# Alright, the TRUE madness begins...



## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

I've received all but a few components to the new setup going in the fucus(waiting on my KAR amps to get here, and an HC2400 I ordered earlier this week). 

Here is a basic outline of the setup:

W200
H701
Dynaudio MD142
Peerless SLS 8"s
Arc Audio KAR 300.2
Arc Audio KAR 300.4
(4) Resonant Engineering SE 10"s in 6 cubes ported tuned to 32-33hz
Incriminator Audio 20.1
Kinetik HC2400
Iraggi 220 amp h/o alt
Second-Skin Spectrum, 5 gallons used on the whole car but doors
RAAMmat60 BXT w/ensolite on doors
Vertex Barrier Pad on floor

Now the tweeters are still undecided, but Ill most likely chose between tweeters on hand between me and Mark(HDS, XT25s, and MaxFi's). I really wouldn't mind trying out some higher end small-format tweeters, either. The tweeters are the only thing im undecided on, which is damn surprising for me hahah...

A picture of some of the gear - 









And my Honda CBR 600 F4i I bought this afternoon


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## fit_tuner (Aug 14, 2006)

wow, you're putting alcohol in your car?! awesome! gonna be pretty nice to mix urself a drink while driving, haha, but on a more serious note, looks like its gonna be an intersting install, good luck!


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## alphakenny1 (Dec 21, 2005)

wow dude you really went on a spending spree, lol. 

anyways i have one conern, im not really confident the sls can get up to 5-600hz if you are mating them with the dyns. thats my only real concern, besides that you should have lots of bass .


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## AzGrower (May 30, 2005)

perhaps you should invest in a Swifter Duster before you purchase any more audio gear...


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

camry_tuner said:


> wow, you're putting alcohol in your car?! awesome! gonna be pretty nice to mix urself a drink while driving, haha, but on a more serious note, looks like its gonna be an intersting install, good luck!


Hahahha, good reply, I actually laughed 



alphakenny1 said:


> wow dude you really went on a spending spree, lol.
> 
> anyways i have one conern, im not really confident the sls can get up to 5-600hz if you are mating them with the dyns. thats my only real concern, besides that you should have lots of bass .


Yeah I did... Im hoping I can get away with 450hz w/steep slopes on both ends, but Ill just experiment and see what works. Hopefully they will mate well... I also have a pair Legatia L3s I bought as well, so I might as well do a head to head comparo between the 2 



AzGrower said:


> perhaps you should invest in a Swifter Duster before you purchase any more audio gear...


I just moved some boxes to make room for all this, hence the dusty vent


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## mephistopholes (Jul 30, 2006)

So many marvelous toys...


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)




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## Beau (Oct 8, 2005)

Tell me about the bike. Since I'll be "single" before too long (see my off topic post), I may be buying one.


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## MidnightCE (Mar 5, 2007)

Great choice of midrange.


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## $NotEnough$ (Aug 19, 2007)

DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE!!! you might spill ur drink  j/k

but seriously, you've got some nice stuff man and btw sweet bike!


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Beau said:


> Tell me about the bike. Since I'll be "single" before too long (see my off topic post), I may be buying one.


Im so sorry about that man, I saw it the other day  A big reason I was/am able to buy all this is because im single now. I had a GOOD bit of money saved up for a ring, but it obviously went to a lot better causes. As far as the bike goes, its a 99 Honda CBR 600 F4i, with a 2002 body, 8451miles, 520 sprocket conversion, K&N filter, stainless steel braided lines, custom viper blue paint, asking 4300, I paid $4000 cash. It is stupid fast for a first bike, though 



mephistopholes said:


> So many marvelous toys...


Thanks  I need to throw in my plasma/xbox360 in there as well, but I haven't found a REAL sturdy stand yet 



azngotskills said:


>


We are going to have some fun with this 



MidnightCE said:


> Great choice of midrange.


Thanks lol



$NotEnough$ said:


> DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE!!! you might spill ur drink  j/k
> 
> but seriously, you've got some nice stuff man and btw sweet bike!


Thanks  KAR amps will be in thursday, and HC2400 will be here friday...


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Used nearly a full roll of RAAMmat60 BXT on just the 2 doors... I used 5 gallons of Second Skin Spectrum on the rest of my car, a couple years back. 

