upgrading audio system 2004 Trailblazer LT

[polarisn1]

Hi everyone,

I am looking to do something different with my audio system. I have the 6 disk radio stock, but some of the buttons are worn and look like crap. I would like to be able to hook up my ipod to the system, as well as a subwoofer or two. I have not decided yet.

So, I am finding mixed info on the speaker sizes in the doors. Are they 5 1/4 or 6 1/2?

Am I better off trying to fix my stock 6 disk changer (buttons worn and some lights burned out) or get an aftermarket radio? Thoughts/experience with this? Different things I will need?

If I keep the 6 disk - I need to buy a $100 adapter to connect mp3 player using the "band" button on the radio. is this true?

If I install aftermarket - I would need a communicator to use the steering wheel controls, correct?

Please ask any and all questions for clarification.

Thanks!

 

[IllogicTC]

Is this system Bose? You may or may not actually have reduced quality by trying to add a subwoofer. The system is designed to work how it is and it's particularly picky about alterations. Some manage to get by, some make it better, and others just remove the Bose system completely and start fresh.

This is important to know as it affects the speaker sizes. I've posted elsewhere the exact sizes, but these things are actually measured in mm, not inches, so approximations to inch size were the best I could provide. I'll find the post later if you don't.

I also recently found and added a TSB to my collection (available in the Technical Discussion area) which apparently lists a few shops which offer radio faceplate refurbishing - not sure they do bulbs, but they might, but it DOES say for sure they redo the buttons and stuff that are worn. I'm sure other shops can also do this, but these were apparently picked out by GM specifically for this duty, so they probably have a fresh supply of extra buttons and the like.

As for getting iPod functionality - some people go in through the XM, if installed, I do believe. There's threads around here on that.

There's a dude who is deep into audio on here, I'm sure he'll find this thread at some point. Usually pretty good at psyching you up on going through with big projects, too, lol.

 

[polarisn1]

UK6
UC6
Those are my two radio RPO codes. I have rear radio and 6 disk cd player up front. Does not mention bose or XM.

Does this help identify what I have and options available to me??

Thanks for taking the time to reply in such detail. I do appreciate it!!

 

[IllogicTC]

The "audio guru" can probably point you in better directions than myself. Looks non-Bose and non-XM to me. Non-Bose makes it easier to use and expand on what you already have, so be thankful for that!

And on XM - you'd know if you had it. A 2004 would have a pod on the passenger side roof just inches from the windshield, pretty well centered along the line the passenger seats would line up to.

 

[PapaBear229]

Personally I'd upgrade the head unit. It gives the truck a bit cleaner look and more options and better sound quality and to my knowledge they're 6 1/2s

 

[kickass audio]

Hi everyone,

I am looking to do something different with my audio system. I have the 6 disk radio stock, but some of the buttons are worn and look like crap. I would like to be able to hook up my ipod to the system, as well as a subwoofer or two. I have not decided yet.

So, I am finding mixed info on the speaker sizes in the doors. Are they 5 1/4 or 6 1/2?

Am I better off trying to fix my stock 6 disk changer (buttons worn and some lights burned out) or get an aftermarket radio? Thoughts/experience with this? Different things I will need?

If I keep the 6 disk - I need to buy a $100 adapter to connect mp3 player using the "band" button on the radio. is this true?

If I install aftermarket - I would need a communicator to use the steering wheel controls, correct?

Please ask any and all questions for clarification.

Thanks!

With your radio you can't just simply put another OEM radio in your truck without having to take it to the dealer or somewhere with the appropriate tools to reset the radio to accept your trucks vin number so the cost of doing that might not be nice. I can't say what the cost is as I never went that route but you MUST do that for our platform as the radio checks your vin and if there is any difference than what it calls for, the theftlock engages and the radio is just a total piece of junk. Now what you could do if you can find one at a junkyard or cheap online would be to disassemble the radio and swap buttons and things like that over to the existing radio in your truck and you won't have the issue of having to get the radio programmed to your truck.

As for the AUX input on the OEM radio yes you would need to buy an aftermarket adapter and do some wiring behind the radio to hook it up. They are not hard at all to setup as long as you can follow wire colors and solder.

