Stealth Box and Sub

[CamaroKRAZED]

Would a stealth box with a 10" subwoofer work with the factory Monsoon sound system(speakers, headunit, amp)? Is it a fairly straight forward install; most importantly, is it going to be worth the money that will be spent between the box and subwoofer?

Can anybody speak from experience? Anyone who already has this setup... what do you think?

Thanks!

[96firebird311]

Yes. But the biggest question, is the subwoofer come powered? If not, you'll need an amplifier. Don't worry. You can get a decent one for cheap and it's not the hard to install. (Yes, even with the monsoon system) Check out our FAQ section:
http://mods.firebirdv6.com/stereo.html

Worth the money? Easily. A music system of any kind is not complete without one. I don't wanna beef it up too much.... but it will change the way you hear music. [img]smile.gif[/img] How much you looking to spend for everything?

[CamaroKRAZED]

Well i know the stealth box is going to be like $130 shipped, so i was looking to try and keep the total under $250... if that is possible, because i am not sure how much 10" subwoofers go for, a good one at least. Do you think i could pull this off on just a $250 budget? All i will need is the enclosure and subwoofer right? How do i know if the subwoofer i am buying is "powered" or not?!

I am very new to this stereo stuff, i obviously do not know too much. Really, i am just looking for that extra hit in my system, you know? I am not looking for anything crazy, just want to improve the factory setup a little bit.

Thanks!

[96firebird311]

A powered stealth box comes with an amplifier already powering the sub that is also included. Such as this one. As you can see, that is way overpriced. I take it the stealth box you are looking at is from subthump.com? Great choice. But for $250 is going to be tough.
$112 for the box
$75 Amp and wiring kit
$40 for one of several subs.
$15 LOC
Plus shipping on everything. You're easily over $250. And these are for totally bottom of the line products. (but still not complete trash) If this is what you want to do, let me know and I can point you to some specific models. Also, maybe check out Ebay?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...771881947&rd=1
Note that it's without the sub. If you can snag that for like $75+$30s/h, you could save a couple bucks. Ideally you would want a stealth box from subthump($112), a decent 10" ($100) and about 300-400WRMS to power it ($120). (Still need the wiring etc. too) That would crush that overpriced MTX box I linked to in the beginning. And for less $$$$.

[CamaroKRAZED]

Originally, i was planning on just buying all the parts i would need (hopefully finding good deals on them too) and taking my car somewhere to have a "professional" hook everything up. I really do not feel comfortable messing with the wiring. I would like to try and keep everything neat. Then again, i would save myself money by putting it together myself. So, do you think i would have a hard time with this install? Keep in mind, I am an inexperienced rookies when it comes to this stuff.

[96firebird311]

Bah! It's not that hard at all. I would do it myself even if a "pro" would do it for free. I'd do it for a friend for a 12-pack. (If you live in Hawaii...) And I'd do it for a stranger for .... a case.lol :D True, I have installed many-a-amps. And honestly, it's not plug and play.... but easily done in one day by a rookie.

Pick up a Line output converter. This will hook up to the speaker wires coming out of the stock headunit and give you RCA outputs. (The PAC OEM1 would be ideal, but some are cheaper) The RCAs are included in that wiring kit linked above. Blue ones 3rd from the right. These carry the music signal to the amp. Run those to where ever you're going to mount the amp. Most people have it setting on that "hump" behind the rear seat. Keep in mind that it will be in plain view of thieves there. Might put in somewhere in the well? Next, run the power to the amp. (Link in the mod ency about it) Hook up the speaker wire to the subwoofer and screw the sub in the box. Mount the box in place and connect the speaker wire to the amp's outputs. That's the most of it. Couple of small things I left out. But if you wanna do it, I'll give you the step by step if needed. [img]smile.gif[/img] If the "pro" is going to charge you more then say about $40-$50... do it yourself and put that money into better gear. ;)

[ May 07, 2005, 11:38 PM: Message edited by: 96firebird311 ]

[CamaroKRAZED]

How difficult would it be to incorporate some sort of controller so that i would be able to manually adjust how much this setup "adds" to the factory system... do you know what i am talking about? I believe there is a name for this, but i cannot think of it right now. I remember a buddy of mine, back in high school, had something rigged up like this in his mustang. He had the complete factory system with just 2-10” subs and an amp. It actually sounded really good.

[96firebird311]

I'm sure your friends was just using a remote bass boost knob. Here's an amp that has one. I'm sure we could find you one cheaper then that, but that one had a good picture of it to show you. [img]smile.gif[/img] But any EQ would work. Does your headunit have the slider bar EQ on it already? If so, there ya go! Or as a third option, get an outboard EQ such as this one

[CamaroKRAZED]

There is no slider bar on my head unit. I do have the little knobs that control the bass, treble, fade, and balance... but you are not talking about that, right? Would these knobs provide some adjustment to the "setup" in addition to the factory speakers or no?

