DIY Exile build in my new LSV... (first time)

[Cory]

I can hear crickets... Everyone has scattered. Dave, I'm no expert. Perhaps the box doesn't have the sexiest curves and might even give someone a sliver if they rub her the wrong way, but I'd wager I would not be able to perceive an audible difference between your box and a box built to the ultra high standards of others on this forum. It's 3/4" plywood, it's glued and sealed (actually ported), and it will be waterproofed per Brian's comments. It's going to sound great and 100% guaranteed it will last many, many years with the way you store and maintain your boat.

She may not be pretty, but I'm sure she's gonna put out...

Edited May 30, 2014 by Cory

[shawndoggy]

It's just really ghetto looking Dave. That box looks no better than what you could've done and you probably could've done a lot better. There's nothing pretty about it. My crummy first attempt at a box looked way better. Seeing the level of workmanship in the rest of your install, I feel very confident YOU can build a better box.

For a shop to build that and then send pics showing voids in the wood, screws pulling through, a janky hand sawed sub cutout, etc etc.... its just kinda baffling. Almost like this is april fools and that box is YOUR attempt and not the shop's.

Like I said, it could sound fine. It's just not a piece of workmanship that I'd expect anyone to turn over their hard earned benjamins for. NBA put up an airball on that one.

[IXFE]

I think there is validity in both sides of this debate.

On the one hand I think what Cory is saying is valid... It will sound great and nobody will ever see the rough cosmetics under the Rhinolining and behind the OEM carpeted panel. I've now seen enough of the guts of this boat to know that much of what's behind the plush surfaces is in fact very rough from a cosmetic perspective. Don't matter if it works, right?

On the other hand, Shawn et al. have really helped me raise my expectations in terms of craftsmanship given the $'s that changed hands. In NBA's defense, I only gave them one day to complete it. If you saw what he did to Greg Oden's Dodge Charger you'd understand how good he is.

With that said, Brian and I had a heart to heart about it, and we're going to scrap that box and go with Plan B.

Stay tuned...

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Edited May 30, 2014 by IXFE

[MLA]

It will sound great

If its tuned, but not if thats a random piece of PVC pipe.

[jk13]

I get the cosmetics, behind a panel and all that. Everyone has done similar things but not always to that extent.

The wood used was simply not suitable. That's it. It's cheap plywood and the reason it isn't ideal is the splintering, chipping, knots, gaps between layers, etc. All of those things lead to vibration, flexing, and unwanted noise and efficiency loss. The bed liner will help that, but it shouldn't have to.

Client list means very little to me. That's just good salesmanship. When I was in a larger city the athletes and celebrities followed the one jumping salesperson, not the talent behind him. There are shops that have celebrity clients and even their own TV shows that I'd never send anyone to based on what I've seen and heard from others in the industry. Even have a friend of a coworker that was on one of those for a couple episodes. He left because he was not willing to cut the corners they told him to in able to meet deadlines and budget. Every year we get sent pics of finished installs and asked to vote for installer of the year. Every year I reply that it's what's behind those panels that makes that distinction, not the cosmetic work.

Glad to hear you have a backup plan. I'm sure Brian will lead you right.

Edited May 30, 2014 by jk13

[IXFE]

I other news, here's my new power switch.

:-)

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Edited May 30, 2014 by IXFE

[Jimmy Buffett]

Didn't Brian say they would rhino line it? Should eliminate water, splintering etc.

Rock on man. Your system will sound great.

[shawndoggy]

With that said, Brian and I had a heart to heart about it, and we're going to scrap that box and go with Plan B. Stay tuned...

^^^^ I like this!

[Brianinpdx]

Ixfe has a different enclosure plan. I'm fine to oblige - Should be interesting to see what the group thinks. -Brian

[Cory]

It's a tough crowd. Gotta have thick skin.

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[Cory]

You should sell the ugly girl in the classified section for Shawn's recommended MSRP. It's better than the factory enclosure and custom fit for a 23 LSV.

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[shawndoggy]

shipping kills ya. I've got three boxes in my storage unit (sealed 12 (homemade), ported 10 (homemade), ported 10 (prefab)) that are free to a good home.

[IXFE]

Looks what I gots...

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[08oregon v-rider]

Looks what I gots...

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looks nice can't wait to get ours in this weekend

[IXFE]

Quick update...

• Everything powered on as planned last Friday. All my wiring worked, which was a huge relief. Despite my careful work, I was sure I'd have to pull it all out and re-do something. Luckily that was not the case.
• So everything is done except the sub & new enclosure. I actually had the boat on the water this past weekend and again last night... it sounds as good as can be expected without any meaningful low end. The XM9's sound crisp and clear. But is it enough? More on that later...
• I ordered a Milennia bluetooth adapter yesterday from Crutchfield. So my two sources feeding the ZLD will be the AUX cable and Bluetooth. I'm not expecting much from Bluetooth (sound quality or reliability), but for $40 it seemed like an okay gamble to take on a backup source.

