I need some advice on how to install a set of component speakers. I scored an awesome deal on Crutchfield for Black Wednesday, Infinity reference 6820cs for $89.99 (normally $199.99) (SALE ENDS 11/30 at midnight!).

I had asked about this a few months back, but that thread was lost in... the crash. Based on that thread, I'm going to install the tweeters in the A-pillars. But, where is the best place to install the crossovers?

 

I didn't see the other thread, but I'm wondering why the extra effort to install the tweeters in the A-pillar? I've seen them installed there many times and always wondered why.

From an audio standpoint, the mid and high transducers should be as close to each other as possible, with the intent of having as little blockage as possible. On our cars the door speakers can have a lot of blockage, so getting the tweeters up would help. On the a-pillar, however, they will be on a different axis than the mids. From an audio standpoint that can cause a lot of problems, in addition to being a more complicated installation.

I haven't gone out and looked at my car, but I would think the best place would be at the top-front of the door panel. This would also be an easier install (I think), and the x-overs could just be mounted behind the door panel.

I'm sure there are different opinions on this, and I'm not a car audio expert, but I do record and mix 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound for television and film, and I wouldn't want sound from the same source (L/R) coming from different locations, on different axes... especially if complicates installation.

 

I know that when i install my components i am going to use 5x7s for the mids and i will cut a hole in the empty space between the speaker grill and the top of the door panel.

 

that's probably the way I'm going to go, but still not sure where to mount the crossovers. I guess it will probably be in the door somewhere, where theres a big enough gap between the metal and the plastic panel

 

Anyone have a good place to mount the crossovers?

 

I created an adapter plate out of MDF to fit the 6 x 8 opening. I was able to mount the tweeter and crossover on the plate. With another adapter, I put the 6.5” component woofer in place of the 8” factory woofer. It sounds great with a 12” sub in the trunk.

 

What's MDF? I bought 6x8 woofers so I could mount it in the door opening. I also wanted to keep the subs. That's a pretty cool solution though, you probably didn't have to drill into the door panel at all. What did you do for speaker grilles on the woofers? Got any pics?

I did the install yesterday afternoon (went suprisingly quick). I could explain what I did in 5000 words. OR I could give you 5 pics
Original speaker:





Speaker baffle:

New woofer in the door: Note the crossover location. I put it in a plastic bag to keep moisture from inside the door from getting into it. They suggested it in the directions. I'm not using any amps, so I doubt these things are going to really heat up at all.




Finished!!

 

Pic of it with the door closed. But nice!

 

Looks good... but the REAL question is, how does it sound?

 

Your install looks great. Nice job.

Just to close the loop, MDF is an easy to use 1/4" fiberboard I got from Home Depot. Below are a couple of pictures of the 6.5" woofer with and without the factory trim ring. The factory grills stick out a little more than normal, but I'm the only person that notices it. The tweeter is mounted at the upper most portion of the 6 x 8 location. The crossover is mounted below the tweeter facing the inside of the door.

 

Ah...Ok. I see. That's pretty sweet. If I decide to upgrade the subs in the future, I'm going to try to retain the stock look.

I'll try to get some pics after work tomorrow with the doors closed. It's dark out by 4:30 now, so I have to get out early and take pics as soon as I get home.

As far as sound goes: not quite what I was expecting. I was hoping for a huge difference in stereo imaging, to be enveloped by the music...but I'm not really seeing it. It could be either where the tweeters are located or just the music itself. I'm leaning towards the latter because on certain songs, you actually feel really surrounded by the music and hear instruments around you, which definitely wasn't the case before.

That said, it's really clear now. The highs are stong without being too shrill. There's huge definition in the treble, and you can hear the smallest nuances now. Turn up the volume a little and you can actually pick out all of the instruments individually. On the old speakers, the bass guitar would be so muddy I couldn't really pick it out. And the bass response on the speakers are phenominal compared with those pioneers. I've had to turn down the bass on the EQ to compensate. And one of the best things yet...I can crank the volume and they don't distort up to levels just before my ears start bleeding from the tweeters.

 

Ok, FINALLY got home before dark today, so here are the pics with the doors closed:

 

I'm no audio expert either.... Sometimes you can get better imaging with your tweeters in the A-pillars and it will actually sound better even with the off-axis and phase issues. It's a bit like how it can be better to put speakers down in the kick panels if you can so they are more equidistant to your ears, even though it seems counter-productive to put them so low.

 

Hey Cavero - what chrome trim rings are those on the subs? And - are those the SHR window switch panels? If so, what finish is that? Also, I don't see the tweeters in the install pics - where and how did you mount them? Do they just mount in the plastic door panel? How hard was the wiring - pretty straightforward? I'm considering this component system as well - it's $119 on Crutchfield right now. Is it a noticable improvement over stock speakers in sound quality? Car looks great btw. TIA

 

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.as...ingid=29792961 <-- $115 shipped

Crutchfield's shipping is $10.99, so it's actually 130.98 shipped from crutchfield

 

The tweeters are the little speakers mounted in the doors directly forward of the door handles. I had to buy a 1 1/4 inch hole saw and <wince> cut holes in my door panels. The mounting brackets were originally painted silver (and looked cheap) so I spray painted them satin black with the left-over krylon from doing my tail lights.

The subwoofer trim rings are from Latemodel Restoration Supply, along with the mirror switch ring. The speaker surrounds were about $95, located here:
http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/item/AA-MIRCV150

The HVAC ***** and the cup holder bezel are the only SHR items I have. The door lock trim is Scott Drake, and the shifter bezel is Ford ($140, partscheap.com).

Wiring is really straight forward. Crutchfield gives you an adapter to plug into the original factory connection for the front speakers, and then follow Infinity's directions for how to hook up everything to the crossover (really easy).

As far as sound goes: I upgraded from stock to Pioneer 4-ways 2 years ago and they sounded a lot better than stock on the Shaker 500. Both in the bass and treble areas. Upgrading from the Pioneers to this component system was a similar jump. There was a HUGE difference. But I'm also not using the Shaker system anymore.

 

Cavero,
Where did you get the door panels with the thin red highlight? Is that from the factory?

 

Those are stock IUP door panels, I added the red piping myself. They call it welt. You cut to length and press it into the seam between the vinyl insert and the plastic panel. I got mine from another forum member I ran into at Tillman Speed during a dyno run. I know you can still get welt, I'm just not sure where. It's cheap though, only $20.

 

Its funny, I was at the dealer last week and the service manager did a double-take and asked "it didn't come from the factory with the speakers like that, did it?" Best compliment I could ask for

 

Looks great!