# The rebuild of the all zapco acura TL is complete.



## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

hey guys, i just finished rebuilding the all zapco acura TL i had posted a week or so ago...

we simplified the system down, becuase he certainly had the gear to get a superb sounding system. instead or three zapco dc reference amps with 14 channels and running 11 speakres actively, we instead used just two amps: 

Zapco DC reference 650.6 for the front channel and a 1000.4 for hte two subs.

lets get started 

Front stage consists of a cusotm 3 way zapco comepetition set. a 4" midrange and tweeter were installed into the kicks, aimed on axis at the opposite listender, each mid and tweet is run active with 50 watts from the 650.6














































the previously installed zapco comp midbass was left int he stock lower door location, i went over the dampening with a roller and sealed up wthe holes with some edead v4 foam, the midbass recieve 120 watts a piece active from the 650.6



















thats it for interior speakers  moving on to the trunk...we decided to do a full stealth install...so here is hte view with the top cover on, the floor was raised about 4" to accomodate the amps.



















remove the top cover, and here is hwat the install looks like, the two zapco amps and two zapco SQ 10" subs sit in a red suede lined well, with clouded plexi dividers...there is a also a top plexi piece, that has been routed and poilshed. all wires pass through grommits 














































flick a switch and the two dividers light up:










perhaps its better seen at night 



















so thats about it...i have to say, this is by far the best sounding stock headunit system i have ever done, by tapping before hte stock amp, the signal is pretty much flat, whcih travels via simblink to the amps...the dc refernece amps has all the processing on board, so we just plug a laptop into it and can tune precisely 

here are a few behind the scene pics as usual:

wiring going back





































the bottom of hte amp/sub rack, wiht all the wires bundled










the hybrid mdf/fiberglass box i built...i originally was going to build a full fiberglass bottom box, but since the subs need to be in individual chambers and i have had some difficulties in the past doing perfectly divided chambers with a full glass bottom, i chose this option instead










the wiring below the floor:










and finally, the top cover is always vented  the carpet is also without backing so it is full breathable 










cheers


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## tyroneshoes (Mar 21, 2006)

Very very nice. How do you like the zapco ck speakers? I use them myself.

Also, why does the sub say 6000 on them instead of the zapco logo?


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

the zapco spekares sounds great, perhaps bit more forward then my own preference (DLS Seas)...but nonetheless great performers.

the zapco subs are built by ESB i think, so herpas thast why they dont say zapco on them?


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## Vestax (Aug 16, 2005)

I'm still appalled at the first install for the amount of money that was put into it. There's some evidence of it left unfortunately. That center speaker install was ridiculous. I would never do that to high end speakers, especially with hot glue and cutting out the OEM vents? Doesn't make any sense.  


On a lighter note....

OMG, I never had so much fun tuning a system. The entire DC Reference was kick ass. Problem something I want to replace Alpine H701 combo with. The software on the laptop was very innovative and easy to use for a full active system. With like 10 bands of adjustable Q, level matching, time alignment and flexible crossover, I was able to control every aspect of the stage. 

Bing, the install looked great in person. It was simple and clean job that you did. Good job mang.


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## Mless5 (Aug 21, 2006)

Superb job!


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## BlueAc (May 19, 2007)

Meh... I liked the original install better!!!  






























Sike................... That install is amazing!!!! 0 space take in trunk except for the spare of course, but who needs one of those???


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## thehatedguy (May 4, 2007)

Looks good, I would have done 2 things differently- put the tweeters under the mids in the kicks and put the 2 amps together so that the heatsinks are touching (which I might be biased about since that's how I did them in my own car).


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

thanks guys 

the tweeter was infront of hte mid becuase thast the only way it woud flow with the driver side kick, the low placement of hte hood latch release in the kick panel means the space i have avaiable gets smaller as it goes forward...i put it the other way first, but couldnt find a way to get it to fit  with more time and budget, i would have prferred to mold them into the stock kicks to be one piece...maybe next time 

i acutally almost went with two amps back to back acutally...but decided on the lighting idea instead


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## Robert_R (Jun 18, 2007)

Now that is a beautiful install!!! Great Job Bing. 

