8" in the doors.

[8" in the doors.]

He said ANY 8. Strong statement. Curious as to the stroke and Sd of those "6.5's"...

That's why I posted what I did....I'm not sure he knows about the RLi-8....I KNOW that's a strong sub that will absolutely smoke what the Blues 6.5 will do on sub-bass SPL, as will the other 8's I posted. Now if you try to use an RLi-8 or the others like we are in a two-way front stage with nothing more than a tweeter, we've got a whole new ballgame as I don't think those drivers can be used like we are using these.

The T/S parameters will be posted on the Blues website when they are closer to actual production.....that's straight from the person making them. These are a SOUND QUALITY driver made for listening to music, not for doing SPL. When playing music they will be tough to beat for midrange detail and midbass definition. They will reach down pretty darn low, and roll off on the high end to blend with the tweeter as well or better than most anything else out there. I know that's a strong statement, but it took a $55,00, a $75,000 and a $110,000 system to beat him out at USAC finals in Tulsa this year. He has $5,000 AT MOST (most likely less) in everything in his truck! In my humble opinion, that's a pretty darn good return on his dollar for good sound to money spent ratio.

We all know that you know what you are talking about, I'm just trying to keep the peace brother!

[Hoffman's Iron Law]

Thank you for stating what a lot of people have forgotten....there is no free lunch!

[8" in the doors.]

I have the same speakers he has and on more than one occasion I've been asked what subs I have when I was running just the 6's in my doors and 5.25's and tweets in the kicks, no sub. I'm down now to just the 6.5's and tweets and it just plain sounds better. My 6.5's are crossed at 32Hz and up....rolling off naturally on the top. Tweets are crossed over passively the same as Cablguy's 3000Hz and up. Same power....LP 2.2HV. Soundstage is dead center and eye level extending beyond the a-pillars. For those that call BS because I'm doing a build log, I had the tweets taped in place and the 6.5's in the doors before I started it running off an Alpine 7894, PA-II, XO-3, and LP DPS Q50. Tore it all out to do the build log.

Why is it so hard to believe that 6.5's can play low with authority? Will they bow the glass on the car? Hell no, but when you are listening to music in his truck, and Cablguy can tell you, his subs are barely on. He only turns them up when he wants to show off and get loud. Would I compare these 6.5's to an RLi-8, Tangband W8-740P, DD1508 or the like? No.....those are monster 8" subwoofers. Not the same kind of application. Would I put them up against any other manufacturer's 6.5? For any of the 6.5's I've ever seen and used, any day and twice on Sunday. These little suckers will surprise you. I've used Fosdate Audiophile 6.5's, pulled them after a day. I've used the ID OEM 6.5's, and ED 7kv.2's, pulled them too. The original Stillwater Designs Separates (gold label) 6.5's, and the later 6.5c's and pulled those as well. The Blues drivers just sounded better to me in my application, a two-way front stage. I have heard the ED 7kv's in an SUV (8 of them to be exact) and they were painfully loud.

I've not had the opportunity to listen to the SEAS CA18RNX or the SEAS W18E which I believe M5 has (I would really like to hear your truck and car sometime M5!!!), the Peerless SLS 6.5 or the HAT drivers so I can't comment on them, but I can't believe that they would be heads and tails better. If anything they would be comparable. I'm not wanting to start a pissing match in someone else's thread, I just wish people would keep an open mind about other brands as I've been surprised on more than one occasion by something in the car audio world. If there's a super 6.5 out there, please point me to it, I would love to hear it!

[J-Roadtatts Honda Accord Build]

Looking good! I understand about "tilting" the woofer, I had to do the same to mine to get inserts into the wood where I could use machine screws to hold my subs in. In my box instead of fiberglass resin, I simply primed and painted the port and sanded it with 220-2000 grit sandpaper to make it as smooth as possible at all edges. It feels like glass when you run your hand down the port. I don't know if it will help the airflow, but I don't think it can hurt! Keep the pics coming!

[Difference between P800PRS and P880PRS?]

I believe they are the same except for the differences you noted. Maybe someone else can say for sure?

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Hey Cablguy!

