DIYMobileAudio.com Car Stereo Forum banner

My 2015 Porsche Macan Audio Upgrade Log

86K views 279 replies 41 participants last post by  williamvannunen 
#1 · (Edited)
I own a 2015 Porsche Macan. I ordered it back in June 2014 when the model first came out and had to wait 6 months to pick it up... 92K miles later, I still have it, and I enjoy it very much... Never had a car for so long.

283197


Up until now, I have tolerated the Bose system that this SUV has, but knew that it was sub par. I had made several modifications to this car, including lowering the air suspension, wheel spacers, added a front spoiler, etc.... but something was still missing, and it was the audio...

I started my upgrade in May 2020, and although I'm mostly done with it, I wanted to document what I have done and how. There are many aspects I'm still working with.

First, I had been working closely with @Ge0 in the macan forum. My experience, prior to this one, with aftermarket audio systems is almost nil. I had done a couple of upgrades many years ago with standard instructions from Crutchfield, and these were the times when cars only have speakers in the back. @Ge0 had been a tremendous help with my upgrade, as he is also doing the upgrade in his Macan.

My original intent with the upgrade was very modest. Just changing a couple of crappy Bose speakers to improve the audio. But that quickly turned into an "all-in" experience.

From a couple of speakers, I ended up changing "ALL" 14 speakers in the Macan, not once, but twice, some three times. With each iteration, the sound improved. I also changed the amplifier, as well as the subwoofer amplifier. I also learned how to use REW, with an UMIK microphone with the help of @Ge0. I learned about the Harman Curve and how to theoretically tune the system, although I'm still working on that.

In any case, I want to start this series with the subwoofer, as this was the first upgrade I did...

PART 1: SUBWOOFER

This is the original Bose subwoofer. It has an 8” subwoofer, which I assume is 2-ohm.

306203


I replaced the subwoofer with a Rockford Fosgate P3SD2-8. I had to use a 1/2” spacer. It was driven by the same Bose Sub Amp, in the photo. The RF subwoofer performed very well, it had a nice punch to it (honoring its name).

283163


I then replaced the Rockford Fosgate, with an Audison APS-8D. At that point, I realized that the Bose Amp wasn’t driving these subwoofers appropriately and decided to also upgrade the amplifier.

283164


Used a TORO MR2 amplifier. This tiny amplifier woke up the subwoofer, and was able to drive it very well. For the price, you can’t get anything better than Toro.
283165





As I continued to upgrade my other speakers and even my amplifier, I’ll talk later about them, I realized that I needed more power. I realized I needed to get out of the OEM plastic box and upgrade the size of the subwoofer.

I decided to build my own box... more on my next post (to be continued)...
 
See less See more
6
#2 · (Edited)
PART 1 (Cont...): SUBWOOFER

I decided to use MDF in layers, to acommodate the complex geometrical forms required. I needed the box to be shallow and fitting around the spare wheel... The box would house an Audison APS-10D.

Started with a computer model, to calculate estimated volume.

283175


I used 9 MDF layers, in 1/2” and 3/4” thickness combination to achieve desired height. The box wall thickness is 3/4”.

283167


Used a Bosch router table... Very useful for these type of job.

283177


Trying out layers in place.
283169


283170


283171


283172


283176



This is the finished unpainted box.

283173


To be continued...
 
#3 · (Edited)
PART 1: SUBWOOFER (Cont.)

I used Duratex with a roller to paint the bottom part of the box (except top layer). A pint of duratex was more than enough to paint this part of the box. I think I was left with more than 1/2 pint, after 3 coats. With Duratex, there is no need to prep the MDF surface. I diluted the Duratex paint with water (about 25%) to obtain desired less aggressive texture, then just apply directly.

283178


283179


283180


Painted the top layer silver, similar to my Macan rhodium silver exterior color.
283181


This is a spray paint, and MDF requires preparation, otherwise it will absorb all the paint and look horrible. I used 2 coats of MinWax Sanding Sealer, with light sanding between the coats. Then, 3 coats of spray paint will do it.


Applying some stickers.
283182


283183


283186


Fully finished box...

283184


I also replaced the TORO MR2. Driving the APS-10D is now the Audison AP1D sub amplifier. More on that later...

283185
 
#4 · (Edited)
PART 2: TWEETERS

The Porsche Macan have 4 tweeters. Two in the corners of the dashboard and two in the rear doors. The front tweeters are tethered to the front door 4” midrange, and they have a 4.7uF capacitor as the HP filter (~8,500Hz). The rear tweeters are exactly the same ones, with exactly the same capacitors, but they are tethered to the 6.5in woofer. To note, neither the front door midrange, nor the rear door 6.5in woofer have any crossover installed (no LP filter), so they play high frequencies until they can’t. Not a very robust design, but more on that later.

