Aftermarket Subwoofer in 22 M3P

[dylanx]

I’ve been looking around for information on and off for about a year now regarding adding an aftermarket subwoofer and amplifier to my car. Anyone have any experience and want to share their setup or issues?

For some other info, I have a 2022 Model 3 P with the factory subwoofer in the trunk. My car has the AMD system with the 15V Li-ion low-voltage setup which is why I’ve been seeing conflicting information.
I’d like to avoid the second battery route, so my options are somewhat limited.
Based on what others have said on here, Reddit, etc., I think my options are as follows:

• 300-500W sub
• Use a LOC to covert the signal from the factory amp. This would also allow me to use the audio signal as my remote (like on the LC2i Pro) for the amp.
• Use a 300-500W amp (depending on sub) that gets its power from the backseat penthouse.

With that, here are my questions:

• Should I stay safe with the 300W sub/amp or can I go with a more powerful 500W option?
• What adapters would make it easy for me to get the high-level signal from the factory amp so I can feed it into my LOC?
• Would the higher voltage (14 to ~15.6) from the penthouse be too high for an amplifier?

I’ve seen conflicting information about pretty much all of this. Additionally, kits like NVX have you take a very similar route (just with their equipment).

Any help would be great. I can also link some of what I’ve read if needed.

 

[Sellout]

I’ve used a 1200 watt JL Audio amp with no trouble whatsoever in mine. (2020 3P) I installed an LC2i pro using the audio signal for turn-on and that worked flawlessly. The LC2i remote out then switched on the JL amp. Never had any errors.
Previously I used the NVX kit, and paid additional for a 500W Alpine amp instead of their little 300W amp, and found that their claim that the subwoofer was rated for 500W RMS was generous at best. The voice coil was fried the first night, and I did use a DMM to confirm that I wasn’t sending it too much power.

I didn’t get any errors with the NVX/Alpine setup either, but I did get a turn-on thump that disappeared with the LC2i Pro.

NVX is... not excellent. The driver is hot garbage (basket so thin it’s bent/warped in shipping because they don’t package the enclosure properly to protect it from the FedEx/UPS people throwing it around) and their customer service is even worse, but if you can get a working sub from them it doesn’t sound terrible.

Running the 15v from the penthouse to the amp isn’t going to harm it.
There’s a member here who has made and sold wiring harnesses you can use to tap the factory subwoofer signal, but it’s not hard to find and tap them using the NVX install video on YouTube as a guide. Use some t-tap connectors and it makes a good connection.

 

[gtgarner]

NVX worked great for me. Wiring and sound have been excellent so far.

But of course...I'm one that is satisfied with containing my bass to the interior of my car. I'm not trying to get the people on the moon to hear me.

 

[dylanx]

I’ve used a 1200 watt JL Audio amp with no trouble whatsoever in mine. (2020 3P) I installed an LC2i pro using the audio signal for turn-on and that worked flawlessly. The LC2i remote out then switched on the JL amp. Never had any errors.
Previously I used the NVX kit, and paid additional for a 500W Alpine amp instead of their little 300W amp, and found that their claim that the subwoofer was rated for 500W RMS was generous at best. The voice coil was fried the first night, and I did use a DMM to confirm that I wasn’t sending it too much power.

I didn’t get any errors with the NVX/Alpine setup either, but I did get a turn-on thump that disappeared with the LC2i Pro.

NVX is... not excellent. The driver is hot garbage (basket so thin it’s bent/warped in shipping because they don’t package the enclosure properly to protect it from the FedEx/UPS people throwing it around) and their customer service is even worse, but if you can get a working sub from them it doesn’t sound terrible.

Running the 15v from the penthouse to the amp isn’t going to harm it.
There’s a member here who has made and sold wiring harnesses you can use to tap the factory subwoofer signal, but it’s not hard to find and tap them using the NVX install video on YouTube as a guide. Use some t-tap connectors and it makes a good connection.

How long have you had everything installed? I've been reading through threads and some don't seem to have any issues for months (but some have them in days or never get them at all).
I'm planning on using this harness to go from the current subwoofer over to the LC2i Pro, then from there to a JL amp, and over to the subwoofer. I've confirmed with JL that the amp is ok up to 16V so not worried about that. I've also decided to go the route of the relay just to be safe. I'll can post a parts list as well.
I just wanted to get some more feedback from those who have done it since the results seem to be so varied.

 

[Sellout]

It’s been 15 months or so with the JL HD1200 amp and LC2i Pro. A few months with the NVX setup installed before I bought the JL amp, sub and LC2i Pro. I was actually surprised I was able to run the big JL amp without any error codes coming up. I expected to need to add a relay and a resistor, but just figured I’d try it first and see what happened. Truth be told, I kinda forgot that I was supposed to be expecting an error code to pop up, and then it never happened.
I suspect maybe there’s something about the JL Audio power supply that avoids the inrush current upon power application that causes the error codes using other large amps, but that’s just me guessing. They do seem to be quite proud of the power supply section of their amps.

