First off, this is going to be an on going update as I have decided to do my upgrades in certain order (I am now in Upgrade Batch #3). The upgrades are the following in the order of appearance

Batch 1
1. Alpine CDA-7878 (In-dash MP3 player)

Batch 2
2. Infinity Kappa 42.3i (4" coax)

Batch 3
3. Infinity Kappa 60.3cs (6.5" component)

Batch 4
4. Rockford Fosgate SPL twisted 15 gauge speaker wire (upgrades the stock speaker wires)

Batch 5
5. Rockford Fosgate 8 gauge power cables
6. 3m Vampire Wires CC5 audio interconnects
7. Rockford Fosgate 4/8 gauge Battery Terminal
8. Sony ES 3046 1-ohm stable Amplifier (30watts/RMS x 4) to power the Infinitys

Batch 6
9. Infinity Kappa Perfect 10.1
10. Custom Sub enclosure
11. Rockford Fosgate SPL twisted 11 gauge speaker wire
12. Rockford Fosgate power fused distributor (positive)
13. Rockford Fosgate power distributor (negative)
14. Mono-Amp to power the sub (TBD) w/ at least 120 watts RMS


Impressions:
Batch 1 (Alpine CDA-7878)

This is one of the best h/u that I have seen/tried/used (this is my opinion, OK?). It packs a whole lot of cool features. It can play MP3s, skip from one MP3 file to another VERY FAST (from what I've heard, the other MP3 players are slow when it comes to this). It can read ID3 tags, has 45watts x 4 (22watts RMS), it has a built-in sound processor, you can costumize the sound stage specific to a car-type (eg convertible, sedan, hatchback, etc.), you can compensate the speaker position via time-correction with steps of 0.5ms. It has a built-in equalizer in place of the regular bass/treble controls. This makes the h/u very flexible (a bit tedious at times tho) as far as customizing the sound curve. It have four built-in EQ presets that you can adjust the level. You can also optimize the sound based on your seating position. It also has a built-in cross-over so that you can adjust the cross-over setting without messing with your amp or outboard crossovers (very convinient for people like me - the anal type) Sound quality is very much improved compared to the stock radio, there's more bass and the treble is cleaner too, CD audio quality is a bit better too (a lot cleaner due to higher CD S/N ratio). Any aftermarket h/u will be much better than the stockers, I think But then, that is just me.

Batch 2 (Infinity Kappa 42.3i for the rear - ala Lucid)

Before anything else, let me give credit for credit is due. THANK YOU for the pioneering work Lucid!!! Now, back to my impressions. I can say that it improved the soundstage drastically (compared to just having the stock paper cones). Although I would not consider this as a must (no flames please). If one is to ask me if I will do this again, I WILL... as it is cheap and quite easy to do if you have an aftermarket h/u. I will probably appreciate this mod as soon as I install an amp to power it.

Batch 3 (Infinity Kappa 60.3cs for the fronts)

Insert credits here: Thank you McGayver for the instructions on how to pull the door panels out!!! Back to my impression now. First off, let me tell u about the install. The woofer has a large magnet that you have to cut a big portion of the stock speaker basket. You will have to use one of the supplied infinity brackets between the stock basket and the infinitys so make them fit together. No problems about the clearance here. I can put the windows up and down
without a hitch. Now, for the exciting part, the tweeter installation. I gave myself a credit for making it look professional (excuse me for boasting... hey, I earned it, worked for 4 hours on this - hehehe). You have to get a 1.75" holesaw for the tweeter flush mount housing. I mounted in just above the woofer, just right next to the door latch (about 0.5" from it. If you are sitting in the car, the door latch would be 1st then right beside it is the tweeter. I set the tweeter to its maximum angled setting so that the sound will shoot right at the driver and the passenger. I think this is the best place to put it for all of us imaging-concious (without going all-the-way like shaner's 3-way set-up) people. Well, I thought all is perfect... nice install, no hitch, put the panels back, everything is nice. Turn-on the radio, no sound from the passenger side, the tweeter on the driver side is crackling. I am sending them back ASAP and the replacements should be in by next week. No sound quality impressions yet but visually, the set-up rocks!!! I will let you know what happens next. joe_s2k, if you are reading this, we can still meet up and show you the install.

Update: The problem here is attributed to the Alpine built-in amp. It seems that it is not powerful enough (?) for the Kappas, even though it is rated at 45 watts/ch, I think it is only pushing about 10 watts of clean power per channel. So, for the meantime, I hooked the stock woofers back and I will mount the amp as soon as I get back from TWS this weekend.

Batch 4, 5 & 6 (to follow)

Update:
I was able to install all the wirings/cables in preparation for the install for this batch. I had to remove the seats and the carpet to do this one. I was actually surprised to find out how easy it is to remove everything on this car. Definitely a lot easier than my ITR. They did a good job designing for this car. More to come later.

Thanks for reading through this, it is quite long I know but I feel like sharing it for the rest of the peeps that are thinking of doing an audio upgrade by themselves. I wanted to post some pics but I can't get the photo album link to work. Anyone want to help me on how to go about it?

Last plug (insert here): Thank you S2Ki.com for hosting a forum site like this. It has helped me a lot in the buying experience, delivery, maintenance and upgrades on the S2000. More power to the board and to us.

If anyone has comments, suggestions or questions, please don't hesitate to post a reply or PM me.

Later,

 

Hello folks!!!

OK, there has been a lot of changes since my original writing... I have changed my amp into the Sony XM-1805GX. So far so good. I have no hitches yet. The front two components are powered by the bridged channels of the amp (should put out approx 120watts X 2 at 14.4 volts per front speakers). The sub, which is coming in the near future is going to be powered by the 150 watt sub out put of this amp...

Anyways, here are my pics. Hope you guys get something out of it.

Thanks for looking


The amp:



The Head Unit:


The Front tweeters (component, the woofer is in the factory location w/c is hidden):



Another pic of the door:


Another pic of the amp:



The sub is coming soon!!! (who knows, maybe a JL Audio Stealth box

Later,

 

Edit: Just updated the links to imagestation. Thanks robw01!

====================================
I am trying to find a good provider of free photo library to house my pictures. So far, no luck yet. In the mean time, I will be hosting my pics on my server hoping that my dynamic IP will not change until I find a replacement photo server. Let me know if you have any suggestions either on the site where to save my pics or with the design of my system. Any kind of input will be appreciated.

Also, down the line will be a PAC unit installation. I'll keep y'all posted.

Thanks,

 

are you still going with the 10" Perfect sub? i just got my 12" Perfect and was wondering your impression of the 10.. if you got it.. i haven't had a chance to hook mine up yet.. thanks..

 

BigRedDog,

I used to have a 10" Perfect in my Type R and it was plenty of bass... I'm sure that it will even better with a 12". I owned a 10" Betas and the 10" Perfects and the Perfects are definitely the better and it can really hit the low freq and I was using a simple Q-Logic sealed box then. You have to supply it with plenty of power though.

One thing for sure, you will not regret it I'd still stick with 10" though coz space is getting really tight

BTW, thanks to Todd Marcucci for his detailed instructions on how make an amp rack... I got my system almost done now. I just need to get a hold of a Good sub enclosure and waiting for the PAC unit to arrive later this week.

I'll post pics of my trunk later tonight.

Thanks,

 

thanks kibro.. i would love to see the final pics of your box..