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Soon to start a sound system upgrade project - Yikes!
I have collected almost all the items needed to begin an upgrade to the car's current sound. The previous owner installed a single din Pioneer head unit and Kenwood 4 channel amp. The install wasn't clean and there are issue where the head unit's lights go out if touched, sound is not what I would expect from Pioneer and Kenwood (most likely speakers), and I can't control the head unit from the steering wheel or pair my phone. Luxuries for sure but I wanted to add some modern amenities to the Trans Am.
List below the image of what I am intending to install Audio Upgrades
Head Unit: Kenwood DNX996XR GPS receiver (Dash Cam and Backup Cam to add modern safety features)
ASWC-1 steering wheel control adapter
Kicker 46CSS654 for the doors (acoustic baffles)
Kenwood KFC-1696PS for the sails (acoustic baffles)
Kicker 46CSC44 for the rear deck (acoustic baffles and 300Hz bass blockers)
Rockford Fosgate R2-300x4 (for the door and sail speakers and output to Apline MRV)
Alpine MRV-T303 50x2 (for rear deck)
Alpine MRD-M300 100x1 sub woofer
2 Harmony HA-R104 10"subs
20' sound dampening material
Power and RCA wiring needed
Speaker wire to replace the factory connections
Electrical system upgrade to ensure no problems when turning on the AC or headlights when listening to music.
145 Amp KG3 AC-Delco alternator (following the formula outlined in other forums.
This will require disassembly of most of the interior. While I am at it I will be trying to fix the passenger seat which is frozen in it current place (electrical adjustments still work). My door panels are cracked (both) so I will be repairing those with a plastic welder kit and modifying the window seals to prevent future cracks. I have to check the power door locks as the neither buttons work to lock the doors from the inside, the key fob works so its not the pdl motor but hopefully just a wire that fell off or has dirty contacts. Passenger power window motor is slow and stops after 5 sec. so it will have to be replaced while I have everything apart. At least the lights in the door panels work... This will take more then a weekend due to the door panel fixes and power window motor swap, and passenger seat fix (hopefully just needs cleaning and lubrication).
Current amp is wired from the battery so I can use that to guide my larger gauge wires back to the trunk. I have a gray spare tire cover piece, pulled the speakers out and will need to paint to match the interior, might repaint the opposite side to match. I will need to cut, carpet, and install an amp mounting board, current one is taking up the T-Top storage area. I will be mounting this under the rear deck locking mechanism and this will hopefully provide enough room for all 3 amps. I am still up in the air about where to mount the GPS sensor for the head unit and I want to fabricate a plastic housing for the dash cam that can fit around the rear view mirror post but I need to rip out the bad window tint one of the past owners put in themselves from the looks of it. While the interior is apart I need to replace an AC vent, make and install an ash tray lid spring. I am hoping to get all this done while we still have longer afternoon light. I will update as it goes and if I run into items anyone attempting similar DIY upgrades to look out for. The biggest part is the rear amp board as it will be a few cuts needed.
You can put the GPS antenna under the plastic dash top panel without causing any significant degradation of signal. There is a flat metal indentation in the panel underneath that is perfect for a magnetic mount antenna to fit. Just be careful when pulling up the plastic panel - it gets quite brittle after years in the sun and the edges are VERY sharp (he says as he types with only nine fingers).
I have been side tracked by a clutch/hydraulic issue and getting my garage in order to hold 2 cars (after a Texas storm - thankfully NO hail... this time). Whoever stated my garage can hold 2 cars never tried to park 2 cars into it! To be fair there are a lot of cabinets the previous owner built but still, the garage door opening leaves about 3 inches between cars! Now that everything is cleaned and stored efficiently I can pull 1 car out and have ample room to work on the other. As I have to get the car off the ground to check on the transmission I will see about replacing the alternator with the 145 amp one I got. I can use this opportunity to also replace the fog light bulbs with some LED's (hopefully no resistors are needed to make them work).
