1st Build 2005 Silverado Crew Cab

[AJBinVA]

The Alpine head unit in my truck went so I decided if I was going to replace it I'd just replace everything. Always wanted a nice car audio setup so figured I'd give it a shot.

Daily Driver. I listen to just about everything but what I really want to pop is: 80's-90's Punk (Misfits, Bad Religion, Dead Kennedys), 90's alternative/rock (Kicks and Toms), Rap from about 88-04 (Tribe/Lox/NWA/Drag-On etc...) [Want clear vocals and separation of the lows/instrumental]


What I bought (Got a targeted advertisement for SKAR it seemed affordable and decent so I pretty much impulse bought it then after further research realized it's probably junk but it'll do for now.) Also I have almost no room for subs in the truck while still retaining almost all functionality so the EVL-65s stood out. (Looks like Dayton has some that may work would be better but I'll mess around later.)

Electrical System:

Stock doing the big 3 with 4GA and a Duralast Gold (Probably going to get 1/0 and a NSB soon)

Head Unit:

Pioneer AVH-W4500NEX

Amps:

SKAR RP 800.1DM powering the subs. (The marine model was the only one in stock and it was cheap)

SKAR SKV2-200.4D powering the components. (Probably the wrong amp for the job. The SKV2-100.4AB or RP-150.4AB is probably what I should've bought but I think my first thought was to only get one set of components and a single sub and run it all off one amp but then I started ordering more junk.)

Components:

2 Pairs of SKAR TX65C I'll be mounting both 6.5's in the front doors and the tweeters on the A-Pillars.

Subwoofers:

2 SKAR EVL-65 6.5" subs with 4ohm DVCs. I will wire them to 4 ohms.

Enclosure:

Downfire under the rearseat 1.1ft^3 with dual 2" round ports. Port length is 10". (Tried to get close to the .6ft^3 and 8.5in^2 port area recommended but was limited by the available space under the seat to allow the seats to fold down and ensuring the subs wouldn't hit the carpet at full stroke.) Total height of the box was limited to 3.5" of open space. I was able to get an extra 3/4" directly under the seats between the frames.


I'm still messing with getting it all put in. Here are some progress pictures.

Click to read more...

 

[AJBinVA]

Box is almost done. Subwoofer voice coils all measured at 3.1 to 3.4 ohms. Got them wired to a final 3.5 ohm reading. Was hoping for 4. Guessing just poor quality of the subs. Hopefully they sound ok.

 

[BCotrell]

Any reason you didn’t go slim woofer to get more cone area? Nice job in the door adapters. As long as you have a tweeter mount you’re ready for three way front in the future

also, if you’re still close to hitting your seat tops can’t you get some clearance with washers on the seat mount bracket.

 

[AJBinVA]

Any reason you didn’t go slim woofer to get more cone area? Nice job in the door adapters. As long as you have a tweeter mount you’re ready for three way front in the future

also, if you’re still close to hitting your seat tops can’t you get some clearance with washers on the seat mount bracket.

Thanks for the response. Ignorance was pretty much the reason for the subs. I did zero research beforehand. Got a group suggestion for a local car audio group and a lot of folks had Skar equipment. I saw the prices and thought dang I could have a system for almost nothing. They looked cool and were $60 each.

I did no measurements before ordering and figures heck they should fit. They did but barely. After doing some research I think a dayton 10" shallow mount would've been the best answer and I'll probably buy one. I feel like I have room for it under the driver's side rear and a similar box should be ok. Some mid range drivers will probably replace the second component set in the future. I'm seeing recommendations for the Crescendo PWX-6 but finding them in 4ohm seems tough. That would probably be the best way to get the drum notes I'm looking for.

For now I'm just hoping to get it all wired up without frying anything. I anticipate the stock electrical needing some vast improvements.

 

[AJBinVA]

Got the amp rack temporarily mounted.

 

[AJBinVA]

Amp rack in. Power cable run. Need to finish the ground block. Need to order some 1/0 gage to do the big 3.

Any recommendations on a good brand for wire that ships quickly?

Also going to look into a North Star AGM battery.

 

[BCotrell]

Windy City on Amazon is pretty quick

 

[AJBinVA]

Did the big three with 1/0 gage. The battery terminals are a bit overkill probably but they shipped quickly.

