# Scion Tc daily driver to show worthy project.



## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Okay here is the build log of the car project that started 4 years ago. Multiple local hack body shops have screwed me but thats almost all fixed now. The main project is the audio project. Earlier this year my wife bought us an additional SUV so that i can FINALLY pull the scion off the street as a daily driver. She started off as a 2007 Scion Tc Release Series 3.0.








I wont go into all the mods as this is an audio forum. I bought a Ultima yellow top battery of course, with a Tsunami 0 gauge multi amp kit.








i proceeded to gut the car recently as you can see. 








This is the layer of Dynamat i put on the skin 3 years ago.








I will be putting the panel back on with Stinger Overkill foam sound dampener.








The floor has started to be prepped for the Stinger Carpet Pad








Here is the passenger side with FatMat installed








Wire anchors are being installed under the fatmat as the factory wire guides are to thick to allow the carpet pad to fit.








I purchased a few goodies for the new install.
Bought this from a DIYMA member (AudioControl DQXS)


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

And these from crutchfield to give me better tweeter imaging until i can figure out the a pillar or kick panel situation.








And this custom full width box from Subwoofer Boxes | Subwoofer Enclosures | Truck Subwoofer Boxes and Car Subwoofer Enclosures Well made box and indeed it does fit like a glove
















I am keeping my Kenwood Excelon XXV-04s speakers front and for now rear
















I am installing the Pioneer PRS-4200 Stage 4 amp and the Kenwood Excelon XXV-03a Amplifier for now until i can swing the Zukki custom amps and then ill put the old amps either for sale or in my Rav 4.
















I also have an Audio Control Matrix Line Driver this is how i previously had them installed 








. My Subwoofer of Choice JL AUdio 12W6v2 SVC. in the old box








This is my old headunit now in the used Rav 4 








I will be finishing the FatMat installation slowly as the factory wiring is kind of a pain to move around and resecure. The seat belts need to come out and of course go back in. That part will probably take me a few weeks.


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## Complacent_One (Jul 2, 2009)

Looking good, but do something about your primary under the hood. God forbid you get in an accident, but if you do, the chance of a fire has just been increased.

If I am not mistaken, you can see where the wire is already being slightly pinched by the hood. If it were mine, I would either find a more direct route through the firewall, or at least run the cable along it and not the radiator support. The fuse needs to be near the battery to protect that cable....that is the sole purpose of the fusing...


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Agreed that is an OLD picture the wire is no longer there. The size of the wire helps with the fire issue BUT you are correct it will be run much better this time, was in a rush last time. Will be putting through an actual grommet in the firewall i can drill the hole now that the interior is out.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

yes i agree also with the fuse. i will be putting the circuit breaker up near the battery where it should be, no fuse up front anymore.


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

HOLY **** Laffayette! I have been there probably 1000 times back in HS days lol

Sparta in the house!


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

I grew up in sparta and went to HS there. Moved out when i realized sparta is like 4 times the money for half the house lol.


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

What year u graduate from shs?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using Tapatalk


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

1991 i went to the army for a few years then came back.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

WOW nice projects man..... im attempting to recess my amps in the scion like you do i hope to god mine turns out half as nice as yours..... iwould also kill for kick panels like that as of now imgonna try modifying scion XB kickpanels to work


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

hey simplicity do any internet orders? i need one of 2 things kickpanels or door panels tha angle the speakers better. id prefer kick panels. i can send you a set of the factory ones to work off of if that would help?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

one of the many reasons i hate nj there are simply no shops that do custom work like you do simplicity. the scion project now is a long time coming as as long as a car is a daily driver its soooooo hard to do big projects. now that i can take my time i can see what i can really do....nothing like you but im hoping not to embarress myself. 

