| AikiMDX |
I spent a couple of hours with the company that will be installing the audio upgrades in my X and finally arrived at some conclusions! I have not yet set the appointment (my next two weeks are very busy) but I will very soon. BTW, for those wondering about pricing, it's approximate currently. In addition, I have decided to buy everything locally to make any future issues with the system easier to deal with. I could have saved a few hundred dollars by going mail order, but I think going with local, authorized dealers (read full warranty) to be a "sound" investment (clever huh?). For buying from an authorized dealer, I feel that I am getting "good", but not great pricing. I know I will receive excellent service and a lifetime warranty on installation. I don't believe that I even get charged for shipping if something does go wrong and it must be shipped out for repair. Oh yeah, and a full warranty all the way around!
Here are the goals for my upgrade:
Stealth install
Use factory head unit
Component speakers that will fit in front factory location
Natural sound
Coaxial speakers for rear factory location
Amplifier in rear storage area
Hard Drive mp3 player in rear storage area (not being done quite yet). Just making sure there is space
Headrests will still live and be removable from the rear storage area
Contrary to my previous vehicle, I was willing to give up a bit of sound quality to attain my first two goals (stealth and factory head unit).
With the current configuration and the $$$ available I feel confident that the system will really "sing" once installed.
Here is my current plan:
Equipment
MB Quart Q Series 218.61 two way components for the front
- Incredible midranges, bright tweeters (IMO) that can be attenuated nicely with the crossover. They sound incredible. I had been considering the Boston Acoustics Pro 6.5's and the Alpine SPX 177a. Today I listened to the Bostons and MB Quart's a second time and for my ears, the MB Quart's came out a real winner.
Having said that, I would also be happy to have the Boston's in my car. The price difference ended up being $50 (got a GREAT deal on the MB Quart's).
Low end MB Quart coaxials for the back (model number is escaping me at the moment)
Crossfire VR705d 5 channel amp - 50x4 into 4ohm plus 300x1 into 2ohm (see sub below). The amp is Class A/B for the 50x4 and Class D for the 300x1. With the sub channel being Class D, it should create less heat than a straight A/B. A bass level controller will be mounted in the front of the car (location undecided).
10" USD Audio Sub (dual voice coil to allow for a 2ohm load) with custom built fiberglass enclosure to maximize the enclosure space in the factory location
Installation
The storage area in the back of the X will have a "sheet" of tin "permanently" mounted to the floor of the headrest storage area. The amp will be mounted using industrial strength velcro glued to the tin (doesn't stick to the carpet very well). This will leave me room to add the hard drive mp3 player I plan on buying soon.
Both will be able to be moved out of the way without unplugging wires to allow for removal and insertion of the headrests.
Holes will be cut in the liner of the storage area (the part nearest the front of the car) to allow for heat to escape. If this still does not provide enough cooling, a fan or fans will be installed.
Future projects
Nav/DVD integration (looking towards Ron@se for that one)
Hard Drive mp3 player (see dension.com or densionusa.com)
Whew.
I chose Speaker Works (So Cal) due to my experiences with them on my last two cars. Eric Holdaway, one of the owners, has been an incredible source of information and suggestions. I strongly believe that this system will meet the goals I set out for it. I'm very excited about getting it going. |
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| EXCALIBUR |
AkiMDX,
Sounds (pun intended) like you have a great plan for your MDX audio system. Good luck and please keep us posted.:29: |
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| TheyCallMeBruce |
quote:
Originally posted by AikiMDX
Installation
The storage area in the back of the X will have a "sheet" of tin "permanently" mounted to the floor of the headrest storage area. The amp will be mounted using industrial strength velcro glued to the tin (doesn't stick to the carpet very well). This will leave me room to add the hard drive mp3 player I plan on buying soon.
Both will be able to be moved out of the way without unplugging wires to allow for removal and insertion of the headrests.
Holes will be cut in the liner of the storage area (the part nearest the front of the car) to allow for heat to escape. If this still does not provide enough cooling, a fan or fans will be installed.
The velcro solution makes me think if there might not be a less awkward alternative. I'm visualizing heavy gauge sheet metal bent on a sheet bender so that it conforms to the floor and back wall of the storage compartment and hinged near the top of the lid support bar. Because of the outward swing of this mounting plate, the plate and amp must have some space toward the rear, maybe an inch, and I don't know how wide your amp is and if there would be enough extra clearance for this. If you hinged the plate at the rear of the compartment instead of the front, you would not need as much swing out clearance, but it would be an awkward reach to pull the amp toward you when pulling out the headrests.
Just something to think about.
