# 2012 Cadillac CTS4 Lux: HAT, JL, Mosconi, Etc



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Well after recently departing with my 2004 Z71 Tahoe, it's time for a new ride and a new build..

My goals for this system are to utilize the stock locations up front (active), retain the stock HU (which is for all intents is not replaceable unless you're crazy), and still maintain a "usable" trunk space.

With that being said the stock Bose system is not horrid, but it is for sure not good. I'm not rushing through this build, and am taking my time. There is alot of planning still to go, and tons of work also. So consider this an introduction, and I will keep working on this log over the next few months. So for those who are interested: :blush:

Equipment Should Be:

2 - Jl 500/5's 
1 - Jl 500/1
1 - Mosconi 6to8v8 (with AMAS BT module someday)
2 - HAT L8SE
2 - HAT L3SE
1 - Dayton HO 15"
1 - Stock Blose 6 Disc Changer with Aux input 

The car 2012 Caddilac CTS4 Luxury with Red Tintcoat Metallic Exterior/ Ebony Interior. Window tinting to come very soon. I can't believe these don't have anything at all from the factory.







Gear Stash so far:












Pluses: This car is exceptionally quiet so far, and the battery is located in the trunk ! I'm still shopping for sound damping for the doors, etc.

Negatives: Having to tap the Bose system after the amp to retain steering wheel controls, no USB/Ipod interface, and I had hoped for an easier sail panel to work some tweets into. It is a rather large piece, not just a triangular piece.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Toying around with amps in the spare tire well.. 
This car doesn't actually have a spare, only a compressor and some "goo"







I have some amp racks one of my mechanical engineer friends modeled up for me in the works.. I'm an electrical guy with no 3d modeling skills. I generally know what I want and make them draw it ..So if all goes to plan maybe this weekend I'll have some parts of 14g laser cut/cnc formed parts. They will mount to the lexan I've fitted, and hopefully fit properly. :laugh:
I envision a wood cover with a lexan window sitting over them similar to the stock cover.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Here's a piece I'm working on for the rear wall of the tire well... This was draft one. I recut some material to work with today, and am starting the piece over. I have a different circuit breaker coming, and wasnt totally happy with fitment of this one. 



So that is where I'm at for now.. More progress soon I hope


----------



## Lycancatt (Apr 11, 2010)

I'd like to suggest you use a different midbass, the l8se doesn't have the same output as the original l8v1 and imo is harder to get sounding good as well. No idea why this is, but if you want to remain brand loyal, that's the only change I'd advise making.


----------



## Lycancatt (Apr 11, 2010)

also, if you cant get the l3se directly on axis, please consider running tweeters, especially if you are a bit older and have some natural hearing loss..its inevidable..the l3se is a great midrange but only once in one specific completely on axis install have I ever heard it be ok..without tweeters, not great mind.

Plus you have the amp power and processing to do it.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I appreciate the feedback.. I am specifically holding onto a set of scan speak illuminator tweets just incase I'm not pleased with the L3se wideband. (fingers crossed)


----------



## Huckleberry Sound (Jan 17, 2009)

I'm keeping up with this one!!!


----------



## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

I was pretty pleased with the L8se and L3se combo I did in a CTS-V Wagon. If anything it needed a little (very little) help up top. I used the factory locations. 

Since you're running a Mosconi processor, you could look into the AMAS-2 to stream high quality audio directly into the processor, but to have volume control over that you'd need the mini controller. From what I've read on a couple of sites that sell it, it can work from a wireless remote and comes stock programmed to work with an Alpine RUE-4202 remote.

Just a thought.

Jay


----------



## ben54b (May 30, 2014)

Like where this is headed. The spare tyre amp rack sounds promising.


----------



## Yawar538 (Aug 28, 2013)

Subscribed. Great car with a great color (Y)


----------



## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

Here is how a friend of mine did his cts. He is currently rebuilding it with old school ppi amps though. 



looking forward to your build though. love the gear you have chosen and have considered downgrading/upgrading to a single 500/5 for my install. a quality all in one option for me


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Thanks Guys,

Hang with me, it's going to be a fairly slow build. Just thought I would start the log prior to finishing, to keep me motivated.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Here's a crappy dark picture of the center stack which will be staying as is..


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

some progress on amplification racks..













