# Audi SQ Build - wish I'd taken more pics



## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

Hi Guys,
I've had a number of people ask if I put together a build log for my system... and I've always responded; "no", mainly because I didn't take many pics while doing the work. 
In hindsight, it would've been nice to document the build, but I got so involved with it, that I didn't really stop to document it.

With that said, I do have a few pics I could share, and I will try to describe the build, as best I can.

First, the vehicle: 
2015 Audi SQ5. 
Factory Bang & Olufsen system - 14 speakers.









The criteria for the build was:

pure sound quality
stealth install
practicality - this is my daily driver

The factory B&O sound system is good... but not great. I had an Audi S4 prior to this, so I am familiar with the vehicle's electronics. Audi uses a fiber optic MOST network for almost all the electronics. The best way to tap into this fiber network is by using a mObridge unit. In my S4, I had a mObridge DA1, in conjunction with a Mosconi DSP. For this build, I decided to simplify the build, and use the new mObridge DA3, which combines the MOST interface and Digital Sound Processor all into one unit. I must say, it is a very slick unit. The software is fairly straightforward, and it does everything I need it to do. I was a bit of a guinea pig for mObridge, when the DA3 first came out, but after a few firmware updates, we got all the bugs worked out (for Audi), and now it works flawlessly.

Not much to show here... the unit is mounted where the factory amp was (rear corner, behind the wheel well).
MOST fiber cables plug into the back side. 8 RCA cables come of the front, and connect to the amps.
The unit needs a constant 12 volts, and uses the signal from the fiber network to switch on and off. 
It also has a switched 12 volt + to trigger the amps on and off.

FYI: the two thicker 'ribbed' looking cables (mid picture, to the right) are the MOST fiber optic network cables. They loop through the entire vehicle, and almost everything electronic is run through this network.

The switch that is at the bottom right is to manually switch the mObridge unit off, when I bring the car into Audi for servicing. Audi is very anal about their vehicles, and keeps a database of any modifications made. Even for a basic oil change, they plug the vehicle into their system, and run a full diagnostic. I don't want to give them any _'ammo'_, in case I ever needed to bring the vehicle in for warranty work... 









*MOST DA3 DSP Professional | mObridge

*I wish I'd taken pics of the vehicle, when it was all ripped apart... but I didn't, so here's where the 'described' part comes in:

I used KnuKonceptz for all my wiring and sound deadening. You can click on the web-links for detail on the products.

All 4 doors, as well as the rear trunk area were deadened with Kno-Knoise Kolossus deadener. It's 100mil thick butyl material, that is very heavy...
*Kno Knoise Kolossus Edition Super Bulk Pack 105sq ft - Merchandise
*

RCA cables are Knu - Krystal Kable.
*Krystal Kable 2 Channel 2M Twisted Pair RCA Cable - Merchandise

*









One of the nice things about Audi, is that they put the battery in the trunk. So my power runs are very short. I ran 1/0 from the battery, to a KonFUSED power distribution / fuse block. And then ran 4awg to the amplifiers.
*KonFUSED 2 Way Power and Ground Distribution Block - Merchandise

*









The fuse block is very slick. It uses a threaded grommet to lock the power cables in place, and trust me, they are solid once threaded in. I've read a few guys complain that they had issues with this system (not being able to get the thread started), but it worked flawlessly for me. Way better than a set screw...

For the speaker wire, I used Knu - Karma twisted pair cable. 16 awg. to the door components, and 10 awg. to the subwoofer.
*Karma SS 16 Gauge Speaker Wire - Merchandise

*

I also put a boot on each end of the cables. This serves no practical benefit... but it looks cool, and gives it a tidy appearance.









