hello
this is what i have, a pioneer deh-1100 deck powering two 4x6 pioneer 2 ways in the dash, and 2 6x9 alpine 3 ways in the sail panels. Then ive got a 10" pioneer sub in a ported box [exactly 1.5 cubic feet of volume] driven by a 220 watt jensen amp....[soon to be an alpine m450 which i just purchased].

i am still unsatisfied with my system, i definetly would like more mid sound and maybe even more bass .... it seems so far away being in the trunk..

suggestions? .. from searching ive read that kick panel speakers have more gains than putting them in the doors. what about some tweeters somewhere? and i was toying with the notion of tearing out the back seats and building a single 12" ported box [probably 3' in volume] and have the sub centered between the seats....

im not an audio guy... so be gentle hahaha

Lee

 

kick panels and doors each have their pros and their cons. It's really up to you to decide how you prioritize the pros/cons.

In a nutshell, these are your pros/cons:

Doors Pros:
- Flattest frequency response from most commercially available car audio speakers.

Doors cons:
- You've got to build the doors out a mile
- Difficult to establish a good soundstage/imaging.

Kick Panel Pros:
- Best opportunity for good imaging/soundstage

Kick panel cons:
- Requires heavy equalization and/or crossover work to provide flat frequency response
- requires custom kick panels, or heavy modification to q-forms units for good sound
- can encroach on your foot space.

It looks like a lot of cons for the kick panels, but overall, my opinion is this: It's a lot easier to fix the frequency response issues associated with kick panel installation than it is to try to make door speakers image properly.

 

couldn't have said it any better. with the DSP's we have these days in even the most inexpensive decks, eq'ing is easier and more robust than it used to be.

 

oops, double post

 

Now if i could just get my hands on a spectrum analyzer...there's gotta be an app for that right?

 

A spectrum analyzer will only show you so much... it's very limited. It's taking an average over time, and only shows you a specific number of specific bands. A spectrum analyzer can't tell the difference between direct and reflected energy. This is very important to realize because our hearing is very good at "ignoring" the changes that come as a result of reflected energy, so if you equalize to get a flat response from a spectrum analyzer, it won't sound right. Additionally, a spectrum analyzer can't identify a high-Q spike or dip.

It is a very useful tool to help you work out an overall equalization curve, but won't help you identify specific problems. For that you need a more complex piece of equipment that can determine the frequency response from a burst response with a very short measurement duration. This will make it useless for low frequency response, but will give you a far better response for the critical midrange area.

 

Lee,

Just be aware that our doors are fairly flat and depending on the size (depth) of the speaker will determine how big the door buildout will be.

A good guy to talk to is Davis over at Selective Sounds in Mississauga (905-826-8998).

Here is a shot of my door buildouts. They will fit up to a 3" deep speaker. Bear in mind I had to cut a hole into the door.

 

Nice job on the door speakers, I read your comments, 3" deep. what size will work here? 6-1/2? What brand did you put in there that fits? I was thinking about doing 6-1/2" in the doors and same in the sail panels. or should i do 6-1/2 in doors and 6 x 9 in sail panels?

Thank you for your help.

 

when you're doing something custom, you can fit whatever you like. i did 6 1/2" speakers in the door with spacers, just nothing quite as nice looking as the project's setup. seeing as i own a 2-pedal car (auto has its benefits sometimes), I plan to do kick panels and throw in some 5 1/4" components up front and leave the sail panels for 8" subs (if i can get creative enough). If you want to keep your rear speakers, using 6 1/2" speakers with an adapter will open up a lot more options

 

Dan -

thank you. I plan on doing the 6-1/2 in the sail panels. Is there a depth I should keep in mind here?

Mark

 

I don't think you can have 6 1/2"s that are too deep for the sail panels, there's a lot of space back there (been a while since i measured though)

 

THANKS DAN