I just got back from Jason's after a long listening/tuning session and couldn't wait to write about these drivers. We spent only approximately 20 mins tuning and then listened to a wide range of music for about 3 hours. The capability and range of these drivers is like nothing I've heard in car audio. Jason had them set at 10k and, at one point while listening to Nils Lofgren, up to 20k. The depth, clarity, body, and presence of the guitar was truly unbelievable. The shimmer and brightness of cymbals were all there without a bit of harshness or fatigue and the crack of snares was crisp and defined. There was a distinct and focused smack from the beat of a kick drum on the dash and vocals were high and centered. With a crossover point of 10k and the smooth response of the drivers, it took little effort to focus the image while still maintaining tonality. I've heard Jason's car multiple times before this install and was impressed each time, but these drivers take it to a new level. I've drank the Kool Aid; I'm sold. I never thought I'd say this, because I love my thesis drivers, but it's more than likely that Audible Physics will be in my car at some point.
Thanks John - I really appreciate you spending some time in my car - I thought they sounded good with a flat eq, but your work on the RTA refined the sound.
Certainly part of the joy of this wonderful hobby is listening to great music with others and receiving positive feedback concerning the equipment choices and the installation. As I mentioned, feedback / an experience like yours helps with the, "Was this really worth the investment?"
I'm looking forward to some hours in the driver's seat this weekend, going through the library. Also....I loved the sound of the M5 - it was fantastic at the Fall Meet - sitting in the mall parking lot, but it has been transformed. It was a real pleasure listening through the 'Meet Disc' and hearing details I had not heard before.
I just got back from Jason's after a long listening/tuning session and couldn't wait to write about these drivers. We spent only approximately 20 mins tuning and then listened to a wide range of music for about 3 hours. The capability and range of these drivers is like nothing I've heard in car audio. Jason had them set at 10k and, at one point while listening to Nils Lofgren, up to 20k. The depth, clarity, body, and presence of the guitar was truly unbelievable. The shimmer and brightness of cymbals were all there without a bit of harshness or fatigue and the crack of snares was crisp and defined. There was a distinct and focused smack from the beat of a kick drum on the dash and vocals were high and centered. With a crossover point of 10k and the smooth response of the drivers, it took little effort to focus the image while still maintaining tonality. I've heard Jason's car multiple times before this install and was impressed each time, but these drivers take it to a new level. I've drank the Kool Aid; I'm sold. I never thought I'd say this, because I love my thesis drivers, but it's more than likely that Audible Physics will be in my car at some point.
Reading reviews like this is what makes all my sacrifices, long hours with no sleep and hard work worth it. And when I say this I truly mean it from the bottom of my heart; reading this short yet detailed and meaningful review got me all choked up. Me and my designer/builder could not thank you enough for the kind words, it truly means the world to us.
I too had listen to Jason car and was one of the people that told him to not change anything in the bimmer. Just keep tuning. As I was very impressed with the sound of the Bimmer at the G2G I had last year.
John reading your words and from hearing about how critical you ears are from more then one person; as I can also tell from your choice in drivers in your own ride; love the Thesis drivers myself!!!!!!!! All I can say is thank you for taking the time out to listen to Jason car and help him dial it in. And if there is anything I can ever in any way within my resources, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Once more thank you Jason for taken a chance on a virtual un-none product as you had many more outstanding choice you could have went with.
The mounting rings have reliefs cut on the back side for the drivers to "breath", but how is the a-pillar "vented" to allow the breathing?
Is there a hole in the dash (behind and under the a-pillar)? If so, was it already there or did you cut something open?
Thanks!
Good question - there isn't a lot of space for venting - there is a small area in the pod behind the magnet / motor structure, and then they presumably vent into the dash - you can kind of see the opening in the dash (already there) where the pillars attach.
It is difficult to see from this angle, but where the brown part of the dash ends, there is a fairly large hole that opens into the area below.
I too had listen to Jason car and was one of the people that told him to not change anything in the bimmer. Just keep tuning. As I was very impressed with the sound of the Bimmer at the G2G I had last year.
Once more thank you Jason for taken a chance on a virtual un-none product as you had many more outstanding choice you could have went with.
Well Mark, I'm glad I didn't listen to you (long term) at the meet, but I'm glad I listened to you when I called you from the Miami airport that day (thank you Zach as well!).
I'm extremely happy with my choice - just took a 'break' and listened to a few tracks while writing down my final settings from last night. I'm blown away! I hope there may be an opportunity to hear the car again in the months to come.