I appreciate the time you are taking to help me with this... thank you!

[96firebird311]

No, I was talking about the Monsoon headunit such as this one:


Yes your bass knob will work. Keep in mind that knob will still affect all the other speakers as well. And the stock crossover setting it probably some ungodly high number. (Wish I knew those specs... if anyone has them ) You should be fine though. The gain knob on the amp can be adjusted to limit the amount of power to the sub. So if the sub is too strong on all music choices, turn the gain down. For on-the-fly adjustments depending on music genre, use the bass knob. Let us know if you decide on doing it yourself. We can help you pick out the correct gear and give you some pointers on installation. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[CamaroKRAZED]

I am definitely going with the stealth enclosure setup. I like the hidden, clean look of it... almost looks like it could have come from the factory as original equipment, i like that.

Which subwoofer should i use in this application? I want to go with a nice 10 inch that is going to add a lot of punch to the factory system. What are my choices? If possible, i would like to get a matching amplifier too (ex: Kenwood sub/Kenwood amp)

So, which model subwoofer/amplifier should i look for?

Also, any ideas for where i can mount the amplifier? I was thinking back by the spare tire somewhere, like next to the factory unit... i do not know if there will be enough room without removing the spare tire though.

[96firebird311]

Originally posted by CamaroKRAZED:
I want to go with a nice 10 inch that is going to add a lot of punch to the factory system. What are my choices? If possible, i would like to get a matching amplifier too (ex: Kenwood sub/Kenwood amp)

Like I said, that's going to be tough with a $250 budget. If you're totally against buying anything used, and you MUST have matching equipment (which I don't blame you) check out some of the following:

1) Kicker KX120.2 or Kicker KX200.2 or maybe you could win the KX250.2 for cheap. Powering a 10" Kicker CompVR (Dual 2 ohm)

2) Audiobahn A2002T. Powering an Audiobahn AW100T (single 4 ohm)

3) Rockford Fosgate 201S or you might be able to win the 201S or 150S cheap. Powering a Rockford 10" Stage 2 or Rockford 10" HE.

4) Alpine T220. Powering an Alpine 10" Type-S

5) JBL BP300.1. Powering a JBL 10" gt1041d

6) Phoenix Gold Octane R 2.5:2 w/wiring or Phoenix Gold Octane R 4.0.2 w/wiring. Powering a Phoenix Gold ZR10D2.

7) Kenwood KAC-6201 w/wiring. Powering a Kenwood W2509 (Single 4 ohm)

Mounting the amp.... most of these amps are pretty small. You might be able to squeeze one under that right rear panel. (Where you said) Most of these links have dimensions on them. Get out the ol' measuring tape! [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ May 08, 2005, 09:56 PM: Message edited by: 96firebird311 ]

[CamaroKRAZED]

Now out of all these choices, which one would you recommend as the best bang for the buck setup for my application? The reason i am asking you is because i do not understand any of that stuff they have listed as "features" like watts, ohms, channels, etc... i do not know what to look for or even what i need!

The reason i have my budget set at $250 for this project is because... i currently have $300 saved up, but i need a new driver's side door speaker($45 shipped from gmpartsdirect.com). So, that leaves me with about $250 to spend right now. However, i could start buying some of the parts and wait a few weeks to get the rest. I definitely want to try to keep everything under $350 total(not including the door speaker). What do you think about that?

[ May 09, 2005, 10:14 AM: Message edited by: CamaroKRAZED ]

[LARRYfireBIRD33]

I have a subthump stealthbox and an image dynamics ID10v.3d4 that i'm looking to move. I can do $125+shipping. I'm in NJ. The sub is in perfect working condition. Was only used for ~7 months.

[96firebird311]

LARRY's deal is not a bad one. Keep in mind that Image Dynamics does not make amps. So you'll have to forget about the whole matching brand thing. Not a big deal obviously, but you mentioned something about it before. As for the best out of the ones listed.... they're all pretty close. Everyone has their favorite brand that they pump to everyone. I personally haven't been a fan of Kenwood's subs or amps. Headunits seem to be decent, but everything else they make is a little cheap IMO. If you still plan on squeezing the amp under the passenger rear panel, find out which amp is the smallest in size and go with that. Keep in mind, some amps have "end caps" that screw onto each side to give a cleaner look. (Kicker, Rockford,etc) You're amp will not be visable so you can leave those off to decrease the overall size. [img]smile.gif[/img]