American Bass Install- custom 5.25 brackets

[MattismodderX]

(thread moved. id like some advice!)
Ok so it only took from 4:30pm to 10pm but i got the front two american bass 4x6s in the font doors and rerouted them to the headunit. after i did that it sounded great but the 6x9s in the back sounded like dirt in comparison. the 6x9s only played mids and hardly any lows. the stock amp wouldnt let me have the tweeter on it hooked up with the mids hooked up. so i rerouted the wiring to the headunit for them and now the highs are crispy fresh! didnt get to make a baffle for the 6x9 adapter to fit the 5.25s.. it was too late. below are pictures of the install, the 5.25 baffle will be done tomorrow. any ideas that are out of the ordinary? i was going to mount some kind of wood and cut out the hole for the middle of the 6x9 adapter bracket and have the speaker in the middle with the speaker cover. any creative ideas on a different kind of baffle is welcome. (not fiberglass)

also something completely unrelated... so after installed the speakers i go to leave.. crank up the bass and it sounded waaay different. before it was clean as hell. every bass hit between 24-35hz was perfect deep. now it seems like its not quite as clean/perfect sq but quite a bit louder. it vibrates hella ridiculous hard now and i think it HAS to be hitting at least 140. the song i used for the db drag that has the highest spl on a constant sounds way louder. it sounds so much better on just about every song i have. even the low ones. better response too on every tone it playes. personally i listen to my car full blast at least 2 hours+ a day since september. i remember thinking just yesterday how i think either im getting deafer or the sub is getting quieter. now i can notice a major different. i didnt touch any of the sub wiring/amp settings/headunit setting, nothing.. it just hits crazy hard now. any ideas as to wtf happend? im really excited about this. its like a miracle or something. id there has to be a possibility. all i did was rewire all the speakers to the stock head unit. it still has the remote wire to it connected to the harness tho

i thought the packaging was pretty damn good for the price.
http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/3565/1209091336.jpg
soo beautiful
http://img697.imageshack.us/img697/7194/1209091337.jpg
the old 4x6 compared to the new one. time to cornstarch/water experiment with them! the pictures are pretty dark because the garage i was working in had one 60w bulb on the other side ceiling and i had a table light with an extension cord inside my car. it actually turned out working better then any other light source. even daytime.
http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/3062/1209091659.jpg
the wires were a nightmare for the headunit- but i ended up brute forcing and a vice grip to take out the piece of plastic that wouldnt let it go in all the way. all i had was electrical tape to connect everything unfortunately
http://img30.imageshack.us/img30/6006/1209091814.jpg
photo of the speaker installed in the door. ill add some silicone tomorrow to seal up all the gaps due to the speaker not being big enough lol
http://img192.imageshack.us/img192/9011/1209091814a.jpg
the headunit finally fits perfectly inside without being slanted and pushed out to much. overall the speakers in the front are much much cleaner compared to the old ones. totally worth every penny. the highs in the back are on as well making it sound better all around.
http://img192.imageshack.us/img192/6214/1209092148.jpg

[Nate's Alero]

Looks good

[MattismodderX]

thanks. ill post the rest tomorrow when my check cashes. ideas are welcome

[Fi-Alero]

Everything looks good except for the electrical tape connections. I can not begin to count how many radio installs I've had to fix because of that. I would recommend going back and at least use butt-connectors to connect the wires as soon as possible.

[MattismodderX]

Everything looks good except for the electrical tape connections. I can not begin to count how many radio installs I've had to fix because of that. I would recommend going back and at least use butt-connectors to connect the wires as soon as possible.

i plan on it when its warmer out. ill hold the winter for sure. had them on my car since i first bought it. i just make sure to tape it real good/clean so it wont ever come apart unless its physically disturbed.

i can tell no one read the 2nd paragraph about the sub. or if they did just dont know me well enough to care :lol: but id love to hear how its possible for it to just completely change the sound w.o touching/disconnecting any of the sub wiring. i HAS to be hitting at least 140 now.

so today i decided to snap a couple shots of the car. i added window tint all around to add to the murderocity of the alero. forget oldsmobile. murdermobile! the rims look amazing shiny and tire-wett'd but the salt covered that up pretty damn quick
http://img262.imageshack.us/img262/831/1210091313.jpg
cleaned up the box install a hell of a lot since last time.. sanded down the hole to fit the rubber surround and flipped the box/sealed the holes on the bottom. the jumper cables are there because my car has died a few times in the past week and its faster then AAA. had the acc on too long.
http://img192.imageshack.us/img192/5280/1210091314.jpg

[Ryan from Ohio]

Did you unhook the radio when wiring up the speaker? Undo the battery?

