# 2012 Ram crew cab sport build...



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

This is a build log for my 2012 Ram crew cab.Ive been working on it for a few months already, and im gonna transfer it from another forum. Originally this was going to be a simple install, I didnt think was DIYMA worthy. Then it took a turn for the more technical so i figured id share it in hopes to learn a thing or two...or three or twenty.


I bought the truck about 3 months ago threw a pioneer AVH-X4600bt double din in it 2 days later. I was gonna be happy with a couple amps, a sub and component set and you will see how this all changed through the build. Like many of you here, good is never good enough and better is still never good enough.

The truck...




My original goals and equipment list...

The goal:
-First and foremost I want it to sound CLEAN and loud. Is there really any other way to listen to music?
-Keep everything as factory as possible. (this is a new concept for me)
-Everything custom 1 off and implementing a few tricks ive always wanted to try. LEDs, plexiglass, fiberglass etc. (I know, not factory at all but it will be hidden under the seat so kinda still stealthy. Maybe. well see)

Equipment
-AVH-X4600Bt
-DLS Iridium 8.3i- 3 way components with 8" mids 
-Undecided rear 6x9 replacement yet
-JBL MS-A1004...100x4
-JBL MS-A500...500x1
-DIYMA 12

Basically all this equipment (and future equipment) was bought on this forum. So if i bought from you... thanks.



Now the build.
If you have never seen under the rear seat of a crew cab ram....





Yea... ima try to put an R12 in there





The issue comes in the width of the magnet... ~8.5"









I made 3 baffles to test fit and see how much i need to raise seat and move sub etc etc..

comes close but does not fold down with 3 baffles and no spacers under seat yet...







Space with only 2 baffles


obligatory pic of tape on carpet...



glass and matt applied...






Pulled out and edges trimmed a little








Resin I had on hand didnt go as far as i thought it would so some spots you see are the matt that didnt soak enough resin. Next few layers will take care of it.




Thats all for now. I will fiberglass the bottom of the enclosure then determine if i need 2 or 3 peices of thickness. After that I will work on squeezing the 8" midbass in the fron doors.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

The factory door speaker are 6x9s and one of my plans was to fit some 8" in there. I didnt want to start on door speakers until i knew I would have time to complete them because i didnt want to be without tunes or doorpanels for any amount of time. I figured one full saturday would be enough time. So got some more accomplished on sub box...







back edges sealed air tight with resin...




Done up with some deadener for added mass and to decrease any resonance. Sucker starting to get heavy...





Test fit to make sure nothing changed..





Like a glove...






Sanded edges down so next baffle will fit flush. Can also see the thickness of the fiberglass...









If you arent farmiliar, prefab boxes for rams like fox acoustics, come with spacers in order to raise the back seat. No way im getting a diyma 12 in thee without some help

It was determined that i would end up with 3 baffles of thickness and will have to raise back seat about 3/4". 


Seems like I finally got somewhere...










Measured and measured again, I knew it would be close and I feel I got it close as it would get....and fit was TIIIIIIIGGGHT!!! U can see this pic where sub is about 1/8" off baffle.




Nothing a rubber gasket can't fix.







Now to start on beauty panel... Still waiting for lexan to come in so could only do so much. Gonna stay a secret until then.

Routered back so it sits flush with speaker and top baffle



Pretty damn close...










Boogered up one little spot, gonna hit that part with a 1/2" rounded router bit and hopefully it will clean it up








at this point, i was aiting for lexan and carpet to come in before i could go any further with the box. My plan was to cram the Iridiums in the doors while I waited.




Stay tuned!!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

OK, at this point i actually did get the DLS 8"s in the doors. I was so pre-occupied with squeezing big ass speakers into little spaces, my dumb ass didnt realize the iridium mids wouldnt fit in my dash. I guess it would have been a good idea to to take the 20 seconds to pop the grill off and see what i was working with. So heres what i got...





Nothing optimal about any part of that so I turned to my DIYMA brethren and picked up a set of HAT L3s to take their place. :rockit:


OK back to the sub enclosure...


Once sub was installed, even with rubber gasket, i was scared it wasnt sealed tight and i was right. I could hear air pouring out from around the sub. So I made a 1/8" MDF spacer








Now were rockin, time to make it look good...

"Amp Rack" i guess you can call it, will basically mirror the side the sub is on once its done.

Sqaures are deadener I cut the same size as the amps to see how i will arrange them. will most likely trim the front lip a little and put them side by side like in the pic above.









To give you all an idea where im going with the sub box and amp rack, you can kinda seeing it coming together...


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## ben54b (May 30, 2014)

Hey brad knob I read this on the other forum from a link you had on here. Really nice build I am quite intrigued b those jbl amps so small and feature packed, anyway great work particularly on that box. Ben


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

OK, this is where I start getting in over my head. Thats how we learn anyway right? This will be no Simplicity in sound or Robolop build. Just a regular dude testing his hand, in his garage, on a few things hes never done before.

All criticism is welcome...


I mentioned lexan and LEDs, this is where it all starts to come together. What i did, after making all the baffles and beauty panels, i routered the underside of the outermost baffle and rough cut some lexan that will slide in between with LEDS behind it.



like so...


Somewhere about here I went full retard with a router, not even sure what happened but this wound up being baffle 1 of about 3




I completed the top of the amp side and rounded the edges. U see the lexan is doesnt fit. I will use a flush bit to take care of that a little down the road











Heres how its all gonna fit in the truck


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

ben54b said:


> Hey brad knob I read this on the other forum from a link you had on here. Really nice build I am quite intrigued b those jbl amps so small and feature packed, anyway great work particularly on that box. Ben



Thanks man. Once i posted the link in my review thread, I had quite a few inquiries about it so i figured id move it here. Trying to get the boring stuff out the way


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## ben54b (May 30, 2014)

I actually think this is the exciting stuff. I love the router work. I am just imagining how much saw dust was spread throughout your shed.


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## mrmill (Feb 11, 2013)

You're a beast with the router...it'll look pretty slick wrapped with the LEDS all installed. 


Sent from under your mom's bed


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

ben54b said:


> I actually think this is the exciting stuff. I love the router work. I am just imagining how much saw dust was spread throughout your shed.



Lol, u have no idea


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## jnchantler (Apr 11, 2012)

I think most of us dream for a garage space that big. Subwoofer box is coming along nicely.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## mrmill (Feb 11, 2013)

Looking at that garage pic....my wife would lose her mind. TOTALLY worth it for an awesome install. 


Sent from under your mom's bed


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## jnchantler (Apr 11, 2012)

That's where having a shop vac that doubles as a blower is great.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

mrmill said:


> Looking at that garage pic....my wife would lose her mind. TOTALLY worth it for an awesome install.
> 
> 
> Sent from under your mom's bed




lol thanks. I had 2 projects for buddies also going on at the time so no point in cleaning it if it's just gonna look like that the next day



jnchantler said:


> That's where having a shop vac that doubles as a blower is great.
> 
> Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk



I have a gas blower to help me clean up, neighbors love me


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Ok, now that I knew everything fit and pieced together pretty well, the next order of business was to cut the holes for the amps. for some reason this was kind of a pain in my a$$. I think because of the weird shape and angles of the whole enclosure it always looked crooked as hell. I decided to use the legs of the seats as a guide. If the factory is crooked then so am I. I turned to the trusty coard board as a template.














Transferred to the wood... looks crooked as $hit but trust in the almighty coardboard





well measure 12454 times...cut once and cross fingers























Hot damn. Works for me!


Now on to the beauty panel for the sub...


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## mrmill (Feb 11, 2013)

Looks a little off on the......just kidding. Awesome work can't wait to see it all done and lit up


Sent from under your mom's bed


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

The beauty panel for the sub has been the thorn in my side for the whole thing. Routered the wrong side once, Mis calculated hole and cut it too far left. Dumb $hit like that. 3rd times the charm right?


This one was perfect then the last hole I had to round over.... It happened again



Not sure what happened but I should be able to sand and blend that in later fck it. Ill make this one work...







Round over and flushed



Transfer the shape to the lexan...



Yea, free handed underneath... dont hate






Still fits









Now that sub box and amp rack is built and fits, I'm going to touch up some rough edges that have been bothering me. Stuff that I won't let slide after all this work, not gonna half ass anything. First was the gap in the amp rack between wood and lexan. This area is the first thing you see when you when u look in the door so it must be fixed.


I don't want screws to be visible...




Carpeted to see how much it will fill the gap, hard to see in pic but it's still there.







Now u can really see it






Nothing a little dynaglass won't fix




Now this I can work with...


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Been busy lately, guess ill keep this thread goin...

In real time I had exchanged the DLS mids with the HAT L3s in the dash Re did the doors to fit the bigger Morel Mw220 (from the hor deals thread on here) but ill show that all after the sub box and amp rack and try to get caught up to were im actually at in the build



Enough of that...Im ready to get this box and amp rack over with. Heres how I left it... Sub box with dynaglass to smooth and also to fix that little router Eff up...

not perfect yet but better






Amp rack carpeted, primed, and lexan hit up with lens tint. Not happy with it at the moment...




First off, the lexan cracked and didnt fit flush enough in some spots so i cut a new peice...



then some dynaglass to make the fit tight...






Next i stapled the LED strip to the underside of amp rack cover. Not sure if i ever showed it but i routed the edges for lexan to fit under it...





Damn near impossible to get a decent pi in the dark...









Amp rack is basically done. Im waiting for suede to come in to cover the top and thats a wrap. Now the sub box.



Heres the mock up of the center piece that will be carpeted to break up all the surface area of all this when its done.



Flushed and rounded 





Never thought i had it in me to make all this $hit fit together nicely... the box, baffle, lexan, and divider... Not too bad





Carpet time! This part always makes me excited bc u know its getting close.









test fit it all all to make sure i didnt F up somewhere along the way...


Worst pics ever in 3...2...1...





















And how it all fits together...









Now all that is left is finish up both beauty panels. Sand a little. Attach LEDs to sub side. Glue in neo magnets to hold em all on tight. Then wait for suede to arrive and cover them. oh yea and wire up LEDs.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Some better quality pics of where I left off...


As u can see, I need to sand down the edges that were dynaglassed...













Later that evening suede was delivered and panels wrapped...






I think.

One of the didnt come out so great but im gonna wait til day light to see how it looks.


Heres the charcoal suede from syfabrics.com. $9 a yard, couldnt pass it up. so i bought 3 yards just in case i Effed up. I really like the look/quality of it.




Cut to size. Shouldnt have done the most difficult side first but live and learn.



stress cuts for the holes...



Had a super fantastic awesome idea to cut wood that would be screwed into the holes to press the fabric to the sides to hold it until the glue dried...



But stupid idea was stupid and just ripped the fabric too far. U can see it here. Hopefully the amps will cover that and it wont be noticable. But i will just do it over if i have to.





Was pretty difficult to get in the cornerers. Will see how bad it looks tomorrow in the light...

And some more $hitty night pics...



Amps are a little crooked bc i was going to wait until the panel was done before a scrfewed them down





On to sub side...







wait for it......




































ooohhhh...


ahhh...


(still gotta clean up the wires back there)











AAAAnd thats the best i could do in the dark. The wires you see back there are the wires for the LEDs. I need to figure out how im gonna hook those up. Prob tap into dome light. I need to cut the fabric under the panel in a few spots so they sit flush.

Day shots...


a few day shots...


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

and of course, the night shots...



Bright as fawk, at this point i ordered a dimmer switch. 











Through the window...



Nothings getting lost in this bish...


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Very, very nice Brad. I picked up a 2014 at the end of May with the Alpine. I have to deal with the Factory HU, so it will be non-trivial. I am reading everything I can. Not sure I have your "mad skills" to do the same sort of sub box.


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

When you said "not diyma worthy" I snickered because if anything ^^ this is what diyma is all about, getting dirty in your own garage. Looks really good, you got any pics of the seats down and the lights on?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Very, very nice Brad. I picked up a 2014 at the end of May with the Alpine. I have to deal with the Factory HU, so it will be non-trivial. I am reading everything I can. Not sure I have your "mad skills" to do the same sort of sub box.


Thanks. Ive heard the alpine system isnt the easiest to work with. If you havent already, theck out ramforum. a lot of guys there have good info on integration with the alpine system



WhereAmEye? said:


> When you said "not diyma worthy" I snickered because if anything ^^ this is what diyma is all about, getting dirty in your own garage. Looks really good, you got any pics of the seats down and the lights on?


Lol, ok you got me. Maybe i should have worded it differently...

You wont find the level of skill and attention to detail as most DIYMA builds.

