Starting to plan my build, looking for feedback

[04lss]

Hi All,

i have been looking through the threads on here, and I definitely want to change my build up.
I have a 2019 GT with the 9 speaker system.
I have built a few systems, but every car has its quirks, so i am interested in advice.

The plan currently would be for a set of three way speakers, like the Morel Maximo 603a up front, and a pair of coax in the rear. ( I personally like rear fill) More than likely I would use the included crossovers so that I don't need additional amp channels.

I have two dual channel amps for the speakers, both putting out 90W RMS per channel. I also have a 600wrms Kicker mono amp for a sub. I have a 10 inch kicker sub as well, eventually I plan to go the JL stealth box route but that doubles build costs, so its a later addition.

The Big question I have, is weather or not a DSP is required. I tried replacing the speakers in my volvo s60, and I could NEVER get the EQ dialed in. It was always harsh. I know the JBL ms-8 was the standard for a long time, I cannot determine what the new standard is.


Another question I cannot find an answer to, is what the wattage of the 9 speaker system is. If its sufficient, do i really need an external amp?

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[SQ_S550]

Hi All,

i have been looking through the threads on here, and I definitely want to change my build up.
I have a 2019 GT with the 9 speaker system.
I have built a few systems, but every car has its quirks, so i am interested in advice.

The plan currently would be for a set of three way speakers, like the Morel Maximo 603a up front, and a pair of coax in the rear. ( I personally like rear fill) More than likely I would use the included crossovers so that I don't need additional amp channels.

I have two dual channel amps for the speakers, both putting out 90W RMS per channel. I also have a 600wrms Kicker mono amp for a sub. I have a 10 inch kicker sub as well, eventually I plan to go the JL stealth box route but that doubles build costs, so its a later addition.

The Big question I have, is weather or not a DSP is required. I tried replacing the speakers in my volvo s60, and I could NEVER get the EQ dialed in. It was always harsh. I know the JBL ms-8 was the standard for a long time, I cannot determine what the new standard is.


Another question I cannot find an answer to, is what the wattage of the 9 speaker system is. If its sufficient, do i really need an external amp?

The Maximos are my favorite entry level speaker, very smooth not harsh at all! Great choice!

A DSP is never required, however the benefits do outweigh the negatives so it is always a solid addition. The popular DSPs right now are the new Zapco, Helix, and the MiniDSP 6X8.

Adding external amplifiers is more than just sufficient power. Quality will generally be better, the audio components will generally be better, if properly setup the sound will generally be better. I'm referring to the warmth and natural sound more than loudness BTW.

 

[mikes2017gt]

It's good to hear a positive vote for the Morel Maximo 603a 3-way set, as I just bought it! Crutchfield had them on sale for $360, free shipping, free mounting rings/speaker harnesses. A darn good deal for a Morel 3-way set and the free goodies. I have never heard this set and reviews were scarce, so I took a chance. went by Morel's reputation and some of their other drivers I've heard in the past.

FWIW, I'll be bypassing the factory DSP/AMP completely and running the HU's preamp out into a JL Audio TWK-88, to a JL XD600/6v2 to actively power all 6 front speakers. Will have to run new wires for the tweets, but that's easy stuff. Already have a JL Stealthbox with a 12W3 driver/JL XD600/v2 watt amp. I'll be moving that off the LOC (getting rid of the LOC) and grabbing the sub signal off the TWK-88. The center channel and rear deck speakers are just going to sit there, doing nothing...useless anyway. Should be a massive improvement!

IMO, if you're going to go through the trouble of using the included passive crossovers, you might as well get an external DSP and bypass the HU DSP processing through Forscan (which I don't know how to do yet myself).

There is pretty much no room under the dash for the Xovers, then you'd have to run a harness of some kind to route the amp'd signal back through the factory harness at the factory amp. Not saying my way "is best" but if you go preout from the HU, to a DSP, your signal is already crossed over, EQ'd and time aligned. Feed signal to amps, then run a multi-conductor cable from the amps up to the harness.

I'm sure the passive crossovers that come with the Morel's are good. But every car is different. Using the passive xovers you're stuck with whatever slope and crossover frequency specs it's built to, and you have no EQ to help shape things. With a DSP you have all that in an infinitely-customizable package. My thought process, anyway. Good luck w/your build! Take pics.

 

[04lss]

Thanks for the input! My idea was to hide the passive crossovers in the doors. I am very interested in pulling the pre-amp wires from the stock HU. I typcially have someone else do my wiring, i wonder if i could put something together and have them pull off of these instead of using an LOC. The way i look at it, I might as well do this right once. My only concern with the active setup, is that i have 0 experience with managing the settings in a DSP.

 

[04lss]

Is there a reason I need to go three ways, or would a decent set of 2 way components (Something from Morel, Focal or JL) be fine with the right DSP and amp combo? Ive had some really nice Focal builds with their 2 way setups, as long as i could dial in the sound. The three way setups worry me in terms of amping, and dialing in the crossovers properly. I have 2 dual channel axera amps of the same model.class AB, 90W RMS per channel. I have a third in my Regal powering some focals, and it does a good job. So right now I have 4 channels to play with without spending any money on amps. My general cap for this stage of the build is about 800-1000. I also have a bunch of sound deadening foam and MLV from noico sitting around, that I intend to install in some key areas.

I am also considering this from Pioneer as a midground option for DSP: https://www.crutchfield.com/p_130DEQS100/Pioneer-DEQ-S1000A.html

 

[mikes2017gt]

You could absolutely go with a 2-way setup. My apologies; I thought you had the Premium package which comes with 3-ways in the doors...makes it much easier to swap to a new 3-way setup. If I had the standard audio, I wouldn't be cutting up my door panels for a 3-way setup either!

I don't have any experience with that Pioneer DSP, but for use as a DSP only, it is probably pretty decent. DSP is DSP, unless you're in the $1K+ range for endless-money competition systems or home audiophile use. I would use the Pioneer as a DSP only and feed your outboard amps with it's signal.

If the passive crossovers will fit in the door, then go for it. Keep in mind though that they may get wet. Ever see water run out the bottom of the door after you wash the car? That water gets in up top and gravity does the rest. If you can fit the xover on the side of the door skin that faces the door panel, you should be OK. I would not put the xover inside the door, where the window and motor are, even if you find a nifty hiding place for it.

 

[04lss]

I actually do have the 9 speaker system. That said, a 2 way replacement seems a lot more straight forward than a 3. Living in Virginia, i can drive to crutchfield and try out hardware. i Can also use their install services.

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