Hi all! I just installed a new set of 4x6" speakers in my '82 300SD, but I'm not sure if I connected the + and - wires to the right connections. Is the wire with the strip the negative wire (I don't know about this kind of stuff, sorry!). What happens if you connect them the wrong way? The speakers work fine now, but will it cause problems in the future? I'd really appreciate any advice that anybody can give me. Thanks a lot!

The wire with the stripe is the + one.

For example: black with skinny green stripe
red with skinny black stripe

(These colors are on my '83 300D)

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'83 300D

Thanks Larry! I have two black wires, and one of them has a green strip on it. That means I definitely wired my speakers backwards... Will this damage my speakers, ie. should I rewire them immediately?

I don't know if it will damage your speakers through de-polarization or some other confounded electronic means, but I do know that the sound quality is reduced when wired backwards. (either the bass lacks depth or the highs lack height :) I forget which one happens)
I just thought of this...since it sounds like the speakers are harder to get to on an SD than on my D, what about the wiring behind the radio?....if its easier to get to, reverse the wires there, and save some time and aspirin.
Good luck!

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'83 300D

Actually, if ALL the speakers are wired wrongly (+ve to -ve and -ve to +ve) you wont hear any difference than if they were wired properly.

If one is back to front, then it will cancel some of the bass generated by the others and create a very very odd soundstage!

Have fun!

Brian

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Brian Drought
1991 300CE
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~drought/
ICQ: 2180069

So, how do you know if you have them right?

Here's a test:

While listening to music with some bass content, rotate the balance control full left through full right--the bass should be the strongest while both speakers are playing. If you have a four speaker system, do this test twice--once with the fader full front, once with it full rear.

If the bass is stronger with only one speaker, then you need to turn the wires over on one speaker only. If you have a four speaker system, then you would isolate first if the fronts are in sync and take any appropriate action, then check the rears.

Once you've got the left/right taken care of, then turn the balance control to mid point and repeat the test with the fader (F/R). If the bass is weaker with all speakers playing then turn over either both front, or both rear speakers. After that, go have beer.

Bob Cavazos