Went to harbor freight for ear plugs and dust masks, walked out with a trunkload of stuff. Damn harbor freight  









Driver-side door before being prepped









Driver-side door









Passenger-side door









Ensolite over both doors

















All the RAAMmat I have left after the doors


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

Nice....hit me back when you get a chance


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

I don't know, I doubt that little bit of RAAMmat will be enough.  Did you/are you going to ensolite the door cards too?

Zach


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Boostedrex said:


> I don't know, I doubt that little bit of RAAMmat will be enough.  Did you/are you going to ensolite the door cards too?
> 
> Zach


Im still worried how much they are going to flex, given what im going to be running  Once I find new door panels, ill be using mat and ensolite on them as well.


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## demon2091tb (May 30, 2005)

Looking good bro, nice alchohol collection ya got too.......****'s gonna be nice when its done, any ideas yet for aesthetics?


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## bassfromspace (Jun 28, 2016)

toolfan91 said:


> Im still worried how much they are going to flex, given what im going to be running  Once I find new door panels, ill be using mat and ensolite on them as well.


Do you ever come back to Dallas?


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

Looking good Ben! Hey, I'm in the market for 1/2 a roll of BTX if you want to go half'n'half.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

demon2091tb said:


> Looking good bro, nice alchohol collection ya got too.......****'s gonna be nice when its done, any ideas yet for aesthetics?


Well, I have a general idea for all the front stage stuff. Center piece of the dash will have to be fabricated for the W200, and it will be painted gloss black. The bezel around the gauge cluster will be painted gloss black as well, the apillars will have SEM texture coat stuff to match the rest of the pillar, doors will be pretty basic(I dont have the new panels yet, so I dont know exactly what ill be doing to them yet), and the kicks will be done in vinyl. The hatch area, well, is going to be kinda crazy... I have some pretty cool ideas, but im more concerned with getting the front half done at this moment 



bassfromspace said:


> Do you ever come back to Dallas?


I sure do, I was actually up in early august for the Projekt Revolution tour... Ill be up some weekend in October for sure. 



omarmipi said:


> Looking good Ben! Hey, I'm in the market for 1/2 a roll of BTX if you want to go half'n'half.


Thanks Omar, other than the door panels themselves, I have no need for anymore sound-deadening(thankfully, haha)...


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

My brand spankin new KAR amps came in today  300.4 and 300.2, compared to my laptop(I didn't realize they were THIS small).


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## alphakenny1 (Dec 21, 2005)

omarmipi said:


> Looking good Ben! Hey, I'm in the market for 1/2 a roll of BTX if you want to go half'n'half.


rick sells them in halfs. Rick owns all!!


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

toolfan91 said:


> My brand spankin new KAR amps came in today  300.4 and 300.2, compared to my laptop(I didn't realize they were THIS small).


how do you like your laptop. you like the touchpad? works like a greased up raccoon, doesnt it?


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> how do you like your laptop. you like the touchpad? works like a greased up raccoon, doesnt it?


I love it, touchpad works great as well


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

nice amps


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Nice pad  Looking forward to your feedback, Ben. 

System looks like it's going to be sweet!


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

B-Squad said:


> Nice pad  Looking forward to your feedback, Ben.
> 
> System looks like it's going to be sweet!


Ill probably start stripping out the car early next week, but it wont start for sure until there is no chance of rain for a few days(so I can take the bike everywhere). Ill be sure to let you know for sure


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## italyix (Sep 9, 2007)

toolfan91 said:


> My brand spankin new KAR amps came in today  300.4 and 300.2, compared to my laptop(I didn't realize they were THIS small).


I just bought both of those amps a month ago as well.

How much did yuu pay for them, if u dont mind me asking.


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## italyix (Sep 9, 2007)

toolfan91 said:


> My brand spankin new KAR amps came in today  300.4 and 300.2, compared to my laptop(I didn't realize they were THIS small).


I just bought both of those amps a month ago as well.

How much did you pay for them, if u don't mind me asking.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

Nice amps.


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## zwats (Sep 22, 2007)

Those amps are ridiculous...


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

GlasSman said:


> Nice amps.


Thanks 


zwats said:


> Those amps are ridiculous...