One of the challenges I had with this install, was the fact that the vehicle has LOADS of electronics. When I went to run my speaker cables through the Molex plug in the doors, I found that they were completely full of wires! There was nowhere to drill a hole... I did a bit of research, and found the proper Molex pins at Mouser Electronics. I bought a bunch of them, and soldered the speaker wires to them, then disconnected the stock Molex pins, and refitted the spots with the new pins. I wish I'd taken pics of the Molex door plugs, but I didn't. Here's a shot of the Molex pins, fitted onto the speaker cables. I had to use a special pointed tool to get the old Molex pins out of the socket. The new pins just snapped in (they have a wire barb that holds them in the socket)









With all the power and speaker cables run, it was time to move onto the components. Again, I didn't take any pics of the actual install, but I do have a couple shots of the actual components:

The front stage is an active 2-way, crossed-over at 2600Hz, and consisting of:

Sinfoni Tempo 10 tweeter. This is the newer version of the Maestoso tweeter, and it might be the best tweeter I've ever heard. It is definitely the best small format (1") tweeter I've ever heard. 
Prior to this, I was running a ScanSpeak D3004/6020 tweeter... and yes, the Sinfoni sounds better than the Scan. Way better... but it's also twice the price. 
The entire grille and bezel is brushed aluminum. I painted the honeycomb grille black, to better match the interior of the vehicle (and give it a bit more blended/stealth appearance).









The driver is a Dynaudio Esotar E650... considered by many to be the ultimate 6.5" driver. 
I know there are drivers that will play lower, and there are drivers that are probably better for a 3-way system - but in a 2-way setup, I doubt there is a better overall speaker. 
The Esotar will take anything you throw at it, and deliver clean sound every time. I'm running it from 80Hz to 2600Hz.









Now, I know there are many on DIYMA that bash rear fill... but I have kids, and often passengers in the back seat, so I wanted to build a system with rear fill. With that said, I used a set of Focal Polyglass components for the rear doors. These were leftover from my previous Audi S4 build. Again, didn't take pics of the install.









When I did the Audi S4 build (about 4 years ago), I used MDF to make spacer rings for the speakers. When I removed the equipment, I found that the MDF had absorbed water over the years, and had deformed at the bottoms.









This time around, I went out and bought a sheet of 3/4" thick HDPE plastic.









And made the speaker rings out of it. 








Again, no pics of the installed speakers, but the HDPE was a good decision. It's a lot more solid than MDF (keeps the speaker baskets straight and solid), and it's impervious to moisture.


The sub is a JL Audio 13TW5... but I've been experimenting with the JL 12TW3. It is considered to be the 'little brother' of the two, but I think I like the sound of the 12TW3 better. Anyways, here's a shot of the 12TW3 installed in a sealed enclosure, that I built myself. It's made of 3/4" MDF, with the left-hand side molded to the shape of the wheel well and finished with fiberglass. It is bolted to the rear seat. The rear seats are 60/40 split, and they fold down. So I built the sub enclosure to be the width of the larger (60) split seat, this takes advantage of the width, and keeps my enclosure as shallow as possible. It is exactly .80 ft. in volume, and is filled with acoustic poly fill. Each seat can still fold down independently (practicality - daily driver).










Finally, the amplifiers:

I've always been a sucker for Zapco amps. They were my first real quality pieces of equipment (back when they were big surfboards in the 90's). I've had a number of different amps since then... but when Zapco released the new Z-LX Series of amps, I knew I wanted them. These are pure sound quality amplifiers. No fancy add-ons. Not even a crossover. Just quality components, straightforward design, and built like a tank.

*LX Series*

I got a Z150-6LX for the doors. Channels 1 through 4 run the active front doors, and channels 5 & 6 run the passive rear doors. I got a Zapco ST1-KD mono amp for the subwoofer.









The rear tire-well of my vehicle has a lot of extra room for storage. So, I built an amp rack, that fits in there. I made the rack out of perforated board, with a couple 12 volt muffin fans underneath, to allow the amps a bit of extra 'breathing room'.









The 6-channel sits on the top, and the mono sits underneath.









Here it is, mounted in the car. It is totally stealth, and can only be seen by lifting the rear cargo area floor. The 6-channel is a monster. It almost straddles the full width of the vehicle! (that's a 21" spare tire sitting behind it)








There's a bit of a rats-nest of extra wire on the right hand side, but that extra wire was done on purpose (extra slack), in case I need to access the battery compartment or jack/tools, which are below the amp rack. If I get a flat tire, I don't want to be unhooking the amplifiers, just to get to the vehicle jack...