Ok that sounds better. I will get a pic of it with the seats down and lights on. Since those pics, i got the dimmer installed so they are toned down a lot more.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Thanks. Ive heard the alpine system isnt the easiest to work with. If you havent already, theck out ramforum. a lot of guys there have good info on integration with the alpine system


I read too quickly. I had been on RamforumZ. Last night I discovered the FULL build thread. It was like the director's cut of your favorite movie! (At least it felt like more.) Thanks for all the posts and pics.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> and of course, the night shots...
> 
> Bright as fawk, at this point i ordered a dimmer switch.


While I am waiting for the sun to come up this AM to go back and work on my install...

Did you get the brightness dialed in like you wanted?


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

I have been following this as a Ram is in my future. Looks amazing. Very nice work.

I am from Baton Rouge and just saw the Ms8 you posted on Craigslist. Are you from Prairieville. If so I would love a demo one day.


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## mjmarovi (Feb 13, 2012)

Great job man! I have a 14' 2500 and looking for any fresh ideas! interested in the volume and response you get from that large sub in that size enclosure. Any idea what type of airspace you ended up with?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Sorry everyone. Had a bunch of projects going on and left this thread hanging. Ill start updating again shortly and a lot has changed. stay tuned...





dengland said:


> While I am waiting for the sun to come up this AM to go back and work on my install...
> 
> Did you get the brightness dialed in like you wanted?


Sure did, the dimmer i got was perfect. It has remote that controls the brightness to the exact level i wanted





Jon225 said:


> I have been following this as a Ram is in my future. Looks amazing. Very nice work.
> 
> I am from Baton Rouge and just saw the Ms8 you posted on Craigslist. Are you from Prairieville. If so I would love a demo one day.



Bring it on! PM'd




mjmarovi said:


> Great job man! I have a 14' 2500 and looking for any fresh ideas! interested in the volume and response you get from that large sub in that size enclosure. Any idea what type of airspace you ended up with?


Nice, 2500's are badass, I just couldnt justify the cost since i dont tow anything. 

I ended with right at 1 cu ft which is suitable for that sub. Being that its not made to rattle your teeth, it still fills the cab with plenty enough bass and would shake the mirrors if i wanted it to. This sub is actually sitting in my closetr at the moment. I switched it out with a SI MKIV and never looked back.

Not sure how intensive your build will be but I dig into this one pretty good and have plenty pics of the inner doors and behind the seat and stuff like that. (in my build log on ramforum) Always helpful to know what your dealing with without having to rip everything apart.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Ok ill try to get back on track here.

At this point in time, I had a DLS iridium 3 way set. The tweeters were less than pretty when i bought them so i never installed them. The midrange didnt fit in the dash but i did manage to get the 8" midbass in the doors. heres how I made that happen.


This is the inner door, stock.



I made rings for the DLS (Yes, cut with a jigsaw. router was at a buddys house that day. Come at me bro!). I traced the outside of the ring onto the inner panel so i knew where i had to cut as the ring needed to be recessed in order to have clearance for the door panel.



3.5" angle grinder made quick work of the plastic door card.



screwed the ring to the door card and used corded weather strip from lowes to seal the edges.



Deadened and sealed up...







There was one clip on the door panel that needed to be cut off in order to fit the panel back on...



Beautiful...







I pleased with the sound of the iridiums but wasnt blown away. when I had the mids and tweets up for sale, i got so many offers on the 8"s, I figured id sell try something new. I jumped on the Morel MW220 for $55 set in the hot deals section on here...



Was even less blown away by these so I began to question whether my install was worth a $hit. After a week or 2 i noticed the surround starting to come aprt on the Morels so I began searching, and like a gift from the heavens, I snagged a set of Dynaudio MW172s from the classifieds. Now that i got my hands on a set of big boy speakers, i needed a set of big boy baffles for the doors...

Will continue in the next post.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

So thanks to "the other hated guy" for the ridiculous deal on these...





My plan was to grind the door card to as flat as possible and make a new baffle. I would then bolt the baffle to inner door. Hopefully this would give me a much more solid base than i had previously.

Idont have pics of the construction of the baffle, but here they are covered in bed liner and with more weather strip...




Now, the door card has all kind of crazy angles dips and bumps so i used some washers in a couple of the corners. You can also see 2 plastic prongs under the bottom of the baffle. They are part of the card from the factory, I left them there so i could judge how much room i would have between the speaker and the door panel...As you can see its TIIIIGHT. So tight actually that the DYNs had to be turned a certain way so the "ribs" on the back of them would clear the window track in the door.





Now they are 10 times more sturdy than previously and 2 of the bolts are actually bolted to the metal part of the door.







Baffle covered in deadener and speakers installed









Right about the time i installed these, I had purchased an MS-8. Luckily i heard the Dyns before the DSP was installed or i dont think i would have realized their potential. We know how the MS-8 hates midbass and had iOnly heard them with the DSP, I would have just assumed them to be another decent speaker. Even with out any processing, these things blew me away. Everything about them detail, dynamics, and i could throw anything at them and they would never lose their composure. Now I feel more power is in order. more on that later


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Alright lets get up to speed...

Amongst all the changes and swaps I was making, it was a PITA trying to keep this thread up to par with the equipment I had already installed and un installed. Right now I am in the midst of revamping my setup so ill get to where I left off and then we can start from scratch.


I left off with...

LPG 26NA tweeters, on axis in custom sail panels
HAT L3s in the stock dash locations
Dynaudio MW172s in the doors
2 x JBL MS-A1004 amps
1 x JBL MS-A5001 amp
1 x SI BM MKIV sub
JBL MS-8 



Sail panels...





Amps and subs...





This was as far as I got with the RTA...





around this time, I got paid by a buddy to build some door panels to house 4 x 6.5" each. a 4th order bandpass for for 4-15"s and a console to hold 6 batteries and an amp for his single cab RAM. And it had to be done in 3 weeks so all my time was dedicated to this build and I wound up selling him my sail panels and tweeters. This build brought back my inner basshead somewhat, so I then determined that a 400 watt single sub stage wast doing it for me. So here we are now...


New setup consists of...


HAT L1 tweeter in newer cleaner looking sail panels
HAT L3s in the dash
Dyn MW172 in the doors
ZED Leviathan III
Helix DSP
3 x SI BM MKIV (2 more coming soon)
ZED minotaur (coming soon)

Im hoping the added power and cone area will give the extra Low end thump when i feel like getting a little rowdy but will still still sound amazing the majority of the time for every day listening. The Zed amps provide both the "show and go" that i was looking for. They will provide plenty of head room and look badass at the same time.

Plus, I love building as much if not more than i like tuning and listening so this will just give me something to do for aq little while.



heres the most current sail panels. Still trying to find matching paint. Tried the mopar dark slate... not even close. any info would be appreciated






If youre interested in the construction of these...

Custom sail panel build - DODGE RAM FORUM - Dodge Truck Forums


The Leviathan. Look farmiliar to anyone...







Gotta credit Captainobvious for the sick LED mod. Pics don't do this thing justice its by far the best looking amp ive seen. It will definitely be a showpiece (along with the minotaur, which will also get the LED treatment) in this build.



Ok, now were up to date so ill keep this thread updated as the build progresses.


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## SQLnovice (Jul 22, 2014)

Those amps are eyekandy. 
Thanks again for the help with my jbl gear. I'm very close to where I want to be with volume and sq.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Yes, they are.

Glad ur getting close. I like to tweak and tinker too much, which is the main reason I tossed the ms-8 for the helix.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Got some work on one half the sub enclosure. So much easier and quicker the second time around.


Got the outer frame cut and flush routed...





Taped up and a layer of fiberglass.



What I find works best is to cut small strips and use spray glue on the tape to make them stick. Gravity is the enemy when trying to glass.



First layer...



After 1st layer hardens, yank it out and work on it out of the truck.




I will apply another layer to the bottom to help save air space. Any more than 1 underneath, and u may start to run into fitment issues.



One more layer,



2 more inside...



And top baffle cut and flushed




I will add a few more layers of glass and add some internal bracing as well. Also just found out that the helix dsp remote out isn't putting out enough voltage to power up the leviathan. Dmm shows it puttong out ~1 volt. No bueno, so off for warranty. In the mean time ill get the driverside enclosure glassed up while its still half ass warm. then ill get to work on amp racks that I can show these badboys off.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

You are on the wrong coast for me Brad. I would drive a couple of hours for a show and tell (and listen). You certainly have some effort involved.

My (7 year) older brother has the same truck as I do. I sent him a couple pictures of the minimal things that I have been doing to my system. He does not understand why I am making the effort. I look at your thread and think he has no idea what effort is.

Keep the posts coming, I am enjoying reading about your journey.

I also need to get on your "hand me down" list!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

^^^ haha thanks for the kind words.

I feel you on the effort. My buddies all think the same thing, and in all honesty they don't know the half of it. They would **** if they knew how much work is entailed in a project like this. But, and the end of the day, it's something I love doing so Instead of effort, I call it therapy. And it's all for the better if a can inspire someone else to try something they haven't done before.


I wish I had a camera when my friend wanted me to demo for someone and I told him I yanked out everything to start over. You would have thought I just punched a baby. Lol, "dude, you just got it done and it's gone already?!"


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> This was as far as I got with the RTA...


Couple of questions about the RTA measurement. I see that you have a bunch of averages. Did you take measurements at various places around the car, or just multiple measurements? Also, level is pretty low (peaking at 70 dB) you normally measure the low?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

The averages were all within the vicinity of my head. Left ear, right ear, forehead, back of head etc. Some may be average of left measurement and right measurement combined. I just got the mic at the time and was trying to teach myself so I dont remember exactly what the averages were for that particular graph. I was just happy that i got it that flat and lol.

I measured with my head unit volume at what I normally drive with it at. Also I never calibrated the mic for db so I dunno how accurate that actually is but it's painful to listen to pink noise any louder.


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## ou812 (Oct 25, 2008)

I love it. Great work.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

So you were listening to pink noise rather than sweeps from REW. You said RTA, I looked at the graph and assumed sweeps. I should have known better. 

Some how I missed this one...

Operation: Big speakers little holes - Page 31 - DODGE RAM FORUM - Dodge Truck Forums

I just have the MS-8 driving the speakers so I don't have an external amp with a LPF yet to employ. (Actually, I have an amp and sub, but waiting on the NetAudio sub box).


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## TitanCCBT3 (Jul 15, 2012)

Nice work

Does the boom box in the background still work?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> So you were listening to pink noise rather than sweeps from REW. You said RTA, I looked at the graph and assumed sweeps. I should have known better.
> 
> Some how I missed this one...
> 
> ...


Yea I recently read that sweeps are the better of the two but Im using Spotify on my phone to generate the noise, not REW itself, and I have yet to find sweeps on there. Once I get this one up and running, ill dig into tuning a good bit more. Still learning and figuring it out



TitanCCBT3 said:


> Nice work
> 
> Does the boom box in the background still work?



haha, yea it works. that's my tailgate ice chest carrier/boombox thing. I actually have a build thread for it on here.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

and that was my thing with the ms-8... so many times I would say dammit I wish I could just go in there and boost this or cut that and tweak this then I would have to find a way to "trick" it to get the outcome I wanted. I would eventually get there, but at the cost of something else so I said eff it and stepped up to the Helix.

As you can see im not one to leave good enough, alone so the helix was just a better fit


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Yea I recently read that sweeps are the better of the two but Im using Spotify on my phone to generate the noise, not REW itself, and I have yet to find sweeps on there. Once I get this one up and running, ill dig into tuning a good bit more. Still learning and figuring it out
> .



Click on measure and this should pop up


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Yea, i have the poverty setup. I don't have audio from my laptop running through my system. I have a dayton usb mic and DSP plugged to it and I play the tones/pink noise through my phone, which is connected to my head unit via usb.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

SUBS ARE INNNN







I haven't made as much progress as I had liked by this point but I did just about finish all the fiberglassing.


Ive got about 8 layers of glass on the passenger side enclosure, which will house 2 of the MKIVs.



Notice the dry looking spot...I could only fiberglass the underside right there bc the sub magnet is about 1/8" from the bottom. She tiiiiight! Next I put 7.5 gallons of water in it (which equals 1 cu ft)...



It was about 1/2" from the top. so after bracing and a lttle polyfill, I will be about exactly where I need to... .5 cu ft per sub! yay. Now on to the other side. The Heix DSP had to be sent back for warranty and heres the Levitathan as it was. I know I know, it deserves better but trust...this is temporary



I had to relocate some wires so I could move it in order to build the frame for the driver side enclosure. I was able to re-use the front part from the old amp rack,(hence the carpet remnants on the front of it) since it was cut and flushed perfectly already, it made life a little easier.



Obligatory tape pics...



First layer...



