Bucksnrt

I will be attempting to handle the audio upgrade in my truck on my own. It is not too complicated (I think) of a setup, so that's why not taking it in to a installer. I want SQ though, so if I hit a bump in the road...I will take it in.

Gear:
Focal PS 165F components in front
AudioControl DQ-61 processor/eq
JL Audio RD400/4 (not out yet, ships in May)
Stock rear speakers
Existing Infinity Kappa Perfect sub until I get a shallow mount for behind/under the seat.

I started this last weekend by sound dampening the doors. I will have to wait on the next step until my amp comes in. My plan is to have the amp power the fronts and the sub. I will run the stock rear speakers off the factory unit.

Before


After:


I put the stock speakers back in for now. I can already tell a bit better bass response and quietness in the cab. I only did the front doors, I will probably do the rears too.

The next post will depend on when I get the amp.

_MacLeod_

Make sure you seal the entire door. That open area youll want to put a layer of deadener. For one this will make the door panel more rigid and less likely to have resonance and vibrations. And two itll seal the door panel a lot more. Itll never be truly sealed because of the window but car specific drivers will work in free air. However you want to seal off the back wave from the front wave as much as you can. Having that big an opening will not sound good in the least. When applying deadener remember the golden rule, you can never have too much.

Bucksnrt

Thanks for the feedback, I can use it! I did put layers of deadener on the inner part of the door on the flat surfaces. Are you saying to completely cover over that opening? There is a factory plastic cover not shown that then went over the opening...although that is just a moisture barrier and I know doesn't do much for sound. If covering the hole opening...use the same material or different?

_MacLeod_

Yeah throw away the moisture barrier and use Dynamat (or whatever youre using) to cover that opening. It seals off the backwave of the speaker vastly improving sound quality and also makes the door panel more rigid. The speaker will vibrate a lot and if its mounted to something that will shake and vibrate with it, itll lose a lot of energy and youll lose a lot of output. If its on a rock solid mount that doesnt budge when its pounding away, youll get all the energy the speaker can muster firing into the cab which is what you want.

One thing to note is that some door panels have styrofoam pieces that fit in that opening for impact absorption. Itll take a little tweaking but the way around that is to leave the Dynamat a little loose there so itll push in with that piece. Youll lose some of the rigidity but youll still have the door panel sealed off which in this case is more important.

Bucksnrt

Thanks for the feedback (and in the other thread), appreciated. I will cover that hole opening with deadener. Looks like you used to compete with audio... I am going for simple, yet real quality. My next challenge, that I'm aware of, is how to get the signal to my AudioControl DQ-61 processor. I believe I will just tap into the existing speaker wire, but more research to be done. This won't happen until I get my amp.

HushCarAudio

FYI, that is only vibration dampener materials. If you wanted sound suppression from outside noises then use a foam backed dense rubber mat like Second Skin Luxury Liner Pro on top of the vibration dampener. Using the correct combo will mean you won't have to layer upon layer the vibration dampener material to get the results you're looking to achieve.

Bucksnrt

Thanks for the tip. That stuff is pricy! May be another phase down the road... Easy enough to add in.

_MacLeod_

As quiet as these trucks are you would be fine without any actual sound deadener.

I competed for about 10 years in MECA SQ. I did pretty well and had a blast but honestly its grown kinda beyond my modest install abilities. I believe I can hang with the best in tuning but Im a lousy craftsman with no patience. LOL! Plus since the stock head units are so integrated into the vehicle nowadays, its just more hassle than its worth. I officially retired when I bought my beloved F150 because I aint touching that head unit and factory integration is a giant pain in the nuts and chock full of noise issues. Ill probably do a speaker upgrade in the future but no hurry.

Id recommend a 5 channel amp for that setup. Something like the JL Audio XD series is a very good choice. Its extremely small but very powerful (75x5 + 600x1) but is small enough to fit under a seat or against the wall behind the back seat. Im a huge fan of 5 channel amps nowadays. Best of all, no messy wire management. One power wire and one ground wire.

Bucksnrt

I wanted to go 5 channel, but I do have a 2-channel for when I want to add the sub from a previous build that I could use. Allowed me to spend a bit less on a 4 channel. Like I mentioned above, I went with the yet to be shipped JL Audio RD400/4 I figure a couple options with this:
- Use 2 channel to power my front Focal Comps and bridge to power a sub. Rears are stock and run off stock power.
- Figure out a way to get my existing Infinity Kappy 6x8's in the rear and use my 4 channel to power all 4 speakers...then use my 2 channel for a sub when desired.

schwanz583

Subbed, i want to upgrade my 2015 xlt screw non sony also, sounds okay but not loud enough for me. Wanting to do a 5 channel amp and get better speakers. The stock speakers are 6x9 front and 6.5 rear right?