Hey everyone! Welcome to my first post and my first venture into aftermarket stereo system in about 15 years. That being said I am open to ANY input just please don’t steer me in the wrong direction ‘cuz I am in a position of having to learn the things I need to know as I am going here! I have a bunch of that learning to do that is for certain! To jump into the fire with both feet I am going to be putting a 5.2 car theater into my fiance’s ’08 Sebring 4-door Sedan. I has 6”x9” in the front doors and in the rear deck. My first question is about the stock head unit opening… I have come across information a couple of times that suggest that the opening is just shy of a true double DIN opening… does anyone know this to be true or not? This is important because I will be putting a DIN head unit, an Alpine IVA-D310. I also want to hopefully put an Alpine SBS-05DC DIN sized center channel speaker in the stock opening below the HU. It will have to go below the HU otherwise the display will cover the speaker when it is out. In looking at the panel, I don’t see that there is much room to shave above or below the opening to make both fit if in fact the stock opening is not a true double DIN opening. I can only really see the center having to go in between the sun visors on the headliner if I cannot fit it in the stock stereo opening. I have a background in woodworking and am comfortable that I could built decent box to hold the center if I do end up having to go with it on the headliner… but as I eluded to earlier I would much rather it go in the stereo opening.
The other equipment I have on hand at this point I will list and call out what I have intended to do with it… If someone has a different/better suggestion please by all means feel free to make the suggestion. If you would please explain why so I can pick-up on things for myself!?
Alpine NVE-N872A Navigation Module
Alpine SIR-ALP10 Sirrius and Traffic Module
Alpine PXA-H701 Multimedia Manager/Processor
… all of which will be hidden. Not sure where yet but that will happen somehow. Will likely end up putting these in the spare tire well with some fans running… will this work? Is it too confined down there even with running fans? Any other locating ideas?
2 ~ Boston Acoustics G2 12” DVC 300W RMS in a vented box
Sony AM-SD51X Class D Mono Amplifier (wired ‘mote to the dash)
I plan to run these at 2 Ohms.
I have yet to get or decide upon an amplifier to drive my center channel. I am looking for some direction on this one. The speaker is 50W RMS and 150W PEAK.
Focal 165V 6.5” Mid-Bass, 1” tweeters and crossovers 150W PEAK 75W RMS
Alpine MVR-T500 V12 Amplifier 2x100W
Audiobahn ACAP10Q 2-1 Farad Digital Capacitors
Power Acoustic PT-738MSV Sun Visor Monitor
Monster Power MCPI-150W Power Inverter
PS3 with wireless controllers
Alpine EX-10 iPod Adapter with Bluetooth w/ Wireless Remote
Parking Brake Bypass is already on the D310
I still have to decide upon and aquire a second set of mid-bass and highs. My plans were to get Focal 165CVX coaxial speakers to use for rear fill and to use the components for the front stage. With the 6.5” in the doors and the tweeters on the A-pillars. I will have to get adapters for both the door and the rear deck locations. Also, do I need to run my mid-bass and highs through the caps? I am pretty certain that I don’t because they don’t need a lot of power in an instant like the subs do… but I am not sure!? What Amp Wiring kit should I go with? I know I want to go with OFC but need help with what size Power wire to use… can using a larger than needed lead to signal lose or other problems? I will in all likelihood end-up getting a 4 channel amp to drive all of my mids and highs mainly in order to save room in the trunk by having 3 amps instead of 4… sub, center and 1 mids & highs instead of 2. I have some Monster Cable speaker line (top-of-the-line) that I purchased when I put in my Home Theater… is there any reason I shouldn’t or couldn’t use this as my interconnect lines in the car? It is twisted pair with really good insulation… can’t recall the part number right now but I know there wasn’t any better available. What mounting bracket should I go with for the head unit and center or just the HU if that is the way I have to go about it?
I truly look forward to any and all input and knowledge anyone can give! I plan to get started on this project the weekend after Halloween and answers to these questions before then as I need to get the last few items. Thanks for any and all help you can give!
Also, I am really looking for a book or a site that I can print off all the stuff I need to have a good understanding of in order to make sure the install goes well and to keep things going well while the equipment is in her car. Thanks again! Fatalii