They are incredibly small, and from what I have heard out of the 300.4, VERY powerful   

Well, today I put in my Dayton RS180s and my HDS tweeters temporarily. To my surprise, I really enjoy them. Not harsh or in your face like I was somewhat expecting due to the metal cone. I really think ill end up doing a set of massive towers utilizing RS150s/RS270s/XT25  I also put in the 300.4 just to check how it does on the RS180s, such a great combo


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## DjWeeDY (Sep 21, 2007)

Where you buy your arc audio gear ??? Dealers are nowhere to be found here in Québec.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Mark(azngotskills) came over today, and we had a nice listen to the RS180s, then the MD142s, Legatia L3s. Mind you, I didn't have the L3s in correct enclosures, they were just wrapped in towels to test out the midrange and not extension. IMO, the Dyn's completely blew away the L3s as far as midrange clarity/accuracy goes. Not to mention, my stage stayed eye level with the MD142s, and with the L3s, the stage dropped TREMENDOUSLY. 

I have definitely decided Ill be doing MTMWW towers utilizing RS150s, Peerless HDS, and RS270s with a Behringer DCX2496. I really enjoy the RS180s, crossed over from 80-2khz using 4th order slopes. 

I stripped out all the audio stuff from my car today, and on tuesday ill be installing the Vertex Barrier Pad and re-wiring the whole car. 

Here is a picture of all the gear I have lying around now, lol









A picture of my new Samsung 50" plasma and xbox360 for the hell of it  Ill be designing a stand and building it over the next couple of months.


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## ArcL100 (Jun 17, 2005)

Isn't it hard to get to all the bewze back there inthe corner like that 

-aaron


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

ArcL100 said:


> Isn't it hard to get to all the bewze back there inthe corner like that
> 
> -aaron


Hahahah, normally its strewn across the back part of my room so my liquor stash is still easily accessible  I REALLY need a liquor cabinet already.


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

I have to agree that i was very impressed with the Dyn MD142, i wonder how the OZ mids would have done 

I was never offered any drinks


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## stormtrooper (Dec 10, 2005)

Nice stuff there .You should build a liquor cabinet in which the plasma will rise up the back from


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

azngotskills said:


> I have to agree that i was very impressed with the Dyn MD142, i wonder how the OZ mids would have done
> 
> I was never offered any drinks


Pffff, you know you can have a drink anytime you want 



stormtrooper said:


> Nice stuff there .You should build a liquor cabinet in which the plasma will rise up the back from


If I didn't have to put 3 amps, DCX2496, Pio Elite receiver(most likely), and xbox360 below, I would definitely consider that


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Well, its been one helluva aggravating day... The guy who I bought the W200 and H701 "forgot" to include the remote in/out harness for the W200      

Still went ahead and started the fab work to make it fit. Its not going to stick out that much after all, which is nice. 

Onto the pics-

The 1 1/2din opening 









Hmmm, a bit larger









Gonna have to do some cutting 

















Cut out some more of the center dash piece, going to have to relocate the hazard switch, and ill need a switch for the 20.1... Now the fun part of finding a "clean" switch, not a cheap neon plastic one. 









The dash piece fits, after a LOT of cutting. Thank God for dremels 









Now, im still trying to think exactly how I want to fill in the gaps. Im considering just using some ABS plastic and fusing the two plastic pieces together... Also considered some fiberglass/duraglass work. The piece itself will be painted jet black, so all the necessary prep work will be done as well.


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## JayBee (Oct 6, 2006)

that duraglass sets up pretty strong, it should work


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

JayBee said:


> that duraglass sets up pretty strong, it should work


Yeah, thats what im thinking ill do  Then a bit of rage gold, then primer, then paint. Hopefully ill have time to do it once I get off work tomorrow.


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

WOW you took the big step...i will hit you up when i get back


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

azngotskills said:


> WOW you took the big step...i will hit you up when i get back


Hahah, word  My bro and his family are going to be in by 8 tonight, I get off work at 5... So HOPEFULLY ill be able to rush home and at least get the duraglass set-up so itll be dry by tomorrow. Im heading to carquest tomorrow to pick up some primer/paint/clear coat. Probably won't be able to get too much done tomorrow, but once the fam leaves on sunday its on


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

Yeah, Carquest is one of the only local places that I've found that supplies Evercoat and SEM products. Good luck on the fab work. I need to do some myself.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

omarmipi said:


> Yeah, Carquest is one of the only local places that I've found that supplies Evercoat and SEM products. Good luck on the fab work. I need to do some myself.