Unfortunately my car isn't at home today, to see if it all fits.. It's having a few things attended to at the dealer(very hard for me to turn it back over). 

The height of the racks is going to be borderline, and depth will be close too. Nothing some cutting can't cure. Fingers crossed however..


----------



## jimmyjames16 (Dec 12, 2006)

Nice rack!


----------



## Bluenote (Aug 29, 2008)

Front channels on the 500/5s to be bridged? One per side? Just thinking of the speaker to amp ratio...


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Correct a little unorthodox setup here, but I want to give it a try:
unless someone wants to trade a few 450/4's for 500/5's ???

1- 500/1 feeds Dayton 15" HO

2 - 500/5's bridged 
Front - L3se 250Hz - 20k 
Rears - Reserved for Tweeters (hopefully not needed)
Sub - L8se 70ish to 250ish 

Using the sub channel maybe sketchy for midbass, but according to the specs the sub channel is 1db down at 300hz and 3db down at 500. With a response of 5hz to 500hz


----------



## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

I would consider selling the 500/5's honestly and getting a couple 4 channels or maybe a 6 channel. Hell i might buy one of the price was decent on it. Kinda big for my car but always liked them and never got to use the one i did have at one point.

XD600/6v2 - Car Audio - Amplifiers - XD - JL Audio

200x2 for midbass and 75x2 for the 3's.

Or if you wanted to be safe and have an extra couple channels for tweeters..

XD800/8v2 - Car Audio - Amplifiers - XD - JL Audio

If you didn't have the L3's already i would consider the Illusion Audio C3x coaxial kit also. Its about $700 but is supposed to be worth it. Bing just put them in his personal car.

Edit: You could also use a pair of these for your front stage, 200x2 for L8's and 70x4 for 3's and tweeters or you could bridge it too.
http://www.jlaudio.com/jx400-4d-car-audio-jx-amplifiers-99401


----------



## sirbOOm (Jan 24, 2013)

You'll be fine using the sub channels.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

New amps are definitely not in the budget.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

The car is back home.. test fit sorry the pictures are so dark. 





The amp tops are ever so close to clearing the spare tire cover. I relocated the mounting another 5/8" lower. Everything looks good now.



Cheapo right angle RCA set I ordered.. They clear fine after lowering the mounting. I generally like making my own cables, and had planned on cutting these in half and soldering my own Rean connectors on the other end. However I forgot I will need to Y the cables since I'm bridging everything.
I'll probably be ordering some DIY right angle connectors and just doing the one cable set with no extra connectors.... Anybody worked with decent ones that aren't $10 each ??


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Small update before vacation;


Removed some unneeded material from the tops of the amp racks after adjusting mounting height. Also did a bunch of smoothing of edges.





Refit: Clears the cover wonderfully



Received the last of my order for CLD: Props to Brian_Smith06 for posting a heck of a deal on dynamat


----------



## m R g S r (Oct 1, 2009)

If you don't have the Dayton yet lmk I have mine sitting here for a year after I took it out of my 2012 lexus. Make me an offer. 
Nice build btw!


----------



## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

Glad you received all of your dynamat. I ended getting 6 old silver and 4 black. 

Love that amp rack by the way!


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

m R g S r said:


> If you don't have the Dayton yet lmk I have mine sitting here for a year after I took it out of my 2012 lexus. Make me an offer.
> Nice build btw!


I do have one I used in my last vehicle for about 9 months .. Thanks though.

And Brian thanks for the heads up on a great deal! Nice to see a bunch of people be able to take advantage of it.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

putt-zing around after a nice vacation, and getting caught up with stuff around the house...

I made a bracket of 14g steel to hold my CB off of one of the battery mounts.









just got done with a few coats of flat black after pics.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

nothing cool to report.. 



a little cld on the trunk lid.. I didn't feel it needed to much.. I also put up a piece of foam before the carpet went back up.





re cut the back wall piece..



started applying CLD to the back of the trunk area.. more not pictured.

I plan on pulling all the carpet and working on the trunk area this weekend.


----------



## coolc4u (May 13, 2015)

Tuned in for this build, being a older model cts owner myself. They are a headache to run aftermarket but sound sweet when done right.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

been pretty lazy lately..

i pulled the trunk carpet and started laying more cld




found a decent deal ($3.68/ea) on switchcraft right angle RCA's on amazon. Ordered enough to complete my cable sets.


seem to be the most reasonably priced pieces I can find, made in the USA also .. just need them to get back in stock.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

About 95% done with the trunk CLD..




