What to do with sound in my Vette

[Stallion]

How exactly do you have those boxes mounted in the Vette so they don't slide around? How do they stay there? And I would like to have the t-tops to be able to go in the back. I look forward to using that feature of my Vette. Can't wait for the breeze in the hair as I cruise down the road.

TR

The price doesn't sound that bad. Definitely worth it, I think. But where would I get matching carpet for the boxes? I have oyster interior.

Thanks!

 

[Thumper]

Do a web search for Auto Custom Carpets. They sell it by the yard.

 

[Bob Chadwick]

The board is just wedged in between the two sides of the car. Take your time with the measurements and use the thickness of the carpet and the pad to help.

You will definitely need to cut some depth off the boxes or the T-tops will be up against the back of the seat.

 

[Stallion]

So these speakers just lay in the Vette then and aren't really mounted in it besides being connected to themselves? I don't think I understand how they stay in the Vette. :confused

TR

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Side pressure. Put a card between the palms of your two hands and it will stay in place. Same principle. That, plus the boxes sitting in the floor of the car gives more than adequate security.

 

[69MyWay]

Mine are wedged and screwed into the body of the car.

In my 90 vette I simply mounted a premade 10" sub box in the rear floor. I removed the speaker, and ran screws right into the floor, then put the sub back in.

In SCCA autocrossing, you can't have any loose things in the car.

I would not suggest just snug fitting the rear box as it could become a missle in a front end collision.

It is hard to describe my idea for a design, but just imaging the floor in the rear immediatly behind the cubby doors starting up at an angle toward the rear bulkhead just rising enough for the twin subs to fit between the stock floor and the raised board. After it is all covered up, it would be hard not to tell it is stock, unless you know your vettes really well. You could still put the T-tops in.

Doing it in phases is a good idea to be kind to the budget.

 

[Stallion]

"I would not suggest just snug fitting the rear box as it could become a missle in a front end collision."

That's pretty much what I figured. That's my apprehension about it. I like your idea, though. But, what kind of material is under that rug behind those little cubby compartments? Would a dremel just do the trick to get holes in there? I'm sure I'll come up with something, but I don't want to mess up the rug in the Vette. That would be devastating.

And where would these boxes get their power supply from? Directly from the battery? How/where would the wiring go? And how would the wiring of the console to go in the dash be? Tough to get?

I will definitely plan this out. I should probably get the '78 users manual before I start ripping things out of the Vette. Any idea where to get this? Maybe straight from Chevrolet? Never had to get one so I have no idea.

Thanks!

TR

 

[Bob Chadwick]

I would not suggest just snug fitting the rear box as it could become a missle in a front end collision.

They are not going any where. I would be much more concerned about the everyday stuff that people put back there.

 

[Stallion]

I'm not sure, vettedude73, if I'm even sure of what I want to do. I have to measure out the pro's and con's of that. The obvious pro's are that with your design I don't have to mess with the carpet and that sounds really convincing to me. I could just see that turning into a big and disastrous mess.

I wish I did see a picture of your design. But I think I understand that you wedge them behind the wheel wells then?

As for the equipment, what do you guys suggest? What is best at a decent price?

Thanks!

TR

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Set yourself a budget and then go look at the stuff. The quality these days of the stuff in certain price ranges is pretty much the same and I looked at features. Speakers in particular are a personal choice.

I got an MP3 player rather than a disc changer, but then I have burned MP3's out of most of my CD's. If you don't want to be bothered then you may have to consider a changer.

 

[69MyWay]

TR,

See, you don't actually do any damage, or significant damage to the stock carpet, etc. You leave it all there and build the triangulated box to rest right on top. In maybe each corner of the box you run a drywall screw through the box, past the stock carpet and anchor it into the fiberglass body. It does not take much after it is already a snug fit to really hold that baby in place. Plus you get more bass reaction when it is firmly mounted in the car.

As far as wiring goes, the amp needs a direct feed from the battery. Your amp will be behind the passenger seat, in the rear cubby, or on the floor under the passenger seat. It requires a direct power, ground, then it takes a signal wire from the stereo to acitivate the relay to kick it on. It will then have two RCA jack inputs from the stereo and two sub feed set of wires coming out.

It would not be suggested by a real audiofile, but.....you can tuck it away with little to no problems. It is best to have the amp out in the open maybe in the rear hatch area, etc so plenty of air can get to it. I have a 200 watt MTX thunder amp in my 90 in the rear cubby, and the 500 watt RF amp under the passenger seat of my 69. I have had the 500 watt amp on the 69 pumping at 75% or so for three hours straight with zero defects.

Yes, you will be stringing wires throught the console, then to the individual parts. A good install requires a creative person (it does not mean you have to be a mechanic or a stereo expert---just creative and not afraid to explore possibilities). You will have to lift the carpet up here and there to run wires, and poke some small holes in it when needed. For example, the two sets of speaker wires going to the sub box will have to go under the carpet, then pop out right at the amp box out of sight.

