Quinchu

Well when I get my Rx8 back out of the shop from its accident I'm going to be adding a new sound system, I just wanted to post up the specs and let everyone pick away at it. Its going to be professionally installed by me

Headunit: After careful consideration on the head unit I've decided to go with the F90BT, instead of the AvicF900BT for the sheer factor of the 4v Pre-outs.
- DDin Pioneer AvicF90BT
- Metra DDin Kit for the RX8

Front: Going to go with 6.5" speakers, and use Lexan to cover the existing holes. Also going to mount the tweeter in the same location as stock.
- 6.5 Speakers: Polk SR6500 Component
- With Tweeter + Crossover

Rear: Going to use the same speakers but with a 6x9 Mountint bracket. And the tweeter still the same spot as the stock one.
- 6x9 Speakers: Polk SR6500 Component (6x9 Mounting Bracket)
- With Tweeter + Crossover

Subwoofer(s): I remember seeing someone with something like this in they're sig, but here's what I want to do. I'm getting 2 8" subs, that plastic piece that attaches to the rear portion of the center console, I'm going to remove it, and reinforce the plastic with fiberglass, and custom fit the 2 8" subs facing foward into the car itself. (Very good idea who ever it was that I saw!!)
- 2x Polk MM2084

Center: That one stupid little 3" speaker in the dash is going to be switched out for a set of Polk tweeters. Custom made bracket to hold them facing the windshield (Will still have the stock look to it)
- Polk db1001

Amplifier(s): Mounted on a custom made surround in the trunk of the car, probably with an assortment of LED's (Haven't made up my mind on the LED's) 400x4 -Actual- 565 wattsx4, and the 300x2 -Actual- 470x2.
- 4 Channel: Polk C400.4
- 2 Channel: Polk C300.2

Misc: Wires and bullshit!
- 1500watt Tsunami Ampkit (4 Gague wire)
- 2 Farad Tsunami Capacitor
- 4 Channel Tsunami Competition RCA's
- 2 Channel Tsunami Competition RCA's

Total Cost: Insane, but better with discounts

Soo what do y'all think? Decent plan for the setup?

Edit:
I went looking around the forum to see who's sig that was and its Renesis07. So for the record thats where I got the idea from, except 2 8's instead of that 12" (Or is it a 10")

TheBurkeMan

this is gonna be sick, and it's gonna sound awesome!!!

And yes the total cost is going to be insane!!!

cody6766

it looks like a pretty good lineup, but you're wasting your time and money mounting tweets in the center hole. It won't get you anything but highs out of nowhere and off balance. In car audio, more speakers !=good most of the time.

Quinchu

I was just going to do the single 3" speaker in there like it is now, but if you use 2 tweeters pointing at the windshield then the sound reflection is spread out, thus sounding like a center channel. The 3" speaker thats in it now, or even an aftermarket one will put out a small amount of bass which is something I don't want..

Plus with my discount its only $20 for the pair of tweeters and a dual crossover for it, and I also work there so I'm not wasting any time at all doing the install

EDIT:
- With this I hope to be sponsored by polk. My last car was, and I think this one can be too.

TheBurkeMan

how do you actually go about getting sponsored by polk?
do you just put all of there stuff in your car?

Quinchu

About 2 years ago I put a full setup in my 99 Accord Coupe, it was at a show and the polk rep walks up to it and asked me if I wanted to be sponsored. From then on out it was new equipment every 6 months, and the more sound my little accord got

Ended up with 4000 watts in my trunk for subs, and 1500 watts for the highs.
2 pair 6x9's in the back dash, 2 pair 6x1/2 (Component) in the doors, 2 pair 3" speakers in my dash, 1 pair 6x1/2 component in the kick panels, and 4 pair 1x1/2 custom fit tweeters in the headliner.

They liked how it looked, and I showed up at shows, and they sent me goodies

But I'm not going that far in the 8, I just want a clean sound that I can listen to... and sometimes turn it up enough for other people to listen to

TheBurkeMan

that's pretty cool, i hope it works out for you.

Socket7

I put a 3.5 inch JL TR co-axial speaker in the front center. The real question becomes how you get a center channel signal for it. You can't just use the left or right channel or you throw off your stereo imaging.

Vyndictive

iTrader: (28)

You have to post some pics of the install and the completed project when you're finished.
Are you doing the install work?

Quinchu

Socket7: I was doing 2 tweeters with separate crossovers for each one, so they could be both hooked up to different channels. Thus keeping the entire system together. If only one speaker is run then it will offset the amp, and cause a difference in the volume of the channel its running off of.

Vyndictive: All the work will be done by me, I work for Circuit City in Louisiana as the head install tech, so I have a bay to work in with all the needed tools. And when all the equipment comes in, and I get my car out of the shop I'll get one of my friends with an SLR to come take some pictures of the install process. Its going to be at least 24 hours of work all together. Or at least thats what I'm thinking anyways.

