Sound System

[Herby]

Hi, I've got an '89 graduate and i'm looking to put some kind of sound system - any is better than the one it came with - and I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions about models or anything. It would be great to see some pictures if anyone has any. Anything would help! Thanks.

[jamieandthemagi]

I put a Blaupunkt head unit in mine, as they look a bit more factory & the plastic matches the dash. (see pic) http://www.fotango.com/p/eba00219387f00000037.jpg

No matter what speakers you put in the foot wells they won't be sufficient, so I built a speaker box to put on the shelf behind the front seats. The box has a 4 pin XLR socket on the side - with a 4 pin XLR socket mounted in the removable hatch on this shelf (which gives access to the ECU), interconnect the two with a 4 way cable. So this makes the box completly removeable, with the only evidence of there ever being a box there is the socket on the hatch cover.

I made a box because I hate ruining the car or carpet. I have seen people cut 6x9 speakers into this rear panel & even the upright panel (which means the magnets are in the boot area). But I refuse to cut the car about.....easy way to ruin it.

I've got 5" Infinity Reference speakers in the foot wells with 6x9" Infinity Kappa series speakers mounted in the box. The box is covered with camel colour carpet to match the interior of the car, so it doesn't look out of place. With Ports on either side to allow air pressure flow. The box also allows a good bit of bass to be generated.

[Herby]

Thanks a lot, Jaimie. I had been looking at the Blaupunkt dash systems but I'm pretty uninformed about this kind of thing so I wasn't sure if they were good/reliable/whatever. In terms of speakers, that kind of sucks that I'm not gonna be able to get good sound with just my little kicks, but I guess I'm not all that surprised. Oh well. By the way, how big is that box you built? I have a rollbar installed that takes up some of the room back there, so I wonder about something similar to your box fitting in my car. Also, was it easy to make? I'm not very experienced with building and mechanics so I don't know if that's something feasible for me to do. Anyway, thanks again for your reply.

-Dan

PS.
Do you happen to know how big the kick speakers are in my model? I think they're 5'1/4, but I'm not sure and I can't measure them right now because my car is still in storage for the winter. Thanks!

[alfa_chan]

Quote:

Originally posted by Herby Thanks a lot, Jaimie. I had been looking at the Blaupunkt dash systems but I'm pretty uninformed about this kind of thing so I wasn't sure if they were good/reliable/whatever. Thanks!

[Sniady]

I found the exact same Blaupunkt radio in a trash can, don't ask what I was doing digging in a trash can. But I was going to keep it, but the rear harness was missing, so back in the can it went.

It seemed like a cool cd player.

[jamieandthemagi]

Glad it helped Herby

The box dimmensions I will measure later on, but basicly I needed to get it as big as possible,,,volume wise,,,,as the more air there is for the 6x9 the better.

Bit of a ***** that the Roll Cage is there, although is there room to put a box between the uprights? I don't blaim you for wanting a roll cage........have a look at this: http://www.alfaowner.com/forum/cgi/u...;f=25;t=000520

ouch ! Guess I'll keep my hardtop on mine for a bit longer !!!!

With regards to Blaupunkt stereos, I really rate them. I've had Pioneer, Alpine, Sony but always prefered the Blaupunkts. I think there Radio recieving is second to none & I really like the factory look. They are good functional stereos that don't need some of the useless bolloxs that Alpine & co. put onto their stereos. I also belive that as they are factory look the theft factor isn't so high, which is a bonus with a convertable.

The foot speakers are indeed 5 1/4"

I'll try to take some piccies of the box installed.
It's relativly easy to build, just build a box from MDF (1/2" to 3/4" thick & fill it with some foam or damping material. A local car stero shop should be able to build one for you for about $120, if you don't fancy doing it.

[Herby]

Thanks a lot everyone! Your posting has been really helpful. And Jaimie, it'd be great to see your speaker box, so if you have any pictures I'd love to see them. Thanks again!

[jamieandthemagi]

Here you go Herby:

[jamieandthemagi]

And one of the connector in the access panel:

[Herby]

Wow, that's pretty cool. Thanks for sharing!