As with any system, the install took about 20 hours. Then the tuning took another 20 hours! Sitting in the front seat with a laptop plugged into the mObridge, and listening. Picking crossover points that sound best. Time aligning all the speakers. Trying different EQ adjustments to compensate for the huge dip I had at 500Hz, etc... Pink Noise can get tiresome after many hours.

In the end, it is totally worth it. I've accomplished what I wanted:

1. Pure Sound Quality - this is a VERY clean system, with amazing sound at any volume level.

2. Stealth Installation - with the exception of the Sinfoni tweeters (which blend nicely with the interior), you can't see any part of the install. 

3. Practicality - I use this vehicle as my daily driver, and other than the shallow sub enclosure, I have retained full use of every part of the vehicle.


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## edouble101 (Dec 9, 2010)

Looks great, good job.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Fantastic job and great use of the gear that you had on hand.


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## Jscoyne2 (Oct 29, 2014)

No worries about the heat build up from the amp being in a "sealed" area?

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk


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## #1BigMike (Aug 17, 2014)

Sweet build!. Nice, clean and simple. I am sure it sound fantastic...


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

Jscoyne2 said:


> No worries about the heat build up from the amp being in a "sealed" area?
> 
> Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk


Hasn't been an issue yet...

I realize, in essence, it's in a sealed area, but there's lots of extra 'air space' around that spare tire, so it breathes. 
I also made the amp rack out of perforated board, and mounted a couple muffin fans in there, to give it some air movement.


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## Makky (Nov 15, 2014)

Very nice build _jimmydee_!: )
I own the Zapco Z-150.4LX and am very satisfied with it too........but the sheer size of the 150.6LX gives me such a boner : ()


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## WhiteL02 (Jul 25, 2014)

Awesome work!


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## xpacpal1x (Apr 10, 2012)

Jimmydee,

I love the Audi Q5 (my wife has one) and may buy one for myself in the near future, but I’d want better sound than that provided by even the B&O system. As a result, I’m very interested in learning more about where and how to tap into the car's electronics.

Also, it seems to me that you are using the stock transport (i.e., CD and hard disc)? I haven't found any way to save .wav files to the car's hard disc...seems everything loaded in gets compressed...I think the B&O system sounds best when playing CDs. Can you confirm this?

Finally, would you advise an Audi buyer to start with a B&O equipped Audi, or one with a more basic stereo.


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

xpacpal1x said:


> I’m very interested in learning more about where and how to tap into the car's electronics.


There are a couple options: 

First, you could just tap off the high output of the factory amplifier, and use an LOC. This method woks, but it's a pain in the ass to tune, and you'll never get it to sound right.

Second, is to use a mObridge unit. This pulls a pure flat signal from the source, and gives you the ultimate 'clean slate' to start with.

You can read-up on it here (or in my post above):*MOST DA3 DSP Professional | mObridge

*


xpacpal1x said:


> Also, it seems to me that you are using the stock transport (i.e., CD and hard disc)? I haven't found any way to save .wav files to the car's hard disc...seems everything loaded in gets compressed...I think the B&O system sounds best when playing CDs. Can you confirm this?


WAV or FLAC files are always going to give you the best overall quality. But the Audi system doesn't support either of these, unless they are burned onto a disc. Actually, it doesn't support FLAC at all.

I have all my music stored on an SD Card, at 320Kbps MP3 format. It's not _the best_... but it's as good as you will get in a compressed format. Audi has a couple SD card slots in the head unit, which accommodate this. You need to format the SD Card to FAT32, in order to make it work in the Audi system. I've done A/B testing between a CD (WAV) and 320k MP3 in my vehicle, and honestly, the difference in sound quality is virtually imperceptible. To be honest, in some cases, I thought the MP3 sounded better... 



xpacpal1x said:


> Finally, would you advise an Audi buyer to start with a B&O equipped Audi, or one with a more basic stereo.