With an aftermarket radio you would need to get an adapter to make your steering wheel controls work as well as an harness adapter for connecting it to your dash. And you didn't mention it but do you have rear audio controls in the console where people can hook up headphones? If you do then you need another adapter to make that work and that isn't cheap and IMO its worthless. For the radio harness there are 2 different versions out there, one with a buzzer module on it that will keep your door chimes and all that and there is another aftermarket one that is the cheapest at around 20 bucks that will not retain any door chimes.

You don't have onstar right? If you do thats another thing you would need to get an adapter for. And its not 100% necessary but you would need an DIN installation kit that will allow you to bolt the radio to the dash. Now I say thats not 100% needed because you can use the cage the radio comes with as long as its double din and it won't look bad.

As for speaker size all sites claim that we have 6.5" speakers which is true for the front but the rears are more like 6.25" but with some modification you can make 6.5" speakers work just fine in the rear. I am running Rockford Fosgate T1652-S components in each door until I build my front doors with 4 Ascendant Audio Carbon 8" midranges per door. As for a sub stage I would suggest looking at local shops in your area for starter kits that have the amp wiring kits, sub, box and amp included. Usually the $400-500 ones are nice for beginners. If you want a real nice outcome build the box yourself. Believe me when I say that building the right box can make a cheap piece of crap sub sound amazing.

Let me know if you have anymore questions. I did quite a bit of audio work on my truck and am still not satisfied with it. lol. I want more and more power. hahaha.

Edit: Papabear, the whole new headunit giving cleaner output isn't necessarily true. Like I always tell everyone that ends up becoming an argument, its about clipping and distortion. You need to tune the radio, amp(s), sound processors and anything else that the sound is going through so it isn't distorted and clipping. The EQ band on the OEM headunit isn't flat which drives me crazy, I hate having peaks and valleys in my frequency response of my system so some aftermarket ones make it better in that they are close to flat but not 100%. The quality part comes into play when you turn off the gain on the bass, mid, treble and know how high you can turn up the volume before you start distorting because distortion not only sounds like ass but it kills your equipment over time.

 

[PapaBear229]

My harnesses was all of like 8 dollars on ebay. Now mind you I have no chimes and have to cut my radio off via the radio face but it doesn't bother me one bit to save upwards of 50 bucks by having to press a button to turn my radio off and not having aggravating door chimes.

I also have no use for steering wheel controls, onstar, and the rear headphone jack.

And you're 100% correct. It's all in the tune. I've had people come to me with aftermarket everything that sounds like complete crap and people who set up their stock HU right sounding great. It's all about combination of tunes, components, and speaker quality. And I support what you said about boxes 12000000000%

 

[kickass audio]

My harnesses was all of like 8 dollars on ebay. Now mind you I have no chimes and have to cut my radio off via the radio face but it doesn't bother me one bit to save upwards of 50 bucks by having to press a button to turn my radio off and not having aggravating door chimes.

You do realize that you can fix that problem by taking the red "ACC" wire and hooking it up to a 12v switchable source. You could tap it into your ignition wire in the dash or like I did, I ran a wire to my rear fuse block and tapped into the fuse for the "AMP" circuit since I have no aftermarket amp. Thats how I keep my radio on when in accessory and run. I don't have RAP like the stock radio did but that is such a stupid feature to me. If I am listening to my music with the truck off chances are I am not going to be listening to it for a few minutes, its usually for like 4-6 hours when I work on my truck. Gotta love having a ton of battery power from 5 batteries

 

[PapaBear229]

It doesn't bother me I enjoy it. My truck is the music truck at parties mostly so it comes in handy. I need to add a second battery soon. Doubt I'll get to it though lol to many other projects

 

[kickass audio]

Gotcha, I just wanted to tell you that you can do that with some work just in case you weren't aware. Get a nice XS Power battery. I swear by mine for the abuse they have been through and they are almost 4 years old now and still have power like they were brand new. I love those batteries. If you want gobs of power save for the D3100. It's huge but it does a great job for power. I have 4 of those in the back with an S3400 under my hood.

 

[shawnfrompa]

what I did was get a hundred dollar sony head unit from best buy and got the polk audio 6.5 speakers for both back and rear. The front I had to cut the speaker a little to get it to fit but the back I had no problem just plug and play really. as for the bezel kit so you can put a after market stero I bought everything in a package from ebay it comes with a chime box and antenna adapter also wire harness adapter. The item number is 39075279340...

