New System in the Grand Marquis (Build Thread)

Okay, here's what we're looking at for the newest system in my car...

Panasonic Headunit
Sundown Audio SAE-1000D
Sundown Audio SAX-100.4
Fi Q15 with BP Power (4 cubes @ 31-32 Hz)
5.25" CDT Audio Components
5x7" MTX Audio Coaxials
eD eDead v1SE² (trunk and rear deck)
big three with eD eNetic 1/0 gauge
amp rack
possibly beauty panels
possibly kick panels
possibly second battery

First, here's the empty trunk...


The headunit, components, coaxials, deadening, and big three have already been taken care of from the last system. The components are in the front doors and the coaxials are in the rear deck.











I just got my Q15 today...







Here's my trunk with the bottom piece of the box in it. The spare tire is going to be standing up behind the box so I can slide the box forward and lift the spare out if I need it. The old amp rack is behind it. The box has been designed but I'm still trying to figure out how I want to brace it. I'm using 3.5"x1.5" pieces of wood.











My amps should come in tomorrow. I plan to use my single 1/0 gauge run into my mini-anl fused distribution block, where it will split off into two 4 gauge power wires. I will also use my ground distribution block... two 4 gauge grounds into one 1/0 gauge ground. These are pictures of the distribution blocks on my old amp rack with 3 amps.





The box is going to be 21" tall, which will hide most of that shelf where I was going to put the amps, crossovers, distribution blocks, etc. I need ideas for an amp rack.

 

Nothing, I just don't want it to look exactly the same as last time.

 

Alright, my 2 amps came in. My kicker amps never had this many controls, so I'm going to need some help...



1000D...







100.4...

 

The owner of of Sundown Audio answered like 20 of my questions about all the controls on the amps about an hour after I posted my questions on SSA. I love this customer service!

 

Well I was planning on building the box this Saturday before work at 6pm, but now I have detention at 8am Saturday, so I don't know if I'll have time to get to it. I should be able to at least hookup the 4 channel and attach it to my old amp rack temporarily sometime this week.

 

Well I unhooked my kicker 350.2 and attached my new 100.4 to the old amp rack temporarily and hooked up the front channels. I need another RCA cable to hookup the rear speakers and some 16 gauge.

I really like the sundown's power light... instead of being a dim green light like on the kickers, it's a neon blue light on the side of the amp that makes a wide beam of blue.

This amp rack setup sucks. The sundown's have all their controls and RCA's on the left side and their speaker terminals and power/ground/remote terminals on the right side. I put the 100.4 on the left side of my old amp rack, and now the controls are on the far left side and you have to shift the whole amp rack and use a flashlight to see the controls... then adjust them. I need a better amp rack setup. Maybe I should build a new rack and put the amps at like a 30 degree angle with their left sides farther forward. That way, I can adjust the controls easier... I mean it doesn't take as much vision and skill to get the wires in the terminals.

 

Yeah I guess show quality isn't really a big theme. The box is shaped to fit a spare tire behind it and is only covered in regular trunk carpet. I guess the theme of my system is neatness and practicality. I don't think I'm going to do the whole grommet thing where the wires hide. I'll just roll the extra wire up and use zip ties.

 

Okay I got the 5x7's hooked up to the 100.4... it sounds much better. The 5x7's give it more depth. I have the gains at 1/2 for both the 5.25's and the 5x7's and I don't hear any distortion at volume 30/40 with the EQ on flat. I was a little surprised, because the 5.25's were rated for about 100 rms watts and the 5x7's are rated for 60 rms watts.

 

Alright, now I have engine noise. If I turn off the engine and turn the key forward like I'm going to start it, and the radio comes on, I get engine noise and the noise revs when I press the gas. I get engine noise when the engine is on too, but I'm not sure if the noise revs when I rev the engine (I have straight pipes so it's pretty loud).

I didn't used to get engine noise when I had the kickers... I only got it when I was playing music through my ipod and the ipod was charging through the cigarette lighter at the same time.

I used the same ground for the sundown... so I don't know why it would be any different. My amp ground is 4 gauge from the amp terminal to the distribution block, then 1/0 gauge from the distribution block to the metal. There's less than a foot of 4 gauge and like 2-2.5 feet of 1/0 gauge.

I ran my RCA's on the left side of the car, and my power wire on the right side of the car. My ground is on the left side of the car near the RCA's.

What do you guys think it is? The amp ground? The headunit?