I have 33 sq ft down with only the battery area to tend to yet. I was able to sneak a few square feet into the outer skin of the drivers quarter panel. I will do the same on the passenger side when i pull the battery.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Looking closer at the system ground situation... I'm tempted just to tie into the factory battery ground spot rather than terminating directly to the batt..



Anybody see any issue with that?


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I pulled the rear door panels today to add some CLD for good measure..Keep in mind I won't be using rear fill at all.

GM beat me to the punch


I added 3 sq ft per outer skin.



Maybe another 1.5 ft per door card and inner skin.


I'm still plugging away at little stuff, before the cool stuff happens.. I'm trying to keep the stock system fully functional for the time being. I don't "have to" drive the car every day, but I sure to enjoy doing so...Figuring on RCA cable sets next week, if all my connectors show up.


----------



## Bev-o (Jul 16, 2015)

We need a "Like" button, great job!


----------



## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

Looking good!


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Thanks guys.. I appreciate the comments


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Figured I would build up the High Level input cables today..
These will interface the bose amp to the 6to8 inputs.




a little flair ? I didn't have enough black to do the job, so I used up some red..


Rean connectors




I used Blue/Red for Dash, Green/Red for Doors, and Black/Wht for sub inputs. I will cut to length and solder into the factory harness when I figure out for sure how I'm mounting the 6to8.


----------



## Brian_smith06 (Jan 31, 2008)

I dig it. Wanted to work on deadening my doors this weekend but it was just too damn hot and I'm a candy ass when it comes to heat.


----------



## edouble101 (Dec 9, 2010)

steppinrazer said:


> Looking closer at the system ground situation... I'm tempted just to tie into the factory battery ground spot rather than terminating directly to the batt..
> 
> 
> 
> Anybody see any issue with that?


That should be fine. Make sure you remove any paint around the area where the ring connector contacts the metal trunk floor.


----------



## eXistence (Aug 5, 2015)

Subbed


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

toying with an idea this evening..



My thoughts are to fab a plate that will go over the blose amp, and also utilize the 3 mounting bolts for it. I'm going to "float" the Mosconi out of the factory carpeted trim piece (I think). Kind of hard to imagine from what I have here, but think of a 3 legged plate with feet that match the bose footprint. It will be about 4.125" tall to clear the trunk carpeting and give the floating look. The mosc will be at about a 52 degree angle also.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)




----------



## aV8ter (Sep 4, 2009)

Came across your thread while searching for my old 500/5. You have it now! Glad it is going to good use.

Impressive equipment list.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I'm not so sure either were your's. I did pm you a few years ago about buying your fresh rebuilt one, but you had sold it already. 

There is one fs in the classifieds currently


----------



## aV8ter (Sep 4, 2009)

steppinrazer said:


> I'm not so sure either were your's. I did pm you a few years ago about buying your fresh rebuilt one, but you had sold it already.
> 
> There is one fs in the classifieds currently



Sold it to jel847, was assuming that is who you bought it from. Saw you respond to his FS thread.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I didn't get it then either


----------



## aV8ter (Sep 4, 2009)

steppinrazer said:


> I didn't get it then either


Dang. Well, I am bummed I sold it. Didn't even use it when I got it back from JL(great service they do for these amps btw).


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

6to8 mount done.. Not digging the gray at all.. 
You can see where I will tie into the factory harness directly underneath it.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

lame update.. Been traveling and not to motivated.

Today I pulled the battery and put a few sq feet of dynamat on the rear quarter panel/battery area etc, and cleaned up the factory ground point.






I spent a little time on my High level input cables to mosconi, and got them cut to length and prepped for install.. Other than that no real progress.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I also redid the circuit breaker bracket with a larger bend in it. It helped move the terminals away from the factory ground lug a little bit.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Doing some research on the UQA system, and my interface to the 6to8.
I had figured the front doors and dash speakers where on separate amp channels.. However they appear to be on the same channel and passively crossed somewhere down the line. I verified all the pinouts/colors, and I believe I should be able to get a full range signal with using the LF/RF and Sub outputs. 

