# Simple SQ-Lite project - 2012 WRX - Pioneer, Morel, Arc Audio, Audiomobile



## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

What a contrast  One week we are working on a big SPL build, next week we are back to a simple and clean SQ project 

This time, its in a 2012 Subaru WRX hatch. if you are wondering what SQ-lite build means, i use that term to describe a system that is run actively but without the benefit and added cost of a stand alone processor or a max tuning HU such as a P99.

so the goals:

1. to achieve a decent level of sound quality

2. maintain a clean stealthy and simple look in the interior

3. maintain that look in the hatch and retain all trunk space

lets get started.

First up is always the fusing under the hood...once again, Joey fabricated a custom metal bracket that bolts to OEM mounting points to secure a 0 gauge fuse holder.

I know this may read like a broken record now, but i want to make sure we show it everytime, how he manages to do this on such different cars, time and again, is truly eye opening for me:




























the signal source, as well as all signal processing, is the pioneer 80PRS:










here is the wiring harness organization:



















Joey built a custom USB mount that replaces the oem piece in the center armest storage bin, so the customer can plug in his digital media just like before:





































The front stage consists of a set of Morel Virtus 602 two way components. From past experience working with this car, the tweeters were molded into the A pillars facing off axis, wrapped in black vinyl to match the dash:









































































since Joey built these pillars, pics may be a bit scarce  

but essentially its built the same way as before, mold cloth was pulled after the tweeter rings were aimed and secured:



















once it cured, duraglass/resin mix was poured inside to make them essentially solid pods, and then the whole thing got filler applied and sanded smooth:



















and then they were wrapped i vinyl and ready to go, we also painted the Morel tweeter mounting cups and mesh grille black to better match the finish










The morel midbasses were installed in the lower door stock locations. first, new speaker wires were run into the door:










then the door was sound proofed with STP foam and gold damper:










we fabricated these mounting baffle based on the OEM speaker mounting, and coated them with truck bedliner to proitect them against the elements.



















these baffles were then installed in the door via oem hardware:



















then the morel midbass was installed:



















the same process was repeated on the passenger side:


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

next come pics of the wiring bundle as it goes from the front to the back of the car, secured to the factory loom every few inches:




























































































moving on to the trunk. so simple, clean and zero space lost. obviously, it means a fake floor  so here is the normal view, a new fake floor that is vritually at the stock heigh, with a center cutout in the middle covered by a breathable grille:




























pop up that cover and here is what you see, a single Audiomobile Elite 2210 10" sub is on the driver side, while two arc audio KS amps is to the right of it and slightly behind. a KS300.4 sends 4x90s upfront active to the Morels, while a 300.2 is bridged powering the sub with 700 watts RMS.

The amps and sub is trimmed in white vinyl, and is arranged in a simple asymmetrical configuration. If you are familar with this car, then you know this isnt the easiest car to do a fake floor in while maintaining the stock floor heigh. there are two big metal covering brackets at the front corners of the hatch that takes a lot of space, and not a lot of mounting depth for the sub since there isnt really a well, but a valley framed by those metal rackets and foam storage trays.

infact, all my previous impreza/wrx hatch fake floors involved raising the floor height by about 3 inches, this time, though, i was determined to keep it OEM. 
































































now onto some build pics. first, the area of the floor pan where the system will go is sound proofed:










next a mold of fiberglass cloth was laid down, forming the bottom of the enclosure. with the limited depth of the well and the not-so-shallow audiomobile sub, i needed every inch i can get out of the box:










once that cured, i removed it from the car, trimmed it to the desired shape, and covered it with STP sound proofing to prevent resonance:










next, i secured a flat baffle to the mold, held at precisely the angle and height that i wanted, and pulled mold cloth aroundt he edges, forming a single enclsoure of around .35 cub feet by rough calculation. resin was then applied to the cloth, and when that cured, more layers of fiberglass went on the side walls to reinforce it:



















next came the second part of the enclosure, whcih i built with a stack of trapezoid shapes, four rings form the walls with a top baffle to which the sub will mount to:










and here is the finished sub box with both pieces secured together, odd looking eh? 










a magical statement also mysteriously appeared on the side wall of the box...pretty insane huh?! 










