# 2007 for my Civic Si.....



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Well, I realized when people were asking for pics regarding the F-Glass work that I have not posted much at all this year regarding install so I figured if I did a yearly re-cap or a yearly log I could afford to be lazy  So here comes some pics......

Stay tuned.......


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

First was the addition to an Audio Control Matrix to the rig to bump the levels up going to the Next amp, it was a nice improvement, lackluster, tossed it on the trunk floor and wired it up. My Ghetto trunk at the time..... With different signal cables.....










Next I did this year was change out the Morel tweets for the Seas Aluminums.. The review can be found here:

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14560

Pics, again nothing special....


































That sums up till The beginning of July.

Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I do ham radio, yes I am a nerd, that solidifies the fact. Instead of re-typing it DIYMA style I'll copy what I posted on another forum. Some of it may sound redundant to you all...

In late July I decided to do a "real" radio install, that took some time! Installed is an Icom IC208H VHF/UHF FM dual band unit. 55W of RF output, tiny, with a remote mountable head.

From Hamsexy.com...........
It was time to ditch the HT and external antenna and do a "real-ish" install. I'm a bit picky about having **** just stuck places so the typical wacker install was not going to cut it. It needed to be tastefully integrated. Well, somewhat. 

Bit of a background on the car, It's a daily driver and gets tinkered with. I'm an avid audio guy so it has a stereo in it that sometimes changes around, it's a "work in progress." That being said I'm not the ******* that comes beating down the street at 2AM, it's an install geared pretty much solely for sound quality (SQ) and packs less rated power than some stock entertainment systems. So audio and RF HAD TO get along, period.

On with the pics.....

Interior disassembly, with help from the boy, how often did YOU get to tear the hell out of dad's car?



















He gets it done! Pretty handy kid, I'll bust them loose and he does the rest. The interior was amazingly clean for 40K miles of commuting!










So we get a couple "lowrider pics"










But that changes come install time.











That was about enough for one evening, I was getting buzzed. Also that evening I built the relay harness to switch the power from the battery on and off with the ACC circuit and planned my attack for the next morning.

The next morning started off nice and early... and dirty

Off with the inner wheel well to route power wiring, it is routed in split loom with the power wire (4Ga welding cable) for the amplifier in the hatch.




























And I'll be damned if I did not get a pic with the sealing/protection grommet installed in the pass-thru, so it IS legit and not a fire-trap.

While I was at it I routed new signal cables for the audio, I need 6 channels for stereo 3 way and used Gepco 61801 pro cable because it's thin, light, flexible, cheap and has 100% foil shield. which makes this a good time to bring up the overkill coax I used too, it's Davis RF Bury-Flex. I had it, it's tough, low loss, and 100% foil shield. That stupid little rice burner is an RF noise NIGHTMARE even in the audio realm. The fuel pump is crazy noisy! Good (albeit cheap) cable makes a difference.

Audio cable:



















I think I bought enough!











The microphone hides in the cubby in the center console and is attached via a CAT5 extension I whipped up Now you see it:










Now you don't:



















Also visible in the last pic is the audio wiring, the remote head wiring, and the external speaker cabling which is the stock rear speakers that were previously un-used.

All buttoned in and ready to rock! :










The only issue I had was the mount for the radio was too tall, I THOUGHT it would clear just fine but upon installing the seat it hit. Out came the 3" pneumatic wheel and some fancy grinder/paint work and it clears with plenty of breathing room.

Next is the remote head mounting. I ran out of time that weekend and just set the head in a pocket in the console while fabbing up the new dash panel.

Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I then tackled the remote head mounting during a heat-wave, I got to work in the A/C’d shop 

Most hams just stick **** places, the radio head even comes with velcro!!!!! Ugh!.... I roll different....

Again From Hamsexy………

Now that the invisible stuff is done it was time to work on a plan to make it "non wacker" I had an old dash install kit that was the wrong color, it had a CD pocket that was utterly useless, so it looked like a great place for the remote head.

I hacked the pocket off and enlarged the hole to fit the head height-wise:










Then I used the plastic from the pocket to cut out filler for the remaining "holes." I held them in with tape while I epoxied them in from the rear:



















And got this:



















I then pieced together a rear bracket for the head and epoxied that in using yet more blue tape to hold the depth of the head:




























Vaseline! Get your head out of the gutters! It's a great mold release!










I wrapped the head in blue tape, slathered that in Vaseline and inserted it into position. I then used the plastic epoxy with plastic grindings from the cutting added as media. Several of my dog's hacked up insulin syringes came in rather handy to inject the filler media into the corners of the rough cuts. This conformed to the rounded edges of the radio but would not stick to the jelly.










After dry I knocked down the high spots and was ready for body filler:










I really screwed the pooch in pic taking here, I then filled it, then primed it, then painted it without taking a goddamn pic! It was dusty and I had the camera in the house. BUT on the last coat of paint a blob shot out and jacked up the first paint job, which is good because I hated the clear coat anyway! So sand away!










In that pic it was ready to prime and paint again and it worked out.

3 days later my dash puked a bunch of wire:



















And shortly after I had a neatly installed headunit and remote head for my Icom!



















Here's the before pics:




















Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Then I Put the Morel tweets back in and still don't know what I think......


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Then I bought this Fuggin JL 500/5. I love it, it allowed me to remove the Next and lose the Matrix and save a bit of space but the amp is huge! This kickstarted the want to have the hatch done.

Getto with JL.










Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Now I have to upload more pics..... Hang tight.


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## kyheng (Jan 31, 2007)

Sorry to ask, is the white pipes act as vents?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

kyheng said:


> Sorry to ask, is the white pipes act as vents?


Yessir! That was never intended to pe a permanent enclosure. It started as sealed and I got a wild hair up my ass to want a vented enclosure. I did it MacGyver style  There was no way they'd fit inside. There is a thread on it I can dig up if you want.

Chad


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## kyheng (Jan 31, 2007)

So is the effect good with this setup? I might want to try this also.


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

That's where he keeps all his gold coins...where only Mario can reach them.

Great work on the trim panel!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

kyheng said:


> So is the effect good with this setup? I might want to try this also.


Amazing difference!

Here's the thread.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4720


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## kyheng (Jan 31, 2007)

Man, you do make my eyes big.. Haha, anyway I will give a try on my current enclosure.


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

OK ....has anyone noticed this post.



chad said:


> Now I have to upload more pics..... Hang tight.



I sure did and I have been holding so tight that my testicles are turning BLUE......so lets see the latest work.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Alright... This past weekend... Friday night I decided to start on the new sub enclosure. It was int he 50's this weekend so the glass did not dry as fast as I would have liked and I was down with the sickness Sat night. None the less.....

Pulled the gear out of the trunk (hatch)










Then the carpet and chipboard "floor" to reveal the spare.










The spare has a "tit" that is the retainer that would certainly be a PITA for glassing over.










So you remove it:










AND FLIP IT OVER!!!!!










I bought a new Hex head bolt to go in there from Lowes last night to retain the spare.

I cut a square Piece of MDF about 2' square to start the tub. Then cut a 17.5" circle in the center.



















I rounded the edge over to aid in adhesion by giving it more surface area and a smoother bend then test fitted it.










Taped the "upside down tit" in with rock tape (gaffer's tape)










Then began taping the wheel up to make the mold










And kept taping










FINALLY!



















First layer down, this is cloth, no mat yet. I found cloth was nice to make the mold with because it bends from the get-go without having to be wet and beat it into place.










Dry time......

If gear could talk this pic would say:

JL: " Hey man, I'm new here, WTF is going on? I was just getting happy in my new home then the ******* takes us out and sets us on the dog bed"

Sub: "It's cool man, it happens all the time about this time of year"

JL: "But he's drinking and it smells funny in here."

Sub: "It's looking good for you but not so good for me"

Next amp (across the room): I'm Free! Woo-Hoo, Where are all the white women at?"

Sub: "Shadup *******"










After a little fine literature I was pleased to find out that Pam cooking spray IS Actually a fine mold release and you guys weren't jacking with me...










I then put another layer of cloth cut into strips and started mat. That's where I screwed the pooch. My resin mix was too hot and I got some nasty air bubbles. Sooo.. the next morning I took it outside and knocked all the air bubbles out thus removing about 1/2 of the second coat. At least it was re-workable.










After another layer:










Then i got sick of taking pics of "layers"

Sunday morning:

I filled it with water to measure the volume and trimmed the sides down to 19"










And checked it in the car for grins:










The final volume came out to be .2847222 Cubic feet, not bad. At 19" square I need to add about another 3" of height to hit my target of .7CuFt. I was planning on the floor being about 3.5" higher so it turned out as planned.