The mounting rings have reliefs cut on the back side for the drivers to "breath", but how is the a-pillar "vented" to allow the breathing?
Is there a hole in the dash (behind and under the a-pillar)? If so, was it already there or did you cut something open?
Thanks!
Well just about every A-pillar I have seen has a small space that vents to the under dash. So building the A-Pillar pods and the drilling some holes in the back of the Pods and pillars and allow the back waves to vent into the area then to under the dash.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bertholomey
Well Mark, I'm glad I didn't listen to you (long term) at the meet, but I'm glad I listened to you when I called you from the Miami airport that day (thank you Zach as well!).
I'm extremely happy with my choice - just took a 'break' and listened to a few tracks while writing down my final settings from last night. I'm blown away! I hope there may be an opportunity to hear the car again in the months to come.
I'm so looking forward to hearing the Bimmer Jason.
I'm just glad that you're happy with how the car sounds Jason. You know you'll always get a no BS opinion from me about things. Having a great installer and great ears like John and Dave E. is something else that will really help you along the way. I do hope to see the Bimmer in the MECA lanes at some point.
Zach
MECA Judge for California
Team DIYMA, Zuki Audio, and Stereo Integrity member
although i appreciate the idea behind your build....the pillars could have used alot more finishing time, the rest looks as though you took your time on 90% and rushed that all important and critacal last 10%....i would be curious to listen to this car for sure
although i appreciate the idea behind your build....the pillars could have used alot more finishing time, the rest looks as though you took your time on 90% and rushed that all important and critacal last 10%....i would be curious to listen to this car for sure
My installer would have loved to have a lot more finishing time on the pillars - I drove the car on a Friday night 4.5 hours to Atlanta and flew back to Greensboro, NC Saturday afternoon, then flew down on the following Sunday morning to pick up the car and drive it back.
Ryan installed the 2nd amp, reconstructed the trunk to accomplish the new amp integration, repaired the driver's side door card, figured out whether it was possible to complete a pillar install or if the drivers needed to be placed in the kicks, and then had multiple challenges with the finish of the pillars. He did an amazing job in such a short period of time.
Much of the rest of the car has had a few years of installing, de/re - installing, so the pillars were installed in a few days. If I feel that I want to do something about the finish, I will have that opportunity in the future. Right now, I don't have a problem with how they look.
I'm not sure what you are referring to: "rushed that all important and critacal last 10%". Structurally, these pillars are phenomenal - the rings he cut is superb, and the glassing of the pods is top notch - they just don't have a fancy covering right now that fully integrates them into the interior of the car.
I explained my goals / use of this car on a couple other forums, not going to repeat, but 'It is about what sounds right' - I can complete the aesthetics at a later time if I feel the need. If you do find yourself in NC sometime - give me a shout, would be a pleasure to have you hear it.
It is a 12" SSA Icon / prototype FI / modded for IB / frankenstein sub that really is awesome - very natural sounding sub sound that blends extremely well with the mid bass drivers - can get loud, can play very tight, can do the finesse stuff very well.
ah...yes...
fi makes the ib3...i'll bet that's what yours evolved into. i've got the 18" version to put in my car one of these days.
From the pictures I can see what he was refering to the last 10%. Some of that is aesthics that comes down to personal taste...and nick picking. But that is just me being super anal about things...ask Mark. I would bust his balls over something being 1/4" different side to side.
It's just aesthics, and if you are happy and Slade is happy...everyone that matters is happy.
From the pictures I can see what he was refering to the last 10%. Some of that is aesthics that comes down to personal taste...and nick picking. But that is just me being super anal about things...ask Mark. I would bust his balls over something being 1/4" different side to side.
It's just aesthics, and if you are happy and Slade is happy...everyone that matters is happy.
Post 175 2002 BMW 325i Final Re-Install
I suppose "happy" is a relative term at times. "Good enough" is not a term I like to use very often but is applicable in certain instances with given constraints.... with said constraints in this instance, I would use the term "good enough" if followed immediately by "for now".
But I can take criticism; that's how we all improve- I typically just prefer the constructive type.
In reality, I am rarely happy as I only see flaws in anything I produce- it is all up to the end user to be happy and I have accomplished that task in this instance.
Happy given the time to pull everything off...I understand deadlines and not doing everything you wanted to do. Trust me on that. Given the time you had and what all you had to do, I wouldn't worry about someone nick picking it. They look good.
Being a custom installer is akin to being a magician...you are constantly pulling things out of your...well you know to get things done when they need to be done. Take it from someone who used to do that for a living.
