# My 2008 Infiniti Ex35 - Done by John @ Hand Crafted Car Audio



## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Thought I would share the install my new friend John at Hand crafted Car Audio of Chandler AZ did for me a couple weeks ago.
I met John through a Second Skin sales rep named Bob Morrow. 
Some of you guys already know of Bobs Tacoma which has been reviewed in this DIYMA thread:
http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/member-product-reviews/60325-bob-morrows-h-t-tacoma.html

So Bob introduced me to John, one of the customers he calls on.
John is a true DIY guy turned professional.
He works out of the garage in his home in east Chandler AZ and within the first minute of walking in, I knew I was in the right place.
The tools he has and the cleanliness alone were enough to make most retail install bays jealous.

You can see a shot of his garage on the home page of his website:
Handcrafted Car Audio - Mesa, AZ - Car Audio, Video, Security and Accessory Sales and Installation.

After talking with Bob and John for a few hours, we came up with a game plan. I already have tons of amps, subs and components to choose from. Most all brand new, but some simply wouldn't work.

I really wanted to keep everything as factory looking as possible. I did not want fabricate pods in the dash, or put the tweets in the pillars. We did not use kicks, and I opted to keep the factory spare tire. My biggest concern here is that I travel to Mexico 6-8 times per year. It is a 4 hour drive to the beach so I would absolutely hate to blow a tire on the way and be stuck in the middle of the desert with no spare. The spare had to stay.

The problem with this was that it limited the space we could use for the amp rack, as well as the subs. We ended up glassing one sub on each side of the hatch while making the amp rack adjustable so that I could still access the spare tire with ease. It turned out better than I could have hoped for!

All in all, everything is very factory. 
The mids are in the doors and the tweets are in the factory dash corners. I knew that I would be compromising on this but I honestly would rather keep everything factory, and take my licks afterwards.

Here is what we used:

*Head Unit* - Factory Infiniti integrated with:
Arc Audio SRI

*Components*
Ultra Subs SS-6

*Subs*
(2) JL Audio 8W7

*Amps*
(2) JL HD750/1's 
(2) JL HD600/4's

I only needed one of the 4 channel amps so that one is sitting back in my closet.

*Crossover*
Arc Audio IDX

*Sound Deadening*
Second Skin Damplifier Pro

All in all, everything is still very factory. 
The mids are in the doors and the tweets are in the factory dash corners. I knew that I would be compromising on this but I honestly would rather keep everything factory, and take my licks afterwards.
Here are the pics:


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## NOFATTYS (Jan 5, 2009)

none of your pictures worked


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)




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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)




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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)




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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Overall I am very happy with the results
We still have some tweaking to do, but without messing with it too much it is very loud, and crisp. A bit too crisp o nthe highs in fact. Having tweets with 150 watts in the corners of the dash bouncing off the windshield certainly is not doing me any favors, so my one of my next steps is to kill the tweets and replace them with a with a set of HAT L4s that Scott just sent me.
Some time alignment would be great, as would an EQ.
I am looking at a 7 band Arc model but I am open to some suggestions if you guys have any. Today, Matt at Image Dynamics suggested an Audio Control unit. If anyone has some ideas, please throw them my way. The factory head unit is severely lacking for sure.
Manville sent me the bass controller for the sub amps, but I am not sure if I will need it once we get the EQ put in. Just gotta get the right EQ and find a place for it.


Enjoy!

ANT


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## 12vTools (Jan 15, 2009)

I like the shapes in the trunk area.. Looking pretty cool so far.
He has some nice router skills to say the least.


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

replacing tweeters with L4 midrange drivers?


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## 12vTools (Jan 15, 2009)

Bit one is nice for 1/3 octave and t/a for all channels


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

unpredictableacts said:


> replacing tweeters with L4 midrange drivers?


