The location of choice was the cubby hole in the trunk, which is used for the optional CD player or CB.
To simplify things, I ordered a complete wiring installation kit from Electrical Connection
The kit was very complete. It contained about 26 feet of speaker wiring that consisted
of four separate wires wrapped in a sheath. This made running the wires to the
speakers a neat and simple task. Also included was a ground loop isolator for reducing noise.
Along with that, a Plug 'N' Play harness for the rear speakers made hook-up
a breeze. You must have the required optional rear speaker wiring harness used
for connecting the rear speaker system to the radio if you plan on using a
four speaker system. These are two different wiring harnesses.
A power supply wire with an in-line blade fuse was part of the kit, as well as
a ground wire and a wire to use for the remote power-on function of the amp.
Crimp type wire connectors, blade connectors - both male and female,
and those eyelet things for putting screws through were included too.
I also purchased a Low Voltage Trigger Switch to power up the amp when the
radio is turned on. Otherwise, the amp is on as long as the bike is on.
Some wire is also included to ground the amp to the antenna base.
Complete installation instructions rounded out the package, making this
a very useful kit.
To start with, you will probably need a service manual.
Removing the top shelter ( fake gas tank ) isn't necessary,
but I removed it so I could do some additional work while I was
installing the amp.
You can run the wires under the top shelter by using an electrician's
fish wire. To make access easier, remove the two nuts on the studs
on either side of the bike that hold the plastic body work on and lift
the shelter up and out slightly. Another tip is to remove the fairing
pockets. You will be able to reach the wires from underneath.
To do a professional job, take your time. Don't be intimidated.
It's no harder than brain surgery. Really.
I won't go into the details of all the removal of the plastic, nor will I
get too technical about the other aspects of installing the amp.
Just get the shop manual. Read it. Then read the install instructions
for the amp.
I will give you some tips and pointers that will keep you from making some
stupid mistakes. Ask me how I know.
When you are stripping your bike of all the Tupperware©, keep thorough
documentation of where every screw, nut and bolt goes. Draw pictures.
Take photos. Write notes. Use small containers or even ice cube trays to hold
fasteners. label them.
TRUST ME. I know.
Before you get too ambitious, lay everything out and make a "dry" installation.
Find a good place to run the speaker wires. Figure out how you will mount the
amp so it doesn't bounce around. I simply cut a peice of 1/8 inch plywood to
fit the cubby hole and used hook-and-loop fasteners to secure it to the floor of
the trunk. I also used it to hold the amp to the plywood. That way, you can remove
the amp without having to fumble with hardware fasteners.
After you feel you have everything layed out to your satisfaction, think twice about it.
Are you sure you have everything just right? Good.
Next, before I did anything else, I hooked up the amp per the instructions -
in a spagetti sort of way - to make sure I knew the amp worked.
On to the installation!
The first thing I did, was to run all the wiring before I attached any
of the connectors. That way, if I ran into a spot where the connectors
wouldn't fit through a small opening, I could change the routing of the wires
or put the connectors on after I ran the wires through.
Still with me? Good.
One word of warning: Don't drop anything down the Black Hole!
You know, the deep spaces of your bike.
If you do, you might have to turn the bike upside down and shake it a few times.
Not good if you have a bad back.
After you are sure you have the wires ran to your liking, you realize that
you will have to butcher the trunk to get the wiring into it.
Not to worry. My solution was to drill a 7/8" hole down towards the bottom of
the front wall of the trunk.
Yes, a 7/8" hole.
Since there is not enough room to get a drill in the cubby hole unless you have
a right angle drill, I just used a sharp 7/8" spade bit and drilled the hole
by hand-literally. I simply turned the bit by hand. The plastic material is
soft enough to do this. Be carefull not to drill into any wires on the other side!
I then crammed a grommet into the hole so the wires wouldn't chafe.
It is a fairly tight fit, but it will go. The wiring fits snuggly through the
grommet. Later, after all the work is done, be sure to seal the area around the wires
with silicon to prevent leaks. You don't want to fry your equipment!
Now this next bit is a real pain in the amp...( What, you were expecting Comedy Central? )
...Getting to the rear speakers.
If you already have rear speakers installed, all you need to do is plug in
the rear wiring harness supplied by Electrical Connection.
If you have to install rear speakers, you will need to remove the inner trunk
liner. You do not need to remove the entire trunk and speaker pods as
suggested by the manual.
Just remember to keep track of the twenty or thirty screws that fall out...
One thing I can tell you, if you do remove the speaker pods,
there are two speed nut kind of things
in the speaker pods. On the '01 GL1800, they aren't attached to anything.
well, they are, really. They are attached to screws. But the nuts themselves
aren't held in place. But they do hold the speaker pod to the trunk hinges.
Confused? Good. Just do this: When you get the rear speaker pods apart,
look for two metal, square shaped nuts. They fit into a small recess on the back of each pod.
GLUE THEM ON!
I don't know if they are attached in any way on the later models, or even if
they are the same as on the '01 GL1800, but if you don't permenantly attach
them, they will fall out when you go to start the screws...
...and you will have to take everything apart again because these are
the last screws you put in after you get the speaker pods assembled.
Another important item is to be sure that you run the rear speaker wires around
the hinges before you hook them back up to the speakers.
You might try running them through the left side gap between the hinge arms,
as opposed to the right as shown in the picture above. The reason being that
they seem to get pinched quite easily.
After you are done with that nightmare, you can put the trunk lid liner back in.
There are a few screw that are longer than the rest. I hope you remember where
they go. You did document it, didn't you?
If you get them in the wrong spot, they will poke a dimple in your trunk lid.
Don't forget the hidden screws on the bottom corners, either.
This is what the wiring looks like, running to the trunk:
Wiring
Wiring2
Wiring3
One more note: Make sure you hook the positive speaker wires to the positive
speaker leads. Especially the rear. If you don't, you will have to take it all
apart again. You won't want to do that.
Trust me.
When connecting all the wires to the hi-output side of the amp,
I soldered them, applied heat-shrink tubing and taped them.
You might want to use a connector that can be unplugged,
if you think you might want to remove the amp. Your choice.
The rest of the install is pretty basic. Hook up the front speakers,
test the system and put the bike back together.
Now go ride and enjoy the music!