Glad you guys had such a good time with the DC Stuff.


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## thehatedguy (May 4, 2007)

I just noticed the latch.

So, the DC software is easy to use? I think it is...and kicks the crap out of the H701 in terms of sonics.


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## Pseudonym (Apr 17, 2006)

awesome work. the one thing i didnt like so much were the kicks. theyre just too bulky for my taste.



> Also, why does the sub say 6000 on them instead of the zapco logo?


maybe zapco shows their MAX WATTS RATING!!!!11!! like sony. maybe?


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## SactownXSi (Oct 24, 2007)

Great Work. I really like the lighted dividers!

-Nick


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## Vestax (Aug 16, 2005)

The layout and hiearchy of the DC system is definitely very easy to use. It's straight forward and there's no secret menu. First choose the amp, all the controls are all in one page, you can adjust individual channel gain/level match, access the Q with width and db level for the parametric EQ. I can actually type in the Q if I wanted to as well. Crossover, slope with bandpassing on each driver as well as phasing and attenuation for each both mono or independent channels. The only funny thing is that when you adjust each section, you'll hear this like zipper noise. When you do adjustments, it's instantaneous and there's a graph of the FR right on top. You can load and save these adjustments on the fly at any point.

Here's what it looks like as it was on the laptop:


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## Robert_R (Jun 18, 2007)

The 6000 on the sub is not the max power rating. LOL But hey I bet I can convince a few people it is.  

That is the model number of the ESB version. When you buy them in Italy that is how they look. We figured we were telling the Story about ESB since we started selling the speakers so it just made more sense to start getting the speakers with there logo. We were having a problem with Getting the ones with our logo and we had dealers that were waiting for them. So this was really the solution to the problem.


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

my biggest delight while doing the install was how easy the zapco software is to use and how effective it is.

int he past, i have done everyhting from old school analog units like the eqts, ppi 230s, eq232 PGs, id31s, and digital ones like the p9, and all the audiocontrol digital ones...

NONE comes close to the tuning ability, and best of all, ease of usage and very short learning curve...

Anthoiny can atest to this, last time we tried to tuen an entire system wtih an audiocontrol dqx, we kept on fumbling around with the controller, messing things up, this time, everything is right infront of us, with a touch of amouse and the keyboard...

i am truly in love 

i am all about simplicity and having this much tuning ability within the amps deifnetly makes it a great simplifiying attribute


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## BlueAc (May 19, 2007)

thehatedguy said:


> I just noticed the latch.
> 
> So, the DC software is easy to use? *I think it is...and kicks the crap out of the H701 in terms of sonics*.


But when you consider the price, its not really apples to apples... for the price the H701 is hard to beat. But again that's not taking anything away from the DC's.


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

thats true...but...i think i can personally build a very nice sounding little system around say the 650.6, active front stage and 500 watts for the sub...it wont be super headroom, but i am sure it iwll sound great..

so amp, and processing for around 1400 retail, prolly cheaper in the real world...

that is not bad IMO...just a thought on my mind hehe...


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## d5sc (Aug 14, 2007)

Wow, great job on the install! Very clean and neat which says a lot given the time and effort it must have taken to clean up the previous install. I imagine the customer is very happy.


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## khail19 (Oct 27, 2006)

Great install, I really like the stock appearance of everything with the covers on. One thing strikes me as odd though, I've never seen a car with tan carpet in the cabin and grey carpet in the trunk. Did the car come like that or did you change the trunk carpet?


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## Robert (Jul 23, 2006)

Sweet install, very stealth install.


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## BlueAc (May 19, 2007)

khail19 said:


> Great install, I really like the stock appearance of everything with the covers on. One thing strikes me as odd though, I've never seen a car with tan carpet in the cabin and grey carpet in the trunk. Did the car come like that or did you change the trunk carpet?


