Ok so my friend got new 6x9's and i've gotta hook them up. He didn't get the vehicle-specific wire harnesses and doesn't want to order them so my question is, can i just cut the wire off from the factory connector, strip the wires a bit, and put on new connections?

If there's another easy way feel free to share.

 

Thats what you need to do, though I dont normally worry about connections. I usually solder the wires and heat shrink them.

Many speakers come with their own wires with the connectors the speaker uses (usually spade terminals) that are about 8" long.

Perfect to solder in place.

 

yes you can. just make sure you do not mix up the positive and negative wires when you hook them up to your speakers.

 

Ok thanks guys, I think i'll just crimp on a new connector and hook'em up.

1 more question, is there a way to check which wire's pos and neg if something goes wrong? I've always hooked speakers up the easy way so I don't wanna mess something up.

 

Yes there is. It won't fry anything if you hook them up backwards... But the speaker will drive backward. You know how a speaker is supposed to drive. The vibrations drive outwardly. Its movement of air. The speaker will look like its trying to pull the cone in, instead of out.
Or use a test light. But if it's a newer car.... The wire with a small stripe is usually the pos wire!