Discussion
I'm thinking of upgrading my speakers from the standard Alpine affair.
I know theres a great guide to audio for the S2 by Janitor but can't find much for the S1.
Are there any limitations on depth of a new speaker, etc?
Any recommenedations would be gratefully received as well.
Cheers all
I know theres a great guide to audio for the S2 by Janitor but can't find much for the S1.
Are there any limitations on depth of a new speaker, etc?
Any recommenedations would be gratefully received as well.
Cheers all
I don't know of guide like Janitor's superb effort but inspired by Piooly here's what I did:
Get a half decent head unit on-line (I paid about £150 for a Pioneer unit on which the dispaly can be made to match the amber stack!).
Fitted a pair of 17cm component speakers at the rear. The 17cm units needed a spacer and I just picked up a likely looking candidate fom Halfords. If I can ever be bothered I'll make a proper one from MDF/PLY. The spacer solves the depth problem. I fitted the tweeters on the rear-screen surround (blob of blu-tak holds them) and the crossovers are held with blobs of blu-tak on the rear bulkhead.
Remove the outermost dash top airvents and get a pair of small full range drivers. You'll need to run some wires through the dash to do this but a straightened wire coathanger helps. You may need to ream the holes out a little but you can put the vents back in place with a bit of sikaflex and cover the larger holes if you don't go mad with the dremel. A pair of half decent 100 cm drivers will do the job.
Using industrial strength velcro fit a compact self-powered sub in the pax footwell. Some velcro on the upper surface of the footrest and face of the bulkhead will hold it in place even on trackdays.
Fiddle with your hearts content with all the settings on the head unit.
Enjoy audible music, roof off or on, at up to about 90
My set-up cost about £500.
Get a half decent head unit on-line (I paid about £150 for a Pioneer unit on which the dispaly can be made to match the amber stack!).
Fitted a pair of 17cm component speakers at the rear. The 17cm units needed a spacer and I just picked up a likely looking candidate fom Halfords. If I can ever be bothered I'll make a proper one from MDF/PLY. The spacer solves the depth problem. I fitted the tweeters on the rear-screen surround (blob of blu-tak holds them) and the crossovers are held with blobs of blu-tak on the rear bulkhead.
Remove the outermost dash top airvents and get a pair of small full range drivers. You'll need to run some wires through the dash to do this but a straightened wire coathanger helps. You may need to ream the holes out a little but you can put the vents back in place with a bit of sikaflex and cover the larger holes if you don't go mad with the dremel. A pair of half decent 100 cm drivers will do the job.
Using industrial strength velcro fit a compact self-powered sub in the pax footwell. Some velcro on the upper surface of the footrest and face of the bulkhead will hold it in place even on trackdays.
Fiddle with your hearts content with all the settings on the head unit.
Enjoy audible music, roof off or on, at up to about 90
My set-up cost about £500.
Grinnders said:
There was a thread on SELOC by Grog doing custom-fit upgrades for S1 & S2 but it's been running for about a year now and I don't think ANY S1 "sets" have been delivered. I'm contemplating add a bit of base... but not at a great expense.
I've got one of the alpine sub units that a lot of people put in the elise that you can have for £50 plus postage mate - bought it, fitted it took it out after 2 weeks as I didn't listen to my music once :PTIPPER said:
I don't know of guide like Janitor's superb effort but inspired by Piooly here's what I did:
Get a half decent head unit on-line (I paid about £150 for a Pioneer unit on which the dispaly can be made to match the amber stack!).
Fitted a pair of 17cm component speakers at the rear. The 17cm units needed a spacer and I just picked up a likely looking candidate fom Halfords. If I can ever be bothered I'll make a proper one from MDF/PLY. The spacer solves the depth problem. I fitted the tweeters on the rear-screen surround (blob of blu-tak holds them) and the crossovers are held with blobs of blu-tak on the rear bulkhead.
Remove the outermost dash top airvents and get a pair of small full range drivers. You'll need to run some wires through the dash to do this but a straightened wire coathanger helps. You may need to ream the holes out a little but you can put the vents back in place with a bit of sikaflex and cover the larger holes if you don't go mad with the dremel. A pair of half decent 100 cm drivers will do the job.