In my modest attempt to improve the sound quality, I decided to upgrade all Bose tweeters (the one on the bottom of the photo) with its improved cousin, the Burmester Tweeters. The Burmester upgrade in the Macan have these tweeters in the rear doors, and ribbon tweeters in the dashboard. I purchased 4 of these and replaced all tweeters. There was a very obvious sound quality improvement. I originally installed the 4.7uF capacitor, although I later change the front ones to a higher value to cross at 4500Hz, instead of 8500Hz.

The Bose tweeter at the bottom is 3/4in, with a plastic-like material of construction (maybe polypropylene, but not sure). The Burmester at the top is a 1” tweeter with what it seems to be soft silk dome. The important thing is that this upgrade didn’t require any special mounting modification, other than the wiring (the connector is slightly different).

283220



283221



FRONT DASHBOARD TWEETERS:

I then tried the Hertz Cento C26OE in OEM locations in the front dashboard, and there was no noticeable improvement when compared with the Burmester tweeters. They were quickly returned, and Burmester tweeters were reinstalled.

283226


283229


During my amp upgrade, I decided it was time to get serious with these tweeters, and purchased the Audison Voce AV1.1 (Well... not that serious yet, but a nice improvement, or at least I thought). For these tweeters, I had to break the original installation mount and reconfigure the mounting location for ribbon tweeter. I then acquired an adapter that would allowed me to mount this larger tweeter. At this point, I had a hard time judging any improvement between the Burmesters and the AV1.1, because I had also introduced a new amplifier (more on that later). But it was decent enough.

I installed them with an Audison crossover with HP filter of 3500Hz. I also installed a modified Audison crossover at midrange with LP filter at 3500Hz, to prevent midrange from playing at tweeter frequencies.

283230


While looking for a replacement (3rd iteration) of my center channel speaker, I discovered the Audiofrog GB series. The quality of the GB series is phenomenal. I started replacing the center channel with a GB25, then front door midrange with the GB40, and ended up changing the AV1.1 with the GB10. At that point, I realized that the AV1.1’s were not performing well in my system. The GB10 were superior in all aspects.

I kept the same passive crossovers, but thinking about going full active in near future.

283235


283236


I used the same mounting plates, and while I had to mount the AV1.1’s with hot glue, the GB10 tweeters have a lot of mounting options, making it more robust and professional-like looking. I was very impressed with the attention to detail.

283237


283239


283240


The sound quality, as I said, is really good.

To be continued with the rear door tweeters in the following post...
 
#5 · (Edited)
PART 2: TWEETERS (CONT.)

REAR DOOR TWEETERS

As part of the rear door upgrade (and after the Burmester tweeter), I purchased the Audison APK-163 (3-way system). The Audison AP1 is part of the kit, and installed it in the rear door location. With a little bit of wrestling, I was able to install it in the OEM location. In the photo, you can see an Audison AP4 as well. There were not midrange in the original design of the rear door.

This installation was done with the OEM amplifier, and I had no way to adjust the output level of these speakers. The result was not as expected. The AP1’s were just too loud and the sound coming out of the rear doors was not well balanced. I ended up removing the AP1’s and reinstalling the Burmester.

283248


After I upgraded the amplifier, I ended up removing the Burmester tweeters and also the Audison AP4 midrange from rear doors and replaced them with an Audison AP2. I fabricated an adapter with HDPE to place it in the midrange position.

283247


The photo shows the AP2 in the midrange position, and the AP1, which was removed shortly after the photo was taken. As I said, I currently don’t have any tweeters in that location.

283246


I’m using the rear door speakers as a fill. The AP2’s have an aluminum cone, and although they are sold as a full range, they don’t really work very well above 6500Hz. Metal cones are extremely stiff and durable, they have the disadvantage of flexing and ringing. Hence, I set an active LP filter at 6500Hz with a 12db/OCT slope.
 
#6 · (Edited)
PART 3: THE CENTER CHANNEL

283278


The worst speakers in a Macan with a Bose system are the center channel and the surround. They are all the same, built with a cheap quality paper cone. They are notorious for their distortion.

283266


Like the tweeters, I decided to upgrade it with the Burmester speaker. Like the tweeters, the Burmester center speaker was an OEM fit. The problem was that the efficiency of the Burmester seemed to be higher than the Bose speaker. Therefore, it was too loud. With no way to control the output level, it threw away the staging. The quality of sound however, much better than the Bose.

