That's not a bad idea. Right now if I crank it up, I even get a loud rattle on the outside of the car from the midbass, I think it's either the door hitting the glass or the mirror or some linkage or something inside the door. I'm probably not going to do anything right away, there's a very good chance everything will be up for sale soon.

 

Sell everything? Naww you should compete in SQ. I bet you could win a few.

 

Actually you would want to decouple the two skins! This will transfer vibrations to the outer skin, although if outer skin is heavily dampened it may work somehow

 

Maybe, but theoretically by having braces in there, especially if you can get them close to the woofer the vibrations will be reduced. Like a card box, you can crush in the sides easily when it only connected by the ends but after you put a few crossbeams in it it it's much, much stronger. The pressure / force is distributed over the whole object.

 

Matt, how did you seaden the upper console and rearview? I know the rearview and interior lights piece is gonna rattle - it already does without my new audio system....

To OP: Here is my build thread going on right now if you want any additional ideas in addition to the many other great build threads on here. Several of us have gone the infinite baffle route (mine in progress as we speak!) for subs that you may want to consider. Also awesome that you got free SDS material! I contacted Don at SDS and love his site but ultimately am just using what my installer has. If I were putting in an acoustic barrier (MLV) in addition to the dampending CLDs I'd definitely go with SDS!

Also - from what I've heard the 3sixty.3 is quite good, I got my PS8 for $725 and it's considered the best on the market currently, so that's another option for a couple hundred more. Allows for extremely fine tuning, down to .1 db increments on each equalizer band.

 

And the moment everyones been waitig for!......


Its an 08 Acura TL Non-Navi.

What're my options, GO!

I've put in a return request for the Pioneer DEH80-prs. Should I continue down that road? It seems the JBL MS8 and the 3sixty seem to be within my price range. Don't really feel like decking out 725 for a processor. The MS8 I've heard is easier to use overall vs the 3sixty. I like easy, especially since I'm not super knowledgeable, just been doing research and talking on forums the last few months.

 

Both Matt (i hate cars) and Jerry (niebur3) had MS8s and didn't like them, from what I read. I haven't heard either but I'd trust that opinion. So between those two I'd choose the 3sixty for sure. You may also want to get a used Audison Bit One for around the same price. It's a higher performing unit than either of those.

 

bout time sheesh!<<- sarcasm
I have an 06 but on the 07-08 I think there's a mic in the back that needs to be disabled or it can wreak havoc on your aftermarket system. Do a search or maybe somebody else will chime in with more specifics.
As far as processors go I have the 3sixty.3 and really like it. I paid a little over $400 for mine new and it has a lot of processing capability for the money. Sure there's others that are "better" and can be considerably more expensive but once you reach a certain level of functionality its really starting to split hairs imo. Like going a 160 mph vs 150 mph. They're both very fast... Trust me I've done a 150 mph before and it's fast. lol. but that's another topic. Things like proper speaker installation are more important. You can have a $1000 processor but if you leave a gap around a door speaker allowing the back wave to interfere with the front it's still gonna sound like crap. Almost all of the dsp's out there have certain quirks, and the 3sixty.3 is no different but once you know what they are you're good to go. With any dsp the first thing you'll want to do is update the firmware. After you get your system tuned good turn the DSP off and on during the song and you'll hear what a night/day difference there is. A dsp is the next best thing you do to any system after adding subs.
Also, I would set aside about $150 for a good mic like the dayton emm-6 and a preamp like the Art dual USB pre . Then get a copy of TrueRTA and find a couple target curves to play with and have fun. I run 16ft usb and xlr cables from the car in the garage to the kitchen table and tune my system while I'm having a cup of coffee.
Here's a link to some popular target curves.
http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/...omparison.html

 

Yeah, it is about time. And you've only known me for 2 days. i've been waiting for a car for 2 months!

I don't think I'll be getting too high tech into this stuff guys...as much as I enjoy the hobby and learn more every day. I just want to have a basic system, tune it with some help from some forums/youtube/google. Then if I want to get down diggity into the whole thing I'll start trying to aim for a "flat curve".

The objective is...as long as I'm happy.

