Lowpt's build

[lowpt]

Although my setup is mostly complete (for now). I thought I woould share it.

I started this build by redoing the doors. first thing I did was remove the center section of the panel.
BEFORE- AFTER-

I then cut a pice of 1/4" mdf for a base to build off of.

Next was to cut out the shape for the pod that would hold the passive crossover and mid. I placed the x-over and grille on it to get an idea of how it would look. I used T-nuts to hold secure the pod to the panel.

After determining the angle I wanted I cut out rings and glued them in place.

Then covered it. I used jersey material (old t-shirt) for this.

This was followed by, resin, fiberglass, sand and repeat.

After I was happy with the shape I covered the door in black vinyl and the pod in red vinyl.

[lowpt]

Now, on to the enclosure.

After taking some prliminary measurements. It looked as though I would end up with an enclosure having 1.6 cu. ft. after port and sub displacement. I was looking to tune it around 35hz. Port area would be 14.8 sq. in. /ft

I started off by making the base to fit the hatch area of my car.

It is a pretty snug fit. I had to notch around a couple of bumps in the car's trim panel.

The sides and back were next. You can see where I am working around the bumps on each side.

I closed those corners in around the bumps and applied resin to the seams.

Next was to build the port and more resin was applied.

I had to notch the top edge of the enclosure front panel around the port.

I measured the internal dimensions after the box was together. My preliminary math was off a little. I ended up with 1.8 cu. ft net. tuned to 34hz. with 13 sq. in. of port area/ ft.

Here is the enclosure in the car with everthing in their places to get an idea of what it was going to look like.

I then made some carboard templates for the trim panels.

I transferred the templates to 1/4" luan. I mocked it up again in order to mark holes for drilling.

Here is how it turned out after covering the trim in vinyl to closely match the interior.

The equipment in the pic is- 2 Sundown Audio SA-8 d4, Soundstream TX4.560 for mids/highs, Soundstream TX1.1300d for lows, 2 Viair 480c compessors for air ride, and a Voodoo digital fuse block.

Although I didn't get any pics of wiring it up to show this, there is a 2 inch cavity between the amps and the box. This gives me a place to run wires and air lines. You can tell this by noticing the distance of the port to the edge after it is all together.

[lowpt]

A few pics of the other items in this setup.

I have a Jensen VM9512 headunit. The dual zone is awesome. I can listen to music while the kids can watch a movie or listen to something else with headphones in the back. The rear monitors are Jensen as well.


I used Q-logic kick panels to hold Soundstream 5.25" coaxials and the tweeter from the component set.


I have an Optima 34/78 red top under the hood.


I also now have a XS Power D2700. No pics of it installed yet.

[FlowRW]

I'm truly impressed. Quite a set up and it seems like a lot of work.
And I bitch about having to vacuum my PT.
Can't wait to see in all in person.

[lowpt]

You didn't see it at RTTB? I had this posted on other forums but, figured I needed it here as well.

[tarheelcruiser]

I did and it was AWESOME !!!!!!!!!! You could see the amount of work involved and the meticulous amount of detail put into it. Dwight you are a craftsman for sure and it shows. GREAT JOB.

[FlowRW]

Nov 27, 2011 22:50:14 GMT -5 lowpt said:

You didn't see it at RTTB? I had this posted on other forums but, figured I needed it here as well.

This was done before the beach? I don't recall the doors like that. I'm sorry.

[lowpt]

I have had a problem with voltage drop since the new equipment went in. I knew I needed to add a second battery to help with my power needs. I was planning on just adding a second Optima in the rear but, as luck would have it I came across a good deal on a XS Power D2700. I want to mount it under the car with the air tank. After taking some careful measurements I found that the battery just isn't going underneath the car right now. So, I have decided to install it inside the car until I redo the rear suspension setup.

I built a box out of 2" x 1/8" angle. I added a couple of brackets to mount it to the box.





There is a space between the box and the bracket for the trim panel to fit back in place. This helped make it stay pretty clean looking.



The XS Power battery fit in there VERY snug. I dont think I have to worry about it sliding around at all.



This has definitely helped with my power woes. No more dimming lights! YAAAYYY!!!!! I hope it helps my spl number too!!

[lowpt]

Well, I went to a local comp yesterday. I was curious to see how the changes (battery and box volume) would effect my number. I gained almost 2db! I went from a 137.4 to a 139.2. I need to get some testing time in on a meter. I simply played what sounded the loudest to my ears. The 137 was @ 37hz and the 139 was@ 44hz. To explain the box volume change, the original size was 1.8^3ft. tuned to around 34hz. This sounded good overall and GREAT on rap music. It played pretty low and hit good at the lower frequencies. (Two shots was one of my favorite demo songs.) I took some bocks of MDF, glued and screwed them inside. I used enough to lower the volume to around 1.4^3 ft. This raised the port tuning to 37hz. It doesn't play the songs with the lows as well (still ok though) but it does a lot better on the rock/metal that I love so much. Like I said I want to get some time with a meter to tweak everything. I really want to see a 140+ out of this.