That's stock... come to think of it I've never seem a tan trunk. Maybe that just me???


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

htere are tan trunks, but more rare, 99 percent of hte trunks i see ( i mean real trunks, excluding wagons, suvs, vans and hatches) are dark or light grey or some sort


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## DonovanM (Nov 1, 2006)

That is head and shoulders above... no make that head, shoulders, torso, waist, knees, and feet above the last install. VERY nice work as always Bing


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

simplicityinsound said:


> my biggest delight while doing the install was how easy the zapco software is to use and how effective it is.
> 
> int he past, i have done everyhting from old school analog units like the eqts, ppi 230s, eq232 PGs, id31s, and digital ones like the p9, and all the audiocontrol digital ones...
> 
> ...


Since you are so impressed with the ZAPCO you should see about being an authorized dealer......I bet there are a few guys around here that may be able to take care of that for you.


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## fredridge (Jan 17, 2007)

was thinking the exact same thing 



unpredictableacts said:


> Since you are so impressed with the ZAPCO you should see about being an authorized dealer......I bet there are a few guys around here that may be able to take care of that for you.


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

Great work, as always, Bing. I knew there was a reason I always tell people to go to you if they want a great install. The kickpanels don't really "do it" for me, but looking at the space you had to work with, I don't see how they could've turned out any better with the time you had to work with. And I always enjoy your stealth trunk layouts.

I have a question about tuning the DC ref amps. Is the USB interface for the laptop at a point up front where both amps are hooked in or do you have to switch your connection to tune different amps in the system?

One other thing, with the kicks aimed on axis at the opposite seat... How does this car image and how's the stage?

Zach


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

bascially, you just have to plug the usb cable into one of the amps, i leave it pluged in permenantly as part of the install and run an extension to the front seat. then, telephone cables connect each amp to each other, so you can have i think up to 10? (not sure) amps daisy chained this way and you can use one laptop and one wire to go down the list and tweak each one.

Well, i would love to be a zapco dealer...but I also believe in loyalty. And DLS has treated me extremely well over the years...and the two brands sorta are in the same range for me. But i think you may see a coupla installsl with dc reference amps from me in the future from time to time...especially on cars with stock headunits like this...

b


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## DonovanM (Nov 1, 2006)

I think you should definitely stick with DLS speakers and subs... and if you were doing another install like the IS (I think?) with everything matching and on display definitely stick with all-DLS. But in a primarily stealth install with OEM integration, being a Zapco dealer might help you pass some savings on to your customers.


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

Thanks for that Bing. So you just daisy chain the amps to each other via CAT5 and then USB connect into one and you can adjust each of them from the single connection point. That's pretty slick. I'll be looking forward to picking the brains of the Zapco guys at Marv's BBQ this summer.

Also, any answer on the imaging and stage questions? Thanks in advance.

Zach


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

imaging with minimal TA (.5ms on left side) yield a pretty nice dead center image, its not super solid, but its within about 4" left or right shift, heigh at the middle is about 6" above the dash, with slight rainbowing on some sons down to near dash level at either sides 

i am doing two more TLs next year, look for Seas and DLS in them


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## oneiztoomany (Oct 1, 2007)

truly amazing install, i wish you were closer to me and i would have brought my tsx to you!! instead of trying to make the stock HU work for me i opted for an aftermarket deck instead.


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## Ge0 (Jul 23, 2007)

thehatedguy said:


> I just noticed the latch.
> 
> So, the DC software is easy to use? I think it is...and kicks the crap out of the H701 in terms of sonics.


I most definitely agree. I'm glad you helped talk me into using DC Ref as well.

I LOVE the stealth install work in the trunk of this car. Makes me wonder if I should create a "hidden window" under my false floor.

Ge0


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## RobyG78 (Dec 5, 2007)

Wow Great work!!

