Pics of my stereo installation

[Leaf001]

The following are pictures of the stereo I had installed in my '93 R/T10. As everyone knows, the stock setup is horrible. Not only are the speakers cr@p, but the head unit and amp are extremely inefficient, underpowered, and noisy. Originally, I installed two JL 6 inch woofers into the stock enclosure. Horrible idea. The stock "box" was made of a cheap plastic that was far from air tight and proved to be a lousy enclosure for any speaker. I decided to have the entire back panel removed and recasted in fiberglass with a custom subwoofer enclosure inside. The new back-panel is holding a JL W-3 (10 inch). The amp is an Xtant 3 channel that is extremely efficient and clean. The signal to noise ratio is one of the best on the market. To ensure maximum trunk capacity, I removed the spare tire and installed the amp in it's place. I then had a "beauty bar" made to protect the chrome amp from anything that you may place in the trunk. It also has two 6 inch red neon sticks installed INSIDE the amp and two 12 inch sticks above the amp to light up the trunk area. The small switch turns on/off the neon. I plan on installing a relay at a later time that will turn the lights on when ever I open the trunk. I went with a Sony Xplode MP3/CD player in the dash to free the cockpit of loose discs(a MP3 encoded CD holds approximately 160 songs). I then installed MB Quarts best 5 1/4 components in the stock mounts in the doors. While I had the door panels off, I went ahead and installed door poppers as well(a must have if you ask me).


As an end-note, if your even considering installing 5/6 points, have them installed at the same time your making the back-panel.

These are of the box being built...

Let me know what you think!


-Leaf

 

[Ron]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">Very nice job Leaf, but.....

The spare tire is a integral parts of your rear crash protection. The spare apparently has something to do with helping to avoid trunk lid ***********.

You might want to check with other RT/10 owners as I am not very familiar with the issue.</FONT f>

 

[paul]

Did your 93 come with the hydraulic hinges on the trunk if it did I got screwed. Mine came with a rod that pulls down, that ***** I'm pissed, I guess I could just by some and mount them myself but then I would have to drill adn I don't really want to do that. But I like your set up, I put two Memphis speakers in the place of the old 6 1/2's, it just sounds decent, but it works better than what was in there, oh and I changed the head unit. I like yours better.

 

[Leaf001]

Ron,

I've heard that before, but it was a little too late when I got the word. I'm not really sure how the spare tire would help in a rear end collision, maybe someone reading this thread could elaborate.


Paul,

The gas strut was bought aftermarket from Viperware.com. It did require drilling two holes, but it was a simple procedure. The only concern I have about the strut is will it interfer with installing the autoform single plane wing? I haven't found an answer to that yet.


-Leaf

 

[King GTS]

I don't see it.

 

[Leaf001]

Obviously I have a bandwidth limit problem. I am a VCA member, but have yet to receive my number or membership package of any sort. This means I can't upload my pics to the VCA server.

If I could get one of the moderators to post these pictures for me for the rest of the club, we can avoid this problem (hint hint

)


Respectfully,
Leaf

 

[shifter]

The spare tire absorbs energy from a rear end collision, helping to prevent the deck lid and rear bulkhead from encroaching into the cockpit. It also helps protect the fual tank from damage.

 

[dansauto]

I love that rear 10" enclosure. Where did you have it done and how much? I was thinking of building a 10" enclosure in the pass. footrest area-but your idea is much better (In fact I posted an inquiry a couple months ago asking if anyone built a custom rear enclosure that could hold one 10" sub)

 

[Leaf001]

Dansauto,

I had it done at a place called AudioExperts here in Ventura, CA. They had the car for 2 weeks, which was kinda a hassle. The end product was well worth the wait though. Basically what took so long was they had to actually mold the piece inside the car and compensate for any shifting that occured during the drying process (not to mention the hours of hand-sanding to get an even and smooth shape). Cost: $1000. But for a vehicle that I plan on being buried in, it was well worth it. I haven't heard any of the other set-ups that I've seen in this forum, but IMHO I believe that I should have cleaner sounding lows(I'm not trying to pass sound though a bulkhead).


