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How to Tell What Wires Are for Which Speakers on a Car Stareo

Instead of trying to trace speaker wiring visually in a car, which involves tearing out carpet, seats and trim panels, try doing it with the battery test. Whether you are testing through an existing speaker wire harness or you have laid your own wiring and have forgotten which one goes where, this method will save you time and frustration. It will also allow you to test whether your speakers are all wired the same way for polarity, so that you will get maximum bass out of your system.

Things You'll Need

  • 1.5 volt flashlight battery
  • 12-inch piece of speaker wire or:
  • Leads from a multimeter
  • Duct tape
  • Cutting pliers
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Instructions

    • 1

      Cut to separate both ends of about 12 inches of speaker wire. Use wire with readily identifiable positive/negative leads. Separate one end far enough to reach to both ends of a battery, and twist the strands on each lead.

    • 2

      Use duct tape to attach the negative wire lead to the negative battery end, the positive wire lead to the positive battery end. Or, you can temporarily tape the short plug end of a multimeter black lead to the negative battery end, and likewise attach the red lead to the battery positive end.

    • 3

      Touch the negative side of the home-made tester to a negative speaker lead and the positive side to the positive speaker lead. You should hear a pop or a scratch through a speaker. If you are testing a harness plug, keep touching the negative side and touch other leads until you get a pop.

    • 4
      Typical OEM car speaker

      If you want to test for proper speaker polarity, performing Step 3 as described should make the speaker jump forward. Wrong polarity will make it jump backward. Ask a helper to observe the speaker while you test it.

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