[psteelejr8]

Upgraded the audio in my recently-purchased 2017 M6 Vert.

Equipment is as follows:
JL VX1000/1i
JL VX800/8i
JL VXi-Hub
JL DRC-205
JL VXi-BTC
NAV-TV M650-GM
Carlinkit 3.0 wireless CarPlay interface

Scanspeak D3004/6040-05 tweeters (a-pillar)
Scanspeak illuminator 18wu/4747t-00 midbass in stock door location
SB Acoustics SB65-WBAC 2.5" mids in factory dash location
2x JL 10TW3-D8 in down-firing enclosure (below convertible top)

2 gauge JL wire/distribution blocks/fuses
ZL1 220amp alt and 225amp fusible link
mild2wild exhaust mod w/homelink
Illuminated bowtie
Dynamat Xtreme throughout (didnt want to add too much mass)

Haven't tuned it to a target curve just yet, but set delay times, crossovers, and intend to have tunes for driver, passenger, all passengers, for both top up and top down. Loving it so far!

[drewspr00]

Wow, great job. Those subs under the convertible top are awesome.

[keep_hope_alive]

Lovely. I also run the VXi series (and MVi series) and was a Beta Tester for both amp series. They are awesome and my go-to whenever possible. I don't plan on using the rear speakers in my build but I still like the idea of flexibility that the 8ch offers. Shame the amps are hidden, given they are so pretty, but I totally understand the desire to keep things stealth.

Another trick that I do is add loose sound absorption in all body cavities (that stay dry) and thin pvc encased sound absorption in the door panels or wet areas to eliminate problematic airborne resonance. This approach doesn't add appreciable weight but provides huge improvements in the acoustical improvement of the vehicle. I can provide more detail or my video links if desired.

Nice work on the door woofers. What are you using to seal the baffle to the door panel to make it air-tight?

[psteelejr8]

Yea, I was lazy and (admittedly) didn’t take enough pics. My rears are run off the factory amp, the VX800/8 runs the front stage exclusively, with 200w RMS a piece going to the midbass. The brackets for the midbass are sealed to the door with butyl, and I have a foam ring around the interface from the driver to the door panel. Tbh I am happy that they actually fit, as they are quite deep and not really designed for car use. They also only play up to 250hz (well, they are crossed over at 250hz 24db LR). I don’t have a pic of the finished door without the panels on; but the are sealed, deadened, and the door panels themselves also have some deadening performed on them.

[SomeGeoffGuy]

Awesome setup! As a fellow convertible owner you are giving me hope! I have about 100 questions, but I will cut down to two - How does the NAV-TV work? Any issues? And also, did you replace the factory rear seat speakers? How are they blending? it seems like they are just mild fill from the factory.

Thank you.

-Geoff

[SWRocket]

Awesome! nice work.
If you do end up tuning, please post your RTA measurements. I'm interested to see the frequency response of the midbass and especially the tweeters flush mounted.

[MANNAXMAN]

Nice! Where in the Bay Area are you? I'd love to hear your setup. PM me your location if you prefer not to share it in the thread.

[psteelejr8]

Originally Posted by SomeGeoffGuy

Awesome setup! As a fellow convertible owner you are giving me hope! I have about 100 questions, but I will cut down to two - How does the NAV-TV work? Any issues? And also, did you replace the factory rear seat speakers? How are they blending? it seems like they are just mild fill from the factory.

Thank you.

-Geoff

Hey Geoff,

The NAV=TV (or PAC AP4-GM61) interface to the HMI unit behind the glovebox, and decode the MOST50 signal into clean, flat, digital output that the VXi amps can process, avoiding multiple D/A conversions. Mine works great. I've used the PAC and NAV-TV both in the past, and I prefer the NAV-TV's chime handling. You'll have to decide if that is worth the cost difference, though!

My rears are unchanged and run off of the factory amp. They seem to be crossed over in the 600-3000hz range, though I haven't measured, and I do not know the slopes. They are attenuated far more than my front stage, so I don't really notice, Maybe my 3 yo does!