Where the glass meets the wood, there was a little dip so I stashed some glass in the crevase all the way around in order to get more resin holding on to more wood



Heres both sides together. I goofed a little near the cupholder area so I have to cut a little curved piece and glue it on there.




Now that the glassing is done, before the weather gets too cool to do it, Ill move on to mounting the amp(s). I will be getting the ZED Minotaur a little ways down the road. So even if I did have the subbox done, I wouldn't be able to listen to it. 

While I am relocating the amps, all the wires will get cleaned up and proper treatment. Tech flexed, heat shrunk, and re ran zip tied etc etc. This should start getting good pretty soon...


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

Yoo, you got the other ZED Leviathan from captainobvious!? We're basically brothers, I have the other one in my car now 
I can vouch for how simply amazing the amp looks and sounds. Keep up the good work on the build, it's been a while.


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## seafish (Aug 1, 2012)

How hard were the sail panels to do??


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

WhereAmEye? said:


> Yoo, you got the other ZED Leviathan from captainobvious!? We're basically brothers, I have the other one in my car now
> I can vouch for how simply amazing the amp looks and sounds. Keep up the good work on the build, it's been a while.



Yes indeed, like a step beyond blood brothers. Lol. I really wanted his minotaur as well but I was too late.






seafish said:


> How hard were the sail panels to do??



I've done a few panels like this before (for my truck and others) and it seems to get a little easier every time. These have maybe 10 hours invested. Hardest part is finding damn paint that matches.

In case u missed it, here's how I did them...



Custom sail panel build - DODGE RAM FORUM - Dodge Truck Forums


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## seafish (Aug 1, 2012)

bradknob said:


> Yes indeed, like a step beyond blood brothers. Lol. I really wanted his minotaur as well but I was too late.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




THANKS for the reply and the link...want to do something similar to my 2005 Ram.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I made a little progress on the amp locations last night. I was running out of space in a crew cab truck, with 3-12s already being stuffed under the seat and the amps being too damn good looking to hide, so I had to get creative. Heres what I came up with..



First I had to get the amp squared up.



RCA fitment check...



Staying true to my motto...measure once cut a buncha times...



Once the hole was cut, I put a small beveled edge and routed the back side for the amp to sit a little more flush...















Can you tell where its going yet??















BAM...














For the other side I just flipped this one over and traced it. I don't want to do any cutting until I have the amp in hand. I have some fans ill put on each side and im going to put the helix DSP under the driver seat. Now I can work on cleaning up the wiring then ill wrap these in carpet to match the truck. I will also build a cover for them for when I have passengers, which is rarely. I also have a 1 piece floor matt that spans the whole back floor that I can use to cover and hide when necessary. Not sure how much ill have time to get done over the weekend so stay tuned..


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

One nice sheet of Gorilla Glass and you would be all set. Looks good as always.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> One nice sheet of Gorilla Glass and you would be all set. Looks good as always.



Dude, never even heard of that until I just googled it. That would be awesome, Can you buy it by the sheet? Looks like just phone screen protectors.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Made progress on the sub enclosure...


Got the glassed edges smoothed and fixed the piece by the cup holder to make it flow better...




About 7 layers deep on the fiberglass, plus being double baffled and some internal bracing. If these flex...Ill quit car audio. Now time for the baffles. Normally, when the fit is this tight, i would cut the baffle bigger than the enclosure, cut sub holes, then trim to match the rest of the enclosure. this time i kinda brain farted and didnt realize the fit would be this tight. I already cut and flushed the baffle so i had to put my brain to work. Plus I didnt have any wood left to cut another one. 

as you can see, theres about 1/8" space from the back of the sub and the glass...



I needed the sub to be as far forward in the enclosure as possible so I made a template...



Transferred it to the baffle...



The cordboard ring came in the sub box, i just traced and cut the outer diameter to have an exact shape of the subs...



heheh boobs...



Notice the inner diameter nearly butts up against the frame. Holes cut...



If you remember my previous enclosure, I had to make a spacer to raise the sub a tab, i fiugured i would have to do the same for this one, and i was right. Ill scoop up some 1/4 inch mdf on my way home today to work on that. Notice the sub on the right just barely doesnt sit flush



The other side is way easier. see how the baffle is cut larger. I did this one second so i could make this sub the same distance from the front of the enclosure as the other 2. Try to get it to look as uniform as possible.







money shot....


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## audio+civic (Apr 16, 2009)

Your commentary is hilarious. Looks great man. Always wanted to see someone go nuts under the back seat of a Ram.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

audio+civic said:


> Your commentary is hilarious. Looks great man. Always wanted to see someone go nuts under the back seat of a Ram.



Ha Thanks man. My sarcasm and dry sense of humor usually don't translate very well in text. Glad you're enjoying the thread.


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## deltasaurus (Apr 9, 2014)

Props to you from a fellow 4th gen Ram owner. I am really liking what you have done with the SI 12's under the rear seat. I am currently running 4 Illusion C10's but after seeing the work you have done I may have to transition to 3 12's. I like the 10's but they just don't play as deep with any authority that these awsome BM MkIV subs will do. I know you had fun getting 8's in the front doors too. I found out the hard way was able ro make it happen after some serious head scratching and some foul language. Had to cut theexact same mounting clip on the door card, and a few other things as well. Fortunately they still mount solidly and have no rattles, yet. As he crosses his fingers. Very nice work, and looking forward to future updates.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Wow, that sounds pretty sick. I'm sure 4-10"s is no drop in and play either. The 1 12" played the lows very nicely. Then, the inner bass head came out in me and here I am now. When I update this thread, I'll show how tight a fit it is still. Even with barely over 3" mount depth.


You have a build log? Id love to see what you've done.


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## deltasaurus (Apr 9, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Wow, that sounds pretty sick. I'm sure 4-10"s is no drop in and play either. The 1 12" played the lows very nicely. Then, the inner bass head came out in me and here I am now. When I update this thread, I'll show how tight a fit it is still. Even with barely over 3" mount depth.
> 
> 
> You have a build log? Id love to see what you've done.


It definately wasn't a cake walk to get the 4 10's in, had to go asymmetrical on the passenger side so they look a little wonky to me, but hey, they are under the seats which don't get lifted up very often. I have that inner basshead thing as well, hence the idea of following you to 3 12's. I may actually do something really crazy and add a blow through with at least one pair of 18's, gotta have that low frequency extension. Really going to have to see how it does in competition over the next 4 to 6 months before any changes are made, but I can always torture myself with all those cool thoughts.

I am working on organizing all the pictures from the build as we speak working on putting a build log together. Also going to get some pointers from friends on the forum to help, because I am realitivey new and really still have no idea what I am doing. Well, some idea. Keep an eye out for it soon. Probably going to be titled with something like Big Blue Ram or something like that.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I feel you you on the inner torture. Lol it never ends.


Here's some motivation for the blow through....

http://www.ramforum.com/f51/2-15_s_7000_watts_regular_cab-50797/index15.html#post878712


It's a buddies single can I built to house 4-15"s. It's insane. after building that, then jumping in my truck, 1 distortion free 12" wasn't gonna cut it any more.


I do Look forward to seeing your build. I'll look out for it.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Got word the helix was effed so a brand new one was shipped out today. I finally get to get out of poverty...I mean running passive again. not sure how much longer I could take it. So I will update to where I at with the sub enclosure because I will try to wrap up the wiring, amp. dsp, and fan mounting so when the helix gets back to me I can toss it right in and at least get a cot damn center image back.



With my new nifty contour gauge I made a brace to run in between the subs.





And like a rookie, I kept forgetting this box extends past the cup holders unlike the last one so of course when I, measure once cut a buncha times, I forgot to ad that contour that wraps around it so I had to add that in...







Glued and screwed the spacers on. and yes I still haven't found the hardware that connect circle jig to my router :flipthebird:



next order of business is the beauty panel/ baffle whatever it is. It will finction as a double baffle and also clean everything up and make it pretty.


Not pretty quite yet...




getting cleaned up and edges rounded



you can see its not a perfect oval, due to the front having to be so close to the front of the enclosure.





Routed the bottom to sit flush with the lexan and LEDs





Here it is with the subs. The LEDs will wrap all the way around, that's just the longest piece I had laying around


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## deltasaurus (Apr 9, 2014)

Very nice work on the new enclosure for the SI subs. Thank you for the link to the Ram with the blow through. Something to really get the brain moving with devious plans for the future. That too is a great build. Definitely looks like you have mad skills, so just admit it and keep working your magic, lol. One day I would love the chance to hear your Ram and get your opinion on mine. Its only about a 12 hour drive, so who knows what may happen down the road. :speechless:


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Thanks man.

I won't admit to mad skills just yet. I'll admit I'm headed there tho. Lol

I'm always up for exchanging demos. Everyone around me is pure SPL so any time I get a chance to hear an sq oriented system, I jump on it. I plan on attend some sq shows in the future, none of which are in La so I may be venturing your direction in the future.






Here a nice vid of that blow through in action...

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=4749028339202&id=1271856419&ref=bookmark


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## deltasaurus (Apr 9, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Thanks man.
> 
> I won't admit to mad skills just yet. I'll admit I'm headed there tho. Lol
> 
> ...


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Nice, Murphy makes some real nice stuff. That blow through sounds surprisingly clean for what is it. I was pretty impressed. As far as blending 4-15"s with 8-6.5"s, im not gonna go there lol. But I'm sure you will be happy with whatever he comes up with. There's plans for a second M4a in that truck. It's gonna be brutal.

I'm pretty much with you on the SQL. I like the ability to have a clean well balanced sound at above average volumes for majority of the time listening and still be able to crank it and beat on it when when the urge strikes all while keeping its composure.


Def keep in touch let me know where you will be headed and I look forward to seeing your build


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## deltasaurus (Apr 9, 2014)

I will shoot you a pm when I get the build log going and as I figure out some competitions that I will most definitely let you know and we can see about doing some demos. Best wishes, keep the awesome work coming, and TTYS.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

deltasaurus said:


> The truck will probably be debuted in Daytona at SBN, if I cannot find a show or two before then.


I am an hour south of Daytona. Post back or PM if you make it there.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

All my wiring came in so I got one good nights work on the sub enclosure. DSP will be back soon so I need To get my wiring cleaned up and ran properly.



Wasn't %100 smooth on this side so I dynaglassed it. And got the baffle cut to size



Dat jigsaw circle!!









Threw the heavy sonnabitch in the truck. Guess it's a good time to make sure it still fits...







And holy sheeeit. Almost looks like I knew what I was doing, it fits. I'm hoping to have the wiring done by the end of the week. This getting dark early crap is for the birds.


I'm gonna see if I can't snag a new
Minotaur or leviathan on Black Friday for a decent price, which is unlikely. I'm kinda torn...

Leviathan = 380 x 3 @ 8ohm
Minotaur = 1300 x 1 @ 2omh

I'm all for head room but the MKIVs aren't power hungry beast so the Levi should be enough. But who wants just , enough? But also the Levi would allow me to run 2 different channels from the DSP. I just don't know if it will make any difference since one sub is a couple feet away from the other 2. When it comes to T/A and stuff like that. Guess I'll just wait and see what kinda prices I can find on each


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

deltasaurus said:


> I will shoot you a pm when I get the build log going and as I figure out some competitions that I will most definitely let you know and we can see about doing some demos. Best wishes, keep the awesome work coming, and TTYS.





U said u like the lowwwws....

That blow through hit 153.4 @ 27hz


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

That the one from post #62? Oh and "Holy Crap Batman!"


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## deltasaurus (Apr 9, 2014)

Dude, you had me at the 27 hz! That is a nice number, one that gives me warm fuzzies. It is definately official, you are a bad influence. Murphy is going to be getting a call Monday to see about ordering some Tantrics for that blow through. 
Your enclosure turned out awesome and really reminds me of mine except for the sub used. Hexk, Nick may be dielding an order for 3 or 4 BM MkIV' s very soon as well. The beauty of building multiple vehicles at the same time is you always have room for new speaker ideas somewhere. 
We aee definately going to have to find a competition somewhere that we can demo each other's trucks, I would really like to get your opinion on mine as well as check out the musical goodness of your Ram.
I would also love to see what your buddies regular cab would do on an AudioControl meter, seems ro me that the Termlab registers 6 to 10 db lower all the way across the board. 
:2thumbsup::beerchug:


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> That the one from post #62? Oh and "Holy Crap Batman!"



Yep, same truck.




And deltasaurus, those are the tantric HDD, supposedly capable of 6k burps. He's got a little less than 2k each and he plans to add another m4a so needless to say, it's gon be nasstyyyyy!!


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## vinnny (Dec 28, 2011)

How do you like those JBL amps? I like the look of them, but they appear to discontinued and harder to find than the newer GTO's.


