My VXR8 Stereo upgrade
Discussion
OK - So the Radio. It's shit. On the plus side, you have a built-in 6 disc changer that plays MP3's. On the down side you have an Aux button that does nothing and no RDS, so no Radio names or tracking. The speakers are mediocre at best, run off the head unit (including a bizarre little centre speaker) and a pair of 8" subs on the back shelf powered by a 2 x 40w amplifier in the boot.
The head unit itself isn't practical to change because it incorporates the Air con display and to make matters worse it has no RCA outputs.
I love a challenge. So not only do I want decent sound I also want decent features. And all on budget. All the components I will by will either be items I've used before, got cheap/trade/off ebay or a combination of all.
The car will look completely stock. No bass boxes in the boot , no disco light displays and for the majority of time when it's just me in the car, the best sound I can get.
EQUIPMENT
The single most expensive bit of kit (£400) is the 'Quasi Media Hub' from JHP in Australia. This plugs into the Aux Socket and will give be full control of my 160Gb Ipod from the steering wheel and will also play ipod video. This will sit in the central armrest and also in the glovebox will be an SD and USB socket. But the clever bit is the electronic switch: Hold the mute button on the wheel for a second and it switches through an additional Aux in. On this I have a Hideaway DAB Tuner (+new DAB Ariel, £175) so will have full DAB radio. This actually has a further Aux-In so could connect another video device in the future.
So maximising the signal before amplification is key, as I only have speaker levels to play with, so that's left to the Audio Control LC6i
This will take the Speaker level inputs from the head unit and give me a clean pair of phono pre-outs. This clean RCA signal then goes into my magic box, the Alpine PXA 600
This not only splits the signal into 4 channels and a sub output but adds parametric EQ and crucially, Time Alignment - so I can digitally delay the signal reaching each speaker, so the sound from all speakers reaches my ears (or any other seat) at exactly the same time. The setting are controlled by a remote display unit which will sit in the ashtray, allowing me to adjust settings, bass phase etc. etc. The only slight concern is the LEDs are green and I'd want white LEDs for a factory look.
Onto the Amplification. Nothing special here, just two very powerful very reliable Amps
The larger Amplifier is the Alpine F600, powering the front and rear doors. This Amp has been recently serviced and tested at 4 x 105Watts RMS.
The Amplifier used for the Bass speakers is a Boston Acoustics GT22, rated at 1 x 375W RMS into a bridged 4 ohm load (which it will be as I'm using a pair of 8ohm speakers)
These will be fitted on a back board on the back of the rear seats. I'll lose 3" of depth in a boot you could lose a horse in.
Speaker-wise, I've amassed this motley crew:
Starting from the front , Diamond Audio M66.1 6.5's with Silk tweeters and their own passive crossovers, in the rear doors I've got a pair of ridiculously awesome CDT Audio M6 Mids, running up to 3500Hz through a custom made pair of passive crossovers and brining up the rear, a pair of Kicker Comp 8 8 Ohm 8" subs.
So where to start?
Week 1: Prep
This involved stripping out the car as far as I could and sound deadening and sound proofing the living shit out of it. Put very simply, you use 'mass loading' to lower panel resonance and absorb vibrations, which turns the clunk of a panel into a thud and then you overlay with closed structure foam layer that absorbs airborne sound. So convert rattles to thuds and then you reduce the volume. Not only will this help with the sound quality of the Stereo but allow me to use less volume and should dramatically reduce the cabin road noise as well if done properly.
Also as the speakers I'm using are what's known as 'infinite baffle' or 'free air' (sitting on a shelf or in a door) it's vital that as little of the sound waves from the rear of the speakers interfere with the front sound waves - so I will try to seal as many holes in panels as I can to further enhance the sound quality.
So I'll start with a rear door.
and this is what greets us
A large hollow door where the total sum of any soundproofing is that little 1mm thick sticker you can just about see on the left.
