Stereo system install ’83 2001 Finished!

We very rarely just sit and listen to the radio. I was only stating that as a general use procedure "should" you ever partake in those activities. WE are straight boarders, and usually if were not riding, we are done for the day and at the lakeside bar.

No perko or second battery yet. I've been pretty lucky in the past not to run one down with the system. Just make sure you start the engine every now and then.

There is a perfect place for the second battery right in front of the original one. I think they call it the ice cooler. I would have to cut some holes to pass through to the original battery compartment. My wife might get a little mad though, I told her she could keep her beer there!

Looks great. Where's the perko and
2nd battery?

BKH

Here is what I ended up doing about the highs. There are some simple 2 sides baffles that house one 5.5" Ratshack, and a 4"x6" Fultron 2-way. It is hard to see in the pics but the 5.5's face the front and the 4x6's face the rear.

Is it ghetto looking? Probably! Am I trying to win any install contests with this? Not even close (albeit would be a close race with Unique Whips). WIll it work and sound alright? Should. Will I probably do something different at the end of the season when I redo the carpet? Most definately, but for the meantime, with the supplies and materials I had lying around, this will suffice for 99% of us. I didn't have any black paint to paint the white RS speakers, but that will come.

Thanks, and look I forward to the comments.

If you look at the pics at the start of the post with the concept drawings, the box is much smaller. It is the baffles/walls that make it look so big. They are more for asthetic reasons so that it doesn't look like there is a rectangle box shoved up infront of all the wires and hoses.

The box that the sub is installed in is the exact size required for the sub. I have been making boxes since I was in middle school and know the dynamics and requirements for good sounding subwoofers. Way back when I went to so far as to have a science fair project evaluating the different types of woods used in speaker box construction. Thanks for the concern though, as I would have been the same way had I thought that the whole piece onder the bow was for one sub.

Cheers, and keep the replies coming.

Your box looks nice but it seems like it is a little over sized for the sub. I have 12" sub in mine and my box is a lot smaller. Did you calculate the air space needed for your sub before you built it? It will effect the sound quality. I know of a web site for free that you can input the specs from the speaker and it will calculate the needed air space and dimentions to build the proper sized box. Every sub is different and you realy need to do a little home work to get the most out of your system.

For highs I have two 4x10's mounted below the back seat. One on each side aiming forward. I also have two 6.5's mounted on the foot rest. In both cases the speakers are too low and don't really sound as good as they should. The fronts are only 2-3 inches apart too. That's bad for separation. If it's sheer volume that you're after, you'll need several speakers and a lot of power. If you're just after good sound, you should be able to get away with four, but they will have to be mounted on each corner of the boat. That usually means cutting into the gunnels. If you don't want to do that, you can make boxes that mount just below. The problem is that they will take up space.

I think it could make you sterile. I wouldn't turn it up too loud.

I have decided against permanently glassing in a panels, and just make some fake panels to cover the above box.

Those white speaker wires are huge.

I think I figured out a liable location for the sub. Using the existing box, I can mount it to the floor, and then make some baffles walls to finish it out. The walls will serve to hide all the crap under the bow as well as make a place to mount the amps and head unit.

Check out the pics. Don't dog on my mad MS Paint skillz. I don't have Solidworks loaded on this PC, but you get the idea.

Any suggestions or thoughts or similar installs?

Jim...I definately love the sound of the V8. I am a ford V8 fanatic, just love the sound. I used to run my 96GT with an h-pipe (no cats) and the sound was phenomenal. My buds and I like to listen to music when we 'board. Kinda like pumping you up and getting you in a groove. Im with you in the AM radio thing. I'm 25, and I must say that AM radio (talk radio) is all I listen too. Hannity and Limbaugh(sp?) are my radio heroes.

Cheers

I'm not saying I'm an "engine guy" but I do wonder why anyone would want to put a radio in their boat. (I love the music of that V-8 pumping water out the exhausts at idle with a good cam and the sound of lifters at 4000 RPM.) Am I showing my age? To each his own. I guess if my engine was broke-down I could turn on the radio and listen to talk-radio while I waited for help. Anyone else here listen to coasttocoastam?

Here's how we mounted the sub in out 89 Ski Nautique. The Bass Nautique This install won my son and I about $400.00 worth of high end car stereo equipment. It was a contest on a car stereo web site so we figured we had to come up with something unique. Our main objective was to build a sub box that actually looked like the boat and sounded good. The only problem with is that it takes up just about all of the available space under the deck. We're going back to the drawing board shortly.

Billgatesceo,
I'm w/ you. Hate cutting into my boat(84).
But for the radio I did and it looks ok.
I mounted it right in center of dash, under ski nautique logo/bump.
I used one of those waterproof mounts with the round front plastic cover(you push a button and it slides up). I put in a pioneer radio w/ a removable face plate. The passanger seat pretty much hides it. You need to flip up the seat to set stations etc. but you can still reach your hand behind to turn on/off and put a tape in.
Not much more cutting I'll due though (Maybe a glove box?). I thought about a monster tower but decided against it.
Like to keep it looking fairly classic.
OLD SCHOOL!

This may sound weird, but maybe under the dash could work for you. JBL and others make wired remote controls for many radios. This allows the radio to be mounted tucked out of the way and the remote is usually available in either surface mount our 2.25" flush mount designed to fit in an empty guage hole (if you have one...like get rid of a clock). My '93 has the radio mounted in the glove box (might as well be under the dash). I plan on using a flush mount remote in lieu of the factory clock.