next, two big ole rivet nuts was installed into the floor to bolt the box structure to:










here is the white cosmetic trim panel before and after vinyl:



















here is the top fake floor before and after carpet, its separate on the left side so it can bend to go through the hatch door:




























and here is the breathable grille before and after carpeting:



















and finally, three shops of the wiring organization under the floor 




























so thats it, gave it a quick tune and its pretty good. stage is nice and high, pillar to pillar with pretty good width. the morels are pretty smooth and the virtus midbass, which doenst look hugely impressive, is actually very punchy and solidly anchors the bass notes upfront. 

the audiomobile sub continues to do its thing, that is, provide a solid amount of bass reinforcement and extension while still sounding very good and transparent.

so thats it for now, got one more car to finish before i head out to CABO!! woo woo! 

cheers,

Bing


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## copter (Aug 10, 2011)

Is it August yet? 

I can't wait to get the Camaro in for some SiS love.

Great job guys!


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## 12vTools (Jan 15, 2009)

Awesome work guys. Love the layout lines on everything. JOey is putting the woodpeckers to great use!


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## wdemetrius1 (Aug 16, 2007)

It looks great guys!!!


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## sirbOOm (Jan 24, 2013)

What is this STP foam you speak of, sir?


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## mattyjman (Aug 6, 2009)

poop goes here.


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## mattyjman (Aug 6, 2009)

by the way, when do we get a better peak at the M3?


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

good eye matty haha, Joey will have to explain that one 

STP is

StP - Home


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## robert_wrath (Apr 24, 2011)

I love False/Elevated Floor Builds. Excellent alternative to trunk space consumption.


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

mattyjman said:


> poop goes here.


Hahahahaa..... As bing has mentioned before sometimes our schedules get a little funky. Bing is here much earlier than me, and I am here later than he is. We usually end up checking out each others work, and sometime we leave notes...


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## cnut334 (Oct 17, 2009)

Nice work yet again gentlemen!


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## strong*I*bumpin (Oct 3, 2005)

Not much to say but :thumbsup:


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

Got to check this one out in person and it was super clean. Checking Bing and Joey's builds always give me more ideas for my own install. Definitely going to be swiping some of their techniques.


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

Dustin, we were eating at 99 Chicken and I saw your picture on the wall!


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

Oh, and it ain't stealin' we freely give...


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

[email protected] said:


> Dustin, we were eating at 99 Chicken and I saw your picture on the wall!


Ha... Kinda weird. Not me, but he does kind of look like me. And my wife isn't Asian. So even if it was, that isn't me.


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

Uh huh, good cover up.. Your secret is safe with us... Hahaha..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## britesynth (Sep 12, 2014)

hello! 

I'm new to car audio fab and I would like to know what thickness of mdf are used for each layer? (main box, trim panels, plexi trims, cover panels, etc...)

I've noticed that you use layering technique on most of your builds

are they glued in together when finished? (or screwed maybe?)

wouldn't they cause unwanted (rattle) noise when the sub starts to kick?

by the way fantastic work and designs as always!

thank you very much!

jake
philippines


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## [email protected] (Nov 7, 2010)

We use a variety of MDF thicknesses. We keep 1/8", 1/4" 3/8", 1/2" and 3/4" in stock and each build can use any combination of those.

The layers are typically bolted/screwed/pinned or sometimes velcro'd together. It depends on what needs to be accessed underneath which method we use.

The enclosures themselves are glued together and when it is constructed solely of MDF those are also nailed together with brad nails.

thanks!!





britesynth said:


> hello!
> 
> I'm new to car audio fab and I would like to know what thickness of mdf are used for each layer? (main box, trim panels, plexi trims, cover panels, etc...)
> 
> ...


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## britesynth (Sep 12, 2014)

thank you very much for your reply =)


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

Somehow, I missed this whole install. I didn't even realize it was old until like half way through. lol

I like it.


Jay


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## Fromthefallen777 (Sep 17, 2014)

Hey Joey, Josh from Tip Top Customs. I was curious about the breathable grill cover. Is it just that tight and perfectly fit that it doesn't vibrate or anything with that sub playing right under it. I'm just curious, Thanks


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## Old Skewl (May 30, 2011)

I know this build was over a year ago, but what flush mount cups did you use to mount the tweeters into the A-pillars? The Morel supplied flush mount is egg shaped and weird looking. The ones you used look nice and clean! I am trying to mount a set of MT-22s and I am not happy with the Morels supplied cups.


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