So on with the SilentCoat NoiseDamping Mat - 2mm thick. Cut peel, stick, heatgun, roller, done.
The jury's out as to how much to use with opinions varying from 25% coverage to 66%, but as I ended up using 50 sheets throughout...
Double-up behind the speaker aperture
When the Damping mat is done the noise Isolator is cut and stuck on top
8mm thick
I used two of these in total:
And the finished door, prior to the weather seal going back on
Finally I looked to see if I could do anything with the inner door car card
I managed to find some very light 9mm Carpet underlay which has been used to great effect for noise dampening across large areas
So was cut and attached to the back of the door card too using an adhesive spray
Front door was the same procedure:
The boot was a little easier on the floor level
With 40 sheets of another slightly thinner dampening material being swallowed way too quickly.
The fun started when you're crawling around upside down trying to plug hundreds of holes and dampen complex pressed single skinned shapes.
Luckily the Battery's in the boot, so I could route the power cables at the same time.
The Tyre well was done also and a lot more underlay used round the sides and under the carpet floor too
When I'd finished, the rear shelf underside got sealed the best I could with a couple of sheets of 4mm dampener
Even the boot lid has been dampened from this
to this
Once I'd got the rear seats out and the rear shelf, I used the same technique (dampening/noise absorber/underlay) not only on the exposed metal but under the carpet and over the tranny tunnel too.
The rear shelf was going to be a little less straightforward due to the shape
but just carried on, burning fingers on the heat gun, cutting fingers with the Stanley, etc. etc.
Slightly ahead here showing the subs mounted.
Speaking of Speakers, the problem here is that the replacement door speakers are considerably larger than the OEM units they're replacing:
and the little plastic collars holding the originals simply wouldnt be up to the job of providing a solid mounting base for the new drivers.
The rears were straightforward.
A 6.5" MDF spacer siliconed in to form a seal and tehn 4 self tappers to secure it.
The fronts were a little more difficult as the former was an odd shape
So I cut out a template
and used a few drops of paint to mark the screw holes
.
Then using some more MDF, got the spacer ring to the angle I wanted (passenger one On axis with the driver and vice versa) and secured with some tacks.
Then just filled with P38 and sanded smooth.
As a final measure I mixed up some resin and brushed it over the inner and outer surfaces
When dry, a little MDF primer and a coat of Plasti-dip rubber paint and then back into the car.
The Subs were a little more awkward due to the shape
Luckily the subs with in the standard collars and the rear shelf only needed the very slightest of metal bending so I decide to use the originals, but dampen them extensively - and also when screwed down, used sound deadening strips overlapping the shelf and the speaker pod.
So at the end of week one the car is ridiculously 'dead', all speaker mounts are in situ and all trim panels are off ready for cable runs. I've got one day off next week and am hoping the Ipod thingy arrives from Oz on Tuesday.
I need to make the mounting board for the amps and then the really tedious job of wiring up can begin. But that wont be as tedious as setting up the levels and settings
The head unit itself isn't practical to change because it incorporates the Air con display and to make matters worse it has no RCA outputs.
I love a challenge. So not only do I want decent sound I also want decent features. And all on budget. All the components I will by will either be items I've used before, got cheap/trade/off ebay or a combination of all.
The car will look completely stock. No bass boxes in the boot , no disco light displays and for the majority of time when it's just me in the car, the best sound I can get.
EQUIPMENT
The single most expensive bit of kit (£400) is the 'Quasi Media Hub' from JHP in Australia. This plugs into the Aux Socket and will give be full control of my 160Gb Ipod from the steering wheel and will also play ipod video. This will sit in the central armrest and also in the glovebox will be an SD and USB socket. But the clever bit is the electronic switch: Hold the mute button on the wheel for a second and it switches through an additional Aux in. On this I have a Hideaway DAB Tuner (+new DAB Ariel, £175) so will have full DAB radio. This actually has a further Aux-In so could connect another video device in the future.