 
Yeah...
Both bob and John run the HAT L4 mids in place of tweets and they get plenty high for my taste. They sound beautiful while doing it as well.
The Ultra Subs SS-6 go low and high enough for my tasts. No bottoming out with this much power, and everything stayps pretty crisp. I think the L4s will blend very well with them, and should help raise the stage a good deal. The stage is decently high and wide on some songs but drops pretty fast. 
I do have to track down some resonance in the plastic upholstery though. Gotta little bit of buzzing going on.


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## BlueAc (May 19, 2007)

Nice...


You wanna sell that other 600/4? I know a nice home for it...


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

BlueAc said:


> Nice...
> 
> 
> You wanna sell that other 600/4? I know a nice home for it...


Sorry man.. Going to keep it for now..


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

very nice !! Anthony 

Likin the W7s


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## Kenny_Cox (Sep 9, 2007)

always liked these "cars", almost bought one myself. Should be cool to see how it turns out. Very impressed with the work thus far.


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Kenny_Cox said:


> always liked these "cars", almost bought one myself. Should be cool to see how it turns out. Very impressed with the work thus far.


I love the car.
Before I bought it I test drove the:
Range Rover Sport
MB GLK
Audio Q5
and a few others.

This one cam in $10k cheaper and had all the same features. Dealers were giving them away! 
I threw on some 20" rims, and tinted the lights..
I'll have to take a pic of the cars exterior. Pretty sharp little crossover.

ANT


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## doitor (Aug 16, 2007)

Hi, Ant.
So you are using one HD600/4 for the entire frontstage (150 watts for each driver) and one HD750/1 on each sub?

J.


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## Kenny_Cox (Sep 9, 2007)

Definitely post some exterior shots! I think with this car it's a hate it or love it thing, it's very curvy. I happen to love it, and with some new wheels I bet it looks even more killer.

Good work man.

Happy with the sound?


DIYMA said:


> I love the car.
> Before I bought it I test drove the:
> Range Rover Sport
> MB GLK
> ...


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

doitor said:


> Hi, Ant.
> So you are using one HD600/4 for the entire frontstage (150 watts for each driver) and one HD750/1 on each sub?
> 
> J.


 
Si


ANT


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Kenny_Cox said:


> Happy with the sound?


 
Yes.. For now I am.
I am much happier with the sound the way it is, untuned and all, compared to the stock Bose system. That is for sure.

Still needs to be dialed in though. Right now it is very loud, clean and crisp. Imaging needs work, as some some separation between highs and mids. I'd like to drop the door speakers down a notch. Right now they are crossed at 100 hz. Kind of high for these mids from what I understand. I think 70 hz or so would be better. Then once we get the HAT L4s in, we can focus a bit more on improving the stage..
Happy? Yes. Satisfied? Never..


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## Kenny_Cox (Sep 9, 2007)

DIYMA said:


> Happy? Yes. Satisfied? Never..


isn't that the case with everything? I am looking forward to some photos, did you go with a custom wheel or just a "generic" wheel you could get anywhere?


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Kenny_Cox said:


> isn't that the case with everything? I am looking forward to some photos, did you go with a custom wheel or just a "generic" wheel you could get anywhere?


The wheels are pretty nice. Not custom by any means though.
Expect some pics inthe next week or so.


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

Hey guys, I just signed up over here so i figured i'd drop a line. Thank you all for all of your compliments, I really appreciate them. 

I had a lot of fun with this one, and from what ANT is telling me, I'll be back in it very soon! I only wish I had with held a little of that desire to go beyond what was expected so that I could have had more time to tune. But, we all know how that goes, you see an opportunity to spice things up a bit and you just can't pass it up! 

Like ANT said, I am a DIY guy at heart. I started doing car audio when I was 13 as a hobby for friends and family, eventually my own cars. I took a job doing it at 19 because the pay was good and thats what I needed while I was in college. A couple years later I realized that an EE degree was not for me, so I dropped out of ASU and decided to focus on my true love...car audio and fabrication. I took some training classes to hone my skills and learn new ones and just 2 1/2 years ago I started my business. 