This week I need to build the sides up but before that I need to sit down with the calculator and figure out the porting. It will be a square wood port that will come off the driver's side and curl around to exit in the center rear by the back of the hatch. I plan to do math tonight. I spent yesterday (Sunday) cleaning the garage and shop, I need to finish the shop tonight before I continue (personal goal) I would LOVE to have a working sub module in there by this time next week, we will see. 

The plan is to do the sub module in the center, the amp module off to the right as you are looking in and the jack/tool module to the left. I plan to have access panels to the actual driver and to pop off the amp. When the panels are in place nothing will be visible. 


Chad


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

Glad to see your cleaning up your install. Nice start on your sub project BTW.


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

Nice start......Looks like a tasty Cereal Bowl.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

unpredictableacts said:


> Nice start......Looks like a tasty Cereal Bowl.


It holds 492 ounces, you better be hungry


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## ws6 beat (Jul 14, 2005)

great work. and nice assistant i don't have any kids yet but i often get the little def kid from across the street who comes and helps. too bad his mom sent him to stay in the bahamas with his pops as i'm doing 2 projects right now.


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## Infinity (Jun 28, 2005)

chad said:


> It holds 492 ounces, you better be hungry


In that case, I'll make chili.  This is looking good.


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## DejaWiz (Sep 20, 2007)

Very nice work! Man, I might do something like that in my Veedub's spare tire well.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Got he math done tonight on the enclosure (2 full legal sheets) and the design and pre-fab done for the fan cooling for the amp.

It's been 12 hours since I last itched so I can now say this, I'm GLAD I WAITED TIL NOW! I'm sooooo glad I did not do it in the stickiness of summer! I went thru the precautions but damn! Hindsight is 20/20. It still hit me everywhere! Friday night was no picnic, Saturday I was near suicidal, Sunday I was just miserable. Saturday it was so damn bad that I took the truck to Lowe's and bought and installed the insulation for the attic in the shop I wanted because I KNEW it could not get any worse! For those of you who do it for a living, Amazing, simply Amazing, I'd hug you but no friggin way! I'd itch again!

It will be worth it though.

Chad


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

chad said:


> Got he math done tonight on the enclosure (2 full legal sheets) and the design and pre-fab done for the fan cooling for the amp.
> 
> It's been 12 hours since I last itched so I can now say this, I'm GLAD I WAITED TIL NOW! I'm sooooo glad I did not do it in the stickiness of summer! I went thru the precautions but damn! Hindsight is 20/20. It still hit me everywhere! Friday night was no picnic, Saturday I was near suicidal, Sunday I was just miserable. Saturday it was so damn bad that I took the truck to Lowe's and bought and installed the insulation for the attic in the shop I wanted because I KNEW it could not get any worse! For those of you who do it for a living, Amazing, simply Amazing, I'd hug you but no friggin way! I'd itch again!....Damn I am a PUSS!!!:blush:
> 
> ...


FIXED!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

unpredictableacts said:


> FIXED!


yeah, I don't know WTF!

I have done a ****-ton of stage hand work with lighting with F-Galss cabling (heat resistant), Insulated homes, dealt with F-Glass heat shileding but this **** really set me off! it was all good till I got to the Mat, then holy balls! Then sanding... WOW!

The old trick DID help a bunch though.... Get an OLD nyon stocking/panty hose, put your hand inside it, spread it out and run it WITH the "grain" of your skin, it pulls a bunch right out (old roadie trick). Throw the nylon away, it's shot.

But hey, got the shop insulated for winter!

Chad


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## illnastyimpreza (Oct 25, 2006)

awesome, lookin good !

I envy your free labor ! 

my Son just turned 4.... hopefully ina few years !


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

illnastyimpreza said:


> awesome, lookin good !
> 
> I envy your free labor !
> 
> my Son just turned 4.... hopefully ina few years !


He was 6 when those pics were taken. Get your boy started NOW, last year he made soem pretty cool stuff pretty much on his own. the neighbor boy is 4 and he really gets into it too!

A famous "Dylan quote" from the radio install.....



chad said:


> I had the seats out of my car Friday, he pops his head in the garage and says, "Hey chad beautiful day isn't it?" I said, "It sure is Dylan." he goes, "Um-Hmm, Yep, beautiful day to break a car... Bye!"


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

Excellent, just excellent !!


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## Kai Winters (Apr 28, 2007)

Very nice work and a bonus with the son working with you.


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

Chad, props to you for not taking credit for your sons' work  

I'm joking!!

That is just sweet !


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## coffee_junkee (Jul 13, 2006)

Nice to see some of these engineer-types can actually fab up some nice ****..


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## Scott Dodge (Nov 6, 2006)

chad said:


> Now that the invisible stuff is done it was time to work on a plan to make it "non wacker" I had an old dash install kit that was the wrong color, it had a CD pocket that was utterly useless, so it looked like a great place for the remote head.
> 
> I hacked the pocket off and enlarged the hole to fit the head height-wise:
> 
> ...


all i see is a massive sexual innuendo...


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## DejaWiz (Sep 20, 2007)

Scott Dodge said:


> anyone else notice a sexual theme here?


That's what makes this thread a good read!


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

i made something similiar in my spare tire well, but in the end it looked like a volcano  Im restarting it again and you have given me some ideas, thanks...keep us updated


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Scott Dodge said:


> all i see is a massive sexual innuendo...


You are sooo not right... I love it!

Well done!

If you knew Hamsexy you would know, I'll forward your "edit"  

They take the nerd out of ham radio  kinda.....

Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Frame is on, glue will be dry tonight for more work 



















Chad


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

<====begins to tear up...such a proud moment.


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## newtitan (Mar 7, 2005)

wow nice glass work INTO the spare tire

never seen that before


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## kimokalihi (May 27, 2007)

Keep the pictures coming, I'm actually considering this for my metro. I thought about doing an enclosure in the spare tire area but didn't want to lose the spare. This is a good idea. I want to see the end results though!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Had to do bench work last night (werkd on Gee-tar amps) Tonight I'd like to have the port framed out and attached then Friday the 2 baffles and Sunday in the car as a complete module. After the enclosure is done it's downhill from there, Amp board/fans then the floor! Ordering carpet today.....

Chad


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## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

Damn, that's turning out nice! Better hurry, snow season is coming soon and it's gonna get cold out...that is unless your gee-rage is heated. Keep the momentum going! I can't wait to see how you port that thing. I still need to swap in my Dayton HO and get me a better ported box for it.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

durwood said:


> Damn, that's turning out nice! Better hurry, snow season is coming soon and it's gonna get cold out...that is unless your gee-rage is heated. Keep the momentum going! I can't wait to see how you port that thing. I still need to swap in my Dayton HO and get me a better ported box for it.


Gee-Rage has heat AND AC  

I may know where there will be a really ugly box  

Chad


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

excellent work thus far....but boy will it be heavy. Make sure you incorporate some sort of handles into the front baffle so it is easy to lift without throwing your back out.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

chuyler1 said:


> excellent work thus far....but boy will it be heavy. Make sure you incorporate some sort of handles into the front baffle so it is easy to lift without throwing your back out.


It's pretty light as it stands now. I decided to use 5/8" material because everything except the baffle will have such a small surface area, the baffle is doubled up 5/8" with a mouting ring attached to the bottom of the 2 layers to provide room for excursion. It's tough to convey that it's really not that big. If you countersunk a peice of 5/8" stock with the top rim of the enclosure as you see it you would have .7 CuFt and change for the driver volume. The frame externally is 3.5" tall.

The thing will come out in "modules" the false floor will fold into 3rds (because it won't fit into the hatch as a full sheet) then after that's out the enclosure will come out. I imagine it will weigh about 30-35LBS, maybe a bit more.


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## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

chad said:


> Gee-Rage has heat AND AC
> 
> I may know where there will be a really ugly box
> 
> Chad


I figured knowing how you roll. I have my own ugly box, I want to rebuild it to fit into the corner of my trunk and I think I have the room. Otherwise I can run the ports behind the panelling in the trunk and no one would be the wiser with my current box. I don't know what route I plan on taking yet.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Eh, Looks like much did not get done but I got the bottom of the port glued on last night. Between my re-calculating a zilion times and thingking this can't be right it was, WiniSD sed it was (about 100 times) and my calculator did too (about 200 times) Then glue dry time took the rest. My sander took a ****, I have to get a new one today.  Everything takes longer than you expect


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## kimokalihi (May 27, 2007)

What's those numbers mean? Your serial number? Going into production?