 

Several of us also started out with the best of intentions of having a simple fairly low-cost system, then got sucked in... I'm really just getting started - done lots of research but don't even have my install complete yet! I read a lot of the threads with Matt (i hate cars) and he started back in like '09 as a newb and kept upgrading his system until he has one of the best on the forum.

I think most people end up being happy with a simple install, though.

 

I'm not afraid to use my money, just rather see what I can do with $1200 (Which is a good budget IMO) and if I ever want to upgrade I know where to come learn and get good opinions.

If I were to go with the 3sixty.3, how does the installation go about? Same as a HU? Get a wiring harness, hook it up, plug in RCA cables from amps?

 

You remind me of me about 4 or 5 months ago. lol. I've been into car stereos since I was a teenager, nothing serious, but stopped messing with it about 10 years ago. Then recently decided to just do a mild upgrade bc lets face it, ELS or not, the stock TL system kinda sucks. So I put in some infinity's and a basslink sub. Fast forward and now I have two 15's infinite baffle, dyn audio components and about to go with a 3-way setup and 3rd amp giving me about 1800w total rms power to the speakers. Over kill? I don't think so it's all good fun and the extra power is for 'dynamics' lol.

 

You would use the front left / right channels off the HU before the factory amp put some RCA ends on it to go into the 3sixty with. From there run whatever you need to your amp(s). I used this.
Rockford Fosgate RFI2SW Adapts High Level Speaker to Low Level RCA Adapter

 

Again, what would I change besides a second sub, more amps, 3 way? That would be the next step down the line after I fiddled with what I have now.

 

So if I went and purchased a 3sixty.3 today, is there ANYTHING I will need besides that? I thoroughly appreciate the help I've been given by you guys. Alot of nice looking builds. Exactly why I got a TL, alot of room to toy around with.

 

Only thing additional you'd need is a really good ear to tune it with or go the easy route and get a mic and preamp.

Yeah the TL is a great car to work with imo. Easy and straight forward. It's also perfect for infinite baffle. I don't know if you ever heard subs in IB before but if you upgrade anything else I would suggest going with IB first. I think once you hear how good it can sound you'll never want to go back to a sub in box... and it hardly takes up any space in the trunk. Perfect for one or two 15's. I have 15's because they don't need to move very much to get a lot of output so distortion is practically non-existent with them.. and let tell you it sounds so clean.

 

I just started digging around on IB subs only because my cousin has a pair of Kenwood KFC-W3013PS, sealed, that I was told that they spec out to be IB subs. I'd love to take up less room =). The first thing I was going to do was mess around with boxes once every few months or so, or if I just disliked it overall.

 

I'd skip the boxes and go straight to IB it's not that difficult to do if you have some basic power tools. I posted a template with measurements that I used for my baffle in a thread somewhere. The baffle itself will only weigh 10 -20lbs depending on what size the sub hole(s) are and the only trunk space you lose is whatever the sub displaces. In IB you generally only need 1/2 the recommend rms watts and it's a good idea to use a subsonic filter as there's no 'air spring' there to protect the sub from bottoming. Your mono amp may have one already.

 

I've already got the box built, sealed, ready to go.

So I'll mess with a few other designs once I want to.

 

I agree with Greg on this one. A DSP can make a huge difference if you use it correctly. It doesn't matter if you have the best speakers in the world. Once you put them in a vehicle, it all goes to hell. This can be mitigated to an extent with speaker placement and install, but the characteristics of the inside of your vehicle is still going to be a dominant factor on the sound. Once you look at the un-EQ'd frequency response of your vehicle this will quickly become apparent.

If you don't plan on getting measurement equipment you should buy a processor with an auto-tune feature like the MS-8 or one of the Alpine units. I know people like to talk about tuning by ear, but in reality without taking measurements, you are really just guessing - and are probably guessing wrong.

If you do plan on taking measurements there are lots of good DSP's with manual tuning that will work great. One that hasn't been mentioned is the Zapco DSP-Z8. I think it retails for around $500 and can likely be found for less than that. I saw a brand new one for $385 recently. Also, The Rockford 360.3 looks to have everything you would ever need from a feature standpoint.

