# Sven’s Mercedes 500SEC ¾ Way Active Full Install



## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

This will all be going into my 1985 Mercedes 500SEC. Gotta love the big coupes. It’s the German interpretation of a musclecar, and was their top of the model line at the time. Using depreciation to my advantage I picked it up last Nov for about 10% of it’s original list price. The car pic is from the interweb. I won’t be showing any external pics of my car. Call me paranoid, but it’s not too hard for a shady local DIYMA member to recognize the car, follow me home, and help me return it to stock overnight... I’m naturally not too thrilled with that idea. 

ClassicCoupe has a thread here with his install, which has helped me greatly. Pics with interior panels removed definitely helps during the planning stages.

The car has low miles (150k), and came with newer 17” AMG wheels (shady guys, make your mental picture). I’m the third owner. Interior is black leather with burled walnut. The car is fully optioned. Unfortunately the original owner didn’t spec the factory humidor. I’ll have to suffer. Thankfully, it is also missing the power rear sunshade everyone covets, which would probably make my rear sub setup even more of a hassle.

The original “system”, if you could even call it that, had a Becker AM/FM Cassette, with two uniquely flanged oval 4x6 coaxes in the dash, and two funny flange 4x6 plates w/single 3.5 woofer in the rear deck, all wired through a fader wheel in the console. Hi-freakin’-fi. The drivers themselves seem to be of decent quality, and might be OEM MB Quart cheapies, the construction looks very similar. Low end or midbass is pretty much non-existent. It has all the smooth and solid impact of a wiffle ball. I did end up driving for a week or two with the factory speakers and the Sony CD, and it wasn’t horrible, just very lacking below say, 200hz. “She’s not ugly, I mean you won’t vomit immediately”

*V1.0 *- My quickie temporary setup that is now way too long in the tooth:
Sony Mobile ES CDX-C780 ($40 used)
PG RSD 4x6 in the dash, flanges englished into fitting ($16 NIB shipped from Ebay)
Factory oval 4x6 relocated to rear deck (more cone area, and I already had them)
-Head unit is directly powering front dash speakers, rear outputs fed thru fader. This was done mainly to avoid running new wire at this stage, and I think there is filtering somewhere in the line keeping high frequencies out of the rear speakers.

This actually sounds surprisingly decent, and would be even better with outboard amplification and maybe a sub. It's probably why I’ve been able to tolerate it for 6 months. The RSD’s are a fantastic buy for the price, I’d recommend them to anyone for a winter beater or work vehicle. I was expecting them to make audible sound and be listenable, nothing more. I’m actually impressed with the dynamics from what should have been crappy coax’s. Acoustic guitar really comes through these nicely. My ex even commented on how nice it sounded without prompting. She didn’t know I had changed anything. The Mylar dome tweets are smoother than they should be. Again, a big surprise to me. There is really no bass to speak of from these though -4x6 subwoofers they are not. I have about 50-60 bucks in the stereo at this point, and it was a giant improvement from stock. Downside? The radio reception on the C780 isn’t that great, and I listen to the radio during my morning drive to work. The fix? I’ve been working out of town for months, problem solved.

The fuel tank is mounted vertically behind the rear seat. The rear deck is split over the tank, which makes mounting subwoofers in it none too feasible. Some sort of pass through or vent to the trunk will be required to get the bass up front. I worked and sketched up some ideas, and found that others on the web had come up with similar work arounds. Nothing like re-inventing the wheel, but at least it validates your thinking. 

I have seen (here on DIYMA I believe) someone doing kick panels for an SEC. I thought about it. There is just not enough space and clear line of sight. I see reflections and obstructions galore, and I would have to relocate the e-brake somehow. So, pillar pods it is.

