magus2222

iTrader: (22)

i love the sub on top of the spare tire. thats a really good idea. when i bought the car, it had the subs in the place of the bins, little 10's. i found that since i didnt have a spare tire, i just took a trip to hobbytown usa and bought some balsa wood for model planes, and fab'd up an encloser from that and fiberglass for 2 15's. ill post some pics if i can find them (bad documentation, its not my primary car anyways)
but, either way you go, adding a sub in the car greatly improves the sound.
my 1990 GTU got 2 sets of pionneer speakers (2 ohms, 220W in the doors and stock rears), an Alpine CDA-9856, rockford fosgate 1 farad cap, 2 rockford fosgate 15's, and an 1100W sony explode amp, all cleverly done by myself and my dad.
hope that gives some of ya'll some ideas.

peace

JasonDowney

iTrader: (1)

It is possible to maintain the headrest speakers using an aftermarket head unit. The only problem is that you end up running 8 speakers off of something that is designed for only 4, which doesn't allow you to crank up the music if you so desire. I have four 5 1/4" speakers mounted directly behind the seats on the spare tire cover, component system for the doors, two 10" subs in the back and the the headrest and dash speakers were replaced also. To run this setup, I am using 3 amplifiers; one for the doors/dash, one for the speakers behind the seats, and one for the subwoofers. Overall, the sound quality is amazing. If you are going to do all this audio work, I suggest wiring it so that each headrest recieves the signal for both left and right. If you leave it stock, it does not sound as good, as you can't really hear the opposite channel when your head is on the headrest. I am probably going to install some more speakers in the front/on the side to counteract the 4 directly behind the seats. Once I'm finished everything, I will try to post up some pictures.

It may sound lame, but I actually enjoy watching movies on the dvd player in my car because it sounds exactly like a movie theater.

Ashyukun

iTrader: (3)

So, with the stock configuration the headrest speakers in each individual seat aren't stereo, they're wired up for left-only on the driver's side and right-only on the passenger's side? That's.... rather stupid. I had figured it would have run stereo to each of the seats. But then, I suppose in some ways it makes sense- they likely were able to use a much simpler amp such that each volume control just has to bump up one channel- they'd have needed effectively a 4-channel amp if it fed stereo to each seat.

That also may change my plans as to keeping the stock headrest amp- I very definitely want to run stereo to each seat, and if the stock amp doesn't work that way then swapping things around so that it does would mean that the center controls would work oddly, to say the least. Does anyone know of any small (like 100W or so) amps that have a remote control input that I could re-wire to use the center console controls? I'd figure I could keep the volume controls & the 'Headrest speakers On/Off' button with their original functionality and change the 'surround' button (what does that do exactly, anyway?) to a 'subwoofer on/off' button.

Reading this made me think of something I saw the other day when I was looking at random stuff on eBay- a DIN-mounted center channel speaker.

Tiderfish

I have installed an aftermarket head unit and have had no problems with the stock headrest speakers, volume control or amp.

The 1st head unit I installed is 10 years old. It's a Panasonic, and it kicks ***! My setup was as follows:

Panasonic H/U
Panasonic 6 Disk CD Changer
Crunch 200W 2ch Amp run in mono
10" Rockford Fosgate kickass sub (don't remember the specs) In a 1' cubic box in the trunk
Boston door speakers.
I have unplugged the stock "subwoofers" that reside behind the seats.
Stock headrest (H/R) speakers, stock H/R amp, Stock H/R volume control!
MiniPC computer to play MP3s in glove box.
Standalone MP3 player, also in glove box.

I had researched before installing, how to preserve the head rest speakers when installing a new head unit. I figured I would loose them once I installed the after market head unit. Until one day I pressed the power button and they sprang to life. However they were overpowered and I quickly turned them off. I guess I had wired the signal wire to power the headrest amp. Now I sat for about a month and thought of a way to lower the power from using a separate unit( i.e. power DE-amplifier) to send the HR speakers. I searched and asked people at audio stores. No one knew. Then one day it hit me like a ton of bricks!

I could rewire it so that the door speakers were on the rear channel and the head rest speakers are on the front. Then I can fade the majority of the power to the rear. The fade increment on that H/U is 15. So I put 10/15 into the rear speakers (the door speakers) This means that only 1/3 power is going to the head rest speakers. I crossed my fingers, turned the H/R amp on, and quickly turned both H/R speakers all the way down. Then I turned them up slowly, and listened. I could turn them up to max volume from the stock volume control near the E brake and they were not distorted!
(one thing to note: The Panasonic head unit only has one set of preouts, and no sub out. The preout is on the rear channel, this is used for the Subwoofer Amp. This is why I had to wire the door speakers on the rear channel.)

