Base model 2010 Nissan Rouge, no Bose upgrade, 130k mi. Fade set to center on head unit.

A couple years ago, the factory front speakers stopped working. I got new speakers, installed them, they worked fine for 6 months or so, then stopped. I figured it wasn't the speakers, since they were pretty new, and tested with some other speakers I had in my side by side with the same result. Figured maybe it was the factory head unit, replaced it with a cheap touch screen with backup camera, everything worked but the front speakers.

It stayed like that for a year or so, until I got tired of only having sound thru the rear speakers. I figured maybe the 6 month old speakers did crap out, and the side by side speakers just weren't compatible with the cars head unit or something. So got new speakers and installed one today, still nothing.

There's an empty fuse slot for the Bose amp, this model doesn't have the Bose system, but I stuck a fuse in there anyhow, nothing. The only part of the system left would be the wiring, but it seems odd that both the FL and FR speakers would have wiring problem at the exact same time. I assume the electricity coming thru those wires is too weak to use your regular "lightbulb in a pokey screwdriver" style power tester, is there a way to use a multimeter?

I'm at a loss, any ideas are greatly appreciated.

To check speaker signals, tune to an audio source and test across the two wires with the meter on AC volts. You should see a voltage that increases and decreases as the volume goes up and down. On most Nissans it will go from below 0.5V AC at minimum to over 6V AC at full volume.

It is very odd that both front speakers would stop working at the same time like that. The problem is not very likely to be bad speakers or even a bad radio. There may be a connector or harness plug in the dash somewhere that is either loose, disconnected or otherwise bad. Rather than spend a lot of time and aggravation trying to find bad wiring or loose connectors, it might be better to temporarily connect new speaker wires to the new front speakers to the radio's front speaker outputs. If you get sound that way you will know it's a wiring problem somewhere between the radio and the speakers.

If you do confirm the wiring is the problem the easier way to fix it would be to just run the new speaker wires from the radio through the rubber boots and grommets between the door jambs into the door cavity. You could also have a bad molex/plug connector in the door jamb or on the door itself, maybe both sides did go bad at the same time. Some Rogues have problems with the wiring running between the door and door jamb. It would seem to me you would have other problems though if that was the cause.

Jimmy

Jimmy9190 wrote: ↑

Fri Mar 31, 2023 9:32 pm

Rather than spend a lot of time and aggravation trying to find bad wiring or loose connectors, it might be better to temporarily connect new speaker wires to the new front speakers to the radio's front speaker outputs. If you get sound that way you will know it's a wiring problem somewhere between the radio and the speakers.

Good advice, but a quick check with an AC voltmeter at the back of the radio will tell you the same thing. Unlike your '18, Nico actually has full wiring diagrams for the OP's '10. If there's AC audio voltage at the radio connector but not at the speaker, you know the problem is somewhere in between. No wires or test speaker needed, just a voltmeter.
https://www.nicoclub.com/service-manual ... 0%2FAV.pdf
https://www.nicoclub.com/service-manual ... 0%2FPG.pdf

Jimmy9190 wrote: ↑

Fri Mar 31, 2023 9:32 pm

Some Rogues have problems with the wiring running between the door and door jamb. It would seem to me you would have other problems though if that was the cause.

I've never actually seen that happen on a gen1 Rogue, that specific problem seems limited to gen2's. It appears to be an assembly issue, the factory installers sometimes twist the bundle opposite the natural direction and it causes the whole bundle to eventually fatigue. I'd be very interested to hear it if the problem does turn out to broken umbilical wires on a gen1, that would be a rare bird.

Jimmy9190 wrote: ↑

Fri Mar 31, 2023 9:32 pm

Rather than spend a lot of time and aggravation trying to find bad wiring or loose connectors, it might be better to temporarily connect new speaker wires to the new front speakers to the radio's front speaker outputs. If you get sound that way you will know it's a wiring problem somewhere between the radio and the speakers.

I hadn't even thought of trying that, thanks!

VStar650CL wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 01, 2023 5:36 am

Good advice, but a quick check with an AC voltmeter at the back of the radio will tell you the same thing. Unlike your '18, Nico actually has full wiring diagrams for the OP's '10. If there's AC audio voltage at the radio connector but not at the speaker, you know the problem is somewhere in between. No wires or test speaker needed, just a voltmeter.
https://www.nicoclub.com/service-manual ... 0%2FAV.pdf
https://www.nicoclub.com/service-manual ... 0%2FPG.pdf

Thanks for the links and advice! I got a multimeter recently for testing magneto condensers and coils and such, but don't really know how to use it yet. I'll reread the user manual and get in there and start testing stuff. I hate wiring issues, especially when I have to take the dash apart and open up looms and such, but it's looking like that's what it'll come to.

VStar650CL wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 01, 2023 5:36 am

I'd be very interested to hear it if the problem does turn out to broken umbilical wires on a gen1, that would be a rare bird.

I don't know when I'll be able to get back to it, but I've got the thread bookmarked and will report back once I do