Lane's Dark Soul XL Build (lowered w/ Silver's, 19" wheels, Zep BAP, audio...)

[Flyin Ryan]

Back to the back, picked up a TMS tailgate assist strut, one of the cheaper kits on Amazon ($20). Decent quality and fit, works as designed, quick install, no clearance issues with the gate cable, and a great price.

Of course, when you add a strut kit, the factory tailgate tie down point has to be removed or the gate won't close. Came across the thread by @Dean S here where he had made his own replacement tie down bracket very simply and I ended up doing the same. Great idea Dean! Bent a piece of steel, welded a chain link to it, and powdercoated it black (I have a very basic home powdercoating kit like this one at Harbor Freight).

this is really nice now should make and sell them

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[volksnuts]

Good job on the box
One downfall of having Lariat is I have way too much stuff attached to the back wall to do something like that
When I was driving my first truck (XLT) I had high hopes I could put the sub behind the seat, but Lariats are extremely crowded back there

 

[rallyshark]

I'm just commenting here to follow this build. I can't wait to see the rest of it come together! Great work so far!

 

[Lane]

So I got a curious spell and really wanted to know - even though the seat foam should now be less of an obstruction (after being cyclops'd) when it comes to the loudness level of the sub, how much will it still reduce its volume? Or will it be negligible like I was hoping?

Just for sh*ts & grins, I used a frequency generator app on my phone with the audio run through a stand-alone mono amp run off a bench-top power supply. Connected it to the sub and played it from 20hz to 100hz in 1hz increments while measuring the loudness with a sound meter app on another phone.

Granted, this ain't rocket surgery. My test methodology could have flaws. The quality of the phone's built-in mic might even be a weak point in this chain, but it should at least be consistent enough between measurements for what I was looking to learn.

I measured the effect on sub loudness of having the seat back in its upright closed position and latched, vs. having the seat down. Recorded the decibel measurement at each frequency and stuffed it a spreadsheet & generated a graph.

I could have used an RTA app on a PC for this since it's made for this sort of measuring, but it seems like they measure in third-octave increments at best and I wanted more resolution than that.

Overall, this curve is what I expected as it looks pretty similar to any typical sealed box, and it looks close enough to what I'd modeled by entering the T/S parameters on an enclosure design website before building the box.

Ideally, I should have also done this before I removed that section of foam from the seat back. Then I could have seen exactly how much loudness the solid foam seat took away. Or didn't take away, compared to the holey seat. But this measurement at least tells me that the volume level is darn close to equal with the seat up vs. down. So now I don't feel as bad having made the choice to cut that hole in the foam.

You might ask why I'm so concerned about loudness. Do I like to listen to it cranked all the time? No, I don't. If something obstructs the sound enough to muffle it and make it quieter, it's also going to negatively affect its detail and clarity. It's just a whole lot easier to objectively measure the loudness part.

No idea why there's a slight dip in volume at 43 hz when the seat back is down. Can't say it matters to me though. One thing I did find out is that the sliding rear window rattles like mad around 60 hz (at a good volume) when the seat back is down. But put the seat back up and latch it, and the window is almost silent. Odd.

Sorry for this egghead tangent. I didn't want this to spark a discussion or debate in this thread which is meant for the build, but this info was interesting enough to be worth sharing.

 

[volksnuts]

I like to listen to music loud from time to time
Today was one of those days
I for sure annoyed people around me in traffic

 

[colinl]

My phone just will not select the right piece of text in your latest reply to quote it, but my guess on the gain/loss at 43hz could be the seatback acting like a port. It's not air tight, but you're moving a lot of air and it makes more sense than reflection.

I expected it to fall off below 35hz that's why I suggested an amp with DSP, or you could just get a DSP upstream. After hearing audiocontrol accubass, kicker key, etc I am just blown away at the performance. You'll have to watch out for over excursion if you use a DSP to add a lot of low end, same as doing it with an EQ, but I still think it's a big benefit for sound quality.

 

[Red Ryder]

I just got to this thread, that's very impressive work!
As a very early Maverick owner, I did a few projects with the audio and such, but this is the real deal. I like your methodology - the careful planning, use of mock-ups for confirming fit, and the attention to detail from start to finish. Thanks for sharing this, it was extremely well executed and presented.

