16psibrick

iTrader: (10)

nice! i should have this big install project wrapped up by next week as well

Bing

Kwame

iTrader: (78)

I have a problem. Everytime I go out to take completed pics of the car I end up sitting in it for at least an hour and a half listening to music. I feel like I just got a new car. Sorry guys, I will take pictures as soon as I can if I can resist the urge.

DVFlyer

iTrader: (18)

Pics!!!!!!!

Kwame

iTrader: (78)

Ok so I figured I owe it to everyone following this thread to show completed pics and list all the work that was done during this install. Let me start off by saying this was the best car audio experience I have ever encountered. Everything far exceeded my expectations and I am as happy as can be. So let's start out with what C.A.R.S. installed in my car for me....

1. Mcintosh MX406 Headunit
2. Mcintosh MPM4000 Meter Module
3. Morel Elate 3-Way Component Set (1" Tweeter, 4" Mid, 6" Woofer
4. (2) Mcintosh MCC404M 4 Channel Amplifiers
5. (1) Mcintosh MCC301M Mono Amplifier
6. Mcintosh Subwoofer Output Control ****
7. Alumapro 5 Farad Capacitor
8. (2) Seas Lotus SW300 12" Subwoofers
9. K40 2000 Front and Rear Radar Detector
10. Alcantara Headliner
11. Alcantara Visors
12. Alcantara Shift Boot with Blue Stitching
13. Alcantara Parking Brake Lever with Blue Stitching
14. Vinyl Door Panels with Blue Stitching
15. JDM Nissan Footwell Light Installed
16. JDM Nissan Underseat Lights Installed
17. (2) European Rear Foglight Switchs Installed and Wired (One for rear European Foglight second for Front Xenon Fog Lights for my Zerosun Body Kit)
18. Recaro Speed Seats Installed (Black with blue stitching and a blue logo)
19. Bride Seat Bases Installed
20. Kirk Racing 4-Point Roll Bar with X-Brace Powdercoated Black and then installed. (The paint that comes on the Kirk Racing Bar was horrible so I had it powdercoated to increase its durability. The interior panels were also trimmed neatly around the roll bar.)
20. 2004 OEM Nissan 350z Center Console Side panels with Knee Pads installed. (My car is an '03 and did not come with the knee pads. I had them cover the knee pads with vinyl and add a blue stitch to them to match everything.)
21. Optima Yellow Top Deep Cycle Battery Installed
22. Every wire connecting to the battery and alternator was upgraded to 0/1
also known as 0 guage
23. 240 amp High-Output alternator purchased but not installed. I will install this when we do the motor swap.
24. Clifford Alarm Rewired
25. Personal Neo Eagle Steering Wheel (I Installed it while it was at their shop)
26. Works Bell Quick Release and Short Hub (I Installed it while it was at their shop)
27. Personal Leather Ball Shift ****
28. Alpine SBS-0715 Center Channel Speaker with amplifier installed to Voice Output of Nissan Factory Navigation System.
29. Custom Trunk Mat was created to fit around custom subwoofer setup
30. Ipod Wire Installed
31. Craftsquare Mirrors (I figured I might as well install them while the door panels were off)

Here are the pictures...

McIntosh MX406 headunit and MPM4000 meter modules installed...



K40 Front and Rear Radar Detector and Laser Diffuser LEDs. Right LED is front front radar, left LED is for rear and when they both light up it means they are diffusing laser. The control **** for the detector/diffuser is on the side of the steering column.





Custom door panels. Morel 3-ways molded into the stock panel with built in pods. The entire door way dynamatted and a figerglass enclosure that goes from the back of the 6" to the door skin was installed. The entire door was then re-wrapped in vinyl with a blue stitch. The door has a lot more weight to it.





Personal Shift ****, alcantara Shift boot with blue stitching and alcantara parking brake lever with blue stitching.







Custom Knee Pads.



Both foglight switches, subwoofer output remote **** and switch for underseat lights.



Recaro Seats, Kirk Roll Bar and Craftsquare Mirrors.