283267


In the meantime, I had purchased the Audison AV3.0 for surround duty, but decided to try them in the center channel location. The AV3.0 are also very efficient speakers, hence also very loud. I decided to take it out the same day and reinstalled the Burmester.

For this one, and the other speakers I installed, i custom fabricated an adapter out of HDPE.

283280


Through a little bit of research, I found that the Hertz Mille Pro 70.3 were better suited to the center channel application, with the Bose amplifier. The Hertz is nice speaker, and I found the tone and balance better than the Audison Voce AV3.0. I lived with the Hertz for a few months until I changed the amplifier.

283281


After I installed the aftermarket amplifier, I wanted to improve the front stage with better speakers. I started with the midrange (the story on this a bit later) and I also recognized that I needed to improve the center channel.

I decided to try the Audiofrog GB25, because I liked the specifications (in example an XMAX of 4mm was very impressive). This was my first incursion in to the Audiofrog GB series. I was so impressed with this little speakers, the quality of sound, the clarity even at 200Hz. This little speaker sounds like a bigger one (like a 4” midrange). That is when I knew that I needed to change the midrange and tweeters to improve the staging and I knew that the GB series is what I needed.

283276


The GB series do not have the normal blade terminals, but rather, small terminals with screws. The GB25 have a weird angle to this hole and securing the wire was a significant endeavor. The use of long wire ferrules is highly recommended.

I ended up breaking one of the screws in one of the speakers. Fortunately I only needed one speaker for the center... I used the other one and was a bit more careful. Still, a challenge (This was not the case with the GB10 and GB40, as the terminals are more straight).

283277



283275


283274


At some point during my upgrade, and while I still had the Bose OEM amplifier, I also experimented with the Audison AP2 in on-axis center... I took out the center console clock and installed the AP2 there. I fabricated the grille out of one of the Audison Voce AV3.0 grills and formed it with a 2” MDF circle. It came out really cool and factory-like. Sound was very good. But the experiment only lasted about a month. I went back to factory locations for my final install.

283279
 
#8 · (Edited)
PART 4: FRONT DOOR MIDRANGE

The Porsche Macan have 100mm (4”) midrange speakers in the front doors. Their mounting location is in the door panel. It features a paper cone, with a depressed (inverted) dust cap (looks funny)... This speaker didn’t sound as bad, as a matter of fact, was one of the better speakers in my system.

283433


283434


I replaced this speaker with an Audison AP4 (are you getting the gist here? my first iteration with all speakers was with Audison speakers). I improvised and adapter with a plastic spacer I ordered from Amazon. Came out well, served its purpose.

283435


283436


I used the AP4’s in midrange duty while I had the Bose OEM amplifier, and for a short period after replacing the amplifier. With a lack of prior reference, I thought the AP4’s were doing a great job.

At some point, someone in the Macan Forum told me that he have tested the AP4’s against the Focal ES100K, and that the Focal was superior in all aspects. At that point I said to myself... OK... the AP4’s are enough for me. But curiosity won, and I decided to try other speakers just for comparison.

I decided to go with the JL C5-400cm, featuring a polypropylene cone.

283437


Upgraded the adapters, thanks to @McLovin.

283442



The JL C5’s had better tonality and less apreciable distortion than the Audison AP4’s. I mean, the AP4’s are great speakers for their price, but now that I had a basis of comparison, I could not go backwards. I continued to use the JL’s for about a month and a half... until I came across Audiofrog.

I mean, I knew Audiofrog was out there, have heard a lot of good things about them, but never tried them. As I said during the center channel story, once I tried the GB25 speakers, I was blown away with the clarity and basically lack of distortion of this little speaker. At that point, I knew I needed to get the GB40’s for midrange. I was still in the return window for the JL speaker, so it was an easy decision.

283444


These are slightly bigger speakers than the AP4 and JL, therefore, I had to shave about 1mm from the adapter inner diameter. I though I was not able to fit them, therefore, I was already making plans to return them and buy a GB25 pair for midrange location.

283445


Fortunately, I was able to fit the speakers into the adapter and mounting location, with a little bit of creativeness. The mounting came out great and solid.

283446


As I said previously, these midrange speakers are tethered to the front dashboard tweeters. I used the Audison AP1 crossover for the tweeter at 3500Hz, and the Audison AP4 crossover for midrange. Since I’m controlling the HP filter of the midrange with the active crossover of the amplifier at 300Hz, I decided to install the passive crossover with the capacitor bypassed to add a LP filter at 3500Hz, ensuring that the midrange do not play at tweeter range.