I had a typo in my previous post, my car is a 2021 not a 2020, but I doubt that matters.

 

[sean48238]

It’s been 15 months or so with the JL HD1200 amp and LC2i Pro. A few months with the NVX setup installed before I bought the JL amp, sub and LC2i Pro. I was actually surprised I was able to run the big JL amp without any error codes coming up. I expected to need to add a relay and a resistor, but just figured I’d try it first and see what happened. Truth be told, I kinda forgot that I was supposed to be expecting an error code to pop up, and then it never happened.
I suspect maybe there’s something about the JL Audio power supply that avoids the inrush current upon power application that causes the error codes using other large amps, but that’s just me guessing. They do seem to be quite proud of the power supply section of their amps.

I had a typo in my previous post, my car is a 2021 not a 2020, but I doubt that matters.

The 2021 use the 12v battery I believe. Your 12 volt battery are much larger than the 16v ones. This is the reason that your not having the issue. On the 16v system with this powerful of an amp you will trigger a protection mode. I trigger this protection mode with an HD750. And had to tow my vehicle to tesla. With a lower wattage amp (sub500w) in most cases u won't need to add a second battery but higher than that I would recommend installing a second battery in the 15/16v tesla's.

 

[jsalerni]

I assume that you've looked at the Orella sub package? I think it is $799. It was a super easy install (<30 mins) with everything included (cables, amp, sub) and no cutting or modifications needed. As with the guy who posted above, I'm not trying to fill the neighborhood with bass though. Maybe the system you are planning needs to be more extreme, but this sub sounds really good and is a huge improvement over stock. I have the sub EQ set at +0.5 and there is plenty of low end in all my music (mostly classic rock). I've had it in for 3 months and no issues at all.

 

[dylanx]

I assume that you've looked at the Orella sub package? I think it is $799. It was a super easy install (<30 mins) with everything included (cables, amp, sub) and no cutting or modifications needed. As with the guy who posted above, I'm not trying to fill the neighborhood with bass though. Maybe the system you are planning needs to be more extreme, but this sub sounds really good and is a huge improvement over stock. I have the sub EQ set at +0.5 and there is plenty of low end in all my music (mostly classic rock). I've had it in for 3 months and no issues at all.

I've looked at a couple of different sound packages from different manufactures. I still think I'd rather go the route of the a custom install just for the looks, reliability, and sound.

 

[dylanx]

The 2021 use the 12v battery I believe. Your 12 volt battery are much larger than the 16v ones. This is the reason that your not having the issue. On the 16v system with this powerful of an amp you will trigger a protection mode. I trigger this protection mode with an HD750. And had to tow my vehicle to tesla. With a lower wattage amp (sub500w) in most cases u won't need to add a second battery but higher than that I would recommend installing a second battery in the 15/16v tesla's.

What did you end up doing with your setup, seems like you may have a second battery based on other posts. Saw someone on Reddit with the JL stealth box and a RD500/1 amp powering it who claims to not have any issues so far even without an inline resistor/relay. Do you think I'd be good with a RD500/1 (JL confirmed that it would be fine to run under 16V) with something like the Rockford Fosgate P3SD4-10 wired at 2-ohms? Should I opt for the inline relay/resistor combo or leave it out?
Thanks

 

[ApexProxy]

I am trying to figure out if I am insane for thinking about attempting to in place swap the stock sub for a Kicker 44CWCD84 that meets the stock amp spec and then trying to duplicate the signal to a second amp tuned to the same levels as the stock driving a second identical Kicker on the other side of the trunk. The worst case scenario I am thinking is that doing this can cause the two signals to be out of phase and cancel each other but most amps have a phase switch so maybe that could work? I wonder if the latency of the LOC combined with the second amp would cause anything noticeable.

If this is all a bad idea I'll probably just go for replacing the stock with a single slightly higher power amp and sub or see how simply swapping the stock sub with the Kicker and touch nothing else.

Also, does anyone have a recommendation for a better option than the Kicker 44CWCD84 for an upgrade that can be driven off the stock amp?

 

[sean48238]

I am trying to figure out if I am insane for thinking about attempting to in place swap the stock sub for a Kicker 44CWCD84 that meets the stock amp spec and then trying to duplicate the signal to a second amp tuned to the same levels as the stock driving a second identical Kicker on the other side of the trunk. The worst case scenario I am thinking is that doing this can cause the two signals to be out of phase and cancel each other but most amps have a phase switch so maybe that could work? I wonder if the latency of the LOC combined with the second amp would cause anything noticeable.

