My 1996 Honda Civic Install

[black magic]

Okay, first I want to say that building this setup was one of the most enjoyable things I've EVER done.

This is my first complete system, so I want some feedback. I'm open to opinions and critisism but please no flaming. I spent a lot of time and money doing this and will not take very kindly any insults. I know I'm not the greatest installer (far from it), but I tried my best. This post doesn't contain the finished product because I cant finish all the fiberglassing until I lower my car (need access to that area of trunk). springs and shocks should be here any day now. I got tired of waiting, which is why i'm posting pics now.

I've had people ask me if I somehow got Polk to sponsor me. That question always make me laugh. NO I haven't, I dont think they'd be interested in sponsoring another civic. I just love they're equipment

Here is a list of the equipment that I Puchased:

Panasonic HU w/ Ipod interface
Polkaudio C500.1 x 3
Polkaudio C300.2 x 1
Polkaudio C400.4 x 1
Polkaudio MMC6500 x 1
Polkaudio MMC690 x 1
Polkaudio MMC525 x 1
Polkaudio MM2124 x 2
Polkaudio SR124DVC x 2
Absolute 1.8 farad cap
Rockford Fosgate, kicker and street wires wiring
Dynamat Xtreme damping everywhere
165 amp alternator



I changed my plans a few times, and as such I didn't end up using the momo subwoofers, capacitor, one c500.1 and the 2 channel amplifier. I sold one momo sub, and gave the remaining sub and c300.2 to my brother.

First I had to throw in the deck and begin wiring




First there was installing the 5.25" (MMC525) speakers. Even though they are tiny speakers they still required some very little work to fit them (big magnet). The stock speakers that they replaced were 6.5". First I made my own adapters. the diameter is 6.5" but the hole is only 5.25". This way they fit in the stock location, and keep the 5.25's nice and snug. I was going to do some fiberglass work for these, but I dont want to do the work, plus I think I'd prefer the stock look anyways. Each speaker is getting about 60 watts.














Next are the 6.5" Momo components. I ordered kick panels for these about a month ago. Still havent arrived as they were on back order and being shipped from California (I live in Canada). So these components are kind of just chilling on the ground. But they sound great at 100 watts each.


Here's something I did for no reason while in the midst of this install:


Next up are the polk 6x9's. These are honestly like the best 6x9 speakers on the market. I was first a little upset when I hooked these up because they didn't sound as good as I'd hoped. But after about a week and a half, they let off some great midbass. I mounted these in a fiberglass panel that I made to replace the stock one (virated too much). I used the c400.4 to power these roughly 60 watts going to each speakers.














Then there are the subs... this was prolly the most time consuming part of the install since I added my own amp rack at the back of the box. I used 2 SR124 DVC subwoofers and mounted them in a sealed fiberglass enclosure. Even though I'm only giving them each ~530 watts (as opposed to 700) they sound AMAZING! Anything I say about these subs will be an understatement. They let off SUCH clean bass... even at high levels. Seriously, I think I'm in love.



















I haven't installed the rear panel or finished building the fiberglass around the subs yet, because I'm about to lower my car and need access to that area of the trunk to replace the shocks. So I cannot finish that until they are all here. I placed the order about 2 weeks ago, but they still aren't here

I'll post pics of the finished install as soon as my car is lowered and all the finishing touches are done. Meanwhile, here are a few (carpet hasnt all been glued/secured yet, as evident by the pics):








Conclusion:
I couldnt be happier with this install. No, it isn't the greatest system ever but it honestly keeps me very pleased and proud of myself. It was everything I was looking for plus MUCH more. The 6.5" momo components sound excellent and they're tweeters are perfect for my taste. The subs let off waaay more bass than I was originally looking for, but i'm definitely not complaining. The mmc525 I didn't even really need, nor did I plan to buy, but they were included when I bought one of the amps and subs. If you're looking for speakers that sound great and arn't too expensive, these are them! They sound great, not anything spectacular but they surely put the stock speakers they replaced to shame. Finally there are the 6x9's. Like I said, I think these are the best on the market. They have excellent mid-bass and are great for rear fill (gotta please the passengers as well ). Just a word to some people out there who may not already know. Polk speakers tend to have a long break-in period. So when you first install your speakers they wont sound their best. But after giving em time to break-in, amazing sound is headed your way!
POLK AUDIO = W00TNESS! Up next is an engine swap and turbo! woohoo!

Future plans:
Maybe replace the mmc6500 with the SR6500 components up front. Then I might need another amp. Something similar to the c300.2. This isn't likey to happen because I am very pleased with my current seup and I have other work I'd like to get done to my car. But who knows. Maybe I'll come accross an extra $600, though. You never know.

[1996blackmax]

Very nicely done, congrats!

[exalted512]

Looks good. Only thing I would have done different is use fleece for the box. It soaks up a lot more resin. Also, if you do most of your mat inside the box, its makes sanding much easier
-Cody

[black magic]

Thanks guys. And I will definitely use those tips next time. Especially the mat idea. Can't believe I didn't think of that. I HATE sanding!

[noobaslt]

very nice install congrats

[engtaz]

Nice job and thanks for the photo's.

[Josh]

Very nice first install. I do have a couple of questions/comments:

1. If you are doing Q-Forms with the 6500's you might want to lose the door speakers. It's just going to screw up your stage and linearity.

2. If you planning on doing anymore installs of this caliber, PLEASE buy a router. Then your sub rings won't look like a beaver cut them out LOL.