283447


The GB40‘s are a fantastic and unreal set of speakers. The clarity is superb. They feature an XMAX of 4.5mm, which is huge, therefore is very hard to make these speakers distort. I mean, I used them at 200Hz, high volume, during some extended testing, and they were as clear as Bahamian beach water.

In the future, I may acquire the Helix V Twelve and go full active crossover. But for now, I’m using a couple of passive crossovers.

In the next part of the series, I’ll cover the front mid bass woofers...
 
#9 · (Edited)
PART 5: FRONT DOOR MID-BASS WOOFERS

The original woofers in the Macan are very odd looking, kind of ugly, 220mm set of speakers. Decent sound, shallow speakers, capable of producing loud sound at mid-bass range.

283460


283461


I decided to change these by the Audison AP8.

283463


I fabricated an adapter/spacer out of PVC board.

283464


This one shows the AP8’s installed in the spacer/adapter.

283465


One aspect I forgot to mention is that I purchased OEM terminal adapters to be able to connect all new speakers to factory connections. The idea is that I would be able to reinstall the Bose speakers if and when I decide to sell my Macan.

Here showing a solid mounting in the Macan door. I added a foam ring.

283466


I installed the AP8’s when I still had the OEM Bose amplifier, and immediately I noticed how underwhelming the sound was. The Bose woofers were 2-ohms, hence, drawing more power from the amp. The AP8’s are 4-ohms. This is when I decided I needed to replace the amplifier.

Once I replaced the amplifier, their performance was very decent. I had no issues with them, until I replaced the front midranges, tweeters and center channel with the Audiofrog GB series speakers. All the sudden, the AP8’s didn’t sound so good anymore. I started to notice that the mid-bass range was not as clean. It was obvious that the AP8’s could not keep up with the GB speakers.

I decided I needed to upgrade them.

Continued in next post....
 
#10 · (Edited)
PART 5: FRONT DOOR MID-BASS WOOFERS (continuation)

I needed to change the Audison AP8 and there was no better option than Dynaudio. Tested by @Ge0 in his Macan, I decided to follow suit. Got a set of Dynaudio Esotec MW182. These are 10” mid bass woofers and would fit very nicely in the OEM mounting location.

283467


Beautiful speakers...

283468


I could not use the AP8 adapters (8”), so I decided to buy these 10” adapters specifically designed for the MW182 from rennspec.com @McLovin

283470



The MW182 mounted in the adapter.

283471


Comparison of the MW182 and the Audison AP8. The photo doesn’t make justice. The MW182 is noticeable bigger and more robust than the Audison AP8.

283472


Transferred wiring and OEM connector to the MW182.

283473


You can see the MW182 installed in the door. I had also done, in the meantime, a lot of deadening to strengthen the door. This was necessary as the MW182 are very powerful speakers.

283474


283475


283477


The Dynaudio MW182 are amazing at playing that mid-bass range. I was able to increase the output level, and the mid-bass is so clear now. It completely changed the sound stage of my car, with a significant improvement. These are worth the investment.

I can now feel the vibration in my feet.

With the MW182’s, the front stage is now complete and “audiophile” quality (I think).
 
#11 · (Edited)
PART 6: REAR DOOR MID-BASS WOOFERS

The original mid-bass woofers were a 6.5”, paper cone, assuming 2-ohm inductance speakers, although they could’ve been 4-ohms - could not tell (DC Resistance of 2.4 ohms). The rear door only had these woofers, with no crossover, therefore they were attempting to play full range. They were tethered to a 3/4” tweeter (see PART 2 of the series).

283501


283502


I replaced them with... take your guess... the Audison AP6.5. I bought the APK-163 3-way system and I built a proper 3-way system with passive crossovers in the rear door. After all, the midrange location was already there, open, with no speaker.

283503


I fabricated the spacer/adapter out of PVC sheet, using the Bose speaker as a template.

283505


Here, you can see the AP6.5 installed, with OEM terminal connector. You can also see the Audison woofer crossover (LP Filter at 600Hz) near the woofer. The nice thing about the Audison crossovers is that they come separate per speaker, making them easier to install in location. I tried to install a JL crossover previously, and I could not, because of the limited space in the door panel. Everything is extremely tight.

283508


This mid-bass woofer performs very well. As a matter of fact, it is one of the few Audison speakers that still survives in my car... it is still there. I’m using the rear door speakers as a fill, therefore, these are good for the job. I’m crossing them over at HP Filter of 250Hz (12dB/Oct) for a smoother transition.

