Noob, 1st time poster, speaker placement questions.

[wyckedcombo17]

Evenin'

At the moment, my audio system is listening to my tires and engine. Kinda cool for cruisin, but for the 5+ hour trips it doesn't cut the mustard. I have a 1978 Ford F250 regular cab, and 2 Jensen triaxial 6x9's.

I DO NOT want to put speakers in the doors, because as a 4x4 it sees some abuse and I don't want to shell out for marine speakers. I would like to use what I have ATM.

I obviously need to get a headunit, and was looking at DIN's. I have the old school radio bracket, so I need to do some custom fab when I do that. Doable and necessary.

For the 6x9's, I was thinking about putting them in the little "pocket" where the B pillar meets the cab roof, right above the seat belt. They'd be in there kind of horizontally, facing the passengers. Does this sound like a good setup? DIN head, and two 6x9's in those locations? I can take pictures of stuff tomorrow if its kind of hard to imagine.

I obviously would have to make an enclosure. Also, as a noob to custom audio, I'm guessing I need to isolate the woofer magnet from any surrounding metal? Any other problems you can forsee?

Thanks,

Dan

Click to read more...

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

looks like this up front?

is it this nice?

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

the most important part of installing speakers is airtight seals and an enclosure. if you can give the speakers an airtight enclosure, they'll sound good. basically, build boxes for them and mount the boxes to the truck. putting your 6x9's in boxes up where the b-pillar meets the roof is fine (not ideal, but fine). horizontal or vertical, aimed in or straight ahead, won't make that much of a difference.

 

[wyckedcombo17]

It's not that nice...yet! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif Is that yours?

When you say airtight, do you mean vacuum sealed? I was planning on building boxes for them. I always thought it was for support so they didn't rattle, but the secondary help the boxes provide is this airtight seal? What would be ideal?

I'll post up a picture tomorrow in case you see anything terribly wrong with what I'm planning.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

not mine, google image search. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

speaker boxes provide an air cavity which is required for most speakers to properly function. this is the primary function of a box. support is just inherent in the construction. it is important the box not have air leaks. you don't need it to have a vacuum seal (since that would just **** the cone in), but build it like you wanted it to hold water (glue the seams).

the size of the box depends on the driver - larger drivers like larger boxes and larger boxes provide lower frequency response (generally speaking, there are exceptions to this).

boxes can be vented (ported) in which you still want to build it as air-tight as possible, but you put a hole and tube in it. no reason to go into detail on this, just acknowledging it.

the larger your boxes are, the more bass you'll get out of them. for details on this, read the Loudspeaker Design Cookbook by Vance Dickason.

for example: a 6x9 in a sedan/coupe uses the entire trunk as an enclosure. you can buy 6x9 boxes at many audio stores. they sound decent, punchy. the "punchy" quality is a result of an undersized box.

 

[wyckedcombo17]

So do most boxes usually have a back? Like should I have one on this box?

These speaker boxes that are available for purchase, can I buy one and then custom fab it, or well that mess it up?

This is the spot, and the possible position.

That sub magnet is pretty strong. Should the enclosure be built until the 6x9 has no more magnetic pull toward the cab side?

Thank you so much for all of your help! I'm really learning a lot

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

yes, keep the magnet away from metal so the magnetic field is focused on the voice coil. the layer of wood will be sufficient.

yes, the enclosure needs to have a back on it. you'll find that the speaker angle will be driven by your desire/ability to make an enclosure with multiple compound angles.

making a mock enclosure out of cardboard first will allow you to experiment with angles and get each piece sized perfectly. i'd start by taping cardboard to the side, back, and top of the truck corner. then cut a piece for the front sized for the driver (to give adequate depth) that matches up wiht the top, side, and back. looking at this, you'll also need a bottom piece as well. then you can trace the outline on the side, back, and top pieces of cardboard, and then cut and tape them together to test fit. then mirror that process on the other side. now you have templates for your wood cuts.

 

[Bettr n' Revrse 5,000+ posts]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/naughty.gif.94359f346c0f1259df8038d60b41863e.gif

Buy regular speakers for the doors but get baffles like these VVVV and seal them to the door...

Metra 81-4300 Speaker Baffles for 5-1/4" and 6-1/2" Speakers

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

usually when someone says they don't want to do something, we provide answers to their question that honor their wishes. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[wyckedcombo17]

Thank you for the guidance with the templates! Is there any wood that works better? And for glue part - will carpenters glue work or should I use something like autobody sealer? Most of the boxes I've seen have carpet over them. Is that mainly for looks or does the carpet have a insulation quality?

 

[wyckedcombo17]

Better n Revrse, have you ever heard of FTE?

1973 - 1979 F-100 & Larger F-Series Trucks - Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

5-ply or 7-ply birch is great and cheap, it also holds screws well. MDF is common but doesn't hold screws well (but you don't need screws for assembly, just driver mounting). avoid particle board or OSB.

just a good wood glue and clamps is fine. no screws necessary. carpet is for aesthetics.

i use weatherstripping foam between the speaker and the wood to create an airtight seal.