> Everything takes longer than you expect


Don't you hate that? I was sure I'd have my enclosures built and subs in my car like a month or two ago. Now I'm thinking springtime is better.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

kimokalihi said:


> What's those numbers mean? Your serial number? Going into production?



Hell no I'm not going into production, this one is driving the wife nuts! 

The number is how many cubic feet the tub is... (.2847222 Ft^3)



kimokalihi said:


> Don't you hate that? I was sure I'd have my enclosures built and subs in my car like a month or two ago. Now I'm thinking springtime is better.


You just gotta do it. I have to plan mine out around "free time" and weekends off. With a family and a weekend gig it's rough sometimes. I can really only do small parts during the week but Friday night is "shop night" where I will be in there from 5PM till 2-3AM I knew that bottom part would take a bit longer because I'm doing it "on the fly" with numbers. I did not draw out all my cuts first. and it is glued on so I'm at the mercy of the glue's dry-time. The rest can use brad nails and will reduce my "dry before work time" greatly.


Chad


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## 99IntegraGS (Jan 18, 2007)

BOOM
HOLE! 



chad said:


>


I guess this is an external port?

Very cool project... you're making me wish I'd gone that way... false floor, 'glass tub sitting in the spare, retain lots of hatch space while keeping everything hidden. 

Hmmm...  

JD


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

99IntegraGS said:


> BOOM
> HOLE!
> 
> 
> ...



Yeah, boom hole is my term for a port, I find it funny, it came from a rednek in a bar one night. (pointing at an entirely horn loaded Electrotec touring cab) "**** my Peavey tops can rock harder than that because they have Boom Holes"

The term was coined!

Yes, external port, the port is pretty big to tune .7CuFt at 29 cycles. It's set up to exit center rear of the hatch, curl around to the left as you are looking in and leave me a notch at the top left to avoid some molding.

Chad


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## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

lol @ dragging the cuft out 7 decimal points. I think after 2, it's not going to make a difference.


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

How long is the boom hole tube?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> lol @ dragging the cuft out 7 decimal points. I think after 2, it's not going to make a difference.


I went thru the time to fill it exactly with water and convert ounces to CuFt....... I'm dragging it out 

Actually after factoring in everything little bits make a big difference here and there. Keep it as accurate as possible all the way thru. The smaller the volume of the enclosure the more of a percentage little bits make, it's vented those bits make a difference 

Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Hic said:


> How long is the boom hole tube?


The boom transporter is 28.625" long including the window cut on the frame and the cut on the top baffle.


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

It's all in the measurement... 3.1415926535897932


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Hic said:


> It's all in the measurement... 3.1415926535897932


If you only knew the conversation my wife and I had on math the other night.

"you grammar, me math, makes a great team, lets keep it that way  "


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

True Dat !


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## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

chad said:


> If you only knew the conversation my wife and I had on math the other night.
> 
> "you grammar, me math, makes a great team, lets keep it that way  "


lmao, nice.

only i'm grammar and math. my wife doesn't really care about either.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> only i'm grammar and math. my wife doesn't really care about either.



Well... You've seen my gramma 

The mistake is her asking what I'm doing then I give a simple answer, she pries deeper then gets pissed when it goes over her head, not pissed, just a smartass comment.

For Example, I'm working on a nak tape deck...

Her: "Watcha doing?"
Me: "Getting this fixed up, I may sell it"
Her: "No, Watcha doing to it"
Me: "Trying to figure uot why the Cal oscillator frequency is off from the norm"
Her: "*Your* ****ing oscillator frequency is off"

Same **** with the Pi. The argument was over if the area of 2" in diameter is Pi or 2Pi... because she wanted to square the whole damn thing, not the radius. I literally had to take a 2" piece of PVC, cap it an inch long, fill it with media, and have her pour it into 4 cubes..... Toldja!

Chad


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## tr0y_audi0 (Feb 13, 2007)

chad said:


> Well... You've seen my gramma
> 
> The mistake is her asking what I'm doing then I give a simple answer, she pries deeper then gets pissed when it goes over her head, not pissed, just a smartass comment.
> 
> ...


^^^ Funny stuff here Chad^^
 project it looking good..


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

So, once you got your oscillator frequency on did you get any pi  ?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Hic said:


> So, once you got your oscillator frequency on did you get any pi  ?


No, that night the kid got a little flu bug and barfed on the dog, so I had to wash a Rottweiler and this time he was not too happy about it. It was a late night. BUT that was the night before my JL amp was slated to arrive so I handily volunteered for it to be "my turn" to take the sick day...... Bummer  

Chad


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## edwelly (Mar 29, 2006)

Chad - check your PM please  
Erik


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## xcoldricex (Apr 28, 2007)

Hic said:


> So, once you got your oscillator frequency on did you get any pi  ?


heeelllllz yea!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Box is done!!!!!

I took internal pics after the vent build-up but did not get them uploaded to the keychain, will try to do tonight pending I did not delete them from the other card... DOH!

BUT here it is..





































Anderson Power-pole for speaker connection 










About to mount the driver...










Mounted:










Sitting in it's home. it's crooked now because I have to cut a little piece of trim in it's way. I wanted to make damn sure it's what I wanted before doing any cutting 










Tip of the day:

Used Insulin syringes with the needles cut off make for good devices to inject glue into a crack you feel has insufficient coverage 










Chad


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

Yes !, Looking great


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I got wicked boogers!


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## kimokalihi (May 27, 2007)

That'll happen when using a router on MDF. Every time.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

kimokalihi said:


> That'll happen when using a router on MDF. Every time.


I was wearing a respirator every time I routed and for a while afterwards till the dust settled...... I still got boogers, wicked boogers. They have subsided, I'll take pics of the boogies next time.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

rockin. Not nearly enough people understand how much better a box looks with routered corners. And too many believe ugly terminal plates are required, even if its a fiberglass box without a flat surface to speak of to mount the thing! 

Only thing I would have done would be to put some sonotube on the OUTSIDE of the spare tire and glass to that to use the airspace around the spare as well as the air inside it, all the way up to the height needed. For no other reason than to minimize the height I lifted the floor.

I recommend putting the amp OUTSIDE of the box to a side rather than on top of it for that reason, by the way. with the MDF portion so high you surely have all the space needed to fit the rest of the electronics!

you need some wire management though.


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

Whiterabbit said:


> Only thing I would have done would be to put some sonotube on the OUTSIDE of the spare tire and glass to that to use the airspace around the spare as well as the air inside it, all the way up to the height needed. For no other reason than to minimize the height I lifted the floor.


Very nice idea...your always thinking outside of the "box"


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> rockin. Not nearly enough people understand how much better a box looks with routered corners. And too many believe ugly terminal plates are required, even if its a fiberglass box without a flat surface to speak of to mount the thing!


The sad thing is that you won't even see the box afterthe false floor, I just round EVERY edge anyways, it's just something I do and takes little to no time. It's easier on the hands too if things get ugly. I was thinking of putting a neutrik NL4 on the box for the disconnect then I saw that wire and the drawer full of powerpoles and thought "why the hell not?"



Whiterabbit said:


> Only thing I would have done would be to put some sonotube on the OUTSIDE of the spare tire and glass to that to use the airspace around the spare as well as the air inside it, all the way up to the height needed. For no other reason than to minimize the height I lifted the floor.


Well, it kinda is now, the box dimensions are larger than the tire but it's made of wood, the extra glass would have basically saved me weight. The enclosure as it stands, unloaded, weighs 24Lbs.... Yes, I weighed it :blush: 



Whiterabbit said:


> I recommend putting the amp OUTSIDE of the box to a side rather than on top of it for that reason, by the way. with the MDF portion so high you surely have all the space needed to fit the rest of the electronics!


The amp will be to the right of the box sitting level. I snapped that pic about 1 minute after I hooked it up, I just wanted to see if it worked. When it's all said and done the amp will sit level and everything will be covered by a false floor. The enclosure is right at 4" high. On the driver's side there will be a compartment for the jack, jack tools, and a small tool kit.



Whiterabbit said:


> you need some wire management though.


It's just around the corner  The wiring is now long enough that it reaches outside the car, I need to trim some back 

Chad


----------



## mfenske (Feb 7, 2006)

Chad, how do you solder/connect the powerpoles? I bought some for my RC car eons ago and never figured them out.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

mfenske said:


> Chad, how do you solder/connect the powerpoles? I bought some for my RC car eons ago and never figured them out.


If I tell you, you gotta promise not to kick my ass 

I solder them on. I strip the wire exact, heat right where the folds at the top are and CAREFULLY flow solder inside. I have a 4 out of 5 success rate on not having to get out the file. If you get sloppy a needle file set is your friend, but its no biggie and takes seconds to clean up.