I know that this is a forum for DIY people and not retail business owners, so I'll keep my interactions here brief out of respect. However, if any of you local guys need something done that you just can't figure out or need some equipment, give me a call, I think you'll find I'm fair on my prices and always willing to help. 

There is probably an introduction area somewhere on this forum huh? Oops! Mod, please move this thread if you need to.


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

P.S.

I am based out of Mesa, Az, not Chandler. We will have to excuse ANT, he doesn't make it out to the east valley too often!


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Thanks for signing up Jon.
I appreciate you taking the time out to chime in!

ANT


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

No problem man. I swear, I could spend a whole day just staying up to date on all the car audio and fabrication forums that are out there!


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

lilmsprelude said:


> Hey Jon.. Welcome aboard!
> 
> I saw this whip when you posted it on FG forums but had no clue it was Ant's.
> 
> ...


 
What link did you withold.
Spill it!

ANT


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## salekt (Sep 16, 2009)

sick


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## eskateboarding7 (Mar 18, 2009)

handcrafted said:


> Hey guys, I just signed up over here so i figured i'd drop a line. Thank you all for all of your compliments, I really appreciate them.
> 
> I had a lot of fun with this one, and from what ANT is telling me, I'll be back in it very soon! I only wish I had with held a little of that desire to go beyond what was expected so that I could have had more time to tune. But, we all know how that goes, you see an opportunity to spice things up a bit and you just can't pass it up!
> 
> ...


This sounds exactly like what I want to do... congratulations. You seem to do some incredible work, it's inspiring to see that it is possible to start a business in your garage (incredibly impressive BTW) and become successful in this industry. I look forward to seeing more of your work.


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## IamMurph (Jan 12, 2009)

Very nice


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

lilmsprelude said:


> Hey Jon.. Welcome aboard!
> 
> I saw this whip when you posted it on FG forums but had no clue it was Ant's.
> 
> ...


Hey, whats up? Thank you for welcoming me and also for your compliments. I'll be 100% honest, I was a bit nervous about joinging this forum because the last time I was true diy was when all we new of this new interweb thingy was AOL! Ha! I just made myself sound totally old! Maybe I am?! Anyways, I just always figured this was strictly for the DIY guys and you all would start lightin your torches if an industry guy like me came along! Thank you all for proving me wrong because I love the ingenuity of the DIY crowd! Plus I saw a buddy of mine named Josh Landau of JML audio is on here too, so that made it a bit easier! Whats up Josh?


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

eskateboarding7 said:


> This sounds exactly like what I want to do... congratulations. You seem to do some incredible work, it's inspiring to see that it is possible to start a business in your garage (incredibly impressive BTW) and become successful in this industry. I look forward to seeing more of your work.


Thank you man, I'm pretty stoked about it too. Ya know, I have dreamed of finding a way to do this for the rest of my life for many years. there were many obstacles along the way and, although I have had my business license for over 2 1/2 years now, I didn't really push for it until the beginning of this year. I was worried that because I would be out of my garage people would not take me seriously and I would fail. Well, for a couple of reasons (one already referenced in this post), I decided that I have to just give it my best shot, that way I know that I atleast tried to fulfill my dream. I gotta say man, I was completely wrong about my preconceived notions of how I would be received. Almost everybody that comes to my place says that i am set up better than most "established" shops and I have not had even one person back out, get nervous or even scoff at the idea. I'll tell you this too, I don't stock any equipment. I special order everything for every job. This keeps my overhead down and allows me to sell what the client really needs, not what is collecting dust on my shelf. I can count on one hand the number of jobs I have lost because of this, and those absolutely had to be done that day, otherwise I would have gotten them. Most people appreciate my reasons for not just getting them in and out as quickly as possible.

I say, if you really want to do it, just do it man. If your heart is in the right place, you are honest and you stand behind your work, you will do well no matter where you run your business. Don't let anything keep you from your dreams, I learned that lesson and I couldn't be happier.


