Stereo Upgrade Process

Just thought I'd post a few pictures of my ongoing stereo upgrade.

Here is the end goal, which should be done by this Friday (once all the goodies arrive in the mail).

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1356/...5705489b44.jpg

I'm mounting the amps behind the passenger seat, against the inside of the hull. To do this, I first made a pattern for my amp rack out of cardboard. I then positioned it against the hull and marked 4 points that will secure the amp rack. I chopped down some 2x4's and installed bolts to use as mounting posts.

I then traced the outline of the 2x4 mounting plates onto the carpet.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1233/...5239ebddd2.jpg

I used a blade to cut the carpet so I could glue the mounting plates to the fiberglass.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1366/...137f0bc7d5.jpg

Then used some epoxy and a lot of shoulder-cramping arm-deadening force to hold it in place while it set up. Here is the end result.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1312/...fefcab41eb.jpg

Note that if the surface is not totally flat, you should contour the back of the 2x4 block to match. This will ensure a good bond.

Here is my first version of the amp rack, two Fosgate amps.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1223/...caa56cb36e.jpg

I've decided to upgrade these to Phoenix Gold Octane R amps. A 5ch 900w amp to drive the in-cabin speakers and single 10" sub. Then a 4ch 800w amp for the tower speakers.

I'm wiring the boat will all Monster Cable interconnects, speaker wire, and power cable. I decided to pre-cut and tape all the cables together to simplify the wiring. Here's some of the materials.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1234/...1aee87da67.jpg

After measuring and cutting the speaker wire, and adding a few lines of smaller-gauge wire for control signals, I taped it all together with some good 3M electrical tape.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1039/...afc7767376.jpg

I then ran the cabling around the hull, securing it to the underside of the gunwale using pre-existing mounting straps and cable ties. You might want to wrap your arms in rags, or wear a long sleeve shirt, or you'll have rashy arms for days!!

I also added a Optima yellow-top to the system. I found some great pre-made battery cables at the local auto store. They come in various lengths and make the install painless. I've set up the dual-batteries on a Perko switch. Using the same techniques as above, I made a backing plate for the switch and epoxied it to the sidewall behind the passenger seating.

That's it for now ... more to come.

Wow, very detailed.
The chart/diagram...did you do that yourself or did that come from a website? Just curious if there is somewhere online that advises how to divide up amps, speakers.....

You should have a great sound when complete!

That's phat, man.....lookin great!!!!
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B

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 04OUTBACK

Wow, very detailed.
The chart/diagram...did you do that yourself or did that come from a website? Just curious if there is somewhere online that advises how to divide up amps, speakers.....

You should have a great sound when complete!

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Thanks, it sounded decent with the Fosgate amps and existing Pioneer speakers, but I want this thing to jam. I made the chart on my Mac using OmniGraffe, a great diagram-ing application.

As for wiring up your speakers, it's fairly simple. All speakers have a impedance rating: 2 and 4 Ohm are the typical one.

If you wire them up in series, you add their impedance. For example, wiring two 4Ohm speakers in series yields: 4 + 4 = 8. So you would have an 8Ohm load.

If you wire them in parallel, you divide their product by their sum. So again, wiring two 4Ohm speakers in parallel yields: (4*4)/(4+4) = 2 Ohm

It's just a matter of deciding how you want to wire your speakers, then matching it up as best you can to your amp's.

Check out http://www.termpro.com/articles/spkrz.html for the math. JL Audio's site has some good tutorials for wiring up your subs at http://mobile.jlaudio.com/support_pages.php?page_id=145

Great Thanks for the info

Burke,

Anyone with a 2 gauge cable with Speakeron connectors just lying around on their bench is a friend of mine! What PA do you use ?

-J

I read the article series/parallel. Very interesting reading. But confirmed that using a combination of the two on my system was the best method for my setup.
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Good to hear from another source.
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Thanks
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B

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JoeTechie

Burke,

Anyone with a 2 gauge cable with Speakeron connectors just lying around on their bench is a friend of mine! What PA do you use ?

-J

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No PA. The harness is what my local shop recommended to wire up the tower speakers. I have yet to start that process, drilling through my gunwale and into my tower is a bit crazy. Maybe after a beer or two I'll dive right in and finally get it done.

Hey Burke,

I added a 6 channel amp to my system a couple of years back. I mounted it almost identically to you. Great minds think alike I guess. I used 4 hardwood blocks though. And then wood screws into those. Instead of bolt posts coming out. Though, thinking about it now, your method is probably nicer. It's a bit of a bear getting in there and racheting down those screws in really cramped quarters.

I originally attached mine with Liquid Nails. Not a good choice apparently. My top 2 blocks detached last weekend. Though I suspect it was from pulling a slalom skiier at ~34 in a bit of rough water. I also didn't apply enough clamping force the first time. This go round, I used Gorilla Glue. We'll see how long that lasts. Just ordered a set of MMC650s to replace my stock interior speakers too. Already have a Kappa Perfect 10" sub.

See you on the lake,

Derek

DeeLuk -

Forget the crappy glues and bonders... GET EPOXY. It is what the boat is made from and is the best thing to adhere to fiberglass.


Burke -

OK, What the hell is this then ?
http://joetechie.com/moomba/cable.jpg


-J