones you are planning to fit in the future. Secondly, think about how important

high-quality sounds are to you, for example, think about the kind of stereo you have at home. If, like

me, it is very important then you might go the whole way. However, this is bound to be too much for

most people, work out what you want to do and match it to your budget.

There are four key elements to any in car entertainment system. First of all the head unit. This is the

heart of your system, so choose very carefully and work out if you want to add a matching CD-

changer. Secondly, amplification – Do you want to use the amplifier in your new head unit or do you

want a separate power amplifier, perhaps even multiple power amplifiers? Thirdly, the speakers.

These are critical, the speakers you choose will dictate the way the sound is delivered. If you are

adding off-board amplifiers then you’ll need to ensure that your new speakers will be able to cope

with the power you are going to be throwing at them. Lastly, a sub-woofer. This is really important if

you want to accurately reproduce low frequencies. As the speakers you will be able to fit to your GTV

won’t realistically be bigger than 6.5” midrange drive units, any frequency lower than 100Hz or so

will be difficult to reproduce. A subwoofer is the only way to deal with this issue, but they are

expensive and they take up a lot of boot space.

Once you have considered all the elements carefully I suggest you try to listen to components that fit

into your budget, choose very carefully and remember to budget for cables and connectors, as well as

any custom made parts, like a box for the subwoofer for example. y

2 - The head unit

Summary of content (19 pages)