Yeah, I also need to pick an air/water seperator for my HVLP gun. Don't know if they will have it or not, guess I get to find out tomorrow. What REALLY sucks, is I need to know how much clearance I have on the W200, so I won't be able to start doing the glass work til I get this other harness in  Looks like ill be doing the re-wire tomorrow instead.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Well, due to my hand, I have hardly been able to do anything on my car lately  

Cleaned out the garage over the past few days, still have lots of organizing to do, but at least its clean 
Before:

















After:









Have all the baffles made for the front stage drivers now-

















Tomorrow I plan on hopefully getting the SLSes in, and start trying to figure out how the hell I want to do my door panels.


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

Very nice. The garage looks 1000000% better!  And I'm glad to see that you are back to work on this project. I've been wondering how it's been coming along.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Boostedrex said:


> Very nice. The garage looks 1000000% better!  And I'm glad to see that you are back to work on this project. I've been wondering how it's been coming along.


Thanks man  Im on a lot of vicodin right now, so the pain is tolerable enough to work on it! Im building speaker stands tomorrow, but Mark is coming over on saturday and we will be working on both our cars


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Well, I picked up a 9860 to run temporarily while I get my W200 fixed, so hopefully thatll be here mid next week. I can FINALLY start aiming the MD142s/XT25s and start fabricating the a pillars and kicks . 

Oh yeah, picked up a couple new toys at home depot yesterday. 









Ridgid belt driven table saw w/ 36" cutting ability, and Ridgid drill press. 

Oh yeah, had my 4 7" Revs come in along with my MAW15(HT sub).


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

Oh, drool!! I want a set of those Scans for my wife's convertible. You should just go ahead and ship me a set out of the kindness of your heart. If that sounds like an odd request then just pop a couple more Vicodin. LOL!!!! Glad to see that you're gear is arriving.


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

Oh man, I need to make a trip out to your place just to look at all your nice gear! Do you have the schematics for the MTM crossovers or are you going active?


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Boostedrex said:


> Oh, drool!! I want a set of those Scans for my wife's convertible. You should just go ahead and ship me a set out of the kindness of your heart. If that sounds like an odd request then just pop a couple more Vicodin. LOL!!!! Glad to see that you're gear is arriving.


Haha  I need to finish up some speaker stands once I get home from work today, then im going to try and get the SLSes in today. The DVA just can't get here fast enough 



omarmipi said:


> Oh man, I need to make a trip out to your place just to look at all your nice gear! Do you have the schematics for the MTM crossovers or are you going active?


Hehe, I think im ordering the Scan 7100s this week sometime. I just really DONT want to pay full retail, but thats probably what I'll have to do  Before I order them, im going to try out one of the Revs in place of the RS180 in those RS180/HDS bookshelfs I made. I might be happy enough with the HDS to not buy the 7100s(or at least I hope ill be, lol). I have a Behringer DCX2496 on the way, and it should be here on monday. Active all the way


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

toolfan91 said:


> Active all the way


I hear ya. How did you decide on the Ridgid table saw? I'm looking at buying either a table saw or meter saw but it has to be from Lowes (gift card). I noticed that HD and Lowes both carry the Jet JBTS-10LS-2 15 amp belt driven tablesaw. Do you think this is a good one?


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

omarmipi said:


> I hear ya. How did you decide on the Ridgid table saw? I'm looking at buying either a table saw or meter saw but it has to be from Lowes (gift card). I noticed that HD and Lowes both carry the Jet JBTS-10LS-2 15 amp belt driven tablesaw. Do you think this is a good one?


That looks pretty nice for a basic belt-driven table saw. Jet makes really good products, so I'd say thats a safe bet. 

Honestly, I really, REALLY wanted to pick up this Delta- http://www.toolbarn.com/product/delta/36-717/

However, since I only have about 2/3s of a 2 car garage, I need space and portability(somewhat) out of a table saw. With that being said, I wanted a belt-driven table saw, that is relatively portable, and be able to rip 30+inches without having an extension. The Ridgid fit all the criteria, so thats basically why I went with it. Not to mention, Cody(exalted512) bought one a while back, and he seems to love it. 
http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...000003+10401016&marketID=401&locStoreNum=8125


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Well, made a little bit of progress today with what little bit of time I had. 