I do owe you a beer or something i was going to go a COMPLETELY different route with the sunken amps. no i am gonna use one of your ideas and make a liftable cover. the amps will protrude a hair above the lid but i can lift it up to get at tools and stuff like the subaru install of yours. left side will have some portable detailing stuff and the right some basic tools and an spl meter and a multi meter along with fuses etc. anyway thanks for saving me my idea was stupid complicated and was probably way beyong my skill with a saw...


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

scion1403 said:


> WOW nice projects man..... im attempting to recess my amps in the scion like you do i hope to god mine turns out half as nice as yours..... iwould also kill for kick panels like that as of now *imgonna try modifying scion XB kickpanels *to work


First generation?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

yes i have already relocated the bulky factory wiring junction where the factory kickpanels are now to give more mounting depth.


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

sorry being a one man operation i am just not set up to do custom small jobs...good luck though  i went to Sparta HS 1992 to 96...my folks still live there


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## nepl29 (Mar 25, 2007)

scion1403 said:


> hey simplicity do any internet orders? i need one of 2 things kickpanels or door panels tha angle the speakers better. id prefer kick panels. i can send you a set of the factory ones to work off of if that would help?


Get in touch with Don @ Unexpected Creations. He has a shop in Edison. You can also send him a PM. User id is 6spdcoupe.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Thanks will do


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

havent had much time lately but managed to squeeze out the trans hump during lunch
















not new but needed to pull the crossovers from doors to install more dampener


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

got a little more work done tonight . got one of the new door panels lined with the Stinger Overkill Foam sound dampener.








and a few more goodies trickle in from amazon
a steering wheel control adapter, a 125' roll of shrink tubing, a 100' roll of primary wire, a bag of 100 zip tie anchors, and a 120' roll of foil tape, and lastly since i was NOT paying the 75.00 crutchfield wanted i paid 42.00 on amazon for the iphone cable to my soon to be head unit


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## ryomanx (Feb 18, 2011)

Nice!


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

thank you sir!

anyway here is this morning update. while waiting for my freezer to arrive i managed to get the drivers side door ready for the speaker wire and speaker
















and i see i missed a spor will have to go back and do that








and lastly using foil tape get all the wires nice and secure


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## eviling (Apr 14, 2010)

simplicityinsound said:


> HOLY **** Laffayette! I have been there probably 1000 times back in HS days lol
> 
> Sparta in the house!


seriously? so you grew up around me? you know what i think i knew that :-s lol 

those amps caught me offguard but i just re-read it, lol your just biding your time till you got the real amps. lol i hear ya on that  

i dont understand why you didnt just run you're power wire through the driver side of the fire wall though ? in some cars you can even run em down the corner around the door, that might of been ideal for ya.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

i actually am this time. last time it was a daily driver and i had limited time to work. so speed was the key. the way the stirofoam and carpet is in the scion getting at a blank spot in the firewall is tough as it is a small car. now that the interior is gutted im drilling a proper hole and using a proper grommet


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

here is an updated pic of the front bumper the local shop hacked up. sighhh thats setting me back 1050.00 to fix








and here are my custom plates


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## ek9cv5 (Jan 12, 2012)

Nice work


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

so far so good and thank you very much. we all know its kudos that makes us do this stuff


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

finally got some time today. took out the seat belts. ran into a little issue. the connector is a bit tough. looked it up and you need to remove the black snap keeping the yellow connector in place.








i started to lay the rca cables and the remote wire
























i then moved onto the b pillar 
























i ran the wires for the tweeter. i did not want to remove the dash so i removed the 2 corner bolts just enough to run the wire
the top bolt near the top of the dash








the bottom bolt near the kick panel








the finished run


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

i ran the wire through the factory grommet from the door








the weather was so nice i used it to install the fat mat in the rear seat








and i even managed to finish the passenger door 








and this is why you dont by razor knives in a dollar store lol


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

i am mounting the tweeters on the dash for better imaging. i pulled the dash up just enough to get the wire underneath the lip . It was a PAIN , but turned out good.
























i then went about choosing a location for the Audiocontrol Matrix and settled on the glove box as i dont need the space for anything.









