ryan s
they dont think it
i'm going to start this off by saying this is "mini" because i've skipped tons of steps assuming you know what you're doing with certain tools like wire strippers and drills, and that you know how to wire things properly.
also assuming that you have all the tools and products you need, which includes but is not limited to:
mids/tweeters/crossovers
speaker spacers
amp to power them
wire cutters
wire stippers
wire crimpers
wire connectors of many kinds
wire
dremel and cut-off wheel (i used the re-inforced one...they're the 5/$5 kind not the 20/$5 ones...cant remember the number. i had one that was about half its original size)
drill and bits
screwdrivers (skinny flat, standard flat, standard philips)
screws
flashlight is always useful
tape--scotch and electrical
knife/scissors
sharpie
cardboard (optional)
beer (optional)
classic rock (required)
before we go any further...for the love of god...wear safety glasses, gloves, and jeans when you work with power tools. ive been hit with metal and plastic in my eyes, and it's not fun at all. oh...and i always wear regular glasses to boot, so these hot particles of stuff went around those and into my eyes. gloves and jeans have saved my hands and legs when the dremel decides to jump.
also...be careful. unhook the negative terminal of your battery before you even touch anything electrical in the car. and pay extra attention when using power tools. you don't want to be the person you hear people talk about as "hey, i read on the internet, this dude was installing speakers in his car and he _________ his ________! can you believe that?" become e-famous for something else.
ok...optional first step...smoke your door on the height adjustment lever on your lawn mower's deck, taking a small chip of paint off
to begin, take your door panels off. if you dont know how, see the DIY here. and i hope you know what youre doing when it comes to wiring if you need that DIY
now i already have wires run to my amp in the trunk. some people choose to run them to the door via the boot that carries the power locks/windows/mirrors signal, which i found to be impossible. so make a little slit at the top and bottom of the boot and run the wire that way. seriously...having messed with it for 3 hours a couple years ago, i gave up on it.
in the stock speaker's place, i had infinity reference speakers (reference my ***. they were not good at all). i'm putting in REAL reference speakers, the MB Quart RCE216 component set. ahhh...much better. so lets get these out of here:
goodbye.
next up we test fit our spacers, made by mike lashlee (aka "lashlee") here on 6ga. notice how they are shaped, and where the holes are drilled? yup...these are 6ga specific. guess what else? they were custom made just for my speakers and there is NO sliding of the speakers and NO cutting of the spacers at all. i highly recommend you contact him before buying just a circle out on the internet. stock on the left, modified on the right by enlarging the screw holes, countersinking them (i only had to do the bottoms), and making holes for the speaker to mount to:
that was one major hurdle of the component install, and why these speakers were sitting for over 3 years. the other obstacle is where to mount the crossovers. if you've tried to run wire to the door already, you will not attempt to run 2 more wires, would you?
nah
following the DIY from here will make it a pain to remove your door panels! do not copy this mod if you remove them daily/weekly/monthly! use plenty of wire inside the door to let the crossover move away from the door! this mod is intended to be reversible and go back to stock easily!
i had to get creative. behind the armrest (sedan) looked good, but nowhere to attach it to. then i saw this great space at the rear of the door:
what can i do with it since i dont want to mess with the regulator behind the plastic? what does the door panel look like? what's that little unused plastic space doing there?
hello
i see no real function to it, maybe someone can elaborate...
ok...lets make a crossover template and see how it could fit inside that recess:
remove the black spacer thing from the door panel, mark it, cut it with the dremel, test fit, cut, test, cut, etc...until you see the crossover fits. i used some right-angle clips that use the plastic on the sides, and a screw through the base of the crossover. they came with my comp set. easily removable:
clean up your cuts with a knife to get rid of the extra plastic:
remember that thing about countersinking? this is why you have to:
wire up the speakers and install them. i chose this hole since it has a rolled edge and would be less likely to cut the wire. there is a gray wire harness running through this hole, so it's that one:
voila! hook up the crossover, put it in the door thinger, install the door panel, and enjoy:
i need to plug mike's spacers once again. they saved me sooooo much time and were perfect for this job. you will need to drill the holes all the way through for the speaker mounting screws (or close enough) because if they're not deep enough, you WILL split the wood. you also need to countersink the outer mounting holes yourself. lastly, i would recommend a gasket between the MDF ring and the door panel since the stock yellow screw mounts will act as spacers.
this 3/4" ring was perfect for these deep speakers! NO window rubbing on the magnet, NOT ghetto looking, AND 6GA specific. come on...what more do you want? a couple days turnover including priority shipping? ok you got it. $20 all said and done, no extra effort for cutting circles, no need to buy a sheet of MDF, no taking 3000 measurements? yeah...ill give that to you also.
i sent him the max basket diameter, and depth of the spacer i wanted. they showed up a few days later. i literally did nothing. 6ga specific too! crazy.
if he gets enough interest, he might become a vendor so contact him ASAP! stop shopping for little speakers or ones that hit the window or fit inside the dinky stock spacer. dude...there's NO cutting of door, drilling of the door, or worrying about the window! all you need to do is measure, PM, pay, receive, and put them in...honestly.
