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Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer

P Felix

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I installed the Kicker Hideaway subwoofer and amplifier combo today on my 2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. Wow, it makes a significant difference and let’s you listen to your music with additional bass. Total time was 2 hours (mostly from figuring things out because there are no effective DIYs for such a simple job.) This is probably the best and easiest to install amplifier /subwoofer combo on the market for a fraction of the cost and space needed if you were to add a traditional amplifier and subwoofer. Tools used - screw driver, wire cutters/stripper, electrical tape, a pry tool, 1/4 inch drive ratchet, socket, hanger, velcro, scissors, razor blade.



Step 1- place Kicker Hideaway under Right rear passenger seat. Run already packaged quick connect plug red wire along the right seam of the floor. Use a pry tool to lift and push along the seem until you reach the A pillar.



Pic 1 depicts running red positive wire



Step 2- run the red wire up the pillar in between the plastic mold and frame of the car, take out the small panel where the door latch is to assist in running the wire (seen in pic 4) up the pillar.



Pic 2 depicts sliding wire under frame with pry tool.



Pic 3

Depicts direction of running red positive wire to battery.



Pic 4 depicts where the wire will leave the cabin and into the engine compartment.



Step 3- run the wire using a hanger down the seam of the engine compartment and connect to battery positive terminal.



Pic 5- shows where to run the wire in the engine bay.



Pic 6- red wire connected to battery terminal.



Step 4- connect speaker wires from the Kicker terminal to the Soundbar left and right speaker wires by accessing the Right B pillar door latch. Connect all speaker wires, use Velcro to ensure wire discipline. Put back latch when complete.



Hideaway speaker wires are-

White is Left +

White/Black is Left –

Grey is Right +

Grey/Black Right –



to



Gray/light green is Left +

Gray/dark teen is left -

Dark green/light green is right +

Dark green/gray is right -



Next connect the black ground wire by using a supplied screw point underneath the carpet by pulling up on the passenger plastic molding , lift the carpet, and reveal the screw. Next, tuck in your excess wires here before running the quick connect to the Hideaway connect point.



Pic 7- Depicts connecting hideaway speaker wire to soundbar speaker wire.



Step 5- run the blue remote wire the same way you ran the red wire but instead, run it to the 12v cigarette lighter, in the front panel. Remember if you don’t connect the remote wire the amplifier will always stay on and it will drain your battery over night, connect it to the front 12v because it will use the signal from it to turn on and turn off. The other 12v in the rear is always on. The front only turns on when the ignition is on, which is exactly what you want your amplifier to do. Take out glove compartment and AC control panel, unscrew top of the bottom panel where the 12v connector is and unlatch the top two connectors, pull gently, and if you have a manual, place in 2nd gear to give you room. Snake the wire from the glove compartment up to the center stack and to the back of the 12v connections are. Tuck wire in the glove compartment, use Velcro for wire discipline. Connect the blue remote wire to the pink and yellow wire (FYSA- I searched for hours on the internet to find which wire to use of the 3, nothing was found, so I intelligently guessed to use the pink wire and was right). Use Velcro for wire discipline, put the top two disconnects for the panel back and put the screw back in, reconnect and place your AC panel back in. Put back glove compartment and B pillar access panel.



Pic 8 depicts blue remote wire connected to 12v. The blue remote wire from the kicker was not long enough so I used some old speaker wire to reach the 12v plug in the front.



Step 6

A-Place kicker auto turn on to 12v

B-Input level to high

C- Phase to 0

D- Base boost all the way counter clockwise

E- x over freq arrow center

F- gain all the way counter clockwise



Plug in the Kicker quick access connector and Start your badass Jeep, put on a song that you like that demonstrates high and low base, I prefer gangster rap for this demonstration, and adjust accordingly. Turn off your Jeep to make sure the amplifier turns off as well. Enjoy listening to your music. Earlier I replaced all speaker with Kickers, except I added the SSV soundbar 6 1/2 inch adaptor and added Sony speaker to the Soundbar. For under 500 dollars I completely transformed my Jeep and now can enjoy what the base factory system does not offer.



Notes-



A- you do not need a line out converter [LOC]

B- at the end of the red wire, don’t forget to install the 15 fuse, the Hideaway comes with one.

C- secure your hideaway using the supplied Velcro

D- cost of the Kicker Hideaway 8 was 280 (got mine at Best Buy), but I saw some refurbished one on eBay for under 200.

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RSK

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Great write up, thx for doing this. I’ll be adding the same sub to my Gladiator.
 
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P Felix

P Felix

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Great write up, thx for doing this. I’ll be adding the same sub to my Gladiator.
It’s been 3 months and the bass has been fantastic and no issues with anything. I had to disconnect the subwoofer to lower the seat to put something in the back and the quick disconnect made it easy to remove., after I was done it took 2 minutes if that, to reinstall.
 