Then i had a little time to vibration dampen the trunk








I made the connections for the door speakers and the tweeters. Not bad for a mornings work.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

i ordered these 2 items yesterday hopefully they will be here soon








and this for sirius


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH i keep finding crap that i want the further i move into this build.... it is WAYYYYY over budget and starting to seriously cut into my custom pc build budget for the winter.... sighhhhhh


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

this is the system diagram drawn by my non artistic hands








here is the link with LOTS of pics of the new Pioneer AV-8400BH head unit i just purchased.
http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...8263-first-2-weeks-new-pioneer-av-8400bh.html


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Finally got time to do some more work. 








the drivers side wheel well was done with fatmat








the drivers side quarter section also with fatmat








finally did the drivers side ..also with fatmat








the drivers side rear seat a mixture of fatmat and Stinger Roadkill








Ran the speaker wire and rca's and straightened them up with foil tape.








Installed the first carpet pad panels (passengers side)








finally installed the stinger roadkill on the trans hump








Installed more carpet pad panels. drivers and passengers side








And got the panels on the drivers side too.
Well thats it until wednesday or friday.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

finally got some more time. Put the finishing touches on the vibration dampening








then put the sound dampening on the rear seat panels








next i set about making a hole in the firewall after a lot of looking and a few curse words. i settled upon the spot the installers had used for my remote start(thats the black wire)








I refused to spend 45.00 on the proper drill bit so im using my dremel instead... yes its a pain in the butt but it works. this is about 10 minutes of squeezing my fat ass under the steering wheel








and this is half an hour... not quit there yet... let me explaiin the time... number one im not in good shape, two- im 40 and **** doesnt bend like it used to and three the scion is small as frak and i could only stand 2 or 3 minutes a t a time.








. i went out and did some research and found a better but to do this with will use tomorrow. im installing a 0 gauge stinger grommet in it once its done.

these are my most recent putchases
An Audison distribution block








and a Tsunami small gauge fused dist block for the audio control stuff and lighting


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## kizz (Jun 22, 2009)

scion1403 said:


> i am mounting the tweeters on the dash for better imaging. i pulled the dash up just enough to get the wire underneath the lip . It was a PAIN , but turned out good.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




This might be a really crazy thought, but those round vent spots look like a nice place to try those tweeters....maybe just an experiment but it could render some good results. far enough away from the glass to minimize reflections and might give great height and depth.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

actually after a LOT of acoustic research those holes are a HORRIBLE idea for 2 reasons. number one heat comes out of them eventually the kind of heat that can defrost ice will destroy my tweeters and 2 when you aim speakers at glass it is not a direct reflection and it distorts badly. do some forum research on DIY or buy any established car audio book and read up on that. plus it might be an easy install but the imaging is poor. But thanks for the recomendation


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

It must be a Jersey thing as I also am over 40, out of shape, and also have the exact same Pioneer head unit lol.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

LOL im honestly not thrilled with the headunit. it has some great things but pioneer dropped the ball big time in certain areas. i should have saved up and went with the 9990 excelon or the 140bt from pioneer


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Well mine is for sale as I am replacing it with my Eclipse 7200 MKii, I really don't use 1/3 of the features so its just a waste for me.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Did you mean Pioneer 140BH ?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

yeah the flagship receiver.... its internal nav prevents some of my complaints about the 8400


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Not that I'm in need but I am curious I will have to read up on it. By the way I love that new Kenwood 9990HD..