 

[kickass audio]

Thank you for reminding me of that stupid antenna adapter. I always forget that because I never use my radio. lol. In fact when I put my computer in I am unbolting the antenna from the mast as there is no point having one if there is no radio.

 

[polarisn1]

so much good information in here. Thanks everyone!
I will probably go the aftermarket radio route. No VIN to deal with, and no adapters for ipod.
I would buy the install kit and wire kit and I have the antenna adapter already
What confuses me is the door chime thing. What is that?
I will probably get the module to make the steering wheel controls work too.
I do have the rear radio. Not sure how much that would actyually be used anyways, as I am single with no kiddies.

 

[kickass audio]

The door chime is simply when you pull your key from the ignition and have your lights on for example and open the door it will start dinging through your front left door speaker to alert you. If you go the cheap route like I did you will not have any door chimes to alert you to buckle your belt, the parking brake is engaged when moving, the key is in the ignition, your door is ajar, to check your gauges when something bad is happening. things like that. It really isn't necessary for anything as long as you are not an oblivious driver to not know anything thats happening on your truck. I have been driving my truck for over 3 years now and haven't had the chimes in since. I love being able to work on my truck with the radio on and have the doors open and not have that annoying dinging noise from the key being on and the doors being open.

For your rear entertainment that is another kit you need to buy if you wish to retain that but it sounds like you really don't care about that so I say to hell with it. lol. In my truck my rule is you listen to what I want, unless your my girlfriend which in that case is non existent (GREAT SUCCESS!) and if you don't like my music then you can GTFO. hahaha.

 

[polarisn1]

Hahaha exactly! My rig, my rules

I think I will start looking for the install kit for an aftermarket radio. I've got one in my Bonneville that I'll put in it since I'm selling the Bonneville.

Now I'll need to start looking at sub box options and configurations.. I don't think I'll want to keep the two subs in a box that's in the Bonnie for space reasons.

Thoughts?

 

[kickass audio]

How much bass are you looking to have? Just enough to add to the sound to make it more full or to have a decent amount of thump? You can get a little setup with a single 12 for instance with a nicely built enclosure. Those enclosures will either make or break your ability to have a good system or a crap system.

 

[polarisn1]

I just want it to sound good in the vehicle. I dont require those outside of my vehicle to listen to my music too.

 

[polarisn1]

what ideas to people have as far as the brand and type of speakers to put in it?

The radio I already have is a Pioneer something or another.. I will just use that. It has a sub output that is driving my 2 subs in my Bonneville currently.

 

[IllogicTC]

what ideas to people have as far as the brand and type of speakers to put in it?

The radio I already have is a Pioneer something or another.. I will just use that. It has a sub output that is driving my 2 subs in my Bonneville currently.

That's a semi-loaded question. There's a bunch of people who have a brand they'll stick to. I must say, I've heard Rockford Fosgates and I was impressed with the system. It's all about your budget and what profile you want - do you want the ultimate in clarity, or are you looking for loud, or emphasis on bass, what?

 

[kickass audio]

Exactly what Illogic said. There are several brands out there. I myself run Ascendant Audio for my sub and love it but they aren't cheap. I run RF for my mids and highs and they are nice but again not necessarily cheap. If you want a little bit of bass to give a more full sound to your music then a brand like kicker, alpine, polk are not bad starters. I started out with a kicker and still have it but its collecting dust. It all depends on what you expect to get and what you want to spend on it. The budget is the biggest limiting factor in all honesty. I would strongly advise you not buy those subs in a box where it has the sub, amp, wiring kit and enclosure all included. Those prefab boxes blow and you can get so much better sound output and performance by making your own. It looks hard but building a box is easy. You can even pay people like ram-designs.com like I did to just go over my build setup I measured and had in mind and have him tweak it a little to make it work better. (Mods: Sorry if I can't mention other sites to buy things from let me know if you can't do that here, I was just more using it for example of what is out there that the OP can do).