So maximising the signal before amplification is key, as I only have speaker levels to play with, so that's left to the Audio Control LC6i
This will take the Speaker level inputs from the head unit and give me a clean pair of phono pre-outs. This clean RCA signal then goes into my magic box, the Alpine PXA 600
This not only splits the signal into 4 channels and a sub output but adds parametric EQ and crucially, Time Alignment - so I can digitally delay the signal reaching each speaker, so the sound from all speakers reaches my ears (or any other seat) at exactly the same time. The setting are controlled by a remote display unit which will sit in the ashtray, allowing me to adjust settings, bass phase etc. etc. The only slight concern is the LEDs are green and I'd want white LEDs for a factory look.
Onto the Amplification. Nothing special here, just two very powerful very reliable Amps
The larger Amplifier is the Alpine F600, powering the front and rear doors. This Amp has been recently serviced and tested at 4 x 105Watts RMS.
The Amplifier used for the Bass speakers is a Boston Acoustics GT22, rated at 1 x 375W RMS into a bridged 4 ohm load (which it will be as I'm using a pair of 8ohm speakers)
These will be fitted on a back board on the back of the rear seats. I'll lose 3" of depth in a boot you could lose a horse in.
Speaker-wise, I've amassed this motley crew:
Starting from the front , Diamond Audio M66.1 6.5's with Silk tweeters and their own passive crossovers, in the rear doors I've got a pair of ridiculously awesome CDT Audio M6 Mids, running up to 3500Hz through a custom made pair of passive crossovers and brining up the rear, a pair of Kicker Comp 8 8 Ohm 8" subs.
So where to start?
Week 1: Prep
This involved stripping out the car as far as I could and sound deadening and sound proofing the living shit out of it. Put very simply, you use 'mass loading' to lower panel resonance and absorb vibrations, which turns the clunk of a panel into a thud and then you overlay with closed structure foam layer that absorbs airborne sound. So convert rattles to thuds and then you reduce the volume. Not only will this help with the sound quality of the Stereo but allow me to use less volume and should dramatically reduce the cabin road noise as well if done properly.
Also as the speakers I'm using are what's known as 'infinite baffle' or 'free air' (sitting on a shelf or in a door) it's vital that as little of the sound waves from the rear of the speakers interfere with the front sound waves - so I will try to seal as many holes in panels as I can to further enhance the sound quality.
So I'll start with a rear door.
and this is what greets us
A large hollow door where the total sum of any soundproofing is that little 1mm thick sticker you can just about see on the left.
So on with the SilentCoat NoiseDamping Mat - 2mm thick. Cut peel, stick, heatgun, roller, done.
The jury's out as to how much to use with opinions varying from 25% coverage to 66%, but as I ended up using 50 sheets throughout...
Double-up behind the speaker aperture
When the Damping mat is done the noise Isolator is cut and stuck on top
8mm thick
I used two of these in total:
And the finished door, prior to the weather seal going back on
Finally I looked to see if I could do anything with the inner door car card
I managed to find some very light 9mm Carpet underlay which has been used to great effect for noise dampening across large areas
So was cut and attached to the back of the door card too using an adhesive spray
Front door was the same procedure:
The boot was a little easier on the floor level
With 40 sheets of another slightly thinner dampening material being swallowed way too quickly.
The fun started when you're crawling around upside down trying to plug hundreds of holes and dampen complex pressed single skinned shapes.
Luckily the Battery's in the boot, so I could route the power cables at the same time.
The Tyre well was done also and a lot more underlay used round the sides and under the carpet floor too
When I'd finished, the rear shelf underside got sealed the best I could with a couple of sheets of 4mm dampener
Even the boot lid has been dampened from this
to this
Once I'd got the rear seats out and the rear shelf, I used the same technique (dampening/noise absorber/underlay) not only on the exposed metal but under the carpet and over the tranny tunnel too.