I got the B&O, just because I think the speaker grilles look cool... but from an integration perspective, I think the B&O system is easier to tie-in with a mObrige unit. It's just a case of unplugging the fiber optic cable from the factory B&O amplifier, and plugging it into the mObridge. You can also ask HUGG727, as he has done this with a non B&O system, and I think it was quite a bit more difficult.

At the end of the day, the mObridge unit works flawlessly. It integrates everything, as if it were part of the factory system. Volume control is from the factory volume button, steering wheel controls all work, back-up sensor beeps through the system. Everything is as it would be from the factory, except you have an 8 channel DSP added, with RCA outputs to aftermarket amplifier(s). 

Honestly... I would buy a German car, just to get the mObridge unit!


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## Niebur3 (Jul 11, 2008)

I love this build and your choice of equipment. Very well done!!!!!

I think the Tempo tweeters look terrific and blend in nicely.

P.S. Beautiful car also!


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## Huckleberry Sound (Jan 17, 2009)

Very Nice!!!!


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## optimaprime (Aug 16, 2007)

Very nice build and gear. I love that very simple and not over thinked on how you wanted everything to come out.


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## nadams5755 (Jun 8, 2012)

what's the mouser part number?


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

nadams5755 said:


> what's the mouser part number?


http://ca.mouser.com/Search/Product...1-3virtualkey57100000virtualkey571-1-968851-3

2-964296-1 TE Connectivity / AMP | Mouser

It took me a few failed attempts (ordered the wrong pins) before I found the right ones.


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## ggk (Sep 5, 2008)

jimmydee said:


> 1-968851-3 TE Connectivity / AMP | Mouser
> 
> 2-964296-1 TE Connectivity / AMP | Mouser
> 
> It took me a few failed attempts (ordered the wrong pins) before I found the right ones.


You figure these are the same molex pins for all VW door connectors? 

I want to run a few additional speaker runs to my jetta doors and do not want to drill the molexs.


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

ggk said:


> You figure these are the same molex pins for all VW door connectors?
> 
> I want to run a few additional speaker runs to my jetta doors and do not want to drill the molexs.


Couldn't say for sure... but if I were betting, I would say they probably are.

I bought the tool to remove the pins. but they can also be removed by making a paper clip into a 'U' shape, and poking the two ends of the paper clip into the Molex plug. This releases the barbs on the pins, and then they just pull out. Best to pull one of the pins out, and measure it. That's how I figured out what pins to buy. I think VW / Audi uses TE/Amp for all their electrical (Molex style) plugs.


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## nadams5755 (Jun 8, 2012)

jimmydee said:


> 1-968851-3 TE Connectivity / AMP | Mouser
> 
> 2-964296-1 TE Connectivity / AMP | Mouser
> 
> It took me a few failed attempts (ordered the wrong pins) before I found the right ones.


thanks!


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## S6Per (May 22, 2016)

Good stuff, Jimmydee!
I'm contemplating to build a similar sub box for my S6 (i.e. mainly MDF but using fiberglass for contours of side of trunk). Can you share a few more details on how you approached this? What did you do first, where exactly did you use glass, etc.?

Thanks much,
Per


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

S6Per said:


> Good stuff, Jimmydee!
> I'm contemplating to build a similar sub box for my S6 (i.e. mainly MDF but using fiberglass for contours of side of trunk). Can you share a few more details on how you approached this? What did you do first, where exactly did you use glass, etc.?
> 
> Thanks much,
> Per



I have a few basic mottos...

Buy the best material/equipment you can afford.
Build your system to the best of your ability.
And, don't over-complicate it...

My sub box is VERY simple. It's mainly built out of 3/4" MDF. This includes all sides, with the exception of the left-hand (molded) side.

I used cardboard to initially get the shape. Basically, I just cut a square piece of cardboard, to the dimensions of the face of the sub box, then started trimming it with a razor knife, until it matched the contours of the wheel well.

