Hi – I have been researching an audio install for a couple of weeks now, and I wanted to run my proposed setup by you guys. I am looking for an affordable but extensive install, probably around $750 I’m guessing. I have a roadster and travel a bit, so space is definitely something I can’t give up if at all possible. Here’s what I’ve come up with.

Head Unit
1.) Head unit – AVIC-D1 already installed (but using terrible stock speakers, bypassed amp)

Speakers
2.) Front – Infinity Kappa 63.7i (approx $125 shipped ebay) 75 watt RMS @ 2 ohms
3.) Front spacers for speakers ($5 or $10)
4.) Rear – Infinity Kappa 62.7i (approx $100 shipped ebay) 75 watt RMS @ 2 ohms

Amplifier
5.) Profile AP1040 ? ($150 crutchfield) 125 watt x 4 RMS @ 2 ohms Im not too sure on the amp, looking for 4 channel, good affordable? Any other recommendations?

Subwoofer
6.) Infinity Basslink ($200 ebay) in stock sub location

Sound deadening
7.) RAAMaudio (75 sq ft ? - $150?) I am convinced butyl is a better investment over asphalt based products and worth the extra $$. Since this is a roadster, would installation in trunk be necessary, since compartment is separated anyway? Focus on doors, area behind seats, wheel wells, possibly under carpeting? The top will be noisy anyway, so how much will really be noticeable – ie. Is worth it to cover bottom of car under carpeting?

Wiring
8.) Headunit to Amp – 3 twisted pair RCA ($50) – Is twisted pair really necessary, regular wiring I can get for $5 or $10?
9.) Rewire speakers with 16 gauge wire (50 or 75 feet - $15) is 16 best for this power?
10.) Kind of confused on how to wire amps. Basslink and 4ch amp are both probably 8 gauge – best to just run two wires from battery?

Random
11.) Where is a good spot to place the amplifier? I don’t really want to lose any storage space, so I think Im faced with behind the glove box and under a seat. It would be good to have access to the fuses and gains, etc. without ripping out the whole car, so is there enough clearance under the seat (amps all seem to be about 2 inches high)? Will heat dissipate?
12.) Tweeters? Included with 63.7 or no? Necessary?
13.) What is the likelihood of requiring the warranty on any of these parts? Obviously there is none through ebay, so should I spend the extra $$ to get the amplifier through an authorized dealer or are the odds of it breaking / cost not worth it? Same with speakers/basslink?

I have done an absolute ton of research on this, and I would greatly appreciate any input regarding this specific install. I have much experience working on cars, but not too much specifically selecting complete sound systems. Thank you all very much for your help,

Jeff

 

10.) Kind of confused on how to wire amps. Basslink and 4ch amp are both probably 8 gauge – best to just run two wires from battery?

I'd rather see you mount one fuse under the hood and run one larger wire back aft to a break-out for the amp and basslink speaker/amp. You can find 4 ga. amplifier kits if you want to go large.

11.) Where is a good spot to place the amplifier? I don’t really want to lose any storage space, so I think Im faced with behind the glove box and under a seat. It would be good to have access to the fuses and gains, etc. without ripping out the whole car, so is there enough clearance under the seat (amps all seem to be about 2 inches high)? Will heat dissipate?

I mounted my AVIC-N2 brains under the passenger's seat and there's plenty of room. You'll have to figure out how you're going to mount it. I was quite comfortable with drilling holes down through the floor and running nuts and bolts into brain . Other's here have issues with drilling holes ... I just touch both sides of the area where I'm going to drill and look around ... I didn't see any gasoline or brake lines in that area to worry about ... but be advised that they are down there!

That's an excellent location to dissipate heat.

I'm not comfortable with buying anything too expensive from E-bay. I found great pricing at www.woofersetc.com and www.12vwarehouse.com and they both offer warrantys but that's a personal choice. Woofersetc has your Kappa front speakers for $130.



12.) Tweeters? Included with 63.7 or no? Necessary?

They're tri-ax speakers with mid- and tweeters inside the mid-woofer cone - see picture above. The Infinity 6000CS components are the cheapest Infinity 6.5 component at $120 - see picture below.

 

Thanks for the info!!

How do you run a breakout? Ive read about distrubution blocks, etc. but it seems there are some more risks / extra steps to install one. Is this the same?

I just took a look under the passenger seat, there is a little more than an inch between the lowest point of some metal "cage" and the carpeting. Just push this up? Heat will be OK? Is there less room because of a power seat perhaps - or should I go look again?

What do you recommend on the tweeters - about the same quality between the 63.7 and the 6000CS you recommended? If so, i imagine its not worth fitting in the tweeters then.

Also, is the twisted pair wiring necessary / worth the extra money?

Thanks so much for your help, i really do appreciate it!!

Jeff

 

Yes you're looking at a distribution block, but this is a better idea than two seperate lines (one large power)...

The twisted pair is necessary...If you have any "noise" in the system it can be hell tracking down...better to invest in the right quality equipment the first time around. As a general rule of thumb, wiring should be about 10% of total system cost.

The Profile amp is not a good idea. The quality of sound you'll end up with is only as good as the worst piece of equipment in the signal line. Pick up something more middle of the road, that we be money well spent.

I've dynamatted my car a bunch. I've also used closed and open cell foams to reduce road noise. If you're looking for perfection be prepared to rip all interior out and applying some material. For your purposes I'd put at least two layers of dynamat around the door speakers. THis will dramatically improve speaker sound and quality. You can put some in other places as well, but nowhere else will have that dramatic an effect.