RSK

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Thanks for this Paul. The pillar instructions for the speaker wires was a life saver. Took about 2.5 hrs and sounds great
Same here, been running mine for 6 weeks and no problems. I kept the Alpine premium sub and added the HS8 as well. Sounds great and big improvement without adding an amp yet.
 

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Daffydnbugs

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I installed the Kicker Hideaway subwoofer and amplifier combo today on my 2020 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. Wow, it makes a significant difference and let’s you listen to your music with additional bass. Total time was 2 hours (mostly from figuring things out because there are no effective DIYs for such a simple job.) This is probably the best and easiest to install amplifier /subwoofer combo on the market for a fraction of the cost and space needed if you were to add a traditional amplifier and subwoofer. Tools used - screw driver, wire cutters/stripper, electrical tape, a pry tool, 1/4 inch drive ratchet, socket, hanger, velcro, scissors, razor blade.



Step 1- place Kicker Hideaway under Right rear passenger seat. Run already packaged quick connect plug red wire along the right seam of the floor. Use a pry tool to lift and push along the seem until you reach the A pillar.



Pic 1 depicts running red positive wire



Step 2- run the red wire up the pillar in between the plastic mold and frame of the car, take out the small panel where the door latch is to assist in running the wire (seen in pic 4) up the pillar.



Pic 2 depicts sliding wire under frame with pry tool.



Pic 3

Depicts direction of running red positive wire to battery.



Pic 4 depicts where the wire will leave the cabin and into the engine compartment.



Step 3- run the wire using a hanger down the seam of the engine compartment and connect to battery positive terminal.



Pic 5- shows where to run the wire in the engine bay.



Pic 6- red wire connected to battery terminal.



Step 4- connect speaker wires from the Kicker terminal to the Soundbar left and right speaker wires by accessing the Right B pillar door latch. Connect all speaker wires, use Velcro to ensure wire discipline. Put back latch when complete.



Hideaway speaker wires are-

White is Left +

White/Black is Left –

Grey is Right +

Grey/Black Right –



to



Gray/light green is Left +

Gray/dark teen is left -

Dark green/light green is right +

Dark green/gray is right -



Next connect the black ground wire by using a supplied screw point underneath the carpet by pulling up on the passenger plastic molding , lift the carpet, and reveal the screw. Next, tuck in your excess wires here before running the quick connect to the Hideaway connect point.



Pic 7- Depicts connecting hideaway speaker wire to soundbar speaker wire.



Step 5- run the blue remote wire the same way you ran the red wire but instead, run it to the 12v cigarette lighter, in the front panel. Remember if you don’t connect the remote wire the amplifier will always stay on and it will drain your battery over night, connect it to the front 12v because it will use the signal from it to turn on and turn off. The other 12v in the rear is always on. The front only turns on when the ignition is on, which is exactly what you want your amplifier to do. Take out glove compartment and AC control panel, unscrew top of the bottom panel where the 12v connector is and unlatch the top two connectors, pull gently, and if you have a manual, place in 2nd gear to give you room. Snake the wire from the glove compartment up to the center stack and to the back of the 12v connections are. Tuck wire in the glove compartment, use Velcro for wire discipline. Connect the blue remote wire to the pink and yellow wire (FYSA- I searched for hours on the internet to find which wire to use of the 3, nothing was found, so I intelligently guessed to use the pink wire and was right). Use Velcro for wire discipline, put the top two disconnects for the panel back and put the screw back in, reconnect and place your AC panel back in. Put back glove compartment and B pillar access panel.



Pic 8 depicts blue remote wire connected to 12v. The blue remote wire from the kicker was not long enough so I used some old speaker wire to reach the 12v plug in the front.



Step 6

A-Place kicker auto turn on to 12v

B-Input level to high

C- Phase to 0

D- Base boost all the way counter clockwise

E- x over freq arrow center

F- gain all the way counter clockwise



Plug in the Kicker quick access connector and Start your badass Jeep, put on a song that you like that demonstrates high and low base, I prefer gangster rap for this demonstration, and adjust accordingly. Turn off your Jeep to make sure the amplifier turns off as well. Enjoy listening to your music. Earlier I replaced all speaker with Kickers, except I added the SSV soundbar 6 1/2 inch adaptor and added Sony speaker to the Soundbar. For under 500 dollars I completely transformed my Jeep and now can enjoy what the base factory system does not offer.



Notes-



A- you do not need a line out converter [LOC]

B- at the end of the red wire, don’t forget to install the 15 fuse, the Hideaway comes with one.