hope this helps someone
FYI to speaker shoppers: the max depth of a spacer is 3/4" unless you mess with the door panel. these speakers were about 2 3/4" deep. the stock basket allows for 1 15/16" speakers and it has a built-in spacer of about 3/4"
also assuming that you have all the tools and products you need, which includes but is not limited to:
mids/tweeters/crossovers
speaker spacers
amp to power them
wire cutters
wire stippers
wire crimpers
wire connectors of many kinds
wire
dremel and cut-off wheel (i used the re-inforced one...they're the 5/$5 kind not the 20/$5 ones...cant remember the number. i had one that was about half its original size)
drill and bits
screwdrivers (skinny flat, standard flat, standard philips)
screws
flashlight is always useful
tape--scotch and electrical
knife/scissors
sharpie
cardboard (optional)
beer (optional)
classic rock (required)
before we go any further...for the love of god...wear safety glasses, gloves, and jeans when you work with power tools. ive been hit with metal and plastic in my eyes, and it's not fun at all. oh...and i always wear regular glasses to boot, so these hot particles of stuff went around those and into my eyes. gloves and jeans have saved my hands and legs when the dremel decides to jump.
also...be careful. unhook the negative terminal of your battery before you even touch anything electrical in the car. and pay extra attention when using power tools. you don't want to be the person you hear people talk about as "hey, i read on the internet, this dude was installing speakers in his car and he _________ his ________! can you believe that?" become e-famous for something else.
ok...optional first step...smoke your door on the height adjustment lever on your lawn mower's deck, taking a small chip of paint off
to begin, take your door panels off. if you dont know how, see the DIY here. and i hope you know what youre doing when it comes to wiring if you need that DIY
now i already have wires run to my amp in the trunk. some people choose to run them to the door via the boot that carries the power locks/windows/mirrors signal, which i found to be impossible. so make a little slit at the top and bottom of the boot and run the wire that way. seriously...having messed with it for 3 hours a couple years ago, i gave up on it.
in the stock speaker's place, i had infinity reference speakers (reference my ***. they were not good at all). i'm putting in REAL reference speakers, the MB Quart RCE216 component set. ahhh...much better. so lets get these out of here:
goodbye.
next up we test fit our spacers, made by mike lashlee (aka "lashlee") here on 6ga. notice how they are shaped, and where the holes are drilled? yup...these are 6ga specific. guess what else? they were custom made just for my speakers and there is NO sliding of the speakers and NO cutting of the spacers at all. i highly recommend you contact him before buying just a circle out on the internet. stock on the left, modified on the right by enlarging the screw holes, countersinking them (i only had to do the bottoms), and making holes for the speaker to mount to:
that was one major hurdle of the component install, and why these speakers were sitting for over 3 years. the other obstacle is where to mount the crossovers. if you've tried to run wire to the door already, you will not attempt to run 2 more wires, would you?
nahfollowing the DIY from here will make it a pain to remove your door panels! do not copy this mod if you remove them daily/weekly/monthly! use plenty of wire inside the door to let the crossover move away from the door! this mod is intended to be reversible and go back to stock easily!
i had to get creative. behind the armrest (sedan) looked good, but nowhere to attach it to. then i saw this great space at the rear of the door:
what can i do with it since i dont want to mess with the regulator behind the plastic? what does the door panel look like? what's that little unused plastic space doing there?
hello
i see no real function to it, maybe someone can elaborate...ok...lets make a crossover template and see how it could fit inside that recess:
remove the black spacer thing from the door panel, mark it, cut it with the dremel, test fit, cut, test, cut, etc...until you see the crossover fits. i used some right-angle clips that use the plastic on the sides, and a screw through the base of the crossover. they came with my comp set. easily removable:
clean up your cuts with a knife to get rid of the extra plastic:
remember that thing about countersinking? this is why you have to:
wire up the speakers and install them. i chose this hole since it has a rolled edge and would be less likely to cut the wire. there is a gray wire harness running through this hole, so it's that one:
voila! hook up the crossover, put it in the door thinger, install the door panel, and enjoy:
i need to plug mike's spacers once again. they saved me sooooo much time and were perfect for this job. you will need to drill the holes all the way through for the speaker mounting screws (or close enough) because if they're not deep enough, you WILL split the wood. you also need to countersink the outer mounting holes yourself. lastly, i would recommend a gasket between the MDF ring and the door panel since the stock yellow screw mounts will act as spacers.
this 3/4" ring was perfect for these deep speakers! NO window rubbing on the magnet, NOT ghetto looking, AND 6GA specific. come on...what more do you want? a couple days turnover including priority shipping? ok you got it. $20 all said and done, no extra effort for cutting circles, no need to buy a sheet of MDF, no taking 3000 measurements? yeah...ill give that to you also.
i sent him the max basket diameter, and depth of the spacer i wanted. they showed up a few days later. i literally did nothing. 6ga specific too! crazy.
if he gets enough interest, he might become a vendor so contact him ASAP! stop shopping for little speakers or ones that hit the window or fit inside the dinky stock spacer. dude...there's NO cutting of door, drilling of the door, or worrying about the window! all you need to do is measure, PM, pay, receive, and put them in...honestly.
hope this helps someone
FYI to speaker shoppers: the max depth of a spacer is 3/4" unless you mess with the door panel. these speakers were about 2 3/4" deep. the stock basket allows for 1 15/16" speakers and it has a built-in spacer of about 3/4"