I’ll continue in the next post with the full story on the rear door, the APK-163 installation, and how I ended up where I did.
 
#12 ·
Well executed Santirx. My audio bug rubbed off onto you :).

I think work on my system is done for the season. It snowed last night here in Detroit. Without a well lit and heated garage I just don't have any motivation. I am doing some background work though. Demo'ing a few speakers for this spring. Save your pennies, you're going to need them :)

283540


Ge0
 
#13 · (Edited)
PART 6.1: REAR DOORS STORY...

As I said before, I initially used the Audison APK-163 for the rear doors, to build a full 3-way system. The APK-163 consist of the AP6.5 with a woofer crossover (LP Filter @ 600Hz with 6dB/OCT), the AP4 midrange (HP Filter @ 600Hz 6dB/OCT and LP Filter @ 3500Hz 6dB/OCT) and the AP1 Tweeter (HP Filter @ 3500Hz 6dB/OCT).

In this photo, you can see the AP4. I fabricated an adapter out of PVC sheet. If you look carefully, on the left side of the midrange crossover, you can see the AP1 tweeter tucked in behind one of the door panel hooks.

You can see the midrange and the tweeter crossovers in the photo.

283555


283556


In view, the AP1, AP4 and AP6.5... One of the things I didn’t like about the mounting of the midrange, is how much of the speaker is hidden. The hole have this weird shape and is not big enough, which could lead to some sound reflection and acoustic interference.

283558


283559


One of the things I noticed, as I said before, is how unbalanced the tweeter was. It was too loud, and interfered with the high frequencies coming from the front stage. I decided to remove it and reinstall the Burmester.

Then, the AP4 started to bother me. I couldn’t balance the sound coming out of the rear doors.

In this photo, you can see the AP2, which I installed in that midrange position. The beauty of this smaller speaker is that it fits perfectly in that weird hole with no interference.

283560


I took the tweeter out. I also removed the tweeter and midrange crossovers. Initially, I set the AP2 to a full range, from 482Hz to 20,000Hz. I set the HP filter with an inline capacitor, which I later changed to be closer to 600Hz, as the woofer still had the crossover with LP filter at 600Hz. I was noticing some ringing coming out of these speakers due to high frequencies, and I decided to test lower LP active filter for the AP2 until I got to 6500Hz.

283561


The sound coming out of these speakers is very decent. Good complement to the better speakers I installed in the front. I don’t think I’ll be changing these, but who knows...

On a separate topic, I ended up using the tweeter crossover for the front dashboard tweeters. I also ended up using the midrange crossover for the front door midrange (I bypassed the capacitor to nullify the HP Filter and only use the LP filter capability of the crossover).
 
#14 · (Edited)
PART 7: THE SURROUNDS

The surround speakers in the Macan are 70mm, they both are connected to a single amplified channel. One of the speakers have its polarity inverted and they claim is for effect. These are the same crappy speakers as the center channel.

These speakers are located in the D-Pillar trims, and they are the most difficult to access. Taking out the D-Pillar trim is very tricky. Lost a bunch of clips in the twilight zone, which I had to buy to replace them...

283685


283691


283687


As the center channel speaker, the surround speaker have a paper cone. This speaker distort significantly. It is the worst speaker within the Macan OEM system.

283688


I changed these speakers with the Audison Voce AV3.0. I don’t like the Audison Voce series that much... is a matter of taste, but I’m using the surround speakers as a fill, therefore, they do OK. The only reason I have not changed them, is because accessing them is a pain in the rear. Don’t get me wrong, the Voce is way better than the OEM Bose, I mean, light-years better.

I used an HDPE adapter. Here in the photo, the OEM Bose and the Audison Voce compared.

283689


283690


I currently use these speakers to provide some sort of effect. Set HP filter at 300 Hz and LP filter at 3500Hz, low output level.
 
#22 ·
PART 7: THE SURROUNDS

The surround speakers in the Macan are 70mm, they both are connected to a single amplified channel. One of the speakers have its polarity inverted and they claim is for effect. These are the same crappy speakers as the center channel.

These speakers are located in the D-Pillar trims, and they are the most difficult to access. Taking out the D-Pillar trim is very tricky. Lost a bunch of clips in the twilight zone, which I had to buy to replace them...

View attachment 283685

View attachment 283691

View attachment 283687

As the center channel speaker, the surround speaker have a paper cone. This speaker distort significantly. It is the worst speaker within the Macan OEM system.