Last night I did get speaker grills on the 10" subs. I had to get some spacers from the hardware store for the clamps as the subwoofer's lip is so high it would cause the brackets to break when tightening. I have a used spare tire cover (in gray) and will be measuring and cutting it soon to match the driver's side cover. Then prepping and painting the cover.
During my clutch master cylinder troubleshooting I have found the existing amp's power wire. Installer ran the wire across the engine bay and through the firewall on the driver's side! There is a better route along the passenger side according to my research. I will inspect the battery cables while under to car too (I had a truck experience a rotting negative cable that caused it to only start when cold and inconsistent electrical issues when running. I will also have to do a through visual inspection of the undercarriage for dry rotting rubber, brittle plastics, and cracked bushings. I have a noticeable suspension noise coming from the passenger rear and thought I could get away with a chassis lube, then found out there are NO grease fittings!
Gotta love the 18-19 year old cars that sat up collecting dust for most of their lives. I will get pics of the progress, albeit small, and edit into the post.
Despite my car's best efforts in distracting me from the big interior project (clutch issues), I have made small steps towards beginning the project proper!
This week:
I was able to install the speaker grills on the 2 10" subs - luckily I found an old school hardware store that sells odds and ends and I picked up 8 3/8" spacers to match the large lip on the subs. I used 6 screws per sub to the box (adding 2) and the grill screws so they should be nice and tight in the boxes. I will see how they sound and if I need to add any acoustic insulation.
I measured, cut, sanded, and prepped the rear deck spare tire cover panel for the second sub. Using the driver's side trunk panel as a template I measured 1" from the ridge until the 40 degree or so bend and went from 1" to 1/2" at the end. Masked it off with painter's tape front and back, double checked the measurements
Used a jig saw with a 10 TPI wood/plastic blade
Block sander with 180 grit sandpaper to bevel the cut edges and some of the panels scratches and damage
Spacer, Clamp, and grill on the 10" subs Spacer, Clamp, and grill on the 10" subs Driver's side sub ready for mounting Passenger's side sub ready for mounting Spare tire panel after rough sanding and measurements for cutting Spare tire panel after rough sanding and measurements for cutting After cutting, sanding, and correcting the lines for a finished look with nice lip and taper to match the driver's side Ready for plastic interior paint and conditioning
Looks good! I'm curious how well the passenger side box fits and how hard those 2 10s hit with that little power. Did you feel your boxes with any fill?
Looks good! I'm curious how well the passenger side box fits and how hard those 2 10s hit with that little power. Did you feel your boxes with any fill?
I haven't mock fitted the boxes yet, will need to pull the spare, jack, etc. to see. The 10"s should be decent with the Alpine M300 and the speakers wired down to 2-ohms, that would be RMS 200w and peak 600w. I will need the 145 amp alternator to test it out. I haven't put any fill in the boxes yet as I want to see if they are too "boomy" without it as the boxes are really small CU-FT wise.
I am surprised they aren't ported for the size. I am sure I will have to program the amp to control them as I haven't used Harmony before and looking at them, I don't have high hopes (They were the same price for the boxes with or without the speakers so I figured why not try them out). I am not trying to rattle the mirrors or shake rust off the body, just add some decent bottom end with the T-tops off.
Main goal is to keep the T-top racks in the trunk. The amp board will be the hardest part besides the wiring and component installation. I am hoping to mock up the amp board this weekend to see if I have enough MDF scraps to make or if I need to get a new sheet.
I haven't mock fitted the boxes yet, will need to pull the spare, jack, etc. to see. The 10"s should be decent with the Alpine M300 and the speakers wired down to 2-ohms, that would be RMS 200w and peak 600w. I will need the 145 amp alternator to test it out. I haven't put any fill in the boxes yet as I want to see if they are too "boomy" without it as the boxes are really small CU-FT wise.
I am surprised they aren't ported for the size. I am sure I will have to program the amp to control them as I haven't used Harmony before and looking at them, I don't have high hopes (They were the same price for the boxes with or without the speakers so I figured why not try them out). I am not trying to rattle the mirrors or shake rust off the body, just add some decent bottom end with the T-tops off.