If so you may have changed your crossovers or sub output gain.

The loud feature may be enabled.

Your previous eq settings may have been whipped.

Most radio's fully reset when unplugged.

[MattismodderX]

Did you unhook the radio when wiring up the speaker? Undo the battery?

If so you may have changed your crossovers or sub output gain.

The loud feature may be enabled.

Your previous eq settings may have been whipped.

Most radio's fully reset when unplugged.

it does reset every time it loses power. i set all the settings in every last corner of the headunit. the loud feature is always off. dont even know why its there. with the sub on 0 its quieter then before but when i put the gain on the amp where its supposed to and add +3 to 4 on the subwoofer setting menu it beats STUPID hard. waaaay harder then it ever has. went from dayum to
http://img691.imageshack.us/img691/6297/daaaaamn.jpg

[Fi-Alero]

You have a setting changed somewhere.
with the sub on 0 its quieter then before but when i put the gain on the amp where its supposed to and add +3 to 4 on the subwoofer setting menu it beats STUPID hard.
Which most likely means it is receiving a stupid distorted signal :p
Distortion can create the illusion to the ears that you bass is louder, but in reality, it is just killing your subs.

[MattismodderX]

You have a setting changed somewhere.

Which most likely means it is receiving a stupid distorted signal :p
Distortion can create the illusion to the ears that you bass is louder, but in reality, it is just killing your subs.

ive been kind of expecting it.. i found a rip in the spider the other month and havnt just been beating it until it doesnt beat any longer.. then i can just get a recone. what could cause this distortion? i really think it sounds better on a lotta songs. especially the high SPL songs


UPDATE: bought a piece of birch wood 2"x2" to cut the baffles out and some silicone to seal it in. will hopefully get it done tonight, if not almost all the way. pictures for days as usual

[Ryan from Ohio]

Seal the fronts also!

[MattismodderX]

Seal the fronts also!

does it make them louder? they seem a quite a bit quieter then the stocks at more rms

[cherrington17]

Seal the fronts also!

so if i get that set of massives, i should make a box for them, on the back of the door?

or are you talking about the backseats?

[Fi-Alero]

so if i get that set of massives, i should make a box for them, on the back of the door?

or are you talking about the backseats?

The only way to go in the front is 6 1/2s with custom fiberglass pods :p

[cherrington17]

i'm well aware of that. I'm planning on fiberglassing my doors, since my current pods are fugly-tastic.

i'm just wondering if i should seal the back, of it?

[Fi-Alero]

i'm well aware of that. I'm planning on fiberglassing my doors, since my current pods are fugly-tastic.

i'm just wondering if i should seal the back, of it?
If you wanted a little better mid-bass response out of your door speakers, you could sound deaden the door to seal it off a bit. It should help alot.

[Ryan from Ohio]

The whole concept is to keep the front wave from meeting the rear wave.

Take it how ya want.

[MattismodderX]

UPDATE: the guy whos tools i was gonna use had them all out on a job 40 miles away (residing a house) so i couldnt do it yesterday. will be completed today tho! fuck yeah!

[MattismodderX]

Ok so the baffles are created! the speakers fit great but gotta wait for the adhesive to dry. gonna paint them around 10am tomorrow then install the speakers in them that night. will have photos of the completed baffles then!

LOL this is back side of the first one i made.. looked like DIRT. ended up tossin it
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/9157/1212092012.jpg
the second one. much more pretty and symmetrical
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/4907/1212092027a.jpg
mm yess fits quite nicely
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/1016/1212092028.jpg
pre-glued
http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/9099/1212092056.jpg
after-glued. will be sanded and painted tomorrow!
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/5071/1212092224.jpg
the backside. adhesive out the ass!
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/5937/1212092225.jpg

painting 10am sharp followed by the install. rest of the pics up sunday night!

