[Dsg03svt]

Just purchased an Aerial Assault wakeboard tower with knee/wake and wake/wake racks along with an aerial rear view mirror. The tower is backordered, but I should receive it middle to end of May. I plan to install it myself, along with a friend and my father-in-law. We will also be reinforcing the fiberglass to try and avoid any stress cracking.

Along with that I went ahead and bought a new Sony DSX-MS60 receiver and a pair of Polk DB651 6.5" speakers. The boat still has the factory cassette radio and speakers and one of the speakers is blown. This should get us by for the next month until we put the tower on and complete the full stereo system with wake tower speakers, sub, and amplifiers.

I'll use this thread to detail the installation and ask questions if any come up.

Is there anything I should know about replacing the head unit? Will the wiring be fairly obvious and easy to understand?

I've installed headunit's in cars where I use a wiring harness but I assume this will be different.

Thanks!

[Dredd]

The HU wiring will be easy. The Mariah speaker wires are labeled.
Sounds like this is going to be a cool thread.

[Slash9point5]

I actually bought those exact products last year and used them for the summer. I was very happy with both products, but installing the head unit did have one unexpected surprise:

After finishing the install, the entire stereo would shut down randomly between 5 and 10 minutes after use. I did a few quick internet searches and narrowed it down to a few options. The leading solution was not enough power. So, I ran a new 12 gauge power wire (with fuse) and ground wire to the system and it solved to problem.

My best guess is that the build-in amp within the DSX-MS60 head unit had a larger power requirement than my former head unit and it caused the internal protection to turn off the system.

So, if you run into a problem similar to the above, just run a new larger power wire.

If you have any questions as you get started, please let me know.

Have a great day,

Kris

[Dsg03svt]

Originally Posted by Slash9point5

I actually bought those exact products last year and used them for the summer. I was very happy with both products, but installing the head unit did have one unexpected surprise:

After finishing the install, the entire stereo would shut down randomly between 5 and 10 minutes after use. I did a few quick internet searches and narrowed it down to a few options. The leading solution was not enough power. So, I ran a new 12 gauge power wire (with fuse) and ground wire to the system and it solved to problem.

My best guess is that the build-in amp within the DSX-MS60 head unit had a larger power requirement than my former head unit and it caused the internal protection to turn off the system.

So, if you run into a problem similar to the above, just run a new larger power wire.

If you have any questions as you get started, please let me know.

Have a great day,

Kris

That's good to know! Have you added anything else to the system besides the 2 Polk speakers and head unit since then?

Took the boat out yesterday and let me tell you, the new head unit and speakers can't come soon enough. Listening to static fm radio through one 17 watt speaker is pretty lousy.

Here's another question for everyone. Right now, the system turns on in accessory just fine but when I crank over the engine it won't turn on until I start going faster, like above 2000 rpm. I assume something to do with the voltage not being high enough. If I recall, the voltage gauge showed less than 12volts at idle and around 13-14 cruising. Shouldn't voltage be 13-14 regardless of speed as long as the alternator is functioning properly?

The boat has a dual battery setup, installed by the previous owner. I'm thinking this could have something to do with it. I always use the switch in the number one position. I think the 1 battery is a starting battery and the 2 is a deep cycle but I would have to look again to confirm. I also do not know if the alternator is factory or not.

Finally the factory battery charger on the boat, does it charge both batteries or only one?

[Slash9point5]

I did add two 6x9 wakeboard speakers to the tower. They are nice to get the sound out of the boat without cranking the volume. The existing in-boat speakers were four decent Boston acoustic speakers, and I did not change those out. They are on the list of things to do, but more from a looks standpoint than a sound standpoint (two of the grills were lost by the PO).

As for the troubleshooting, I would tend to think your problems are related to how your two battery system is set up. Although I would like to add a two battery system, I have not done so yet and have not dug into the best practice design of said systems. So, I can't help you much there. However, I would definitely agree that the voltage should be at 13-14 regardless of speed, and your stereo should be on at all times.

I imagine someone who has installed a two battery system will have a few better ideas what you could check and also how you can verify if your alternator is working.

Have a good one,

Kris

[Hudson River Steve]

Alternators have something called a tick over speed. They do not produce power until the alternator reaches this RPM. Also, they cannot produce full power at low RPM. If you have a heavy current draw then the voltage would sag at low RPM.
Does your dual battery system have an isolator? Some isolators are essentially a set of diodes and they have about a 1V drop when conducting.

[Dsg03svt]

Originally Posted by Hudson River Steve

Alternators have something called a tick over speed. They do not produce power until the alternator reaches this RPM. Also, they cannot produce full power at low RPM. If you have a heavy current draw then the voltage would sag at low RPM.
Does your dual battery system have an isolator? Some isolators are essentially a set of diodes and they have about a 1V drop when conducting.

I'm not sure what you mean by isolators. What do I look for to see about this?

[Dsg03svt]

Installed the Polk speakers the other day and the system already sounds (and looks) 10x better. I receive my Sony headunit today and will most likely install sometime next week. I will take pictures when I get the headunit in.

Speaker install was a breeze. Take the four screws out undo the positive and negative wires and reconnect to the new speakers and screw the new speakers back in using the adapter plate and grills.

[Brewfixer]

You are headed in the right direction but you will eventually need to get the power issue resolved. I installed a 3 battery system in my boat with new charger and smart isolator.

Take a look at the positive cables of both batteries and see if they tie in together somewhere. This would mean that they are part of the same circuit and that would not be desirable. My guess is if you dont have an isolator installed, they may tied in together as they would need to be charged by the altenator and your 120vac onboard battery charger that you plug in at night.

As for the stereo, you may want to run a clean power line as newer head units are power hungry. Last year I totally upgraded the factory system with new head unit, replaced factory speakers, added 2 subwoofers and added 2 amplifiers. I had to run a new power line directly from my accessory battery and used the starting switch accessory line as a trigger to a solenoid for the stereo so i would not accidentally leave it on when not in use.

Good luck!!!

[Dsg03svt]

Originally Posted by Brewfixer

You are headed in the right direction but you will eventually need to get the power issue resolved. I installed a 3 battery system in my boat with new charger and smart isolator.

Take a look at the positive cables of both batteries and see if they tie in together somewhere. This would mean that they are part of the same circuit and that would not be desirable. My guess is if you dont have an isolator installed, they may tied in together as they would need to be charged by the altenator and your 120vac onboard battery charger that you plug in at night.

As for the stereo, you may want to run a clean power line as newer head units are power hungry. Last year I totally upgraded the factory system with new head unit, replaced factory speakers, added 2 subwoofers and added 2 amplifiers. I had to run a new power line directly from my accessory battery and used the starting switch accessory line as a trigger to a solenoid for the stereo so i would not accidentally leave it on when not in use.

Good luck!!!

*edit - just read something else and now it appears as though the isolator is seperate from the switch that I have installed. I will check the setup on monday and report back.

Ok. I checked and I'm pretty sure I understand what you mean by isolator now. If you are talking about the red switch that has "1", "2", and "1 & 2" then I do have that installed.

Since I do think I have what your referring to as an isolator, how do I know which battery I want to start hooking the stereo system to (stereo power wire and amp power wires)?
With regards to the larger power wire, what gauge did you have to use?
Did you have to cut a hole to get the wire to go through the engine compartment, or can you run it through an existing hole?
What color wire is the starting switch accessory wire and where did you have to pull that from, or is that wire already going to the factory radio?

Thanks!