Main goal is to keep the T-top racks in the trunk. The amp board will be the hardest part besides the wiring and component installation. I am hoping to mock up the amp board this weekend to see if I have enough MDF scraps to make or if I need to get a new sheet.
Knowing how well our cab gain is. I don't doubt that even with that 300w RMS amp (it is an Alpine they probably underrated it some) they should actually do pretty good at giving back massages! Where do you plan on mounting your amp board?
Knowing how well our cab gain is. I don't doubt that even with that 300w RMS amp (it is an Alpine they probably underrated it some) they should actually do pretty good at giving back massages! Where do you plan on mounting your amp board?
I am wanting to mount to the trunk back wall (to the left and right of the rear deck locking hardware.
From my understanding this allows you to retain the T-top storage and keep the wiring clean as it can be run on between the board and carpet so holes don't have to be cut. The images show 2 different designs. One goes around the latch bulge and in my opinion looks better. The other goes over it but looking at the cutout for the latch must be pretty thin. With 3 amps it will be very tight. I hope to have the mock up done this weekend but I ran into an issue with the panel painting, other then the temperature and humidity being too high. The can of Color Bond LVP was bought as GM Ebony Black, and the bottom of the can says it is GM Ebony black, but it sure isn't. The color from that can is lighter then the graphite panel and is very flat. I used it as a primer and resorted to the cheap Rust-Olem gloss black vinyl and interior paint. It is a tad bit too glossy but I will see after I apply the adhesion promoter. I will build a cardboard mock-up first and see how much space I need and how tall I need it to be. How to mount it will be the challange I haven't figured out just yet. I did get some extra radio mounting braces so worse care I will use some existing mounting points and fix the braces to the board.
Should be a nice looking setup. The Kee Audio amp rack is the one i'll get, unless I can keep my amps in the spare tire well even with the passenger side stealth box.
Should be a nice looking setup. The Kee Audio amp rack is the one i'll get, unless I can keep my amps in the spare tire well even with the passenger side stealth box.
Kee appears to be out of stock, that is why I am doing my own. I did a crude mock up out of cardboard last night and am thinking about how to make it work. This site http://subthump.com/pages/9302-Camar...tallation.html has an excellent mounting option I think I will adopt. It is closer to my "head unit mounting strap" idea but with rigid L brackets and supports. This will solve my "securing to the back wall" issue. I mocked up the new panel and both amps last night but a storm came in fast and I didn't get pictures. I hit the panel with 2000 grit and paint adhesion promoter this morning and will install one of the kicker speakers with the bass blockers in it. The passenger side sub will go far into the back, and the molded ridges in the carpet are messing up it sitting right in the space. I believe you will have enough room to get an amp behind it but I haven't taken any measurements, the amps today are so small from what I am used to working with!
I'll post some pictures this weekend but was sidetracked with clutch troubleshooting. The panel color isn't right, too black, too glossy. I put the Kicker speakers, bass blockers, and XTC baffles into the panel and installed it. I will have to cut the bottom carpet to get the passenger side sub to mount right and haven't gotten to it yet. Last weekend I picked up wood paneling and angle iron for the amp board. I have the carpet and it too is too black. The one can I though was too light might actually be the right color but it seemed lighter than the graphite panels I am using. I will have to find the ebony ones on eBay I suppose. In order to apply the sound dampening and amp board/wiring the t-top brackets are going to be coming out soon. I also have to remove the passenger seat to fix its issue with sliding back and forth (stuck in the back position now). Just to make it easier I will be pulling out the driver's seat and have to take the transmission tunnel cover off to put the ash tray lit on and again the sound dampening.
I need to resolve the clutch issue first so the car is mechanically reliable before I work on the nice to haves of sound.
