Alternative Bass speaker for your X

bbrown

bbrown

Bob Brown
Moderator
It's been a rocky road trying to decide what and where to put a Bass speaker in my 86 X.
I don't really want to give up my spare tire and I don't want to cut into anything. (go figure?)
I also didn't want to give up any "kick panel" space either.

Couldn't find anything that would conveniently fit behind the seat without hitting the
seat itself, and the only "unused" space was between the seats. There's NOTHING out
there that would accommodate this space. So I thought if I could get the components that
would perform correctly and fit, I'd have it made. Problem is there's nothing out there
commercially.

So, I was pondering the spare tire speaker, somehow. First thought was to "remake"
the speaker cabinet/guts fit into the spare tire "innards" space. then I noticed, the bass speaker
itself was a reasonably small size and performed quite well. The 100W amp that's inside
the speaker was small enough to fit up inside the spare tire well, WELL out of the way
of the tire. So, I though of trying to make a cabinet to house TWO speakers, as the amp
that's supplied with the amplified version of the spare tire speaker is actually a stereo amp.

Check out the wires that go to the speaker... Grey is right, green left, and the voice coil
of the woofer accommodates both, all in one package. The aluminum you see is a heat
dissipator for the amp.

sparetirespeakersm.jpg


So, I mounted the amp neatly inside the tire well and built the "V"-shaped cabinet
you see here: (note there are 2 bass speakers)

bassspeakerfrontsm.jpg


The cabinet is crafted of wood and the measurements are such to accommodate the span
and curve of the seats. At the bottom of the V is a hole where lots of deep bass exits.

This is a profile picture showing the position of the armrest and e-brake. Pretty efficient
use of space?

bassspeakerprofilesm.jpg

As you can see, they're completely away from blocking the seats, and even allows me to still
use my armrest. The bass speaker is on a plug so it can be removed if necessary, and hangs
over the lip of the rear deck, where the other speakers reside. They work and sound awesome!

Hope you like it.
 
Looks nice Bob

So... you are saying the spare tire amp doesn't fit in the spare tire?
 
No, it fits there but

it sticks out of the spare tire so much so that it causes the cover to bulge out too much.

Besides, I think that muffles the bass a bit. Also, It seemed odd to have to remove your speaker in order to change a tire... :hmm:
 
Hmmm...

How often do you change a tire? ;)

Is your spare an alloy or steely? I assume (always dangerous, I know) that you relocated the FI components before you installed the speaker. Just wondering about the speaker size, because I have one around here somewhere that I was going to mount in the 78. The spare is a steely and the 78 has no FI schtuffs in there, so maybe it will fit better.
 
My spare is also a steelie.

It's the one I got with the car. Never used. :wink2:
The spare tire and FI components are unchanged. (original)
 
VERY neat job, Bob, and.........!!

bbrown said:
..... Also, It seemed odd to have to remove your speaker in order to change a tire... :hmm:
Click to expand...

....fully agree with your above comment! The one (and maybe more) time you need to change a tyre is WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT and you can guarantee it will be at THE MOST INCONVENIENT PLACE to have to change it!

Really like your speaker module! Did you happen to keep the measurements of this "neat creation" of yours?
I have been thinking of something similar for my 1300 X - I'm still using just the 2 original parcel-shelf mounted speakers at present, but looking to improve on this.

cheers, Ian - NZ
 
Man, I really love those seats...

What was the topic of this thread again? :wink2:

The center speaker cabinet between those nice seats is really cool and looks perfectly at home.

-Tim
 
Alternative powered sub woofers

BB,

I've als tried the same Pioneer powered sub and while pleased with the bass notes providing the missing frequency, was disappointed that it made the spare wheel bulge; or I couldn't a spare wheel back in.

I've had the same pondering and thoughts, but never put them into action. Your setup is reminiscent of the Honda S2000 layout.

Alternatives I had considered but not acted on were:

Boss Audio BASS500\600\1200
http://www.bossaudio.com/main/496

Kenwood KSC-SW1 or the newer Kenwood KSC-SW10.
5" x 7" powered subwoofer.
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/Car_Entertainment/Subwoofers/Powered_Subwoofers/KSC-SW10

Clarion SRV313 active subwoofer
6-3/4" counter drive woofer
http://www.clarion.com/cy/en/products/2008/audio/subwoofer/index.html

Blaupunkt THb 200A
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-BC3gaN1gvD6/p_023THB200A/Blaupunkt-THb-200A.html?o=p

All of these won't fit under the seat ... unless the seats are raised. But they can be had to reside behind the seats; which one is up to you.

What size are the speakers you selected?
Did you keep a template that can be shared?

One last thought for others, there are a number of older Alpine V-Power or 3513 amps that popup on eBay from time to time; ideal for a sub and small enough to fit in the space above and to the right of the sapre tire.

Now having gone through a bunch of stuff, I'm currently playing with a Boss Audio 740UA (80w x 4ch) and a Boss Audio BASS600.

But now, having seen your solution ...; you don't have speakers in the door panels do you?
 
I have a spare tire sub

and there is no bulge. I am actually using a legacy Alpine amp mounted in spare tire compartment to drive it.
 
Here are measurements but

they are in inches. Sorry 'bout that... Hope this helps.
One detail I left out is the curve of the cabinet. I used the outside
diameter of 12 feet (using a string and a pencil) to draw the side curve.
Hope that makes sense...

newbassspeakerdetailssm.jpg
 
I had the same thought...

but went a different route altogether. Your setup reminds me of a Viper sub set up. With my aftermarket seats, it would not work for me. So, I looked elsewhere.

sub.jpg


I picked up a Sony 10" slimline truck box. With some modification to the spare tire mount (grind the post off) It fits right into the spare tire compartment, but does stick out a tad. When I finally go to megasquirt and could relocate the ECU a bit, I think I could get it to fit all the way into the compartment. I made a temporary amp rack for a 1200 watt Sony amp to run the sub. I mounted it visible because that is my goal, some stuff visible. Eventually, when I have the time, I am going to make a 1/8" panel carpeted panel that will fit over the spare tire compartment entirely and have a cutout for the sub box to peak through, or I may remove the sub from the existing box and go 1/4 MDF on the panel and make a box attached to the bottom of the panel for the sub, like Daytona Tom. I am going to flush mount the amp with a piece of plexiglass over it on the new panel. Might be a project for this winter since I only have until Nov 1st to drive, and probably less than that before the first snowfall.
 
Great stuff, Bob, thanks..............!

.....no probs with inches, we are still pretty multibilingualfangledangle down here!! :laugh:

What's interesting about your speaker "cabinet" thingie is that I think I will be able to duplicate one very similar to it from a small boom-box thing that the PO had made, and was positioned directly behind the driver's seat (RHD down here). I took this thing out years ago because any sound from the speakers was muffled by the seat. And it was a PITA thing to remove whenever I wanted to get at the spare, or thru into the dissy access panel.
So my plan is to make something like yours out of the rejected boombox!!

Cheers, mate, Ian - NZ
 
hmmmm

i dont think this thread will apply to me, throttle body injection trumpets right behind my head might make a stereo redundant
should make beautiful music
cheers
pete
 
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