[JLw7123]

looks good

[MattismodderX]

well i went to spray them thismorning. by tonight hopefully theyll be dry enough to put the speakers in! i liked the way my car looked w.o the insane amounts of dried salt on it so i snapped some shots on the way back to the car

painted baffle. it will look a hell of a lot better with the speaker in it. just wait!
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/2658/1213091310.jpg
murdermobile!
http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/3280/1213091311.jpg
i dont care what anyone says, i like the painted stockers! not to mention it looks AMAZING clean as hell with some tire gel
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6263/1213091312.jpg

[tsmitty025]

Everything looks good except for the electrical tape connections.

I have used electrical tape connections in all 3 of my vehicles throughout 7 years and have never had a problem with it. ;) no worries.

[Fi-Alero]

I have used electrical tape connections in all 3 of my vehicles throughout 7 years and have never had a problem with it. ;) no worries.
That just means you have good luck lol.
As I said earlier, I cannot begin to count how many vehicles I have had to repair the radio install on because of electrical tape. Not only can it result in a loose connection, but it also can result in an unseen bad connection.

[MattismodderX]

thread jesus kind of but i was uploading some pics off the memory card and i forgot to upload the final product! its now screwed in although its not in this photo haha
as far as a review for the speakers, they sound pretty damn good but the front drivers side speaker is starting to pop and crackle real hard. i never push these...ever. i put them to the limit before anything gets remotely distorted and never increase it higher. maybe i just need a 4 channel amp to power it vs the headunits 22rms
http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/4273/0113001235.jpg

[MattismodderX]

heres them out of the car
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/8189/0209001413.jpg

[JunkProwler]

Better to put the 5.25" speakers in the front and nothing in the rear deck imo. Not that it's my car..

Your rims look great btw. How is the paint holding up? I assume you did it with spray paint? Did you clear coat?

[JLw7123]

damn your car looks exactly like my old alero all black I like it.

[cherrington17]

Better to put the 5.25" speakers in the front and nothing in the rear deck imo. Not that it's my car..

Your rims look great btw. How is the paint holding up? I assume you did it with spray paint? Did you clear coat?

considering he holds one of the SPL records on the forum... i'm pretty sure he knows what hes doing. :lol:

[JunkProwler]

I'm even more surprised at the 4x6's now. Still, I stayed pretty far away from telling him what to do.

[MattismodderX]

Better to put the 5.25" speakers in the front and nothing in the rear deck imo. Not that it's my car..

Your rims look great btw. How is the paint holding up? I assume you did it with spray paint? Did you clear coat?

not gonna lie the paint has gotten a few chips here and there over a years time. but it has like 5-6 layers of black wheel paint (made just for rims :yahoo: ) and like 10 layers of clear coat. it looks 100000x better when i wash em

as far as the speakers in just the front.. having full range speakers in the back adds a shitload of dimension to your music. having ones in the front only doesnt sound right. sounds 2D

[Ryan from Ohio]

I'm even more surprised at the 4x6's now. Still, I stayed pretty far away from telling him what to do.

I have the same 4x6's in may car.

Sure they are not the best and the 5.25" would be better overall, but they fit with no real modifications.

[jayson_waltz]

as far as the speakers in just the front.. having full range speakers in the back adds a shitload of dimension to your music. having ones in the front only doesnt sound right. sounds 2D
agreed, front only just sounds wierd. don't know why people think the rears aren't needed, it is possible to have good fronts and good rears.

[Ryan from Ohio]

Any speaker that detracts from the front sound stage is a negative effect.

So if you can clsoe your eyes and "hear" the speakers behind you they are to loud and are having a negative impact on your SQ.

[MattismodderX]

^^^ QFT

so what does sealing the speaker with the silicone achieve? cause the 4x6s were a bit too small

[Ryan from Ohio]

It helps keep the front wave from interacting with the rear wave.

When you run a speaker free air like the 4x6's in the door its important to have this condition.

Otherwise you have cancellation.

[MattismodderX]

It helps keep the front wave from interacting with the rear wave.

When you run a speaker free air like the 4x6's in the door its important to have this condition.

Otherwise you have cancellation.

ahhh. ya learn something every day. the one speaker is starting to crackle hardcore style. anytime i increase it over 15 volume (25 is the max volume w.o distortion) no idea why, just started recently. i never push em. it will crackle one day and not the next.. weird

[Ryan from Ohio]

Maybe a wiring issue or a bad connection somewhere.