Happy given the time to pull everything off...I understand deadlines and not doing everything you wanted to do. Trust me on that. Given the time you had and what all you had to do, I wouldn't worry about someone nick picking it. They look good.
Being a custom installer is akin to being a magician...you are constantly pulling things out of your...well you know to get things done when they need to be done. Take it from someone who used to do that for a living.
I had a great 'car audio' experience with some good friends. John and I drove down to Charlotte with John in the driver's seat. I played dj and subjected him to a ton of my music. He was very gracious stating that he enjoyed the trip and the tunes.
We met up with Mark Worrell, and he gave the system a thorough audition. I wish I had done two things differently - I wish I had put something more dynamic on for Rick to evaluate (shop owner), and I wish I had switched the system over to 2-way to show the impact the mid range drivers provide.
I played one track today (all I had time for) switching the xover's to 2 way - the track was a guitar piece (Windham Hill, Wood & Steel), and there was a huge difference in terms of stage height. A lot of the body of the guitar was playing below the level of the dash. When I switched things back to 3 way, Everything (including the information that was below the 250hz HP) appeared to be playing above the dash. This is 'common sense', but the point is that I didn't really notice how low the stage height was before.
Thanks to John, Mark, and Rick for listening yesterday and for the excellent feedback / recommendations (I still don't know about that JL 13 tw5 in the back deck though....)
EVERYBODY GET IN LINE!!! Thats what it will be like at the meet. after a 3.5 hour mini session of listening all i can say is WOW! i have had the chance to listen to Jasons car in the past, this is by far the best it has ever sounded. a sample track by laura Satterfield "Sock-n-Soul" was a hit instantly, open and airy, with a feeling of a small private performance. so little time and so much music to hear. bring your favorite tracks with u, and be willing to wait. now that Jason has drank the kool-aid, we will have to see whats next. one thing is for sure, the only way to go from here, is up. now if we can get someone to get the THESIS mids out of there doors and in the pillars, they could have some kool-aid also. u know who u are John.
EVERYBODY GET IN LINE!!! Thats what it will be like at the meet. after a 3.5 hour mini session of listening all i can say is WOW! i have had the chance to listen to Jasons car in the past, this is by far the best it has ever sounded. a sample track by laura Satterfield "Sock-n-Soul" was a hit instantly, open and airy, with a feeling of a small private performance. so little time and so much music to hear. bring your favorite tracks with u, and be willing to wait. now that Jason has drank the kool-aid, we will have to see whats next. one thing is for sure, the only way to go from here, is up. now if we can get someone to get the THESIS mids out of there doors and in the pillars, they could have some kool-aid also. u know who u are John.
Thank you very much Mark - you played some fantastic tracks (.....mix disc....hint, hint......especially that first track you played, the one that the voice made the sound stage pull to the rear, the one that you played last with the acoustic version, and the one with the singer as a child and now as a Woman!).
I was listening to an artist tonight that I have listened to for years, and it was like the first time hearing some of the detail. Certainly no where near the great cars I have heard since getting serious in this hobby, but it sure is the best I have had, and for now at least, every time listening to it is an experience.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bikinpunk
I find the title of this thread especially funny now.
I know right......well....it is actually true now. I 'plan' to not do anything else in this car - and I plan to install this same equipment in the next car - only one install. Of course, when I titled this thread, I 'planned' for it to be 'the final reinstall'
Definitely looking forward to hearing this. Cant wait for the meet at the end of April. You decide if you can make it down to Erin's meet? As of right now I am probably going to be a no show for that one
I Finally finished the center console in my car, still got a bunch more to finish off and some changes being made
Randleman to Kinston.....I know you can do it...hehe
Looking forward to checking this out in April.
Your car is set bro - wouldn't change a thing! I really want to make it over there - we will see if that can happen before the meet.
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Drake
Definitely looking forward to hearing this. Cant wait for the meet at the end of April. You decide if you can make it down to Erin's meet? As of right now I am probably going to be a no show for that one
I Finally finished the center console in my car, still got a bunch more to finish off and some changes being made
I pm'd him last night - unfortunately, with all of the travel I do for work, and then a few other weekends with Car Audio, I'm not going to make it - don't know if I'll have my stop over place in Atlanta as well.
I'm looking forward to 'the changes' (nothing needed to change), but I'm interested to see what you thought could be 'improved'. I need to go ahead and reserve the shelter - will do it today probably - will be a good time for sure.
Glad I dropped off all of my electronics with Matt Roberts last night...Looks like I need to take the car a few more notches than I had planned to take it.
Re: 2002 BMW 325i Final Re-Install
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