What I always recommend for people would be to look at some of your local install shops and get quotes on what they can give you for a sub & amp kit with a wiring kit added onto it as well. Leave the enclosure out of the picture for that. Let us know what model amp & sub they gave to you so we can see if the value is worth it or not. You might be better off getting it from somewhere online but it all depends. Then once you get your gear we can figure out what box enclosure and specs would work best with the room you are working with. What is the biggest room you are willing to give up in the truck to fit a sub enclosure? We need to know that too for considering the volume of your enclosure we can limit ourselves to for recommending subs.

 

[polarisn1]

Excellent stuff here guys. This is exactly why I like forums!

I built a system for my Firebird that has Kenwood 6.5's in the doors with remote tweeters, Kicker 6.5" subs in the passenger holes, and a JL 10" sub in the back that I made a custom sealed box with the correct dimentions that pounds hard for a 10. I am very pleased with that setup. The hatch also helps make the sub hit harder. me likey.

I spent a lot of time researching that setup, though, and it paid off. Hence why I came here to research before I ran out and bought parts and made them try to work together. haha.

So, my thoughts for this setup are to keep the door speakers a 2 or 3 way, have them all in one speaker. The Firebird had the small speakers for the tweeters, so that is why I did components. But for the daily driving Trailblazer, the 2 or 3 way speakers should fit the bill.

As far as the sub... I currently have 4 12 in subs laying around. 2 rockford fosgates, and 2 cerwin vegas. I dont know that I want 2 12's in the back, as that would suck up all of my space. I think I would prefer just one sub, and have an enclosure that is off to one side. Probably the passenger side, so it kicks out towards the drivers side. Does that make sense?

What have people here done, and have they liked it? Is 1 10 inch sub enough? Or is 1 12 better? I haven't decided if I would just sell my subs now to fund the new venture, or what I will do. I guess it comes down to how much the door speakers will cost me.

I do want to do it right the first time though. Doing the same think over just sucks.

I will retain the stock speaker wires too, so that might limit the watts of the system too.

Does this start to narrow it down? I know I am still debating about the subs, but this is where input from those who have been there done that can chime in and help sway the outcome!

 

[kickass audio]

With the stock speaker wire I did that for my rear doors and have it so there is 12ga OFC wire going to the back behind my radio that taps into the corresponding wires for the rear speakers that then goes through the OEM wiring through the truck to the rear doors. For my front doors since it was so easy I just ran 12ga straight to them to power the RC 6.5's I have. I am feeding about 160w of power through the rear speakers as I have the front and rear linked on each side down to 2 ohms and the OEM wires for the rear have been perfect.

I understand you want 2 or 3 way speakers and I would only say to use that for the rear doors as there are no OEM tweeters in those so that would be good to upgrade to for the rear if you plan to have people back there. I am soon ditching my rear door speakers and putting the OEM ones in there to fill the void and seal up the opening and just have front speakers. For the front I always recommend using components as the quality is better than coaxial speakers but it is up to you as you are the one driving the truck and forking over the money for it. I am just recommending an approach that you may benefit from. I myself love having the tweeters up higher in the truck like either in the pillars or dash. I played with places to mount mine and the quality blew when they were down in the OEM spot on the front doors so thats when I put them on my dash and it sounded great. I know some people who put their tweeters right next to the lock/unlock lever and door handle to open the door and it sounds pretty good there too.

For your sub stage what model are those RF's and cerwin vega's? You don't necessarily need to use both of the 12's, a single 12 can sound amazing in a great enclosure. For the way you are wanting the enclosure to fire to the side I wouldn't recommend that if you want a little bit of a louder setup. Our truck seems to like setups that are sub up and port back which means the subwoofer is mounted so it is facing up to the roof and the port is facing the lift gate. I myself have mine so its sub and port back and its not bad, only a 146.6db so I can't complain. It could be better but hey im cool with it. I don't compete or anything so who cares what my score is. hahaha. If you can help us out with giving us the model of those subs you have and measure the max size you want to give up for your sub that would help us so much.

 

[MAY03LT]

what ideas to people have as far as the brand and type of speakers to put in it?

I try not to post specific brands because what sounds good to me might not sound good to you. For instance I love my RF comps, but I've heard Polk comps and they were a little crisper in the high end. If I had heard them first, I might have went with them. I think the best thing that you can do is go to a store/shop and listen to various brands for yourself. Then look at the prices online because some stores/shops markups are ridiculous.