I'm sure gonna try! Although you will have the advantage of cone area on subs, I have a smaller cabin so maybe it'll equal out on SPL. NOT!!!! You're gonna kill me on SPL with the dual ISOKITS in the back wall, everything else should sound similar. Heck the only difference is our cd players! You're using a 2.2HV on the front stage right? And a 5002 or 502HV on subs? I conceed the SPL part, you'll hammer me. But I'll just have to make sure my staging depth and height is at least as good as you if I want to hang. We both know you have a small "advantage" over me in where you live, but I can always come down to visit "the source!" Ha Ha! You'll have to post some pics of your truck on here so others can share in the old school goodness!

OldSkool_08....

The prototypes for the new drivers are being tested now and from what I've listened to, they are better than the originals. I have been told they will have a butyl rubber surround instead of the treated foam like the old ones, for the larger woofers anyway. Not sure if the rubber surround starts at 8" or 6.5" however. The new tweeters are much smaller than the originals, I think my old ones are almost the size of a 3 1/2" midrange! The new ones are a little larger than 1" and are the smoothest tweeter I've heard to date in my opinion. I know there are other great sounding speakers out there and I'm not knocking anyone else's speaker, I just happen to like the sound of these better than any others I've listened to. If you want to know anything else about them just PM me and I'll try to answer the best I can or at least point you to someone who knows for sure.

When I redo my MGB I'll be making another triso for it with a plexi window so people can see inside at what's going on inside. I'm still in the planning stage for that one, but as my skills get better I want to try and make one that looks like the craftsmanship of some of the guys on this board.

And to everyone else....Thanks for all the kind words and encouragement!!!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Got a little time last night to work on the truck so I though I would post the results.....went from this.....

To this....

These will be wrapped in graphite vinyl to match the color of the truck. I had thought about texture coat, but since one of them got cracked at the mounting tab, I'm not sure if I can make it look "factory" enough to match the truck. Waaaay easier to hide the imperfection under the vinyl as long as it's smooth.

Now for the people who wanted to see what was under the cover, here is the next project in the works.....

Plans are for 8's in the front kick panel area, tweets wherever they sound best, and a triso box on the rear shelf behind the seats downfired. The triso box will be removable for classic car shows where they don't care about audio, only originality. (GAAAAASP!) The trunk (boot for you British guys) will have a pair of LP DPS350's one on the front stage, one for the triso. Crossover will be handled by the Eclipse 5441 in one of the pics earlier where I shoe-horned all that stuff in the dash to see if it would fit. Hope you guys enjoy the pics....I'll have more soon!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Finally got around to taking pics of the sound deadener.....I got it cheap, and got it before everyone and their brother started making the stuff. I still want to do some other things to quiet down the interior, but right now that will have to wait. Anyway....on with the pics!

Speaker wire, ground wire grommet, and ground for relay.

Power wire grommet....

Grounded on frame....I need to take this off and scrape off the rust and repaint it. It's been there awhile so I want to "refresh" it.

Then I cut out a back wall to mount the amps.....

Then it got too cold to work outside so I went inside and worked on the dash bezel some. I still have some fitting to do, but it's better. This is the backside of the dash bezel where I filled in the gaps on the sides of the radio.

Front side before paint....

Then I worked on the a-pillars some more.....

I still have some sanding to do to make it smooth on the edges, but yesterday was the superbowl and I just wasn't too motivated to work on it. At least I"m at the stage now where I can work on some of the stuff inside where it's warm! I still have to make the grill for the sub and once that's done, I can finish the box and make it look good. Right now the plan is to put the grill on the front of the box and run a roundover bit around the top of the box and the front of the grill to make it blend with the sides. Then I'll prime the entire thing to find any imperfections, fix those, and texture and color coat it to match the rest of the truck.

Stay tuned!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Well, things are slowly starting to take form. I got some plastic repair stuff that comes in a tube and when it sets up it gets pretty strong. Here's a pic of the stuff I used.

Then I put wax paper on a piece of mdf and taped that to the back of my dash bezel and put some fiberglass down for strength...

Then I laid down a bead of "liquid plastic." I love this stuff!

Then I started the a-pillar tweeter mount. I still have to do the other side.

A couple more angles....to spread the liquid plastic I just wrapped wax paper around my finger and spread it how I thought it should look.

While I was at it, I primed the other parts of the bezel that I want to paint satin black.

I actually painted them in the garage, but since it's so cold out there, I bring them into the house to dry. I still have some sanding to do on the bezel where I primed it. Seems the adhesion promoter didn't like the plastic and bubbled up as soon as it touched it. So I let it dry and sanded it back as smooth as I could get it and hit it with more primer. I'll just build it up with that until it's back as smooth as it should be. That's all for now, I should get more done this weekend!

