Help: Cutting a hole in the sail panel to mount tweeter (building custom components)

[nobb]

Hi.

Ok this is a stupid and simple question, but I have never done anything like this before and I dont want to screw up. I'd rather be flamed as a noob than to screw up my interior =)

I am going to build my own component system with these drivers:
Dayton ND20 Tweeter
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=275-030
5.25 inch Audax Aerogel Midrange
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=296-155

I will build a custom crossover. However, my problem is mounting the tweeters. The tweeters have an outside diameter of 1.75 inches, cutout of 1.25 inches, and a mounting depth of 0.75 inches. I have already measured everything, and it will be a tight fit, but I am sure it will work. I have an 02 Protege and I would like to mount the tweeters in the sail panels. My sail panels are not the ones with a tweeter built in, so I will need to drill a hole.

The problem is...I have never drilled a hole in plastic before. I have a drill, now do I just go out and buy a 1.25 inch hole saw bit? I have never used a hole saw before. Do you just center it and drill in? On the inside of the sail panel, there are strips of plastic normal to the surface of the sail panel, is this going to be a problem? Are there any precautions I should take? I dont want the bit to slip and scratch everything since I will only have one shot at this.

Thanks!

 

[chuyler1]

I suggest pre-drilling the center hold with a smaller bit. Then it will act as a guide for the 1.25" hole saw bit. It should cut right through the stuff on the inside of the panel...just make sure you don't mess up the mounting brackets because then you'll have no way to fasten the panel when you are done.

I suggest you pick a larger driver for the front. 5.25" is very small and you can easily fit most 6.5" speakers. You also don't need a shielded woofer...the shield takes up too much space and may interefere with lowering your windows. Finally, these speakers are 6 ohms which means you will have to design your own passive crossover circuit or use an active crossover. A crossover for a 4ohm driver will not work the same way.

Before you buy anything, I suggest you check out www.diymobileaudio.com. There are many members who install PartsExpress woofers into their car and they can help you pick the right speakers and crossover components.

 

[treybrad]

Can you buy just the sail panels, sans the tweeter, from a newer p5 and swap them out? I'm not opposed to cutting into mine ('02 too..), but if I could hide the tweeters behind the stock sail panels that came w/ factory tweeters that'd look better...

trey

 

[chuyler1]

Yes you can, they are like $10-15 each though. I don't have the part # but if you post in this section someone will help you out with that...
OnlineMazdaParts.com / MONTGOMERY MAZDA

 

[nobb]

I am buying the 5.25's based on favorable reviews, and they are within my budget. Also, I figure that with a smaller driver, there is more chance that I will be able to remove them and fit them in a new car (when I buy one). There was a thread on the mounting depth for our proteges, and this Aerogel driver is within the range. Are the mounting depths same for power and manual windows(I have manual)?

 

[chuyler1]

Mounting depth should be the same for both types of windows. What favorable reviews are you talking about?

If you go to the DIYMA site I linked you will find lots of information about affordable speakers from PE and Madisound.com.

For example, the RS180 and RS150 from Dayton are very popular. They offer the best sound for your dollar.
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=295-372

You could mate it up with this 4 ohm tweeter:
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=275-035

So how do you plan to power these speakers? Do you have an amp or are you going to connect them to a head unit? Do you know how to build a crossover?

 

[nobb]

Yea I know how to build a crossover. I will also be powering it off an amp (pioneer gm-6200f). Ill buy a PC board and mount my inductors, capacitors, resisters on that. Then I will probably coat it with something just to protect it from the environment. Of course Ill try my best to not let the coating drip on the inside of the inductor (might change the inductance). I will probably wind my own inductors.

I have also read good reviews on the Dayton speakers you linked. The RS180 probably wont be a good choice since its 7". The RS150 I might be able to do, but I am not sure how I will mount it since it is not exactly 5.25" or 6.5". I dont have the tools to build my own speaker adapter so I was going to buy an aftermarket one. I mostly would need the tools (like a router and jigsaw) to cut my own mdf adapter, and I dont know where to find access to such tools. There is this machine shop in university, but they wont let me use their stuff because I am not certified. I was also thinking about maybe popping into my old high school and just walking into the shop to ask to use their equipement, but that would be kind of embarassing. Lol. Maybe I could get those 5.25" adapters and cut it a little bigger? I was thinking about this:
http://www.audiooutfitter.com/store/159806/82-5600.html

One problem I see with your recommended Dayton speakers is that the freq rang is only up to 3000hz, whereas the tweeters start at 3500hz. There will be a gap in frequency response. The Aerogels are listed up to 6000hz.

I dont remember exactly where I read the good reviews on the Aerogels. But I do know that that Aerogel material they use is supposed to be much stiffer than paper, yet lighter. I remember some guy on another forum saying that Aerogels were the best sounding drivers he had ever heard. Also, a quick google search on "audax aerogel" reveals that similar Aerogel drivers made by Audax are used in thousand dollar speaker systems.

Those tweeters you linked to seem to be the same as the ones I was considering (ND20FA-6), except the ones you linked to are rear-mount. To be honest, when cutting the holes in my sails, I dont expect it to be perfect, so thats why I prefer a front mount to cover it up a bit.

 

[chuyler1]

You may have to do a little experimenting with crossover points to get any of these drivers to sound perfect.

Check out this link for other speaker ideas.
http://zaphaudio.com/5.5test/

 

[nobb]

Thanks for the link. Initially I was interested in the Aurum Cantus AC-130F1, until I realized the pricing on partsexpress was probably per driver, not as a pair. To be honest, although I have alot of higher end audio equipment at home (now I want some nice ones in the car), I dont think my ears are of audiophile quality yet. Maybe its because I am only 17? Its kind of harder for me to tell speaker quality listening to music, but I can tell the difference watching a movie. I sure hope my ears wont change much and I'll be happy with the Aerogels.