phenryiv1 Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 Thanks for the advice. I'll play around with it to find out. If that's the case, can you sell those cut-outs with a lower profile so I could wrap them in a thin foam? You can wrap them in mass-loaded deadener and/or aluminum-coated closed-cell foam without interference with the door panel. Most people using my spacers use a dynamat-like material as a gasket, and many also add a layer of 1/8-3/16" thick CCF between the spacer and the door. I personally used a layer of deadener between the speaker and the spacers as an additional isolation/sealing layer. I used to have 5/8" material, but the real demand was for 3/4" so that is all that I keep in stock these days. Patrick Looking for spacers or adapters to install aftermarket speakers in the doors of your Legacy? CLICK HERE or PM me! http://www.carstereoadapters.com./ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cipher_nemo Posted October 22, 2012 Author Share Posted October 22, 2012 Sorry I didn't get around to updating this last weekend, so here's the two weekends combined... I'm enjoying the system so far as it's a huge improvement over stock. The stock speakers are still there, so there's still some work to do for sound quality. And that little 8" Alpine sub really exceeded my expectations. I like it so much that I'll order a second soon since the amp can run 500 watts RMS at 2 ohms. Right now it's 300 watts RMS to 4 ohms. When tuned just right that little 8" can move some serious air. If I put down the rear seats I can feel the air pressure generated by just one. And better yet, it sounds great. When I shave down the 20Hz completely on my head unit's built-in EQ, it eliminates all audible distortion in the sub. I just hear the beats and bass guitar on songs. It's nice to have that Audio Control Three.2 to fine tune the sweep and gain of the signal going to the amp. Before installing my EQ I tested it with the head unit and sure enough the Pioneer DEH-80PRS outputs a FULL 4v to the RCA lines. So I really didn't need to turn up the EQ's RCA voltage setting at all. At almost full volume (51/60), the head unit "maximizes" the RCA voltage according to the EQ's "Maximized" LED. So I'll play at a volume of 50 or less, then use the EQ for additional adjustment. Rear view of the Legacy single-DIN adapter with the rear portion of the pocket cut out and the Audio Control Three.2 EQ installed... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_5_thumb.jpg Side view of the Legacy single-DIN adapter with the rear portion of the pocket cut out and the Audio Control Three.2 EQ installed... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_4_thumb.jpg My USB1 from the DEH-80PRS head unit goes to the center console, but I want my USB 2 to go to the dash. Here's the center dash cover prepped for drilling out a square hole. I taped down 4 metal brackets to protect my cuts from going too deep. I also marked them a little smaller than desired so that I could clean up the edges with files... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_6_thumb.jpg Roto-zip bit on a cordless Dremel POS made the cuts very easy. My Roto-zip RZ10 is a little too big to do a small cut like this, so I had no choice but to give that job to the Dremel. But at least the Roto-zip bit fits well... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_7_thumb.jpg After filing the edges as square as possible... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_8_thumb.jpg USB cable mounted... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_9_thumb.jpg Rear side of dash cover with USB cable mounted... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_10_thumb.jpg USB connection with my test thumbdrive... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_11_thumb.jpg Cable harnesses made and installed... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_12_thumb.jpg Testing the head unit with some spare, POS speakers. I hooked it up to a cheap PC power supply and it gets a good 12.4V for testing... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_testing_1_thumb.jpg Head unit and Audio Control EQ installed... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_dash_13_thumb.jpg This big guy greeted me when I went out to my garage one evening. It's the first time I've ever seen a praying mantis in person... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_discovery_1_thumb.jpg Center console removed completely (thanks to ChasWG's photos in this thread)... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_1_thumb.jpg Center console box/armrest... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_2_thumb.jpg Underside of center console box... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_3_thumb.jpg Two drilled holes for the USB cable... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_4_thumb.jpg Middle tray is two pieces screwed together... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_5_thumb.jpg Center console installed with USB cable and rubber grommet... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_6_thumb.jpg Center console's middle tray with USB cable and my testing thumbdrive. I will place an SSD here in an external case next weekend... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_centerconsole_7_thumb.