Electrodynamic

First off I would like to say thank you for many things. First, thank you for embedding VBSEO into your forum! Secondly, thanks to "DeathtoToasters" for the fantastic walk through!

Last week I installed a single Obsidian Audio 12" subwoofer and a Sundown Audio 1200D in a 2005 Acura TL. Here are the pics, links, and descriptions:

First thing to read is the walk-through on here, https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=580314. It is a great thread and is extremely helpful if you have a TL!

I purchased a 4 awg Stinger HPM wiring kit, Stinger RCA's, and a Stinger LOC (Line Output Converter). IMO it is imperative to choose a good looking and functioning wiring kit. The HPM series kit has many features that most people overlook such as a protective covering on the power wire that blends into your engine bay and doesn't stick out like a sore thumb!




Running power wire through the firewall is demonstrated extremely well in the abovee link.

Running the power wire through the cabin was done on the drivers side. The only two areas to note where to run the wire are shown here:

Font area behind/under the fuse panel and behind the big factory bundle.


And under and behind the B-pillar factory bundle.

Electrodynamic

I try to be as neat and tidy as possible. In these next two pics I will show how nice the Stinger kit is along with where to cut the power wire so that when you put the wire in the fuse holder you don't have any bright blue wire hanging out of the holder for a nice neat finish.


My thumb is right where I cut the wire and then stripped back just enough to go all the way into the fuse holder.


Next comes the subwoofer connection. I used a LOC for simplicity. Simply disconnect the plug to the subwoofer,


Use two male connectors and slide them into the female connectors of the factory connector to get your signal to the LOC. Here is a picture of one male connector inserted into the factory connector.



Next I started working on the subwoofer IB baffle. Cardboard and a contour gauge are necessities for this kind of work. Cardboard is easier to cut and a lot less expensive than wood. I used both cardboard and a contour gauge to get the shape of the baffle board.


The two open rectangles are where I will pass the wire through from one side to another and the dark line is where the baffle board is attached:



I also drilled a hole (two holes are shown) on the bottom baffle board towards the front. There is an open hole in front of the factory grounding point shown in the Acurazine link. I put a bolt through that open hole and used it to go through the bottom board and screw it down. That way the enclosure/baffle will not move!

Electrodynamic

Here is what the wall looked like before the wall was covered in black felt and the Obsidian Audio 12" subwoofer and Sundown Audio amp were installed.


I used spray adhesive to hold the felt in place and then stapled the felt to the underside and/or side of the baffle board to create a smooth look. Here are two pictures showing the final product.

One from inside the vehicle:


And one from the trunk side:


*I am going to tidy up the visible red wire in a few days.*

The best thing about IB is that you don't absolutely have to seal up the entire trunk/baffle. This install yields a flat response to below 20 Hz yet there is a 1" gap at the top of the baffle to the bottom of the trunk lid.

And with all IB installs the customer has almost 100% of her trunk available to put things and nothing she puts inside will damage any of the equipment!

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

nice install!

myron

iTrader: (4)

did you sound deaden the entire trunk? And did you plug up the hole where the stock sub was and sound deaden the area? I wanted to do this kind of set up but didn't wanna spend 300-400$ on sound deadening material

Electrodynamic

No and no. I did not deaden the trunk and the stock sub was left in place. Even though the latter was left the way it was the bass response is extremely deep and pretty darned loud. I'm going to put it on the TL mic this week or weekend and post up the results.

djtsmith007

iTrader: (1)

Why not use MDF?

Electrodynamic

Because it wouldn't have made any sonic difference and this was more cost effective. Certain formulations of plywood (arauco plywood in particular) have been proven to be stronger and lighter than MDF per a given thickness and plywood doesn't make as much of a mess.

myron

iTrader: (4)

^ are you the dealer for this company Obsidian? I found Obsidian FB page with the same exact pic you posted of a TL install.

niebur3

That does not look like plywood. It looks like OSB.

I hate cars

Nice to see another IB install around here. I think that makes 3-4 of us on here. I don't think I could ever go back to a box setup after doing hearing a good IB setup. Just finished my 3rd in the TL. First was a 12W6 which sounded great but lacked output with just a single 12. Then I did a Tempest X which had tons of low end but was a bit sloppy and didn't want to play abouve 50hz.

