Wiring guide for NON B&O premium audio systems. No LOC required.

[StangTime]

I get it. Makes sense. Correct implementation is everything!

I just like punchy bass low to mid volume / can still have conversation .... Don't like too heavy.

I'm wondering if I will lose benefit of trunk sub with top down?

Would I make sense to have bass capable 6.5 or under dash sub to keep it up front? If it was 6.5 which one would be best?

Bass capable 6.5" drivers like the Hertz MP165P.3 plus a sub or even 2 are probably going to be your best bet.
Sub bass will suffer in a convertible no matter where it is installed once the top is down because you lose something called "cabin gain". You can read about that here: http://www.caraudiohelp.com/newsletter/cabin_gain.html
You might want to ask this question in the forum on how other members have done subwoofers in a convertible.

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[StangTime]

Too bad no presets memory haha....will just adjust the bass setting depending on top position. No big deal.

I was looking at MP 165.3 until I saw the DSK at half the price.
Found some Pioneer TS A652C with 34-49K Hz range but sensitivity only 84 db and it seems as a door speaker the delivered range is > 60hz in practice....

The MP165.3 is a really great driver. 3ohms and 94dB to help pull a little extra power from the amp. I have these in my car on a Hertz HCP5D amp and they kick hard. So these would be even better on the higher wattage of your HCP4D. They will pair nicely with the DCX87.3 coaxials. Get them, you won't be disappointed!

 

[StangTime]

Can you please post a link to the ones you have? My search is pulling up 3 variation MP 165.3 Pro ...

The link was in post 78.
Here is the full link: https://hertz-audio.com/product/car-audio-woofers-mille-pro-mp165p-3/

 

[StangTime]

I see the difference now need the one with red logo...the frequency range is lowww....for the same price I can have turn-key trunk sub...hmmm a cheaper alternative would be nice haha...

Yeah, they are definitely not cheap.
You can add a sub now and add the MP165P later on if you need more low end.

 

[StangTime]

Why reverse Polarity?

All crossovers add a phase shift to the signal at the crossover frequency. 6db adds 90deg shift, 12db adds 180deg shift, 24db adds 360deg shift. Inverting the polarity on one driver with a 12db xover, cancels out the 180deg shift and brings them back in phase. This is true for most installations. There are exceptions due to speaker placement and sometimes it's necessary to play with the polarity or phase to make it sound right.

 

[StangTime]

Thanks!

Should I use the incl cross over then?

Looking hard at the CPK 165 Pro as a cut price option happens to have MP Pro elements as well.

You are buying the Hertz 4 channel amp right? Did you plan on using the rear speakers or not? Your answer will determine if you need passive crossovers.

 

[StangTime]

No plan to use rears but I can

Then use the 4 channels for the front speakers and use the amplifier electronic crossovers. No need for passive crossovers.

 

[StangTime]

I found MPK 165P3 3 ohm pro.....with orange logo...same thing in Kit bundle? 230W

EDIT...so it is 2 X MP165P.3 + 2X MP25.3 + 2X MPCX 2 P.3....got a crazy deal. Wonder why crutchfield says doesn't fit S550....any idea?

That's the same component kit I installed. Crutchfield says it doesn't fit because they don't consider any speaker that requires custom fabrication as being compatible. I had to make custom spacers to mount the mid bass drivers and open up the holes in the A pillar to make them fit.
A couple of posts on my install:
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/th...to-your-s550-mustang-today.11109/post-3016549
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/th...to-your-s550-mustang-today.11109/post-3237389
PVC spacer plans:
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/attachments/spacer-ring-pdf.570574/

 

[StangTime]

Getting "You do not have permission to view this page or perform this action" on the PVC spacer link...grrrr haha

You will need to cut the spacer with a jig saw, router table or circle cutter. I can't see any material that would be knife friendly and hard enought to be a good mount.
Here is the spacer plans in a new upload:

 

[StangTime]

Perfect - thanks!

Any chance can get the CAD file so the robot can cut it?