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## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

There you are! Cheers!


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Here a nice vid of that blow through in action...
> 
> https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=4749028339202&id=1271856419&ref=bookmark


I continue to have trouble with the link. It says that the link may be broken or expired. I have seen the T-shirt Video where the guys GF/wife gets out of the truck. Not sure if it is the same or not.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

vinnny said:


> How do you like those JBL amps? I like the look of them, but they appear to discontinued and harder to find than the newer GTO's.



I liked the JBLs. Very cool little amps and seemed to be under rated in power. The x-over section is awesome, although they were pointless for me since I was using a DSP. I would recommend them if you can find them.



DavidRam said:


> There you are! Cheers!



Heeeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyyyyy!




dengland said:


> I continue to have trouble with the link. It says that the link may be broken or expired. I have seen the T-shirt Video where the guys GF/wife gets out of the truck. Not sure if it is the same or not.



Hmmm weird, that's a mobile link I wonder if that's the problem? Are you on a phone or desktop? Someone else posted it to FB so I can't save it or embed it here but it's a different one than when my wife went running out like it was on fire


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## vinnny (Dec 28, 2011)

About how many feet of wiring did you need for your ram? I've got a '14 crew and I'll be running an MS-8 and two amps.

Also, maybe I missed it, but what factory speaker leads did you tap into for the input signal to the DSP?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

vinnny said:


> About how many feet of wiring did you need for your ram? I've got a '14 crew and I'll be running an MS-8 and two amps.
> 
> Also, maybe I missed it, but what factory speaker leads did you tap into for the input signal to the DSP?



Man, it's really hard to say. I've swapped and moved so much around. Took away wire here, added some there. I'll say this, I had 75 feet of tech flex and it wasn't enough to go from my amp to all 6 speakers up front.

I'm using an after market head unit so I dont need to tap into wires for signal. Check over at ramforum audio section. Quite a few guys still using factory head units with LOCs and DSPs


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## troutspinner (Nov 8, 2013)

vinnny said:


> About how many feet of wiring did you need for your ram? I've got a '14 crew and I'll be running an MS-8 and two amps.
> 
> Also, maybe I missed it, but what factory speaker leads did you tap into for the input signal to the DSP?


On my 14 Crew I used about 160' of wire. I individually ran wire from each door and from each door sail for the tweeters then to the back of the cab. I also tapped in right behind the HU, all 4 channels and ran them to the back of the cab.

If you will be running speakers in the dash, plan for 30' more for them if running everything to the rear of the cab.

The only reason I tapped in behind the HU was that I had worries that any splits in the speaker harness could cause noise. It was definitely overkill but I wanted to know that no matter what I did, nothing could be left to be questioned.

I'll stop jumping on Brad's thread so enough from me. There are a couple of build logs over at ramforum that you can check out for some ideas.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

It's all good dude. Glad u chimed in so I didn't look stupid in my own thread lol. Spread the knowledge


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

vinnny said:


> Also, maybe I missed it, but what factory speaker leads did you tap into for the input signal to the DSP?


Check post #7 from here:

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/build-logs-project-install-gallery/169513-ms-8-install-2014-limited-8-4an.html


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Aaaand your weekly update...

I started working on the floor for the amp since my DSP would be back shortly. I wanted to tech flex the wires and clean up the area and also finish the fans and carpet and all the other BS so when The DSP gets back, I can throw it in and rock and roll. Been listening in poverty for far too long...


First I made some feet for the bottom of the floor...



Then I made a mount for the fans, 2 on each side. 1 push one pull...



Heres where the mount will go, the fans are actually taller than the amp and floor so ima have to improvise. Also notice my ***** in the back groung. I like to let her watch so she know what im about to put in her:naughty:



I cut a few little wedges and routered the bottom of them so all the air blows under the floor and not on top. Put some dynaglass on top and smoothed it out, don't know why, was just feelin it I guess



From moving the amps to the floor, I was left with a lot of extra wire and needed new ground points so my temporary fix for the time being....don't judge me



My plan was to tech flex and re-route the wires from the front stage. Don't have many picture but i did It...





Ran passenger side behind the glovebox to meet with driver side wires so the all come from the same direction...




3 power cables used to come from battery, along the frame rail and up from underneath the storage compartment under the rear seat. wire loomed them hoes up and moved them to come up from right underneath the drivers seat. Eventually put some peal and seal to stop anything from getting in the hole. just didn't get pics






Alright, boring stuffs over with. wiring is there now I can start making it not look like ****. Threw some carpet on the false floor




wifes not home, Used spray glue... inside... and on the kitchen table Sup?:flipthebird:


And the money shot......



wiring underneath is still jacked up so it doesn't sit flush just yet but u get the idea.










cant really get any decent pics in the dark. ill tru to get a few more when the suns out.


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

Might be a bit biased but I think the amp looks great in the dark 
But yeah can't wait for more pics, you're doin good!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

WhereAmEye? said:


> Might be a bit biased but I think the amp looks great in the dark
> But yeah can't wait for more pics, you're doin good!



Thanks! I need one more, you ready to sell yours yet? Lol


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Well, a series of (un)FORTUNATE events has left me the proud owner of a brand spanking new Helix DSP.... PROOOOOO!!!! 

Here it is in all its German made, brushed aluminum cased, 10 - 6volt output channels of cot dayum goodness...






That is all.


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## troutspinner (Nov 8, 2013)

Sweeet! I guess they could not fix your other one and kept you a happy customer.


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## KyleMDunn (Jan 27, 2009)

That Helix looks sexy as hell...


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Small update...

I was out of town all last week but made some small progress before I left.

I got all the wires tech flexed and re run...





Got em labeled, the ghetto way. Wasn't buying a cable labeler just for this...







And here's how it was before...




And after, with DSP installed...



Still need to clean up the floor and get everything fastened down but at least the wiring is right.








Got the heix installed and had a little time to RTA before I hd to leave. Noticed I big issue between 200 and 400 hz. When I measured each speaker by itself, I noticed the right side volume seemed to be fading in and out. Wtf? 



After a little snooping around, I found the power wire of the helix was half hanging out so I put it back in.

My only gripe about the helix DSP and pro is the little bitty plug for power, ground, remote in and remote out...



I understand bigger wire is not necessary but c'mon....

Anyway, this fixed the issue. Still work to be done but much better. As for the PRO, with minimal work with it so far, this thing is SWEEEEEET. I'll elaborate more when I get into it but the new software is amazing. They really stepped it up compared to the previous version.



What are you guys thoughts of the huge dip? Some sort of modal issue? Phase? I'm not sure what to make of it, still trying to figure all this out.

In the mean time I managed to find the twin of my leviathan and it arrived a few days ago. Now I have all the pieces to the puzzle, just have to put em all together. Should start getting interesting real soon!!


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## ben54b (May 30, 2014)

Love catching up on this thread. I thought your single twelve was great but three?. 
I'm really like ing the amps on the floor I've got what I think you guys call a first generation frontier and space is hard to find. Might be able to get two of those twelves behind the seat hmmmmmm. Great work I need to try some glassing now after seeing yours. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

^^ thanks man. My amp location is not practical for prob %95 of people but in reality, with seat and floor raised, not much leg room is lost. And in the 6 months I've had the truck, I've had people back there twice. 

As far as glassing goes... U just gotta go for it. Try a few sample pieces to get a feel for how the Matt and resin react when u start messing with em. Everyone's gotta start somewhere


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## ben54b (May 30, 2014)

Yea once I get my p99 in I need to make a pillars for my ap's and sails for my xt25's. Should provide enough practice. I think. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I'll update just for the sake of an update.

With all the pieces to the puzzle on hand, I just need to get them To come together. I figure I'll get it all playing and wired then finish the pretty parts after. So on to getting the sub enclosure ready...

At first I was gonna use the top panel as a double baffle but after seeing how much more sturdy this enclosure is than the previous, I decided it's not necessary. Plus, wrapping it and removing or replacing the LEDs would have been a huge PITA. So
My plan is to route and glue some rare earth Magnets to the underside the panel and top the enclosure...







I used this 5 minute epoxy...



Crap hold ridiculously strong. Which is good bc these rare earth magnets are ridiculously strong...

[




At first, I was gonna put a magnet on the enclosure and the baffle but if they weren't exactly lined up, the baffle wouldn't line up on the box. So I decided to use big metal washers on the enclosure and magnets on the baffle. That way I could still slide the baffle around a little to line up perfectly. 

Here's how I lined them up. Taped a piece of wax paper to the baffle and marked the spots where magnets were...



Then laid it on the enclosure, and taped it down...






Then lift up the baffle and bam.... There's where the magnets on the baffle hit the enclosure.




Here's the washers epoxied to the enclosure...



I wound up adding 2 washers and magnets to the larger side after this pic.





Now, this isn't how it sits in the truck, but even when tilted this much, the baffle doesn't budge or slide or anything. 



Then I hit the underside edges with the router so when I wrap them, the thickness of the suede spent affect it from sitting flush...





Now I gotta check, but if I have the proper cables to reach to the 2nd amp, I could possibly have this thing making noise this weekend. I'll carpet the enclosure part today, wire up and install the subs. Then all that is left is to wire the 2nd amp and finish the false floors, and the beauty panels. Lessgooo


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Very clever.


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

Is the other Leviathan going on the passenger side floor pan? Like the other amp mirrored onto the passenger side?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Very clever.




I get a good one in there every once in a while.



WhereAmEye? said:


> Is the other Leviathan going on the passenger side floor pan? Like the other amp mirrored onto the passenger side?




Yessir... Posted this in my other thread, forgot to do it here. Just started on the false floor on that side...


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

^^ Swweeet


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## YukonXL04 (Mar 6, 2014)

Just read through the whole thread. All I can say is great work man! Keep it up!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

^^ thanks Yukon 


End of weekend update. A little change of plans and a saints performance that makes me wanna puke gave me some spare time today.

First i carpeted the sides...



Knowing it would be nearly impossible to do the whole thing in one piece, I did the edges them started on the top. I wasn't sure how to go about wrapping the sub spacers. Didn't know if it could be done in 1 piece but I would give it hell. And like a bawss, made it work...







In the last pic, the seams are visible but once the top panel is on, they disappear...





Then some polyfill and wires...



Subs...




In the truck...



And seats still go down...



Then repeat for other enclosure.

Edges



Top...





In the truck...







I noticed some overspray or something on the driver side subs gasket. I'll paint over it tomorrow. I still need more polyfill for drivers side before I mount the sub up. Now I need to run power, ground, and RCAs to the other amp, then this beast should be making some noise tomorrow.


On a side note, anyone know what this is?...



I pulled the a-pillar off to see what kinda room is back there. It looks like just some kind of fabric or something. No wires inside of it and it just hooks onto the metal post.


----------



## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

bradknob said:


> End of weekend update. A little change of plans and a saints performance that makes me wanna puke gave me some spare time today.


Play the Panthers again next week and the score will be reversed I bet. Panthers are stupidly unreliable. Suck one week and play fine the next


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

WhereAmEye? said:


> Play the Panthers again next week and the score will be reversed I bet. Panthers are stupidly unreliable. Suck one week and play fine the next



I know the feel man. Lol. Welcome to the nfc south. Where no team is even .500 but are all on pace to be division champ.


----------



## pjc (May 3, 2009)

Isn't that an airbag in the pillar? Is that what you are asking about?
Fantastic build. Love truck builds. Hope to start mine soon enough.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

pjc said:


> Isn't that an airbag in the pillar? Is that what you are asking about?
> Fantastic build. Love truck builds. Hope to start mine soon enough.


Thanks man. And yes, I eventually learned that is the airbag. I was a little thrown off bc I didn't know I had them there and also the pillar is held with bolts so it seemed silly to have an airbag begind it.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

It's alive!! Well partially. I only got the 2 hooked up for now. Getting the power wire to the other side turned out to be a bigger PITA than I anticipated. I'll have it rolling tonight tho!!

I kept gains low until I can set them Properly and let the subs break in a little. But impressions so far... About what I expected very transparent, super smooth and detailed. Weird thing is that it's not a whole bunch "louder" than just a single one but it seems much more full. It really opened everything up and made the stage BIGGER and much much warmer. I have them crossed at 85hz for now but I'd like to see If I can get them a little higher and still have bass up front. The impact of them and the dyns is kickass.


I tried to get a half decent video with my but I was driving around my neighborhood bc it was late. It's difficult to get the dynamic impact of these with an iPhone... But this is all I got for now. I'll see if I can get some good recordings with my daytin mic later on. Also this is with zero Eq or level matching. Just t/a and x-overs set. Vocals are pretty realistic. Everything else needs a little bit of work...

https://vimeo.com/114016814

https://vimeo.com/114013213


Also the ZED LEDs are ridiculous bright...