Now I have the Acoustic Elegance IB15s and I've never heard anything this good. They'll play to 150hz easily and dip below 20hz with authority. Very, very little power required also.

It's amazing to have this much trunk left over with two 15s back there. Right now the subs are covered and unless you know TLs, you could not tell there's a system in the trunk. The trunk pictures are before it was finished during the install obviously:





How does yours sound? I'm not familiar with that sub, is it an IB specific sub or is it one that works well IB?

eggyhustles

Gonna be 5 soon

Currently test fitting a 15" jbl mkii in my moms tsx

Would love to put 2 or 3 12's in my tl tho. Maybe one day.

I hate cars

I've heard those are awesome IB. Can't wait to see your install!

niebur3

Take your backseat out and remove that plastic opening .

I hate cars

Does it come out??? That would look much better and open it up some. Going to look at it today. I noticed in the pictures it looks kind of cheap.

niebur3

Look at my pics. It removes with (I believe) 2 screws once the backseat is off. I also cut the leather "flap" out - that was annoying also. U coming to KC for the meet....I don't see your name???

Electrodynamic

I'm not a dealer, I'm one of the owners.

I thought I would come over to this forum and share the install since it was this forum that made it so easy for me to do the install.

I'll get the TL back up to the shop and put our XTZ RTA on it again and also put it on the TermLab SPL meter. I took an RTA before the install began to show the response. The sad thing is that the entire stock system could not break over 110 dB.

myron

iTrader: (4)

I thought it was one or the other

Is this woofer in the IB setup SPL or SQ oriented?

Electrodynamic

Both really. It has a lot of SQ characteristics from my old Mag v3 subwoofers and also does really well in the SPL lanes. It's also much less expensive! The Obsidian subwoofers sound really good and when you want to crank them up they have no problem handling the power. Over the years I've learned a lot and put a great deal of that knowledge into these beastly entry level subwoofers.

I hate cars

That's definitely next on my list.

I was going to go but with the cruise and everything else going on my vacation time is getting short, money is short, and the timing belt is due. Otherwise I would love to go.

If something changes I'll definitely let you know, I would love to hear your car. Got to get my phone back so I can get back in contact with you.

niebur3

Any T/S parameters available?

I hate cars

Measurements would be awesome. How's the SQ? Do you know of a decent cheap meter for SPL and an RTA?

Electrodynamic

They are posted up on our web page here, http://obsidiancaraudio.com/index.php?id=6.

Here are specs right out of the box:

Obsidian 12" D2:
Re: 4.0 Ohm
Fs: 33 Hz
Qms: 5.21
Qes: 0.56
Qts: 0.51
Vas: 34.4
Le: 2.21 mH
BL: 19.1
SPL: 85.4 dB
Sd: 490 cm^2
Mms: 243.1 g
Xmax: 18mm
Xmech: 36mm

Obsidian 15" D2
Re: 4.0 Ohm
Fs: 32 Hz
Qms: 4.5
Qes: 0.63
Qts: 0.55
Vas: 74.5
Le: 2.21 mH
BL: 20.0
SPL: 88 dB
Sd: 856 cm^2
Mms: 307.2 g
Xmax: 18mm
Xmech: 36mm

...and here are parameters from the 15" immediately after being broken in for a very long time:

Re: 4.08 Ohms
Fs: 30.39 Hz
Qes: 0.62
Qms: 4.86
Qts: 0.55
Le: 3.91 mH
Diam: 330.2 mm
Vas: 84.95 L
BL: 20.55 TM
Mms: 336 g
SPL: 87.59 1W/1M (not the cheater 2.83 v method)

Electrodynamic

I'll get SPL measurements soon.

The RTA we use is an XTZ analyzer that not only does real-time RTA, but also a "slow" or averaged RTA, and also has the ability to measure and display room/vehicle spectral decay plots.

And the SPL meter we use is the Term Lab. I don't like skimping out on measurement equipment. Actually the XTZ analyzer isn't very expensive at all ($249) considering what all it is capable of measuring.