I mentioned this to a certain type of folk once that I soldered and I thought they were going to gang-rape me and feed me to the wolves! Damn! So I went and pulled one of their crimped ones right out of the connector and damn near could hang off of one of mine 

Another tip..... See the white thing in the hole in the middle? That's a Q-tip stick, put it in there and the halves won't slide apart 

Chad


----------



## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

Chad, more tips on tips, sweet !!!


----------



## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

Looks good man. Thanks for the box suggestion, I just installed my 2 HO 10s this afternoon, and damn do they sound good! Dare I say it? But also _louder_ than the xxx 15 that they replaced...

Though they don't have the "beatability" that the XXX has, but man they sound sooooo much better.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

bass_lover1 said:


> Looks good man. Thanks for the box suggestion, I just installed my 2 HO 10s this afternoon, and damn do they sound good! Dare I say it? But also _louder_ than the xxx 15 that they replaced...
> 
> Though they don't have the "beatability" that the XXX has, but man they sound sooooo much better.


Vented or sealed enclosure? I SWEAR by them vented, really gives them some output!

I agree with you on the musicality. My son and I built a "fun sub" a single 12 vented kinda highish for banging around the house. I tried it in the civic and it was ungodly loud compared to the Dayton. I was kinda bummed when I put the Dayton back in.... for about 1 minute, I missed the sheer output but damn, as the bass player slid their finger down the thick one you could hear the string fret out every time. You can cross it high and it stays cool, it's just a damn good driver for this app IMHO.

Chad


----------



## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

chad said:


> Vented or sealed enclosure? I SWEAR by them vented, really gives them some output!
> 
> I agree with you on the musicality. My son and I built a "fun sub" a single 12 vented kinda highish for banging around the house. I tried it in the civic and it was ungodly loud compared to the Dayton. I was kinda bummed when I put the Dayton back in.... for about 1 minute, I missed the sheer output but damn, as the bass player slid their finger down the thick one you could hear the string fret out every time. You can cross it high and it stays cool, it's just a damn good driver for this app IMHO.
> 
> Chad



Vented, .67 cubes 30hz, 10 sq inches per driver, it came out VERY nice. Here's a thread with some pics of the box http://www.caraudiojunkyard.com/for...enclosures/2517-dual-10-ported-enclosure.html

I can't get over how damn good it sounds.


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## ocuriel (Oct 7, 2005)

That's an impressive box!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

bass_lover1 said:


> Vented, .67 cubes 30hz, 10 sq inches per driver, it came out VERY nice. Here's a thread with some pics of the box http://www.caraudiojunkyard.com/for...enclosures/2517-dual-10-ported-enclosure.html
> 
> I can't get over how damn good it sounds.



Cool! Give them a little time, you won't miss the boom at all


----------



## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

chad said:


> Cool! Give them a little time, you won't miss the boom at all


I haven't had time to readjust the gain on my LP, so with the subout at +6 on the 880, the Daytons are WAY louder than the xxx, but I popped the trunk just to look at things, and I could tell at that setting it's pushing them a bit too far so I keep it turned down. I could hammer on the XXX all day and not worry about anything, but with these I need to be a bit more careful, they obviously weren't meant to be beat on hard, definitely a sound quality driver first and foremost, then output.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

bass_lover1 said:


> I haven't had time to readjust the gain on my LP, so with the subout at +6 on the 880, the Daytons are WAY louder than the xxx, but I popped the trunk just to look at things, and I could tell at that setting it's pushing them a bit too far so I keep it turned down. I could hammer on the XXX all day and not worry about anything, but with these I need to be a bit more careful, they obviously weren't meant to be beat on hard, definitely a sound quality driver first and foremost, then output.


Yeah, I'll tell you what, you should see how much I was pushing mine in a sealed config. The alminum cone was warm after driving and I was not beating it THAT hard  

After going vented the excursion went down and the driver/amplifer was MUCH happier.


----------



## 99IntegraGS (Jan 18, 2007)

chad said:


>


Awesome box, Chad!

I have a few questions...

How does it sound?

Are you happy with how it turned out?

What will you cover the floor/woofer/boom hole with?

Also, can you explain the conversation below? 



bass_lover1 said:


> Vented, .67 cubes 30hz, 10 sq inches per driver, it came out VERY nice. Here's a thread with some pics of the box http://www.caraudiojunkyard.com/for...enclosures/2517-dual-10-ported-enclosure.html
> 
> I can't get over how damn good it sounds.





chad said:


> Cool! Give them a little time, you won't miss the boom at all


What has bass_lover done that'll reduce the amount of boom in his setup? Is this a comment on the difference between sealed and vented enclosures?

Thanks,

JD


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## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

Love the new box Chad-LOVE IT!- looking sweet. What are you planning to do for a protective grill?


----------



## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

99IntegraGS said:


> What has bass_lover done that'll reduce the amount of boom in his setup? Is this a comment on the difference between sealed and vented enclosures?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> JD


Probably because I switched from an RE XXX 15 to two of these, the only thing about the xxx that I miss is the durability, but the HOs sound soooo much nicer that I can get over that rather quickly.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

99IntegraGS said:


> Awesome box, Chad!
> 
> I have a few questions...
> 
> ...


1 It sounds ABOUT the same outside the car, I think the much larger baffle area helps a bit. Inside the car it seems to have more authority but yet seems to disappear better, again I think it has to do with the baffle, the fact that I could get the vent SOOOO close to a corner, and I think it's simply coupling with the vehicle better, Subs are omnidirectional 

2 So far I'm happy, I am going to have to cut a trim panel a bit in the rear (why it's sitting crooked now) but it's under the stock carpet and I can still reach my goals of being able to return the car to stock in less than 8 hours  

3 There will be a false floor over the whole thing, I plan to make the woofer cutout larger by about an inch than what you see now Then build up a trim ring with a shallow dado inside, in this dado I plan to put thick expanded steel then cover the grille in a carpet. I need to check my carpet for energy transfer, it's pretty thin but I may have to try to thin it more, I don't know how at this point. If not I will need to go with a different covering but I'm really hoping for carpet. For the boom hole I don't know, I may have to bite the bullet and go with cloth, since it's only 6.5 square inches and right on the ragged edge of the vent mach I can see noise on the horizon, I need to be careful there.

4 Bass_lover was using an XXX15 and went to two daytons, a pretty big leap IMHO. He is experiencing less "boom" but a certain increase in SQ over the 15". I was not commenting on his setup with sealed/vs/vented but mine. I had mine sealed for a while and did not like the output for the amount of power I was throwing at it and the excursion of the driver, I went vented thus the ugliness of the old box, it was an afterthought 




durwood said:


> Love the new box Chad-LOVE IT!- looking sweet. What are you planning to do for a protective grill?



See above 

Chad


----------



## egm220 (Nov 19, 2007)

hi chad

i dont know if i should be asking this here... ive searched the reviews but i wasnt able to info detailing the sq of the pxh701.... do i need it even if i dont intend to use 5.1?

i see ur using the 9855.... ipod use ok?

i need ur input on this one... should i go for the ida x001 + px h701 or should i just go for the 9887... cheaper too

thanks

im planning to use the same tweets and mids ..

thanks again


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I don't own an iPod so I could not tell you, but I have heard that the iPod support for the 9887 is much faster. If you don't plan on going with a 3 way front then I see no reason that a 9887 cannot do the trick. If you have to you can always add the 701 later 

Which tweets you thinking? I use both the Morel and Seas depending on the flavor of the month. The morel's are more of an aquired taste whereas the Seas sound more "mainstream."


----------



## egm220 (Nov 19, 2007)

great help chad. thanks

.... car in question is a 2007 camry. been thinking whether to get a 2 din head just for it to look better... but i dont think its worth it... im leaning towards getting a single din dash kit instead and get either the x001 or the 9887, im just worried that itll look horrible.... have u seen any camry having a single din as a replacement for the stock head? thanks again chad


i think il go with the seas... cheaper too right?

its been 6 years since i last updated the audio... pardon me for my ignorance  

even for the amp and the sub.... i havent decided yet....


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Well I was pretty much shot last weekend due to illness (had a cold), work, and family stuff.

I got the amp mounting board done, fan cooling (ducting) figured out, and last night got the board carpeted. I also trimmed up some paneling int he hatch that allows the enclosure to sit int here perfectly! As of now the amp is in the shop and I have no tunes. I should have it fitted up tonight and will have some pics. Maybe, JUST MAYBE, I can be done this weekend or insanely close!