If this is all a bad idea I'll probably just go for replacing the stock with a single slightly higher power amp and sub or see how simply swapping the stock sub with the Kicker and touch nothing else.

Also, does anyone have a recommendation for a better option than the Kicker 44CWCD84 for an upgrade that can be driven off the stock amp?

If u have a good loc(lci 2i pro) latancy won't be a issue and as phase won't be an issue either.

 

[Lashlee]

I've installed a small amp (400wrms) to the OEM sub in a '22 RWD (16v car) without any issues in the car. The amp seems to be staying on all the time but that's something that can be worked on at a later date. I have a '21 Performance with a 3800wrms setup without adding a second battery. The '22 did not need any sort of relay/resistor like my car did. It comes down to what you want, how comfortable your installer is, and what you want from the end install.

 

[St3phen]

I had a 2019 Model 3 LR and used the NVX system without any issues. That used a 12v system. That was solid. I put that system in a 2023 Model Y Perf and started running into "low voltage" warnings. Also the amp got very hot (probably cuz it was running at 16v now.) The short version is the lithium ion low voltage battery/system is finicky and seems like Tesla is monitoring that system more. Started getting weird battery/low voltage errors so I disabled it. Those errors went away. Looks like the solution is to do one of the following

1. Install a manual switch so you can ensure the aftermarket amp (and probably the LOC) doesn't come on when you aren't in the car
2. Install a second battery and run the aftermarket amp off that.
3. Use a relay to delay the aftermarket amp from powering on and causing a surge, which the Tesla BMS will pick up on (which was my issue)(Post: Installed an amp and subs over the weekend)

I'm leaning toward #3 personally, although I may end up doing #1 and #3.

 

[sean48238]

Replace your loc with the lc2i pro and use the audio sense turn on. You're low voltage issues will go away and u won't need a switch.

 

[thesuffering]

I had a 2019 Model 3 LR and used the NVX system without any issues. That used a 12v system. That was solid. I put that system in a 2023 Model Y Perf and started running into "low voltage" warnings. Also the amp got very hot (probably cuz it was running at 16v now.) The short version is the lithium ion low voltage battery/system is finicky and seems like Tesla is monitoring that system more. Started getting weird battery/low voltage errors so I disabled it. Those errors went away. Looks like the solution is to do one of the following

1. Install a manual switch so you can ensure the aftermarket amp (and probably the LOC) doesn't come on when you aren't in the car
2. Install a second battery and run the aftermarket amp off that.
3. Use a relay to delay the aftermarket amp from powering on and causing a surge, which the Tesla BMS will pick up on (which was my issue)(Post: Installed an amp and subs over the weekend)

I'm leaning toward #3 personally, although I may end up doing #1 and #3.

1 and 3 address separate things.
For 1, use the post in #3 with instructions for the remote wire and using the brown wire from the seat sensor + a relay. Its been rock solid. If i am out of the seat and the door closes, it goes to 0v every single time and remains off.
For 3: FWIW ive been running this setup since day 1 without a single problem or error from the car.

Regarding low voltage, are you tapping the front battery or the penthouse. Tapping the front battery will drain it enough to cause low voltage, penthouse is the way to go.

 

[thesuffering]

Replace your loc with the lc2i pro and use the audio sense turn on. You're low voltage issues will go away and u won't need a switch.

Problem with audio sense is sentry will cause false positives. It puts enough signal on the speakers to turn it on. Using the brown wire seat sensor is my preferred method.

 

[sean48238]

That's dc offset that it's not audio sense. I have never had sentry mode trigger my amp turn on with audio detect with the lc2ipro.

 

[thesuffering]

ill take your word for it, i read several places it causes issues that i found a hard wired solution, but if it truly works itd be far simpler of an install.

 

[dylanx]

I ended up buying a JD250/1 (JL confirmed it would work <16V) and plan on running it with a 10W1V3-2.
I’m going to try setting everything up without the relay/resistor combo at first and use the LC2i Pro instead.
How should I wire up the LC2i Pro? I’ve seen some going directly off of the rear subwoofer power/ground connections using a harness like this. If this route is fine, should I be disabling the power to the existing subwoofer amp?

 

[sean48238]

I ended up buying a JD250/1 (JL confirmed it would work <16V) and plan on running it with a 10W1V3-2.
I’m going to try setting everything up without the relay/resistor combo at first and use the LC2i Pro instead.
How should I wire up the LC2i Pro? I’ve seen some going directly off of the rear subwoofer power/ground connections using a harness like this. If this route is fine, should I be disabling the power to the existing subwoofer amp?

That's how I wired mine.