----------



## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Ouch, that is bright lol but it looks great.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Edit..... You were talking about the amps. Luckily it only shows on the headliner and doesn't reflect all over the truck.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Yes sorry I was referring to the amps. I keep telling myself to bust a move and do something on my CrewCab, but with 122,000 on the body and a new motor I'm just going to retire her in October.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Yes it looks exactly like this except my new tires are all black walls now.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Nice! I'm hoping this one takes me well over 100k miles. I also planned on grabbing the same set of wheels.... But all my play funds were dumped into what you see here in this thread ?


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

I've taken this truck everywhere and until the mishap with the motor, it never skipped a beat. I was averaging at least 30,000 miles a year on it. I used it as my business vehicle and my clients had no problems with being carted around in a domestic truck.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Well, a week or so ago, I impulse bought a set of L1 pros for a steal here in the pesky classifieds. (I need to IP ban myself from there somehow) I lined up a sale for my OG L1s locally and then he talked me into throwing the L3s in there for a package deal. In the meantime, scooped a set of L4SE carbons....







I feel like I need some acrylic enclosures to show off off. Such a fine looking speaker. Now, fast forward to today, my buyer backs out of the deal so these will be up for grabs shortly.


I've been wanting to get the speakers out the dash and from firing directly into the windshield so I'll do some testing with these and see where they sound best. Maybe in the pillars or some Pods in the dash with them angled into the cab more. Idunno yet but we'll find out soon.


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## vinnny (Dec 28, 2011)

I'd be interested to see if you can get those L4SE's in the dash in the 3.5" location. I have been wondering if its possible and still use the stock grill.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I seriously doubt they wild fit and still be able to use the grill. If anything, I would have to use the grill as a baffle and fiberglass a ring onto it. But, I could be wrong. Once I pull the L3s out I'll get some pics with the L4s in their place just to give you an idea.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

I know they won't fit as my L3v2s just barely fit as when I set them in the mounthing ring just barely touches the sides. All though a way guide type of pod would be cool to try and do in that spot using the grills as a template.


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## vinnny (Dec 28, 2011)

I was thinking about opening the mounting ring, make my own adapter, but only if I could get it under the grill. No worries if not, the l3 is a fine speaker


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I feel like I've been spinning my wheels lately. Just bouncing back and forth from one thing to the next. The next two weeks, I have off so some real progress should be made. But for now, this all I got...

I decided to make both baffles into one piece for a more seamless look.

Routered a few grooves in the bottom and glued a few pieces of wood to hold em straight then wrapped them
In the suede I hd left over...







Def not my best wrapping job but it's gonna have to do for now. Here's everything just kinda thrown in there. I've got to get new RCAs to run from the DSP to the passenger side amp.(notice the cables just strewn across). I've got to trim some of the feet under the floor so they sit flush and hold the amps straight in the peep hole.










I'm still waiting for all my RGBW LED switches and doo hickies to come in then I'm gonna replace the LEDs in the amps and put some under the baffles around the subs.

Also need to do some sails and figure out what Ima do with the L4s. Gotta lot to do in the next couple weeks. Should start getting good


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

vinnny said:


> I'd be interested to see if you can get those L4SE's in the dash in the 3.5" location. I have been wondering if its possible and still use the stock grill.



No dice...


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## vinnny (Dec 28, 2011)

Well that answers that. Thanks brad. That is a nice looking speaker! It will be interesting to see what you create to hold that sucker!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I think the only thing that would do them justice would be something along the lines of.....











That should fit on the dash right?


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## lizardking (Nov 8, 2008)

bradknob said:


> No dice...


They won't sit in there when you pop the grille off?


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## V7Sport73 (Dec 17, 2014)

Bright as fawk, at this point i ordered a dimmer switch. 


Nice job. You did a lot of work and it turned out great. This helps inspire me on my project.


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## vinnny (Dec 28, 2011)

bradknob said:


> I think the only thing that would do them justice would be something along the lines of.....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I think so. Should have ample power.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

lizardking said:


> They won't sit in there when you pop the grille off?




They will prob sit in there but the grill wouldn't be able to go back on. Which is what he wanted to make sure of.



V7Sport73 said:


> Bright as fawk, at this point i ordered a dimmer switch.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks man, get to it! And take lots of pics.




vinnny said:


> I think so. Should have ample power.




Lol, all the power.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

V7Sport73 said:


> Bright as fawk, at this point i ordered a dimmer switch.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Just realized that was ur thread that you removed just about every nut inside the truck to deaden. Bravo dude!!! Wish I had that determination.


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## V7Sport73 (Dec 17, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Just realized that was ur thread that you removed just about every nut inside the truck to deaden. Bravo dude!!! Wish I had that determination.


Thanks!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Finally had some time to get started on these pillars.
First I had to make the rings on my homemade router table. lol do not try this at home...



Ok rings were already cut at that point, just had to trim one little piece. I like my fingers and plan on keeping them for a while.

As you can see, these pillars have huge intrusive handles. They don't look bad here but at the angle they're installed, they would be blocking the driver so I just decided to get rid of em. I had to chop them off so I could try and make the pillar a better shape. Pretty much making the pillar easier to work with...






Taped em down to the table and filled em with some expanding foam...






I learned a lesson a while back as a kid. Trying to stop rattles in my trunk from my first system, I sprayed this crap in the support beams of my trunk lid. Did not end well. Trunk looked like the back of the legs of a 500 lb woman. So I taped them down so the foam would not move or reshape them.

While I was waiting for that to cure, I decided to install the leds on the sub enclosure. Didn't take any pics but here's how it turned out...



It's raining so I had to do the vid from in the truck. I'll get a better one later. I can program the LEDs with the remote so I can choose what colors light up and how slow/fast they fade or blink. I think it looks pretty cool. I thinking gonna really set it off once I put them in my Amos.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> It's raining so I had to do the vid from in the truck. I'll get a better one later. I can program the LEDs with the remote so I can choose what colors light up and how slow/fast they fade or blink. I think it looks pretty cool. I thinking gonna really set it off once I put them in my Amos.


Your Hot For Teacher video sounds better on the web than mine sounds in person in my truck!

Nice looking set up. Looking forward to see the finished product on the pillars.

Keep posting.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Have you taken an REW measurement of the subs?

I have fair sized hump centered at 55Hz.

I am not sure if the cab is contributing to it or not.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Have you taken an REW measurement of the subs?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I did one as soon as I installed them....



Looks like I have the same hump. Only tuning ive done, has been for the front speakers and that was minimal bc I knew I would be changing equipment. Haven't tried to tame the subs yet.


----------



## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Thanks. I am playing with 3 way active now. My sub looks like this:










Using the sweep as opposed to the pink noise and RTA.

What is the pink noise file you are playing? Can you point me to it? Overall, I get different shapes using the HSU stereo pink noise versus an REW sweep.

Thanks


----------



## seafish (Aug 1, 2012)

vinnny said:


> I'd be interested to see if you can get those L4SE's in the dash in the 3.5" location. I have been wondering if its possible and still use the stock grill.


Not sure if this will help or not, but the L4 does fit into the stock dash location of my 2005 Ram 2500 simply by rounding out the cutout (it has flat spots, and shimming the speaker up with a 1/4" baffle.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Thanks. I am playing with 3 way active now. My sub looks like this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



This thread has a bunch of tuning disks you can download and burn to a cd. Some have pink noise...

http://diymobileaudio.com/forum/tec...28593-sq-demonstration-cds-torrent-files.html

If not, you can play it from YouTube or spotify straight to your head unit or DSP.


----------



## pjc (May 3, 2009)

I'm gonna be in Baton Rouge for a few days. Are you in NO or closer to BR?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

pjc said:


> I'm gonna be in Baton Rouge for a few days. Are you in NO or closer to BR?



Closer to BR. I will actually be in nola tomorrow night though.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

I'll be out of town for a few days so here's where I got with the pillars. This is one of those projects that seems like nothing wants to go right. My, dive in head first and just make it work philosophy is being put to the test. As it usually does....



After the foam hardened I cut and sanded it down to the shape I wanted





Good enough for now, then I drilled a million holes so the fiberglass would stick



Another good thing about the foam is that it filled the back of the pillar and will help keep its original shape while I'm working with it



Now she's ready to be glassed




And it still fits!! Now I have a normal shaped pillar that will be much easier to work with






Next I have to aim and mount the rings. I reeeeally don't want big ass intrusive pillars, but I also reeeeally want them to be about 15 degrees off axis. My idea was to have the ring sunken into the pillar and cut a piece of tubing and mold it in so the pillar itself wouldn't be blocking the speaker.

Kinda like these I saw in the show off you pillar thread, but without the tweeter...




U can see here, where the Orange line is drawn. That's where I wanted to cut...



But had I thought about it for 1 second beforehand, the bolt that hold the pillar about 1/4 inch from the back of it now that I shrunk it down



Now that won't work so I have an even bigger decision between fashion and function. I decided I just do not want these giant pillars in my face so I had to settle for about 45-50 degrees off axis. This way, they're still facings way from the window and are still more on axis than my L3s.


So I much the ring up and get ready to wrap for glassing and for whatever reason the damn grill cloth would not stick to the fxin pillar for nothing. Gorilla glue I used on my sail panels don't work hot glue did my work. Maybe bc of the cold so I opted for the good ol expanding foam again...




Only thing about this stuff is it takes 8hrs to harden. Ain't nobody got time Fa dat.. But once it dos I shaved down to the shape I wanted ...










Now I got the shape I want, I can finally put some glass on dat ass... No pics of glass, we know what that looks like. This is after I hit it up with some dynaglass...








I actually think the foam made it a little easier. Now I just gotta wait for it to cure for the other side so I can do that one. May have these done by the weekend. Not sure how I'll finish em yet tho.


----------



## pjc (May 3, 2009)

I feel ya about big pillars. Mine will be starting soon and I want to try the style you were originally going for. 
Luckily my midrange is 2 5/8" or so. So that will help me some. 

Love watching your build as a fellow truck owner.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Thanks, I have this fetish for trying to jam stuff into spaces it doesn't belong.... But that's a different forum lol

How long will u be in BR? I'm leaving tomorrow morning and coming back Friday. If ur around, I'll let u check it out. I think it's just about demo worthy now, with the little bit of tune I have so far


----------



## pjc (May 3, 2009)

I'll be in Baton Rouge till Saturday most likely. I'll PM you my number. Be very nice to check it out. My build is gonna start when I get back.... Slow build.


----------



## rxonmymind (Sep 7, 2010)

Props. Wish I had the time to do this. Looks fun. 
Anyway, appreciate the pics, commentary and your sense of humor. Excellent build.


----------



## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Looking good man! I'm coming see you soon!!


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

rxonmymind said:


> Props. Wish I had the time to do this. Looks fun.
> 
> Anyway, appreciate the pics, commentary and your sense of humor. Excellent build.



Thanks man. The wife works late into the evenings and no kids so I have a good solid 3-4 hours a day after work to do as I please. 



A-Ron said:


> Looking good man! I'm coming see you soon!!



Cmon!!!....

Just not this week, too cold. Wait til next week when it's gonna be in the 80s probably. Lol stupid Louisiana weather


U figure out that helix yet? I've got a decent tune on mine now. Waiting until I get these pillars done to get into it.


----------



## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Had some bad noise show up when I put the helix in. Tracked it down to cheap stinger RCA's so I ordered all new ones. My first go at the tuning process was not a good one. Needs a lot of work. When I put the cables in I'll give it another go. I'll wait and come when you finish the pillars. Can't wait to listen!


----------



## Huckleberry Sound (Jan 17, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> Had some bad noise show up when I put the helix in. Tracked it down to cheap stinger RCA's so I ordered all new ones. My first go at the tuning process was not a good one. Needs a lot of work. When I put the cables in I'll give it another go. I'll wait and come when you finish the pillars. Can't wait to listen!


Westco here on the form makes some great cables.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> Had some bad noise show up when I put the helix in. Tracked it down to cheap stinger RCA's so I ordered all new ones. My first go at the tuning process was not a good one. Needs a lot of work. When I put the cables in I'll give it another go. I'll wait and come when you finish the pillars. Can't wait to listen!



Ahh, noise is so aggrevating. Do you have a mic?

If you haven't already, check out the thread Hanatsu made about measuring for beginners. It helped me out quite a bit. 



Huckleberry Sound said:


> Westco here on the form makes some great cables.



And there's the man to thank for these lovely L4 carbons.... Can't wait to get them bad boys making some noise. Thanks again.

And I really wanted to try some of Westcos cables but the ends are just too long to fit under these false floors.