View attachment 283688

I changed these speakers with the Audison Voce AV3.0. I don’t like the Audison Voce series that much... is a matter of taste, but I’m using the surround speakers as a fill, therefore, they do OK. The only reason I have not changed them, is because accessing them is a pain in the rear. Don’t get me wrong, the Voce is way better than the OEM Bose, I mean, light-years better.

I used an HDPE adapter. Here in the photo, the OEM Bose and the Audison Voce compared.

View attachment 283689

View attachment 283690

I currently use these speakers to provide some sort of effect. Set both HP and LP filter at 300Hz with a maximum delay attainable through the amplifier. I don’t think is achieving the effect I want, but they are not intrusive either.
Well, you have a problem here. Fortunately it's easy to fix. Setting your HP and LP both to 300Hz is essentially going to mute the speaker. Try 300Hz HP @ 24dB/octave and 3KHz --> 4.5KHz
LP @ either 6dB or 12dB / octave.

Ge0
 
#15 · (Edited)
PART 8: THE AMPLIFIER

My Macan features a Bose amplifier, that for its size, is not bad. I mean, once I changed a couple of crappy speakers, the sound improved considerably, very decent.

The head unit transmit the sound input signal through a MOST Bus (Media Oriented Systems Transport) which is a high-speed multimedia network technology using fiber optic which is optimized by the automotive industry. In my case, it is the MOST25. The fiber connects directly into the amplifier.

283798


I decided to buy the Audison AP F8.9 (8 x 85 W RMS).

283799


Because the Bose system in the Macan features the MOST25 system, I needed an interface to be able to carry the signal to the Audison amplifier. I decided to buy the Helix SDMI25.

283800


The MOST25 fiber would connect on one side of this little box, and a TOSLINK Optical fiber is the output {Input for the Audison Amp}.

283801


In the spirit of keeping all OEM connections intact, I did significant research and found a family owned small business in Florida that sells a kit with a male connector that would match the Bose main connector (Radio Stereo Install Wiring Harness Kit for Bose Amplified System fits Porsche | eBay). Although the connector is marketed for earlier Porsche Bose amplifiers, I was able to determine that this specific connector have not changed over several years and would fit my Macan’s connector.

Having this adapter, made the amplifier installation much simpler and saved me probably about 2-3 hours of work.

283802


283803


283804


I used an HDPE 1/2” plate and adapted it to the OEM mounting bracket.

283805


Continued in next post...
 
#18 ·
PART 8: THE AMPLIFIER
...

The head unit transmit the sound input signal through a MOST Bus (Media Oriented Systems Transport) which is a high-speed multimedia network technology using fiber optic which is optimized by the automotive industry. In my case, it is the MOST25. The fiber connects directly into the amplifier.
...

In the spirit of keeping all OEM connections intact, I did significant research and found a family owned small business in Florida that sells a kit with a male connector that would match the Bose main connector (Radio Stereo Install Wiring Harness Kit for Bose Amplified System fits Porsche | eBay). Although the connector is marketed for earlier Bose amplifiers, I was able to determine that this specific connector have not changed over several years and would fit my Macan’s connector.

View attachment 283802

View attachment 283803

...
That's good info! The Amplifier plug for the Dynaudio system in the Touareg is the exact same as the Bose connector in the Macan. Family traits, and all.
 
#16 · (Edited)
PART 8: THE AMPLIFIER (Continued)

This is the Audison AP F8.9 mounted on the HDPE 1/2” plate.

283806


I mounted the SDMI25 and the Toro MR2 amplifier on the other side of the bracket...

283807


283808


Putting wiring together...

283809


Getting it in place. You can see the connector on the bottom.

283810


Finished installation...

283811


However, I decided to change the Toro amplifier, by the Audison AP1D... More on that in the next post.
 
#17 · (Edited)
PART 8: THE AMPLIFIER (continued);

As I said, I acquired the Audison AP1D to replace the Toro MR2... The main reason for this change is because I had replaced the Audison APS8D subwoofer (250W RMS / 500W Peak) in the OEM plastic box, for the Audison APS10D (400W RMS / 800W Peak) in the new MDF box.

The Toro MR2 amplifier is capable of supporting up to 320W @ 2-ohms stable, while the Audison AP1D is able to support 540W @ 2-ohms stable. The AP1D is better suited and matched to the APS10D.

283812


AP1D compared with the AP F8.9. Is somewhat smaller.

283813


AP1D compared with the Toro MR2. The MR2 is about 1/2 the size, 25% of the AP1D cost, and yet surprisingly very powerful.