The rear shelf was going to be a little less straightforward due to the shape
but just carried on, burning fingers on the heat gun, cutting fingers with the Stanley, etc. etc.
Slightly ahead here showing the subs mounted.
Speaking of Speakers, the problem here is that the replacement door speakers are considerably larger than the OEM units they're replacing:
and the little plastic collars holding the originals simply wouldnt be up to the job of providing a solid mounting base for the new drivers.
The rears were straightforward.
A 6.5" MDF spacer siliconed in to form a seal and tehn 4 self tappers to secure it.
The fronts were a little more difficult as the former was an odd shape
So I cut out a template
and used a few drops of paint to mark the screw holes
. Then using some more MDF, got the spacer ring to the angle I wanted (passenger one On axis with the driver and vice versa) and secured with some tacks.
Then just filled with P38 and sanded smooth.
As a final measure I mixed up some resin and brushed it over the inner and outer surfaces
When dry, a little MDF primer and a coat of Plasti-dip rubber paint and then back into the car.
The Subs were a little more awkward due to the shape
Luckily the subs with in the standard collars and the rear shelf only needed the very slightest of metal bending so I decide to use the originals, but dampen them extensively - and also when screwed down, used sound deadening strips overlapping the shelf and the speaker pod.
So at the end of week one the car is ridiculously 'dead', all speaker mounts are in situ and all trim panels are off ready for cable runs. I've got one day off next week and am hoping the Ipod thingy arrives from Oz on Tuesday.
I need to make the mounting board for the amps and then the really tedious job of wiring up can begin. But that wont be as tedious as setting up the levels and settings
Edited by Gary H 2008 on Friday 13th January 08:38
LOL thanks guys
The one place I haven't sound proofed is the front bulkhead - I want to hear the 122
No real skill here, just solid prep to maximise the sound quality from my components and make the car feel a little more 'German'
The whole car seems to be held together with poppers - in fact I've think I've only removed 6 T27 screws and only broken two panels (around £30 so not too bad)
The one place I haven't sound proofed is the front bulkhead - I want to hear the 122
No real skill here, just solid prep to maximise the sound quality from my components and make the car feel a little more 'German'
The whole car seems to be held together with poppers - in fact I've think I've only removed 6 T27 screws and only broken two panels (around £30 so not too bad)
I actually did
TBH I thought how much difference is it really going to make 1830KG and nigh on 600 Hoss. This isn't a stripped out track car or quarter miler. It's a bloody fast large saloon.
The answer is just under 18KG all in- The weight of the deadening panels was significant the foam/underlay not so much. The speakers are heavier but overall not my much in fact the fronts are lighter. The AMps/processors also add a few KG
If I ditched the spare wheel and carried a compressor and can of Monkey spunk I'd be lighter overall.
If I added a cam,manifolds and Cats I'd be significantly quicker overall
TBH I thought how much difference is it really going to make 1830KG and nigh on 600 Hoss. This isn't a stripped out track car or quarter miler. It's a bloody fast large saloon.
The answer is just under 18KG all in- The weight of the deadening panels was significant the foam/underlay not so much. The speakers are heavier but overall not my much in fact the fronts are lighter. The AMps/processors also add a few KG
If I ditched the spare wheel and carried a compressor and can of Monkey spunk I'd be lighter overall.
If I added a cam,manifolds and Cats I'd be significantly quicker overall
It's frustrating because it's 3 weeks without sound and 2 weeks without an interior...not stopping me drive it though 
It's all about choices Liam - I want to be in the lucky position of being able to lose myself completely in the music...or the 122 whine..or the Bimodal - even more so when I fit the cut-outs - that reminds me Mick, swap you listens
It's all about choices Liam - I want to be in the lucky position of being able to lose myself completely in the music...or the 122 whine..or the Bimodal
- even more so when I fit the cut-outs - that reminds me Mick, swap you listens Quite a lot accomplished over the weekend, but it's getting to the point now that I'm doing more now...to make it look like I've not done anything
Running the speaker cables into the doors required using a staightened out coat hanger to push the cable through - and also ran some additional power cable into the door for under door 'puddle' lighting.