Oops, you didn't say so, but I assumed you wrote in such detail because you wanted feedback. If not, please say so and I will stop throwing things at you which you don't want to hear. |
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| neide |
| What have you decided to do for the MP3 Player? Any thoughts on how the head unit intergration will work? |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by TheyCallMeBruce
The velcro solution makes me think if there might not be a less awkward alternative. I'm visualizing heavy gauge sheet metal bent on a sheet bender so that it conforms to the floor and back wall of the storage compartment and hinged near the top of the lid support bar. Because of the outward swing of this mounting plate, the plate and amp must have some space toward the rear, maybe an inch, and I don't know how wide your amp is and if there would be enough extra clearance for this. If you hinged the plate at the rear of the compartment instead of the front, you would not need as much swing out clearance, but it would be an awkward reach to pull the amp toward you when pulling out the headrests.
Just something to think about.
Oops, you didn't say so, but I assumed you wrote in such detail because you wanted feedback. If not, please say so and I will stop throwing things at you which you don't want to hear.
Thanks for the interesting idea. Sounds like it would look great. I'll need to give it some more thought. Space is obviously a difficult issue here. The amp is 18.7 inches long and the mp3 player is right around 5.5, plus add in some space for air to move (not much) and wiring and voila, space is all gone.
I should add that there will be times when I use the "removable" feature without removing the headrests. I.e., to get the mp3 player out of my car to update it with music.
I wrote in detail in case others were interested in doing something similar (or completely different :2: ). I do appreciate any and all suggestions though. :27: |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
What have you decided to do for the MP3 Player? Any thoughts on how the head unit intergration will work?
The mp3 player will likely be from this company: linky
Here is a link to forums where they discuss hard drive mp3 players linky .
I looked long and hard at the SSI America model that has been talked about here before and found some interesting issues with it. One of the reasons I like the Dension is not only the look of the interface "satellite" but you can customize how it displays its information through software they provide. In addition, from what I have read, SSI is not providing regular firmware updates while Dension seems to be more active in supporting the product. The only down side is that the SSI has sold many, many more units at this point and the price of the Dension is a fair bit more than the SSI.
How I am going to have the integration done is not yet set in stone. Here are my current thoughts:
1 - Install a switch on the rear audio inputs (since I have RES) and have the switch button dash or steering wheel mounted. So, I hit the Aux in on the RES head unit and then the switch button and I'm good to go. (my likely choice since I don't lose any functionality in the process)
2 - Dension has an adapter that makes the player act as if it is an Alpine cd changer. I could remove the existing cd changer which won't see much use once it is installed and hook it up through the regular cd changer input. That would enable me to do limited navigation of the directories on the mp3 player through the factory head unit as well as get the sound to the head unit. Even if I were to go this route, I would still use their "satellite" to enable the viewing of the mp3 tags and selection of more advanced features like random.
I have not found a good spot for their satellite to go yet. That is probably the main sticking point right now and why I haven't bought it yet. I remember seeing pictures of an SSI satellite mounted above the a/c vents but I want mine to be less conspicuous yet still easily reachable when desired. Suggestions anyone? |
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| neide |
| Very interesting. This is the first hard drive based unit I've seen that can be driven at all by the head unit. I suppose one could mount it directly below the change drawer - might not look too bad there. It'd be nice to see some reviews of this unit, to see how it actually works. Info on their site is quite sparse. |
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| neide |
| One more question, is your local installer going to do the MP3 player for you? Do they care that you got it somewhere else? |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
One more question, is your local installer going to do the MP3 player for you? Do they care that you got it somewhere else?
They don't really care where I get the equipment, although of course they prefer it if I buy it through them. Even if I don't buy an item from them, they have a lifetime install warranty on everything they put in, so if it ever fails they pull it out and later put it back in at no cost.
Unfortunately, info is a bit lacking on their web site. There is a bit more on the dension.com web site, but not a great deal more.
I have a user manual in pdf format if anyone is interested (441k) or the full manual with a bit of color thrown in and better quality that is just over 3MB.
I believe the SSI product is also capable of being controlled by specific brands of head units as well.
Here is a pic of the Satellite controller that will be installed in the front of the car. |
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| AikiMDX |
| Here is a pic of the hideaway portion. |
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| neide |
| Thanks for the upclose pics! I like the display, very nice blue that matches the rest of the X well. I think we have a winner here. I would be interested in seeing the full blown (3 meg) owner's manual, if you could send it to me that would be great. |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
Thanks for the upclose pics! I like the display, very nice blue that matches the rest of the X well. I think we have a winner here. I would be interested in seeing the full blown (3 meg) owner's manual, if you could send it to me that would be great.
I think it should match the blue back lighting nicely.