I listen to all types of music, from jazz to punk, electronic, r&b, rock, even some pretty heavy stuff. Well, everything except slap your momma country. So, I am not gearing any strengths towards any particular musical style or genre. I just want great sound across the spectrum. I don’t plan on a subsonic filter, and I’d like to experience real sub-bass. I’m curious to see how low the 10.5lf ’s f3 will be with cabin gain in effect. 
Other than the subs, all the drivers going in have the old fuzzy-wuzzy cones I like. I suppose I’m just getting older and fuzzier. Not too long ago all these speakers would not have been whiz-bang enough for me. Oh, those days of young love and clear Pyramid 6x9’s…

General Layout:
7949 up front, toslink output to processor
PRA-H400 out back
(2) Sony XM-7547ES for L/R duty
-Each amp will be setup as:
CH1 – TW/MR 6Ω @50wpc
CH2 – MB 4Ω @75wpc
CH3+4 – SW 2Ω @300wpc btl in HC mode










(Left)








(Right)










Drivers:
Vifa D26NC-55-06 6Ω tweeters in A-pillar pods 
4” QM100 Competition 6Ω mids in A-pillar pods
8” QM210TC 4Ω midbass in door pods
Two Boston 10.5lf 2Ω in trunk behind PITA gas tank, slot loaded to rear window via tunnel up thru rear deck.

(Front Stage)








(Subs)









more to come...


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

*Install Planning Part 1*

Tweeter/Midrange:

Vifa D26NC-55-06 6Ω Silk Dome Tweeters
4” QM100 Comp 6Ω midranges



















The mids are awesome. I have no idea what the response of these looks like, but fed a straight musical signal with zero adjustment (no bass/treble/eq) they sound beautiful playing anything I throw at them. Whatever that response curve looks like, I love it. They do play fairly low for a 4” also. I'm even surprised by how good they sound full range. Definitely listenable. Their response seems good to a fairly high point compared to a typical 4” driver. I have no data, no specs, no info whatsoever on these other than MB Quart QM100 Comp 6Ω 100W.

The Vifa d26’s are the tweeters that everyone already knows and Zaph made famous, but I'll add my 2 cents- they sound great. I am quite happy with them. The tweeters will be physically time aligned with the mid range, the acoustic centers of both drivers in the same plane of depth. I’ll get this by mounting the tweeters flush, and the MRs stacked a ¾” ring on top of that baffle. Not rocket science, it’s been done, but surprising how few do it. I played around with the arrangement, and it was really amazing how much setting the tweeters CL parallel with the MR cone/VC point tightened up everything. It’s a phenomenon I know existed, but it was really night and day here. I can’t bring myself to mount them otherwise after hearing the difference. I use some older Polk RM3000 satellites with this configuration for my PC, and the imaging is great, even with square edged baffles all around (or all asquare ;-). 

These two drivers pair up quite well, and sounded very sweet when tested with a 4Ω Coustic DR passive crossovers @ 3500hz. Some speakers just seem to be made for each other. The combo was very detailed without being harsh, and quick on transients. There's a punch to drums here that a 4 inch just has no right to pull off. Cone area be damned, they sound bigger than their size. 

I keep getting conflicting theories on the effects of using crossovers designed for different impedance ratings. These work and sound damn good, whatever the pass freq has ended up at. I’ll also say that the combo does not sound quite so sweet when using the MBQ competition NX xo originally meant for the 6Ω components. Not bad, just not as good as using the DR’s. Maybe there is something in that circuit favoring the MBQ tweeters I don’t have? I suspect the comp crossovers are geared more for power handling than SQ. I’ll probably continue using the DR’s until I step up to a full 4 way active from my lowly 3 way active plus passive highs. 

I’m selfish, so the pillar pods are gonna be aimed on axis to _me, me, me_. Later I will calculate a passenger focused and another “balanced” T/A config to be saved under Memory 2 and 3 for when I don’t want it to sound good.

I’ve been really sweating the shape and a mounting arrangement that will make the pillars somewhat stealthy outside the car. It’s the big reason I keep dawdling on starting this project. I’ll be redoing my window tint darker, but I don’t want it to be too obvious looking through the windshield from outside. I suppose I should settle with, “not any more obvious than it will have to be”. Any ideas folks? 