The stock manual will not help you here. Creativity, the install manual for the amps and stereo/speakers, and ask plenty of questions.

My 90 Vette is very simple. It has a am/fm cassette in the dash (who wants to steal that?)---sony, that controls the 10 disc changer hidden in the rear cubby next to the AMP. Then I have a simple 10" sub box and 10" MTX sub with POLK audio surround speakers driven off the power of the head unit. It rocks hard.

I would prefer a nicer looking install on the sub, but we are only talking about a C4 here, so I am not sweating it all that bad.

On the 69 we got freaky particular about building a box that would house subs, fit in the rear, and still let the top go up and down. There are trade offs for everything. I could have even more explosive bass with a bigger "tuned" box, but there was no room for that.

Worse case scenario, TR,....you put in a good head unit, good surround speakers, then buy an amplified 8" base tube that you can pull in and out of the rear. Cover it with a towell or better yet..(I love this one), find a gym bag that you can cut the bottom out of, then slip it over the sub bass tube, and zipper the top up. If anybody looks through the back window of the car, they just see a musty old gym back and keep on walking. Meanwhile, you can pump some nasty strong backbone shattering bass out of that bad boy!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[69MyWay]

Here is a pic of the sub in my 90. Honestly, I think it looks bad, especially the gray carpet vs. saddle on the rest of the interior.

However, this is all you see. All the electronics are tucked out of view, and that box is screwed down.

 

[Stallion]

I see what you mean, Chris. This sounds like the way I want to go about this. I will go research some parts and the system that I should get. And then with time and many, many questions hopefully I will have this system rigged out.

Thanks!

TR

 

[page62]

If you don't want to do a box, you can install replacement speakers in the rear corners. What I did was remove the stock grilles and use them as templates to cut out a pair of panels made from ¼" aircraft plywood. I then covered it with black upholstery carpet. Here's the final product:

The speakers in the photos are 6½ round Pioneers. I've since upgraded to Infinity component speakers.

 

[Bob Chadwick]

When you are playing with the fitting of the speakers, cutting boxes to fit, etc, use cardboard. It is flexible so it is easy to work with. Once you have the template you need, you can use this to mark the wood and make the cuts.

 

[Yoda]

TR,

I remembered some previous threads that were really good on this subject. I found these two that might interest you, I know you like to research stuff, so here ya go.

• [*] Radios and Speakers [*] Rear Speakers

ps.. note 81C3 rear speaker setup.. :cool
Happy reading

Bud

 

[MaineShark]

A few thoughts:

Wedging-in speaker enclosures is easier on the earlier Sharks, due to the flat top of the rear compartment. The sloping glass of the '78-'82 cars makes this a bit harder (the box can jump upwards). It can still be done, if you don't want to put holes in anything - it just takes a little more planning.

If you want to keep the stock appearance of the car, but aren't too worried about actually keeping it stock, you could gut the storage compartment in front of the passenger seat, and install a head unit in there. Get one with a wired remote control, and fish the wire down to the center console, and install the remote in place of the ash tray, under the door. Modern technology, but invisible to the casual observer. If you go through the trouble to do this, don't install speaker boxes: just put new speakers in the place of the originals (if needed).

I believe some companies make radios specifically for restored classics, where the head unit is designed to be hidden, and a remote control is used. I'm not sure of the manufacturers, but maybe someone will chime in with the name.

In either case, the original 8-track will remain in place, although no longer wired to the speakers. It will just be for show.

Eckler's has a variety of radios that will fit in the stock hole, and in various proximity to stock (ie, some look identical, but have upgraded internals, others add a digital display, but keep the chrome knobs, etc., etc.). Worth a look, if that is the way you want to go.

I'm really suprised that no one makes a modern head with a flip-down false face that looks original (sort of what Chris described, but direct from the factory). It seems like there would be a market for it.

Joe

 

[Stallion]

Thanks, guys. That idea of just replacing the ones in the back corners sounds really good. What kind of dis-assembling is involved in that? How do you get them out and new ones in? And then I'll need to put the head console in possibly having to get a new bezel?

Thanks!

TR

 

[page62]

Taking out the back grilles is easy. 3 phillips screws each.

You'll have to remove the console and instrument panel in order to put in a head unit. Any you'll have to cut a DIN-sized opening in the instrument panel. That's easy because it's plastic.

If you have remorse later, buy a replacement. No big deal.

 

[Stallion]

Doesn't sound bad at all. Put the speakers in the back in replacement and then hook up the head unit after I buy a new bezel and do some minor cuts. I think this is definitely possible for me.

Now I gotta go research some equipment. Any suggestions on specific products that you personally like?

Thanks!

TR