----------



## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

bradknob said:


> And there's the man to thank for these lovely L4 carbons.... Can't wait to get them bad boys making some noise.


That's the man I thank for my Helix! Was going to go with westco because of all the awesome feedback but funds were short from Christmas with 2 kids. I ended up going with esoteric audio cables. Had great results with them in the past. 

No mic Brad.... I want to get everything as far as I can get with my ear and then I'll come see you for the mic and tweaking.

Really wanting to tackle the pillar thing with my L3s and L1pro r2's. Gotta get them boys off the floor.

Aaron


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> That's the man I thank for my Helix! Was going to go with westco because of all the awesome feedback but funds were short from Christmas with 2 kids. I ended up going with esoteric audio cables. Had great results with them in the past.
> 
> No mic Brad.... I want to get everything as far as I can get with my ear and then I'll come see you for the mic and tweaking.
> 
> ...



Cool, time alignment with a ruler, x-over settings, and a basic level match is about the extent of my capabilities without a mic or measurement program.

Hopefully by next week I should have the pillars making noise. As long as this dumb weather passes. Then u can check em out and see if it's a route you may wanna take.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Not as much to brag about as I would have liked by this point. Between the weather and the passenger side pillar being a little B**** A** M***** F****** P**** of S***, this is taking longer than originally planned. At first the dynaglass I put on it wouldn't cure all the way. Bc of the cold I guess. So that was a sticky mess trying to deal with. Then after all that, the part where the speaker protrudes was too Low and hit the dash before the pillar went all the way in. Then the backside of pillar had to be sanded down a good bit so it would snap into place. 

Anyway, Here they are before the foam was removed and after a little dynaglass and shaping



Driver side cooperating. Sanded, fit tested, and primed ready for spot putty...





Now I figure if I lay them next to each other for a couple days, and let the annoying one see what a beautiful piece of work it could become, it would start cooperating. #pillarshaming



Then a little spot putty...





While it was drying, i got the passenger side to fit on the truck then I hit it with some more filler and got it smoother. Now I think it's ready to cooperate.




Hopefully tonight I'll have them both smooth enough to finish. Still debating if ima wrap or paint but Ima have to decide soon so we'll see.


----------



## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Carbon fiber wrap! Yeah baby.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Thought about it but would just look so out of place with my interior. I think I'm going to wrap them for sure, but it's not gonna be easy. May have to check on my sewing game


----------



## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Man I'd paint them beauties!
You can wrap yours and then when we build mine, I'll paint em!


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

lol, I'm over these... Not in the mood to put forth the effort to get these paint ready. Had I not had to reshape the whole pillar, it would be a different story so I'll try wrapping them and see how I like them.

I'll prob install the speakers in these as is while I wait til I find the fabric ima use. I put one in last night to see how it looks. It's not too bad or intrusive....


----------



## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

It looks great! I think they will wrap relatively easy with micro suede... I hope you decide to not cover the speakers. Maybe just a ring to cover the holes?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

DavidRam said:


> It looks great! I think they will wrap relatively easy with micro suede... I hope you decide to not cover the speakers. Maybe just a ring to cover the holes?



Thanks bro. I'll leave the speakers exposed. Although I'll probably make a cover for them that can remove easily with magnets or something. The cones of my L3s became faded from the sun beating on them in the dash so the cover will mainly be to help with the sunlight and prying eyes. Although my windshields tinted and no one in my area has probably even heard of HAT, but just to be safe.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Last night I got these bad boys in. First I half way wrapped them in some speaker grill cloth I had lying around. I wanted to see if it could be done without a seam, and it was actually a little easier than I expected. 



Now I know I can wrap them, I'll leave them ugly and primed until the fabric ima use comes in. A few final touches on the POS that is the passenger side....



Then I yanked out the L3s so I could run the wire to the pillar. Here's the L4 in comparison...





Got the wires in place, threw the pillars in, stuffed with some polyfill...






Was dark and cold so these are the best I could do for now. 





Now, how do they sound? Well in the 40 minutes I've had with them, I'd say it's a pretty drastic change. I didn't touch, T/a, levels, Eq, or x-over. Just a direct swap. I played some .flac files on my iPod made up of tool, Alice in chains unplugged, Metallica, Dave Matthews live, nirvana unplugged, newer NIN stuff, and the obligatory Eagles hell freezes over live album. Just started collecting hi res music files.

First thing I noticed was subtle nuances in the intro of just about every song I played, that I hadn't noticed before. Things like a band member speaking in the background, or accidental strum if an instrument stuff like that. Like in the song "the pot" by tool. I'm not super familiar with the song so I may have just not paid attention before but right when it starts, u can hear Maynard start singing.... Sounds like an echo or like he's really really far away then the song starts and his voice comes in nice and loud and he just repeats what he says in the echo before hand. I'll have to go listen to it in my Bluetooth speaker to see if it's as audible.

The next thing that was immediately apparent was that the attack of the strings and snares was STRONG. Much more potent than before. Great impact in the lower midrange. Which made me smile because that was one of my goals. Can't wait to see what happens when I drop the x-over down to about 200 or so. Especially in the live albums.

Last thing I noticed off the bat was the left and right cues in the music. Like when there's an instrument or a clap etc way left or right of the stage. Before, when I'd hear it, I could tell exactly what speaker it was coming from and exactly where the speaker was located. Now it's less apparent exactly where the speaker is. Also, when an instrument is being played solo (like a guitar riff at the beginning of a song before the rest of the band kicks in) there seems to be more space around the instrument. Hard to describe, but it seems more open. Not sure if this is due to the mid and tweet being closer to each other, mid not firing into the windshield, or just a better speaker. Probably a little of all of the above.

I feel that's a pretty drastic difference for just a direct swap. I'm pumped about jumping into tuning these bad boys. The transparency and naturalness of them is incredible. I'll update when I get some more time with them.


I think.... Think....... I may be done buying/swapping gear for a long time to come.


And, obligatory videos that do no justice....

Hotel California....
https://vimeo.com/116826921

AIC...
https://vimeo.com/116824589


Here's the tool song I was talking about. Listen right when it starts, before he starts singing it seems like you can hear him real far away
https://vimeo.com/116859449


----------



## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Sweet! 
So the carbon's are the real thing? I've got the l3se's....what to do, what to do...
What you wrapping them in?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> Sweet!
> So the carbon's are the real thing? I've got the l3se's....what to do, what to do...
> What you wrapping them in?



Yep, loving them so far.

I had the V1 L3s so I'd like to think ur L3 SEs would be a nice step above those being they have the same motor structure and all, as these L4s but just a tad less cone area. We'll find out eventually tho...

I ordered this speaker grill cloth. To try first. Mainly because it's very stretchy, and cheap. Plus the texture is real close to the factory pillars and headliner.










I'd really like to wrap them in black or charcoal but then I'd have to re-do all the pillars and headliner, which I'm not in the mood for just yet.


----------



## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

Unless your particular area is infamous for break ins I wouldn't cover those beauties either haha. Pods look great though, good job.


----------



## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

Looks great bro! Can't wait to see them wrapped. I have access to alot of fabric samples, so if the stuff you ordered doesn't match, let me know and I'll find a good fabric. Our headliners should be the exact same material...


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

WhereAmEye? said:


> Unless your particular area is infamous for break ins I wouldn't cover those beauties either haha. Pods look great though, good job.


Thanks man. I'm not worried about break ins, plus my windshield is tinted. U can't really see in there anyway. But I like looking at the speakers so much, I forget to look at the road. Lol





DavidRam said:


> Looks great bro! Can't wait to see them wrapped. I have access to alot of fabric samples, so if the stuff you ordered doesn't match, let me know and I'll find a good fabric. Our headliners should be the exact same material...



Damn.... That's good to know. I'll check out this stuff when it comes in and definitely hit u up if it doesn't work out. Especially since we have the same headliner. Which I'm pretty sure they're all the same. Thanks


----------



## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

bradknob said:


> I think.... Think....... I may be done buying/swapping gear for a long time to come.


I doubt it, lol!


----------



## V7Sport73 (Dec 17, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Last night I got these bad boys in. First I half way wrapped them in some speaker grill cloth I had lying around. I wanted to see if it could be done without a seam, and it was actually a little easier than I expected.
> 
> Now, how do they sound? Well in the 40 minutes I've had with them, I'd say it's a pretty drastic change. I didn't touch, T/a, levels, Eq, or x-over. Just a direct swap. I played some .flac files on my iPod made up of tool, Alice in chains unplugged, Metallica, Dave Matthews live, nirvana unplugged, newer NIN stuff, and the obligatory Eagles hell freezes over live album. Just started collecting hi res music files.
> 
> ...


I've been watching this thread for a while now. Very nice job on the truck. I have to say if the stereo sounds that good just on the video I can only image how it must sound sitting in the truck. Congratulations on a excellent job.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

V7Sport73 said:


> I've been watching this thread for a while now. Very nice job on the truck. I have to say if the stereo sounds that good just on the video I can only image how it must sound sitting in the truck. Congratulations on a excellent job.



Thanks man. A lot of the aspects that make it amazing, to me, like imaging and depth and stuff don't show up in the vids. But tonally you get the idea.



Tonight I did a little testing. First I changed the time alignment of the L4s. Everything other setting was exactly the same as the L3s. RTA basically supported what I thought I was hearing...

Blues are left and right L4s reds are L3s...



Here's the average of the 2 sides.....



Much more linear now.



Edit.... The L3 measurement is actually the whole side minus the subs. So disregard below 250 and above 6kish


----------



## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Yes...Graphs!!!!!!

They do look super linear from 500Hz to 6K.


----------



## seafish (Aug 1, 2012)

Those are looking really good!!!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Yes...Graphs!!!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> They do look super linear from 500Hz to 6K.


Haha, Knew you would like that. There's will be plenty more don't worry.

U ever get those silver flutes in yet?





seafish said:


> Those are looking really good!!!



Thanks.... 





Knowing I was changing up a bunch of gear, I never put much effort into tuning. Took a few measurements and did a little EQing but there's still a lot of work so I'll post up results when I get there.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Yes...Graphs!!!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> They do look super linear from 500Hz to 6K.



Here's one u might like. Actually the first time i ever measured the L1s since I got them

Red and orange are L4s. Blues are L1s. Both with zero Eq.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Ordered the L4 grill set last week. I actually planned on molding the bottom ring of the grill to the wooden ring I have now to get a perfect fit and finish.... But somewhere along the line I did something awesome....


Already made it the perfect size....

















It basically slides right in. Once I wrap it, it should just pressure fit right in place. Gotta love when stuff accidentally works out.


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## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Awesome! Can't wait to hear em! Still playing with this damn pro. Can't get it to sound right to save my life! I need some expertise!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> Awesome! Can't wait to hear em! Still playing with this damn pro. Can't get it to sound right to save my life! I need some expertise!



Let's go man, ready when u are. See if we can get u headed in the right direction at least.

Without a mic, I'd be completely lost


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## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

I'm in the process of putting in JL ZR 8"s in the doors at the moment. Bit off a little more than I can chew but I'll have em done soon and we'll get together.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> I'm in the process of putting in JL ZR 8"s in the doors at the moment. Bit off a little more than I can chew but I'll have em done soon and we'll get together.



Lol, story if my life . Hurry up and get to the point of no return so you have to finish. Then just make it happen. I've learned a lot that way. Also effed up a lot of crap that way lol.

Let me know if there's any way I can help.


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## SPAZ (Jan 7, 2009)

Excellent work! I wish i had the skills to do stuff like this.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Thanks man!


I got another fabric in this weekend, it's pretty close...



















Pics are deceiving. It looks a bit more brown in person. The other cloth I ordered will be in today and I'll see how it looks. In the mean time, got the LEDs wired up...










Gonna try to swap the LEDs in the amps and fix the rear floors and be dont with the back..... Finally


----------



## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

It is VERY cool, man! Great job!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

DavidRam said:


> It is VERY cool, man! Great job!



Thanks dude. 

If only I can get it tuned like yours is be alright.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

The other cloth came in. Different name... Same exact color so I figured it's damn close so I would just wrap it and see how it looks.

Actually turned out to be a bigger PITA than I expected. Got clothes pins?










There's a few spots where the glue came through and a few spots that some of the Imperfections show that I didn't think would. So I plan on wrapping it again with a second layer.






































I'm conducting an experiment to see if the second layer will stick to the first layer of cloth. If it works all wrap it again tomorrow. So far I think it looks alright. Well see


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## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

Everything looks impressive man. I have an L4s and have thought of doing this too. But I was told they needed more air space to really get them going nicely. How much poly did you put behind it? Do they perform better with or without poly?