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phenryiv1 Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 Nice progress there. I like the craftsmanship USB mount in the center stack/dash console. As for those exposed screw caps, you could cover them with black-painted furniture screw caps from Lowes or HD. They might make it look a little more finished. Any particular reason not to just mount it low in the cubby near the 12V outlet? Not criticizing- just asking. Patrick Looking for spacers or adapters to install aftermarket speakers in the doors of your Legacy? CLICK HERE or PM me! http://www.carstereoadapters.com./ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cipher_nemo Posted October 22, 2012 Author Share Posted October 22, 2012 Nice progress there. I like the craftsmanship USB mount in the center stack/dash console. As for those exposed screw caps, you could cover them with black-painted furniture screw caps from Lowes or HD. They might make it look a little more finished. Any particular reason not to just mount it low in the cubby near the 12V outlet? Not criticizing- just asking. Thanks. And it's quick access that doesn't take up cubby space. I'd only use it to test something or to throw in a new album on a thumbdrive temporarily. I like to have the thumbdrive visible so that it reminds me to transfer it to the SSD sooner rather than later. Since that center dash cover is still sitting out of my car, I'll probably paint the screws black, let it cure, screw them in, then touch up where the screw driver makes contact. I don't want to use screw covers since those are sort of big... and plastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phenryiv1 Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 Since that center dash cover is still sitting out of my car, I'll probably paint the screws black, let it cure, screw them in, then touch up where the screw driver makes contact. I don't want to use screw covers since those are sort of big... and plastic. You could probably even find black screws and paint then in a semigloss black. Then any scratches or blemishes would be nearly invisible. Patrick Looking for spacers or adapters to install aftermarket speakers in the doors of your Legacy? CLICK HERE or PM me! http://www.carstereoadapters.com./ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbass85 Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I know I asked about the tweeter wiring before, but, since your in the usb stage now do you think you could use the stock usb wire to plug into the back of your HU? It seems your past that now so the question might be too late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cipher_nemo Posted November 2, 2012 Author Share Posted November 2, 2012 I know I asked about the tweeter wiring before, but, since your in the usb stage now do you think you could use the stock usb wire to plug into the back of your HU? It seems your past that now so the question might be too late. My car didn't come with a stock USB port. I think you only get that with the Limited models. Instead mine is a 2.5i Premium w/ the winter package. All I had was an Aux. port (ie: headphone jack). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cipher_nemo Posted November 2, 2012 Author Share Posted November 2, 2012 I forgot to mention... The 128GB SSD (Samsung 830) works perfectly with the Pioneer DEH-80PRS head unit. Plenty of power to run it and reads files on it just fine. Because the head unit only reads partitions with a FAT32 or lower format, I used a third-party formatting tool. Windows 7 can only format partitions with either NTFS or exFAt (FAT64) via the Disk Management GUI of the Computer Management panel. Note that most thumbdrives are already partitioned and formatted as FAT32, so this only applies to SSDs. You can use the built-in format command as well in a DOS window (cmd). Example: FORMAT F: /FS:FAT32 /Q Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cipher_nemo Posted November 6, 2012 Author Share Posted November 6, 2012 Here's the photos over last weekend. My 128GB Samsung 830 SSD is mounted in an Eagle case. That case has this cool, flat USB cable that is removed from a metal clip on the top for plugging into a PC. Unfortunately I don't really need or want that, as I'll be using my own female USB cables to connect the drive to my head unit, and then my PC when adding songs to it. Here's the case before I mod it... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_ssd_1_thumb.jpg I opened up the USB cable's metal end (two pieces), then drilled out holes to mount it. Here's the drilled holes with the screws resting in there to show you they're flush... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_ssd_2_thumb.jpg Finished product, with a permanently mounted USB cable to simplify use. I mounted it with two screws and two layers of molding tape to give some height to it... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_ssd_3_thumb.jpg The USB cable running along the center console connects to the USB from the SSD. I added small corner brackets (three of them) to hold the SSD in place. It stops all lateral movement, so as long as my car isn't doing flips, it's fine, lol... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_ssd_4_thumb.jpg Dash put back together with the USB adapter for thumbdrives mounted to the bottom right of the DIN area. The car is running (14.0v) and the head unit playing a loss-less wave file... http://modarmor.com/images/car_audio/caraudio_interior_3_thumb.jpg Phase one is pretty much done. The only other thing I might want to do is mounting cloth/nylon loops to hold my sub boxes in place (I will have two in the back off of the single mono amp in 2ohm). It might be some time until I get around to phase two which will be sound dampening the car, doing the door components, adding the last amp, adding a capacitor, changing out the battery, and doing the "big 3". I'll post here when I get around to that, but expect 2013. I'll also post photos of the sub box restraints in the next couple of weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeltaSniper Posted November 6, 2012 Share Posted November 6, 2012 This is some really good craftsmanship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hypoid Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 Very nice install!! Thanks for the motivation to get started on my install:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KSpan Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Great thread and fantastic work - thanks for sharing! Looking forward to seeing the driver installs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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