-Leaf

 

[dansauto]

What is thier number? I wonder if they can duplicate with out a car? I asked Biff at ViperMaina once about having his fiberglass guys make one, but never got back to me. I'll bet someone would have customers lining up to buy one at a reasonable price!

 

[Leaf001]

JMcGuire,

I did get several pictures of them building the box, I just forwarded them to Tony to post for me.


Dansauto,

The person to speak with would be David Joy (805-642-4722). He runs the installation dept. To be completely honest with you, I highly doubt that they will be able to duplicate the box w/o the vehicle being there. As the were building it, it was a trial and error process. They were constantly reglazing and sanding down sections to get the perfect fit. I'm sure that if you search around, you can find an audio shop that does custom enclosure/fiberglass work. Buying a car audio magazine may be an excellent source for info on shops in your area.


Gjockey,

The ENTIRE panel was removed, this would include the stock mounts for the original 6" speakers. A box was made from wood then fiberglass was laid down and glazed over in several layers. The new piece was a complete replacement for everything between and behind the seats. The pictures that will be posted shortly will show in greater detail what I'm speaking of. As for the finish, it's a black vinyl that matches the pattern of the molded plastic.


-Leaf

 

[Tomer]

Man OH Man, if they would reproduce those back panels, i would guess they would have a real money maker on their hands!!!!

Tomer
96 RT
Upgraded stereo speakers all around, but really still no base!!!

 

[2tall]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by tomer:
Man on Man
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

OMG, LMAO!

typos (I hope) can be so darn funny sometimes.... hehe.

 

[2tall]

But seriously, I want to get a CD/MP3 in dash on my GTS ASAP too.

Sooooooo, if price wasn't an option and I didn't want that fancy-schmancy DVD setup stuff, and a flip-face (or maybe removable, but I'd prefer a flip) that matches the Viper interior, would you go with that sony or something else?

What about the installation, is it a perfect fit or will I be gnawing away at my dash?

Any info is appreciated.

 

[Leaf001]

2Tall,

The Sony Xplode that I bought has a flip down/removable face, it is not, however, mechanized. The face of the unit is red and I think I goes great with the red exterior of the car and the Team Tech harnesses that I installed. It fits in the standard dash slot without any sort of modification. Any stereo shop will be able to install the head unit, if you trust them with your car that is...


-Leaf

 

[2tall]

Leaf, another *weak* question:

Who's recommendation for speakers should I trust? Not too many Viper owners do cool setups, and not too many people who do cool setups do vipers.

So far there is only like 3 people on the board that I've seen i the last year who have good sound...

I want to get some good sound in the hatch area, but I don't want to be taken for a ride and buy too much by the local shop or buy on a bad recommendation from Circuit City or Worst Buy...

 

[Leaf001]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>
Who's recommendation for speakers should I trust? Not too many Viper owners do cool setups, and not too many people who do cool setups do vipers.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>
I want to get some good sound in the hatch area, but I don't want to be taken for a ride and buy too much by the local shop or buy on a bad recommendation from Circuit City or Worst Buy...
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Best Buy? Circuit City? I wouldn't take a minivan to either of those places.

Speakers: A company called "Focal" makes some really nice high end component sets. When I said "component sets" I'm speaking of the mid-range speaker, tweeters, and the cross-over network. I think their best set costs around $1000 bucks, and they go down from there. I would say the next best are MB Quarts($~600). They have a great reputation and it's what I have in my Viper. I went with a set of Kicker Resolution series(~$400) in my daily driver, great sound for the price. The main thing to remember is, you get what you pay for. Now matter what brand you buy, definatley go for their best series. The best advice I can tell you is have the guy hook up a set (they usually have them on display on a sound board) and let your own ear decide. I liked the MB Quarts over the Focals, but that's my own personal preference.