Did you seal off the 3.5" speaker hole?

I can provide a file if you want to 3Dprint these from ABS once I am back in my office on Tuesday.
Yes. I sealed up the 3.5" hole in the door.

 

[BrianH87]

It's been a while, but I did finally install my setup. Stealthbox with signal right off the rear speakers to a Kicker CX amp. Everything works well, but it's still missing something. I'm going to do the forescan mod this weekend.

It also seemed like I needed to set the gain using a - 5 or -10 db 50Hz wave to really get any good thump. 0 db just wasn't doing it. I'll reset it after forescan and hope it makes a difference.

 

[BrianH87]

Let it break in for 10-20 hrs.


I did the Kicker 200.4 because of auto DSP calibration, plus the Hertz MPK 163.5 Pro component running active, using stangtime's 6.5" speaker spacers I had 3 D printed, plus some sound deadening on door panel and skin.

After 20 hrs sound amazing. No need for sub. The Hertz go deep. I' m very impressed. They were'nt joking in the product description that they are good for space restricted environments where no sub fits.

I ended up swapping out the Kicker CX for a Kicker Key mono amp. Man, what a difference! The auto DSP is no joke! It's not the most powerful amp, but it does just fine with my sub. Much better than my original setup.

 

[Mike Pfeifer]

I ended up swapping out the Kicker CX for a Kicker Key mono amp. Man, what a difference! The auto DSP is no joke! It's not the most powerful amp, but it does just fine with my sub. Much better than my original setup.

So how does the kicker key amp do the adjustment? Do you play white noise or something while it listens?

 

[yonson]

Wiring it up: Study the diagrams. Everything you need is here.
Signals from the head unit are 2.7V peak at maximum volume on the dial. Ford did us one good thing on the head units, they give us unclipped signal all the way to max. So you can use the whole volume knob range if you want.

If your goal is to remove the factory amp I recommend the idatalink HRN-AR-FO3 harness, it has all the necessary plugs needed to interface with the car without cutting the original factory wiring. This will have you completely unplug the factory amp from the car (you can even remove it to reduce weight).

It's good to see that the pre-amp signal is clean, when I scoped the rear channels before running them to my sub amp (I removed the rear speakers and used Metra speaker harnesses to get the signal) The signal would clip above a volume setting of 23 (technically 24 when using a 1000Hz tone vs 50Hz, but it was starting to get fuzzy) I guess the factory amp is set a little too hot up top, which isn't much of an issue since I rarely need to go above 19 anyway, especially now with the sub added in.

Thanks for this writeup, it answered a lot of questions I had about finishing my system (and makes it SOOO much simpler), I was wondering why you couldn't just use their harness without their module and I couldn't find any T harnesses that interfaced at the amp instead of behind the radio.

 

[StangTime]

It's good to see that the pre-amp signal is clean, when I scoped the rear channels before running them to my sub amp (I removed the rear speakers and used Metra speaker harnesses to get the signal) The signal would clip above a volume setting of 23 (technically 24 when using a 1000Hz tone vs 50Hz, but it was starting to get fuzzy) I guess the factory amp is set a little too hot up top, which isn't much of an issue since I rarely need to go above 19 anyway, especially now with the sub added in.

Thanks for this writeup, it answered a lot of questions I had about finishing my system (and makes it SOOO much simpler), I was wondering why you couldn't just use their harness without their module and I couldn't find any T harnesses that interfaced at the amp instead of behind the radio.

The amplifier side will clip around somewhere above 20 on the volume dial. The input signal feeding the amp stays clean all the way to max. That's why it's always recommended to grab the signals before the amp. Just be aware that there is a bass boost when the volume knob is around 15 or less and increases as the volume goes down. Even with the Forscan change to "flatten" the EQ the bass boost remains. Quoted from @Cathul "Vol 3 is with highest bass boost. Starting at Vol 15 it's basically flat. ". He was the one who discovered this when he measured the input signal using his Mosconi DSP.

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