# 2008.5 MazdaSpeed3 Install



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

A bit about me. I have bee knocking around the car audio world since the late 80s. I have never done any professional audio stuff, i've just done installs of the gear I could afford at the time. I usually pull all my gear out of a car when I sell it and put much of it back into my new car, with some upgrades of course.

I once had an english teacher who would always say "Don't get it right, just get it written. Once written, get it right."

I am taking that approach with this install. Check out my gear list at the bottom, you will see I have a lot of stuff to install. I also have a 2 year old so he takes up most of my sunny days so I will have to do this install in 2 hour intervals (his nap time).

I plan on just getting the gear installed in a moderately hap hazard fashion. Then once it is in I plan to re-do bits of it as I can.

Ger List from old car.
Alpine 7915 HU
PPI Power Class 2125
PPI Power Class 1800
Diamond Audio 6.5 Hex Comps
Image Dynamics IDQ12 D4


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

First up is the Head unit.

I had purchased a Fosgate ThreeSixty (like JL's Clean Sweep). I was going to use this and do the amps and speakers first. But then I found a great deal on a Pioneer AVIC-F90BT head unit. It came with a 90 Day Warranty (refurbished) and so I was on the clock to get it in and determine if it worked well or not. 

In addition to the head unit I aslo purchased a PAC SWI-PS steering wheel adapter. Pics to follow.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

My baby...








New HU in the box








Box-O-Gear


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I am color blind so I had to have a friend at work help me do the wires. I am fine with white, blue, black, etc but once you get to the really outlandish colors like purple, brown with blue marker... I need help.

So here are some shots of the harness after we worked on it a bit.


----------



## ellocojorge (Sep 30, 2009)

how much did you pick up the HU for?


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

$459 shipped from a seller on ebay. He was selling a ton of them for that price. After doing this install myself, I am SO glad I got a new in box (well alsmot new in box) instead of a used one. All the harnesses and wires and stuff is very daunting, and knowing everything was there to start with was a huge help.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I figured I would post some more of my pics.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)




----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)




----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

Here are some pics of my Ghetto sound deadening install. Here I am just doing the hatch area. I expect to tape down the MLv and I expect to do a better job on the wheel humps.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

Here I ran my power wire through the firewall. I was pretty intimidated by this step so I tackled it while waiting for time to do the rest of my sound deadening install. I had a couple hours while my son was taking a nap.

You can see I have it all techflexed and heat shrinked (shrunked? Shrinkeded?)


















































Before I laydown my deadening I will techflex up the "inside portion" of the cable. For the next week though it will be coiled up on the passenger side.


----------



## AdamTaylor (Sep 7, 2008)

nay on the mic install.... get a snap grommet and you can flush mount the mic on any flat surface


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I have been really really wanting to mount that mic flush... just didn't know how to get it done (thought I would need a different mic). 

I will check out a snap grommet...

That is not my final loc for the mic in any event. At the least I plan to run the mic up by the visor.


----------



## bullet (Jul 8, 2008)

looking good pat, keep it up and update on us on whats been done.


----------



## trevordj (Feb 22, 2009)

Great start! This is my favorite body style of the mazdaspeed. Looking forward to your progress!


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

a little bit more work this weekend. I got all the stuff out of the car THEN realized I only have 1 sheet of Luxury Liner Pro.. I need like 5 sheets. I am totally on hold now until I get more LLP.


----------



## Smoke_31 (Feb 3, 2008)

That sucks buddy.

I drive an 07 MS3. Seeing you work on your ride makes me want to tear mine down again and start from scratch....


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

SO I got my deadening done... mostly. All the floors and stuff is done, I still need to do the doors but I need MORE LLP for that and I don't want to crack the doors open until I am ready to do the whole thing, I only want to crack them once. Below are some pics of the half installed LLP and a shot of my power cable which is tech flexed where it goes through a part fo the floor brace.


----------



## Smoke_31 (Feb 3, 2008)

Liar! I see no pictures.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

stupid FIOS... I am using IIS to host my pics and the stupid FIOS gives me problems hosting sometimes. They are up now. Just keep refreshing.


----------



## CA4944 (May 2, 2009)

To the OP: do you have an iPhone? If so, try downloading "Retina."

Retina Just point the lens at something, and it tells you what colour it is!


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I do have an iphone and I am color blind... how did you know? or did you just get a lucky guess. This is a very useful app.


----------



## bullet (Jul 8, 2008)

CA4944 said:


> To the OP: do you have an iPhone? If so, try downloading "Retina."
> 
> Retina Just point the lens at something, and it tells you what colour it is!


how did you know he was color blind?