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## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Looks good! Never tried the clothes pins idea.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Black Rain said:


> Everything looks impressive man. I have an L4s and have thought of doing this too. But I was told they needed more air space to really get them going nicely. How much poly did you put behind it? Do they perform better with or without poly?



Thanks. My pillars actually vent down into the dash so there's a good bit of space for them to breathe. Honestly I haven't played them without polyfill so I can't answer that, I just figure it's gotta be better than having bare metal behind them. I have them crossed at 200 and I've had no issue with them playing that low.



A-Ron said:


> Looks good! Never tried the clothes pins idea.



Thanks. They work wonders without an extra set of hands. And 100 of em are like $3


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## seafish (Aug 1, 2012)

Your work continues to amaze me…I haven't even gotten my L4s into the oem dash location where they will almost pop right in.


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## Horuspeed (Dec 2, 2010)

Man, I'm really inspired by your build. I purchased a pair of L4SE carbon and I'll try to fit them in the A pillar of my Toyota Hilux. I've got several questions: Why did you angled them and not face to face? Where did you put the DSP pro, after the head unit or next to the amps? And what kind of batterie you've got under the hood? Regards


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

seafish said:


> Your work continues to amaze me…I haven't even gotten my L4s into the oem dash location where they will almost pop right in.



Thanks man, I think sub consciously your brain is saying... That's too easy, go big or go home. Lol 



Horuspeed said:


> Man, I'm really inspired by your build. I purchased a pair of L4SE carbon and I'll try to fit them in the A pillar of my Toyota Hilux. I've got several questions: Why did you angled them and not face to face? Where did you put the DSP pro, after the head unit or next to the amps? And what kind of batterie you've got under the hood? Regards



The reason I didn't put them directly on axis was purely for cosmetic reasons. The pillar would have just been too big and bulky and I didn't want that. I am still happy with them they way they are now. My DSP is right next to my amp on the rear passenger floor board. I'm not sure of the battery, but it's the one that came from the factory with the truck.


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## skippytech (Dec 26, 2014)

I have been lovin your build. I have the same truck. You have got me started on a build of my own now. Lots of ideas. Cant wait to see what you do next.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

skippytech said:


> I have been lovin your build. I have the same truck. You have got me started on a build of my own now. Lots of ideas. Cant wait to see what you do next.



Awesome man. Glad I can motivate someone. 

Unfortunately most of the work Is done... All that's left that is buttoning up some loose ends. 


Pretty sure I said that at least 4 times throughout this build lol. So we'll see


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

^^haha I call bull crap


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## bbfoto (Aug 28, 2005)

Sweet install. Great job on the A-Pillars!


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## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

bradknob said:


> Ordered the L4 grill set last week. I actually planned on molding the bottom ring of the grill to the wooden ring I have now to get a perfect fit and finish.... But somewhere along the line I did something awesome....
> 
> 
> Already made it the perfect size....
> ...


How did you end up doing it? I was trying to do the same thing in my friends car but couldn't figure it out.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Black Rain said:


> How did you end up doing it? I was trying to do the same thing in my friends car but couldn't figure it out.



End up doing what? Wrapping?

Like this. But I didn't like it...










After staring at the pillars for a week or 2, there was a few flaws I noticed and one I saw them, I couldn't un see them. So I cut em up again and epoxied the rings on them like I should have done in the first place.










Then stretched and glassed some fabric





























I found some new fabric that matches much closer. So now to decide, again, if I want to wrap or spray with some texture paint


----------



## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

Wow, it still came out awesome. What type of fabric did you use so it wasn't too thick where the grill goes?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Thanks!

At first I used grill cloth to wrap it, and the thickness of it was perfect. Now that I used the rings, I will have to sand the inside down a tad for the suede fabric I have for it to fit perfect, or paint it so I don't need to sand it. 

I'm building a set for someone else right now, and what I plan on doing is making a 1/8" channel around the grill ring so we can tuck the fabric into it. Should have done It for mine but we live and learn.


----------



## Black Rain (Feb 27, 2011)

Cool. Won't shaving down the grill mount diminish the integrity of it? Make it flimsy?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Black Rain said:


> Cool. Won't shaving down the grill mount diminish the integrity of it? Make it flimsy?



Nah, not if I keep to an 1/8" or so. The sides of the ring are pretty thick and its epoxied to an mdf ring.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Alriiiiiight! Been a slow few weeks on my build. Had a few jobs for other people, worked on the HT a bit, and some honey-dos so hadn't had much time to mess with my own stuff. Also took another step back and sold my sail panels. Finally got some breathing room so I got ready to wrap these pillars and the suede fabric Is nowhere to be found. Don't wanna blame my preggo brain wife, but the bish threw it away. Sooooo I ordered some new fabric and in the mean time, I got some texture paint and I would paint one to see how it came out...



Meh, Looks ok. Haven't installed it yet but I doubt I'll be able to live with it.

Fast forward a few days and the vinyl I ordered came in...





Hmmmmm, now I think were getting somewhere. Whipped out the heat gun, razor, and contact cement and started wrapping. Attempt 1 = big fail. But learned a few things. 1) was that there was no way this was gonna work without a seam.... 2) I must have been a 90 year old woman in my past life...



I put the seam under the speaker facing the dash so it will barely be noticable when installed. 2nd attempt ...




FUUUUU$&&&[email protected]&&&@&$k!!



Fail.... Too much heat and stretch es no Bueno. Now I learned even more. Hopefully third times a charm so I can get this portion of my life over with and move on.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Interesting look there (not counting the tear). I like the vinyl. How would leather work? Would it be easier to work with? 

LMAO on the 90 year Old Woman comment.

HT=Home Theater?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Interesting look there (not counting the tear). I like the vinyl. How would leather work? Would it be easier to work with?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Not sure if Leather would be any easier, I've never messed with it. This vinyl is such a good match I wanna stick with it.

And yes. Home theatre. I had a klipsch setup a while back and sold the towers and haven't used it again in 2 years. Just installed some new fronts and I'm about to build a sub using my DIYMA 12". Pretty basic 5.1 setup.... For now


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## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Hurry up and finish those so you can start on mine!


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

A-Ron said:


> Hurry up and finish those so you can start on mine!



Lol. Had to take a break to do work for other people. Just give me the word.


U get the helix sorted out? And the 8"s


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## A-Ron (Feb 12, 2010)

Got about the best results I'm going to get with my ear. I need to come see you for test equip! 
Got the 8"s installed, finally! Much better than the L6's. 
If you feel like tackling the pillars for me then let's talk!


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## skippytech (Dec 26, 2014)

That vinyl texture and color matches nicely. Did you get it to cooperate yet?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

skippytech said:


> That vinyl texture and color matches nicely. Did you get it to cooperate yet?



Nah, I let it sit in the corner and think about what it's done for a few days. Lol. I'm gonna tackle it this weekend


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## skippytech (Dec 26, 2014)

Hahaha, punishment for being naughty. Curious to see what solution you come up with. Since they were like a fat chick in skinny jeans the first time, cant hold all that in forever. Lol


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

Where's this gone? No updates?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

nineball76 said:


> Where's this gone? No updates?



Been working 10-12 hour days 7 days a week since early March. And with the pregnant wife and a few lil side Projects I picked up, have had exactly zero time to mess with this lately.

I was doing a set of pillars for another ram with the same Interior, using mine as the ginnea pig, I tried 12 different fabrics and none worked. I got fed up with dealing with them and threw some speaker cloth on one...



















And painted the other...










...to see which I liked best. I like the painted side so one day I'll unwrap the other and paint it. But, until then, I'm rockin 2 different pillars.


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

I really like how those pillars came out, I'd like to try mine like that but I don't think I can get rid of the handles. I need those to get up into the truck and will also be putting a tuner in that area. I might need to build pods more in the corner of the windshield for mine. Love this build though. You've given me some ideas about how to tackle mine later this year.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Not the progress I would have liked to come back with but it is what it is. 2 weeks ago, the day before the birth of my daughter, I was T-boned by a Mini Cooper. Truck was deemed totaled.... By a mini cot damn cooper 






























Good thing was that there were no injuries, wife wasn't with me, and all audio still in tact and was playing fine as ol girl was getting towed away. Although, see last pic, i dunno if the passenger side DYN made it. Had to wait for the body shop to get the door to open before I could inspect it. I have to yank everything out tomorrow so we will know then. 

As far as my next vehicle I'm leaning toward a hemi jeep Cherokee, R/T Durango or maybe even another RAM. Just keeping an eye out for the next week or 2 and see what grabs my attention. 


So it looks like another build in the books. Wasn't %100 completed but was by far the nicest setup I've had. Sorry to see it go so soon but I'll take what I learned and make it better the next go round.


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## WhereAmEye? (Jun 17, 2013)

At least no one was hurt and you have a good attitude about starting again. Congrats on the newborn!


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Oh man. That just isn't right that little runt of a car takes out the truck. So sorry!

...And I was still working on positioning myself for your hand me downs when you got bored with the piece parts.

I echo with what "WhereamI" said, So glad no one was hurt. Congratulations on the baby girl. I think you promised baby pictures some time ago.

Make sure you post back here when you start the new thread. I will follow along.


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## audiovibe (Nov 16, 2007)

Congrats on your daughter! 

Damn that sucks!! and a Mini to boot!

Definitely one of my favorite Ram builds on the forum. 

If you end up with a Durango R/T we will need to compare notes. My wife will be getting one soon.


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## rpr13 (Jul 19, 2014)

Wow, sorry to hear about this Brad. The most important thing is that no one got hurt.

You've got crazy talent so it's all replaceable, looking forward to the next build thread.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

WhereAmEye? said:


> At least no one was hurt and you have a good attitude about starting again. Congrats on the newborn!



Thanks bud. Maybe this is one of the few times where my always "needs" to be better attitude helps. There was a few things I wish I could have done over on this build but the time wasn't there for me. Now my wish has been granted I guess.




dengland said:


> Oh man. That just isn't right that little runt of a car takes out the truck. So sorry!
> 
> 
> 
> ...



After I decide on my next vehicle, I'll know what hand me downs I have. I was finally very happy with the gear I was running, it was some install ideas I wish I had executed a lil better or a lil differently. I'll let u know what I have to let go of in the next few days.

And pics as promised. 5lbs 10oz. Tiny lil thing, came a month early



















Kid popped out and landed head first in a bow. Wife's doing not mine. 



audiovibe said:


> Congrats on your daughter!
> 
> Damn that sucks!! and a Mini to boot!
> 
> ...


Thanks man, I'm going drive a used 2014 Durango tomorrow so if they get on my level price wise, could be driving a black on black on black one home tomorrow.

Honestly, a big deciding factor of an suv vs a new truck is the space to do a sick false floor build. Baby may have had something to do with it but mostly the space for audio... Does that mean I have a problem? Lol





rpr13 said:


> Wow, sorry to hear about this Brad. The most important thing is that no one got hurt.
> 
> 
> 
> You've got crazy talent so it's all replaceable, looking forward to the next build thread.



Your right, could have been much worse. Thanks for the kind words. 



I'll be back here and let you all know once I start the new build. I've been getting pretty busy locally building for guys around here so I'd like to use my new ride as a bit of advertising of what I can do.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> And pics as promised. 5lbs 10oz. Tiny lil thing, came a month early


Awww... What a cutie! Blink and she will be 20 years old. Congrats.


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## losmarios (Apr 22, 2015)

Congrats on the the new addition! And sorry about your ride. If you end up not getting a Ram, I'll take that sub box off your hands.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

losmarios said:


> Congrats on the the new addition! And sorry about your ride. If you end up not getting a Ram, I'll take that sub box off your hands.




A few things about the box...

-It's basically useless if ur not running SI MKIVs, and it highly doubt I'm getting rid of these subs.

-the top panel is one piece and would not survive shipping unless I build a crate or something to support it.... At the buyers expense of course.

- without the top panel, the 2 parts weigh over 75 lbs so shipping will prob be outrageous. So pick up would be optimal.


But, money talks so if ur still interested, we can work out something.


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## SQLnovice (Jul 22, 2014)

Congrats on the new cute baby girl. Sorry about the misshap and glad no one got hurt.


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

Grats on the little one, sucks bout the big one. Looking at the design of the enclosure and how it slopes on the inside,, do you think the shape of the bm mkv could possibly fit? At only .5" deeper but the frame curving in rather than straight down like the mkiv, I'm wondering if 3 mkv's is doable? 

Maybe I'll shoot Nick an email and see if he could do a side by side layover of both. Also the arms might make squeezing them in reasonable. 

Sell me your pillars?


