VF Audio

[duaned]

It seems information in relation to the VF is limited at this stage but has anyone performed modifications in the audio dept. of their VF Commodore? I'm looking at fitting 2 8 inch aftermarket subs in the factory location (using a parcel shelf from a Bose equipped Commodore) to keep the factory look. Does anyone know what colours are used for the speakers in the rear doors? I want to access these from the B-Pillar. Factory amp location? Pics? As this is my first Commodore I am on the hunt for this information. Thanks!

 

[Tasmaniak]

Speaker wire colours haven't changed since the VN lol
Speakers
Front Left (+) - Tan
Front Left (-) - Grey
Front Right (+) - Light/Green
Front Right (-) - Dark/Green
Rear Left (+) - Brown/Black
Rear Left (-) - Yellow/Blue
Rear Right (+) - Blue/Orange
Rear Right (-) - Blue/Black

Your best bet is to grab them from the headunit itself. Same place as the VE, besides the drivers left knee. In a dirty big plug (Quad Lock or Fakra Plug to be technical) going directly into the side of the radio.

This is the pinout for it.... same as a VE and most late model European vehicles on the road.

I couldn't tell you where the factory amp is located on one as I believe it's located differently to the VE (In boot, left hand side about foot forward of the battery) Nearly every install I have done of adding the 8s I have simply used a small 2 channel amplifier that is 2 ohm stable or a small monoblock and wire the subs in series with each other instead of parallel. More often then not I use this amp.... Kenwood KAC-M615D Mono Amplifier It's of reasonable quality, it's dirt cheap and has the right amount of power... My shopping list for cable for this amp usually entails this...

3m of 10ga Red power cable
1m of 10ga Black power cable (sometimes I cheat and just use 4m of whatever bloody colour I can find)
8-10m of speaker cable medium duty.
4m of light duty hook-up wire for amp trigger

The Kenwood and most other amps have a satisfactory Line Level Convertor for subs so I wouldn't buy one. I just grab my signal and remote from the headunit and the accessories plug hanging below the radio and run them all back to the amp.

Go ahead, ask more questions! lol

 

[duaned]

Appreciate your reply! Now I am hunting for some parts for the rear parcel shelf. It's easy enough to access a pair of speaker grills for the rear parcel shelf, but does anyone know if the subwoofer pods used in the VE are the same as the ones used in the VF?

 

[wayno01]

I have located the amp it is in the center of the parcel shelf right behind the center seat under the board ( if you look in the boot you will see the three black clips in a row under the parcel shelf that secure it). Just haven't worked out how to get to it easily.

 

[hakhawk]

they did change a few colours in the ve, just to annoy us!! i would assume vf is the same. but yes, grab from the radio, much easier.

Speaker wire colours haven't changed since the VN lol
Speakers
Front Left (+) - Tan *brown*
Front Left (-) - Grey
Front Right (+) - Light/Green
Front Right (-) - Dark/Green
Rear Left (+) - Brown/Black
Rear Left (-) - Yellow/Blue *yellow/red from memory*
Rear Right (+) - Blue/Orange *dark blue*
Rear Right (-) - Blue/Black *light blue*

Your best bet is to grab them from the headunit itself. Same place as the VE, besides the drivers left knee. In a dirty big plug (Quad Lock or Fakra Plug to be technical) going directly into the side of the radio.

This is the pinout for it.... same as a VE and most late model European vehicles on the road.

I couldn't tell you where the factory amp is located on one as I believe it's located differently to the VE (In boot, left hand side about foot forward of the battery) Nearly every install I have done of adding the 8s I have simply used a small 2 channel amplifier that is 2 ohm stable or a small monoblock and wire the subs in series with each other instead of parallel. More often then not I use this amp.... Kenwood KAC-M615D Mono Amplifier It's of reasonable quality, it's dirt cheap and has the right amount of power... My shopping list for cable for this amp usually entails this...

3m of 10ga Red power cable
1m of 10ga Black power cable (sometimes I cheat and just use 4m of whatever bloody colour I can find)
8-10m of speaker cable medium duty.
4m of light duty hook-up wire for amp trigger

The Kenwood and most other amps have a satisfactory Line Level Convertor for subs so I wouldn't buy one. I just grab my signal and remote from the headunit and the accessories plug hanging below the radio and run them all back to the amp.

Go ahead, ask more questions! lol

 

[duaned]

Well the job is done! And it sounds fantastic!

Just for the record, I secured two subwoofers and pods from a VE Statesman (or whatever they are called) and these fitted perfectly in the VF parcel shelf. Whilst the shelf was out, I lined it with Stinger Roadkill dynamat sound deadening. I wanted the whole lot to be stealth so I mounted a Kicker KX200.2 2 x 100w RMS Amp in the gap between the wheel arch and fuse box. It was a damn tight fit. I would recommend the slightly smaller KX125.2 to others for an easier fit. The reason I use Kicker is because they have a DC Offset function which turns the amp on and off correctly without the need for an accessory wire. It has audio sensing as well but I am not a fan of that.
I grabbed a set of black VE grills from JB and they fit the parcel shelf perfectly. I just had to cut out the 8 inch holes and drill 4 small holes to mount the grille. Easy for me!
I grabbed the audio from the rear speakers surprisingly easy. These are available underneath the scuff panel that sits nest to the door seals. Lift both sides off and you will see the enclosures that contain all the cabling. The colours mentioned above were not completely correct. The true colours escape me but they are the largest pair (twisted) and actually easy to find without the need to rip the dash, fascia etc. apart.

It has taken me over a day to do it all but I took my time to get to know the car and not break / damage anything. All the cables are clipped and tied everywhere! No rattles or movement here!

The extra power has made the difference. It has much more deep bass compared to my neighbour's VF which is fitted with Bose sound.

I hope this helps and inspires others to do the same.

Duane.

 

[dav0j]

Well the job is done! And it sounds fantastic!

would love to see photos and a video

 

[duaned]

I'll see what I can do!

 

[SSVSE]

" Sounds fantastic" eh, thats great! , that means you must have got the subs in phase with the rest of the speakers in the car, unlike Holden/bosch/ blaupunkt who actually got the phase reversed on the subs and it totally screwed the sound on the VE premium sound pack ! get it right and it is actually purty good for stock system !

 

[duaned]

Yes I did come across the phase issue but not difficult to fix with a good set of ears!