The SQ on the Obsidian subs is very nice. Having said that you will not get a "this sub sounds better than X, Y, or Z sub" from me because reproduced sound quality as perceived by the listener is one of the most important criteria for the preference of a product. SQ is entirely subjective and even double blind tests can be time consuming and expensive - all of which relies heavily on the training of the listener(s). Do the Obsidian subwoofers sound good? IMO, yes they sound very good. The major goal behind them from the beginning was to envelop the sound characteristics from my Mag v3 design while making the subwoofer more affordable and just as loud if not louder. All of the latter has been accomplished. The Obsidian's play low...very low, work in small boxes, can handle considerably more power than what they are rated/warrantied for, sound very good (a lot of thanks to the low inductance voice coil it has), possess the capability to get very loud (I'm doing a 149.6 with one 15), and are 3x less expensive than the Mag v3's were.

And honestly, for $138 it can't be beat!

eggyhustles

Not to thread jacK, but any updates on the si bm?

Best shallow mount i've ever heard

Electrodynamic

Nope, we're still having trouble finding someone that can make them since our previous resources have become amazingly unreliable.

eggyhustles

Sorry to hear that. It sucks when you can't depend on someone and it ends up effecting business & money.

jda123

How are you guys going to keep stuff from your trunk from getting into those baskets? ...or having stuff stick to the magnets. IB is intriguing for people who use their trunk a lot, but people who use their trunks have stuff in it that can do damage.

Would speaker cloth be enough?

I hate cars

Suitcases aren't a problem, too big to get into anything. I usually don't take my car to grocery stores but last time I did, I put the big stuff like a family pack of toilet paper in first. This is one reason I mounted them with the magnets toward the trunk unlike some where the cones are in the trunk. Now that setup I would be terrified of something destroying the sub. The centerline of ths sub is pretty much center of the trunk so the cone sits quite a ways from the trunk floor. This is obviously a valid concern but I think the odds of something actually making it's way to the cone are slim to none.

I'm still super happy to have 90% of my trunk back again. I got so used to a 3 cubic foot box that left about a foot of trunk. You don't even see the subs when you're standing right behind the car loading stuff, you have to stoop down or back up a little to see them.

Electrodynamic

+1

Unless you're hauling around metal rods in your trunk you don't have to worry about anything sticking to the motor. Also, something would have to be very small in order to find its way into one of the basket openings! You would have to be trying to shove something in there.

Electrodynamic

Also, we are going to start using an SPL-labs meter instead of the Term Lab. The TermLab is a pain in the d!ck to use from one computer to another and we are honestly getting tired of messing around with it.

We have found another meter that is deadly accurate and will be using it from now on. The other great feature is that it costs about half what a TermLab does! Here is the web site for the SPL Labs meter: http://www.spllabusa.com/

niebur3

You can do what I did and build a false wall!

djtsmith007

iTrader: (1)

Electrodynamic

I mentioned using the XTZ RTA before I began the installation. Here is an image taken of the RTA using pink noise with the stock system and all audio settings set to zero. There are no major issues besides the rise at 800 Hz and that it falls on its face above 8k Hz (which is pretty typical of stock stereo systems). Note that this was also full tilt, so volume and impact out of the factory sub stage was a major issue.

Electrodynamic

...and since apparently I'm too new to edit my post, here is the link to the XTZ analyzer. You can read up on what all it is capable of and see pricing information as well: http://www.xtz.se/uk/products/mearur...ed=true&stat=1

xxx_busa

Seriously installed drivers on Chip Board??? These is absolutely no support there, Looks nice finished,
Use MDF lite or standard ..better deadening !!!

Electrodynamic

I think you meant to say "this is not supported here" instead of These is absolutely no support there. But you can say what you will until you hear this system.

Electrodynamic

...unless you meant to say "there is no support there." Hard to tell when the English is not correct. And if you're referring to the support for the woofer, there is plenty of support with the two braces in place. The sub 20 Hz response and the sound quality speaks volumes for the validity of the install.

jda123

Laminate OSB is used in 500K+ homes around here for both I-Joists and quietfloor subflooring. It is nearly impervious to humidity and will not swell; unless it get soaked (as in a flood), it is stronger that plywood and just about any wood composite mix. I think that they can go 30 feet with an OSB I-Joist. The fact that they call it quiet floor can speak towards it's acoustic ability... that and all of the glue and resin in the board does not squeal when ducts, pipes and nails are up against it like wood will.

I am pretty sure that it can handle a subwoofer if used correctly.

GldCrzy

so infinite baffle is just a sub that supports that setup mounted to a wall?