TheBurkeMan

what front center speaker are you talking about

laythor

the speaker that's in the center of the front of the car... take a look and you'll see it.

TheBurkeMan

i honestly dont know what you're talking about, i dont have one. i dont know if you're being serious about the center speaker because i know you can put them in later as an aftermarket, but i didn't know the came stock.

Quinchu

It may just be the Bose systems that have that center channel in the dash. Not sure. I know the bose system has the 9 speaker system, and the standard system has the 4 speaker system.

Could be the main difference.

TheBurkeMan

yeah that's what it is. i've got the base and it only has 4 speakers. where is that center speaker actually at though, i've never seen one.

Quinchu

Above the radio theres that piece of plastic (Where the aftermarket Navi hood would go) that goes all the way to the windshield. Well it comes off with a little bit of work, and there is a speaker setting for it in the dashboard. Its a pain in the *** to get in and out, but its well worth the work because you get a nice all around sound after your finished installing / upgrading one!

TheBurkeMan

so it's like a stealth thing because you can't see it, because the plastic covers it back up...that's pretty cool

Quinchu

Exactly, and my plan is to make it look as stock as possible, so I'm going to use every stock location except for the subs between the rear seats.

cody6766

I know what you're going for, but it won't work well that way. The center bose channel is processed to work as a center channel. It's probably just a combined mono signal, but it's designed into the system to function a certain way.

imagine a home theater where you have your left and right positioned and then just add two tweets above the TV. You wouldn't get clear separation between L and R signals when the music calls for it and you'll get an odd, dispersed effect when the music calls for a centered sound.

Have a look at any competition level sound quality car and you will be very unlikely to see a center channel. If there is one, they'll be using some sort of processor to allow it to truely function as a center instead of being a misplaced L and R. You'd be surprised how well you can dial in an accurate and high center image just from careful positioning of your drivers and maybe some time alignment. In my previous car, and in a few other cars I've installed in, the center image sounded like the singer was sitting on the hood of the car, dead center. I did this with and w/o time alignment and with and w/o kick panels.

There is enough room in the doors to aim your mids/tweets to work as close to a set of well designed kick panels as possible. Most deficiencies here could be cleared up by making sure you buy a deck with time alignment.

A lot can be done with your sound stage if you take the time to actually aim and tweak your system instead of just tossing drivers in the doors.

It's your car, so do what you wish. I just think you're going to be let down by the center effect you're reaching for.

ayrton012

If you don't want to disturb the "stereo picture" with the center, you have to cut the low and the higher frequencies. The real mono center ampfiliers do the same.

I could not get such a low power mono center ampfilier, so I use two 2 coll mid speakers in my car. It was needed because of I used one speakers, the bridged amp channels would be too strong even in 8 Ohm with two speaker.

So I use two mid speakers close to fit together, so its like a mono sounding, and the most important, they only get the 600-5000 Hz frequency range. I made the cutting with the amp's crossover card.

Before I installed the centers I ordered a non Bose center panel.

WikkedOne

I would just like to say, good choice going with the 4V pre outs I'm jealous!

Quinchu

So I got a total, its gonna be 1494.86 shipped for everything, amps / speakers / indash navi. And I have all the rest of the equipment needed for the install, including the dash kit from metra.

I was actually thinking about the center channel idea, and called pioneer about it. Apparently they can custom make a f900bt with a center channel (I know one of the guys in the pioneer tech dept). Its going to have 4v preout rca's for sub's, front, rear, and center (Can also be used as a rear channel). I also ordered another 400x4 polk audio momo amp, and its going to be running one channel as the center speaker. I wanted to leave the capacity to be able to add in a rear channel if the situation ever arose where I wanted to get a little more sound.

The SR series are all on back order so I won't be getting the speakers for at least a month, and the amps are shipping now. Pioneer is making the deck and should be here in about 2 weeks or so.

I did have a question though, I see on the newer models of the RX8 they have an antenna on the top of the vechile apparently for the radio / and sirius radio. I called Mazda and they told me that they didn't have them for sale. Does anyone know where I could get a similar antenna but with added GPS antenna?

I don't want the navi antenna, and the sirius antenna on top of my car, just want one clean looking one to do all of the above!

Thanks!

WikkedOne

I've seen at least one person put the entenna inside the dash - near where the center channel speaker is.. it worked for them.. I have mine on my trunk.. I think it looks cool with a GPS / XM / and Sirius antenna on there... (NOT)

do some searching.. lots of things have been tried... most have worked.

Quinchu

Yea, we've done it before where everything was hidden in the vehicle, the GPS antenna can operate below a dash, but there can be -nothing- metal in the way of it. If there's plastic then the signal will travel through it. Also this would mean that I wouldn't be able to place that center channel where its suppose to be. The antenna is decently large for the F900BT.

When it comes in I'm going to try somethings to get it to work. But right now the main problem is the sirius antenna. That thing is round huge and ugly, lol.