Using industrial strength velcro fit a compact self-powered sub in the pax footwell. Some velcro on the upper surface of the footrest and face of the bulkhead will hold it in place even on trackdays.
Fiddle with your hearts content with all the settings on the head unit.
Enjoy audible music, roof off or on, at up to about 90
My set-up cost about £500.
Pretty much what he said. Don't go overboard because you'll never get Mark Levinson quality sound in an Elise, but a decent HU with a nice small amp and some good quality Infinity (or similar) components will get the job done for about £500 as Tipper says.Get a half decent head unit on-line (I paid about £150 for a Pioneer unit on which the dispaly can be made to match the amber stack!).
Fitted a pair of 17cm component speakers at the rear. The 17cm units needed a spacer and I just picked up a likely looking candidate fom Halfords. If I can ever be bothered I'll make a proper one from MDF/PLY. The spacer solves the depth problem. I fitted the tweeters on the rear-screen surround (blob of blu-tak holds them) and the crossovers are held with blobs of blu-tak on the rear bulkhead.
Remove the outermost dash top airvents and get a pair of small full range drivers. You'll need to run some wires through the dash to do this but a straightened wire coathanger helps. You may need to ream the holes out a little but you can put the vents back in place with a bit of sikaflex and cover the larger holes if you don't go mad with the dremel. A pair of half decent 100 cm drivers will do the job.
Using industrial strength velcro fit a compact self-powered sub in the pax footwell. Some velcro on the upper surface of the footrest and face of the bulkhead will hold it in place even on trackdays.
Fiddle with your hearts content with all the settings on the head unit.
Enjoy audible music, roof off or on, at up to about 90
My set-up cost about £500.
S Works said:
get the job done for about £500 as Tipper says.
£500 
That's just crazy talk for an elise... My conceptual budget for Grog's stuff was about a ton. Anyone that spends more than a couple of hundred pound for cars like ours (PARTICULARLY S1s) with such little insulation are obviously stark raving bonkers ! On the whole I'm really happy with my 1999 Kenwood D-Mask. Great security feature, plenty loud enough, ipod enabled and ironicly for such small cars, steering wheel remote control, which is unbelievably useful for the perversely offset location...
If any upgrade is necessary it could just do with some Bass enhancement so anything that could be easily placed in the passenger footwell is worthy of consideration or DAB/Internet to get Radio 5 Live, negating AM/FM reception of the worst placed aerial in automotive history.
£500
wibble wibble 
Don't laugh until you've tried: I can actually enjoy reasonable quality sound in my car at a real world Mway cruise. Thats important to me as living in South Devon I often have to make 600 mile plus round trips for track days etc. I can always turn it off when I want to just concentrat on driving.
Also, I'd rather keep my steering wheel just for steering!
Also, I'd rather keep my steering wheel just for steering!
Fair do's.. each to their own. I suppose £500 is a serious amount of "mod" money and I think I'd need to do have run through an extensive list of upgrades before I got to spending half a grand on a stereo.
Admittedly when I got my remote, I was rather taken aback, but after a week or two of leaning forward and over to perform the most simple tasks it has proved a more valuable safety aspect than I ever could have imagined.
But on the VFM aspect of a £500 ICE in an Elise I think we need to agree to disagree and that is partly what forums like this are all about.
Each to their own united at least by mechnical appreciation of the marque.
Admittedly when I got my remote, I was rather taken aback, but after a week or two of leaning forward and over to perform the most simple tasks it has proved a more valuable safety aspect than I ever could have imagined.
But on the VFM aspect of a £500 ICE in an Elise I think we need to agree to disagree and that is partly what forums like this are all about.
Each to their own united at least by mechnical appreciation of the marque.
Chris,
If you do end up upgrading from the stock Alpine speakers, would you be interested in selling them?
After a year of no music, I'm quite keen to put some speakers into mine (the previous owner removed them), just to make the motorway journeys a bit less tedious!
Anyone else out there with standard Alpine speakers sitting around their garage, let me know!
Thanks,
Ben
If you do end up upgrading from the stock Alpine speakers, would you be interested in selling them?
After a year of no music, I'm quite keen to put some speakers into mine (the previous owner removed them), just to make the motorway journeys a bit less tedious!
Anyone else out there with standard Alpine speakers sitting around their garage, let me know!
Thanks,
Ben
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