I know there are tons of audio system threads but audio components are short lived. I wanted to document my install experience and the components I used. I attempted to get high quality gear that would fit with minor modifications. I also wanted speaker grills for the doors that didn't have a crazy loud design. Along with the audio system install I sound dampened all the doors and floor using Kilmat and DEI Undercarpet LIte. The Dynamat/Kilmat/ETC takes some getting used to handling. I could do much better now that I have done a vehicle. I had to run all new speaker wire due to grounding issues with some of the factory wire (couldn't be trusted). The end result turned out great. The ride is quiet and the sound system is better than I expected. I watched a lot of Youtube videos from Car Audio Fabrication channel. This guy is a serious pro. He was very helpful for planning purposes.
System
HeadUnit - Alpine ILX-407
Front Door Speakers - Rockford Fosgate P16 - these fit with a 1/2" spacer and speaker gasket
Rear Door Speakers - Rockford Fosgate P152 - had to cut sheetmetal up to the screw holes for the factory speakers. Wasn't anyway around this.
Sub - Alpine Halo Type S 10"
5 Channel Amp - Rockford Fosgate R2-750X5
If you are a 94' cruiser owner and have taken the dash apart you know that it was actually designed by a Satanist. There is no easy way to get a new radio in with the 8-10 plugs that have to removed from every component to the left and right of the steering wheel. I was expecting this to be the easier part of the install, it was not. I'm still missing some skin from this part of the install. The Alpine head unit has all the latest tech - Apple CarPlay was the main goal. Its a great unit. I might have done Pioneer looking back on it but I'm a sucker for Alpine.
The front speakers were very straight forward. The previous owner had an 1/2" spacer on the old speakers so I re-used the spacer with some speaker gasket behind them. This was able to clear the window channel run that limits the depth on the front speakers. I would highly recommend these speakers and the sizing is great.
The rear doors were a little different. The holes are so small that there was no way around cutting sheet metal here. I used some metal snips and it cut very easy. After cutting I used an auto primer to paint over the cut metal. This should keep it from rusting.
The Halo Sub by Alpine is not stealth and takes up good space in the back. I'm not trying to hide it and used banana plugs to remove when I need the added space. Its a no compromise box that fills in the lower range. I didn't have a sub until I was in my late 30s. Insane what you miss not having an 8"/10" sub.
The Fosgate amp is really great. 750Watts - 4x50W and 350W to the sub. I picked it up on eBay factory refurb for a steal. My budget was running low so this was a great option. It has a built in optimizer for clipping and very easy to set gains and xovers. It comes with the remote gain knob for the sub channel also. That mounts great really anywhere.
One of the main challenges was having to run new speaker wire throughout the truck. I knew I didn't want to risk going through the existing door runs due to the age of the wires. So I drilled new holes right above on both sides and used rubber grommets to wire in 16gauge speaker wire. The first door took me quite a while to find the right size bit, grommet, etc for the wire but after that it was rinse and repeat.
Just a side not on the vapor barriers in the doors. I was able to salvage a couple of them. The back doors I cut out of paint drop cloth 1 mil. I'm going to do new window channel runs next yaer so I'll get all new vapor barriers OEM when that project happens. The paint drop cloth did totally fine though.
Final thoughts - this was not an easy install and I have an embarrassing amount of hours into. My superpower (OCD) pushed my to the finish line. There is great satisfaction knowing that its exactly how I wanted it done.
System
HeadUnit - Alpine ILX-407
Front Door Speakers - Rockford Fosgate P16 - these fit with a 1/2" spacer and speaker gasket
Rear Door Speakers - Rockford Fosgate P152 - had to cut sheetmetal up to the screw holes for the factory speakers. Wasn't anyway around this.
Sub - Alpine Halo Type S 10"
5 Channel Amp - Rockford Fosgate R2-750X5
If you are a 94' cruiser owner and have taken the dash apart you know that it was actually designed by a Satanist. There is no easy way to get a new radio in with the 8-10 plugs that have to removed from every component to the left and right of the steering wheel. I was expecting this to be the easier part of the install, it was not. I'm still missing some skin from this part of the install. The Alpine head unit has all the latest tech - Apple CarPlay was the main goal. Its a great unit. I might have done Pioneer looking back on it but I'm a sucker for Alpine.
The front speakers were very straight forward. The previous owner had an 1/2" spacer on the old speakers so I re-used the spacer with some speaker gasket behind them. This was able to clear the window channel run that limits the depth on the front speakers. I would highly recommend these speakers and the sizing is great.
The rear doors were a little different. The holes are so small that there was no way around cutting sheet metal here. I used some metal snips and it cut very easy. After cutting I used an auto primer to paint over the cut metal. This should keep it from rusting.
The Halo Sub by Alpine is not stealth and takes up good space in the back. I'm not trying to hide it and used banana plugs to remove when I need the added space. Its a no compromise box that fills in the lower range. I didn't have a sub until I was in my late 30s. Insane what you miss not having an 8"/10" sub.
The Fosgate amp is really great. 750Watts - 4x50W and 350W to the sub. I picked it up on eBay factory refurb for a steal. My budget was running low so this was a great option. It has a built in optimizer for clipping and very easy to set gains and xovers. It comes with the remote gain knob for the sub channel also. That mounts great really anywhere.
One of the main challenges was having to run new speaker wire throughout the truck. I knew I didn't want to risk going through the existing door runs due to the age of the wires. So I drilled new holes right above on both sides and used rubber grommets to wire in 16gauge speaker wire. The first door took me quite a while to find the right size bit, grommet, etc for the wire but after that it was rinse and repeat.
Just a side not on the vapor barriers in the doors. I was able to salvage a couple of them. The back doors I cut out of paint drop cloth 1 mil. I'm going to do new window channel runs next yaer so I'll get all new vapor barriers OEM when that project happens. The paint drop cloth did totally fine though.
Final thoughts - this was not an easy install and I have an embarrassing amount of hours into. My superpower (OCD) pushed my to the finish line. There is great satisfaction knowing that its exactly how I wanted it done.