A few weeks back, I started my audio upgrade replacing the Bose HU with and AVIC-D3. Yesterday, I finished replacing the amp, front door speakers and rear decks. I used a Boston Acoustics GT-42 4 Ch amp, Infinity Kappa Perfect 6.1 (6.5 component) fronts and JL VR690-CXi rear deck coaxials.

I also added the Pioneer GEX-P10XMT XM radio and Nav Traffic Receiver to complete the D3 system.

The front door speakers are pretty stright forward. I used a Metra (82-4300) 1" plastic spacer. I considered the MDF spacer but recently read about another member that had water enter the door panel and MDF and water don't mix well so I went with the Metra's. The 1" spacers are between 1/8"-1/4" to big so the door panel outlet was trimmed with a razor knife and the fitment was perfect for the Perfects..lol.

The front crossover was located mid-door. I've seen various locations for the crossover mount but the Perfect cross housing seemed a bit bigger than most so mid-door afforded the most room. An inch of the styrofoam was trimmed and the door panel went back on with no issues.

Most of the sound deadening material is actually on the inner portion of the door and worked well.

The fuse block was installed in the battery compartment with a 4 guage lead to the battery terminal and 8 guage leads to the amp. The amp leads were run through the wire bundle grommet on the fire wall and then down the passenger side of the car under the carpet behind the rear seat. The RCA jacks were run drivers side from the HU to the rear seat.

There weren't a lot of options for mounting the GT-42 amp due to its size so it went behind the upper portion of the rear seat. I may fab an amp enclosure so it blends better with the trunk carpet but it's ok for now.

 

More pics of the Kappa Perfects on the door panel.

 

Pics of the fuse block in the battery compartment.

 

The XM nav traffic antenna went in the cubby behind the temp display. This is the location I used for the D3 nav antenna and it works very well with regard to reception.

The GEX-P10XMT receiver fit perfectly in the compartment under the arm rest on the center console.

 

Here's the location of the Boston amp. As you can see from the pic, it's a pretty big unit so short of building a custom box, the back of the rear seat was the best option.

The JL rear decks were mounted from the under side of the deck for easy removal. The rear decks speakers are a PITA to remove so whether your replacing them or removing them to vent a trunk mounted sub, give yourself some time.

I'm still playing with the gain on the amp to get the sound just right (the way I want it is just right....lol). Overall, the ound is night and day compared to the OEM Bose system and I can't believe I lived with the Bose as long as I did. Nice to get used to listening to quality sound like I do in the house.

Btw, the rear sides were disconnected as there is more than enough sound in the car between the fronts and the rears to require any fill. Someone else may disagree but after listening to it, I'm happy as is.

Other than the amp being exposed in the trunk area, you won't notice any difference unless you look under the rear deck. The magnets on the JL's are double the size of the Bose so I removed the cups from the trunk liner.

 

everything looks awesome, good job.

 

^Thanks, I'm enjoying the sound!

 

How is the bass from the JL speakers? Is it enough? Why dont you install 10' subs instead?

Also can you give me more detail on how to remove the rear speaker.

 

^I considered a sub which would have been easier actually. I didn't want to give up any trunk space so I went with rear decks and they provide more than enough bass. There is another thread related to rear speaker removal which I used a reference. Although I don't recommend it, you can remove the rear decks without taking the inner quarters out. Saves you some time but a PITA.

 

nice job, how did u mount the amp to the seat? did u just screw it to the back of the seat?

 

^ Yeah, the amp is attached directly to the back of the rear seat with 6 screws. There are small cuts in the carpet to pull the power leads, RCA jacks and speaker wire through. I'll eventually get and enclosure to hide the amp as well as protect it.

 

ok thanks, i wasnt sure if the seat would be able to hold the amp. i installed my amp and sub a while back but have mounted it anywhere. i have it sitting under the carpet in the trunk

 

^it will support the amp no problem and will get better ventilation from underneath the carpet.

 

Nice job. Glad you got it all installed.

 

Thanks Sean. Truly amazing sound difference and thanks for your input. Still playing with the gains on the amp and the EQ on the D3 HU to perfect that I sound I've been looking for. Very happy with the set up and the components.