I’m thinking the baffle will end up similar in shape to the old Rockford Fosgate egg baffles. The ugly exposed stamped frame on the mid means I’ll need to make a grill, and maybe some sort of rounded baffle cover to reduce diffraction effects. I think that will be an experiment for later. Getting things in the car and mounted needs to happen before the prettiness factor takes over.

here's a pic of the Polks I mentioned


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## ClassicCoupe (Aug 7, 2008)

Finally somebody else on this forum with exquisite taste, a connoisseur, somebody who deeply appreciate style and superb engineering and.........

OK, better stop paying myself, uh, I mean you :blush:, too many compliments.

Sounds like an interesting installation you've got going there. I'll be very interested in seeing your pods.

More pictures.


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## orangelss (Dec 20, 2008)

If you go with a this sub you can mount it in the passenger foot well. I found with the one I had (89 model) that their is more than enough room for +6' person will never notice the missing legroom.

If you ever deside to turbo that big inline 6 let me know. I have a custom header/turbo/intake combo I built for mine before I sold it.


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## FLYONWALL9 (Nov 8, 2009)

Subscribed....

Several years ago I had the pleasure of owning a fine 
piece of German quality. It also had a 6chan front stage
with an 8" Quart in the kicks. Sounded UNREAL. As you
mentioned the pain in the ass sub part. I did away with
the factory first aid kit in the rear tray, made a little grill
and vented in that manor. It worked pretty well on the
first install, the second I went up in subwoofer quality 
and an ass load of power. IMHO that is key when your
having to deal with that damn fuel tank. One cool thing
that made up for that short coming was how large the
spare tire well was/is. You could put a couple small chillens
in that sucker alone.

BEST of luck and I do look forwar to your progress!!!


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

Nice to see some interest in my build. Lets hope I do it justice!

ClassicCoupe, glad to hear from you. At some point as I truly tear into it, I will probably hassle you with a few questions. I just don't know those questions yet...
And yeah, I'm interested in seeing my pods too :anxious:

I have most of the copy for the thread ready, but still putting together the pictures. I planned on doing this in warmer weather, but work obligations kept me busy and away from home (and theres no complaining about that).


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

orangelss said:


> If you go with a this sub you can mount it in the passenger foot well. I found with the one I had (89 model) that their is more than enough room for +6' person will never notice the missing legroom.
> 
> If you ever deside to turbo that big inline 6 let me know. I have a custom header/turbo/intake combo I built for mine before I sold it.


Orangelss, that's interesting. Any pics of your front floor sub? What size driver was it? I'm not sure if the footwell of a 2nd gen is much different or not. My main issue with that would be the matter of "pairs". I've actually kicked around the idea of making an enclosure for a couple of 8's in the rear seat center console/bin. I could have that and the front floor... hmm

Send me some pics/details about that turbo setup. My car is a V8, but a 124 coupe has been dangling itself under my nose lately.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

FLYONWALL9, I need details, details, details on that setup. My first aid kit is long gone. Not long after getting the car I went a little postal about a squeak/rattle. Ended up cutting a single large piece of veneered laminate to cover the rear deck and screwed it down from beneath. -Turns out the noise was the PS seat pivot point  
When I pull the panel to cut it for the sub outlet, it will get a nice roundover and cloth glued to it. I already have grille cloth in an almost matching grey as the deck. 

-So how much subwoofer power was that turning point?

That tire well pretty much floored me when I finally removed all the carpet-pressboard-tire and I got in there with a tape measure. I was honestly worried if my amps could fit stacked like I plan to mount them. Hell, I could fit four of them lying flat, with plenty of airspace left beneath. Mind you, these are gargantuan amps. Not surfboards, but barges. If I didn't have such a hatred of trunk rattle, I could make a pretty stealth trunk install and keep it all in the well. 



