New install.... baby steps

[vnzbd]

Well I finally started my new install. I wanted to mimic the sound I have in my daily driver that runs 2 -6" JL3v3 subs under the front seats and JL-C3 components with Alpine amps for power. The project is going to be done in stages to manage time and money vs. performance. It is a basic upgrade to the base 6 speaker system.

I ran all of the cabling prior and installed OEM's harness over last weekend. The subs used are 2 JL3v3 8" and I am staying with the stock fronts for now. My initial plan was to mount them in the rear deck and box them from the bottom. That was just going to be too large and a pain to do. I purchased pre-made boxes for the trunk and built my amp rack around them. The subs are rear facing. The amp being used is a JL XD500/3v2. It is only a 3 channel but is well suited for the basic system I am doing.

Well first test of the system was a sonic failure. Lack of bass and what was there was so muddy. I currently have the gain for the fronts set at 20% and crossed at 80Hz. The subs gain is closer to 80% and also crossed at 80Hz. After checking all my polarities, etc., all seemed correct. On a whim I took a better look at my enclosures(.40 cubic'-sealed)) vs JL's spec(.33 cubic' w/ driver displacement). That does not sound like a huge deal to me but as I was running out of places to look I attacked it next. I installed enough extra wood inside the enclosure to shrink the enclosure down to spec. What a difference. The bass has tightened up and is very musical. I am continuing to tweak to get the balance better but feel that the factory front is so weak vs. the JL front that I am used to that I will not be satisfied until I attack that.

Well as it is being done in baby steps I will continue to tweak and sample!

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[NewTekBuzz]

Throw up some pics when you can!

 

[mumbles]

Well first test of the system was a sonic failure. Lack of bass and what was there was so muddy. I currently have the gain for the fronts set at 20% and crossed at 80Hz. The subs gain is closer to 80% and also crossed at 80Hz. After checking all my polarities, etc., all seemed correct. On a whim I took a better look at my enclosures(.40 cubic'-sealed)) vs JL's spec(.33 cubic' w/ driver displacement). That does not sound like a huge deal to me but as I was running out of places to look I attacked it next. I installed enough extra wood inside the enclosure to shrink the enclosure down to spec. What a difference. The bass has tightened up and is very musical. I am continuing to tweak to get the balance better but feel that the factory front is so weak vs. the JL front that I am used to that I will not be satisfied until I attack that.

Well as it is being done in baby steps I will continue to tweak and sample!

Good call on the enclosure size!

 

[vnzbd]

Well the entire install has been rethought. I had built a combination amp rack-sub enclosure and just didn't care for the look of monstrosity in the trunk. I was sooo unhappy with the front stage. I had issues with my car accepting the programming from OEM's programmer. This includes a blown amp and a battle with Amazon.

I saw a post recently were someone put a 6" JL Microsub in their spare tire well. I really like the stealth look. I had the chance to pick up the 8" version recently and relocated the new amp(JL XD700/5) and sub to there. I am quite surprised in a good way of the outcome. certainly not perfect but so much better than stock. I am a classic rock guy and with that music the output is acceptable. I am not used to a ported sub though so I will try to get used to that.

As far as the front stage is concerned I did JL C2 coax in the front door building my own brackets and using Dynamat. Results favorable. I also installed some imaging tweeters in the A pillars and have them crossed at 5k on the amp and barely on just to raise the image. I wished I had not done that all together as the coax in the doors actually project a pretty solid image and don't sound like they are playing on the floor.

I will sum it up to say that this has been the most frustrating build I have ever done. I will continue to tinker to improve because there is certainly room. The advise I could give is to do one step at a time and analyze it rather than buy and install everything.

 

[mumbles]

Its unfortunate that you are having a rough go of it. I agree with you on spending time up front to decide how you are going to lay things out and what equipment works best. On that note, I'd recommend heading to diyma.com for some insight... the forums have tons of info on what kind of equipment people prefer, how to tune and there is a build log section to get install ideas...

 

[vnzbd]

Thanks for the advise Mumbles.

 

[scott_0]

out of curiosity, what issues were you having the programmers? I have them but havent used them yet.......