3 You've got the stretching technique down, but you need a little practice at spreading filler. Is it old filler by any chance? It looks really dry. Call your local body shop supply and try Evercoat Z-Grip or Rage Gold. A little under $30 for a gallon.

4. How are you going to finish the box? Paint, wrap?

5. Is that box big enough for those 2 twelves? Did you measure it after you built it?

Anyway, enquiring minds want to know.

[exalted512]

DynaElite is another good filler
-Cody

[JoshParsons84]

First of all AWESOME JOB! I couldn't tell it was your first. Anyways how do those Polk amps sound? I'm talking about for your clarity and everything. And another thing....did you use 2 C500.1? Like one for each sub? And then did u use the C400.4 for ur fronts and backs?

[black magic]

Originally Posted by Josh

Very nice first install. I do have a couple of questions/comments:

1. If you are doing Q-Forms with the 6500's you might want to lose the door speakers. It's just going to screw up your stage and linearity.

I thought about that and an employee at a local audio shop mentioned the same thing to me. I didn't really order those speakers in the door. They were just included in one of my purchases. I could definitely get rid of them they mess around with the staging.

2. If you planning on doing anymore installs of this caliber, PLEASE buy a router. Then your sub rings won't look like a beaver cut them out LOL.

I'll definitely look into a router. I havent heard of that device before. Right now I have this mastercraft thing, which is more like a drill which is supposed to be used for making holes. But It takes forever to cut and i lost patience so I used a jigsaw. Now that I think about it, perhaps it would have been worth the wait.

3 You've got the stretching technique down, but you need a little practice at spreading filler. Is it old filler by any chance? It looks really dry. Call your local body shop supply and try Evercoat Z-Grip or Rage Gold. A little under $30 for a gallon.

I agree i need a lot more experience. I used bondo body filler. I couldn't find anything that was specific to fiberglass and a friend recommend it. I used the specified amount of hardener and did most of the work the day i bought it. However, I'll definitely look into Evercoat Z-Grip, DynaElite or Rage Gold next time.

4. How are you going to finish the box? Paint, wrap?

I'd like to paint it. Either dark green to match with the car, or black to match with the subs. I havent yet decided. The painting process isn't one that I like because its really really long, but I hope to get it done.

5. Is that box big enough for those 2 twelves? Did you measure it after you built it?

The enclosure is just under 2.4 cu ft. at first it was going to be 2.08 cu ft because I was going to use one 10 and one 12, but i decided against it.

Anyway, enquiring minds want to know.

I'd be too! Thx for all the info! I'm still quite a rookie at this so your feedback is important to me. If I'm up to it, I might re-do the lousy enclosureonce I'm done with an engine swap.

First of all AWESOME JOB! I couldn't tell it was your first. Anyways how do those Polk amps sound? I'm talking about for your clarity and everything. And another thing....did you use 2 C500.1? Like one for each sub? And then did u use the C400.4 for ur fronts and backs?

Thanks! yes, each sub has its own amp. the c500.1 is wired for a 2 ohm load for a little over 500 watts each. and the c400.4 is used for the front and rear. Honestly, I couldn't say how well the amps sound. I didn't test the speakers with any different amps. If they weren't polk amps, I'd have Alpine, JL or Zapco. These polks perform really well, though. I'm quite happy.

[Tim B.]

looking good

[black magic]

Thanks!

Hey, Josh, I also wanted to shout out a huge thank you to you also. That Rage Gold filler makes a huge difference. I had to make a dozen phone calls before I found someone that carried it. Even though it cost $60, it is well worth the price. Its so much easier to work with. I'm using it to finish whats left of my install.






I actually want your guys' suggestion on something.... So currently the plan is to paint this rear panel black. I found some carbon fiber vinyl that matches awesome with the speakers. I might also be using it on small parts of my interior and I think it'd look good on the rear deck instead of the black paint. what do you all think?

[black magic]

any opinions on the vinyl carbon fiber?

[PolkThug]

Originally Posted by black magic

any opinions on the vinyl carbon fiber?

yuck! You could integrate a real piece of carbon fiber for an accent.

[MacLeod]

Very nice work dude. Kudos.

My only comments are about the box size. It does look a little smallish. Not questioning your math skills but you might want to recheck that.

- Ignore Josh. Real men use jigsaws!

- Since the MMC6500 is mounted to the door panel, I suggest investing $80 in a Dynamat door kit and laying several layers around the speaker.

- Ive been saying for years that the MMC690 is the best coaxial on the market! Couldnt agree more.

- I love that you finished the trunk with carpet. Im not a fan of painted fiberglass at all. I love the "stock" look of carpet. To me it just looks more elegant and like it came from the factory with it.

- For your rear deck, Id rather go with vinyl than anything fancy. See above.

- Also love how you saved a ton of trunk space. That is esseintially how my system is installed...well minus the good craftmanship.

[black magic]

Thanks man. I'll pull out the enclosure when I'm building the panel that'll go over it to measure it again. I think you guys actually might be right. Because today, it sounded a tiny but muddy/distorted when i turned it up (it was at about 80%... I usually never turn it up that high). That could have been b/c the gain was pretty high also, though.

I also found some carbon fiber cloth, not locally because its damn near impossible unless you're looking to pay quite an unreasonable. Apparently that vinyl stuff is just a knock-off. This stuff is the real deal.

This is what I'm looking at getting:
http://www.jamestowndistributors.com...kout&part=5374