[psteelejr8]

Originally Posted by SWRocket

Awesome! nice work.
If you do end up tuning, please post your RTA measurements. I'm interested to see the frequency response of the midbass and especially the tweeters flush mounted.

I will certainly tune, Im of the mindset that it makes little sense to invest this much without a solid tune! I am going to try and steal a JL MAX for a day or two to see how it integrates with the Vxi (and hopefully to save time tuning). Being able to measure impulse response and really dial in the phase should be great. It sounds pretty good to my ears even with just delay and crossovers set.

FYI, I have the subs handling 20hz-80hz, mid bass 80hz to 250hz, mids 250hz to 3500hz, and the tweets 3500+ (all LR 24db/oct). The goal was to avoid any beaming or resonance issues from the midbass, and given the proximity of the tweets and mids I wanted them to act as close to a single driver as possible. Measurements will show if I have any weird issues, IE comb filtering, but I think this is one of the best ways to do a 3-way particularly in the Vert. The reflections somewhat aid the soundstage, especially if the tweeters have solid off-axis response. I went with the Scan d3004-6040-05 variant because it has slightly better off-axis response that the standard d3004 beryllium (and it was discounted at Madisound at the time!)

[psteelejr8]

Originally Posted by SWRocket

Awesome! nice work.
If you do end up tuning, please post your RTA measurements. I'm interested to see the frequency response of the midbass and especially the tweeters flush mounted.

I finally got around to tuning. Used the Harman target curve, modified to suit the optimal crossover points of my drivers (to avoid beaming, etc). The FR response of the tweeter and mid in the dash wasn't as bad as expected before EQ. Post EQ they are right on target, with no weirdness from the windshield reflection (I think it actually helps in this case). The tweeters have pretty good off-axis response though, and the Harman curve has a slight roll-off in the upper treble that worked pretty well. Measurement equipment was a JL Audio MAX. Was loud and clean before, but sounds fantastic now, especially the sub->midbass transition.

[SWRocket]

Thanks so much for posting this. Looks excellent. I see you ultimately decided on 500Hz MB->MR XO. If you feel inclined and happen to have the raw (pre-eq) RTA of the MB and MR I would love to see them. I have a huge dip in the RMB at 500Hz and in the RMR at 2KHz...

The delay values are very interesting. I'm assuming the MAX determined those on it's own? Did you have to measure and input any distances?

[psteelejr8]

Originally Posted by SWRocket

Thanks so much for posting this. Looks excellent. I see you ultimately decided on 500Hz MB->MR XO. If you feel inclined and happen to have the raw (pre-eq) RTA of the MB and MR I would love to see them. I have a huge dip in the RMB at 500Hz and in the RMR at 2KHz...

The delay values are very interesting. I'm assuming the MAX determined those on it's own? Did you have to measure and input any distances?

Yea, the max measures linear impulse response so you can really dial in the delays perfectly.

Pre-eq FR wasn't terrible actually, but the midbass did have a null around 600hz. Mids were fine, just not as smooth as post-eq of course. I still have 250hz for the other presets (passenger, top up/top down, etc), but after realizing I could easily change the target curve to better match crossovers suiting my drivers, I did for the driver seat tunes. Overall a bit more output with the midbass handling <500hz, and I completely avoid beaming or any sort of overlap between midbass and tweet or the sub and mids.

I'll dig and see if I saved all the plots for the MB and subs.

[SWRocket]

Amazing, thank you!
I had a similar response. My XOs are at 70Hz-300Hz and 2600Hz all LR4 as well
I can post my raw measurements, just didn't want to highjack you thread...

[SomeGeoffGuy]

That is pretty awesome on how easily it blends those four speakers. Having not built a serious car stereo since the 1990's, I am pretty amazed at the technology available. It is expensive for sure, but if I was paying $400 for my first Nakamichi amp in 1986, the prices for that JL gear seem on par with that in today's dollars. And the tuning value with built-in DSP is definitely there!

Out of curiosity, what made you pick those Scanspeak components? I don't think I have ever even seen an aluminum cone car stereo speaker before (see them a lot in home audio). And it is not like those are a common brand.

Thank you for posting, great info.

-Geoff