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## Bob Morrow (May 4, 2009)

Way to go John! We need more like you. This is the way I started too, many years ago.


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## ISTundra (Jan 3, 2009)

Meh… I’ve seen better work at Audio Express and Chronic Car Audio…


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## ISTundra (Jan 3, 2009)

^^ I Kid!^^

Jon has done my custom fabrication work as well (although nothing to this extent), so I can vouch for his quality and attention to detail.


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## mikey7182 (Jan 16, 2008)

ISTundra said:


> Meh… I’ve seen better work at Audio Express and Chronic Car Audio…


"Deep penetration ass-pounding bass package... One-ninety-nine... IN-STALLED."  

It's SO refreshing to not hear those commercials at 1am anymore.


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

mikey7182 said:


> "Deep penetration ass-pounding bass package... One-ninety-nine... IN-STALLED."
> 
> It's SO refreshing to not hear those commercials at 1am anymore.


 
Gawd those radio commercials were the worst..
Always late at night on the way home from tempe..

Are your horney for meth induced bass vodka Mary Jane?

B B B B BASS!!!


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## Soloact (Sep 13, 2008)

Hey Jon,glad to see you made it over here.Welcome!


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

ISTundra said:


> ^^ I Kid!^^
> 
> Jon has done my custom fabrication work as well (although nothing to this extent), so I can vouch for his quality and attention to detail.


Wow, I'm glad I kept reading. I was so heart broken! 


Soloact said:


> Hey Jon,glad to see you made it over here.Welcome!


Thanks man.


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

DIYMA said:


> Gawd those radio commercials were the worst..
> Always late at night on the way home from tempe..
> 
> Are your horney for meth induced bass vodka Mary Jane?
> ...


BASS! BASS! thank god they're gone. Oh wait, they're not, they're just reincarnated as slangin audio.


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## pnn23 (Jun 7, 2008)

Where's the exterior shots? Great fab work.


Man, seeing the interior disassembled brings back unpleasant memories when I was working on my Infiniti....


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

Yeah man, those seats are crazy heavy!


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## HondAudio (Oct 19, 2006)

The fact that he's local got my attention


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

pnn23 said:


> Where's the exterior shots? Great fab work.


 
Ah hell.. 
I forgot. I'll take some today if I get a chance.

ANT


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

HondAudio said:


> The fact that he's local got my attention


Yeah, me too..
Local, and more DIY than anyone I know.
His garage is immaculate!!

I can DIY like anyone, but I am pretty much a hack. A busy hack that would rather let an expert take care of my car. It was an easy choice to let Jon take over and do the build. My money was well spent with him.
Once I visited his house, I knew I made the right choice.

ANT


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

I took this photo today, with my phone.. Not the best but you get the idea.
Once I get her washed, I'll take a few more pics:


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## Kenny_Cox (Sep 9, 2007)

ohhhhh I like it!


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## ANT (Oct 15, 2005)

Kenny_Cox said:


> ohhhhh I like it!


Thanks!
You can kind of see how the tail lights are tinted black.
There are 5 tail lights that are tinted.

The 2 head lights are tinted as well.
I might get the wheels podercoated black, or gun metal grey..
Depends on the cost.

I am not too big on modifications, though I'd like some more power.
I think she has close to 300 hp and similar torque, but weighs near 2 tons.
Another 100 hp would be perfect!

More pics soon!

ANT


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## stickler (Jan 31, 2009)

Wow, I wish my garage looked like that! :-/ 
What's on the floor? Is it just painted?

Very slick ride ANT.


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

It's an epoxy coating. Sorry it took me so long to answer.


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## BowDown (Sep 24, 2009)

How come you didn't use Dynamat? 


















Haha j/k. Don't ban me!

Install looks great. Very clean. Love the curves.


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## handcrafted (Sep 22, 2009)

Ha ha ha! I couldn't see the bottom part on my screen and I just thought "is this guy for real?" Good one man and thanks for the compliments, I appreciate every one of them!


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