[jay-cee's Build Log]

Looking good for a first box jay-cee! Now get back to work and keep the pics coming!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Got a little more work done.....had to work outside since the garage is full. It started out COLD!!!

Had a little fun.....

Started with this.....

Got the guts up to cut this.....

Then I got out the shoehorn.....

Right now all that's holding everything in place is plumber's strap....I have a guy that's working on making a kit to do the DD conversion (theDetailSS.com) for the 99-02 trucks and when they are available, one is coming to me so I can be one of his guinea pigs. Hopefully that will be soon! Sorry for so few pics, but it was cold and I wanted to get as much done as possible while I was outside. I have to get some ABS plastic sheet to trim out the dash bezel, and LOTS of sanding to make the part I cut match the rest of the dash bezel, but that shouldn't be too hard. I still have to make the amp rack, then I want to get everything playing before I do the finish work to make it look nice. Lots still to do, but it's starting to come together....'till next time.....

More pics to follow soon!

[Question with Linear Power 1502IQ]

It is a good amp stock.....when Ray mods them at TIPS, he charges a pretty penny, but IMO every one of those pennies is worth it. If you look at linearpower.com I'm Richard from Ozark and my stockpile has grown since I wrote the review of his services, but I won't run anything that's not LP in my vehicles. Just my preference. I would like to have a comparison where I could swap Sundown for LP just to see if I could hear the difference, but don't know if I'll ever get the chance.

I do know that he can do a lot with a 1502, he can re-wrap the power torroid to give it more power (always good) and there are several other parts he changes (I'm an accountant so I'm not sure what they are) that make the great SQ in those amps even better. When I went back to visit for Christmas he RE-modded my 1752's and he changed 20+ parts in them each. He showed me the difference side by side between them after modding the first one and playing the old mod version vs the new modded one and the new one was noticeably louder and "punchier." The 1502IQ is the forerunner to the LP100/DPS350 and can be made to sound better (dynamics, punch) than most of the china/korea/whatever made stuff today.

All that being said, I've never heard a Sundown and have absolutely NOTHING bad to say about them since I've never listened to one. If you get that amp modded, you can do a pair of components AND a sub running off it with passive crossovers since she just wants minimal bass from a sub and only have one "box" to mount. Run a cap (bassblocker) on the midbass, cap on the tweeter and a coil on the sub and there you go. I'm sure others will have different views, but if you want simple, that's about as simple as you can get.

Hope that helps...

[New member from Missouri]

Welcome to another LP fan!

[Team Decent Moneyman build]

Looks good!! Keep up the good work!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Thanks for the encouragement.....I just wish I had more time to work on it. I'm not in a huge rush to just throw something in, I want this one to be "right." It won't be the loudest truck out there, but it should sound world's better than most around here. I'll see if I can find the pics of when I put the original sound damping material in the truck and post them as well. If not, I'll take pics of what I can get to without taking the truck back apart.

I saw a build on fullsizechevy.com that gave me some ideas, and I'm going to try some of them in this build if I can figure out how they work. Involves the use of expanding foam to make a shape and then fiberglass over it. Hopefully I can make it work out. I'll be sure to take pics of what does (and more importantly what DOESN'T) work so you guys can learn from my mistakes.

Guess I better get back to work!!!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Got a little more work done.....

While I was waiting for glue to dry I thought I would keep myself busy......

Now why would I want two discs with a hole in the middle????

I still have to get the angle right for the tweeters, but that's just a little sanding. I also have to repair the driver's side a-pillar where it meets the dash. It was broken when I got them, but the price was right....only paid $5 for the extra pillars. A little epoxy, a little fiberglass.....be good as new. Still deciding on if I want to cover them in vinyl or suede like what's on the seats. Most likely vinyl. I'm also making an insert to go where the beveled edges are on top of the box that will be covered in the same material that my seats are made of. No pics of that....yet. I'll get back to work on it this weekend and see if I can get the box finished and covered. Next will be the amp rack build. I'm thinking of taking a page out of Hillbilly_SQ's book and making something similar to his only extending mine up to the bottom of the back window. Maybe adding a plexi window to see the amps. Who knows, I'll just have to see what time and money allow.