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

yeah me too... they finally fixed everything i hated about my 6960.... i changed my mind about redoing the body kit recently and i wish i had done it earlier since i could have easily afforded the excelon 9990 had i not wanted to do the body kit. and of course in the interum i found lots of additional stuff i needed to fix with the car so no new new head unit this year


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Well I had the 9980 HD and that was a sweet piece, too bad I sold it. I was dumb enough to listen to someone and went with an earlier Alpine unit. What a let down that was. Do you have larger pictures of the exterior of your car ?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

here you go... the paint doesnt match ...dont get me started stupid local body shops


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

2012 ...year of the massive stereo upgrade..
2013 ...year of the new paint job
2014 ... year or performance so its not a turd anymore lol
2015 ... year of the suspension and brake upgrade.
2016 ... new seats and lots of CF interior parts


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Well no matter what I do externally, my Legacy will always be the ugly duckling of the family. Although being awd and turbo makes up for her mug lol.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

lol just like the car that enabled my big project


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Oh I see your point lol, well at least it allows you to step up your gain.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

lol yup yup... pimpiong the chrome hubcaps.. lol


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Can you pm me your zip code, I want to see how far you are from me please.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

gotta work 2 doubles this weekend so probably wont be able to work on it until sunday


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## eltico7213 (Oct 26, 2011)

looking good man.! if you ever need any help, let me know, i'm more than willing to take a drive to sparta to help you out.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

lol thanks for the offer. actually could use some suggestions, the way i ran the rca's ended up putting me about a foot short of where i need to be. however a factor is that the rca's that are too short are going INTO an Audiocontrol DQXS and as such the signal degredation of barrels might not be as big of an issue. or at least i hope not. because i used foil tape to secure everything, and copper shielding tape on trans hump, and have reinstalled the carpet and seats i am unwilling to simply uninstall them and run longer ones. so i am open to suggestions.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Wow I am sorry to hear that you came up short, I know that feeling. My only way around that was to undo and redo, sucks but for me it had to be . I hope that someone chimes in with a great solution to your situation. Hope to be up your way by next week.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

it would be a monumental undertaking im NOT doing it again. the project is WAYYYY over budget and WAYYYY over time, so from my research a GOOD set of barrels will lead to no noticable loss especially with the matrix boosting the voltage


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

got a little time to do some work. ran the wire bundle to the trunk








did some more vibration dampening on rear








tape the wires up under the rear seats








not in the build but bought a soldering station to help with this project








i was gonna do more today but i hurt my back pretty bad on the 4th so resting up.. will do more on sat and sunday


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Still waiting on rivet gun and acoustic foam but got the RCA cables in, the Led's with resistors, the rca barrels and the rivets


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Finally got around to driving with the SPL meter. on slow,40-70 dba the min was 54.0 the max was 57db. The median was 55.25 db and the average was 55.5db. This was recorded at 35-45 mph on 2 lane roads. I will tr and do a highway run monday. That is without any interior panels with the current shown sound dampening. I am trying to get someone with a stock scion to let me go on a ride along to judge the Db then redo it as i get my panels back on.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got a little more work done today. replaced the antenna base and mast








Finally got the 0 gauge Stinger firewall grommet in








Cleaned up the rear ground point a bit while the dremel was out








once the rivet gun gets in will try doing door panels, and need to put in seat rear panels before seat belts and such can go in


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Almost forgot also got the Tsunami battery terminals installed










and started soldering the Led's for the interior light swap.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

maybe you guys can help me out. i bought black pop rivets for the doors. not sure if i got the right thing.. usually the heads of the rivets get a little bigger when they are impacted but the 2 on the outside have been impacted and the middle is still untouched is this normal or are these crappy rivets?








heres the rivet gun i bought on amazon








and here is the acoustic foam panels i bought for the larger cavities of the car. i bought 6, 24"x24" of these acoustic panels


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## oldturd (Oct 31, 2009)

From what I can see, the mandrel has been drawn up the head of the rivet; which is what a blind rivet will do when "bucked" to nothing. Have you tried joining two pieces together with these rivets yet?