What have people here done, and have they liked it? Is 1 10 inch sub enough? Or is 1 12 better?

My man mubai has a single 10" in his Envoy and it is legit. It fills in the low end very well and doesn't take up much room. I have also been impressed with some setups that used those sub-thump or whatever single 10" sub enclosures that mount to the r/r trim panel/pocket thingy.

I will retain the stock speaker wires too, so that might limit the watts of the system too.

Back in the glory days of the audio section of trailvoy we had a good debate on this. In summary, the factory wiring can easily support 100 watts/speaker.

 

[polarisn1]

Thanks for the responses.
I do have things to think about.
I guess I'm all about ease of install with this thing, so I will probably opt for plug and play speakers and head unit.
But, the sub I will probably make an enclosure so that it fits the space I want to dedicate to it.
I'm thinking if I'd get more money selling my 2 12s in a box versus keeping 1 and selling 1. But, if I can get 1 10 to sound great, then I'd sell the 2 12s and start over.

 

[polarisn1]

I will probably do some price shopping on Internet retailers to see what I wanna put into it.

 

[polarisn1]

I am having some difficulty figuring out the answers to these questions:

Do all aftermarket radios have the ability to add a module to it to keep the door chime?
Do all aftermarket radios have the ability to add a module to keep the steering wheel controls?
Do all aftermarket radios have the ability to add a module that would allow the rear radio to still function?

I am looking at a radio with an aux and usb input on the front panel, as well as Bluetooth that will power 4 6.5 speakers and drive the sub too.

THANKS!

 

[PapaBear229]

I do belive so.

 

[amweaver47]

If you are looking for ideas then check out my stereo build. I went a little bit overboard but you might see something you like.

http://gmtnation.com/forums/topic/10063-amweaver47s-stereo-build-thread/

In my opinion, if you are putting in a nice stereo then don't skimp on your door speakers. I have a lot of people show me their systems and they truly sound terrible because they have junk door speakers. Remember that most of your sound comes from them and the subwoofer should just compliment them. Once you get everything installed you will want to spend some serious time tuning it. I think I re-tuned my system 3 or 4 times. I thought I was happy with it then I would listen to a song that sounded bad and I would start all over again. Get some test tones and find out where your distortion begins. I know my system is pretty safe up to 25 on my Alpine's volume because I used test tones.

One more thing. Make sure your music is high quality. If you are into mp3s make sure they are as high of bit rate as you can get. I think 75% of mine are 320 kbps and I'm getting into some lossless files as well. I don't care how much your speakers cost, if your music isn't high quality then it sounds awful. Good luck!

 

[polarisn1]

If you are looking for ideas then check out my stereo build. I went a little bit overboard but you might see something you like.

http://gmtnation.com/forums/topic/10063-amweaver47s-stereo-build-thread/

In my opinion, if you are putting in a nice stereo then don't skimp on your door speakers. I have a lot of people show me their systems and they truly sound terrible because they have junk door speakers. Remember that most of your sound comes from them and the subwoofer should just compliment them. Once you get everything installed you will want to spend some serious time tuning it. I think I re-tuned my system 3 or 4 times. I thought I was happy with it then I would listen to a song that sounded bad and I would start all over again. Get some test tones and find out where your distortion begins. I know my system is pretty safe up to 25 on my Alpine's volume because I used test tones.

One more thing. Make sure your music is high quality. If you are into mp3s make sure they are as high of bit rate as you can get. I think 75% of mine are 320 kbps and I'm getting into some lossless files as well. I don't care how much your speakers cost, if your music isn't high quality then it sounds awful. Good luck!

Thank you for the post!
After lots of consideration, I think I am going to do the same box setup as you.. but it is going to fit under the privacy shade dealy-bob.
I am going to make the box a wedge, so that it slants with the seat, and then is probably 90 degrees to the floor on the back side where the speakers will face the hatch. I have 2 cerwin vega HED-12DVCs that I am going to wire to my Rockford 800a2 amp.