FLYONWALL9 said:


> Subscribed....
> 
> Several years ago I had the pleasure of owning a fine
> piece of German quality. It also had a 6chan front stage
> ...


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

*Midbass:
*

8” QM210TC 4Ω from QM335CS set 












Door pods will be made by glassing over the door panel pockets. I’ve tracked down a spare set of matching door panels to mangle, and have the mdf rings ready to be slathered in cloth and resin. The 8” QM210 ‘ s will be going into these. I’m shooting for 0.25 to 0.5 ft3 volume. We'll have to see once I get going, but I don't think that will be too tough to get. I've done some rough math with the approximate shape.

They are supposedly good to 30hz, and will be bandpassed at 60hz and 300hz to start. 300hz was the original QM335CS crossover point for the set these came from, but I expect to end up closer to 200hz. I'll try them for a while before finishing the subs, just because I'm curious how they'll do.

I plan to aim them slightly in and up, and probably on axis to the opposite front seat back. My main concern/crackpot theory is to get the aiming so that both driver and passenger bodies are within both midbass driver’s radiation pattern. So – slightly off axis to the MB nearest you, and on axis to the other door, in both driver and passenger seat. Will it work to get that "live show" midbass thwack in the chest I love without screwing up the soundstage and imaging? The juries still out, we’ll have to see…


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## ClassicCoupe (Aug 7, 2008)

Fire away!

I've had my car apart more times than I care to remember and am finally figuring out how to do it without breaking things. :blush:

The passenger foot well offers plenty of space for a smallish subwoofer. The trouble is that you've got a whole lot of electronic modules down there as well (ECU, alarm, SRS, ventilation fan, etc.) so you'll want to keep you installation quite mobile.

Kicks are a difficult option on our cars. The ECU is behind the kick panel on the passenger side and the hood relase and parking brake get in the way on the driver's side.

Good luck on your project.



Svendingo said:


> Nice to see some interest in my build. Lets hope I do it justice!
> 
> ClassicCoupe, glad to hear from you. At some point as I truly tear into it, I will probably hassle you with a few questions. I just don't know those questions yet...
> And yeah, I'm interested in seeing my pods too :anxious:
> ...


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

ClassicCoupe said:


> Kicks are a difficult option on our cars. The ECU is behind the kick panel on the passenger side and the hood relase and parking brake get in the way on the driver's side.
> 
> Good luck on your project.


That's what I was getting at in the first post. Doing kick panels just really isn't feasible without some major butchery and re-working the interior -that's why I ended up choosing the pillars for my mids and highs.


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## FLYONWALL9 (Nov 8, 2009)

I've got a set of the same 8's that I'm in the process of
building door panels for also. I sent Quart an email, their
reply was to not put them in an enclosure. The last car
I had them in had an enclosure. They sounded ok but
could be a bit punchy, I think due to being in a sealed
enclosure. I'm going to try them this time open backed
and see how it goes, see if it makes them a bit smoother.

Curious, does the spec sheet that came with them say 
to put them in a sealed enclosure? Mine however is the
RWC200's, I'm sure they are a later model than your
210's... really nice driver... I was thinking of crossing
them over at about 60hz with a top end of about 240
or so. The slope my crossover has is 72db which is the
reason I'm not going any higher, it really doesn't have
any roll off it pretty much chops it off dead at the 
crossover point.


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## FLYONWALL9 (Nov 8, 2009)

I missed one of your questions, sorry... You were asking or rather
discribing how your thinking of aiming them. When I had these in
kicks in an AMG my biggest problem was they are so strong and 
yeld so much midbass that you could really feel it when a kick drum
or bass guitar (stanley clark, AWESOME) was playing. This would
inavertently or subconchesly draw your attention to them, not as
if you could make out its location on a soundstage but due to being
able to feel the speakers impact. If your going to be using time 
alignment I wouldn't aim them and actually if your able to play them
in place before you build your door panel that would be even better.
Heck if nothing else, all you need is a source unit to play them and
if you then find they need aiming you'll have a better idea of what
angle to put them in. Even if you used an old home stereo this 
would be better than building the door skins and finding out later
they needed more or less angle. I strongly recommend this.... In
the long run you would have tested them out before hand and
would have already worked out solutions.