Subs: Once again, your ear will be the judge. I've had nothing but JL's in my cars, but Eclipse also makes some really nice subs. They are the two brands that I would stick with. As for a custom enclosure, any decent car audio specialty shop should be able to come up with some good ideas. Look in the back of Car Audio Magazine for ideas and shops near you. All you should need is a single 10 or 12 inch sub, unless your looking for a getto thumper.

Head units: Do a search on the internet for car audio MP3 players. The only brands that I know of that make them are Eclipse, Sony, Kenwood, Aiwa, and I think Panasonic has a new one out. Crutchfield is a good source of info on all these units, but I wouldn't recommend buying from them. You can find a better deal out in town. You should be looking for things you want, like disc naming, fold down faces etc. Most of these units are very similar, so estetics may be your deciding factor.

Amps: Macintosh, Xtant, or Kicker

Always use the best shielded RCA and speaker wire. They get to be expensive ($100 bucks) but the will stop induced interference.


-Leaf

 

[2tall]

I went around to a boatload of dealers today and heard from a lot of extremely helpful guys via email, and I think I just have one question left.

The door and hatch have 6.5" speakers.

The door won't take 6.5" speakers because the stock grilles won't fit correctly (I've heard) so you have to go with 6" JL or 5.25" other brand.

What if I don't use the stock grilles though? My understanding is that speakers come with grilles right, so won't they work?

Also, since the hatch doesn't have grilles that are attached, those should be an easy swap right?

Thanks!!!!

 

[Leaf001]

2Tall,

I'm assuming there have been several changes in the speaker configurations since my '93 was made. The speakers in my doors are 5 1/4's with a 6 1/2 inch grill. Why? I have no clue. I went with a set of MB Quart PSC-213's. A 6 1/2 was too deep for the wells in the doors. I would have had to modify the door panel to fit a 6 1/2. I tried using the JL 6 inch woofers in the back-panel before I fabricated the above box, I thought they sounded horrible. As for what you have in the hatch, I have never been in a GTS, so I can't be of any help there.

A DEI amplifier... all I know is that DEI makes just about every alarm system out there. The amps on the other hand....I've didn't even know they made amps....


-Leaf

 

[MannyC]

Re: Pics of my stereo installation in an RT/10

Wow Leaf, very good looking install! Has anybody else done anything similar to this in their car? Pics?

I'm starting to look into adding a custom system to my RT/10.

Leaf, with your sub being so close to your body, does the bass really sound that good? I tend to find that a certain amount of distance is needed from your ears to the sub (in such a small area) for the bass to really be deep and punchy.

Anybody know of some quality shops in the San Diego area? I live in North County, so something up in this direction would be a plus.

Manny

 

[BlownViper]

Re: Pics of my stereo installation in an RT/10

Here is the system I had put into my RT/10

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There are 2 touch screen monitors in the front,2 sets of Focals in the doors,2 8" JLs in the center,and 2 JL amps in the trunk

 

[BlownViper]

Re: Pics of my stereo installation in an RT/10

And here is what I did with my old GTS that Cycleryan is now enjoying

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2 JL W7s witha JL 1000/1 running them and Focals in the door again.Only 1 set will fit in the Gen IIs because of the power windows

 

[MannyC]

Re: Pics of my stereo installation in an RT/10

BlownViper, do you think your two 8" subs sound better than the one 10" in the photo that started this thread?

How did yours sound to you, in comparison to other 8's you have had in cars?

Also, how much did it cost you to get the enclosures made up for your speakers? What about to get the whole RT/10 done (not including the head units) ? I want a system very similar to what you have shown, and I infact had JL's in my last vette and loved them.

 

[BlownViper]

Re: Pics of my stereo installation in an RT/10

I had 1 JL 10 in there first.It sounded really good but the JL rep recomended that I do the 2 8s becuse it would sound alot better because the 8s required alot less air space and power. I wanna say it was around 3k for the subs,door speakers,enclosures,and amps. I have had many different setups and the JL amps definately made the difference in the sound. I have yet to hear a mid and tweeter clearer than a Focal

 

[MannyC]

Re: Pics of my stereo installation in an RT/10

And did you notice a big difference between your one 10 and your two 8's ?