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

well, you can do female/female barrel connectors and add on another rca cable at the end, but if i was doing it, i would take it and run a whole new longer cable...its just the right way to do it. this is why i always over estimate the legnth of all cables i run, if its a lil long you can bundle and tuck, if its too short...well...

if you are handy with a soldering iron you can also direct solder a new section of rca to it.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

as i stated in the post because of the magnitude of the project and the few hundred helpful answers i have gotten and some research on my own a good set of barrels extending it will never be noticed.. is it the right way to do it sure.... but im using good cables, good rca's and the 2 audiocontrol pieces should make any issues if there were ever any with the rca's obsolete. im really not that worried about it after the research. anyway back to the rivet conversation.... what do you mean bucked?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

got about 2 hours in today before it started raining. Got the acoustic panels in the hatch quarter panel hollow areas and got the rear seat side cavities filled as well. this is the rear quarter section








yes i know , i know i missed a spot..haha im waiting for more stinger roadkill.
the rear seat section behind the speaker mounts....such a HUGE cavity








the other side...i ran out of 3m super 77 spray glue that crap is expensive!!


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## fordriver1 (Jul 11, 2012)

subbed...


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## oldturd (Oct 31, 2009)

When a solid bodied rived is bucked, the shaft is compressed and expands; typically through the use of a rivet hammer (or gun) and a bucking bar.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

scion1403 said:


> actually after a LOT of acoustic research those holes are a HORRIBLE idea for 2 reasons. number one heat comes out of them eventually the kind of heat that can defrost ice will destroy my tweeters and 2 when you aim speakers at glass it is not a direct reflection and it distorts badly. do some forum research on DIY or buy any established car audio book and read up on that. plus it might be an easy install but the imaging is poor. But thanks for the recomendation


You handy with fiberglass? Not only does bouncing off glass give issues, but so does bouncing off of a dashboard. Just not as bad. 

With the amount of custom work you have lines up learning or implementing some glass skills would not be a bad idea.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

The tweeters aren't bouncing off my dash they are aimed at my face lol imaging doesn't get much better... But Idont have the facilities for Fiberglass not enough ventilation and I can't leave or work on it outside


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

But as you can see my rivets are not expanding as far as I normally see


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

scion1403 said:


> The tweeters aren't bouncing off my dash they are aimed at my face lol imaging doesn't get much better...


A LARGE chunk of the output is bouncing off the dash... look into polar plots. They do not, in any way have a "straight line dispersion." Just something to think about, there IS boundary loading going on.



scion1403 said:


> But Idont have the facilities for Fiberglass not enough ventilation and I can't leave or work on it outside


That blows... I'm sort of int he same boat. I CAN do it, have the space, but my wife hates smelling EVERYTHING that is 2-part.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

they are not secured permanently right now. adjustment height wise is going to happen. at least until i find a decent pod mounting option since i cannot do fiberglass on my own.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Some guys are finding aluminum and wooden bowls that seem to work well. Places like ikea, etc.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

you want me to put an ikea bowl in my car?no way im not going ghetto


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

scion1403 said:


> you want me to put an ikea bowl in my car?no way im not going ghetto


actually aluminum candle holders IIRC.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

still not happening


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Just thinking this:









May look better than the option you are using now, and aid in adjustability.

Granted that's a premade tweet pod, but many here have made similar.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Look better? They are tweeter pods meant to be mounted and the wire and holes obviously are not the way it will look so unless it's custom fit fiberglass pods that are color coded thereby aren't any better options that are better looking than what I have. The sound off the dash isn't supported by the research I've done doofuses to each his own


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Chrome in a car with no chrome ? They are huge and don't match anything in my car, but thanks for the advice


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## Complacent_One (Jul 2, 2009)

Not ghetto....and it is a cheap alternative to finding out the best location and angle for the tweeters. So far it seems that you are making good progress. But do yourself a favor and at least think about some of the constructive critisism that has been provided. I am sure you have done plenty of research....but there are quite a few on this forum that have actually tested it. At the end of the day, this is hobby results in a mostly subjective set of outcomes.