Because the grommets on the rear doors were further down, I discovered they'd been filled with this incredibly slippy red grease-like spray gunk shit (I think that's the technical term) I presume for water-proofing.
The centre console was removed and surrounding area deadened. In fact any parts of the centre console that I could get to had strips of deadening applied to them from behind - actually changing the 'feel' of the plastic from something scratchy to something more substantial.
and the crappy 4" speaker replaced with a slightly less crappy 4" speaker
- although this will not be connected to the Stereo - My Sat Nav has an audio Out...
The centre console and trim panels that sit just under the windscreen have gone off to get flocked
Top tip when taking your car apart. Do not end up with a pile like this:
- Arrange them how they came out of the car,so they'll be a lot easier to put back
So on to the Amp Rack. It will be hidden behind a false wall, so no need to be pretty, just neat, easily accessible and safe by placing it on the back of the back of the back seats I'm actually making work for myself (instead of a conventional false floor) but should be able to do most of the wiring out of the car and then just wire in a few cables once in situ.
It sill amazes me that despite the hi-tech Components, I'm still stripping cables, using in-line fused distribution blocks etc. etc.
So a basic shape is cut out of MDF
and the components spread out
By moving the Line Driver and the DAB tuner under the back seat, it's freed up enough space on the rack to get the amps, the TA processor and power distribution where I want it.
Speaking of DAB, I needed to change the Ariel so had to drop the headlining and run a DAB lead straight down and an FM lead to the front.
Such a large expanse of single skinned panel couldn't be left as is so of course had to be sound deadened
and is now totally dead.
Finished result, looks stock:
Last thing I managed today (shit was it cold) was take apart the Time Alignment unit. This sits in the ashtray and it would have bugged me that the illumination was green and the main illuminated switches are white and red. Luckily the the green lighting is done by little rubber caps - pop them off and you have 'factory' white.
As I said it's now getting to that tedious stage where a lot of work doesn't appear to be doing much. Bored now
Running the speaker cables into the doors required using a staightened out coat hanger to push the cable through - and also ran some additional power cable into the door for under door 'puddle' lighting.
Because the grommets on the rear doors were further down, I discovered they'd been filled with this incredibly slippy red grease-like spray gunk shit (I think that's the technical term) I presume for water-proofing.
The centre console was removed and surrounding area deadened. In fact any parts of the centre console that I could get to had strips of deadening applied to them from behind - actually changing the 'feel' of the plastic from something scratchy to something more substantial.
and the crappy 4" speaker replaced with a slightly less crappy 4" speaker
- although this will not be connected to the Stereo - My Sat Nav has an audio Out...
The centre console and trim panels that sit just under the windscreen have gone off to get flocked
Top tip when taking your car apart. Do not end up with a pile like this:
- Arrange them how they came out of the car,so they'll be a lot easier to put back
So on to the Amp Rack. It will be hidden behind a false wall, so no need to be pretty, just neat, easily accessible and safe by placing it on the back of the back of the back seats I'm actually making work for myself (instead of a conventional false floor) but should be able to do most of the wiring out of the car and then just wire in a few cables once in situ.
It sill amazes me that despite the hi-tech Components, I'm still stripping cables, using in-line fused distribution blocks etc. etc.
So a basic shape is cut out of MDF
and the components spread out
By moving the Line Driver and the DAB tuner under the back seat, it's freed up enough space on the rack to get the amps, the TA processor and power distribution where I want it.
Speaking of DAB, I needed to change the Ariel so had to drop the headlining and run a DAB lead straight down and an FM lead to the front.
Such a large expanse of single skinned panel couldn't be left as is so of course had to be sound deadened
and is now totally dead.
