Anyone got the Focal PS165's? How easy does the tweeter go in? I'm installing mine tomorrow!

 

And how do I keep my rear speakers on new head unit?

 

Hey all, question: I've been looking at amp installs for a while and I see that a lot of people put up like a wall of carpet covered mdf at the back of the trunk, but what I can't find or figure out is how they did it. I want to do this to mine so I can save more space, but how exactly do you mount it? Any advice is awesome. Thanks.

 

its generally screwed down, but you can hide the head of the screw under the carpeting.

 

Built an amp rack yesterday and added a JL 500/1 into the mix

Headunit: Pioneer DEH-80PRS
Speakers: MB Quart QS216
Amplifiers: JL 500/1 & JL 300/4
Subwoofer: JL 10W3-D6

So I have the ability to use the DEH-80PRS to control a 3way active crossover network for tweeters/mids/sub, OR use the JL amplifiers to crossover the tweeters/mids/sub, OR the tweeters/mids could just use the MB Quart crossovers with each still being powered by their individual channel.

Currently, I'm using the headunit to set a crossover of 80hz for the subwoofer/speakers, front output goes to mids, rear output goes to tweeters (using front and rear outputs for mids/tweeters allows quick fine control over tweeter/mid volume difference using fader controls). The JL 500/1 is set to full range, JL 300/4 is set to full range, and all four outputs from the 300/4 go through the MB Quart crossovers.

Any suggestions?

 

The headunit crossovers are typically the best ones. First and foremost these are crossovers in the digital domain before the signal gets converted to analog using the headunit DAC and passed along through pre-amp outs. 99% of the amplifiers have analog domain crossovers which add a bit more distortion than the ones in the digital domain. The 1% of the amplifiers that have digital domain crossovers are even worse because they have to convert the signal back to digital to process and then back to analog to amplify.

The second reason the headunit filters are better than the amp ones is because the steps you choose are very precise. For the amps that have analog domain filters you generally turn a knob and that can be 10hz off or 100hz off. The larger the discrepancy the worse the left to right balance.

Third reason headunit filters are better is that you can adjust them on the fly. A properly tuned car sound system requires dozens of hours of in car testing and when the adjustments are made at the back of the car this could take ages.



The only downside to headunit crossovers versus amp crossovers is that IF your headunit forgets to high pass your tweeters, these can easily be overdriven without a crossover and fry. You can use in line capacitors with a fairly low HP setting but then you forgo the benefits of all active filtering. More on this below.



The reason both headunit and amp crossover are better than the passive crossovers that come with speakers is that they filter the sound before amplification. This is the single largest benefit of active filtering. Passive crossovers not only rob power, but they also lower damping factors, and increase distortion noticeably, especially for high volumes. A proper high power crossover is hundreds of dollars in cost and no audio manufacturer ever produced a proper one for basic filters, let alone one that is tuned specifically for your car.


My vote is to use headunit filters without passive caps. I have burned one set of tweeters due to a DC short in ~ 10 years of using active filters. Totally worth the benefits of running a proper headunit filtered all active sound system. (Dome tweeters are generally pretty robust, it's hard to fry them even without a crossover on, if you want to use ribbons or air motion transformers I recommend inline capacitors because these two designs will fry even for small signal disturbances like turn on thumps).

 

anyone got any suggestions on a amp for a 4ohm dual coil kicker s12l5? i have an amp i got in 08 but its way off specs of the speaker. its only a 800w max and 200w rms at 4ohms. i really want to treat this speaker right since they dont make it anymore and it has been one of my dream speakers since my brother had one since i was about 12. im trying to find something small that i can hide too.

 

On Sept. 1st, 2005, I took delivery of my '05 S2000. I immediately disassembled the interior and installed 144 sq. ft. of Dynamat Extreme. The sound system has been through some changes. Recently, I replaced my sub amp with a JL Audio Slash series 600/1V3. What a difference an amp makes!!! I also replaced my front Focal K2P165 components with the German built, JL Audio ZR-650 components. What a difference! In my opinion, the ZR-650's sound so much better. Anyways, here's how she is at the current and final stage. (A little bit of old skool and a bit of newer skool).

144 sq. ft of Dynamat Extreme

Alpine DVA-9861 DVDAudio/Cd/MP3 Head Unit

JL Audio 600/1V3 Sub Amp(600Watts)

PPI A-404 Front ComponentsAmp (50X4)

PPI A-200 Rear Components Amp(50X2)

Audio Control DQXS DigitalActive Crossover ,1/3 Octave Dual Band Parametric Eq.

AudioControl DDC FrontController for DQXS

JL Audio 10W6V2 Dual VoiceCoil Sub

JL Audio ZR-650 FrontComponent Speakers (Bi-amped)

Focal 130KP Rear ComponentSpeakers

1 Farad StreetwiresElectrolytic Capacitor

Streetwires Power/GroundBlocks

Monster Cable Interconnects

S-Pods Rear Rollbar SpeakerEnclosures

Interstate Battery

Clifford Dual Proximity 2-wayPaging Alarm

144 Sq. Ft. Dynamat Extreme







Alpine DVA-9861 DVD-Audio/CD/MP3 Head Unit w/ 24 bit Burr Brown Dacs:



JL Audio 600/1V3 Sub Amp (600 Watts):



PPI Art Series A404 4 Channel Front Component Amp (50X4) Bi-Amping Front Components



PPI Art Series A200 2 Channel Rear Component Amp (50X2)



Audio Control DQXS Digital Active Crossover, 1/3 Octave Dual Band Equalizers with Linkwitz-Riley Filters:



Audio Control DDC Digital Cabin Controller for DQXS Digital Crossover/Eq.



JL Audio 10W6V2 Dual Voice Coil Sub (wired in series at 8 ohms).





JL Audio ZR-650 Front Component Speakers:





Focal 130KP Rear Fill Speakers (in S-Pod Enclosures):





Power Distribution: Interstate Battery, StreetWires 1 Farad Electrolytic Capacitor, Streetwires Power/Grounding Blocks.
Monster Cable Interconnects.













Security:
Garage, LoJack, Dual Proximity 2-Way Paging Alarm, OEM Hardtop, Kodakan Seat Locks.

 

Haha nice system, what's your car weigh now with all the gear in it?

 

That I don't know. I do know that the Dynamat itself weighs in at about 60 lbs. & the OEM aluminum hardtop adds 40 lbs. I did however shave off 33 grams off each of my lugnuts by using Ray's Duralumin lugs. Oh, and about 4 lbs per wheel over stock by using Volk CE-28N's!!! At 51, my racing days are over. We all have our priorities and a good sounding system is mine. I did give up my trunk space. I still am able to carry a spare in the back and a jack behind the driver's seat. Although it's my daily driver, I have never had to use it in the 8 yrs. since I purchased it. Every few years I change it up a bit and right now, with the JLAudio Slash monoblock sub amp and front components, it has never sounded better.