I DID find the pics of the "external" port construction. so I have at least some pics for you all 





































































































Chad


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

great build pics.

lol, you have to start at the bottom and scroll up to see them in the correct order.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> great build pics.
> 
> lol, you have to start at the bottom and scroll up to see them in the correct order.


Damn photobucket :blush:


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

lol, yeah it uploads them backwards.


----------



## 99IntegraGS (Jan 18, 2007)

chad said:


> As of now the amp is in the shop and I have no tunes.
> 
> Chad


So, what's up with the amp... and are we talking about the 500/5?

JD


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

99IntegraGS said:


> So, what's up with the amp... and are we talking about the 500/5?
> 
> JD



Yeah, when I say in the shop I mean it's sitting in my shop, I did not finish the board to mount it to till last night and as it stands now there's nowhere safe for it. I also need to put on stubby RCA ends, the Neutrik's are too long. This whole thing is like trying to squeeze 20 Lbs of **** in a 10Lb bag 

Rest assured it's stil working just fine, false alarm


----------



## tr0y_audi0 (Feb 13, 2007)

Lookin good man, Keep us posted..


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## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

chad said:


> Damn photobucket :blush:


Lol, I was looking at the pics and thought, why the hell did he cut that wall of the port off, then I realized they were backwards.

Oh and just an update, I fine tuned my setup a bit more, and the HOs are _almost_ completely transparent now. I was listening to a CD that I has been on repeat for the last 3-4 weeks, and when the kick drum smacked me in the face for the first time, it put this huge smile on my face.

And, to add to that, the 2 10s are quite a bit louder than the XXX they replaced, the HOs actually get my front dashboard to flex a bit, the XXX never did that, lol.

Thanks for the recommendation


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

bass_lover1 said:


> Lol, I was looking at the pics and thought, why the hell did he cut that wall of the port off, then I realized they were backwards.
> 
> Oh and just an update, I fine tuned my setup a bit more, and the HOs are _almost_ completely transparent. I was listening to a CD that I has been on repeat for the last 3-4 weeks, and when the kick drum smacked me in the face for the first time, it put this huge smile on my face.
> 
> ...


I'm so glad you are happy, with a name like Bass Lover you had me spooked for a bit, but hell, why not test what the Dayton would do? You were the Guena Pig  I think it's a wonderful all-around driver. It's no W7 but for my app it's perfect for me.... and it fits.... Because with the price of 8W7's.... but it's a no-go depth wise


----------



## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

Thumper26 said:


> great build pics.
> 
> lol, you have to start at the bottom and scroll up to see them in the correct order.


Maybe he was taking it apart.


----------



## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

chad said:


> I'm so glad you are happy, with a name like Bass Lover you had me spooked for a bit, but hell, why not test what the Dayton would do? You were the Guena Pig  I think it's a wonderful all-around driver. It's no W7 but for my app it's perfect for me.... and it fits.... Because with the price of 8W7's.... but it's a no-go depth wise


I totally agree, it's not the end all be all of subwoofers, but for the price it's very hard to beat, and with performance like this, I'm surprised they aren't used more. 

I didn't think these would sound that good in a ported box, but after listening to them for a week or so, I'd definitely only run them in a ported enclosure. The 12 I had sealed sounded very nice, which is the reason I went back to the HOs, but they sound sooooo much nicer ported, to my hears they have a flatter response, and dig a bit deeper, and don't add too much color to my music, which is what my goals were.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

bass_lover1 said:


> I totally agree, it's not the end all be all of subwoofers, but for the price it's very hard to beat, and with performance like this, I'm surprised they aren't used more.
> 
> I didn't think these would sound that good in a ported box, but after listening to them for a week or so, I'd definitely only run them in a ported enclosure. The 12 I had sealed sounded very nice, which is the reason I went back to the HOs, but they sound sooooo much nicer ported, to my hears they have a flatter response, and dig a bit deeper, and don't add too much color to my music, which is what my goals were.


Everybody thought I was a weirdo for about a year till we all sat down and had a pow-wow, Minivanman man did some plots and we concluded that indeed it's a novel concept, which, of course, had already been discovered by moi


----------



## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

chad said:


> Everybody thought I was a weirdo for about a year till we all sat down and had a pow-wow, Minivanman man did some plots and we concluded that indeed it's a novel concept, which, of course, had already been discovered by moi


I'm glad I went with your recommendation, I emailed PE with a question regarding box size, and they came back with like 1.5 cubes per driver or so, I'm like uhhh that seems kinda big, and what threw me off more was their sealed recommendation was like 1 cube, when everyone that's used the 12" HO here says .8 is optimal. I guess the PE tech support doesn't have a lot of experience with the product they sell, lol.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> by the way. with the MDF portion so high you surely have all the space needed to fit the rest of the electronics!
> 
> you need some wire management though.



Well you bastard, you jinxed me! I got the amp board done and fans wired up to a pig-tail:





























Then got it installed in the car:




















Rested the amp on it to check it out....















































Then grabbed a beer and stared at it only to realize I SOMEHOW need to lose about 1/4" to 3/8" of height in the amplifier mounting to make it work out. The board is sitting on 5/8" spacers, I need to yank it out, knock the spacers off and re-do them.

You jinxed me


----------



## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

That looks very nice !


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Hic said:


> That looks very nice !


Thanks, I really appreciate it. I'm in the torture time now of not having an amp in there so rides are pretty quiet. The past couple days I have been finding IRLP nodes overseas and talking to other countries, it's been fun for the most part. It's always nice to learn about other cultures and the wee-morning commute is a great time for that.

HOPEFULLY I'll be making noise again tonight, I planned for last night but we had mondo family issues the wife and I needed to take care of 

Chad


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Dupe post


----------



## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

Figures you start to engineer something all pretty and then find out it doesn't fit.  been there done that.

So is there going to be one more layer for the top false floor cover or is that why you need to lower the amp a bit?

I can't tell from your pics cause my monitor sucks, but are connections going to be problem with that amp right up against the panel?


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

durwood said:


> Figures you start to over engineer something all pretty and then find out it doesn't fit.  been there done that.


Corrected 



durwood said:


> So is there going to be one more layer for the top false floor cover or is that why you need to lower the amp a bit?


Yeah, one more layer, wall to wall, to hide everything with hinged sides that flip up because it won't fit in the hatch whole and I want to get to the amp and storage that will be to the left. False floor comes out, box comes out, spare comes out.... wola.



durwood said:


> I can't tell from your pics cause my monitor sucks, but are connections going to be problem with that amp right up against the panel?


That's why I have to swap out connectors, the Neutriks are too long, I have to go for the Streetwirez/ebay ones to get them in there in a comfortable to me way.

Chad


----------



## illnastyimpreza (Oct 25, 2006)

awesome man... diggin the job with the fans.

I wish my son was old enough to help out like that....but he would probably just end up fixing my paint to a the bare metal look or something


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

really cool work. Installs like this always give me ideas on how to do my own.

I feel you on the rca ends...my amp is coming in today so I'll find out if I need new ends or not. Hopefully not, but we'll see.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Damn, what a week. As you may know from another thread I arrived at work Monday after Thanksgiving break to find 150K of mostly irreplaceable audio equipment stolen. Tuesday My father went into the Hospital in an emergency, Tuesday night I started on the car again stressed and the mount for the amp was too tall, during this discovery they rush my father in law to the emergency room, both still remain hospitalized  I've racked up 750-1000 mines this week with no audio! I about went insane! I've also been playing single dad while the wife takes care of her father while also trying to take care of my family. Last night things finally calmed down a bit as my brother took a shift and my wife's sisters helped out too, damn. So I burrowed into the garage for a bit of Chad Time 

I SEE THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL!!!!!!! WOOT!!!!! I have audio now!

Last night I figured out the amp mounting standoffs... again. got it secure, attached the amp and began sorting out the rats nest. It's wired. It works, noise free and ready to rock.

Tonight I will start on the false floor and cosmetic things and my ass is done!























































I don't know what I'm going to do with myself when it's done, I'm planning to put a different antenna mount on and a different antenna but that should take short time...... Maybe a set of home audio speakers so I can get my old cool Technics gear back into action 

Chad


----------



## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

Cool. Glad to see it finally getting done. I'm jealous you have a heated garage to work in.

What is it with this time of year? My fiance's grandpa is also in the hospital and things are not looking good. We spent the night there last night and are going back this morning for another long shift. Best wishes to your family.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

durwood said:


> Cool. Glad to see it finally getting done. I'm jealous you have a heated garage to work in.
> 
> What is it with this time of year? My fiance's grandpa is also in the hospital and things are not looking good. We spent the night there last night and are going back this morning for another long shift. Best wishes to your family.