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## FLYONWALL9 (Nov 8, 2009)

ALMOST hate to post another reply and I should have looked to see if you asked me a question about my old install. Can we chalk it up to my meds kicking in? SORRY these are so long but I think detail is better because I no longer have pics of the car..... It's really rather ironic that your system resembles my old one in so many ways, so I'm able to give you really useful feedback on what to expect first hand. 

Anyway, about the subwoofer. When I did the system I started with a pair of 8's in a sealed box. The baffle was in a V shape to fire into the first aid kit hole. This worked really well but
with the mids and highs I had they simply over powered the subs. I had a PG ZX350 on the tweets, and a bridged PG ZX450 on my Quart 8's, and a ZX500 bridged to my subs. My second attempt I got a pair of Quart 10's and added another ZX500 bridged at 4ohms. The rated power of the ZX500 is 600 watts into 4 ohms, keep in mind I had the gains way down. Those 10's fired to the tail lights, this did much better but you could tell they were muted. The worst issue was you could not tell when the subs were being over driven. 

I gave the car to my nephew for a graduation gift, I took out most of my gear but he wanted me to build him a box. Going into it with the knowledge I gained from the first system I built his box as follows. Build the box as thin as possible and put about a 3" tall lip around the baffle or simply sink the baffle into the box so your left with that lip. I then screwed through the deck into that lip drawing it to the back deck. The subs were as close together as possible under that first aid hole. Then I foamed around the lip sealing the baffles lip to the rear deck. This did two things, it left me with exactly the same amount of trunk space because the box rested on top of the fuel tank and you could then tell if the drivers were bottoming out. Best of all it increased the output dramatically. I don't know the depth of your subs but you may need the V baffle to be rather drastic. After all this my nephew (being a dumb kid) went to a local shop purchased a prefab bandpass box for a pair of 12's. He didn't think it had enough bass. The bandpass box worked well but took up a huge amount of space. IMHO, I liked the 10s firing through that hole because you simply could not tell where the subs were. They blended in with the front stage so well, he just wanted impact and didn't know SQ is the best route.....

AGAIN, sorry for the lengthy post but I hope it is of some value to you.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

Flyonthewall, where do I start? Thanks for the tips. I unfortunately have no literature for the component set, just the box. These are QM210TC, yours would have been the reference 8". Mine have a cast composite plastic type frame with paper cones. I'm sure both styles were intended for semi-free air door mounting as most car audio mids end up being installed that way. I have thought about some sort of aperiodic vent, but I have zero experience there. Like you say, testing is definitely a good idea. I have some of the Parts Express 0.25ft3 sealed boxes that I will use to check 'em out. Also, if it is too punchy, they can be tamed other ways.

I have one info request in to the guy that handles the archives at what is now "MB Quart". I don't think giving support for the original company is a big priority for them, and I've got a ton of questions/ spec sheet requests. They don't even have manuals posted on their website going back more than a couple years. I'm looking for data on a set that sold in the late 80's/early 90's. A long shot.

I am actually putting together a thread / info feeler for the forum, because I know people have plenty of experience with the older MB Quart stuff. I'd like to get all that info in one place.


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## FLYONWALL9 (Nov 8, 2009)

_I am actually putting together a thread / info feeler for the forum, because I know people have plenty of experience with the older MB Quart stuff. I'd like to get all that info in one place. _

GREAT IDEA! 