Hopefully one less set of cables to solder into the harness. Whipped up an xls sheet to summarize 2 pages of chicken scratch.. May test out this weekend.



hopefully someone else may find this helpful if they decide to tap post bose amp on the UQA system....


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Pretty sure I'm going to scrap the separate amp rack concept. The slash amps really aren't setup correctly for easy adjustments in that configuration. I'm thinking a vertical rack like so:

 





All the power wiring to the left and outputs to the right should be fairly clean..


----------



## 1FinalInstall (Oct 13, 2013)

Now that's some power!


----------



## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Needs moar powaaaaaaaaa lol maybe not.


----------



## Yawar538 (Aug 28, 2013)

Why not mount the larger amps on the sides of the trunk on wooden baffle while the smaller and mosconi on the wooden baffle attached behind the rear seat? Would look pretty much symmetrical....

My 2 cents..

Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I'm going for a more modular setup than walling off all sides of the trunk. 
With this I'll be able to drop in/hookup a few rca's, battery, and connect a few XT-60's to the speakers.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Spent some time today.. Everything is drill/tapped/bolted together. I will secure to the trunk using rivnuts through the back and flloor.





I'm sure I'll dress the wiring with techflex, but I wanted to get a general feel for how it would look. I'm planning on a relay for remote turn on, and a few fans if needed behind the heatsinks.


----------



## Basshertz1 (Jun 17, 2011)

I like where this is headed for sure, can't go wrong with jl amps


----------



## Extended Power (Jun 8, 2014)

I like the idea of stacking the amps.
After I installed mine with the heat sinks pointing up, it made adjustments incredibly hard to do...to the point of me buying an aluminum box for the back of my truck, and stacking all four amps on top of each other this winter. (2 JL 450/4v2, and 2 JL 1000/1v2)


----------



## Basshertz1 (Jun 17, 2011)

Not only does it look good stacked its funtional and makes it tons easier to tune. This install is gna look kick ass liking it already


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Nothing exciting today just spent some time working on: 

Drilled/Tapped for 500/1 and 6to8
Wired/Dressed the 6to8
Cut to length/Dressed +12v/gnd to distro
Mounted/Wired relay for remotes
Dressed +12/gnd/remote for all three amps


----------



## Littlejerryseinfeld (Nov 15, 2015)

Nice work so far!


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Small update:

I've sold the HAT gear originally planned. Mid's and tweets will be Scan's for sure (D3004/6020 and 12M's). Would like a shallower midbass for the doors.

After a slight delay from the upholstery shop, I've got carpet in for the trunk stuff. I redid the "risers" and aluminium angles that hold the 500/5's. The angles now bolt into the polycarbinate, rather than countersunk bolts through the poly into the angles. 

So I have the spare tire module wrapped in carpet..

Thinking of leaving the poly risers clear.. There is still a tearoff on the outside





Pretty decent match..

Hopefully more progress over break. The car is put up for winter, so I have lot's of opportunity to work on it.


----------



## optimaprime (Aug 16, 2007)

Looks badass man!!!


----------



## mrpeabody (May 26, 2010)

That's a nice rack.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Well I spent a couple hours today working on the rack.. Ok maybe several hours.. 

Started by making up my 90 deg Y-adapter RCA's
example of a few: I need 6 total

I really like the switchcraft rca barrels.. really easy to solder/work with




Unfortunately I need a few more.. They will be here in a few days


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Moved onto hooking up the RCA's and landing all the +12/gnd/remote wiring















My fingers hurt


----------



## Basshertz1 (Jun 17, 2011)

Nice !


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Thanks!

Long way to go..


----------



## Basshertz1 (Jun 17, 2011)

Yea but the attention to detail will pay off in the long run for sure. Great build so far


----------



## Lifesoundsense (Nov 1, 2015)

I Suggestion is subwoofer IDQ Image Dynamics Or IDMAX


----------



## req (Aug 4, 2007)

love the build man. I really liked the old steel amp rack design, but I agree it would be difficult to adjust any settings. I am not sure I like the polycarbonate risers, I don't know how well the holes that are tapped and drilled will hold up to lateral movement and vibration while you're driving around, I think I would have stuck with the metal construction for that part. Either way, it is coming along really well. The attention to detail is great. the riser for the mosconi DSP is a fantastic piece.

keep the build log going, I like where you're headed with it and I appreciate the time you're taking to keep this build log going for us!