To point a few things out...mounting the tweeters would actually create a direct reflection and depending on the angle and proximity to the windshield could negate some of the phase issues. With the current mounting you will have reflections (delayed) from multiple materials at compounding angles, like the dash, a-pillar, sails, driver and passenger window, and of course the windshield. Nice thing about a modular mounting scheme is that you can find the location that suits you setup the best with minimal rework. Once you lock in your locations and angles, you can color code to your vehicles existing interior and satisfy both the aesthetics and the pursuit of audio nirvana!!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

scion1403 said:


> The sound off the dash isn't supported by the research I've done doofuses to each his own


Your ear has a more directive polar pattern than that tweeter (earlobe actring as "pattern control). so place some material similar to your dash material up to one plane of your ear.... Does it sound different than the naked ear?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

i agree with you about those pods they were not loading on my phone so i could not see them they are nice. but everyone else and every other source i have ever looked at says that there is NO such thing as a direct reflection when it comes to glass. but those pods really dont match anything so id rather wait until i find someone to make custom pods. for now these pods came with the tweeters and are better imaging than in the doors. well see down the road...if only they came in black lol


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I was just using at as an example of something to look for ... then drill a hole in the pillar aim, tweak, then have the real deal built, you can always paint to match.

Always keep your eyes open for innovative things at craft places, etc... It's waht DIY is all about!

Have fun with it, it's a cool little car you've come quite a ways with it.

Glass is as reflective as all get-out, about as reflective as any surface you can get, you are doing a good job of avoiding it now, now to space it off the dash and tweak, tweak, tweak


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

chad said:


> actually aluminum candle holders IIRC.


Do you remember the IKEA product name? ;D


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I've never seen an Ikea in my life, it's around here somewhere.


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

scion1403 said:


> Finally got time to do some more work.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I have some of that Stinger vinyl/foam padding for my xB. What have your results been? 

I've only covered the front floors in front of the seats, and it hasn't helped much - I think now I'm hearing the wheel wells and exhaust noise from through the tailgate. 

Is covering the transmission tunnel [really the exhaust tunnel] the most effective? 

I've also been hunting for pictures of the firewall so I can figure out which spots are immediately adjacent to the front wheel wells. I think I'm going to have to pull apart the rear of the xB again and put the Stinger padding on the wheel wells now :surprised:

...I may also remove all that old "eDead" stuff and put down something with a little more heft


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

I will show you a great spot and post pics later for the firewall. Yeah the largest drop in spl was once I did in front of and in back of seats. The current spl readings without an interior are lower than my rav 4 with a complete interior.


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

scion1403 said:


> I will show you a great spot and post pics later for the firewall. Yeah the largest drop in spl was once I did in front of and in back of seats. The current spl readings without an interior are lower than my rav 4 with a complete interior.


After I cut the "floormats", I had 3 leftover pieces: two 4"x21" pieces , and a 12"x32" piece. I did an experiment tonight where I took the 4"x21" pieces and taped them to the a-pillars after I had taken off the plastic covers. I also draped the 12"x32" piece across the exhaust tunnel just in front of the backseat, perpendicular to the tunnel.

It might be psychological, but I think the a-pillar pieces had a huge effect. You know how the xB's windshield is pretty upright and the whole front of the car is a wind target? Maybe the foam/MLV was doing something to silence the air coming off the sides of the windshield and around the car.

It was a more dramatic difference in noise than when I had the 12"x32" piece held against the tailgate/rear trunk vent to quiet the exhaust. That's going to need to be done, but I think this weekend I'm going to get those a-pillars done


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

I was going to work on my car, but it started raining. Maybe it's time for an IKEA trip


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## lupin_au (Oct 1, 2011)

This thing should be nice and quiet by the time you are finished. Will be good to see the results.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

I am going to use expanding foam on the "a" and "b" pillars for sound control.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

I will be working on car this entire weekend should have some pics to post.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

FINALLY GOT TO WORK ON THE CAR AGAIN!!
Here is what's new. Bought myself some Pioneer 2 5/8" midranges and am going to install them in the front side air vents. I do not drive her in the winter so no need to use the heat.








