Pro Stereo System complete! (LONG!)

[Soma576@xxxx]

List,

i have promised and now i deliver!
Introducing a high performance stereo system in my car that leaves the smallest footprint possible! Pics are now up in the photo section under 'pro stereo system'.

features:
- Alpine CD receiver
- Monitor-1 4 channel 70x4 watts RMS full range amp
- JL Audio 250/1 monoblock subwoofer amp; 250 watts RMS
- MTX 3.5" coaxial dash speakers
- Ample Audio 5.25" floor pods from Don Steger
- Boston Acoustic RM6 stacked component hybrid coaxial 6.5" speakers in the rear
- Monitor-1 4 band shelving paragraphic equalizer with 7 volt output
- Kicker Solo-Baric S8L7 ultra high excursion 8" titanium square dual voice coil subwoofer

Here's the scoop:
The Alpine head unit has front preouts and sub/rear preouts.  from the head unit's internal amp i am driving the dash speakers.  the front out goes thru the center console back to the Monitor-1 equalizer which is mounted on the ceiling of the battery compartment.  from there, the signal is split into a front and rear signal (2 pair of RCA's) which then goes up to the Monitor-1 full range power amp which is mounted on the rear wall.  the original flimsy rear wall was removed and undamaged.  We then removed the old thick foam off the firewall and replaced it with modern sound deadening material that is much thinner.  it is then carpeted with gray car audio trim carpet with the amp mounted right to the wall.  from the amp comes the 12 gauge speaker wire that runs up the console to the front pods, and also to each side of the amp for the rear wall speakers.

the rear wall speakers are Boston Acoustic RM6 speakers.  they are a sort of hybrid speaker in that they have a woofer and a tweeter with a crossover on the tweeter for a smoother transition - it is similar to a stacked component set - they sound excellent! they are 6.5" diameter. the speakers are mounted into a custom built wood board that is shaped like each side of the original rear wall.  the wall at that point was built out and at a slight angle so that the top of the wall meets where the black under-window trim's edge is, so the top 1.5" or so of underhang is gone.  the bottom of the new wall goes out to the point where the piece of carpet that covers the floor of the parcel shelf stops. to put this in perspective, with the speakers installed, you can still remove the access board to get to your fuses, so we only lost approximately 1 inch at the most of parcel shelf space.  on the driver's side, we built a trap door which is hinged on the carpet in order to access the engine cover latch, so it is seamless. the amp is finished off with a carpeted press-fit cover that saves anyone from having to see any wiring or sharp edges. when it is all put together, it comes across as three parts - speaker, then amp rack, then speaker, in a seamless integration and of course looking very professional and dare i say OEM.

then we move to the subwoofer.  we removed the cubby door and found that the internal space of the cubby is almost exactly the required enclosure space of a good DVC 8" subwoofer.  however we didn't want to drill into the car or damage the stock carpeting, so we built a modular frame that holds the subwoofer in the enclosure.  it is like a big piece of carpeted wood that goes from the center console to the vinyl wall of the car.   the subwoofer of course goes into the storage box area and the sub amp is mounted right to the wood plate.  of course we used a router to run all the wires between the wood and carpet so there are no visible wires.  to finish it off, we again made a press-fit cover that goes over the amp and around the sub for a continuous and professional look.  the amp is run off of the 'sub out' on the deck.  The Alpine features a seperate subwoofer volume control which is very nice - i dont have to touch any settings on the amp, i control it all from the head unit.

all power and grounds except for the headunit ground went directly to the battery thru a pair of 4 way distribution blocks by phoenix gold.  

after everything was installed, we performed a real-time analysis of the system in which a microphone is placed in the center of the car and it records test signals that tells us which frequencies are under and over-represented.  the equalizer in the battery compartment was installed for this purpose of tuning.  the idea is to set all of your controls with the equalizer, and have your bass and treble settings on the deck on +/- 0.  no loudness, no BBE, none of that stuff that changes the raw signal.  once everything is flat in the car, you use your deck to make small changes from CD to CD.  

however, i knew this system was designed and installed well because before we did any of that stuff, it already sounded incredible!  

the system is, in my opinion, unbelievable.  it is very professional looking, tasteful, and sounds great.  NO, you will not be heard 2 blocks away pounding up the street.  but inside the cabin you will be treated to a full range system that hits hard, sings high, leaves your hair on end.  the idea here is SOUND QUALITY, NOT SPL! SPL requires bigger subwoofers, which would take up more space on the parcel shelf.  let it be known, however, that this 8" is one of the best available and it WILL KNOCK YOU DOWN! no other 8" i have heard comes close.

pros/cons:
Pros: ultra high performance, clean power, lots of head room, home-theatre quality in a car that should sound as good as it looks.  small footprint- minute parcel shelf space lost, lost the cubby box.  FULL REMOVEABLE and returns to stock in 30 mintues.  no visible screw holes, no parts of car were hacked up.

cons:
8" subwoofer because of its size is incapable of ultra-low bass at high volume.  you will not notice though unless you had an identical 12" next to it.  possible motive for car break-in.  make sure you have a bigger alternator (i have a 130amp).  took me over a week to run wires.

i picked out all the components myself, installed the power stuff and EQ, and ran all of the wires, installed the deck and pods, and then had a local hi-fi shop in Fargo, ND do the rear wall and sub install.  

Many thanks to the members of the DML who offered insight on my project - especially Kayo Ong; if i had not talked with him on numerous occaisions, my system would be quite different and certianly not as good!!

I welcome all comments, criticisms, etc.
Andy