 

[vnzbd]

I have the base 6 speaker so I only needed the 1st programmer just to convert the speaker level to line level and remove the bass roll off. OEM's programmer would run through the LED sequence as designed finishing with a solid green LED. For some reason my ACM would not reset. I worked with Jessie on this trying all different sequencing including a battery reset, no dice. We came up with no reason for it not to take. The unit has been sent back and I am sure Jessie will test it and figure out what went on. It could be something with my car and not have anything to do with the programmer, I don't know.

 

[vnzbd]

Just a satisfied update! I have finally reached a point where I can say the sound is very satisfying. System is configured as:

Front doors - JL Audio C2 coax, no longer running as coax but as mids. 80 - 4500Hz
A-pillar tweeters - JL Audio C2 tweeters, 4500Hz and up
Rears - None
Sub - JL Audio 10WT3 dual ohm vc, 80 Hz and down @ 24dB, sealed
Amp - JL Audio XD700/5 - Ch 1+2 are running the tweeters, Ch 3+4 are running the front doors and Ch 5 is the sub at 300 watts.

The sub was purchased in a factory JL sealed enclosure and from the first note I knew it was a keeper. Certainly on the SQ side as you can hear(and feel) all the bass guitars notes. The factory box was slightly too large to fit in the spare tire well with the amp so I did have to build my own box to the JL sealed spec. I had tried their 8" 3V3 in a sealed and although musical they lacked output. I tried the 8" micro sub solo and in a pair and I got the output but not the desired tone.

Eliminating a passive crossover and controlling all with the amps I feel was key to my satisfaction. Being able to use the amps gain control to balance the levels to my liking really made bringing out the mid-bass simple as well as taming the tweeters. All levels are within the JL spec when set up with test tone and meter. Other additions are OEM's harness(still running speaker level) and Dynamat on the front doors. I consistently listen to music between volume levels 7-18 and do not feel that the radios processing has much effect in the area. After months of thought and effort I am glad I stuck it through!

And just a thanks to all who have posted on this forum. All of the shared knowledge was so valuable to the build from start to finish!

 

[mustank]

Congratulations. I am glad you got it all sorted out. I am going to be attempting a full install myself soon and ran into some design errors after purchasing the main bits.

Now if I can just get my hands on that programmer....

 

[mikes2017gt]

Some pics of the install would be great. You built a custom box for the spare tire well...lots of work...show it off!

 

[vnzbd]

I will work on some pics and try to get them loaded. I know I like to see the pictures on threads too...

 

[mumbles]

In for pix!

 

[NewTekBuzz]

Just a satisfied update! I have finally reached a point where I can say the sound is very satisfying. System is configured as:

Front doors - JL Audio C2 coax, no longer running as coax but as mids. 80 - 4500Hz
A-pillar tweeters - JL Audio C2 tweeters, 4500Hz and up
Rears - None
Sub - JL Audio 10WT3 dual ohm vc, 80 Hz and down @ 24dB, sealed
Amp - JL Audio XD700/5 - Ch 1+2 are running the tweeters, Ch 3+4 are running the front doors and Ch 5 is the sub at 300 watts.

The sub was purchased in a factory JL sealed enclosure and from the first note I knew it was a keeper. Certainly on the SQ side as you can hear(and feel) all the bass guitars notes. The factory box was slightly too large to fit in the spare tire well with the amp so I did have to build my own box to the JL sealed spec. I had tried their 8" 3V3 in a sealed and although musical they lacked output. I tried the 8" micro sub solo and in a pair and I got the output but not the desired tone.

Eliminating a passive crossover and controlling all with the amps I feel was key to my satisfaction. Being able to use the amps gain control to balance the levels to my liking really made bringing out the mid-bass simple as well as taming the tweeters. All levels are within the JL spec when set up with test tone and meter. Other additions are OEM's harness(still running speaker level) and Dynamat on the front doors. I consistently listen to music between volume levels 7-18 and do not feel that the radios processing has much effect in the area. After months of thought and effort I am glad I stuck it through!

And just a thanks to all who have posted on this forum. All of the shared knowledge was so valuable to the build from start to finish!

Congrats!!! I am starting my build this spring, I can't wait

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