Audio Systems

[sblake01]

Nope. And I've had no problems. A stock 78 and up alternator and good wiring is all you really need.

[Duffman]

I noticed Stephen's tweeters in the pillars, has anyone tried putting tweeters in an earlier Z's pillar, or elsewhere? I saw Bo's (Ktm) tweeters in the vent openings, but I don't want to block mine.

[sblake01]

Mine are actually on rather than in the pillars. A small square of 3M double sided tape. They stay put but come off easily with no damage.

[Duffman]

Thanks, Stephen, will check on some externally mounted tweeters. Seems like a good option. Is the sound acceptable?

[Zs-ondabrain]

WOW. That's a lot of equipment in the back of your Z. I guess that's what I love about my set-up. The amps are behind the seat and out of the way, the subs are in the spare tire well and the rear speakers are in the stock location. The fronts are out of the way, in the doors and in kick pods and they NEVER get hit or kicked by me or the passenger, ever.

And Tom, A Recording hall Never sounded as good as My Z. Period. And as for the whole "it should'nt be too loud in any car" crap I keep hearing from other people, That's hogwash. New cars are so damn sound-proof that you can't hear an ambulance right next to you. That's more dangerous than a volume knob that is easily turned down.

I put a system into a Crazy 240Z that consisted of 3) 15" subs, 2) Huge 1000 watt amps, 4) 6x9's, 2) 6.5" and a head unit. The car Rocked but also sounded good at a low volume. He does'nt have room for a bass tube.

Dave.

1) Now you see it

2) Now you don't

3) the previous box

[ktm]

I agree with Dave. A powerful AMP does not mean that the music has to be loud; the amp needs to be of sufficient power to adequately drive the speakers. My car is loud enough as it is between the engine, wind noise with the windows down, and my exhaust.

Dave, do you happen to have the depth measurements of the spare tire well? I am going to relocate my battery to the spare tire well and use a Braille battery. If I have room, I would like to go with a similar sub-box setup as your first one and put the battery there as well.

duffman, my vents are useless which is why I put my tweeters there. I removed my heater and blower motor. I live in southern California and do not have a need for them. I will be installing a Vintage Air system next spring so they may move however.

[sblake01]

My stuff is out of the way. The two lids will actually lift together, with the cd changer and the amp in between them, to expose the spare, etc. And the extra 6x9s in the boxes are removable, two thumbscrews and a plug. As far as 'subwoofers for the younger crowd', I'm not trying to impress everyone or win bass contests. I don't even play it all that loud. The wiring is not complicated (if you know what you're doing) and it just sounds better than 4" speakers with no amp and no sub.

Edited November 3, 2008 by sblake01

[Zs-ondabrain]

I agree with Dave. A powerful AMP does not mean that the music has to be loud; the amp needs to be of sufficient power to adequately drive the speakers.

Exactly, And New cars like Cadillacs, Lincolns, Buicks and the such, come with 6 to 8 speakers, 400 to 500 watts from 2 seperate amps and usually have a dedicated Subwoofer, from the factory. And those cars are bought and driven by Elderly retired folks.

Dave, do you happen to have the depth measurements of the spare tire well? I am going to relocate my battery to the spare tire well and use a Braille battery. If I have room, I would like to go with a similar sub-box setup as your first one and put the battery there as well.

I don't know what a Braille Battery is so I could'nt tell you if it'll fit next to a 2/3's spare tire enclosure. But here are the measurements...

26.25" across on top.

25.75 across in the middle.

aprox 6.5" deep to the side of the tire mount (deepest point)

My 2/3's enclosure is 15.25" wide which leaves 11" to spare on the side of the box. 2) 6 volt Yellow tops, wired in series, have a better chance of fitting there than any regular car battery.

[sblake01]

A Braille battery is approx. 6" x 6" by 4" depending on the model.

http://www.braillebatteries.com/

Edited November 4, 2008 by sblake01

[mlaw7]

Tom, be very careful about which 4" speakers you choose if you want to fit them behind the factory panels. They MUST be almost flush. The Boston speakers were one of the only ones I found that fit the bill. Several others claimed to be flush only to not fit. Even Crutchfield wasn't aware of the real dimensions.

My plan is pretty simple.

I am going for a 100% stock look and am using an OEM Hitachi AM/FM stereo unit in the console. The OEM Hitachi speakers actually sounded pretty decent but I decided that two-way crossover 4" speakers would be the best way to preserve the original interior look and styling while upgrading the sound quality.

The other upgrade I am planning is to install a universal CD changer behind the passenger seat that will work off of FM modulation. I'm still looking into which unit to get as some seem to work better than others according to the reviews I've read. Not the most sophisticated system by any means but the interior will still look original and the sound will be decent. For me it's the perfect compromise.

After reading a lot of reviews on various 4" two-way speakers, I bought a pair of Infinity Reference 4022i 4" speakers to replace the stock Hitachi speakers in my bronze '78. Before I bought them I measured the depth of the speaker cavity and made sure their depth (1 15/16") was a bit less.

I added bullet-type connectors so that they'll just plug right into the existing speakers wires - piece of cake!

After I removed the interior panels and speakers I test fitted the Infinity speakers in the speaker holes and it is a perfect fit. The magnets don't touch the body of the car. They fit pretty flush so the interior panels will fit over them just fine. I'm not planning to use the Infinity grilles under the interior panels as they don't seem necessary in this setup and will just add another layer of material between the speakers and the cabin.

The only other thing I'm planning to do is install RAAMmat sound proofing as much as I can on the inside of the body inside the speaker areas.

I'll let you know how it all works once I've got the car back together.

[Jeff G 78]

I actually tried to buy the Infinity 4022i speakers, but they went on backorder right as I placed the order. That's how I ended up with the Bostons. I actually bought something else first, but they didn't fit, so they went back. I bought the speakers and head unit at Crutchfield. They were great to deal with the same pricing as anywhere else I looked.

[mlaw7]

I don't have any pictures handy, but in my '78, I have an Alpine 9886 headunit, 4" Boston Accoustic speakers in the factory spots under the 1/4 windows, two Alpine amps under the wood deck, and a Sony crossover under the deck as well. I still need to pick up a rear speaker box and get two 6x9's. I love the headunit. I have a 4Gb USB flash drive hooked to it to house my music.

Are the Boston Acoustic 4" speakers you installed two-way? If so, did you have any issues with reinstalling the 1/4 window and dog leg trim?