A fresh start
 

2 Stereo Integrity BM mkv subs on the way to replace my single mkiv... Gonna try to squeeze them in with a full on stealth install....

The title of the thread got me going. I thought you were taking all the Stereo Integrity out and putting in new drivers.

I see you want to compete with Chopz on SPL! :icon17: I think the two subs will fit back there with some creativity. I liked your set up before. I'm interested to see where you end up moving everything and placing another amp to power the extra sub. Any chance you want to buy my ST-850 XM II? lol

Edit: Actually I guess that ST-1000 would power both with no problem.

Glad you posted this since I didn't see that they were taking pre-orders for the MKV's... need to find a new enclosure since I currently have the WickedCAS corner enclosure for a 10".

My spl days are long past me. Chopz will be digging a little deeper with his 15" than I will....lol. And just for the record, I'm changing my will to have my SI speakers installed in my coffin, and system powered off a solar panel.:icon17:
They will fit, after a few hours of careful measurement last night, I've decided on 2 individual boxes, and some odd shapes to get the proper volumes. Its going to be tight trying to keep it all underneath a false floor.
I want to go completely stealth, but am considering the possibility of a linear actuator to open up the false floor for access to the amps, and such. Just something I always wanted to play with, we'll see how it goes.
My intentions for the false floor are to use 5/8" mdf, and expanded metal sheet over the subs to vent into the hatch.
I've still got a lot of planning and measuring to do, and My subs wont be here until at least December, but once I have everything ready, I will be re-installing my mkiv in one of the boxes, and making amp connections to hold me over. (if the build is done early)
And yes, I will be powering both off of the st1000xm.

Neither Ron or I are into SPL, and definitely not competing against each other. And honestly, I think that Ron's dual 12" MkV's will probably dig deeper and play a little louder than my single 15" Type S.

Ron, if I'll be able to build a false floor to cram in a 7" deep driver in 2.5 cf of air space, I really don't think you'll have any issues at all fitting those shallow SI 12's back there.

I'm still not sure if my enclosure is going to be fully fiberglass or just the bottom or what. What about you?

I'm just joking about the SPL and competing sir.

Mine will not be fiberglass, simply MDF, and 3/4" Birch plywood. I have the plan, and one box built already. Im going to cover the boxes with haircell finish ABS sheet so they match the interior of the car. I will definitely spend more time with fit and finish than the basic box construction, though. If I decide to incorporate a linear actuator to raise the false floor (which is where I'm leaning) everything underneath will need to be tip-top.... The hardest part for me was figuring where to stash the 4 amps I run.
I got it figured out, just need to implement. I will be re-installing my mkiv, and amps, just so I have tunes until my mkv's show up.
Here is a prototype of one box, minus the birch top, just to check on fit.

I figured as much....lol

So I got inspired tonight after my last post, and Fab'd one of my Birch boxes.. here is the general idea of what will go on underneath.. The dropped area in front is where I am planning on putting a plexiglass "bridge" 1/8" over the sub boxes, and mounting my Zapco amps with some backlighting.
A filler piece will span the area in between the boxes, and somewhere in there will be my actuator mount.
Now I'm waiting for my ABS sheets to arrive, and I can trim, and mount everything.

Yeah, I figured as much as well, with the smilie and all.

Damn Ron, you work fast! Those enclosures look great, especially with those "built-in" amp racks. I like where you're going with this build.

As for my sub enclosure, it will be thick multi-layered fiberglass all around with a birch or MDF baffle. Most likely birch.

yeah, sanded birch is the way to go for the baffles. I believe its 12 ply or so, and very sturdy. I've been a carpenter for 30+ years, so the woodwork comes quite easy for me. Layout, cut and Fab the birch box in under an hour. Sealed with polyurethane caulk, and screwed pretty heavy with 1 5/8" coarse thread drywall screws. Tonight I will sand the whole thing and make her pretty, and smooth.
Each box volume will be .62 cu ft with sub installed. SI recommends .5 to .7
The first thing I did was level the bottom of the hatch area, by gluing down 2 pieces of 5/8" MDf on each side, and filling in the low areas with some 3/4" firing so I had a nice, flat work area that was easy to attach my boxes to without screwing into the sheet metal.
I used a very high quality Polyurethane construction sealant for that, and I will lay a 1/8" sheet of weatherstrip foam between the boxes, and the floor layer, just to combat vibrations. Probably not necessary, but it certainly cant hurt.