What's even more jacked up is that they went in 6 hours from each other with damn near the same thing! One has Diverticulosis the other Diverticulitis. And no, they did not have thinksgiving dinner together ot eat the same meal 

Chad

BTW ANY garage can be heated  Do you have a garage or are you doing the apartment thing?


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

that's awesome.

pics of your RCAs answer a question I had, which was, how tight of an angle is it safe to bend those wires?

Great work, now get on with the false floor already!


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> that's awesome.
> 
> pics of your RCAs answer a question I had, which was, how tight of an angle is it safe to bend those wires?
> 
> Great work, now get on with the false floor already!


They can take a tight radius. there is heat shrink about 3/4" coming out of the connector. Heat the whole works up bend it nicely, don't just kink it, then hold it till it cools, the heat-shrink will hold the form. Just go slow you will be all good, be easy with the heat.

Tonight is false floor night, I need to find piano hinges after work.

Chad


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

thanks for the tip. I'm still not sure if i'm going to do 2 channels on the single wire.

and lowe's carries piano hinges.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> thanks for the tip. I'm still not sure if i'm going to do 2 channels on the single wire.
> 
> and lowe's carries piano hinges.



That's weher I'm headed after work  What section of the store?


----------



## 99IntegraGS (Jan 18, 2007)

chad said:


> That's weher I'm headed after work  What section of the store?


Just a guess... how about the hinge section?  

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

BTW, I love the aerial shot of the boom hole.  

JD


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

99IntegraGS said:


> Just a guess... how about the hinge section?
> 
> Sorry, I couldn't resist.
> 
> ...


Sometimes they put stuff like that in like the "goofy knob" section or something like that.

Chad


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

yeah i think it's near that area with door knobs and hinges, etc. When I saw them, they were hanging up on a peg instead of lying flat on a shelf. They were gold, came in two sizes and were about 13 bucks.


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> yeah i think it's near that area with door knobs and hinges, etc. When I saw them, they were hanging up on a peg instead of lying flat on a shelf. They were gold, came in two sizes and were about 13 bucks.


Cool, I'm on it. I'm thinking that would be the best type of hinge for the folds on the side of the false floor no?

Hell, we may have some around here, genuine Stienway, in a junk pile, because they were replaced because they are "tarnished"

Chad


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

yeah I was going to do something similar to that in an old install, and that is what i planned on using.

where in lowe's would a wire brush be?


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Thumper26 said:


> yeah I was going to do something similar to that in an old install, and that is what i planned on using.
> 
> where in lowe's would a wire brush be?


I found them around the paint scraper's / puddy knives once


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

oh of course. where else would they be.


----------



## MiloX (May 22, 2005)

Holy batshit!

Chad... I apologize for being sooo tardy to the party. Your box is a thing of beauty!!!!!! 

I can't wait to see the finished product bro!!!


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

MiloX said:


> Holy batshit!
> 
> Chad... I apologize for being sooo tardy to the party. Your box is a thing of beauty!!!!!!
> 
> I can't wait to see the finished product bro!!!


Wow, coming from you I'm honored 

Got the false floor cut and assembled last night and am getting to go out after a short nap and finish fitting it in. Pull, sand, install, repeat.

Went rollerskating with the boy this morning (a guilty pleasure of mine and quite a site to boot) and I feel as if I have run a mararthon.

Gonna cleanse the mind with a nap, wife is gone so we will have man time in the garage, it's warming up now 

Chad


----------



## MiloX (May 22, 2005)

Awesome. Dude... seriously. That box is flat out gorgeous. 

I spent all day down at Audio Designs with forum member SleepyBrown. 

We made a lot of progress. I am STILL pulling MDF out of my nose. Cheers to man time!


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

_Teaser_


----------



## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

very very nice


----------



## Thumper26 (Sep 23, 2005)

azngotskills said:


> very very nice


x2. That's so great. What are you going to use for a grill?


----------



## MiloX (May 22, 2005)

Effin sweet!


----------



## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

im guessing a simple ring (one round, one square) like any speaker ring. rabbet out the middle, sink in the perforated aluminum, then upholster in the same carpet.

stick a fork in the install.

clever with the stack, chad. I like the floor. Did you end up using piano hinges? are you able to smooth out the seams any more?


----------



## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> im guessing a simple ring (one round, one square) like any speaker ring. rabbet out the middle, sink in the perforated aluminum, then upholster in the same carpet.
> 
> stick a fork in the install.
> 
> clever with the stack, chad. I like the floor. Did you end up using piano hinges? are you able to smooth out the seams any more?



Damn perfect guess  Actually expanded Stainless I found at a local steel distributor in their remnant area 

Yeah, I got the seams smoother actually just running your palm up the seam flattens it out but I was hasty to take the pic. I did not round the edges for the grille recess and don't plan on rounding the ring edges, just a half circle to put your finger in and pull up. Hopefully it will "palm smooth" too


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## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

chad said:


> BTW ANY garage can be heated  Do you have a garage or are you doing the apartment thing?


You mean shut the garage door and open up the door to the house. The outer wall of the garage is not insulated or drywalled. I put some shelves up on that side so now it would be kind of harder to drywall and insulate. I might put some of those insulater panels on the garage door. The easier thing is for me to cruise over to my buddies house 10min away who has a full heater installed, but he usually works late.

Looking good on the false floor. I like the offset circles. Is the amp allowed to breath at all via perforated steel under the carpet as bracing? Or is it solid wood and the fans are doing all the cooling work?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

durwood said:


> You mean shut the garage door and open up the door to the house. The outer wall of the garage is not insulated or drywalled. I put some shelves up on that side so now it would be kind of harder to drywall and insulate. I might put some of those insulater panels on the garage door. The easier thing is for me to cruise over to my buddies house 10min away who has a full heater installed, but he usually works late.
> 
> Looking good on the false floor. I like the offset circles. Is the amp allowed to breath at all via perforated steel under the carpet as bracing? Or is it solid wood and the fans are doing all the cooling work?


Drywall and insulation can be done on a spring/fall day and it's not that bad, you will need a buddy. The Shop is uber heated but the garage is not allowed to go below 45 degrees. Kick the doors open to the shop and turn up the garage heat and I can have it 65 degrees in there easy. I can use a Kerosene heater to bump the garage up and hasten the process. I also have a space heater I can use for spot heat to aid in drying. The house door does not open, wifey don't like the fumes.

The fans are doing all the work, there is going to be an air direction theme going on with weather seal on the bottom of the amp "lid" I need to experiment with that though. it's staying nice and cool now, those fans move some air and the "design" of the manifold was thought out as to bathe the entire sink in air although it looks as if it's just cooling the center. It really does not make much heat running mid-bass at 8 ohm and having a class D sub channel


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Alright, got more pics uploaded......

This weekend....

Must.. Cover... Car 



















Because after ONE circle........










Cover lungs and eyes too 










Got the false floor cut:










Then Fitted, sanded, fitted, sanded, fitted, sanded well you get the picture 




























Filled in the hinge area with body filler.... Does not have to be pretty, it's just carpet 










Then while that dried I put my Seas tweets back in, just decided I liked them better

And I installed new battery terminals trying to be ever so careful as to not lose my radio presets..... Well... Thank god for iPersonalize 

These are from Marv!



















Next day was carpet time!

I painted the driver area and boom hole in case I got sloppy with carpet, I also masked off the driver mounting flange as I imagine spray glue there would make it difficult for future driver removal 










And that went easier than I thought it would! Especially for my first carpet job in a LONG TIME!




























In the hatch:










And the teaser pic.... False floor in:



















I so wanted to be totally done but I really screwed the pooch when making my grill ring, Forgot to take into account that the Circle jig cuts for an OD circle not and ID circle and it was... oh... about 1/2" too small  And I was out of 5/8" material    Oh well, I was burnt out anyway, maybe this week. I am now building a fan controller  

Now I gotta do a massive deep-car cleaning, it's funky in there!

Chad


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## selftc (Jan 22, 2007)

been following this thread closely..... very nice work, really looks great ! ! !


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## tcguy85 (Oct 29, 2007)

looking great! (i just ordered one of those same subs)


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## dBassHz (Nov 2, 2005)

Great job! It turned out really nice.


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

MiloX said:


> Holy batshit!
> 
> Your box is a thing of beauty!!!!!!


Brian, I haven't said that to anyone since my college days at N.C. State! ROFL!!!!!!!!!!

Chad, things are looking great bro! I should have the false floor for my xB finished off this week too. Don't know yet if I'll be posting pics since it's the first one I've built. Kind of ugly by my standards.

