Hi there, I’m currently doing an install in MilanoChris’ DC5. The install will be built using a mixture of fibre glass and MDF and all the equipment will be completely hidden safely under a false floor.
Anyway, I thought I’d post up the build process to give you an idea of the effort and skill that goes into building a quality ICE install.
Here goes…
When I first took a look at Chris’ install, I instantly knew that it would sound poor without hearing it. The box that was being used was completely inadequate. It was cheap, prefabricated and most importantly the ports/vents used in the box had not been measured correctly and because of this it was causing the sub to peak at very high frequencies, not actually allowing any real sub bass to play.
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h161/big_hav/christeg002.jpg
If you are going to use ports/vents in a sub-box, you need box design software that will provide accurate port dimension measurements that will enable you to tune the sub to play at a suitable frequency with more output.1
I also believe that the amplifiers were a major let down of the system. No offence to Chris or anyone else that uses this equipment, but Sony and SPLX is about as bad as it gets in terms of car audio. Although the SPLX has a claimed power wattage of something daft (500w,600w etc), these are max power output figures and in reality it probably produces no more than 100-120 watts RMS, which is simply not enough for the subwoofer.
What I will say though is that Chris has some very tasty focal speakers in his doors and rear Q’s which would have cost a small fortune when they were bought new. The Kicker sub is also a decent speaker and should be a good match (power wise) for the new amplifier that will be installed. It might not be the best sub in the world in terms of sound quality, but from my experience, give a Kicker sub a decent amount of power and it will boom.
Although they’re not dangerous, the wires in the back are a little messy and tangled so will be trimmed down and secured when the new enclosure goes in.
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h161/big_hav/christeg005.jpg
Before I started, I zip tied all the matching cables together and moved them out of the way so I could get to work.
Then it was time to drop the new amp and sub in so I could see how much space I have to play with. Unfortunately, the answer to that question was “not much”, it will be a tight fit but it will fit…just.
Next step was trying to conceptualise/measure how tall the sub box could be, keeping in mind that the false floor and double mdf subwoofer baffle would have to be included in this height measurement as well.
This is a better view of what I have done, the ruler is basically where the false floor will go. As you can see, the false floor will not really sit any higher than the standard boot mat. Which is exactly what I want.
A bit of extreme measuring to work out the sub box mdf panels size.
Then it was time to cut up some pieces of cardboard so that I could make an outline of the sub box. Because the wheel well isn’t flat, I had to cut the cardboard to fit the contours of the floor while making sure that the height was equal all the way round the box so the sub baffle could sit on top.
The subwoofer will be a simple sealed enclosure and after measuring, it will be between 0.9 and 1 cuft depending on how I make it, which is pretty much ideal.
The carboard pieces aren’t in position 100%, but you get the idea.
Then it was time to cut the wood, again, not positioned 100%, but you get the idea.
Next job was using the cardboard pieces that I had made as a rough template for the MDF pieces.
As you can see below, it’s a nice fit. No more than a few mm gap between the mdf and the floor of the car, but this won’t be a problems as the bottom of the sub box will be made using fibreglass and will therefore create a tight seal with the mdf making sure no air escapes.
Then it was a case of clamping all the sub box together with no more nails using this absolutely fantastic corner clamp.
As you can see this corner fits nice and flush with the contours of the boot floor while remaining spirit level flat on the top.
That’s about it for today, spent a lot of time just measuring up and thinking, but I’ll be back on tomorrow morning and hopefully will have the base of the sub box completed tomorrow evening and will obviously post up more photos once done.
Thanks for reading and if you are interested, I will be constantly adding photos as i progress over the next few days.
Matt.
Anyway, I thought I’d post up the build process to give you an idea of the effort and skill that goes into building a quality ICE install.
Here goes…
When I first took a look at Chris’ install, I instantly knew that it would sound poor without hearing it. The box that was being used was completely inadequate. It was cheap, prefabricated and most importantly the ports/vents used in the box had not been measured correctly and because of this it was causing the sub to peak at very high frequencies, not actually allowing any real sub bass to play.
If you are going to use ports/vents in a sub-box, you need box design software that will provide accurate port dimension measurements that will enable you to tune the sub to play at a suitable frequency with more output.1
I also believe that the amplifiers were a major let down of the system. No offence to Chris or anyone else that uses this equipment, but Sony and SPLX is about as bad as it gets in terms of car audio. Although the SPLX has a claimed power wattage of something daft (500w,600w etc), these are max power output figures and in reality it probably produces no more than 100-120 watts RMS, which is simply not enough for the subwoofer.
What I will say though is that Chris has some very tasty focal speakers in his doors and rear Q’s which would have cost a small fortune when they were bought new. The Kicker sub is also a decent speaker and should be a good match (power wise) for the new amplifier that will be installed. It might not be the best sub in the world in terms of sound quality, but from my experience, give a Kicker sub a decent amount of power and it will boom.
Although they’re not dangerous, the wires in the back are a little messy and tangled so will be trimmed down and secured when the new enclosure goes in.
Before I started, I zip tied all the matching cables together and moved them out of the way so I could get to work.
Then it was time to drop the new amp and sub in so I could see how much space I have to play with. Unfortunately, the answer to that question was “not much”, it will be a tight fit but it will fit…just.
Next step was trying to conceptualise/measure how tall the sub box could be, keeping in mind that the false floor and double mdf subwoofer baffle would have to be included in this height measurement as well.
This is a better view of what I have done, the ruler is basically where the false floor will go. As you can see, the false floor will not really sit any higher than the standard boot mat. Which is exactly what I want.
A bit of extreme measuring to work out the sub box mdf panels size.
Then it was time to cut up some pieces of cardboard so that I could make an outline of the sub box. Because the wheel well isn’t flat, I had to cut the cardboard to fit the contours of the floor while making sure that the height was equal all the way round the box so the sub baffle could sit on top.
The subwoofer will be a simple sealed enclosure and after measuring, it will be between 0.9 and 1 cuft depending on how I make it, which is pretty much ideal.
The carboard pieces aren’t in position 100%, but you get the idea.
Then it was time to cut the wood, again, not positioned 100%, but you get the idea.
Next job was using the cardboard pieces that I had made as a rough template for the MDF pieces.
As you can see below, it’s a nice fit. No more than a few mm gap between the mdf and the floor of the car, but this won’t be a problems as the bottom of the sub box will be made using fibreglass and will therefore create a tight seal with the mdf making sure no air escapes.
Then it was a case of clamping all the sub box together with no more nails using this absolutely fantastic corner clamp.
As you can see this corner fits nice and flush with the contours of the boot floor while remaining spirit level flat on the top.
That’s about it for today, spent a lot of time just measuring up and thinking, but I’ll be back on tomorrow morning and hopefully will have the base of the sub box completed tomorrow evening and will obviously post up more photos once done.
Thanks for reading and if you are interested, I will be constantly adding photos as i progress over the next few days.
Matt.