 

[Lane]

With the subwoofer enclosure being a sizable effort and getting that done, it was time to start working on the next item that will take some time & effort as well. I love Polk Audio speakers, and I've had them in most of the cars I've owned since the early 1990s. In fact, speakers of that vintage will be going into my Mav. They may not be the newest, but the best thing about great sound is that it doesn't become old or outdated.

I have a set of mint Polk MM3a 5-1/4" that I'd bought for a prior car but never used. I'd love to fit them in the rear of the Mav, but with that location taking a 4" speaker, it was unknown whether these could be made to fit until everything comes apart.

Rear trim panel removal isn't fun, especially with the top 2 fasteners just above the speaker itself. Watch this video before you attempt to remove that panel and it will probably save you from breaking them. Wearing gloves is also a great idea or there will be cuts and skinned knuckles. And it helps greatly if you have a very long screwdriver or scrap of wood (12" minimum) to push upward on those fasteners from the underside while pulling the panel outward.

It seemed like the much larger 5-1/4" speaker would be difficult to mount to the rear of the plastic trim panel. It's heavy, deep, and has a large magnet. So would it be better to flush mount into the steel of the C-pillar and screw it to that?

The left wiring harness & its attachment points would need to be moved over, and the existing hole in the panel cut and elarged. At that point, the speaker mounting surface in that area wouldn't be flat, so that means a new flat panel would need to be screwed, riveted, or welded in place and the gaps between it and the C-pillar steel filled to be made airtight.

Lots of issues to deal with then though - it would place the woofer frame very close to the door jamb, close to the top panel mounting slots, and close to the seat belt pivot mechanism. And enlarging the hole would require cutting out some spot welds in that area which join the 2 panels. I'd prefer not to do that because I don't want to take the chance of making that area weaker (thinking about a crash/rollover situation, or even just creating new squeaks/rattles).

I love a good project, but I decided to pass on making these fit. Since they're rear speakers and only provide rear fill, the difference between a good set of drop-in 4" speakers and these 5-1/4" likely wouldn't even be noticeable since the front speakers are doing most of the work. And I just didn't want to hack into my Mav that heavily. Time to re-assess.

 

[Lane]

I'd been watching eBay for a while, trying to find some vintage Polk Audio 4", or even 4x6" speakers from their early Mobile Monitor series. Mainly because I'd love the rear speakers to be in the same family as the component set I'll be installing in front (more on that later). Unfortunately, no luck in finding what I was looking for there.

I ended up ordering a set of Polk Audio DB402 4" coax speakers (Amazon, $56) which are newer and more widely available. Installing these would be tremendously easier than what would have been required to fit the 5-1/4" in that location.

I also picked up some Metra 72-5600 speaker harnesses so I wouldn't have to cut the factory plugs. The weatherstrip and aluminum butyl tape will be used to make these speakers sound better.

A speaker needs air from its front side to be kept separate from its back side. If that's not done very well, it greatly reduces the amount of bass/midbass that the speaker produces. The factory panel and mounting method has some big air gaps that if sealed, will likely improve the sound from these speakers. And they need all the help they can get with their small 4" size.

I cut and inserted some closed-cell foam into the larger top/bottom gaps, and then used aluminum butyl tape around the two separate plastic panels to seal it all up. Butyl tape is awesome stuff. Stiff but flexible, holds its shape, seals well, sticks like mad.

I also used some 1/4" width closed-cell foam weatherstripping so there is a better seal between the speaker's rim and the factory panel. These Polk 4" don't have any foam around their rim like some other speakers in this size do.

Since the factory speaker was only held to the plastic panel with 2 screws, I drilled some pilot holes in the plastic for two additional sheetmetal screws. Four beats 2, especially when the replacement speaker is a lot heavier than the original.

The Metra 72-5600 speaker harnesses seemed odd. The pins didn't look like they'd fit into the factory plug, but with some firm persuasion, they will fit. Their pos/neg wires did seem to be reversed from what's being said here about which factory wire color is pos vs. neg. To be sure, I'll likely do some testing later to verify as I install the new radio T-harness.

 

[rallyshark]

I'd been watching eBay for a while, trying to find some vintage Polk Audio 4", or even 4x6" speakers from their early Mobile Monitor series. Mainly because I'd love the rear speakers to be in the same family as the component set I'll be installing in front (more on that later). Unfortunately, no luck in finding what I was looking for there.

I ended up ordering a set of Polk Audio DB402 4" coax speakers (Amazon, $56) which are newer and more widely available. Installing these would be tremendously easier than what would have been required to fit the 5-1/4" in that location.