Now I have a random question... I'm thinking of using this spot as the place to put a Bluetooth connected iPhone 5. Will using magnets behind the dash cause the iPhone any harm?

Edited June 3, 2014 by IXFE

[IXFE]

Well... It took longer than I'd hoped, but the sub enclosure is done and the system is finally complete.

Unfortunately I don't have a lot of pics to show as the shop forgot to take any.

I picked up the boat last night and I can't describe how hard this sub hits. I can't believe this is the same sub I had last year. It sounds twice as deep, loud, clean.

Here's what I know:

* Construction is entirely 3/4" polymer with all stainless hardware

* The size is a bit over 2 cu. ft. and it's ported out the back of the enclosure into the open cavity under the helm (toward the bow).

* The sub is an Exile Xi12d and it's in a side firing configuration (towards the port side hull wall).

* The front of the enclosure is wrapped in matching vinyl with the rest of the boat's interior. The lower section of the front panel is carpeted using factory Sterling carpet. The shop did this because I expressed concern about comfort on my bare feet which often touch the lower part of the kick panel. It's a really nice touch.

Now the few pics I have...

Here's the boat in the bay at Kingpin Audio in Wilsonville, OR. This shop is truly high end. You could eat off the floor... It's that nice.

Here's a piece of the polymer used to build the enclosure:

Here's a look at the two layer template used for the front panel and the vinyl over lay:

Here's a shot of the final product. I'll try to get a few more up close so you can appreciate the detail. Not being able to "see" the driver will take some getting used to. But you sure can hear it. If I didn't know better I'd swear they slipped two of 'em in there! This thing can vibrate every seat in the boat when I turn up that little "sub" nob on the new zld.

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Edited June 21, 2014 by IXFE

[skurfer]

Clean install!

[hunter77ah]

I other news, here's my new power switch.

:-)

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Where did you find this? Its awesome!

[IXFE]

Where did you find this? Its awesome!

Clickety click! You can order it to say anything you want and you can choose between a music note or a speaker graphic. Not cheap, but a nice touch.

http://otrattw.com/p...rod=VVPZC2G-100

Here's the standard one:

[IXFE]

so they built the box out of regular pine plywood?

Yikes. Maybe I'm a little over the top, but that box construction looks a little underwhelming....

I used 3/4" finish grade birch plywood and painted the exterior and interior with primer and then black acrylic paint, then caulked the interior seams. I also used rabbit and dado joints glued together, clamped, then finish nailed. I see some on here using screws and adding interior bracing along the seams. I'm not sure if the screws are a better idea or not, but I do recall being taught in high school woodworking class that a properly glued & clamped dado joint is stronger than the surrounding wood.

Watching your project gets my blood pumping to do a boat stereo project again... I have a feeling you will keep this boat for a while, so try to enjoy these projects while they are happening. I know you have lots of pictures to show the future grand kids.

I just hope the one thing that IXFE put into someone else's hands doesn't come back as the only regret.

Strictly the material being used is what I'm speaking to, box design itself looks fine as far as I can tell in pictures. I hate to kill anyone's stoke.

Wow - I don't even want to post b/c I don't think I can pour enough on my comments to make the appropriate for the OP.

That box is an embarrasment to anyone who has ever built a marine enclosure.

Perhaps an interesting side story to bring this enclosure thing full circle...

While I was down at Kingpin the other day picking up my boat after the new enclosure was done, I noticed another boat was there and they had the sub box pulled out because it had been causing the owner some issues (note... this one was not originally installed by Kingpin as they use polymer exclusively in boats). I didn't ask a lot of questions about it, but it would appear to have some serious moisture damage despite what looks like a waterproof barrier having been applied. I wondered to myself if this is what that first "pine box" might look like a few years down the road. Maybe, maybe not. But I did want to acknowledge you guys for contributing to the final product in a very positive... just another item to add to my list of "Things I've learned on TMC."

[Cory]

Wow! That box is nasty! It looks like it was made of MDF. The mold is so bad it looks like fire damage.

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[David]

The guy had to go looking for what died the moment he pulled his cover off and instead found an enclosure that had a growth spurt.

[shawndoggy]

Honorable mention for the attempted duct tape repair tho.

[Brianinpdx]

I saw that box at Kingpin. If you look closely - you can ssee that its actually coated with something. But its MDF under it.

[2008vtx]

Looks like Kingpin took care of you !! Jason always does awesome work and boy does that sub panel looks similar to a SA running around PDX.......

Edited July 9, 2014 by 2008vtx