Now I have installed a new head unit. It's a Insignia NS-C5111 (Best Buy brand) It's a value brand, and I think like the way my 10 year old Panasonic is laid out better. However there are a plethora of features in the Insignia. It has a remote control. (big deal in a 2 seater!) It plays MP3 CDs and has 5ch outputs on the back, one pair inputs,(L+R) so I can plug in my MP3 players from the glove box directly into the back. It also has a USB port and a SD card reader on the front. This means I can put in a USB thumb drive filled with MP3s into the USB port, and it will read it like a CD. It reads the track information, and displays all the song's information (title, album, artist) WITH NO SKIPPPPPS like a CD does. The only con to the USB is that it's in the far lower right corner of the DIN unit. This means it sometimes can interfere with my shifting into 5th gear. However it's not nearly as bad since I installed a short throw shifter!

There are a few things I don't like about the Insignia:

1. it's FREAKING SILVER! I ask you... Who has a silver dashboard?
2. The volume control is is on a rotary dial, if you spin it too fast it will do the opposite function. So you can "crank up the ****, and turn down the tunes!"
3. The detachable face is difficult to reattach.
4. The buttons are small and in stupid places. Except for the Mode button, all the buttons are the same size. My Panasonic had a very well thought out design. The track seek buttons |<< and >>| were larger then the rest and in a separate place. The volume was on a large button right in the middle. In 3rd gear I could
5. Some of the function buttons are not back lit. This means you have no idea what an entire row of buttons does at night.
6. It puts the antenna up every time the unit powers up. I have a relay to power switch on the antenna, and I have that on a small switch so ultimately I have control if the antenna goes up or stays down. Now it seems to go up when the radio is turned on, then goes back down if the tuner is not selected.

I got the unit used, and at a much discounted price. Overall I do like the functionality of the Insignia. I will probably remove the plastic that is attached to the head unit it's self and paint it flat black. Most of the face plate is black, so I will not paint that.

Here is a link to the Insignia NS-C51111
http://froogle.google.com/froogle?q=...Search+Froogle

Hope this helps!

RX drift

What the hell! did everyone besides me get the stock subs behind the seat Besides me??(I have a 89 auto vert)

No big prob really I prob would have replaced them with a 5x9 or something when I get my rf 8in.

I have heard of the center channel speaker, but you can also get a Dolby Digital 5.1 processor for total surround.

RX drift

Ya, here it is at crutchfield.

A Car Theater Amplifier
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Jlhf5V1...0&I=500MRAF350

and I also found some six channel amps.
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Jlhf5V1...CFF6%40Channel

RX drift

And also if you run a alpine head unit
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Jlhf5V1...p?i=500PXAH701

Ashyukun

iTrader: (3)

Tiderfish, since you have the headrest speakers still working with your setup, can you confirm what JasonDowney said about the L/R on the headrest speakers- i.e., the driver's seat only gets the left channel and the passenger's the right? Also, what year is your 'vert? (86-88 ones had a very low speaker-level input to the headest amp and the 89-91's used a line-level) Thanks!

jackhild59

iTrader: (7)

NO. that is totally wrong. The speakers in each headrest are stereo. You get left and right in each seat. I don't know what he really meant, the post is kinda vague. He has done some extensive and amazing stuff, but for oem-stock each headrest is stereo.

There are difficulties hooking up the headrests to just the rear channel of the head unit. Specifically, the speakers are 4 ohm. If you hook them in parallel, the amp in the head unit sees a 2 ohm load. These amps are not usually rated for this load and can overheat and distort (and it might not). If you hook them up in series, they head unit sees an 8 ohm load. Now the sound is not very loud and the head unit does not have the power to push enough volume even turned way up.

The very best solution is to use a small, say 15-25 watt amp rated for 2 ohms and use it to power the headrest speakers. If you do this, you should upgrade the speakers, because now you will push them hard enough to damage them.

I don't know any details about the speaker level/line level differences between the S4 and S5 feed to the headrest amp.

Tiderfish

My Vert is a 1990. I can not confirm the statement about mono sound from one set in each seat. That is, I DO hear both left and right channels in the seat. I have owned another 1990 Vert, and there was stereo in that one as well. However in my 1st vert I didn't uninstall the stock stereo.

My question is what is the size of speakers in the doors? I replaced them with Boston Acustic, last year, and the left speaker seems to be blown. It could because I transported a radiator and it was leaning on the pasenger door's map pocket. Anyway, now I need to replace them and need to know the size. I have read they are 6" but I want to make sure.

As for the stock "subwoofers" What is a good replacement for them. I Think the cone is maybe 4 inches. can I cut some out and install something better? Please give examples.

Finaly, what is the best speakers for the under dash position? I don't have anything there at the moment. Will I need to find new plastic to mount them too? Or are the mounting holes there, just not visible on the outside?

