| Xtreme MDX |
I have been contemplating on what to use as a replacement center channel speaker. The built-in center channel speaker on my Panasonic head unit just does not cut in sometimes. I really wanted to do a custom center channel w/ a single 6.5 and a tweeter. Ideally it should be mounted where the radio is. I could put the head unit back to where it was(below the stock radio where the power outlet used to be)but I really liked the look of the radio right now. The other ideal location was to do a custom install on the dashboard topside of the center vents. Yikes, I did not want to cut into the dash so that was out of the question. Well I could have mounted it under the oem radio but the imaging might end up being too low. Well I researched the net for every brand I can think of and searched for center channel speakers and what I came up with was the Clarion. This was the most promising design. Half DIN, 5 tweeters with a built-in midbass driver(ported to the front) After searching for the best price I ended up getting it from E-Bay. Crutchfield and other on line stores had it for $ 159 - $ 180 but I got mine for $ 82.00. It came in yesterday and I dove right into the installation. I did have to trim the sides of the Metra kit with my Dremel tool. I also had to cut the sides of the half din pocket but retained the top and bottom to hold the CC speaker in place. There was a gap in the bottom of the speaker so I fashioned a trim from plywood laid some padding and covered it with black vinyl and voila. A perfect trim cover, no more gaping hole. The wiring was easy. Screwed in the ground wire, the power wires plugged into my Panasonic power and remote turn on wire via the supplied bullet connectors on the Clarion unit and done. Fired up the DVD, a little tweaking and add some time delay and man did this thing blew me away. It might not sound as good as a custom component center channel but for the $$ this thing is amazing. This thing did really have some midbass, it was not loud but definitely audible. The dialogues and other special effect sounds that are supposed to be centered just jumps at your face. It's like hearing these DVDs for the first time. I have not had the chance to post pics yet but I will soon. The install will be changed soon, I just need to get some speaker grill cloth so I can recover the stock Clarion grill and the bottom spacer to make the unit look more flushed against the Metra kit. For anyone that is looking to do a center channel this might be a very good alternative since a custom center channel could cost anything between $ 500.00 to $ 1,500.00. Here's a link to the Cruthfield website with the specs on this unit.
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-uwp9bB...w.asp?i=020SRK5 |
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