Finished result, looks stock:
Last thing I managed today (shit was it cold) was take apart the Time Alignment unit. This sits in the ashtray and it would have bugged me that the illumination was green and the main illuminated switches are white and red. Luckily the the green lighting is done by little rubber caps - pop them off and you have 'factory' white.
As I said it's now getting to that tedious stage where a lot of work doesn't appear to be doing much. Bored now
Edited by Gary H 2008 on Monday 16th January 23:41
So quite a productive weekend (after a Baby false alarm )
Managed to squeeze the PXA Controller into the ashtray - it wouldn't fit flush but by cutting away thin strips of the rubber in the wall of the ashtray liner, it now looks like it belongs there.
Speakers fitted back in
and I made some brackets to fit the new tweeters
As a finishing touch, I prised the badges off the grills of the speakers and stuck them on to the door card speaker grills, continuing the 'OEM' theme
I'd also run some power cable to fit strip LEDs under the doors for puddle lights - really chuffed with the outcome:
The cross-overs for the front speakers (passive filters to split the frequencies between the mids and the tweeters) were chuffing huge
so made a bracket and attached them up under the front kick panels
whereas the rear x-overs sit neatly under the rear bench seat (shown hear next to the DAB Tuner and Line Driver)
I also took the opportunity to fit my auto-dimming Monaro mirror
and tidy up the amp rack a bit
Before finally starting on the big job: The Ipod interface.
Brave Pill time and hope I understood the instructions
...and then went for a first fire up a few hours ago:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2mEFMTtveo&feature=g-upl&context=G259ecd3AUAAAAAAAAAA
It works!!
The whole system needs to be set up, there is some Engine noise which I'll sort this week and then finally it can be put back together and I'll have my car back. Getting there
) Managed to squeeze the PXA Controller into the ashtray - it wouldn't fit flush but by cutting away thin strips of the rubber in the wall of the ashtray liner, it now looks like it belongs there.
Speakers fitted back in
and I made some brackets to fit the new tweeters
As a finishing touch, I prised the badges off the grills of the speakers and stuck them on to the door card speaker grills, continuing the 'OEM' theme
I'd also run some power cable to fit strip LEDs under the doors for puddle lights - really chuffed with the outcome:
The cross-overs for the front speakers (passive filters to split the frequencies between the mids and the tweeters) were chuffing huge
so made a bracket and attached them up under the front kick panels
whereas the rear x-overs sit neatly under the rear bench seat (shown hear next to the DAB Tuner and Line Driver)
I also took the opportunity to fit my auto-dimming Monaro mirror
and tidy up the amp rack a bit
Before finally starting on the big job: The Ipod interface.
Brave Pill time and hope I understood the instructions
...and then went for a first fire up a few hours ago:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2mEFMTtveo&feature=g-upl&context=G259ecd3AUAAAAAAAAAA
It works!!
The whole system needs to be set up, there is some Engine noise which I'll sort this week and then finally it can be put back together and I'll have my car back. Getting there
Edited by Gary H 2008 on Monday 23 January 23:43
Thanks Matt - not sure I understand the question:
By pressing the Aux button it switches over to the IPod Interface. That itself has has an Aux In (red/white/yellow) which is switched by pressing the Mute button on the steering wheel for 2 seconds to activate.
In my case I have a hideaway DAB tuner linked to it with a display which appears on the screen, but in theory you could connect anything with a composite video out.
By pressing the Aux button it switches over to the IPod Interface. That itself has has an Aux In (red/white/yellow) which is switched by pressing the Mute button on the steering wheel for 2 seconds to activate.
In my case I have a hideaway DAB tuner linked to it with a display which appears on the screen, but in theory you could connect anything with a composite video out.
Yup- Good question. did think about that too.
My first concern was to check all the doors thoroughly before adding anything, for any form of water ingress. All 4 doors were bone dry, but despite this I only used sound proofing and deadening that was made from water-repellant material (Silentcoat product). Finally the original moisture Barrier was also put back - causing a bit of hassle re-installing the door cards, but at least it was solid.
