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ve stock crossover location

allanssv6

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I recently installed a basic LOC, amp, and new speakers setup in my ute.
only thing is i lost power to the tweeters as i run new wiring straight from the amp to the speakers.
Just wondering where the stock crossover is located so i can connect them up again.

Also, im thinking of getting a new amp with the High level input.
Would there be any sound quality difference in using a cheap LOC or just the amps High Level Input.
 

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Hi,

The only crossovers in the VE Ute are soldered directly to the factory tweeters. The door speakers get a full range signal and the tweeters just use a small cap as a filter. The wires, as I found out when I did the exact same thing as you, run somewhere deep in the guts of the dash. I'm not sure where the tweeter wires branch off to the door/dash but I know only one pair per side leave the HU.

I ran fresh wires from my new crossovers (which I mounted in my doors) back through the door grommet into the dash for the tweeters. Boll**ks of a job getting the wires through the rubber grommet and into the footwells, but worth the effort.

As for the sound quality questions, the word 'cheap' nails it right there ;) A good quality amp with high level inputs should be better than a cheap LOC. Or an expensive LOC into a cheap amp could be just as crapulent. That said, I used a reasonable quality (but still not that expensive) LOC to feed my amp that doesn't take HL inputs - sounds fine to me, but I only use the amp for a single 8" sub in the LH side wall. IMHO, if you buy an amp that supports HL inputs, don't add unnecessary kit in the signal path.

PS. If you bought splits, you would have been looking to replace the factory tweeters. If you're not, I would think about it seriously. I dropped a set of $400 splits into my ute and the difference in the high end is worth the effort. The factory tweeters are realy not very good - almost as not good as the 20W paper cones in the doors..... lol
 

allanssv6

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Yeh im just gonna wire new crossovers when i have time/can be bothered.
so you ran an 8inch sub to where the factory subs are located in the ssv in the side wall?
that was my first intentions but was worried about cutting into stuff before i knew more about it.
Could you please let me know about how you did that.. eg: how did you mount the sub, is it free air or did you put a box behind the wall... etc.
 

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Only an hour or 8 to fit...

OK, so a whole bunch of picture taken while I was doing the job would have helped... but I didn't think of it at the time. My sub is in a closed box (no port) and gives a very tight and clean performance with almost no rattle at all (I think there's a few small noises from nearby trims, but I drown them out...).

Anyway, basically the steps were:

  • Remove the necessary trims to gain access to the cavity behind the sub 'blank' installed in the LH wall - floor, side, around the 1/4 window etc. The carpeted stuff can just be folded out of the way if you don't want to remove the whole back trim.
  • Keep the sub blank handy as you will be putting it back in after it's been trimmed.
  • Sound proof the external wall of the Ute sheet-metal. I used Dynamat and acoustic foam.
  • Next - and this is the tricky bit - I cut the box the 8" sub used to in to be the right depth (to suit the cavity) and then cut that in half top to bottom.
  • The reason I had to cut it in half was to enable me to get it into the cavity in two parts. It took some wiggling but I got it in there eventually. Be careful not to force it as you could dent your panel (I didn't).
  • Then, reassemble the "box" - minus the back you cut off of course - and use brackets etc to bolt it all together again. I put in a screw or two to anchor it tight to the interior metal (I think there's a hole or 2 to use).
  • Then, seal around the rear of the box so it's airtight to the Dynamat. I used a silicone based sealant which is flexible, lasts forever and is weatherproof.
  • Next, I ran the cable into the box through a tight grommet
  • The sub driver went in next (more wiggling) and screwed into the face of the box where it used to sit.
  • Next step was to trim all the necessary plastic off the sub blank to allow the sub to be seen through it and to allow the interior trim to go back into place.
  • Put the trims back in place and work out where your speaker grille opening should be and cut that into the interior wall trim.
  • Lastly, fit a grille to the interior trim and you're done.

Sounds easy I guess, but it was a lot of fiddling but worth it IMHO.

Here's the finished result:

ute-4


Note the grille is a 6.5" and the sub is 8". They don't line up obviously, but I used a black mesh grille to make it look neat (the camera flash picked up the sub in the photo).
 

allanssv6

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your a legend for helping me out so much.
one thing.... so you cut of the back of the sub box and used the panel of the car with the dynamat on it as a backing?
 

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No worries - happy to share.

And yes, as half-baked as it sounds in writing, I did use the panel of the Ute as the back. The original sub box was wedge shaped but once I chopped it up, the back was a slight curve to fit the Ute cavity. The box isn't that wide or high overall, so that panel doesn't get to rattle/move much if at all. Once you factor in the Dynamat and the foam, it's not as dodge as it sounds. Well, it doesn't sound dodge either! :lmao: From outside, it sounds fully oonce oonce lol.
 

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If you are installing a portless sub enclosure (AKA sealed), then the volume of air around the sub needs to be to the manufacturers spec (it should say the required volume on the accompanying paperwork you get with the subwoofer)

by cutting your sub encosure to fit the existing space, rather than to provide the required volume it will never sound as good as it is intended to. This is also why the factory subs are open-air type subs

Performance OA8 - 8 inch open air subwoofer

Check out open air subs, will be easier to install and sound as good as incorrectly installed sealed subs.
 

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I was wondering how long t would be until someone said this... ;)

Truth is I wasn't going for any competition standard. I spent some time adjusting the gain and x-over curve controls on the amp and it sounds good to me. Each to their own I guess. For me, it was just about adding some oomph and it keeps me happy. I get enough kick from it to make the music sound right to my ears and, for many of us, that's enough. Of course, there are the 'proper ways' of doing stuff, but the budget in my case was limited and I was re-using gear form my previous car so what I had was it. Point taken though.
 
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