The 8s I have are also some sort of cast plastic baskets. I 
think I know where my spec sheet is, I'll try and put my hands
on it tomorrow. If not the spec sheet I do think I have the orig
email I sent to them with a reply. I also have a spec sheet around
and about for the tweeter and mid. I do remember getting all that
because I wasn't going to be using passive crossovers and needed
to know what to cross them over at. The only issue we may have
would be I was given figures based on my 72db per octave xover.

We will both be doing door panels based on pretty much the same
midbass driver, it would be interesting to see how very different
they are given in different cars.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

As a follow up to some comments I made in previous posts.

- Reading my thread, I was a little too kind about the PG 4x6's. They sound very decent, but I really have to stress the lack of bass. The tweeter sounds good, but feed it any real volume and that goodness goes away. You're not getting much over 1/2 way on the volume knob with these.

- I am impressed by the C780's built in amp. It really does sound good and slightly warm. It has dynamic power that is surprising for simple head unit power. It's very similar to a T-amp in that way.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

My thoughts on the pillar aiming seems to be slightly against common practice.

Most seem to aim both tweeters and/or mids to a single central point (mirror, dome light...), or one set to the same or opposite seat. I want them directly on axis to the driver seat. This way both drivers are fully on axis in that seat, not one 0 degrees and one 30 degrees degrees off. The same holds true for the passenger side. Instead of having one side of the speaker drivers on axis, and the other off axis, for the passenger side it will always be off axis. Forgetting the whole T/A thing, this should help keep L-R levels consistent n both sides. I think.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

Subs:

Two 10” Boston Acoustics 10.5LF 2Ω 

The sub enclosure will be installed flush against the trunk firewall. A tunnel/manifold arrangement (don’t call them ports!) will run up to a baffle I’ve made that covers the rear deck, with rectangular slots loading the rear window at nearly a 45° angle. I’m not a fan of trunk rattle, and this trunk is pretty air tight. The goal is for all of the drivers' output to be within the passenger cabin.

I’m leaning towards a sealed box with 0.7 to 0.8 ft3 each driver. It’s what every program I’ve modeled them in by the spec’ed T/S numbers gives me.

I’ll bet the 0.5 ft3 that Boston specs is just to get a higher peak power handling, and their warranty fudge factor. I’m only running 300W to each, and possibly 600W at a later date. I can fill in the box to bring down the volume if needed, but I can’t make it bigger without rebuilding it.

The 2Ω single coil setup sort of locks me into a high current amp or single amp per sub. Unfortunately not enough amps are rated for 2Ω bridged, and the amps I own that are 2Ω stable when bridged just don't put out enough for these notoriously power hungry subs. I'm kind of screwed in that sense, my big amps can't handle the loading, my little / medium amps just don't have the balls. Enter the big reds.

*There is a big note in the manual telling you not to trust what any programs or calculations tell you for enclosure size. Only build the box they spec –Because they aren’t normal speaker drivers, made on Earth by human beings, and don’t follow the same conventions as other speakers? They must use some kind of rare asteroid ore magnets  and platypus skin diaphragms. Maybe it just means I shouldn’t trust their numbers… 

Proprietary specs are bs in widely available consumer products. Hopefully they aren’t throwing out junk T/S #’s to fool the competition, or I’m screwed.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

I'll been busy, but will get some pics posted this weekend. 

Made a rear armrest/side firing sub out of 3/4 plywood. This is a temporary sub experiment. If its loud enough it stays, if not it will become a wacky midbass experiment. I had a funky rectangular waterfall thing in mind and modeled it in sketchup, but it ended up a big ole trapezoid. There was a great deal of measurement and cardboard prototyping. Fitting between the seats, matching the front panel to the approximate angle of the seat backs, not rubbing the back leather, and being parallel to the bottom of the quarter window were all a hassle. Mounting it level and centered was a *****. I used 2" L brackets, with self tappers screwed into the tunnel. Visually it blends in okay painted semi flat black. Next time I take it out I want to put a roundover on it.