Footwell Lights and Underseat Lights (Underseat light bulbs have not been installed yet since I have to fix a broken nut on the floor pan)







Alcantara Headliner and Visors. All the plastic pieces and pop rivets were painted black.







The McIntosh MCC404Ms were placed in the compartments behind the seats. A piece of acrylic was added to show off the amps. In these enclosures the sides are silver ultrasuede and the top has a mirror on it. The rest of the compartment is left untouched to allow for ventalation. One MCC404M per door.









More Interior Pictures...









Interior Panels Trimmed for Kirk Roll Bar X-Brace.





Hatch area with two 12" Seas Lotus SW300 Subwoofers and Custom Trunk Mat. The trunk Mat also has a blue stitch around the border. Under the trunk mat lies the McIntosh MCC301M which sends 300 watts to each subwoofer.







The sound is insane and I am happy with everything as I have stated numerous times. Let me know what you think.

Kwame

iTrader: (78)

If you are wondering the reson why the x-Brace and the roll bar is not bolted down is because I cracked my rear subframe and broke some other parts of my rear suspension in and accident on July 5, 2006. So I choose to wait till my suspension is repaired before stiffening it up with the roll bar and X-Brace.

Yes I have not driven my car for almost a year. As soon as I got into my accident the first thought in my head is how I would rebuild this car to be the best as far as I am concerned. As gay as it may sound that is my plan. I refuse to cut corners with this car and believe me it will be the last thing I sell if I ever go broke.

This is the first phase of my rebuild as I decided to rebuild from the inside out.

OffsetZ33

iTrader: (26)

wow kwame - very very nice!

QdotJ

iTrader: (13)

KingAir350z

I'm diggin it PM me some numbers on the units. I'm also a Mac fan and have been for years. Mine has been home audio. How do you keep it from gettin stolen? I know you haven't been driving it, but I would be so scared of someone lifting it. I have an 05 and it has 8900 miles on it so it is well kept in the garage. Its just when the wife and I hit the scene I can't help but to worry.

Kwame

iTrader: (78)

Well this car will not be driven much. It used to be my daily prior to the accident. I live in a very nice neighborhood with no crime. The car will be kept in the garage and only driven to shows, meets and to the office on very nice days. Luckily, I have the first parking space by the doors at my office and there are two security cameras on the car. So the car will not be in a situation where it is at risk at all and if God forbid something does happen thats why I have insurance. All of the equipment has been documented and my insurance company is aware of it.

What numbers exactly would you like me to PM you?

DVFlyer

iTrader: (18)

IN... FREAKING.. SANE!!!!

Thanks for allowing us to join you on your upgrade journey.

QdotJ

iTrader: (13)

Kwame, now I can make a thought provoking comment; or at least try to....

Honestly, I am quite impressed by your choice of equipment, the time it took to meticulously decide, patiently wait, and just overall show everyone how it should be done.

Truly a competition quality set-up. I must admit that I am "gasp" jealous.. Keep up the great work and enjoy this setup, you truly deserve it...

Can't wait to see what ENDLESS possibilities you have in store of us....

NisAznMonk

iTrader: (1)

I'm impressed with the amount of patience you have already shown in this build. Most people (including myself) would have probably given up. Good job !

Lsmith9523

Wow,,,Kwame,,,what can I say that hasent been said already? WOW!.. I have been following this thread and the work is top notch. Congrats,,,I know you are super happy.

I love the two subs location and the angle they are directed......SQ for sure.

Again, Congrats....Job greatly well done... PROPS.

Kwame

iTrader: (78)

Thanks for all of the kind and encouraging words. A project like this takes a lot of time and money. I am not in a race, I'm doing this for myself. I don't care if the new Z comes out tomorrow or whenever. If I build this car right it will stand the test of time. The car will probably be fully complete in December. Most of the parts have been purchased and are laying in my garage or at the shop.