283814


AP1D installed on the other side of the AP F8.9.

283815


Wiring. I tidy up the wiring.

283816


Connecting everything in the car.

283817


Final installation. The AP1D and SDMI25 are on the other side.

283818


Installing an aftermarket DSP, I have come to find out, is a blessing and a curse... It was quite easy to do a coarse tuning, once I figured out what I wanted. Finding the harman curve was eye opening. Learning to operate REW was a challenge. But then there is the fine-tuning. And this is what really takes time. I had been fine-tuning the darn thing for months now.

Is funny that every time I finish a fine-tune I say "This is it!!, the sound is so great!!". Then I start thinking, "What if I can make it better?"...then the cycle repeats...

Because I have 14 speakers in my car, with 8 amplified channels, I had to use a number of passive crossovers. The Audison AP F8.9 is able to drive these speakers very well, as a matter of fact I’m at a point where I really like the sound in my car.

Nevertheless, I decided to go full active and just acquired the Helix V Twelve. This will involve running some additional wirings (4 of them) to both corners of the dashboard to power the tweeters and both rear doors to power the wide-range speakers. More on that later.

With this, I complete the series on my installation and adventures, so far, with aftermarket audio {with emphasis in “so far”}. I anticipate a few more changes to come, including the installation of the Helix V Twelve, which I will document here as well. Stay Tuned!
 
#25 ·
PART 8: THE AMPLIFIER (continued);

As I said, I acquired the Audison AP1D to replace the Toro MR2...

View attachment 283812

AP1D compared with the AP F8.9. Is somewhat smaller.

View attachment 283813

AP1D compared with the Toro MR2. The MR2 is about 1/2 the size, and very powerful. The marginal gain by installing the Audison AP1D, when compared to the Toro MR2, is not that significant. However, the price is.

View attachment 283814

AP1D installed on the other side of the AP F8.9.

View attachment 283815

Wiring. I tidy up the wiring.

View attachment 283816

Connecting everything in the car.

View attachment 283817

Final installation. The AP1D and SDMI25 are on the other side.

View attachment 283818

Installing an aftermarket DSP, I have come to find out, is a blessing and a curse... It was quite easy to do a coarse tuning, once I figured out what I wanted. Finding the harman curve was eye opening. Learning to operate REW was a challenge. But then there is the fine-tuning. And this is what really takes time. I had been fine-tuning the darn thing for months now.

Because I have 14 speakers in my car, with 8 amplified channels, I had to use a number of passive crossovers. The Audison AP F8.9 is able to drive these speakers very well, as a matter of fact I’m at a point where I really like the sound in my car.

Nevertheless, I decided to go full active and just acquired the Helix V Twelve. This will involve running some additional wirings (4 of them) to both corners of the dashboard to power the tweeters and both rear doors to power the wide-range speakers. More on that later.

With this, I complete the series on my installation and adventures, so far, with aftermarket audio {with emphasis in “so far”}. I anticipate a few more changes to come, including the installation of the Helix V Twelve, which I will document here as well. Stay Tuned!
Curious. Why did you decide to swap out the Toro sub amp for an Audison? Did you just need more power or did you also want the amps to match :)

Ge0
 
#23 ·
I was trying to achieve your “bouncing echo” effect... I thought that’s how you set it up. Is not completely muted when I play them alone, but they are not loud either. Sound muffled.

But not being able to achieve the 30ms delay, I guess defeats the purpose.

I’ll keep playing with that. The output level is low enough as to not interfere that much.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
#24 ·
I was trying to achieve your “bouncing echo” effect... I thought that’s how you set it up. Is not completely muted when I play them alone, but they are not loud either. Sound muffled.

But not being able to achieve the 30ms delay, I guess defeats the purpose.

I’ll keep playing with that. The output level is low enough as to not interfere that much.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
First of all you do not want to reach the point of hearing echo. That would be distracting. You'll start to hear echo at 30mS and beyond. But, that depends on the signal you play back. Go read about this experiment I performed recently.


Experiment 1 time delay was set around 12 to 14 mS. Experiment 2 time delay was set around 22 to 24 mS. The important part here is that you must also tinker with the LP crossover to realize the effect.

Ge0
 
#28 ·
The AP1D sensitivity setting was wrong. After researching a little, I realized my initial error. Changed the setting from High to Medium, and adjusted output level.

The sub-bass is now cleaner. So clean that I was able to set the subsonic filter at 25Hz (it was previously at 35Hz).


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
#29 ·
The AP1D sensitivity setting was wrong. After researching a little, I realized my initial error. Changed the setting from High to Medium, and adjusted output level.

