just got my z back from a killer install by a well-known audio guy out here in the bay area. i will write more soon, but for now will let the pictures do the talking. the setup sounds amazing. everything i asked for and more.
i'll see if i can't get my installer Bing to join the forum and participate in this thread, as he's a very helpful and knowledgeable guy with tons of build experience. he should be able to answer any questions you guys have about the build.
here is the build log written by Bing for diymobileaudio.com (
link):
*****
Hey gang,
As some of you may know, I used to work on a TON of 350zs...for a while it seemed like I was doing nothing but 350zs and G35s...rough estimate is that over the years, I have touched about 35-40 of each model lol...it got to the point that I stopped going to those car forums because it was getting a bit repetitive.
So now, it’s been over a year since my last Z, and finally, I get to lay my hands on a new 370Z...a car I have wanted to do since it was released since it seems to be much better suited for sound quality than the old model.
This car came in on a pretty low budget, and was suppose to receive just a simple passive front and sub layout, but after giving it some thought to the fact that it’s my first 370Z...I decided to donate a Zapco DSP6-SL to the build...
at the time of this post, the customer still has no idea that he’s getting a active system with a DSP, hopefully he doesn't visit this forum, or else the surprise will be ruined haha
Anyway, onto the goals:
1. Achieve a decent level of sound quality, this is not a comp car, just clean daily listening as the stock system is TERRIBLE!
2. Build a clean looking design in the hatch with ZERO loss of trunk space...not about being showy here...just sturdy and usable.
3. retain the OEM spare tire and have the ability to access it with relative ease
Obviously, the last two design criteria presented the biggest challenge...as we didn’t want to raise the floor at all...
Let’s get started:
The signal source starts with a customer supplied Alpine INA-W910 navigation headunit, it is installed in the stock location with the Metra kit:
The Alpine USB extension is routed to the cubby above the headunit, the supplied IPod adapter allows the customer to play either a USB drive or iPod/iPhone:
The customer also supplied me with a pretty cool back up camera that is designed to go in place of the rear passenger side license plate light...it snaps into place just like the OEM piece, still retains the light, and adds a low profile camera:
As the car uses a Zapco DSP6, all tuning is done from the front seat via a laptop:
The front stage consists of a set of Focal Polyglass 165 V30 6.5" two way component set. This 30th anniversary model is a step up on the normal 165VR. The tweeters were mounted into baffles cut to match the stock "tweeter" baskets:
and mounted to the stock location at the top corners of the dash...this to me is a much better stock location than the tiny sail panel of the 350z:
The 6.5" midbass went into the stock lower door locations, and new speaker wires were run into the door through the stock molex plug:
Here again the 370 makes it easier than the 350z, with big blank section in the plug that can be drilled out to pass the wires through and there is no window jutting down behind the speaker opening to cut into the mounting depths:
New baffles were fabricated for the midbass and coated with truck bedliner to protect them against the elements:
The door was then sound proofed and the baffle installed via stock bolts:
Here is a close up of the V30 midbass:
The speaker installed into the door:
The same procedure was repeated on the driver side door:
Here are some pics of the wiring bundles as they go from the front to the back of the car:
Moving onto the trunk, so here is the view with everything covered up, as you can see, the hatch looks pretty much 100 percent stock, the stock carpet still fits and the rings for cargo tie down are still exposed, overall height in case is around 1/4", basically from the thickness of the new fake floor:
Remove the carpet and here is what you see, a new fake floor wrapped in black trunk liner, divided into four sections, with two cutouts.
remove the two covers and here is what you see, two Arc Audio's new Xdi mini full range class D amps sit at the front, a 804 sends 80 watts a piece to the mids and tweeters, and a 1000.1 powers the sub with 700 watts at 2ohm. The sub is a Stereo Integrity BM MKIII.
The amps were chosen for their price point and more importantly, their tiny footprint, as they had to go into a unused space ahead of the strut brace area. the sub was chosen for its shallow mounting and its ability to work in TINY sealed enclosures. both the amps and the sub are trimmed in black CF for a lil visual pop. But again, things are dictated by functionality, not showiness.
Now you may noticed the four screw covers on the center section of the fake floor, they hide four bolts...and this leads to the system's little party trick, remove those four bolts and the center top floor panel comes out:
then you are left with the sub enclosure itself...which then can be lifted out to have full access to the spare tire. The side panels also release with Velcro and two screws each to access the tools if need be:
I timed myself and the entire process takes under 2 minutes and requires nothing more than a Philips screw driver. There is also enough extension on the subbox to rest it on the hatch opening:
This is a pretty weird view I guess of a sub enclosure
The enclosure is about .4-.45 cubic foot, which may sound small but the Si really have very little problem with it, as you will see later.