I tried to fit the amp in under the passenger side plastic in the back, where the bose amp goes, but it didn't fit. The damn thing is just too big.
I dont want to put it in the center cubby, as that is where my towning crap and straps are. I think I am stuck mounting it to the box, in between the two speakers. Not ideal, but I thank that is my only option. It wont fit under the driver or passenger front seats, or under the back seats. Grr.

I have Infinity reference 5.25" speakers in the rear doors (thats what I had out of my bonneville) and I am buying the 6 1/2 from the front doors (same brand.)

The deck will probably be the Pioneer DEH-X6600BT as it has everything I want, plus plays well with Android. Right now Crutchfield is out of stock, along with the PAC-RP5-GM11 module I need. That sucks, but it gives me time to start on the box.

Do you have the measurements of the box you created? What is the cubic feet of it? I need to make mine to have 2.2 for both speakers.

Thanks for all of the help people, and please share your ideas with me, since I am still in the planning stage!!

 

[amweaver47]

Thank you for the post!
After lots of consideration, I think I am going to do the same box setup as you.. but it is going to fit under the privacy shade dealy-bob.
I am going to make the box a wedge, so that it slants with the seat, and then is probably 90 degrees to the floor on the back side where the speakers will face the hatch. I have 2 cerwin vega HED-12DVCs that I am going to wire to my Rockford 800a2 amp.

I tried to fit the amp in under the passenger side plastic in the back, where the bose amp goes, but it didn't fit. The damn thing is just too big.
I dont want to put it in the center cubby, as that is where my towning crap and straps are. I think I am stuck mounting it to the box, in between the two speakers. Not ideal, but I thank that is my only option. It wont fit under the driver or passenger front seats, or under the back seats. Grr.

I have Infinity reference 5.25" speakers in the rear doors (thats what I had out of my bonneville) and I am buying the 6 1/2 from the front doors (same brand.)

The deck will probably be the Pioneer DEH-X6600BT as it has everything I want, plus plays well with Android. Right now Crutchfield is out of stock, along with the PAC-RP5-GM11 module I need. That sucks, but it gives me time to start on the box.

Do you have the measurements of the box you created? What is the cubic feet of it? I need to make mine to have 2.2 for both speakers.

Thanks for all of the help people, and please share your ideas with me, since I am still in the planning stage!!

Thank you for the post!
After lots of consideration, I think I am going to do the same box setup as you.. but it is going to fit under the privacy shade dealy-bob.
I am going to make the box a wedge, so that it slants with the seat, and then is probably 90 degrees to the floor on the back side where the speakers will face the hatch. I have 2 cerwin vega HED-12DVCs that I am going to wire to my Rockford 800a2 amp.

I tried to fit the amp in under the passenger side plastic in the back, where the bose amp goes, but it didn't fit. The damn thing is just too big.
I dont want to put it in the center cubby, as that is where my towning crap and straps are. I think I am stuck mounting it to the box, in between the two speakers. Not ideal, but I thank that is my only option. It wont fit under the driver or passenger front seats, or under the back seats. Grr.

I have Infinity reference 5.25" speakers in the rear doors (thats what I had out of my bonneville) and I am buying the 6 1/2 from the front doors (same brand.)

The deck will probably be the Pioneer DEH-X6600BT as it has everything I want, plus plays well with Android. Right now Crutchfield is out of stock, along with the PAC-RP5-GM11 module I need. That sucks, but it gives me time to start on the box.

Do you have the measurements of the box you created? What is the cubic feet of it? I need to make mine to have 2.2 for both speakers.

Thanks for all of the help people, and please share your ideas with me, since I am still in the planning stage!!

Very cool, glad I could help. I split my box right in the center so the speakers were isolated. I believe I ended up with .91 cubic feet for each speaker. If you look at my pic of the box before it was carpeted you can see where my walls are based on the screws in the face of the box. I still had a few inches outside of my outer walls so you could easily have a larger inside dimension, plus your face will be 90 degrees vs my angled face.

I'm on my phone right now so I don't have easy access to my pictures or dimensions but I'll update it when I get home later.

 

[polarisn1]

Very cool, glad I could help. I split my box right in the center so the speakers were isolated. I believe I ended up with .91 cubic feet for each speaker. If you look at my pic of the box before it was carpeted you can see where my walls are based on the screws in the face of the box. I still had a few inches outside of my outer walls so you could easily have a larger inside dimension, plus your face will be 90 degrees vs my angled face.