The sub-bass is now cleaner. So clean that I was able to set the subsonic filter at 25Hz (it was previously at 35Hz).


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Subsonic filter on the amp or DSP? Better to use a HP on the DSP with as steep as slope as you can get. Then you can set the HP frequency as close to 20Hz as you can. A subsonic filter on the amp is probably going to be 12dB/octave

Ge0
 
#33 ·
Homework assignment for you.

1.) Save your current configuration

2.) Try disabling the D pillar speakers and using your rear door speakers as rear fill. Set them up just like we just discussed.

3.) Turn off rear door speakers and just use rear pillar speakers for rear fill. Set them up just as we discussed.

4.) Do A, B, and C comparisons between all three. What do you like the best...

Ge0
 
#34 ·
How many db’s down are you guys running your rear differential fill? Currently mines -13 dB and think I could use more. How’s this determined?
 
#39 · (Edited)
PART 6.2: REAR DOOR REBOOT

I decided to re-do the rear doors by removing the Audison AP6.5 and the AP2. Started with the AP6.5 today. Got a good deal on a set of Dynaudio Esotec MW162.

284930


284931


Comparing the MW162 and the AP6.5 side by side...

284932


284940


The MW162 is a very robust mid-bass speaker. Really nice construction.

284933


284934


284936


Here mounted in the door, reusing the same PVC spacers.

284937


284938


284939


About the MW162, well defined and clear sound. It is now crossed with an LP of 600Hz using passive crossover at 6dB/Oct. The HP is set at 125Hz, active, 12dB/Oct.

I have to say that the Audison AP6.5 are very good speakers for this role. I did a side by side audio comparison, and the AP6.5 were keeping up very well with the MW162. I was crossing the Audison AP6.5 at 300Hz, and did the comparison at that HP filter frequency though. I’ve been playing with the MW162, changing the HP filter, and they really do a great job at lower HP filter frequency. Very clean sound.

When I go full active, with the Helix V Twelve, my intention is to set the LP filter at around 2000Hz. I intend to change the AP2 with the Audiofrog GB15, and if I don't like it, I'll exchange the GB15 for a GB25 pair. More on that later.
 
#41 ·
REAR DOOR REBOOT (PART 6.2):

I decided to re-do the rear doors by removing the Audison AP6.5 and the AP2. Started with the AP6.5 today. Got a good deal on a set of Dynaudio Esotec MW162.

View attachment 284930

View attachment 284931

Comparing the MW162 and the AP6.5 side by side...

View attachment 284932

View attachment 284940

The MW162 is a very robust mid-bass speaker. Really nice construction.

View attachment 284933

View attachment 284934

View attachment 284936

Here mounted in the door, reusing the same PVC spacers.

View attachment 284937

View attachment 284938

View attachment 284939

About the MW162, well defined and clear sound. It is now crossed with an LP of 600Hz using passive crossover at 6dB/Oct. The HP is set at 125Hz, active, 12dB/Oct.

I have to say that the Audison AP6.5 are very good speakers for this role. I did a side by side audio comparison, and the AP6.5 were keeping up very well with the MW162. I was crossing the Audison AP6.5 at 300Hz, and did the comparison at that HP filter frequency though. I’ve been playing with the MW162, changing the HP filter, and they really do a great job at lower LP filter frequency. Very clean sound.

When I go full active, with the Helix V Twelve, my intention is to set the LP filter at around 2000Hz. I intend to change the AP2 by the Audiofrog GB15. More on that later.
LOL. I bought the same drivers for my rear doors months ago but have yet to install them. Let me know how it turns out :).

Ge0
 
#40 ·
I have my rear fill mounted on the parcel shelf in a sedan bouncing off the rear glass... could be some difference between your suv locations?
 
#52 · (Edited)
I just got these today...

285277


285278


I continue to be impressed by the build quality of Audiofrog. Feels very robust, and beautiful. I hope it sounds as good as it looks and feels...

285279


I mean, this is a tweeter that weighs more than 1/2 a pound...:oops:

285280


At 2.5 oz, the Audison AV1.1 looks and feels like a toy in comparison... :unsure:

285281


More comparisons between the GB15 and the AV1.1

285282


285283


The GB15’s will go into rear door duty, for effect. I’m going fully active when I receive the Helix V Twelve, but for now, I will install them this week with passive crossover with HP filter of 2000Hz at 12dB/Oct... with a matching passive crossover for the Woofer (DynAudio MW162) with LP filter of 2000Hz at 12dB/Oct... More on that later.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top