Front Speakers not working...
 

I have a 1999 Z272. My front speakers haven't worked since I bought it. This was the only problem with my boat, so I didn't let this stop me. I just asked my mechanic to look at it. He took his speakers and connected them right behind the stereo...they worked. He then plugged them in where my front speakers are connected. His speakers didn't work there. I sounds like I might have a problem with my wiring. With this said, he mentioned that some boats have a speaker cutoff switch up front so the passengers can cut them out. He looked on mine, and he didn't see it. Is there such a thing on my boat? What would you suggest? If I need to pull new wires, how difficult is this? Any suggestions?

Hi Z272,

This is interesting, I assume you have a Bowrider and if this is correct, The 99 wiring diagram for it does not show front speaker wires. Are we sure the wire to the speakers are original or that they are connected correctly to the radio?

Anyway, if the wires are suspect, it should be fairly simple to run new wires to the existing speaker locations. I recommend the following methods:

First see if you can locate both ends of the current front speaker wire (hopefully they're color coded) and attach a new set of wires long enough to reach the opening with about a foot to spare, to the radio end of the this wire by twisting them together and covering the junction with tape. Now attempt to "pull' the old wire out from the speaker hole and as it comes out, the new wire will be "fed" in. It works much better if you have another person helping (one pulls the old wire and the other one feeds in the new wire). Try this for both speakers.

If this doesn't work because the old wire won't pull through, I suggest plan B, making or purchase a little devise called a "Cable Snake or Fish Tape". It's a flexible metal or plastic wire or strip long enough to reach the radio from the speaker openings. Here’s an example of one: click here. If your not familiar with this tool and need to know how to use it, just PM me and I'll walk you through it.

Good luck,
WetWilly

Thank you for the quick reply
 

Yes, you are correct. It is a bow rider. The speakers look original, but they may have just done a good job putting them in.

I really like your idea for pulling the wire through with the old wire. It seems obvious now that you state it, but it hadn't occurred to me previously.

I, personally, have not looked at it yet. My mechanic did it for me. He connected his speakers close to the stereo and they worked then he connected the original wires again and his speakers didn't work where mine are. My boat is at my lake home which is about 150 miles from me, so I can't quickly go out and look

Can you give me a copy of the wiring diagram? The only documentation that I got with my boat was for the head...not the most useful piece.

Sometimes you'll encounter some corrosion problems with the connections. That's one thing that wasn't addressed very well was corrosion protection on wiring. Pull the speakers out and see if the connections look discolored. If so, grab some sandpaper or other abrasive, clean them up a bit, then reassemble. You might be surprised how easy it is to fix some electrical issues just by cleaning the connections up, and it'd definitely be easier than running new wires.

Thanks Chris. I will check that out. I am hoping to get time this coming weekend.