I also picked up some Metra 72-5600 speaker harnesses so I wouldn't have to cut the factory plugs. The weatherstrip and aluminum butyl tape will be used to make these speakers sound better.

A speaker needs air from its front side to be kept separate from its back side. If that's not done very well, it greatly reduces the amount of bass/midbass that the speaker produces. The factory panel and mounting method has some big air gaps that if sealed, will likely improve the sound from these speakers. And they need all the help they can get with their small 4" size.

I cut and inserted some closed-cell foam into the larger top/bottom gaps, and then used aluminum butyl tape around the two separate plastic panels to seal it all up. Butyl tape is awesome stuff. Flexible, seals well, sticks like mad.

I also used some 1/4" width closed-cell foam weatherstripping so there is a better seal between the speaker's rim and the factory panel. These Polk 4" don't have any foam around their rim like some other speakers in this size do.

Since the factory speaker was only held to the plastic panel with 2 screws, I drilled some pilot holes in the plastic for two additional sheetmetal screws. Four beats 2, especially when the replacement speaker is a lot heavier than the original.

The Metra 72-5600 speaker harnesses seemed odd. The pins didn't look like they'd fit into the factory plug, but with some firm persuasion, they will fit. Their pos/neg wires did seem to be reversed from what's being said here about which factory wire color is pos vs. neg. To be sure, I'll likely do some testing later to verify as I install the new radio T-harness.

This is exactly what I used for my rears, and exactly what I did to fill those giant openings on the factory panel. These little guys do quite well for rear fill duty! I've got them crossed over at 120hz at 48db to keep them safe. Great job, look forward to what's coming.

 

[Headbanger]

Damn Lane, you're a mod monster! Your Mav looks amazing! Thanks for sharing such detailed posts. Personally, I couldn't do most of them without mucking something up, but it's nice to see a creative mind at work.

 

[colinl]

This is exactly what I used for my rears, and exactly what I did to fill those giant openings on the factory panel. These little guys do quite well for rear fill duty! I've got them crossed over at 120hz at 48db to keep them safe. Great job, look forward to what's coming.

I was going to say that 120hz sounds really low for a high pass on a 4" speaker, but then I saw you have a 48db/oct slope. That changes things!

Is that from your Puzu dsp amp? I'm still a bit surprised but if you've played a sweep tone loud and haven't heard overexcursion, that's pretty sweet.

 

[Casper98]

I’m loving this build, were you ever able to complete the write up on the installation of the Silvers by chance?

 

[rallyshark]

I was going to say that 120hz sounds really low for a high pass on a 4" speaker, but then I saw you have a 48db/oct slope. That changes things!

Is that from your Puzu dsp amp? I'm still a bit surprised but if you've played a sweep tone loud and haven't heard overexcursion, that's pretty sweet.

You're correct, that is a little low on the crossover, which is why I have that 48db slope in there. I wanted to get a much of the lower vocal range in there as possible without toasting those little guys, haha. So far I've not had any issues whatsoever.

I don't have a Puzu. I have an Audio Dynamics DSP feeding my Audison 5 channel SR5.600 amp, fwiw.

 

[Lane]

I’m loving this build, were you ever able to complete the write up on the installation of the Silvers by chance?

I haven't written it up in detail yet but it feels like the install isn't quite done yet. With the current 5" drop all around, I've done about 6000 miles of varied driving and have heard/felt the tires rub the wheelwell liners only twice. I have an intermittent odd noise from one of the front coilovers and I'm working through trying to figure out where it's coming from. That has proven to be really aggravating, even with the help of Silvers tech support. Once we get past winter here, that effort continues. I also want to pull the wheelwell liners to see if more clearance can be created in the upper part of the wheelwells. If that means some massaging of a few metal seams, I may do that and then rebuild the top portion of the wheelwell liners in fiberglass to maximize the space. I'm in WI with lots of snow and road salt - I need wheelwell liners and can't just leave them off the vehicle. If all goes well up to that point, I'm going to consider "upgrading" to the superlow version of the coilovers. That's the plan for now, but plans can change.

I do want to say this - I can't believe how well the Silvers work at this drop level. Even at 5", I don't have to care about speed bumps or driveways at all. Probably has to do with a combination of things such as the stiffness I have dialed in, tire size I chose, and rim width/offset. More to come.

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