Zach


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Boostedrex said:


> Chad, things are looking great bro! I should have the false floor for my xB finished off this week too. Don't know yet if I'll be posting pics since it's the first one I've built. Kind of ugly by my standards.
> 
> Zach


Shoulda drank more beer... it instills patience


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

It's not because I rushed things. It's just a lack of experience. Nothing that I won't be able to fix after a couple more tries.  Especially since I bought myself a router and table for X-mas.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Boostedrex said:


> It's not because I rushed things. It's just a lack of experience. Nothing that I won't be able to fix after a couple more tries.  Especially since I bought myself a router and table for X-mas.


This was my first time with fiberglass and a false floor too. I jacked up twice, well one and a half times. I cut the rings wrong for the grilles because I did not take into account the fact of HOW the measuring of the circle jig works even though we had an extensive thread about it not too long ago..... DUH!

The other one was for the ring for the 10" I felt that PE left me with too much play I thought it was 1/8" but it was actually less and the 10" did not fit in the hole of the second ring I made, I just stuck with the original ring...... BUT, if I did not pull that stunt I would not have run out of wood and would have grills on things now :blush: 

If you don't post mistakes how can we learn from them  Even if you don't like it you may be sooo close that with someone else's simple idea you can make it perfect and do a lot less work. Now I'm just razzing you


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## Boostedrex (Apr 4, 2007)

Someone else's idea? That's why I PM you all the time. LOL!


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## MIAaron (May 10, 2005)

Looks good, Chad!  I'm guessing you already thought of this but I'm gonna say it anyways. Keep a plastic garbage bag in your tool kit to put a flat into. It helps keep it clean and I'll just say road salt residue in black carpet can suck.


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

Sufferin, succahtash...that is one sweet lemon


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

MIAaron said:


> Looks good, Chad!  I'm guessing you already thought of this but I'm gonna say it anyways. Keep a plastic garbage bag in your tool kit to put a flat into. It helps keep it clean and I'll just say road salt residue in black carpet can suck.


Well Hell, nope, didn't think of that, good call!


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## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

Grrr, seeing this really makes me want to redo my trunk.

Sub box is staying, but my amp rack, or lack there of, sucks, they're just mounted to my back seat, it doesn't look clean at all


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

bass_lover1 said:


> Grrr, seeing this really makes me want to redo my trunk.
> 
> Sub box is staying, but my amp rack, or lack there of, sucks, they're just mounted to my back seat, it doesn't look clean at all



Totally understand, I'm no fan of seat mounting amps, and it's very popular with this particular car


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## bass_lover1 (Dec 10, 2005)

chad said:


> Totally understand, I'm no fan of seat mounting amps, and it's very popular with this particular car


Yea, it just doesn't look clean and it bugs me.

I'm thinking about doing a false floor like you and mounting the amps under there. If I mount them in front of my box, I loose all my trunk space, definitely don't want that to happen.

Or maybe, instead of mounting them to my back seat, I make a false panel that covers the hole when the seats fold, and mount them so they are facing in towards the cabin....hmmmmmmm I like that one better me thinks.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

I recommend against the 1/2 inch circle to stick your finger in.

I recommend a 5" long strip of grille cloth about an inch or two wide. fold it a couple times so no seams are visible and its about 1/2 inch wide. then double it up so it forms a loop. expose the loop and glue/staple the lose ends under the edge of each grille. now you have a pulltab that sticks out about .75 inches and .5 inches wide. its pretty out of the way visually (compared to a half inch hole!) and still allows for easy grille removal.

very clever with the hinges. I like how they turned out.

Also, if your rings are 1/2 inch too small, keep in mind carpet takes up lots of space. not half an inch, but maybe a good quarter of an inch. upholster a layer around the edge, or a layer of ensolite, or anything that takes up space, then upholster with the carpet. fits nice and snug 

I hope your expanded stainless holes are small enough the boxcarpet doesnt sag through....


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I was planning on 1/4" in the cut, so you can see where I ended up :blush:

I don't think i will get out for more materials this weekend, maybe but I doubt it. I may play with fill on the bad ring... What do I have to lose? The carpet should not sink thru the steel, I thought about that we will see. I'll grab some fabric for tabs too. Remember the holes will only be half circles on the rings themselves, not the false floor, and carpeted. I almost think it will be less visually impacting than the tab approach. There are NO half circles on the false floor 

I think I rememember you once talking about using the carpet itself for hinging, after I ordered the carpet and got it here I nixed that idea due to it's "strechability" thus the hinges.

Gotta rock-n-roll tomorrow night and I know Saturday will be entirely consumed with holiday decorating, maybe a little late night garge escape after decorating and a nice stiff "night-cap" 

Chad


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

by the way, I too am currently working on my floor. I just finished it yesterday minus the completer step I will also HIGHLY recommend for you too, as my test came out very, very, very positive, and that is this:

Once your grille is fabricated and eady and you think you are done, pull the grille and put it back in the garage. saturate it in scotchguard.

it works. really, really well.

if its raining or if you spill something, the water will bead up and you can push it off the grille where it will soak into the rest of the floor, preventing any subwoofer exposure to moisture. Doesnt affect fabric breathability.

I cant tell you how well this works.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

chad said:


> I'll grab some fabric for tabs too. Remember the holes will only be half circles on the rings themselves, not the false floor, and carpeted. I almost think it will be less visually impacting than the tab approach.
> 
> I think I rememember you once talking about using the carpet itself for hinging, after I ordered the carpet and got it here I nixed that idea due to it's "strechability" thus the hinges.


you may be right about the tab. My gut tells me it will be less impacting, though. especially after the floor gets dirty over time.

And unfortunately my latest floor will disprove the hinge theory. I added a 1/4 inch rabbet on both pieces which brings me to about the same level of effort spent as your hinges. and I have never ever had to work so little to smooth out the seams SO SUCCESSFULLY. the floor looks more amazing than I imagined.

to bypass stretchability issues, all that needs to be done is to prestretch the carpet during upholstry. problem that isnt really a problem anyways is solved


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> by the way, I too am currently working on my floor. I just finished it yesterday minus the completer step I will also HIGHLY recommend for you too, as my test came out very, very, very positive, and that is this:
> 
> Once your grille is fabricated and eady and you think you are done, pull the grille and put it back in the garage. saturate it in scotchguard.
> 
> ...



FANTASTIC IDEA! Thanks man!

I've scotchguarded a zillion PA speakers but I never thought of that!


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## Bass_freak (Dec 9, 2007)

Very Cool. You do very good work. I can't wait untill its finished.


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## tcguy85 (Oct 29, 2007)

Bass_freak said:


> Very Cool. You do very good work. I can't wait untill its finished.


yea hurry up and finish so we can see more pics!!!!!


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## drocpsu (May 3, 2005)

hey chad, awesome install. I know the enclosure only weighs ~20lbs, but with the sub and amp mounted in there as well, how hard is it to get to your spare tire?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

drocpsu said:


> hey chad, awesome install. I know the enclosure only weighs ~20lbs, but with the sub and amp mounted in there as well, how hard is it to get to your spare tire?


Less than 30 seconds. Fold the baffle, pull it out. Disconnect the sub, pull it out. The Dayton is not that heavy of a driver and the box is easy to manage.

Chad


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## ///MJay (Aug 22, 2006)

Amazing install. So how does it sound?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

///MJay said:


> Amazing install. So how does it sound?


Very happy with it for what it is. It's not the fanciest but keeps the car very stockish and useable. The dayton sub is perfect for me and it's pretty well dialed in as a whole.

Chad


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## schm (Dec 15, 2007)

good job


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## ArcL100 (Jun 17, 2005)

Morrrrrrrreeee picssss!!!

-aaron


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Lackluster weekend, Did part of a big 3, I had to lengthen the wire from the fuse box to the battery which was really no fun because I only had one shot. I'll have pics of that tomorrow. Got the quads ready for the first snow and finished the rebuild on a beautiful antique Chet Atkins Gretsch amp.

Today I played in the snow all day 

Chad


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## Oliver (Jun 25, 2007)

chad said:


> Lackluster weekend, Did part of a big 3, I had to lengthen the wire from the fuse box to the battery which was really no fun because I only had one shot. I'll have pics of that tomorrow. Got the quads ready for the first snow and finished the rebuild on a beautiful antique Chet Atkins Gretsch amp.
> 
> Today I played in the snow all day
> 
> Chad


Excellent day ! [ rebuild ]


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Hic said:


> Excellent day ! [ rebuild ]


It's a sweetie, and has the matching Chet Atkins Hollow-body too 

Was able to retain the original tubes, they were all strong and quiet.