Gregg, so did you pick up the EMM-6 and ART Dual Pre? If so, how do you like it?

 

So Greg, at your recommendation I ordered a calibrated Behringer mic. Every time I think I'm done sinking money into the system, something else comes up! LOL.

I have yet to decide on the pre-amp stage. I'm leaning towards the Blue Icicle. I was tempted to get the Dayton UMM-6 which has the USB pre-amp built-in but apparently it has a little higher noise floor.

 

Yep, got them along with TrueRTA level 4 shortly after talking to you. It's pretty nice. After figuring out the best crossover slopes and t/a tuning is easy. Now I know I'm doing it right and not wasting time pretending like I an expert tuner with a golden ear. Lol. I can tune to target curve from the comfort of my kitchen table in 30 minutes or so while I'm having a cup of coffee. Right now I have presets 1-3 on 3sixty configured with Andy's (jbl), Crutchfield's and Audyssey's with t/a for the driver's position and the 4th preset flat w/ no DSP just for comparison.

 

Haha. hey consider it a good investment. Look at it this way, two regular people could spend thousands of dollars on nice fishing boats and poles, rods, lures the whole 9 yards. But one guy spends a little bit more and invests in a good fish finder. The other guy doesn't. Guess who's gonna have the most success and be catching more fish? The guy who can see where the fish are obviously. Yeah the other guy will still catch some too but it's going to take him a lot longer and with a lot more trial, error and frustration along the way. The nice thing is this technology is affordable to the average person.
I believe by the time you're done researching it you'll have picked a good pre-amp.

 

Nice! Yea, tuning is a fairly straightforward process, but it can get fairly time consuming, especially when you're measuring and EQing each driver individually. The main issue I have is accidentally draining my battery dead while tuning with the engine off I have an external power supply now that I use to prevent that from happening, but I still occasionally forget and need a jump. I hadn't messed with my car stereo for a long time because I finally got it sounding really good, but recently I've been working on my home stereo and using Room EQ Wizard so I figured I would try it out in my car and I really like it. I'll post up some of the results when I get a chance. (I'll post those in my active tuning thread so as not to further clutter this one with off topic discussion - Sorry OP)

 

Why did you place the mic so that it is pointing up at the ceiling?

 

haha yeah that was when I was first playing with it and didn't have any thing to position the mic with. At first I had the base of the mic wedged under the seat head rest pointing forward but it kept falling down. then i found a bolt that fit in the stand mount and just stuck it in there temporarily. I probably should of mentioned that. Now I have a longer bolt with a big washer on it that goes behind the head rest. Works for now I guess.

 

So despite my earlier picture which was when I first got the mic and was playing around with the RTA. This is how I've actually been using it. Yep, not really ideal either as it's positioned too low and forward.





So today while I was at home depot picking up lawn fertilizer I decided to grab a some stuff to make a mic stand. This is what I came up with. Cost me about $6 in parts. It's nothing fancy but the mic can be adjusted up and down and forward and back for better positioning.

 

Glad my thread got taken over by things that aren't even affiliated with my topic.

Purchased an MS-8. Heard some TL owners have some issues, some don't. As long as I unplug the mic and hook up the signal (before) the amp? I've read hooking it after the amp creates issues.

 

Before the amp. All you need to use is the front left and right channels unless you want the navi prompts, use the center too. Level match using the gains on your amps as best as you can before running a calibration.

 

hey guys dont forget the Zapco products, The DSP8 is a great value and the performance is there, My 2 modded dsp6's have never had issue's

and fast 150mph, - PLEASE - try spinning the dial on a modded BUSA.......
I had high speed recall and the speed-0 commander for correct speed calibration and one insane late night for 96 seconds I did warp speed with the dial pegged.....estimated at 186-191

my old bike !!!

 

Nice bike! And insane is right. Glad your still alive after that. My old CBR 600 wouldn't go past 145. The 150 was in a 600hp twin turbo supra on a stretch of hwy in the mountains of UT. The car had more but I ran out of hwy and I was just waiting for a deer to dash out in front of me. I never really had the desire to do it again.

 

Alrighty - Thanks for the help. Set gains before calibration. Check!