Here is where the SLSes will be on each door, pre-drilled the holes, then used a 3/8" drill bit so the mounting screws would be flush with the baffle. 









Covered the sides and backside of the baffle with rubberized undercoating, so the MDF won't get wet(these pics were after the backside of the baffles were sprayed).

















Over the weekend did a little revamping in my room and this is the result-

























My DCX2496 came in yesterday, as well


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## demon2091tb (May 30, 2005)

Man that 2496 looks sexy, can't wait to purchase mine hopefully in the next few weeks, also nice ghost image on the left there.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

demon2091tb said:


> Man that 2496 looks sexy, can't wait to purchase mine hopefully in the next few weeks, also nice ghost image on the left there.


Yeah, I will hopefully be making cables sometime within the next few days, and test it out on my RS180s and HDSes  I completely didn't notice that ghost portion... Hows that project coming along?


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

ah that bums me out. I just found out my second DCX gave up the ghost, after a buddy replaced a clock and oscilator and tells me its still in the grave. Gonna have to call me when you change things up again. You know, in a week or two.

I really only came into this thread to crack a joke thats been on my mind a week or two, that the next thread will be "ok, the real REAL madness begins" then, "no, THIS is the TRULY real MADness..." etc


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## kappa546 (Apr 11, 2005)

**** ben you have way too many toys to play with right now. just makes me feel worse now that i've almost sold everything that i'm not using...

next time i'm in town i'm definitely coming over to play. in the mean time i'm living vicariously thru u


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

nice home setup...cant wait to hear it tuned with the DCX


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> ah that bums me out. I just found out my second DCX gave up the ghost, after a buddy replaced a clock and oscilator and tells me its still in the grave. Gonna have to call me when you change things up again. You know, in a week or two.
> 
> I really only came into this thread to crack a joke thats been on my mind a week or two, that the next thread will be "ok, the real REAL madness begins" then, "no, THIS is the TRULY real MADness..." etc


LOL, what did you ever do with those utopia be 3"s? I still wouldn't mind picking up a pair to try out.




kappa546 said:


> **** ben you have way too many toys to play with right now. just makes me feel worse now that i've almost sold everything that i'm not using...
> 
> next time i'm in town i'm definitely coming over to play. in the mean time i'm living vicariously thru u


I still have a Yamaha RX-V1800, PS3, Adcom GFA 555, Adcom GFA 535, Toshiba HD-A35, Scan 7100s, whatever drivers I decide to go with for a center channel, then build a stand/rack for the equipment.

Give me a shout whenever you are back, you mark and omar should come over and have a mini-meet at my house/play halo3 or something lol. 



azngotskills said:


> nice home setup...cant wait to hear it tuned with the DCX


Word, hopefully we can take a listen with the DCX on thursday


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## demon2091tb (May 30, 2005)

toolfan91 said:


> Hows that project coming along?


Planning stages, can't figure out which to modify first but leaning heavily towards the home audio, and going with a peerless combination in 3way 5.5 and 10, mabey something else for the tweet, thats up in the air. DCX for proc. Gonna see if i can figure up some cheap way for plenty of clean power....that'll be in the future though  OB for mid, Tline for the sls.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

demon2091tb said:


> Planning stages, can't figure out which to modify first but leaning heavily towards the home audio, and going with a peerless combination in 3way 5.5 and 10, mabey something else for the tweet, thats up in the air. DCX for proc. Gonna see if i can figure up some cheap way for plenty of clean power....that'll be in the future though  OB for mid, Tline for the sls.


I was actually referring the the gear project for school  Cool deal with the other though! I was thinking of doing my Scan towers as a TL, but I just don't know enough about it to make it worthwhile(and don't have time to really look into it). Looks like heavily braced ported towers is what ill be doing. I should be able to pick up my adcom amps for $600ish or so, but thats just for my two way, not a 3 way


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

running the Be3's. I like the midrange much, much better than the revelator 12M.

seriously give me a call when you get the alto processor, or the ms8, or the dsp6, or a DRZ, or whatever you go to from the behringer. see if I havent gone out and bought one yet.


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## FoxPro5 (Feb 14, 2006)

Whiterabbit said:


> running the Be3's. I like the midrange much, much better than the revelator 12M.


Ok, one much is a lot for me, but TWO? Elaborate, please.