I have a Polk MM1040 10" in there now . IIRC I made the box 0.68 ft3. Stuffed it with polyfill and screwed it down.

Last weekend while changing my blower I finally found a useful grommet near the battery and ran 2ga to the trunk. Currently have the 10 running off an Orion Xtreme 400 bridged (@400 watts). ive kept the sub level way down because the fronts just can't keep up. Once I get the pillars finished we'll have to see. Its no spl beast, but sounds good, and the Polk isn't broken in yet.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

Double double 
Post post


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

Some pics of the progress building the armrest.

The side baffles










Mocked up together with scrap center boards










General idea










the trial fit


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

The armrest enclosure is kind of bare bones and military looking with the exposed countersunk screws. If I end up keeping it in there, I will putty in the holes and give it a roundover and leather. It is fairly invisible from outside with the dark tint (max legal %), which is what I wanted.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

The other option I have been thinking about is covering the enclosure in black wrinkle finish paint, after I sand it a bit smoother. It is what I have in mind for the pillars to side step tons of bondofuss.


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## alm001 (Feb 13, 2010)

Oh man,
My first car (in 99) was a 1984 500sec with the koenig body kit.
I loved the car. I still think that if it didn't have the body kit, and 345 wide tires in back I would still own it.

That gas tank was in a terrible spot, but we were able to do (4) 10" Kicker free-airs on the rear deck. That was some beautiful bass.

The equipment list was pretty weak, but I was in High school;
Blaupunkt head 
JBL 5.25's in the front doors
Blaupunkt 5.25s on the rear deck
MTX thunder something
(4) Kicker 10's

Enjoy the car! Great work so far on the audio.


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## pankrok (Jan 1, 2010)

i really liked the look of the SEC 
nasty in an elegant way.

but honestly this box cannot serve as armrest. 
not a chance to build something on the side panels ??
this rear deck is not a bad idea after all.


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

alm001,
Pics man! That sounds like a very '80s styled machine. I've toyed with the idea of just throwing the subs on the rear deck with the enclosure below in the trunk. I can see my rear deck plainly now outside the car, and I'm trying to not put it all on display. Grilles over it seem like a potential resonance issue to me. I've never got to hear a well done IB setup, but always been curious. I do know people regularly asked if my buddy's old Dodge St Regis had subs (with Premier 2 way 6x9's and an Alpine 22x2 on the rear deck). It was surprising. I can imagine that scaled up with _real_ drivers. Knowing what I do now, I think we just lucked out with driver parameters matching the trunk volume, and that sweet spot of appropriate amplifier power for a speaker, and possibly trunk leakage acting as a port of sorts or resistive vent. Happy accidents.



alm001 said:


> Oh man,
> My first car (in 99) was a 1984 500sec with the koenig body kit.
> I loved the car. I still think that if it didn't have the body kit, and 345 wide tires in back I would still own it.
> 
> ...


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## Svendingo (Jun 17, 2008)

pankrok said:


> i really liked the look of the SEC
> nasty in an elegant way.
> 
> but honestly this box cannot serve as armrest.
> ...


Remember that this is probably not going to be permanent. I just wanted to get something in there now. I need a bigger alternator before I can even think about installing the 10.5LF's, because I will not be able to feed them the power they need with a 65A alternator. 

It actually is an okay armrest. My rear seat only sees occasional use anyway. It's not as bad as it seems in the pictures, and is about the same height as the front armrest. The rear hideaway armrest you see behind the box is uselessly low when folded down. Herr Armsatwekin the German ergonomic genius was on vacation when that was designed. He can probably also be blamed for the missing cupholder.


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## alm001 (Feb 13, 2010)

I didn't have a digital camera back then.. or even think to take a lot of pictures of it for that matter. I'll see if I can dig some up, and scan them.

This is what it looked like. Mine was maroon, with Gotti's instead of the BBS's, and a rear wing.


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## alm001 (Feb 13, 2010)

what happened there?


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