PAGE 1
Luke's definitive I.C.E. Install Guide for the GTV :: Well, it doesn't come any more comprehensive than this. Luke has replaced almost every component of the internal sound system and added some superb hardware. If you have any questions about any aspect regarding I.C.
PAGE 2
There is no getting away from the fact that the standard fit Clarion unit you have is completely rubbish. The only good thing about it is the Alfa Romeo logo on the facia, otherwise it is absolutely worthless, do your ears a favour and get rid of it! The head unit is the heart of your system and is critical to the whole installation. Choosing a replacement head unit is not easy, there is a lot out there.
PAGE 3
Work your way around the cage with a small screwdriver and bend the cut-outs back in, once you have all of them bent back you should be able to remove the cage by simply sliding it out. Keep the original head unit and it’s cage in a safe place as you might want to re-install it when you come to sell your car. Fitting a new head unit is simply the reversal of this procedure, but before you do this you will want to install a surround plate into the stereo aperture.
PAGE 4
Alfa Romeo, in fact all cars manufactured by the FIAT Group, have one distinct advantage, the stereo connectors used are industry standard ISO connectors. This means that you will not need a special adaptor to fit your new stereo, the sockets behind the stereo will fit the plugs on your new stereo, regardless of manufacturer. However, I would recommend using an ISO extension adaptor as it makes it much easier to fit your new head unit. These are available from any good ICE supplier for about £10.
PAGE 5
insulating tape as before – cut it cleanly about three inches before it disappears into the dashboard. Strip both sides of the cut cable this time, as if you were going to fix the wire you just cut. Use a standard electrical connector as before and connect it to one of the stripped ends. Now take the end of the cable you just attached to the ISO connector, cut this cable to the length required to reach the cable you are now working on. Strip the end of this cable.
PAGE 6
Connect the permanent +12V cable directly from the back of the head unit to this fuse box to ensure the absolute best quality +12V power supply. The head unit is a critical component, if it does not have a quality +12V supply or earth connection it will never sound it’s best. If you are taking this installation seriously then I cannot stress how important this relatively simple modification is. y 4 – Fitting a CD Changer Most of you will want to fit a CD Changer if you are replacing the head unit.
PAGE 7
Now take that piece of MDF and match it up to the bottom of the “cubby-hole” on the boot lining and cut it down to size. Stick the MDF to the boot lining using some strong double sided tape. Take the CD player and mount it in place, screwing through the bootlining into the MDF. Now stick some 3M adhesive fastener tape (that really sticky foam tape) and put strips of it on the bottom of the MDF. Cut a small hole in the back of the “cubby-hole” and stick the connector from the CD changer through it.
PAGE 8
If you have a phase II car and you followed the above instructions you should now be able to see the connector to your CD-Changer, take your CD-Changer cable and connect it. If you have a Phase I car you should ensure that your cable is connected to the CD-Changer and is routed through to this area. Now take the CD-Changer cable and carefully run it down towards the bottom of the door opening, you should ideally route it through behind the rear side panel and hold it in place with duct tape.
PAGE 9
Replacing standard size speakers The GTV has essentially six speakers. Two 0.75” tweeters and two 5”x7” oval speakers in the front doors and two 6.5” round rear speakers. All of these can be directly replaced, although you will need to remove the door panels to change the tweeters in the doors. Removal and refitting of the main speakers is quite simple. Regardless if you are working on the rear or front speakers, the process is essentially the same. You need to remove the grille first.
PAGE 10
cavity. Now move around to the side of the door where it meets the dashboard and remove the two allen bolts on the door panel. Finally, move up to the separate piece behind the door mirror, undo the two small allen bolt on the side and slide the piece off towards the window.
PAGE 11
Make sure the speakers don’t foul the window mechanism, test this by winding the window up and down whilst the speakers are held in place. Once you are happy with the MDF rings, mark out all the mounting points for the speaker onto it. Now peel away the door lining, place the ring in place on the door and line it up, marking out the points where the door panel connects to the door behind the speaker grille.
PAGE 12
cable back through the cable run between the door and the car body as the cable run is socketed. However, I believe that somebody else on the forum has found a way of getting speaker cables through this socket. Wire your new cable up to the crossover and then run new lengths of cable from the crossover through to the areas where the mid speaker and the tweeter will be mounted. Now refit the door panel. Make sure you connect up the tweeter cable as well as the other electrical connections.
PAGE 13
6 – Fitting an external amplifier If you really want to get the best sound possible from your car audio you will need to add an external power amplifier. Your head unit has a built-in power amplifier, but given the size of the head unit it is physically impossible to squeeze a high quality power amplifier in there. So, even though the power amplifiers in head units are getting better all the time, they don’t even begin to compare to the quality of a dedicated off-board power amplifier.
PAGE 14
subwoofers tend to be rated at 2 Ohms (so they can be used in pairs). Read the manual supplied with your speakers and amplifiers then adjust your amplifier’s settings to match your speaker ratings. Now you’ll have to figure out where you are going to mount the amplifier. If it’s a small amplifier you might just be able to fit it under one of the front seats, or even find some space behind the top part of the bootlining above the fuel tank.
PAGE 15
I recommend that you take a weekend to do all the interior cabling. First of all, take out the front seats (make sure the battery is disconnected when you do this and that it remains disconnected until you reconnect the seatbelt pre-tensioner connectors under the seat or the dreaded airbag warning light will come on). The seats are easy to remove, just undo the allen bolts on the seat runners (two at the front, two at the back), unclip the pre-tensioner cable lock and pull them out.
PAGE 16
sealed, it will work well, but not as well as a larger, ported enclosure. Regardless, it doesn’t take up too much space, so it could prove ideal for most people. If you have no experience with speaker design I recommend that you get your local ICE dealer to build this enclosure for you, they will also be able to finish it in carpet for you so it blends in well with the rest of the boot. If you are really serious about the sub, then read on.
PAGE 17
the box without the back of the speaker touching the bottom of the box, try to raise it as much as possible. You can do this easily by cutting a hole for the speaker and trimming it with a 15mm MDF “ring”, effectively raising the sub by 15mm. Now try fitting everything in place and make sure it all fits properly. Then take everything out again and fix it all together using wood glue and wood screws to make sure that it is air-tight.
PAGE 18
You will want to finish things off now. Once all the electronics are all set up properly, mount some MDF or wood blocks onto the sub enclosure that come up to the same height as the tops of the two intruding sub-frame/rear bumper mount points at the back of the boot. In fact, if you find that your sub box is moving about in the boot, you can mount the box to these two metal parts.
PAGE 19
That’s it – You now have a top quality ICE installation and you did it all yourself. Pat yourself on the back, crack open a few beers and sit in the garage listening to your new stereo for a couple of hours! I hope you’ve found this guide useful, if you have found an easier way to do anything I have described here or have found a solution to any problems I might have highlighted then please feel free to contact me using the forum on this website.