There is plenty of room to angle them as well once I cut some of the duct away








I bought a Zapco Ref 650.6 as the driver for the new active 3 way I am building.








I am thinking about wrapping the vent borders in speaker cloth but I am not sure.


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## abusiveDAD (Jan 7, 2009)

id rather have a/c in the summer than heat in the winter


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## SkizeR (Apr 19, 2011)

simplicityinsound said:


> HOLY **** Laffayette! I have been there probably 1000 times back in HS days lol
> 
> Sparta in the house!





scion1403 said:


> I grew up in sparta and went to HS there. Moved out when i realized sparta is like 4 times the money for half the house lol.


your from Sparta? i know a BUNCH of people from there through snowboarding at Creek.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

I am right next door to sparta actually grew up there.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Was thinking about cutting pieces from a spare door and using them to flush mount the pioneer mid ranges , or sink them into the holes and cover the holes with speaker cloth any inout?


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY nice weather finally got some more work done. All the sound dampening made the hatch too heavy for the factory struts soooo.
First I removed the bolts at the base of the strut.
















Then remove the retainer clips at the top.








Then put the base back on








And WALLA the crappy factory struts replaced with Strongman Shocks.








Bought them from 
StrongArm 4597 Scion tC, Liftgate Lift Support, Pack of 1 : Amazon.com : Automotive
They are very good and will handle the weight on sound dampening AND a spoiler.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got some more time. Got the new Jl audio terminal on, i must say that the JL audio battery terminal is the best i have ever seen. Modular and an incredibly well made product. Too bad they dont make it anymore only on amazon or ebay. 









Also i am undertaking an adventerous project and am relocating half a dozen of the fuses from my inside fuse panel to under the hood. Using this gem









AND i am making a resin battery top to mount my circuit breaker , monster dis block and tsunami fused distribution block.








it looks rough now but this is the start










This is the jl terminal taken apart, very well made


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

And I am putting these glowing music bars that react to the music in the car, tested them and they worked great








And a switch to turn them off with a barrier strip so the switch controls both of the glow strips that will go in the sail windows


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Non audio upgrade but deal with it lol

Worked on the windshield wipers today replaced the old black rubber with white nylon and added 2 nozzles


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

So got the new Kenwood Excelon Dnx 890HD it is replacing a Pioneer 8400BH. It is superior in every way save music menu navigation.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

FINALLY got the door speaker in after over a year
Got the speaker measured in the MDF








This tool is a DIY installers best friend.








Got the wire Booties on there, no the cut isnt pretty cannot find my circle guide. but it is behind the door panel.








And WALLA


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

It is by no means the final but it gets the system in the car for now 








Tough I finally got all the wires run to the trunk


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got a little more work done. The basic system is up and running. It is not pretty but its only temporary as i burn in the system and wiring. I want to make sure there are no issues before i rivet all the panels in place.








I also need a new jl grill as this one rusted in storage. 
I got the power to the battery. This is also only temporary as i plan on putting an intake in and then an accessory tray / battery cover. I also need bigger shrink tubing as the stuff i bought was not big enough for 0 gauge. must have gotten the 4 gauge stuff.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Started getting some more parts in for the big project this week.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Finally got a week off so ordered a ton of stuff to use on the system including this gem


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

Hurry up and finish it already! 

I just ordered $50 worth of parts from Darvex - some wire retention clips, some banana plugs, and a firewall grommet


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

LOL. dude ive been going to school and full time work for 5 years ,its been tough. 
but started my own big three ground block.


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

scion1403 said:


> LOL. dude ive been going to school and full time work for 5 years ,its been tough.
> but started my own big three ground block.


Lookin' good, buddy! 