I have been focusing on resolving a transmission issue (slave cylinder went out and was leaking and that ended up resulting in a new clutch kit (flywheel, pressure plate, clutch), pilot bearing, and of course new slave cylinder. I replaced the master cylinder too and added a quick bleed cable for the transmission. I also had to put in a new pinion seal in the rear end, replaced the rear diff and transmission fluids and while I was there I put in a new fuel filter as the old one looked to be the original and was starting to rust. After all this, the car still won't shift and a call to McLeod tech support provided 2 options, upgrade the master cylinder OR the slave but NOT both. As the transmission JUST got all buttoned up I am opting for a master cylinder replacement with a Tick Master one. This will hopefully be done this week and if the car will go under its own power I can focus on the non mechanical parts.
I have done a couple of things.
I installed the smaller kicker speakers and base blockers into the foam baffle and new rear panel BUT, the color isn't close to being a match. The other can looks like it might be a better color match so I will have to redo the paint job.
I read about the OEM motion sensor being not so good and how some 3rd party ones were better. This led me to Audiovox and finding an Oldsmobile sensor that is supposed to be a direct replacement with upgraded innards and better sensitivity controls. I found 1 on eBay and got it and will be adding this to the project. https://ls1tech.com/forums/stereo-el...ck-sensor.html
Good news is I have FIXED my passenger seat not going forward or backward. Turns out a thin wire connecting the 2 locking tracks in the inboard/outboard rails was broken and I was only unlatching 1 side. I found a good replacement at Hobby Lobby and fixe it so now the passenger seat goes forward/backward and I got the air/electronics hooked and working. I will need to pull both seats and the carpet to apply the sound dampening material but fixing the seat was a small morel victory. https://ls1tech.com/forums/appearanc...eat-rails.html
Well, from a mechanical standpoint, the car is exactly the same after 2 attempts to fix the issue. A new Tick Performance master cylinder was installed and that didn't work. Put a Tick Performance transmission shim on and adjusted the pedal height, again, it didn't work. The car WILL start in gear now but it won't run. I have found a shop that will look into what it could be (some helpful threads here are pointing to a warped clutch plate and/or a pressure plate with stuck fingers). The shop I called won't have an opening until Oct 28th, so.... I have some time. This weekend I have to take my kids to a sport tournament so that is 6 hours unproductive.
I plan on at least pulling the carpet and putting in the dampening material and cleaning the carpet. I might try to finalize the mock-up of the amp board and get the wood cut and ready to build. The color of the panel is irritating so maybe a search for a better paint source.
Transmission shop got rained out, well I called them and they pushed the pickup to Thursday. I noted the work done again and what I have seen on the forums here and hopefully it will go quick, 1 day job I hope.
Battery went dead so I had to get a charger, and it is back to normal now. Aired up the tires as the temps are close to freezing now and my SUV's tires were really low this morning. I pulled a dash from a 97-98 TA that was totaled and am thinking of ripping the vinyl off and redoing it with fresh automotive vinyl. The motion sensor will most likely be installed after the clutch is fixed. I did get the correct AC vent in finally and that is fixed now. Cleaned off years or grime off the steering wheel, shift ****, and e-brake handle, man the Mother's VRL and Mr Clean erasers work wonders, they feel brand new. Work was really heavy these past 2 weeks and I didn't get time to do anything on the interior, that is why the battery died. I can mock up the radio into the dash to see if any mods are needed. The dash has to come out to get the GPS and toll e-chip installed under the dash cap anyway. My dash cap has some broken hold down pegs bit I am not sure if I can get it off in 1 piece. Will see if I can get work done during the cold, I want the system ready to go by spring!
Noticed I haven't updated in a while. McLeod accepted to RMA the clutch kit and it is currently half way to CA for evaluation and to determine what went wrong and why it would not release. The car is at the shop up on a lift with the transmission out so I am not able to do any work with it there. I haven't picked up the vinyl or contact cement yet for the donor dash. I did get a new can of ColorBond VLP (GM Ebony Glossy) and adhesion promoter to correct the passenger rear spare tire cover I cut for a second 10" sub. The black I used was too black and it has started to flake and peel now. The GM Ebony I had before appears to have been the matte finish version and it was too light and dull in color and just looked off.
08-06-2020, 10:25 PM
Soon to start a sound system upgrade project - Yikes! 