----------



## jimp (Jul 12, 2009)

on 3/22/10 the OP stated he was color blind and had a friend help with the wiring harness, duh? nice work.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

Ok I did a lot more work since my last install post... Here are some pics and some comments.

I had planned on doing the sub on the side where the jack is supposed to be, I even built a whole FG area. In the end I decided I rather liked the sub in the tirewell. It was important to keep the spare tire too though, so I took a page from Simplicitysound and an install he did with a GTI.

First up I taped off the spare tire and covered it in foil

















Next I built what I call a base board and then strapped it down so it doesn't move around. This is the board that I will attach everything else to. 

























The Ground wire










and here is what I am doing with the sub box in the tire area...

Here is the FG on top of the tire in the car.









Here is the bottom piece of the sub box with the FG tire area attached. You will notice that I coated the inside of the FG with that pink bondo/FG resin mixture. Does great at sealing up leaks and makes it real stiff.


----------



## Smoke_31 (Feb 3, 2008)

Keep the updates coming, I am still subbed


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I got the sub amp installed, and the sub in and working. Will take pics tonight and post them. Had some issues with getting a signal from the head unit, but that magically fixed itself, or I fixed it by unplugging and replugging rca terminals. 

I plan to get the front stage amp installed maybe tonight or tomorrow. I still need to get some right angle brackets to screw down the amp rack and sub box. I plan to use T nuts for the sub box so it can be unscrewed and re-screwed in without wearing out the mdf. 

I am taking off Friday, during which I expect to get the front speakers installed and working. THen I can start working on the cosmetic parts(i.e. carpeting, beauty boards, lighted plexi trim). I also need to install the fans.

As I am finishing this I am becoming less and less happy with the basic plan of this install. While I think it will look ok, especially considering this is my first ever install, it is really deep. THe false floor is going to be pretty high compared to stock. Also since this is my first build there are some areas in which I could done a MUCH better job, if I were to do it over again. Also I still havent purchased a router or table saw so that would help a lot as well. 

I have decided to continue on with this install as planned and when I upgrade to 3-way fronts with different amps and different DSP, then I will re-do the install.


----------



## Smoke_31 (Feb 3, 2008)

I hope you aren't too disappointed with the install. I know my installs never work out exactly how I had planned or imagined. I think this is the nature of car audio.

I am excited to see your finished project. I still haven't had time to work on my system. The car has been in the shop more often than not....


----------



## eviling (Apr 14, 2010)

thats funny, i just did my buddys mazda 3, i just put in his deck today, its also a pioneer, the AVH3200BT (very awsome deck) had a bit of a headache with the harness, he screwed it up, it needs to be replaced but we have it nig rigged for now, gonna replace it later. but i find it interesting you kept that screen, i didn't know it could be mentained with an after market deck, interesting. how is it done? just remove it from the deck and mount it ont he new brackets and just plug it in?


----------



## Smoke_31 (Feb 3, 2008)

It depends on what year Mazda3 you have. The only real reason to keep the lcd display is to keep your climate control read out. Once you remove the stock cd player, you lose your clock and trip functions.

The automatic climate control readout will only work on later model Mazda3's when the stock deck is removed.

The dash kit that I purchased provided brackets to keep the lcd display with a single din head unit. The lcd just plugs in to the stock harness.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

the metra kit comes with a blank for that screen, but it also comes with two little plastic brackets. Those brackets are kinda weird to figure out how they go but they are for mounting that little screen.


here is food for thought....
If your friend wants to keep the clock and trip information, he can relocate the original head unit somwhere else (hatch) all it needs is some of the power leads, acc turn on, and tap into each of the wires running into that other molex on the back of the unit.


----------



## eviling (Apr 14, 2010)

lol i aint doing all that for a clock, his 3200 has plenty of bells and whisles i was mearly interested in the lcd screen because the blank spot looks silly to me, i even told him i would of put it in if i could, and now i know he can so i told him to do it. his is an 07, it has a thermometer, idk what else it has. but he lost his steering wheel control with the install, he could of wired up the mute button but I didn't know much about it and he didn't have the unit :|


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

In regards to the steering control.

There are two devices that will allow the stock steering wheel controls to work with aftermarket radios. I chose the one by Pac ( model PAC-SWI, or something like that). There is now a better product by Axxess (or however it is installed) that works MUCH better. Have your friend get one of those and he can use his wheel controls with his new head units, though I believe the head unit must have a remote input or something.


----------



## t3sn4f2 (Jan 3, 2007)

pat_smith1969 said:


> In regards to the steering control.
> 
> There are two devices that will allow the stock steering wheel controls to work with aftermarket radios. I chose the one by Pac ( model PAC-SWI, or something like that). *There is now a better product by Axxess (or however it is installed) that works MUCH better.* Have your friend get one of those and he can use his wheel controls with his new head units, though I believe the head unit must have a remote input or something.


xxxx2 

and called* (?)