In the larger areas where I used underlay, under the carpet, back seat and boot, there was layer of sound deadening under the underlay too - and my thinking is if the underlay (which is made from recylced rubber rather than foam) gets wet, that'll be the least of my problems
Noise wise I do have a couple of issues which should be easily sortable tomorrow. The Ipod Hub is picking up system noise so have been asked to check the Earth, ensure the control box is nowhere near an electrical source (I suspect it is at the moment, being right behind the HVAC controls) and for good measure I've bought an in-line power filter.
The system itself also has some Alternator whine, but as it's only coming through the front speakers and is audible when the system is off, I'm pretty sure I know what it is: teh front passive cross-overs are huge and contain huge copper coils - effectively aeriels that'll pick up any electrical noise and feed them straight to the speakers. The x-over on the passenger side is mounted right above the fusebox and main power cable...D'oh!
So a strip-down tomorrow to cure these two before the arduous job of setting up can begin:
There is a gain control on the line driver, which feeds the time alignment unit - which has it's own gain settings, then on to two amplifiers with their own gains and then finally the head units own Volume control... then I've only got the cut-offs, Parametric EQ, Time-alignment, Phase....
My first concern was to check all the doors thoroughly before adding anything, for any form of water ingress. All 4 doors were bone dry, but despite this I only used sound proofing and deadening that was made from water-repellant material (Silentcoat product). Finally the original moisture Barrier was also put back - causing a bit of hassle re-installing the door cards, but at least it was solid.
In the larger areas where I used underlay, under the carpet, back seat and boot, there was layer of sound deadening under the underlay too - and my thinking is if the underlay (which is made from recylced rubber rather than foam) gets wet, that'll be the least of my problems
Noise wise I do have a couple of issues which should be easily sortable tomorrow. The Ipod Hub is picking up system noise so have been asked to check the Earth, ensure the control box is nowhere near an electrical source (I suspect it is at the moment, being right behind the HVAC controls) and for good measure I've bought an in-line power filter.
The system itself also has some Alternator whine, but as it's only coming through the front speakers and is audible when the system is off, I'm pretty sure I know what it is: teh front passive cross-overs are huge and contain huge copper coils - effectively aeriels that'll pick up any electrical noise and feed them straight to the speakers. The x-over on the passenger side is mounted right above the fusebox and main power cable...D'oh!
So a strip-down tomorrow to cure these two before the arduous job of setting up can begin:
There is a gain control on the line driver, which feeds the time alignment unit - which has it's own gain settings, then on to two amplifiers with their own gains and then finally the head units own Volume control... then I've only got the cut-offs, Parametric EQ, Time-alignment, Phase....
That's very kind of you to say but hardly warranted in the scale of things
I've had bits of Car Stereo equipment in my Garage for 10 years now, waiting to do an install (I used to be really into Car stereo Hi-Fi in the 90's) but haven't, probably out of sheer laziness. Or the install's have dragged on for months with a car with bits of trim missing, or whine or noise always in the background.
With the imminent arrival of Handa Junior No.1 (3 weeks to go) It suddenly dawned on me that if I don't do it now, I never will
It's needed 3 weeks or so of very solid focus, but I know I'll be chuffed at the end of it.
Cheers
I've had bits of Car Stereo equipment in my Garage for 10 years now, waiting to do an install (I used to be really into Car stereo Hi-Fi in the 90's) but haven't, probably out of sheer laziness. Or the install's have dragged on for months with a car with bits of trim missing, or whine or noise always in the background.
With the imminent arrival of Handa Junior No.1 (3 weeks to go) It suddenly dawned on me that if I don't do it now, I never will
It's needed 3 weeks or so of very solid focus, but I know I'll be chuffed at the end of it.