And holy ****, Ben....you have lots of toys!!!!!!


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

Just sounds better. I dont have any charts to prove it. Shinjohn and I simply did an A/B comparison in his accord months ago, drivers sitting on towels, various aiming, etc. took no response plots, etc.

I suspect anyone who prefers the 12M after hearing both just requires a lower playing driver. Has superior low frequency extension, no doubt about it. Different drivers for different applications.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Finally got the SLSes in today, at least they are playable. Now I just have to figure out what I want to do with the door panel... 





















































Whiterabbit said:


> running the Be3's. I like the midrange much, much better than the revelator 12M.
> 
> seriously give me a call when you get the alto processor, or the ms8, or the dsp6, or a DRZ, or whatever you go to from the behringer. see if I havent gone out and bought one yet.


You haven't compared the Be3s to the Dyn MD142s by a chance? The DCX is actually for my home setup, I have an H701/W200 for the car 




B-Squad said:


> Ok, one much is a lot for me, but TWO? Elaborate, please.
> 
> And holy ****, Ben....you have lots of toys!!!!!!


I still have to buy a Toshiba HD-A35, PS3, and Yamaha RX-V1800 as well  Oh well, after that I don't think ill have anything LEFT to buy, lol.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Well, received my 9860 yesterday, and installed it along with the H701, KAR300.4, KAR300.2, IA20.1, Vifa XT25s, Dyn MD142s, and Eclipse SW8212. All I can say is WOW, the SLS/MD142/XT25 combo works extremely well together  The only time I even have the sub on is with the windows down, the SLS are just insane in the midbass department! Tuesday im going to start aiming and fabbing up the apillars and kicks, finally. Very exciting times for me


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

Looking good man! I look forward to hearing this combo.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Going to have a HUGE update tonight or tomorrow, lots more pics... I spent a good 2 and a half hours today playing around with locations and tuning... HOLY ****! Sounds absolutely incredible, pretty good center image/focus/stage height as well 



omarmipi said:


> Looking good man! I look forward to hearing this combo.


Yeah, you'll definitely have to take a listen  Its weird, I dont even have my subs on when the windows are up


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Onto the pics, basically prepped both a-pillars and kicks, going to lay the cloth down then fiberglass once I recover a bit more from last night  

Both kick panels sanded/scuffed up and drilled









Mounting ring for one of the MD142s









Playing around with aiming









































Mounting the rings to the kicks

























Both done, ready for cloth/glass









Shot of the driver side after the ring was mounted, should work at well 









Both A-pillars just have the ring mounted temporarily right now, Im going to cut the excess strips of pine ply off, and use some 1/4" oak dowels to support the tweeter baffles...


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

have you tried playing music through those pillars?

I cant imagine those drivers aimed like that would sound good at all.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

toolfan91 said:


> You haven't compared the Be3s to the Dyn MD142s by a chance?


never. I'd love to hear the set though.

Im curious, did the midranges really need aiming? im surprised that given the dome shape and size that they couldnt be fired when surface mounted on the panel?

But if they do, have you considered sinking them deeper in there? so the dyn actually hits the frame of the car behind the panel? Im thinking of something like this:

your baffle is what, 4 inches OD? cut a 4 inch hole in the kick where you want to put the dyn. put the baffle INSIDE the holeso that ear that sticks out still sticks out, but rather than the wide part CONTACTING the kickpanel, it's sunk BEHIND it. Basically, taking the baffle aiming position and leaving it as is and moving the driver even wider.

Then glass.

This should make the kickpanel look more integrated and less like a pimple grafted on. This also gives you more legspace that you might have had previously.

And it is too late for this now for you, but if you are REALLY slick with your construction techniques, doing it that way does not require fiberglass as there are only two gaps between the baffle and plastic. that space gets filled with kitty hair or shortstrand filler. Then the copius butyl deadener on the backside, the finish work with rage, vinyl, done. No glass.

youve drilled a bunch of small holes, so its kinda too late for you. Unless you do repair work by glassing the backside and using bodyfiller on the front. Realy thats not a bad idea even if you use my technique to stiffen the panel up significantly before weighing it down with the deadener.


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> have you tried playing music through those pillars?
> 
> I cant imagine those drivers aimed like that would sound good at all.