As I read more I'm realizing I wasted a ton of money on the skv2 amp.

Am I correct in reading that the TX65C components are 100watts rms per pair? So 50 RMS watts per midrange tweeter combo.

Any reason I can't or shouldn't wire the two crossovers in series to the amp on channels 1 and 2 at 8 ohms? There are no ratings on the manual for 8 ohms? Would running it at that high of a resistance cause any over heating or should it be fine?

Then get some mid bass in the rear doors on channels 3 and 4? Something like the dayton 6.5s?

Home

Dayton Audio DSA175-8 6-1/2" Designer Series Aluminum Cone WooferThe Designer Series by Dayton Audio was developed specifically with the speaker designer in mind. It is an affordable, attractive line of drivers that puts performance first. Careful engineering ensures that each speaker in the...

www.parts-express.com

 

[fithwheel]

Any reason I can't or shouldn't wire the two crossovers in series to the amp on channels 1 and 2 at 8 ohms? There are no ratings on the manual for 8 ohms? Would running it at that high of a resistance cause any over heating or should it be fine?


Then get some mid bass in the rear doors on channels 3 and 4? Something like the dayton 6.5s?

Home

Dayton Audio DSA175-8 6-1/2" Designer Series Aluminum Cone WooferThe Designer Series by Dayton Audio was developed specifically with the speaker designer in mind. It is an affordable, attractive line of drivers that puts performance first. Careful engineering ensures that each speaker in the...

www.parts-express.com

When you connect a 8ohm driver to a 4 ohm passive crossover it’ll change your crossover point. Why not use the Dayton classic 6.5s or some other 4 ohm mid?
As far as your ohm load reading on the subs see what the dc resistance spec is on them. 4 ohm is just the nominal so when you check the ohms of the coil with a dmm it should be pretty close to the dc resistance spec. You also have some resistance in your dmm leads so take that into account as well.

 

[AJBinVA]

Spent some time getting pieces and parts.

Cleaned up some wiring. Bought nutserts and a tool to start mounting things. Couldn't believe I never knew about them.

The amp rack is solid now and the passenger side speaker pod is mounted. Waiting on some non-hardening clay and foam baffles to come in. Just mocked up for now.

I order a Dayton DSP-408. I'll run it with the Skar crossovers first then set up the DSP once I get some capacitors.

I'll just play with this for awhile then really start looking at going to a SQ setup once I learn some things.

Are there any good sites to search amplifiers and sort by specs? Crutchfield seems pretty limited.

 

[AJBinVA]

Finally had some time off work to play around. Got started sound deadening the drivers door. Still need to add foam pods and ccf. Then tesa tape. Then treat the door panel.

 

[AJBinVA]

Finally got around to getting everything hooked up and getting some sound going.


Music sounds good but there is a pretty solid whine. Bought some longer leads and a better DMM. Resistance to my AMP grounding post is not acceptable (11 ohms) although it's the best thing in the cab. I'll be running another 1/0 cable from the battery to the frame and then through the cab to the frame. I'll also do a fresh ground from the head unit instead of using the factory harness ground.

I'm still working on position the tweeters. The soundstage definitely isn't as wide as I'd like. I'm having a hard time separating left/left of center/center. It's distinguishable but not as clear as I'd expect.

Is this mostly a speaker positioning issue or is it timing that I should adjust with the DSP? (Driver side tweeters are probably lest then 12" left of my head; I have them inside of the a pillars now thinking of moving them more toward the sails).

 

[Caustic]

The stage will present as wide as the gear is. The sails are a good spot for albeit not as deep as the a pillar can be. T/A won't be available until you get that dsp-408 up and running.

Personally I've always had the best luck running the wire from the amp all the way back up to the battery ground for alt whine. Having the gain down helps the noise floor too.

The skar skv2 is a decent amp, Korean I believe. Nothing wrong with having extra power, just keep the gain down (which will help with noise floor) and use the dsp-408, adjust the input and output to the amp.

Good snap and clarity is something I always equated with higher efficiency drivers like pro audio. I prefer the dynamics and dry sound of PA stuff. I have the Stevens MB8s and the percussion is astounding now, sounds like you're in the garage and the guys are just jamming... can be painful. Things like Gojiras drum solo just makes me smile ear to ear.