Small simple system for 97 F-150 Supercab

Ok heres what i got and what im thinking to do. HU is a Panasonic DFX403U, Amp is a 4 channel Eclipse 36401 (50X4). This is for the wife and she doesnt want very much so I am planning on putting a single 8" sub in there and leaving the factory doors and rear speakers in it. HU is 50X4 max. So my first thought is to run the doors and rears off the front 2 channels of the amp and bridging the rear 2 for the sub, which by the way will probably be a dvc sub. Second thought is would the deck put out enough to run the 4 factory speakers and then bridge both sides of the amp to run the sub. I am aiming for this to be very equal in sound, meaning i dont want the highs to drown out the sub or vice versa. She just wants to know the bass is there which now we know its definetaly not.  So some specs on the amp, 50X4 @4ohms, 70X4 @2ohms, 140X2 @4ohms. Had originaly planned on using a Diamond CM3 8" , it is 400 watt rms though. If bridging both sides of the amp then i will go with that sub. If bridging just one side then thinking about trying an Image Dynamic ID8 V.2, it is 175 rms. Have never seen or heard them before so open to suggestions if i go that route.

The box is pretty much already built. It is .45 cubic ft and pretty skinny so mounting depth could be an issue but shouldn't be.

One other thing on the sub no matter which route i go. Knowing it will be a dvc, if i bridge both sides of the amp to a single sub then wire each side of the amp to its own voice coil right? Or if i use just one side of the amp then get a 2 ohm dvc??? Think i have that part right just checking. Thanks in advance for any replies on this one.

First of all, having worked on a lot of Fords, I highly recomend that the first best thing you can do is get rid of the factory speakers and replace them.   Your F-150 uses 5X7 speakers and probably has the Philco "whizzer cone" full ranges, which are rated at 20 watts.  Get any good quality 5X7 (Infinity, Boston, JL Audio, Alpine, MB Quart - all  have 5X7 coaxials that sound pretty good) that you like the sound of and get rid of the factory crap.

Second, IMO an 8" sub will sound great inside the cab of the pickup if what you are seeking is good overall sound quality and not "thump the block" overkill.  The Eclipse amp is a great amp, and I agree with your choice to run the front/rear speakers off the HU and bridge the amp into 2 channels, feeding a 4 ohm DVC woofer (one bridged set to each VC.)  Just make sure your amp is fed a mono signal and the gains are equalized and you should be fine.  Either of the subs you've listed will sound good.

The factory speakers will be replaced, just not at the present time. Will probably wait til after the Christmas season is over with before i change them out. Plus like i said, this is for the wife and she doesnt want to deafen herself, she just wants something good to listen to. Also that HU has the non-fading preout with subwoofer volume control so that works out pretty good.

I'd still recomend that the factory speakers be changed.  In fact, that will do more to make it sound better than anything else you can do, IMO, and it's not about being "loud," it's about being clear! 

 You should look into at least getting a nice set of, say, Infinity Kappa 573.5's for the front door.  They are about $80 on the Internet... any Ford system sounds MUCH better with new mains.

Have fun and good luck.

I used to have the same truck, I used 3 Eclipse 8" 4ohm subs on a Rockford power 200.1. Q-Logic makes sub boxes for your truck that just happen to fit right in (sales plug - I now have 2 used boxes for sale) check them out on their website. Your exploder is much more condusive to sound as compared to the f-150, how does it sound to the other half, is she happy with it?