More pics to come!!!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Got a little bit of time last night to work on this.....Right now I'm trying to decide just how far I want to extend the sides of the console in front of the sub. I have three options. The first is the angle the front is cut at now. Second option is the first blue line going back towards the woofer. Third option is the last blue line going towards the woofer. I figure I'll see what you guys think before I permanently attatch the sides. I'm leaning towards the first or second option because it gives the most clearance between the woofer and grill. Third option opens up the area between the dash and box more however. What do you guys think????

Now.....on to the pics.....

Disregard the gaps you see in this pic.....the wood is just standing on the table, no clamps or anything yet.

[DEH-P600UB/BXi1208D/Infinity 475a/ABC600V/3-PPI PCX102's]

Just ran across this build....great job on the kerfed ports! I like how you think. Keep the pics coming!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Drivers are all from a company called "Blues." You can do a search for blues car audio, but all that comes up is a teaser page right now. The company is an older company that has it's roots with the original Stillwater Designs (Kicker) company. Their building was directly across the street from the R&D center for Kicker in Stillwater, OK. My friend in Jackson, MS owns the company and he's bringing the drivers back to market soon. My drivers are all the original drivers EXCEPT for the tweeters. Those are the new ones that are being tested right now. If you are local to Springfield, Missouri or Jackson,Mississippi, I can make a few phone calls and arrange a listen for you.

The triso only works with the original Blues drivers (for now), specifically two series-wired 4ohm 8's and one 8ohm 10, all wired in parallel to a final 4ohm load at the amp. This setup WILL NOT WORK with any other driver as far as I know. Others have tried it with 10's and 12's, 12's and 15's and they all had the same result....lots of magic smoke! After I finish the truck, I'll be tearing the MGB apart and changing all the drivers in it to the new Blues drivers. I'll do a build log for it and build a downfired triso for it with a window so people can see how it works. It'll be the first time I've ever put a window on a box, but it doesn't seem to be too difficult, so I should be able to make it work. If you want anymore info on the speakers, PM me and I'll see what I can do for you.

If anyone knows how to make a first gen iPhone take video, please let me know so I can do a vid and post it up for you guys.

Glad you enjoyed the pics....I'll try to get more this weekend.

[slam's build (pic heavy)]

Did you ever finish this build? The interior looks just like my truck and I was wondering how you finished the enclosure. Looks good so far!

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Wow, nice craftmanship. I am feeling very noobish right now, lol. That equipment is all before my time, and I have only heard about an isobaric enclosure before, never actually seen one. Keep up the good work man. Hope to see a vid of this when it is done.

Thanks for the kind words.....I can't take credit for the brace idea since I saw the design somewhere else. I just thought it looked cool and that was my first attempt at making something like that. In hindsight, I wish I had made it a little thicker, but as it sits now without the sides on the box and a couple of pieces of mdf in the port for spacing and support, I can stand on the box and it doesn't bend. It should be plenty strong once the sides go on. I even went so far as to sand the primer/paint in the port with 1500 grit sandpaper to slick it up and make it as smooth as possible. I don't really think it'll make much difference, but who knows?

If you've never seen an isobaric box before, here's some pics of my TRISObaric box that'll really twist your noodle. I wish this one had worked out, but it ended up being too tall by the time I got enough space between the woofer and the floor of the truck. That's why I made the port for this one bend upwards and faced the woofer forward. Anywho, here's the pics of the triso box.

This is one of my "ways that won't work." I may try to cut part of this box off and fiberglass the hole and see if I can somehow salvage this box and use it someday, but right now it just sits in a corner of the garage waiting.....

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Thanks Denim.....I just wish I had more time to work on it. I only get a couple of days out of the week and every other weekend because of other commitments, but she's coming along slowly but surely. Right now I'm trying to finalize the angle of the front of the box so that it looks "right." I drew several angles on the side and I'm trying to decide which one looks best. I tried to take a picture of the lines so I could post them up here and see what you guy's opinions were, but they didn't show up on the camera. My next thought was electrical tape, but I was running out of daylight so I figured I would wait until the weekend and see if I can squeeze out a few minutes to tape it up and snap a picture. I appreciate the comments, especially the ones who remember the old school stuff.

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Here's some more for ya....

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

I know you guys like pics so here ya go....

[SQ_MGB's 2002 Chevy Reg cab build]

Got a little work done over the weekend....

The box looked a little long, so I made a brace......