I'd like to have a 6.4.1 system. That is
2 mid door,
2 mid dash,
2 mid-low behind seats,
4 tweeter head rest
1 sub


mmmmmm 11.1

Matt|ttaM

Ashyukun

iTrader: (3)

Hmmm. I guess I'm just going to have to hook one of the amps up (as both my car and the parts car are S4's vs. your S5's) and see whether they're putting out stereo to the seats or not. I definitely hope they are- that will make things much easier, if they send mono to the seats I'd likely have had to wire up a custom gain control to use the stock console volume controls with a new amp.

I believe they're actually 6.5" speakers- but you can fit anything smaller than that in there with a bit of work. My parts car had the door speakers replaced with a smaller speaker and they had used plywood to make an adapter to fit the holes on the speaker and in the door. At least with the door speakers on mine (which are above the door armrest, maybe they put them lower in later years if leaning something against the map pocket damaged yours...) the bigger problem is depth- I believe that a 2 1/2" mounting depth is the deepest you can put in before you have to shim and/or start cutting into the door panel itself.

I'm lost on the whole 'stock subwoofer' thing. My '88 (and the '87 parts car 'vert) have 8 speakers total:

2 under dash
2 in doors
2 in each headrest (total of 4)

The dash speakers are 4" speakers- and I think you can pretty much put any 4" speaker in there without too much trouble. The driver's side speaker is mounted behind a plastic grilled under the dash, and is screwed into a mount there. The biggest problem I had in removing mine was that the electrical connector didn't want to turn loose. The passenger's side one is mounted to a larger assembly that includes some of the climate control ducting under the glove box- you'll have to unscrew the whole assembly, and then you can unscrew the speaker itself. Both speakers used 4 mounting holes which I assume should match up with those on aftermarket 4" speakers.

I've seen a few pictures in passing of speakers that people have put in behind the seats, but almost on the floor- and I'd think those wouldn't be that effective for mid/highs because of the seat getting in the way. Plus given I've got most of the interior stripped out of my parts car, I can see that putting something similar into mine would involve either building a new cover to mount them that stuck out closer to the seats or cutting holes in the metal frame for the speakers. I'm figuring that upgrading all the original speaker positions (dash/door/headrests) and adding a sub or two should be plenty effective, and also be virtually indistinguishable visually from a completely stock setup (since the sub(s) and amp(s) will be covered by the spare tire cover- and the spare tire).

Tiderfish

Attached is a pic of the rear "subs". I put them in " " because they are 4" drivers, and rarely heard. I have disconnected them for now. I would like to replace them with something. Though finding a 4" woofer with good low end sound sounds expensive.

Forgive the mess. After taking this pic, I vacuumed the car out!

Ashyukun

iTrader: (3)

Interesting... Mine doesn't have anything of the likes back there. Honestly though, that looks like it would be better as holes for porting a sub box in the spare tire area than for speakers. :P

Tiderfish

Now there's a good idea. Does anyone have a template for building a box for a 10" or a 12" back there? I am also considering puting some 6x9s in their own boxes and having them in that spare tire area.

Matt|ttaM

Tournapart

iTrader: (4)

people seem to under estimate the headrest speakers, all i did was wire them in parallel with the rear channel speakers when i installed my alpine head unit, i adjusted the fader 3 points to the front, bought some infinity kappa's for the doors and some components for the highs, 12inch alpine ED for the trunk and a 300w amp, sounds really nice to me and didnt cost alot of money, maybe like 600 all together with the cost of wire, i did get a steal deal on the kappa's though

Tiderfish

So my front door speakers are blown. They were installed last year by Tweeter. The problem was that he installed the speakers directly against the metal in the door. Then for some reason he installed the 1" shim over that. Since the speakers didn't fit perfectly in the provided screw holes, the shim was rubbing against the rubber grommet that holds the speaker's cone to the metal cage enclosure. Over the course of the year they were installed (improperly) the shim sheared the grommet. Now they sound like poop. I called Tweeter, they said that I was out of warranty by 2 weeks. They were nice enough to fax me a copy of the receipt. Then I called Boston Acoustics, and despite the fact they were out of warranty they did agree to replace the speakers. I got the RMA from Boston before I pulled the speaker and found they were installed incorrectly. I just called Tweeter to see if they will do anything to fix this, they said I would have to speak face to face with the manager. I will give that a shot.

Here is my question. I want someone here to tell me exactly what speakers will fit PERFECTLY in the door of my S5 Vert. They have a triangular screw pattern. I thought these Boston speakers were going to fit because the bracket was triangular, however 2 of the screws holes didn't line up.

So can someone give me a brand and model number of speakers that are direct drop in replacements? That sound good as well. Thanks!

Tiderfish

Here is what has happened with the 2 speakers I let Tweeter install.

hurleysurf24

iTrader: (3)

i as well have those 4" speakers behind my seats in my 1990 convertible