Good Luck

 

Hi:

Just got home from a trip - thanks for all your advice. What kind of amp would you recommend? The speakers are 75 RMS.

Also, for sound deadening, I really want to make the car very quiet without ruining the exhaust noise. Road noise I am talking about. Dynamat the convertable top area? Would the trunk help since it is so far back in the car??

Thanks much,

Jeff

 

if you want kappas go to carmedia1.com and get them under $100
i have gotten 2 sets there

 

Awesome. I still cant determine which amp to go with??

Also - with the basslink in the stock location, where do you place the distribution block?

Thanks!

 

If you want a nice amp, I would look at some Memphis Audio amps. Phoenix Gold is not the same company they used to be but for running regular speakers their entry level octane series amps work just fine. I went with a Phoenix Gold 4 (8.0.4 I believe) channel for my interior speakers and I have already replaced the phoenix gold amp with a memphis audio amp for my JL Stealthbox (the PG I purchased wasnt strong enough to push two JL 10W3's in the stealthbox). But the 4 cahnnnel phoenix gold was a nice choice for my dollar. I think I paid around $140.00 from ebay for it.

Honestly, you shouldnt need to break the bank on an amp to run regular components or co-ax speakers. High dollar amps are for subs.

 

Steve,

That statement couldn't be further from the truth. Dollars/Watt is the name of the game in bass ... but NOT for full range sound.

Everything else you said was dead on, but I gotta argue that point.

Jim

 

Hi:

The 8.0.4 is around $150 on ebay. Looks good, but frankly I cant tell it different than the Profile amp. The speakers are 75 watt RMS so I dont want to be running a huge amp on them. Comparatively, is a reference 7541 (double the price) worth the cost over these? Will I really be able to tell a difference between the two??

Thanks so much!

 

pretty much what jim said...

as for amps...i basically keep it to two simple levels for my customers:

1. good budget amps, these are usually will get you at a price point that is less than 1 dollar per dollar on mid/high amps and approaching 50 cent per dollar on bass amps...

my goto amps are the elemental designs and DLS classic lines...

2. higher end amps...these will tend to be approaching 2 dollars or more per watt and close to 1 dollar or more per watt for bass amps...

i of course utilize DLS's reference and ultimate lines for those

honestly, to me, 99 percent of the population can be satisfied by the first class of amps, only the most discerning customers can hear the upper end amps...

things to avoid are bad amps, these will fall in price lines not too far from the good budget amps, but will be pretty bad, meaning overrated power output, crappy reliablity, and dirty input and output sections...

quick thing on phoenix gold, their octaine R amps are pretty cheap, not unlike the low end lines offfered by many other bigger name manufactuers, but their upper line is still solid stuff

 

Noted sir... guess I never had the chance to test one amp vs another as far as full range sound goes. My jaw always dropped when I would figure out how many watts I needed for those "Good Deal" subs. advice retracted.

BTW if you need sound deadening check out E-dead on eBay, I believe they are the same manufacturer that makes elemental designs. I used edead to insulate my car and found it be the same quality if not better than dynamat. and you can buy massive quantites of e-dead for the same price as Dynamat.

 

Thats good advice - I cant seem to find much on the DLS products, but the Elemental Designs seems to be pretty nice (although again, they all look pretty much the same to me, I cant tell a good amp from a bad one). I couldnt find any good deals on them, seems like its just buy it for what they ask. In your opinion, another $75 or $100 over a "cheaper" amp (like on Crutchfield, etc.) is worth the money?

Thanks!

 

You may want to go with door pods, Stock doors have limitations for your sound to come through. Our Door Pods allow all the sound at a slight angle to get better imaging.

 

Go Focal componenets in front, and focal coax in rear, with a jl e4300, best setup in my opinion for the money anyway, but will cost a little more, but I have had kappas and wasn't ever to impressed with them. It is all a matter of personal preference. No one has the same ears.

 

Nazar, you got a board price for those pods? They are really nice and I recomend them for anyone who is more serious about good sound from a 350z door.

 

elemental design is the maker of Edead, if you wanna buy, mention that Bing from simplicity in sound sent you, they will take care of you

elemental stuff is just all around awesome for the money, being a engineering driven company versus spending money on advertising, sales et cetc means you will get a lot more bang for your buck

DLS is a relatively new comer to the US market, but slowly but surely, they have been making a good name for their products over hte past 5-6 years. their upper lines personally, i rank as one of my favorite, speaker wise, with morel, so smooth, natural and transparent, i prefer them even to focal.

amp their better stuff is on the line with genesis, high line audison, and other high end european lines

b

 

$199.95 Shipped Unfinished,

$265 Vinyled

Nazar

 

i have done a set of nazar's pods and i am a big fan, extremely well construction, and great finish on them so you can easily, carpet, vinyl, suede or give to a body shop and paint them...

sits perfectly within the shape and confines of the door..

and the price really is amazing considering the quality of the fiberglassproduct...

most shops to do a set of these, that is anybgood, can easily charge you double that

b

 

Hey guys:

Anybody hear anything about Aura amps? http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showd...number=269-164 has a aura 4 x 50 rms for $100 - worthwhile or is this crap? The Elemental Design looks really nice for the price, although comparatively it is more than double - is it worth it?!

Thanks so much for all of your help!!

Jeff