I'm on my phone right now so I don't have easy access to my pictures or dimensions but I'll update it when I get home later.

Why did you isolate the speakers? I haven't read anywhere saying that it was important to do this. I am very curious!

Depending on the mounting depth, I may have to angle my speaker faces as well, but I wont know that until I start mocking it up.

Why did you have the speakers facing the seat? Do you never put the seat up?

Do your amps ever over-heat being put in that rear cubby?

 

[amweaver47]

Why did you isolate the speakers? I haven't read anywhere saying that it was important to do this. I am very curious!

Depending on the mounting depth, I may have to angle my speaker faces as well, but I wont know that until I start mocking it up.

Why did you have the speakers facing the seat? Do you never put the seat up?

Do your amps ever over-heat being put in that rear cubby?

If your subs are using the same signal, meaning you run them in line like I did, it isn't necessary to divide the box into chambers. If a sub needs 1 cubic foot of air space then 2 subs could run in an area of 2 cubic feet and they would be fine. However if you want to run each woofer of a separate signal so they were stereo then you would want them in individual air space. I believe the air space would be turbulent for lack of a better term if you had 2 signals using the same air space. Since my subs are in line, I could have done without the divider BUT it also strengthens the box and if I ever decided to change them to stereo then I could still use the box. It has no negative effect so there is no reason not to do it in my opinion.

My speakers face the seat so they don't get harmed. I frequently haul jack stands and big harmful items that bounce around in my cargo area and I just didn't want to risk damage to the woofers. I got some advice from a friend that participated in competition level sound contests before building and he didn't see any problem with that setup. There is plenty of bass my friend, believe me. I love the idea of hidden performance. Sure it's obviously a sub box but it's up to the imagination what really lies inside. My favorite part is when people guess they are 12s rather than 10s. And my back seat passengers love it.

The door speaker amp runs nice and cool, barely above ambient temperature. Probably slightly over 100 degrees after some serious abuse. The sub amp on the other hand gets hot with the cover on. If I leave the lid off then it stays cool enough but not ideal. I think it could have a few more watts for the load the subs put on it. The Pioneer Champion Series' are pretty thirsty when you let them eat. I would like to make a custom cooling system but for the time being I can leave the lid off. I think with a larger amp I could turn the gain way down and it would run a little cooler.


When I mocked my box up I build the base first and built everything up from there. I used cardboard pieces to build the custom sides. Just let me know what dimensions you need because pretty much none of my build was truly blueprinted.

 

[amweaver47]

Let me ask you this, would you be interested in buying my box? I am somewhat in the process of buying a new truck and if it all comes together I would take my stereo out of it.

 

[polarisn1]

thanks for the reply. That makes sense.

I see you are in Indiana. I am in MN. I dont think it would be feasible to buy the box from you, as shipping would be atrocious.

Does your box fit under the privacy shade? I will be making mine to fit under it, as I dont need snoopy people checking out my goods.

 

[amweaver47]

Just thought I would mention it in case you knew somebody this direction. Shipping would be more than the box itself.

I don't have the shade in my truck and without looking I'm not sure if it would fit. Height-wise it is just slightly above the split in the inner quarter pieces. There is a split in them about a foot up, I intended to make it level with that but didn't account enough for carpeting so its slightly above it.

 

[polarisn1]

gotcha.
I appreciate the offer on the box. I wish it would work out, but doesn't look like it will.
I have been measuring the back of my truck to see how much wood I will need. Looks like 1 4'x8' sheet of 3/4" mdf will do it.
I am not looking forward to making this custom fit, but I do want to keep as much cargo space as I can and still have my 2 12s.

 

[polarisn1]

Well, I had to move for work, but I did end up making the box! I have it for sale in the marketplace section, but I wanted to close the loop on this thread. Here is how it turned out!

[sharedmedia=core:attachments:64015]
[sharedmedia=core:attachments:64016]
[sharedmedia=core:attachments:64014]

http://gmtnation.com/forums/topic/12787-custom-dual-subwoofer-setup-for-trailblazer/

What do you all think? This system freakin POUNDS!