When it's in my car it more than doubles it's (car's) value 

Chad


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Ta-Daa!

Put some time in last night.

All I have to do now is to finish the tool storage area but cosmetically... It's DONE!





























Chad


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## tcguy85 (Oct 29, 2007)

nice i like it. it looks stock!! 

what do you have going on up front, head unit and front stage? and where are the amps? maybe this was all mentioned earlier in the thread... if so i missed it, sorry.

also do you have a pic of it finished like that but with the piece covering the sub and port off?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

tcguy85 said:


> nice i like it. it looks stock!!
> 
> what do you have going on up front, head unit and front stage? and where are the amps? maybe this was all mentioned earlier in the thread... if so i missed it, sorry.
> 
> also do you have a pic of it finished like that but with the piece covering the sub and port off?


Post 135 has the pics you are looking for. Mids are Seas CA18RNX, Tweets re Seas Neo Aluminum (I have yet to memorize Seas' goofy model number scheme for their tweets)

Source and processing is an Alpine CDA9855, amplifier is a JL Audio 500/5. Pretty much a K.I.S.S. approach 

Chad


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## tcguy85 (Oct 29, 2007)

chad said:


> Post 135 has the pics you are looking for. Mids are Seas CA18RNX, Tweets re Seas Neo Aluminum (I have yet to memorize Seas' goofy model number scheme for their tweets)
> 
> Source and processing is an Alpine CDA9855, amplifier is a JL Audio 500/5. Pretty much a K.I.S.S. approach
> 
> Chad


i like it a lot! great JOB!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

tcguy85 said:


> i like it a lot! great JOB!


Thanks, I got the balls up to show it to my Father-in-law who is a retired carpenter, he was impressed and this is coming from a guy that thinks FM radio in a car is just overkill :blush:


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## tcguy85 (Oct 29, 2007)

chad said:


> Thanks, I got the balls up to show it to my Father-in-law who is a retired carpenter, he was impressed and this is coming from a guy that thinks FM radio in a car is just overkill :blush:


nice, fm radio is too much? lol


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Build pics of the ring, Routed out the inset for the steel, attached it with silicone that is used to adhere/seal chimney flues and stapled it, note I used the beer bottle drying rack again  Seems to work well 



















Test fit:










Did the same thing with the port cover but did not take pics, I wanted it done.

-------------------------------------------

Also installed a new UHF/VHF antenna with a proper NMO mount. Drilled out the old HF mount (which SUCKED) Drilling Stainless is NO FUN!

Test fit for NMO to see if it would work:









Drilled:









Bench assembly to test for fitment:



























Soldering to the TEENSY LMR100 cable, a real PITA even ON A BENCH, as you can see... no bench!










Complete!






































So I met my 2007 goals at the last minute, I can't say I was defeated in my resolution. 2008 does not hold much at this point, but time will tell 

Maybe a few competitions, yeah right.........

Chad


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

right on. Any sink holing between the large mesh of the grille?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Whiterabbit said:


> right on. Any sink holing between the large mesh of the grille?


None at all, I got it pretty tight, we will see what summer brings. Or even the afternoon since there's 50Lbs of dog food sitting on it now 

I used my hatch over break for transport and it was great to have it back! Packed it tight!

You are gonna neener me but I'm going to make another one without the half circle AND without a tab for removal. I can pop out the vent cover then slightly lift the cover and pop the speaker grille out from underneath. Why I did not think of that I don't know but it's easier than the way it is now.

Chad


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

Just a few quick questions....this is not a 2007 civic is it( thought you had like a 02-03 hatch)...the title is a little confusing. Also is the grill for the woofer getting any grill clothe?


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

unpredictableacts said:


> Just a few quick questions....this is not a 2007 civic is it( thought you had like a 02-03 hatch)...the title is a little confusing. Also is the grill for the woofer getting any grill clothe?


Well it could have been worded better but many people notice the word for in the title  Like I could say that 2007 was a ****ty year _for_ me, but some may say "of course, he has no teeth, hasn't learned to talk, and his diapers are probably full"  Which wouldn't probably be too far off, except I have teeth  Incidentally it's an 04, the second to last year they made the Si hatch in America at least.

I posted the pics of the grille covered first on break, Photobucket is a real ***** over dial up at the ranch so I posted finished pics on a limited basis first. It took 30-45 min to upload 3 pics! So yeah, they are on the previous page.

Chad


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## Sv9toslav (Jan 6, 2008)

nice car and good job !!!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Sv9toslav said:


> nice car and good job !!!


Why thank you! And a warm welcome to the forum!

Chad


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## aboof (Jul 6, 2008)

I said it in the "show ur substage" thread and I'll say it again here - that's goddamn beautiful. I just read the whole thread, and as someone with no garage or skills, I got a lot of vicarious pleasure out of this. I'd love to have my RSX hatch look like that.


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## mellephants (Oct 7, 2010)

Bump from the dead for a great build thread.

BTW We are neighbors! I lived in Danville from 3 months old to 19 years old, and I live in Urbana now. We have most likely passed each other on 74 a few times


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

mellephants said:


> Bump from the dead for a great build thread.
> 
> BTW We are neighbors! I lived in Danville from 3 months old to 19 years old, and I live in Urbana now. We have most likely passed each other on 74 a few times



Probably like every day. I live between Fithain and Oakwood and work in Urbana.


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## mellephants (Oct 7, 2010)

Nice, yes. I have worked in Urbana and lived in Danville, also have worked in Danville and lived in Urbana. Now I live in Urbana and work in Champaign, so I can actually bicycle to work when I feel like it 

Anyway I have been planning to do just about exactly what you have done here for quite some time now. The thing holding me back is whether to do sealed or vented. 

I found your post in the "Sealed vs. Ported and SQ" thread reassuring, and then when I saw that you pulled it off with a stealth fiberglass spare tire well enclosure... well... 

I want to hear your system sometime!


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## el_chupo_ (May 27, 2007)

mellephants said:


> Nice, yes. I have worked in Urbana and lived in Danville, also have worked in Danville and lived in Urbana. Now I live in Urbana and work in Champaign, so I can actually bicycle to work when I feel like it
> 
> Anyway I have been planning to do just about exactly what you have done here for quite some time now. The thing holding me back is whether to do sealed or vented.
> 
> ...


Chad got banned for some BS reasons... Check out the web address on the pictures and you will find out where he hangs out now. Im sure he would be happy to continue the discussion there.


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## mellephants (Oct 7, 2010)

Wow, that sucks! Any link to a thread or other info about why?


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## el_chupo_ (May 27, 2007)

mellephants said:


> Wow, that sucks! Any link to a thread or other info about why?


Nope. The admin has been quite careful about deleting everything so that no one sees what is going on. They have also banned several other founding members for posting a link or saying the name of the web address watermarked on his pictures. 

They have also been randomly enforcing rules that were not in place, or changing rules after the fact to match up with the actions they took.

And even though Anthony refused to delete posts of members who requested it, he is completely eliminating all signs of some members - deleting accounts, all posts they ever made (back to 2005 or 2006 in some cases)

Frankly, I would not be surprised to see this thread disappear...


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## IBcivic (Jan 6, 2009)

CHAD
AKA>Big Daddy 
Banned
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: In the Sticks Between Champaign/Danville, IL
Age: 38
Posts: 22,515
That will wear off the word ''DELETE'' from the aforementioned button:laugh:


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## mellephants (Oct 7, 2010)

Yeah deleting that many posts would be detrimental to the value of the forum


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## IBcivic (Jan 6, 2009)

mellephants said:


> Yeah deleting that many posts would be detrimental to the value of the forum


I agree..no matter what reasons that led to Chad's banning, there is no denying that he was a MAJOR contributor, knowledge-wise, to this forum and deleting his postings would just give another reason for more members to turn their backs on on DIYMA. 
Like him or not....he probably has forgotten more, about audio, than most of us will ever learn.


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## aV8ter (Sep 4, 2009)

Chad are you still running the neo xt25s in your sails? How do/did you like them? IDK if you remember me contacting you through PMs about my friend looking for a EP3 but he finally found one and is getting it tomorrow.

I was thinking about doing the neo XT25s in the sails and the newish Scan Speak Discovery 10f in the A-pillars, along with the Discovery 7'' (or 8'' if it will fit) in the doors. Any input on this?


Thanks.


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## quickaudi07 (May 19, 2010)

Its about time i found your damn thread again!

Great build, and I had a great pleasure to take a listen..

Chad, I have few questions, can you please PM me so we could talk.

Thanks

Mario-Morel guy


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