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

nineball76 said:


> Grats on the little one, sucks bout the big one. Looking at the design of the enclosure and how it slopes on the inside,, do you think the shape of the bm mkv could possibly fit? At only .5" deeper but the frame curving in rather than straight down like the mkiv, I'm wondering if 3 mkv's is doable?
> 
> Maybe I'll shoot Nick an email and see if he could do a side by side layover of both. Also the arms might make squeezing them in reasonable.
> 
> Sell me your pillars?



Thanks bud.... I see what ur saying about the underside of the sub. I think it would be extremely close. If you do reach out to Nick, let me know.

I'm pretty sure pillars are sold locally. If that deal falls through, I'll let u know


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## aqlover (Jun 7, 2011)

Congrats on your daughter, sorry to hear about your truck but at least you're OK


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## vabch22 (Sep 27, 2010)

First, congrats on your daughter! But onto the truck, damn that sucks man. This was not how I expected the thread to end when I started reading it. I was looking for ideas on my 08 Ram. Your install was looking great... and then a mini cooper ruined it all. Glad no one was injured though.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

nineball76 said:


> Grats on the little one, sucks bout the big one. Looking at the design of the enclosure and how it slopes on the inside,, do you think the shape of the bm mkv could possibly fit? At only .5" deeper but the frame curving in rather than straight down like the mkiv, I'm wondering if 3 mkv's is doable?
> 
> Maybe I'll shoot Nick an email and see if he could do a side by side layover of both. Also the arms might make squeezing them in reasonable.
> 
> Sell me your pillars?



Found this pic if it helps 












Been thinking about it, may put the box and subs up for sale. Let me know if anyones interested


----------



## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

The arms on the mkv would have to sit just perfect, it looks like they might fit. 

Shoot me a price on the enclosure and subs, I might can come pick em up if you could just store them fora little bit


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

Congrats on the little one. Glad your wife and baby were not with you in the crash. Sucks I never got around to meeting up with you to hear it....Have a feeling next vehicle will be just as nice.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> Congrats on the little one. Glad your wife and baby were not with you in the crash. Sucks I never got around to meeting up with you to hear it....Have a feeling next vehicle will be just as nice.



Thanks man.

Yea too bad I never got to give u a demo. Never actually had it 100% dialed in but still by far the best system I've ever had. Got a chance to give a member on here a demo, besides him no one that actually gives a s*** about sq has heard it. Just gonna have to tKe what I learned and just make the next one even better


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

Looks like I slept through the crash sale....

And I was getting an itch to dump the 3.5's in the dash for tweets in the sails (probably replacing the Silver flutes in the front doors at the same time)


What did you end up doing for a replacement vehicle?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Looks like I slept through the crash sale....
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Damn... Forgot to report back here but a lot has changed.

Scooped a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Dropped it And put 20x10 srt8 jeep wheels on it.

Before and after









Only peice I have left from the trucks the helix dsp. This build will be a little more simple, since I'll be passing the jeep down to the wife Ina year and a half or so.

2 way front...
SI TM65 in the front doors
Scanspeak r3004 tweeters









Debating on center Channel, and will run rear fill. Speakers tbd

Picked up an audiofrog 12"...
















And running an alpine pdx V9 and F6. No way was I gonna try and match the zed quality for 9 channels. this way I can just leave these in the jeep and go all out on the next vehicle. I'll post a link here when I start the new build.


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

Cool two speakers I have been wanting to hear.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> Cool two speakers I have been wanting to hear.



I should actually complete this install. Lol. I'll make sure u get the demo this time


----------



## SQLnovice (Jul 22, 2014)

Congrats on the new ride. The SRT rims and lowering it is definitely a nice touch.
How is the little princess doing. My daughter is starting kindergarten in a 2 weeks. Time flies.


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

Dang, that's a good looking frog


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

SQLnovice said:


> Congrats on the new ride. The SRT rims and lowering it is definitely a nice touch.



Thanks man. Totally changed the look, from grocery getter..... To beer getter? Lol

Here's a better shot. Love this vehicle











nineball76 said:


> Dang, that's a good looking frog



Yes indeed. Thing is built like a Tank. Can't wait to see what I can do. Love the simplicity of the cone.


----------



## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

You think that basket would fit a Ram enclosure under the seats?


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

nineball76 said:


> You think that basket would fit a Ram enclosure under the seats?



It fits in the enclosure i built. Not sure about the fox box etc. I can take some specific measurements if u need.


----------



## truckguy (Sep 2, 2013)

Can't wait to see the updates on this one!


----------



## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

I ordered from net audio. Haven't seen it yet.


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

Thanks for checking for me though!


----------



## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

bradknob said:


> I should actually complete this install. Lol. I'll make sure u get the demo this time


Cool. Make that 3 I want to hear never heard scans either. Keep me posted on build... awesome ride you have. 

Also you can pm if you want but do you work in Geismar. One of the earlier pics looked familiar.


----------



## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> Damn... Forgot to report back here but a lot has changed.
> 
> Scooped a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Dropped it And put 20x10 srt8 jeep wheels on it.
> 
> ...


Very good to hear from you again. That looks Jeep pretty cool in the after picture. Looking forward to following the build. As you can see, others are interested too. 

The SI TM65 look pretty interesting from what I read in the TM65 thread on here.

Where are you finding room for the r3004s? They look awfully deep.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

dengland said:


> Very good to hear from you again. That looks Jeep pretty cool in the after picture. Looking forward to following the build. As you can see, others are interested too.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Heard great things about the tm65 also. Hated getting rid of the dyns, but I'm not in any mood to destroy the doors in the jeep.

I have the shallower scans,









Also the jeep hasp premade tweeter pods in the sails!! Should just have to do a little bit of trimming


----------



## dengland (May 25, 2014)

bradknob said:


> I have the shallower scans.
> 
> Also the jeep has premade tweeter pods in the sails!! Should just have to do a little bit of trimming


Missed that important "s" it looks like. Sounds like s=shallow.

Thanks.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> Cool. Make that 3 I want to hear never heard scans either. Keep me posted on build... awesome ride you have.
> 
> 
> 
> Also you can pm if you want but do you work in Geismar. One of the earlier pics looked familiar.



Close! That's in convent. Right down the road.


----------



## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

Talking to my local AF dealer today, discussing what I'd like to do and wanted to use 2 12's he said most times 2 12's in the Ram caused some cancellation. Did you ever notice this? This doesn't seem like something he'd make up knowing that I'd buy all my AF direct from them. He really suggested 1 ported over 2 sealed.


----------



## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

nineball76 said:


> Talking to my local AF dealer today, discussing what I'd like to do and wanted to use 2 12's he said most times 2 12's in the Ram caused some cancellation. Did you ever notice this? This doesn't seem like something he'd make up knowing that I'd buy all my AF direct from them. He really suggested 1 ported over 2 sealed.



Hmm, that's odd. And no i never heard anything about that. I've only ran 1 and 3 subs, not sure if it makes a difference, but there certainly wasn't any nulls in the response. I wonder if he meant cancellations if they were sharing the same enclosure?

Since I never heard the sub, I can't recommend running 1 or 2, but 1 mkiv was perfect if strictly sq is what u were after. I like to get rowdy every once in a while so 3 was perfect for me. Hopefully the AF has a bit more output than the mkiv, so I'd like to say, 1 in a ported enclosure would sound real nice. Of course that's all speculation


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

bradknob said:


> Hmm, that's odd. And no i never heard anything about that. I've only ran 1 and 3 subs, not sure if it makes a difference, but there certainly wasn't any nulls in the response. I wonder if he meant cancellations if they were sharing the same enclosure?
> 
> Since I never heard the sub, I can't recommend running 1 or 2, but 1 mkiv was perfect if strictly sq is what u were after. I like to get rowdy every once in a while so 3 was perfect for me. Hopefully the AF has a bit more output than the mkiv, so I'd like to say, 1 in a ported enclosure would sound real nice. Of course that's all speculation



He has a paper on it somewhere. Knows the exact amount of TA it takes to get em right. Maybe he'll find it in time, cause coming from a DD Z 18, I'm not sure 1 will be enough. I think I can be content with 2. But really 2 sealed vs 1 ported.... Shouldn't be a ton of difference. I like to get after it when the mood strikes, which is often. But I also want it to be the best sound I can get. Lately I've been finding new music and I want to hear it in all its glory. 

Now if he tells me he can squeeze 2 ported, we'll make it work. He also wants to do the mids in the door and not the pillars. Tweets in the sails. I don't see how the mids will go in the doors and look right.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

nineball76 said:


> Talking to my local AF dealer today, discussing what I'd like to do and wanted to use 2 12's he said most times 2 12's in the Ram caused some cancellation. Did you ever notice this? This doesn't seem like something he'd make up knowing that I'd buy all my AF direct from them. He really suggested 1 ported over 2 sealed.


I had 2 8's in a sealed enclosure in my Tundra for about 9 years. Never experienced anything like that. I cannot understand the physics behind it. Unless 1 is wired out of phase (which would be obvious).

In a Home theater world 2 separate subs are often used to smooth out a response of the room.


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

dengland said:


> I had 2 8's in a sealed enclosure in my Tundra for about 9 years. Never experienced anything like that. I cannot understand the physics behind it. Unless 1 is wired out of phase (which would be obvious).
> 
> 
> 
> In a Home theater world 2 separate subs are often used to smooth out a response of the room.



I think some of it may come from them being so far apart. Can't really get them close without doing what brad did with a pair under the passenger side and that only happens with really shallow subs. The AF won't fit a pair that close. Makes me rethink the situation though. Just use the passenger space and stuff 2 in there and leave the drivers side to mount my amps or something. Hurry up Nick, let's see if those mkv's will fit.


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## dengland (May 25, 2014)

nineball76 said:


> I think some of it may come from them being so far apart. Can't really get them close without doing what brad did with a pair under the passenger side and that only happens with really shallow subs. The AF won't fit a pair that close. Makes me rethink the situation though. Just use the passenger space and stuff 2 in there and leave the drivers side to mount my amps or something. Hurry up Nick, let's see if those mkv's will fit.


A couple of years ago I came across a program that would help you place the subwoofers in a HT environment. You input your 3 room dimensions (L x W x H) and the relative location of sub #1 and you could optimize Sub #2 for the targeted listening position. I remember it graphing nulls and peaks. I would think you could roughly put in the cab dimensions (it cannot take seats into account), the driver and passenger side rear sub locations with the driver's seat for the target area and see what the nulls look like.

I will look for it. It maybe on my work computer....

I have not done a good job yet, but my amps are on the passenger side. If I ever get to a place that I am "done" playing with them, I may transfer to the rear wall behind the rear seat. Removing the rear seat to turn the amp gain up/down does not thrill me....


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## nineball76 (Mar 13, 2010)

If I make the change I'm thinking about, I don't see any amps fitting under there. Previously the Arc KS series was the plan, but I have these Arc SE amps not being used. I think they'd bring AF TO another level. But that means I lose independent control of the subs if I used a 4000se. Unless I traded one for 2 2300se's


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

bradknob said:


> Close! That's in convent. Right down the road.


Just saw your Jeep on my way in and out of Comvent. Looks really nice!.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> Just saw your Jeep on my way in and out of Comvent. Looks really nice!.



Oooh, I have a stalker!

Haha, thanks man. good thing I washed it this weekend. You around this area often? Would be easy to give that demo, if this build ever gets off the ground


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

bradknob said:


> Oooh, I have a stalker!
> 
> Haha, thanks man. good thing I washed it this weekend. You around this area often? Would be easy to give that demo, if this build ever gets off the ground


Lol...I am a hot shot driver so I pretty much am in and out of all the plants daily.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> Lol...I am a hot shot driver so I pretty much am in and out of all the plants daily.




Oh damn, you may have delivered me something today. I work for United rentals in there.


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

bradknob said:


> Oh damn, you may have delivered me something today. I work for United rentals in there.


Are the initials Gps. If you are the Brad I am thinking of you use our company a good bit. It crossed my mind that it was you but what are the chances....


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Nah, we're not gps.


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

bradknob said:


> Nah, we're not gps.


I meant are the initials of what I brought gps. Brought a box with 21 gps units in it. You were on the phone and the lady signed.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> I meant are the initials of what I brought gps. Brought a box with 21 gps units in it. You were on the phone and the lady signed.



Oh ****, I'm brain dead....Lol. Yes.That's me! Crazy man, small world.


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## Jon225 (Mar 21, 2011)

bradknob said:


> Oh ****, I'm brain dead....Lol. Yes.That's me! Crazy man, small world.


Small world it is.. Next time you call us for a run let them know how awesome Jonathan is.


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## bradknob (Oct 26, 2009)

Jon225 said:


> Small world it is.. Next time you call us for a run let them know how awesome Jonathan is.



Lol. Will do. I'll tel them u deserve a cut of everyone's else's runs too.


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