I was tring to see how you lit the Plexi but I just couldn't make anything out what is it. I really like your detail on the stealth install. Hawaii really needs to get some people who pay more attention to there installs here than just tosing in a prebuilt box or kicks. I am a do it yourselfer anyways so no matter to me. It just takes me longer than them but when I am done I think it stands up to most anyone here. Any ways great work loved the install.

Roby


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## Bollwerk (Jul 25, 2007)

Very nice install. I wish I had the money to have that done in my own trunk. It looks like a couple grand in labor alone, heh.


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## theothermike (Dec 20, 2006)

what carpet do u use. i been using black felt from like joanne's because i dont no where to find the thick high grade carpet, what carpet do u use for accousticly transparent material too? 

Mike-


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## schm (Dec 15, 2007)

looks nice


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## simplicityinsound (Feb 2, 2007)

the carpet is called flexform

http://www.rcustomcar.com/Flexform-C70.aspx

if you need it, contact them, ask for lisa, and tell her Bing referre you...you can also check if your local automotive supply warehouse has it or not, but you would probably need a buisness account to buy from them. My local supplier doesnt carry it, so i get it from Lisa at resonation...great service.

the main advantages:

1. its thick and plus very high grate

2. its non backed so you can pull it around all sorts of curves

3. its fully breathable so you can cover sub grilles with


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## Megalomaniac (Feb 12, 2007)

SimpINSound , 
1. where did you get the grill from?(the metal mesh)
2. did you have it custom cut for order?
3. If no what did you use to cut?



edit: could it be just the carpet you used has that backing where it looks like a grill?


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

I asked him the same question. He told me mcMaster for something like $40 a sheet or some unreasonable price.

So I googled "electronic surplus" in my area and found a few shops. One sold rackmount servers. I bought the door off one for $25. It almost didnt fit in my car it was so large. After disassembly I had a single sheet of perforated steel over 6 feet tall and 2.5 feet wide.

Not too bad.
-------------
I cut mine with some really nice tin snips but for long cuts I question the value. I think next time I will use the jigsaw. Not experienced concerning its merit compared to the shears.

By the way Bing. Wierdstuff on Caribbean Drive in Sunnyvale between mathilda and lawrence. Very cool shop (that has stuff like server doors ). Though the REALLY cool mechanical "stuff" is to be found from triangle tool and machine off comercial st at 13th and 101 in san jose. Only place ive found multiple assorted cable chain, among other useful stuffs.


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## twista17 (Jun 5, 2007)

great work on the rebuild of the TL, congratulations! hopefully, we can get that kind of work and craftsmanship here in our shores. i really like the illuminated dividers, i sort of have an idea how it was done. did you embed leds on the plexiglass dividers?


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

Megalomaniac said:


> SimpINSound ,
> 1. where did you get the grill from?(the metal mesh)
> 2. did you have it custom cut for order?
> 3. If no what did you use to cut?
> ...



You can use a jigsaw with metal blades to rough cut. Make a template and finish with router. Be sure to lubricate the bit.

I've done this with speaker grills using the perfed metal with a cooling lube machine shops use. Gotta get some more from my buddy.

It's a Smaller scale than a false floor but same idea.

You want clean lines.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

You could even skip the router finishing by utilizing a straight cutting jig for the jigsaw,

Step #1

Secure the perfed metal to your workbench with several screws.

Step #2

Use 2 long spans of straight cut wood, one on either side of the jigsaw to make an accurate ripfence for the jigsaw. Place the jigsaw base on your perfed metal so the blade is align with your desired cutline. Align the 2 ripfence perpendicular to the workpiece and clamp them down.

Shwing! Perfectly straight line. The more teeth the blade has the better the cut will be.

And don't try this with a cheapo jigsaw. The motor has to have some balls to it. Think Bosch 1587 or better.


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## MiloX (May 22, 2005)

one look at the trunk is a giveaway....

"Yep...It's one of Bings."

Your work continues to inspire brother. Great stuff. Glad you liked the Z gear.


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