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I appreciate the kind words !


----------



## greg09 (Jun 10, 2015)

Looks great!

What is the model# of that distribution block? Thanks


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

MTX had a hell of deal on these a few years ago ($40)..They show up around $100 every now and then. Super nice piece


----------



## mrpeabody (May 26, 2010)

There's something super satisfying about tidy wiring and termination.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

some new goodies showed up today: 
18w Revs, 12m Revs, D3004's (I've had these awhile)


I've finished up the remaining RCA's for the amps, and made up new input RCA's for the 6to8 inputs from the bose system. Also cut to length and dressed the speaker leads, but have yet to solder on the xt60's to them


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Well I haven't done much of anything for awhile. I was just planning on purchasing Amas/Mini RCD/Bt module for the 6to8.

I stumbled upon this metra kit (99-3018S)over on the Cadillac forums. Kind of a game changer to eliminate all the Bose integration hassles. 

My quote for Mosconi gear to bypass the bose with BT streaming was $750, and I still would need a mount for my tablet etc.

Open for suggestions on a quality Double Din with Optical out.


----------



## 1FinalInstall (Oct 13, 2013)

steppinrazer said:


> some new goodies showed up today:
> 18w Revs, 12m Revs, D3004's (I've had these awhile)
> 
> 
> I've finished up the remaining RCA's for the amps, and made up new input RCA's for the 6to8 inputs from the bose system. Also cut to length and dressed the speaker leads, but have yet to solder on the xt60's to them


Man, they're good looking drivers!


----------



## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

steppinrazer said:


> Well I haven't done much of anything for awhile. I was just planning on purchasing Amas/Mini RCD/Bt module for the 6to8.
> 
> I stumbled upon this metra kit (99-3018S)over on the Cadillac forums. Kind of a game changer to eliminate all the Bose integration hassles.
> 
> ...


Alpine 957HD.


----------



## jeeplaw (Oct 12, 2015)

steppinrazer said:


> Well I haven't done much of anything for awhile. I was just planning on purchasing Amas/Mini RCD/Bt module for the 6to8.
> 
> I stumbled upon this metra kit (99-3018S)over on the Cadillac forums. Kind of a game changer to eliminate all the Bose integration hassles.
> 
> ...


Are you putting the 12m Revs in the front dash? Holy hell..is there room to mount them there?!


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

To be honest I've been thinking alot about kick panel install for the 12m and 3004s. I believe they will fit in the dash if necessary, but not sure what I would do with the tweets. 

I have had zero motivation to work on car audio lately.. I've been doing alot of 12v stuff (transit vans: coach batteries/inverters/etc) at work for the last 6 weeks+

I think I have also talked myself out of going the DDin route, not really liking how it all lays out afterwards.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

Over the winter I did a 20 hour paint compound/polish.. Just recently got some new shoes on it too. Upsized from 17's to 18's in stock size. 
Handles great!







Calipers/brackets need some work obviously.. And tint is still forthcoming when I can find time.


----------



## MoparMike (Feb 14, 2012)

Didn't catch this build the first time around but very nice work on the wiring and termination. Super clean and organized.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

I talked myself out of the DDin route. I've managed to piece together the AMAS, bt module, and mini RCD for the install.

Caution: for those installing the Amas to the spdif board, the directions aren't kidding... Be careful! I had the directions infront of me whilst installing, and was being cautious when I here POP..

3 of the pins popped off the solder pads of the connector.. 


Somehow I managed to find them on the counter and solder them back in... Pretty janky connector IMO.. there is no support to it and all the pressure is transferred right to the solder pads.


----------



## steppinrazer (Jun 29, 2011)

everything is fixed up nicely..

I had some trouble with 2 of my laptops, but was able to finally get everything running on the bench. I'm using a deep cycle battery to power the system. Have been able to pair BT with a laptop for programming, and my phone and tablet for streaming tunes to the AMAS.. 



I still need to sort out the SE/BTL switching and input levels to turn on my amps. All steps in the right direction though.

Edit: I loaded the system down with 2.1 speaker setup for now (sounds good).. All channels are outputting voltage fine though


----------

