Intently wainting for more on the sub swap.. Hey bro, speakers still in my garage but this will surely happen, the ryem3 hack. Hahaha. Its going to be as much a by word here as the gundo hack.

 

Just do it, bro

 

RyeM3,

Im not well versed in audio so forgive me if this is a dumb question. While I have the sub box open is there any value in stuffing it has others had suggested with the stock subs?

Thanks much

Matt

 

Not a dumb question. I had mine stuffed with the Bose speakers, but took the stuffing out with the new ones. The stuffing was to reduce the bloat of the Bose drivers; not necessary for the new ones.

 

What's bizarre is that I have one of the exact same drivers in my garage. Was trying to replace the "sub" driver in my Audi Q5's stock audio system -- the magnet was literally as small as a D battery cut in half -- but the Dayton turned out to be too small (5-1/4" vs. 6"). The driver I found that worked was ... no shh*t ... BOSE! Dropped in like a charm and did exactly what this swap does: deeper, tighter bass without the boom and bloat. Large magnet, coated cone, real rubber surround. I was pretty shocked to say the least.

So I guess I should hit up Dayton Audio, buy another, and drop them both in my wife's "new" 997.2 S-Cab (2011 CPO, 19.5K miles). From there I might have to hit up my local audio shop, which put a great system into my Miata, and do the Focal replacement.

 

That's funny. Now, if I follow that correctly, you had an Audi that did NOT have a Bose system and you put in a Bose driver that improved the sound? For some odd reason, I've found that the Bose systems in Audis aren't too bad. To be honest, this was the most questionable part of the budget build. The Bose sub driver is not that bad. Big voice coil and heavy magnet.

The Daytons do provide considerably tighter sound and seem to work well in the box. They don't have a very impressive low Hz spec or a big xmax, if that really makes a difference. However, for $40 you can get better sound and if bloated bass bugs you they are a solution. People that like a bit more booming bass (not that uncommon for a car environment), the drivers may be disappointing. Get them from Parts Express - no hassle 45 day return policy, no questions asked. If you don't like them, send them back and you're only out shipping for the experiment. Suffice to say, I think Dayton makes drivers in 6" too!

 

Exactly -- non-Bose in the Q5. (BTW the upscale sound system on the Q5 is Bang & Olufsen, not Bose.) Not a bad-sounding stereo but I've got a relatively high-end system at home and, as a work-at-home dad (freelance writer) don't spend that much time in my car so it really doesn't matter. But my wife does -- about 45 miles round trip every day on the road, top always down unless raining here in Northern California. I seem to remember searching pretty carefully and none of the Dayton 6" drivers would work -- either not 4 ohm or the bolt pattern or magnet depth weren't right, I'd have to go back to refresh my memory. But the Bose driver was plug 'n' play and most definitely improved the low end. And yes, the Dayton came from Parts Express (my brother builds loudspeakers) and the Bose was eBay. Cheers!

 

Retraced my steps and the 6" Dayton had a 6-bolt pattern and wasn't certain I could drill holes to fit. Looking back I'm not THAT un-handy and probably could have ... but the Bose driver works OK so I'm not revisiting that issue.

 

I just completed this install and the results have exceeded my expectations. From start to finish this was quick easy inexpensive fun with excellent results.

Ordering the speakers was a breeze and they were shipped quickly and professionally.

Removing / replacing the sub unit is quick and easy.

I would strongly suggest you make sure you have a power driver for removing / replacing all the screws that hold the sub box together. There are a ton of them.

The sound is materially better with less boom and a much tighter punch. They really round out the stock dynamics. You won't be setting off car alarms but I am okay with that myself.

For $40 and an hour this is a wonderful upgrade to the Bose system.

I am grateful for you posting this!

Best,

Matt

 

Awesome! I've really found they need time to break in. I'm sure you'll notice the improvement as well. In a home environment I'd break in equipment for at least 8 hours. I've barely gotten a few on the sub.

They are much tighter than the Bose drivers-glad the conversion worked out for you!

 

Does the Bose system have a x-over unit? Or is the x-over done by the Amp?

 

Don't know. I suspect it is done before the feed to the sub, but I don't know.

 

I am beginning to wonder if a factory x-over actually exists. Since our Focals have built in x-overs, I wonder if we are having "double cross over" wiring.

I should look at the wiring diagram. "If" a crossover exists after the amp, I bet the Focals would be more efficient and probably sound as intended by the factory -- if the factory one is removed.

What do you guys think?

 

Now that you put it that way, I wonder about the cross overs too. However, if it is in the system, it is integrated in the amp. At one point, Shane was going to provide readings from the amp, but he hasn't been around in a while.

I have my doubts about the Bose equalization. All of the stock Bose speakers have built in cheap capacitor high pass and low pass filters. That's why the Focals with built in cross overs work perfectly.

For the sub, it's different. No caps on the drivers. However, they are driven by the plate amp in the sub. Who knows if there is a cross over built into the sub amp?

 

Just listening to some Rush on the way home. These drivers definitely need a FEW HOURS break in. Mine are only just starting to kick. I can really FEEL the bass now.