Might help if you read the thread 

I prefer the XT25s on-axis, and they sound fantastic where the are located, at least to me.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

the way your kickpanel curves, I think it would rather flow nicely if you put the baffle entirely behind the kick (as much as possible of course, not 100% unless that IS possible!)

maintain the aiming scheme you have now, but push the driver so far outside the baffle sits behind the panel. because the front of the panel has such a large curvature, the part of the baffle that is closest to you (which is wide) will mate with the front of the kickpanel nicely. the part of the baffle farthest away (which as is might impact legspace) might sit flush with the existing kickpanel plastic!

if that would work, it would look exactly stock with a "sunken in flat area" the dyn was mounted on.

and that would look SWEET!

(not that I am not a fan of the way you are doing it now, I've just never seen it done that way and look "good". Nor have I heard a good 2 seat car using that mounting method.)


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> never. I'd love to hear the set though.
> 
> Im curious, did the midranges really need aiming? im surprised that given the dome shape and size that they couldnt be fired when surface mounted on the panel?
> 
> ...


First off, thanks for the suggestions  

I have about a 20 wire harness-harness connector right behind the kicks, otherwise I'd have sunk them in. Not worth my hassle to extend those wires and relocate the harnesses. 

As far as the aiming, I initially had them sunk in as I could get them, but it seemed like the stage was a bit low(for whatever reason) aimed like that. I toyed around with the aiming a bunch, and how they are aimed now seems to give me the best stage height/imaging. 

Im really not too concerned with going completely stealth, Id rather have the good imaging/height... Not to mention, I have two layers of 5% all around, and will be doing 50% on the windshield once the a-pillars are done


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

im very surprised you picked the combo of drivers you did. I'm very familiar with the XT25, it was my first tweeter better than the drivel of cheap low end caraudio component sets.

I'm NOT surprised the tweeter sounds best directly on axis, the tweeter beams to all heck. kind of opposite to a small dome, no?

But doesnt that SCREW the top end for the passenger?


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> the way your kickpanel curves, I think it would rather flow nicely if you put the baffle entirely behind the kick (as much as possible of course, not 100% unless that IS possible!)
> 
> maintain the aiming scheme you have now, but push the driver so far outside the baffle sits behind the panel. because the front of the panel has such a large curvature, the part of the baffle that is closest to you (which is wide) will mate with the front of the kickpanel nicely. the part of the baffle farthest away (which as is might impact legspace) might sit flush with the existing kickpanel plastic!
> 
> ...


Believe me, I wish it was  I just don't want to hassle relocating that harness, otherwise they would DEFINITELY be more flushed in(still aimed how they are, though). 

Im going to see how these turn out once I glass/duraglass/rage gold then cover with vinyl, if I don't like how they turn out, Ill probably just go ahead and relocate the harness and start all over with new kick panels and try that out. Im thinking these will turn out fine with a good bit of work, but if they don't, ill just start over


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## toolfan91 (Dec 7, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> im very surprised you picked the combo of drivers you did. I'm very familiar with the XT25, it was my first tweeter better than the drivel of cheap low end caraudio component sets.
> 
> I'm NOT surprised the tweeter sounds best directly on axis, the tweeter beams to all heck. kind of opposite to a small dome, no?
> 
> But doesnt that SCREW the top end for the passenger?


The XT25 is a great tweeter, IMO, I absolutely love the midbass output/accuracy of the SLS, and the Dyns are fantastic  Im actually going to try out some SS 6000-01 tweeters and see how they do for the car. I could go out and buy the 7100s for the car, but im keeping the real high end in the home(7" revs and 7100s in an MTM tower). 

My car is just setup for me, I dont plan on competing at all, so everything is optimal for the driver basically.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

even non competitors sometimes like the passenger to be hearing the same great sound they are


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## Exalted512 (Jul 23, 2006)

toolfan91 said:


> That looks pretty nice for a basic belt-driven table saw. Jet makes really good products, so I'd say thats a safe bet.
> 
> Honestly, I really, REALLY wanted to pick up this Delta- http://www.toolbarn.com/product/delta/36-717/
> 
> ...


That table saw pwns...at least I couldnt find another portable table saw with that big of a cut and being able to run 220V if you wanted. You can put a bag on it as well, I usually just connect my shop vac up to it and it really eliminates almost all the mess.

Install looks good Ben, I'm going to be able to start working on mine in a couple weeks when school gets out.
-Cody


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