C- secure your hideaway using the supplied Velcro

D- cost of the Kicker Hideaway 8 was 280 (got mine at Best Buy), but I saw some refurbished one on eBay for under 200.

Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 8E9BD4CB-7A65-4586-BC7A-403DE6EA6B9E
I got my Kicker hooked up today thanks to your great writeup. Makes a huge difference to the base 7". Just need to get the settings right and then all is good. Thank you very much!
 

Wzabrouski

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Just ordered the HS10, and this will be very helpful. Going to try and mount under the front passenger seat.
 
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P Felix

P Felix

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Just ordered the HS10, and this will be very helpful. Going to try and mount under the front passenger seat.
I tried mounting it under the front passenger seat and I just couldn’t get it to work, so I found it easier to put it under the rear right passenger, good luck and let us know how it worked out.
 

ignaurus13

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Thanks for sharing your experience and instructions. Can you tell us more about how you snaked the red power cable into the engine compartment? Thanks!
 
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P Felix

P Felix

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Thanks for sharing your experience and instructions. Can you tell us more about how you snaked the red power cable into the engine compartment? Thanks!
I’ll go out tomorrow morning, I remember using a hanger and pushing between the foam and the inside panel, it popped through very easy, let me confirm and maybe take some pics
 

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RSK

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Thanks for sharing your experience and instructions. Can you tell us more about how you snaked the red power cable into the engine compartment? Thanks!
I used an old wire coat hanger and straightened it. Then used black electrical tape to secured the hanger and red wire in a straight line to form a makeshift snaking tool. I got my wife to snake the hanger end first from the passenger side under the dash floor board and I got under the passenger tire and reached up until I could feel the hanger, then pulled it through. It was easy after getting through the rubber grommet (2 walls). Use a small good flashlight.
Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 1608980966565
Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 1608980885610
 

ignaurus13

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I used an old wire coat hanger and straightened it. Then used black electrical tape to secured the hanger and red wire in a straight line to form a makeshift snaking tool. I got my wife to snake the hanger end first from the passenger side under the dash floor board and I got under the passenger tire and reached up until I could feel the hanger, then pulled it through. It was easy after getting through the rubber grommet (2 walls). Use a small good flashlight.
1608980966565.jpeg
1608980885610.jpeg
@p
I’ll go out tomorrow morning, I remember using a hanger and pushing between the foam and the inside panel, it popped through very easy, let me confirm and maybe take some pics
Did you wire through the grommet mentioned by RSK or did you do something else? From what you've written and depicted, I think you wired it in a different way than most of us expected. If so, you may have found an alternate method of wiring instead of the using the grommet method. Please provide details. Thanks!
 

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Has anyone tried installing the Kicker Hideaway in the JLU's cargo storage tub under the floor? Does it impact the sound? Would it overheat? Thanks! I don't want to install under my rear seat because i put them down often. I found JL seat risers to raise the front passenger seat but the underseat vents would still be obstructed. I think my only option is to hide the Hideaway in that cargo storage area. There is a video of someone installing it in a JKU but they didn't go into much detail of how it worked out.
 
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P Felix

P Felix

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@p
Did you wire through the grommet mentioned by RSK or did you do something else? From what you've written and depicted, I think you wired it in a different way than most of us expected. If so, you may have found an alternate method of wiring instead of the using the grommet method. Please provide details. Thanks!
No grommet, I thought it was too tedious and after examining our Jeep, you can gain access to the engine compartment just below the right side pillar interior and right side fender with ease. I connected the red wire with a hangar and slid it through that small opening , carefully, so I wouldn’t damage the black sound deadening material/insulation. Pic 1 is circled where I shoved the hangar. Pic 2 is where it came out and pic 3 shows the wire leading to the battery terminal, I hope this helps. Sorry I took so long for a response.

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67304CF5-2003-4D95-A53E-C42EB3972CF1.png
 
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P Felix

P Felix

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No grommet, I thought it was too tedious and after examining our Jeep, you can gain access to the engine compartment just below the right side pillar interior and right side fender with ease. I connected the red wire with a hangar and slid it through that small opening , carefully, so I wouldn’t damage the black sound deadening material/insulation. Pic 1 is circled where I shoved the hangar. Pic 2 is where it came out and pic 3 shows the wire leading to the battery terminal, I hope this helps. Sorry I took so long for a response.

Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 67304CF5-2003-4D95-A53E-C42EB3972CF1


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 67304CF5-2003-4D95-A53E-C42EB3972CF1


Jeep Wrangler JL Installation of the Kicker HS8 Hideaway Subwoofer 67304CF5-2003-4D95-A53E-C42EB3972CF1
Also, no issues with weathering, no troubles at all and I did this back in May.
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