Moving forward...

All this layout makes me realize I gotta go wake up the old lady!!!:happydance:

LOL!!!! :rofl2:

Well, waking her up did me no good... I should have stayed in the garage..
Anyways, The false floor is near complete, Just need to trace my old back piece onto some birch, and Fab.
ABS sheet, and linear actuator should be in this week..... I'm getting close.
No subs until Dec or Jan, though:shakes head: Once I figure the mount for the actuator, its time to tear down, Re-wire, and do some finish work, and final assembly.

Dang man, you're almost done with yours and I haven't even begun to start the purchase the materials for mine yet...

Just taking advantage of some rare free time....
All woodwork is 100% complete, did my tear down today, and wrapped a few pieces in some suede I picked up. When my actuator arrives I'll have to put it all back in and get it operational, and complete tear down again before I can start all the finish details.
A few minor glitches I ran into today that will make me re-think my plan as far as finishes go, but nothing major..
I'll probably dream about the solutions tonight, and get them done after work tomorrow, if time allows.

Nice man! That is looking awesome. I guess you won't be showcasing the Zapcos anymore. That sucks about the long wait on those subs too. Although, that serves as a testament to how good SI is, aside from your SI coffin. I'm getting more and more curious about them, especially for the price...

The subs and the Zapcos will be the only thing visible once I get the actuator in and functioning to raise the floor.
I have it in hand, but work is killing me this week...
I installed the switch last night, and pre-wired it, customized the actuator brackets and painted them, and got my ABS finished on the bottom side of my "lid" for lack of a better word.
Hopefully this weekend will open up some free time, and I'll get my leather done, and start re-installing everything.
If the gods are really smiling, I'll get it all 100%, but that's a stretch.

I wish we lived near each other. I need someone like you to hang out with!

lets wrap some things in leather, shall we??

actuator switch in place

underside of lid with actuator bracket

Good day today, got her 90% complete. Needs a few finishing touches, as well as my second sub (December or January)
But at least I got tunes again.
Ran a few sweep tones tonight, just for giggles.... Variable smoothing applied

Pics tomorrow for those interested if the weather is decent.

a few of the new layout near completion

actuator works well...

Looking great Ron! So when are you coming down to do mine? :-P

thanks.
too far to drive unless you have a spare room... lol

Hogwash. I've made it from here to Niagara Falls in less than a day, non-stop. And we have room. :nutswinger:







BTW, I would never make a trip like that again non-stop. That was pure torture.

I did Daytona beach 4 times in the last couple of years.. Non stop 17 1/2 hrs. Slept good when we got in...lol

I like it! That looks nice and sleek. I'm slightly disappointed that there's no LED laser show projecting from the hatch lid though. Any stuffing/damping going into those sub boxes?

Meh... I'm past all that flash and bling....... And I am going to try the boxes with 1/2 lb of poly fill. I'm at .62 cuft or so, so figuring 10% gain with poly puts me around .68..... Manufacturer recommends .5 to .7
My last box was right at .5, and I can tell the difference at .62 (unless im imagining it, which is very possible as well. lol)

prepping and glassing tweeter pods today.....

One side finished. I have to pick up some Matt finish paint to get rid of the gloss, and shes good to go.

Looks great! on axis sound in both pods?

Your thoughts on that location vs. a stock location with the same concept of pods?

not quite on axis. directed at opposite side window, close to center. IMHO, they are too close to put directly on axis. I think corners of the dash, in pods, or even a-pillars would have been a better choice, as far as getting path length differences closer to match.... But I did a mock up of some pods for the dash location, and just couldn't get used to the sight of them there.
I'm relying on processing to make up for the closer location.
I'm still awaiting the arrival of my pair SI BMmkv'5, but have my single Mkiv installed, and swapped out my CDT mids for a set of Dayton Audio mids.. (Definitely an upgrade) I did a little tuning to occupy myself being off work and all. The current rendition is by far the best its ever sounded.....