Cheers
Finally made some progress. The vast majority of my alternator noise was made by two things: Firstly my Old Alpine Amp was goosed - leaking rear channel into the fronts. This was replaced with a Class D Digital JVC 4 x 125RMS Amp. Not the last word in Hi-Fi but good enough. And small, runs cool and cheap. I like cheap
Secondly I moved the front passive x-overs to rear rack too. From the reading I'd done I discovered that these cars are prone to Engine noise on account of the rear battery and main power loom running down the side sill. I read that it was reccomended to put a stiffening (.1 Farad) Cap either over the alternator or on the charging point to 'smooth' the supply.
I did this and hopefully made it look as stock as possible too.
Result: No noise! Absolute silence on Zero bits, and no alternator noise.
Then I cut and trimmed a false wall to hide and protect the components
I also replaced the boot light with a 1m strip of flat LEDs - surprisingly useful!
I wasn't happy with the colour match of the carpet...so I'm re-trimming the whole boot.
So back together again: (As you may have already seen )4 panels have been electrostatically 'flocked', I've re-trimmed the centre trim in graphite Carbon and replaced the footwell lights with red LED strips and the flat LED under the doors
I still have alternator noise on the Ipod input though - so eliminating that is next...If Junior lets me
Secondly I moved the front passive x-overs to rear rack too. From the reading I'd done I discovered that these cars are prone to Engine noise on account of the rear battery and main power loom running down the side sill. I read that it was reccomended to put a stiffening (.1 Farad) Cap either over the alternator or on the charging point to 'smooth' the supply.
I did this and hopefully made it look as stock as possible too.
Result: No noise! Absolute silence on Zero bits, and no alternator noise.
Then I cut and trimmed a false wall to hide and protect the components
I also replaced the boot light with a 1m strip of flat LEDs - surprisingly useful!
I wasn't happy with the colour match of the carpet...so I'm re-trimming the whole boot.
So back together again: (As you may have already seen )4 panels have been electrostatically 'flocked', I've re-trimmed the centre trim in graphite Carbon and replaced the footwell lights with red LED strips and the flat LED under the doors
I still have alternator noise on the Ipod input though - so eliminating that is next...If Junior lets me
Very easy to do Paul. You can either replace the small bulbs like for like with an LED equivalent (501 wedge) although you won't get the spread of light, so simply glue a pair of these under the dash (use clear silicone and hold in place over night with masking tape) and then connect up to the pos and neg. of the under dash lights.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-X-24-RED-LED-24CM-Linear-Flexible-Strip-Car-Light-12V-/280600457132?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item4155172fac#ht_2655wt_1139
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-X-24-RED-LED-24CM-Linear-Flexible-Strip-Car-Light-12V-/280600457132?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item4155172fac#ht_2655wt_1139
Thanks all
These cars are notoriously noisy electrically as well as obviously
as I've now found out. The majority of the issues that are caused by Alternator whine can be attributed to Ground Loops - where you have multiple Earthing points across the car. As the 12V socket was never designed to be connected to an Audio device chances are it's grounded somewhere under the console, the Stereo being Earthed somewhere else...Problem number 1. And it's probably 99% of your problem.
Do you get the Whine if the Ipod isn't charging?
The Capacitor came form RS Components, it's a .1 Farad. You should in theory put it across the Alternator but becuisae I wasn't inclined to take my Engine apart, the charging points were used. It will make a difference if you've got your Earths sorted out.
My final review of the JHP Quasi Media Hub is that as a solution for Ipod/iphone Audio and Video in your VXR8 with full steering wheel controls it's brilliant.
HOWEVER if you upgrade the Audio Amplification, have dozens of playlists and appreciate absolute HiFi (which is why you'd amplify the system) unless you prepared to spend hours tracing lines to single out components, then this sn't for you.
JHP in Australia have very kindly agreed to take the kit back for a full refund which is really decent of them. I can't fault their service.
What I'm replacing it with will blow you away
... Edited by Gary H 2008 on Monday 30th April 17:55
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