I was debating whether or not to reveal my build as I was advised by many not to do so. Honestly, I feel it is a good thing that I shared this with the community as I have put a lot of research and thought into this project and I hope I can help others gain new ideas to create some more bada$$ cars. Not to mention I've also made some new friends.

Stay Tuned Fellow Enthusiasts....The next big hurdle is trying to fit 20 pounds of $hit in a 5lb bag. I am referring to the stroker kit.

Barrymcockiner

The mcintosh amps are a little over the top for a car in my opinion. Mcintosh is really meant to be heard AND seen! I am referring to home equipment as I have never heard their stereo equipment. I do know that Mcintosh is insanely expensive. A friend of mine has a home setup of all Mcintosh equipment and the total cost of his system was $93,000!

QdotJ

iTrader: (13)

I feel that Kwame's setup is top-notch. Some would consider such things "over the top" yet and still to each their own. This selection of high-quality components, coupled with proper tuning will guarantee a lifetime of listening and overall enjoyment; I doubt that Kwame will be "upgrading" anytime soon... When a person makes this type of investment the first time around, there is typically little room for buyer's remorse, the questions of "what if" or the "shoulda-coulda-woulda's" that plague many of us... (currently in that dilemma myself about a component I purchased)

I congratulate you on your choice of components, commend you for your patience, and thank you for keeping us all abreast of this awesome project.

Had it not been for you, I might have purchased a W6 or W7 like so many others assuming that it was "the best" bass I could get... I am a Seas Lotus & Morel fan-boy, and proud of it...

Phase 1 is complete... Now where do we go?

Kwame

iTrader: (78)

Q, you took the words right out of my mouth. I feel if I went with a company such as Alpine (I have nothing against Alpine I think they make awesome products) by the time my car was complete my audio system would be outdated. Then I would have to upgrade and throw more money out the window. With this setup that I have, just like Q said, I will not be upgrading. This is it, that is until they come up with a way to play vinyls in a car.

The point of this build is to be "over the top." As I said before I am looking to build a car that will stand the test of time and still be looked upon as a sick car in another 10 years from now. Some peoples definition of a sick car is 1000hp. I could have built a 1000rwhp car and I still can, but as far as I know 1000rwhp is useless on the freeway or in rush hour traffic on the Long Island Expressway. A really good sound system is something that I can enjoy every single time I sit in my car whether I am doing 90mph or sitting still at a light.

Car audio in general has gone in the direction of supreme integration. Instead of most potential buyers purchasing with the idea of how good the quality of sound the equipment they are choosing will produce they are buying with the thought of how they can bring everything from their home into their car. I rather spend $1200 on a headunit that helps to bring out the most from a Bob Marley CD then something that sounds like crap but plays movies, has a reverse camera input, plays mp3s, can display gauages, etc, etc. I've been there and done that. I had a dvd player in my car for two years and used it twice. No offense to those who have DVD players in their car but I highly doubt I will purchasing a headunit based on its DVD capabilities for my sports cars until Lambo and Ferrari start to put DVD players (for movies, not navigation) in their cars.

Next up is some foot work mods. I will post a link to the next thread build for those who care to follow when it is up.

THE TECH

iTrader: (154)

Can't wait to see the finished project.

DVFlyer

iTrader: (18)

You're hitting on all cylinders with me. I'm a car guy in almost every sense of the word.... not fanatical, but give me a driving a "experience" any day.

That "experience" can be defined in a number of ways for me. Whether it's driving my dad's old BMW Isetta back in the day or the Lamborghini Gallardo (Spyder thank you very much ; ) ) I got a chance to drive a month or so ago, or sitting in traffic listening to my tunes through "my" system, it's about the experience.

2000 watts in a car stereo (or home for that matter... I know ), 1000hp in a street car etc, are all totally worthless things..... except to those who want that experience.

If it was up to me, I'd drive an F1 car with 3 way components up front (somewhere?) and a big sub to work everyday.... but that's me.

I can't wait to see more pics of your project. Living vicariously through your money is FUN!

jjaujou

iTrader: (1)

Kwame, your system is simply breathtaking. 100% class all the way.