Once I had that shape, I cut the front and the back of the sub box to match the profile, and built the box (glue and brad nails). All sides are 3/4" MDF, with the exception of the left side.

Once the MDF box was built, I layered fiberglass on the left-hand side, to contour/seal the box. One layer on the outside of the box, to get the shape. Then a couple more layers inside the box, to strenthen it.

After it was all cured, I sanded the fiberglass, and sealed all the inside corners/edges with silicone caulking. The sprayed the outside with 3M glue, and covered it in black carpet. 

The only part of the sub box that is even remotely technical, is the calculation for the inside volume. I wanted to build it to .8 ft, as this is the recommended sealed size for this sub. I also wanted to make to top of the box shallower than the bottom, to account for the angle of the seat back (I wanted the face of the sub box to be straight up and down). This took a bit of work to calculate, but there are a number of tools online to do these calcs.

The sub is amazing, for what it is... granted, it's not like rockin dual 15's in a ported enclosure. But I'm almost 50 years old, and way past that now. It is a Sound Quality build, and the shallow sub definitely rounds-out the sound nicely. (and yes... it still thumps the vehicle when I crank it up)

I'd absolutely recommend going this route, for anyone that still wants full use of their trunk space. The only other option I'd consider, is an infinite baffle setup... similar to what *subterFUSE* has done (check out his build).


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## S6Per (May 22, 2016)

Thanks a ton for the detail! I'm likely taking the same approach. Just so I'm 100% clear: you used fabric on the left side and applied resin to it, then reinforced with fiberglass matte on the inside?


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

S6Per said:


> Just so I'm 100% clear: you used fabric on the left side and applied resin to it, then reinforced with fiberglass matte on the inside?


Correct


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## jallen01 (Nov 25, 2016)

Just wondering if you could only add the mObridge DA3 to a stock B&O system and get a better sound because of the power in the EQ. Did you happen to try that before adding the rest of the system?


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## JimmyDee (Mar 8, 2014)

jallen01 said:


> Just wondering if you could only add the mObridge DA3 to a stock B&O system and get a better sound because of the power in the EQ. Did you happen to try that before adding the rest of the system?


No... it doesn't work that way.

The DA3 completely replaces the B&O amplifier. You can't have both.


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## jallen01 (Nov 25, 2016)

Thanks for the quick reply. I am not quite ready for the full install yet but was hoping for a tweak to the system beforehand.


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## Flyhogz (Nov 8, 2012)

jimmydee said:


> There are a couple options:
> 
> First, you could just tap off the high output of the factory amplifier, and use an LOC. This method woks, but it's a pain in the ass to tune, and you'll never get it to sound right.
> 
> ...



I just traded my 2012 Audi A4 (non-MOST) for a Q5 with Nav+(non-B&O). After messing with the media options, I discovered that you can stream music via wifi through the Audi Connect App and the sound quality is amazing! Much better than Bluetooth. On the iPhone, it doesn't show that the 
music app is active, but it does show the music folder from the iPhone on the 
MMI screen. I wanting to know if there is a way to stream music over wifi 
from other sources, e.g, Spotify, Tidal, Pandora, etc...

From what I can tell, that the Audi Connect app limits your ability to stream 
music through the iTunes music folder and the internet radio stations on the 
app. Is there any way to bypass the default music played through the Audi 
Connect app and stream other services? On Spotify, it will give you the 
option to stream to the Audi wifi network, but it won't override the files 
playing from the iTunes folder. I know that that there other Audi models (A6 
for instance) that allow Napster to be played through the app, but this isn't 
available on the Q5 version.

My plan is to install the Mobridge to run straight from the MMI to my PXA-
H800. In my previous A4 without the MOST system, I just ran optical 
straight to the DSP from a HifiMe DAC on my iPhone as it always sounded better than streaming Bluetooth whether it was lossless files or one of the streaming services. If I could overcome the default Wifi settings, it would appear that I could stream without any added compression as if was using Airplay. Thoughts? 

I guess if this can't be achieved then I could always use an airplay with a DAC running to the AUX AMI cord.


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