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

Sorry that should say above "or whatever it is called" not "however it is installed".

The company is Axxess
The product is the AWSC
Their web page, Axxess Interface: Steering Wheel Control

I read a review on this and it supposedly is easier to install than PAC's version and actually works, no micro second delay when pushing a button.


----------



## eviling (Apr 14, 2010)

Axxess ASWC - Steering Wheel Control Adapters and Interfaces - Sonic Electronix

i'll be sure to let him know, idk if he's getting the unit right away, idk how much he gave a **** and it is really tight back there, it'd have to be stuffed up in the back, whitch i'm sure i could do. but i really don't know how to wire these, do the wires match?


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

There is explicit instructions included with the kit. You can stuff it down behind the climate control knobs, should be plenty of room down there.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

ok a lot more progress today, plus some pics of progress I did over the week.
First up, Here are some pics of the backs of my Diamonds 6.5. The previous install had no protection against water, they were in that car for 5 years. Here are some pics of what they look like. They still sound great though.


















So I purchased those foam things (XTC), I had to cut the ends off because the windows hit them when it rolled down. Here is a pic.










I got the sub and amps installed, nothing has the cosmetics on them yet but here are the pics.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

Then I started on the doors. First I created a plastic baffle from a cutting board. I used the OEM speaker as a cutting guide.

















Here are the pics of the speakers in the doors. I put a layer of Fatmat, then the plastic baffles, then a layer of Fatmat, then that foam XTC thing. Here are the pics


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

So after a couple weeks of listening to my Diamonds I decided I just didn't like the mid-bass of them, I blamed it on water damage (I later figured out exactly what the problem was). I purchased from a friend a set of Morel speakers. Here one is installed


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I later covered the sub box with carpet. Everyone said to not bother with the rubber gasket that the SI sub comes with. I can tell you that it REALLY made a difference in the sound quality of the sub. There was some noise whenever the sub hit hard was well as it sounded a bit "shallow", prior to adding the gasket. I figured this had to do with my inability to cut a perfect circle with no jig and just a jig saw. I added the gasket and it sealed the edges of the sub and now it is air tight. It was a pain to install though.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I still need to finish the amp rack itself, probably just cover it in carpet and add the covers for everything.

The tweeters I got with the Morels were way different than the Diamond tweets so I had to really scramble to come up with a way to cover the hole and still mount the tweets. I used some left over cutting board amd used two different sized circle bits. I then used a dremmel to make a kind of lip (like a Rabett bit would with a router).


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

The result of this is that the system sounds a LOT better than it did. Those tweets sound AWESOME, real natural and detailed. I am still not happy with the mid-bass however. 

The reason the Diamonds didn't sound as awesome as I remembered was because my Kenwood X4R is only 70wrmsx4 or 90wrmsx4 at 14v. I feel the Diamonds really want a lot more power. The Morels are similar in that the whole system sounds a bit weak in the low end (except the sub which can POUND if I let it). If I turn the system up to 45 or so (out of a total of 62) the mids really open up and really sound good, but by that time the whole system is too loud and the tweets are tearing my ears off. I have done every trick I can think of with the gains, currently the mids gain is set to 3/4 of the way up and the tweets are set at minimum. 

I am considering getting another X4R and bridging it to give me 140w rms for my mids. I need to check to see if the X4R will bridge with time delay and a LPF.


----------



## tonesmith (Sep 8, 2011)

Updates?
Interested to see how you did the enclosure for the M6.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

I am in the process of building my tweet pods out in my a-pillars. Below are some of the pics. With comments of my challanges.

I couldn't make your typical wooden rings. I tried and tried and the MDF would fall apart, if I made them big enough to not fall apart they were too big and looked bad. Also I wanted to have the tweets inset a bit so ethey look good and natural.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)

So wiht my inability to create wood rings I had to figure something else out. I used PVC pipe on the inner portion, it fit perfectly. The issue was the outter area and the lip. I cut the PCV at the correct angle then wrapped Duct tape around it unitl it (yes it is good for everything) unitl the diameter was more than the outter diameter of the tweeter. I then used cardboard to make the lip. That got a layer of fiberglass resin. Then the whole thing got covered in a t shirt, more resin and some fiber glass.


----------



## pat_smith1969 (Feb 17, 2010)




----------



## tonesmith (Sep 8, 2011)

I dont see any pics. :worried:

EDIT: I see them, they took a long time to load.


----------