Here is a link to the 440k manual linky
The other docs I believe I got from here: linky |
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| AikiMDX |
| Link to a Dension review with pictures: linky |
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| neide |
| From the review this looks pretty good. I also like the hackability/customizability of this. But I'm struggling with where you would mount it? I don't think the full box would fit under the change drawer, its too deep. I guess you could get the remote display and mount it there - but it would need a custom faceplate made. Have you had any other ideas on a good mounting location? |
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| crmsnidol |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
From the review this looks pretty good. I also like the hackability/customizability of this. But I'm struggling with where you would mount it? I don't think the full box would fit under the change drawer, its too deep. I guess you could get the remote display and mount it there - but it would need a custom faceplate made. Have you had any other ideas on a good mounting location?
That's the issue I'm having with an MP3 solution - space. From what Streeteffectz has told me, the change drawer area is right in front of an MDX frame piece and isn't deep. The standard depth DVD players at 10 5/8" will be too long so I'm getting the Boss Mini DVD at 6 1/2" deep. For me, a Blitzsafe adapter and 20GB portable like the Creative Nomad Zen sitting in the armrest compartment should work just fine. Just double-tap the CD button and hear thousands of hours of shuffle-play tunes. I'm keeping the stock HU for the CD/Tape player for ease of use for my wife.
I really like the Denison player for it's home/PC/car use and it is approx the same $$ as a Zen/Blitzsafe combo but it doesn't exactly fit my purpose. |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
From the review this looks pretty good. I also like the hackability/customizability of this. But I'm struggling with where you would mount it? I don't think the full box would fit under the change drawer, its too deep. I guess you could get the remote display and mount it there - but it would need a custom faceplate made. Have you had any other ideas on a good mounting location?
The full box is definitely going in the headrest storage area. I'm still undecided on exactly where to mount the Satellite unit. I have a couple of possibilities but nothing solid yet. I'm considering having the main unit installed but not permanently mounting the satellite until after I have lived with it for a little while.
Here are my current locations under consideration (I'm planning on cutting out some paper in the size/shape of the satellite and moving it around the dash when time permits), although I am far from comfortable with any location yet:
Between the buttons for the heat seaters with enough cable to pick it up when necessary or to perhaps put it away in the center console
Just behind and to the right of the steering wheel (left of the stereo and just below the gauges)
Below the main stereo unit and partially in front of the "not an ashtray" although it might dangle a bit.
Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. |
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| MDXor |
A place that may work is in the center console cover (see image below).
A friend of my install his CD Changer control unit in a piece of metal plate that was hinge below the center console cover. It was spring loaded so when he lifted his cover the control would put out from underneath the cover and be ready for use. He had to cut a hole in the metal plate so the lock in the can pass through and the cover can be close with the control out for use and bend it at different places.
Just an idea....
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by MDXor
A place that may work is in the center console cover (see image below).
A friend of my install his CD Changer control unit in a piece of metal plate that was hinge below the center console cover. It was spring loaded so when he lifted his cover the control would put out from underneath the cover and be ready for use. He had to cut a hole in the metal plate so the lock in the can pass through and the cover can be close with the control out for use and bend it at different places.
Just an idea....
Thanks for the suggestion and the Photoshop work. Would you mind "installing" the display just under the head unit so I could see how that would look? My skills in Photoshop are very limited :rolleyes: . Thanks much. |
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| MDXor |
AikiMDX,
I'll try to do it in the next couple of days. :)
But where, under the head unit by the DVD? :confused: |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by MDXor
AikiMDX,
I'll try to do it in the next couple of days. :)
But where, under the head unit by the DVD? :confused:
Excellent. I was thinking of right above the "not an ashtray". The unit comes with an angled bracket included in the box so I am considering mounting it at an approx 45 degree angle facing up. I figure that it is "closer" to having my eyes on the road than the center console, although I will be talking to my installer about the center console idea you suggested.
TIA.
Andrew |
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| AikiMDX |
For anyone interested, the Dension is currently on sale at densionusa.com. They are giving $40 off the purchase of the MP3 player and a Satellite.
My car went into the shop today to begin work. I'll be getting it back on Saturday. Can't wait. |
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| neide |
| So, how did the install go??? |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
So, how did the install go???
It went great. You can see the pics here:
linky
I am hoping to have a few minutes to take pics of the mp3 player this weekend. |
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| neide |
| Please do! Where did you decide to install it? How does the head-unit integration work? |
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| AikiMDX |
quote:
Originally posted by neide
Please do! Where did you decide to install it? How does the head-unit integration work?
The player was installed in the headrest storage area. I had wanted to put it under the front seat in place of the cd changer, but the mbus compatibility did not pan out. So, I had the installer put the cd changer back in place and mount the player in the storage area. To allow for an easy input, I had them run the RCA outputs of the player to the aux in in the third row armrest so that it can be unplugged easily if I want to use a PS2 or similar later. Without opening the armrest, you wouldn't know it was there.
Because of the mbus problem, the only integration with the headunit is the selection of the Aux input and then volume control. I have a small controller for my mp3 player mounted just behind the gear shift. |
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