I have 5 feet of ground wire available to use - maybe I'll devote a foot of it as an upgraded ground for my battery. I already have the Scion "ground wires" in there - an upgraded direct ground couldn't hurt. 

I'm not really up for doing a "big-3" set up on top of the other stuff I can't seem to finish - and, despite my recent motivation - it's nearly impossible to work when it's 110 degrees out


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

OMG you are so right.. i got more stuff in today and i walked outside and got ***** slapped by the heat..... my motivation ran back in to the A.C. lol


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Getting everything ready for the big power upgrade this week


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

scion1403 said:


> OMG you are so right.. i got more stuff in today and i walked outside and got ***** slapped by the heat..... my motivation ran back in to the A.C. lol


People ask me: _"Matt, when are you going to be done the stereo?"_

and I say:

_"I'll have it finished *2 years ago* when you give me an air-conditioned garage! "_


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

LOL amen brother.. i have been going to school for 5 years and working full time. Ive worked on it when i can and am old enough to have the patience to do it right and not rush.


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

scion1403 said:


> LOL amen brother.. i have been going to school for 5 years and working full time. Ive worked on it when i can and am old enough to have the patience to do it right and not rush.


Perfection takes time


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Yes it does, even though its not done its still one of the best sounding systems i have ever heard.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got some more stuff in still freaking waiting on the buddy club system. 
















And these to try and keep the panels on rather than rivets


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

It is finally here and i am all set to do the power system uprade this weekend.ALL the wires are getting replaced save the main 0 gauge going to the trunk.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

The Buddy Club Condensor also has a cool blue glow to it.


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## b.w.1974 (Feb 12, 2013)

looks good so far, looking forward to updates


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Thanks


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got the condenser in the car rut before it started raining and hooked up all the ground wires.
That's the ground for the shock tower or to the frame as my research indicated that goes directly to the frame .








This one goes to the valve cover bolt that goes down to the engine block








This one goes to the bolt on the side of the engine block by the alternator








This one goes to the trans casing? It is in back f the starter if I'm not mistaken.








This is everything hooked up.. I also replaced the negative battery terminal with another JL Audio terminal. This is NOT the finished product as it started raining on me. I will neaten it up tomorrow.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

I used a highly rated but in expensive auto ranging multimeter. The before and after are the readings before and after the buddy club condenser .
Test Before. After. In volts of course.
Battery. 12.38. 12.69
Alternator. 13.61. 13.44
Dist block. 13.18. 13.20 
I don't have one that records over time unfortunately.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Finally managed to neaten up the wires and run the power wire to the alternator.
























I need to get anchors for the front wires. Doctor has me on glucosamine so my hands are not hurting as much.
New measurements with the power cable to the alternator replaced:
Test Before. After. Today
Battery. 12.38. 12.69. 13.72
Alternator. 13.61. 13.44. .......
Dist block. 13.18. 13.20 13.38


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got the mid ranges in finally
Cut inserts from polypropelene plastic(?)








Then mounted mids








Got both ready for install








and installed them in the heat ducts. (dont drive it in cold weather)








I will take the factory vent trim ring and wrap it in black speaker cloth.


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## audio+civic (Apr 16, 2009)

scion1403 said:


> Got some more time. Got the new Jl audio terminal on, i must say that the JL audio battery terminal is the best i have ever seen. Modular and an incredibly well made product. Too bad they dont make it anymore only on amazon or ebay.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Where did you get that fuse box. Great build.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

It took months of searching and a lot of phone calls to find , I would love to find another but can't. FYI if you are gonna quote might wanna leave out all the pics. But thank you very much for the compliment. If I run across anymore of the fuse boxes ill post the source.


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## scion1403 (Feb 22, 2012)

Got the drivers side door on with rivets, need to paint them black next.








I used long neck rivets








Even without sound processing, just using the amp, the 3 ways sound AMAZING!!!!!


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