Hey i miss your SC man! I still have mine but the thought of selling it has come across my mind lately. Love the work you do though, cant wait to see how this turns out!
High end audio build
Just wanted to come on here and document this audio build for a client of mine, and hopefully offer some useful info and inspiration to some of you here. I was presented with the opportunity to take on this project and I jumped on it as soon as I could. I've been highly considering making a GR purchase myself. This is probably going to the thing that pushes me in that direction. Before I get into the details of the system, here's some quick info on myself. I am co owner of Car Stereo Specialists in Hilo Hawaii. I've been in the car audio and automotive industry for over 20 years. I've done just about everything imaginable in car audio but these, slightly high end, daily driver systems are the ones I really enjoy building.
This system is built fully with Morel audio products, which happens to be one of my favorite brands. The client left the system design and product choices up to me ( I've done previous systems for him and he knows that I understand his style of audio). He isn't planning on tracking the car or too concerned with saving weight. That makes my job a little easier. I do not want to cut, splice, modify, any wiring or big panels that would be costly to replace. The biggest modification would be building custom a pillars to hold the midrange and tweeter, but I did purchase new oem standard Corolla panels that are getting modified. That way he can save the original JBL a pillars incase the car needs to go back to original. Everything else will be done using t harnesses and oem mounting points ( aside from a few small things which you'll see) Pics and updates of the build will come as I go through the car. As for the products going in, here's the list
Morel Hybrid 603 6.5 inch 3 way component set - front ( running fully active)
Morel Hybrid integra 602 - rear
2X Morel Primo 8 inch subwoofer
2X Morel MPS 5.950 5 channel amp ( one running the left side of the car, the other running the right)
Mosconi 8to12 aerospace DSP
Mosconi Mini RC controller
Morel Acudamp sound dampening material ( 3 different types)
Custom built amp rack, subwoofer enclosure, a pillars
Oem headunit integration will either be done with the Mosconi DSP or I will add in a Pac Audio AP4 or ADS DSR1
Here's a quick peek at the start of the amp rack and electronics lay out. Amp rack is built with 1/2 PVC sheets. Very durable and light weight. The rack is bolted in using factory mounting points, aside from one spot where I put in a nutsert to thread another bolt in. More pics and info coming soon
![Automotive tail & brake light Vehicle Car Automotive lighting Motor vehicle]()
![Automotive design Electronic instrument Office equipment Audio equipment Computer hardware]()
This system is built fully with Morel audio products, which happens to be one of my favorite brands. The client left the system design and product choices up to me ( I've done previous systems for him and he knows that I understand his style of audio). He isn't planning on tracking the car or too concerned with saving weight. That makes my job a little easier. I do not want to cut, splice, modify, any wiring or big panels that would be costly to replace. The biggest modification would be building custom a pillars to hold the midrange and tweeter, but I did purchase new oem standard Corolla panels that are getting modified. That way he can save the original JBL a pillars incase the car needs to go back to original. Everything else will be done using t harnesses and oem mounting points ( aside from a few small things which you'll see) Pics and updates of the build will come as I go through the car. As for the products going in, here's the list
Morel Hybrid 603 6.5 inch 3 way component set - front ( running fully active)
Morel Hybrid integra 602 - rear
2X Morel Primo 8 inch subwoofer
2X Morel MPS 5.950 5 channel amp ( one running the left side of the car, the other running the right)
Mosconi 8to12 aerospace DSP
Mosconi Mini RC controller
Morel Acudamp sound dampening material ( 3 different types)
Custom built amp rack, subwoofer enclosure, a pillars
Oem headunit integration will either be done with the Mosconi DSP or I will add in a Pac Audio AP4 or ADS DSR1
Here's a quick peek at the start of the amp rack and electronics lay out. Amp rack is built with 1/2 PVC sheets. Very durable and light weight. The rack is bolted in using factory mounting points, aside from one spot where I put in a nutsert to thread another bolt in. More pics and info coming soon
1 - 20 of 31 Posts
OK so here's a better look at the amp rack and how it's mounted. I used 2 factory 12mm threaded holes that were't being used for anything, and added one nutsert in the center brace that goes across the tire well. I used the same size and thread pitch so I can keep the bolts all the same. The sides are built up to support the floor since I removed the oem foam that was previously supporting the floor. I made some 4 inch holes in the bracing to allow heat and air to pass in and out and not be trapped under the floor. I may add a few fans as well. I added t nuts to the back of the rack so I can easily take the amps and processor in and out, and not worry about the plastic material stripping away. T nuts are basically threaded inserts that press into your material and gives you the ability to use better mounting hardware and not worry about stripping away material. On the right side of the trunk I have a double layered pvc brace that is held to the car with strong Neo magnets. There were no factory threaded spots on that side, and I didn't want to make a big bracket to hold it. The magnets do the trick and also make it easy to remove. All that brace is for is floor support.
![]()
![]()
![]()
On to the door prep and speaker installs. I did full sound deadening in the front and rear doors using all three different deadening materials that Morel has available. The front doors were very straight forward. Deadening the inner and outer skin, as well as the door panels. The front doors have a big plastic access plate that covers up the big opening in the door so there was no need to get creative to fill in that area. The rear doors just had the traditional vapor barrier that I removed and used as a template to make my own block off plates out of 1/4 inch HDPE. I did drill and insert nutserts into he rear doors to hold the panels in, but that does make the door serviceable. Most people would just apply sound deadener over the big openings but that isn't really solid enough. Also makes it a pain if you ever need to access anything inside of the door. You'll basically have to cut away your deadener to get in there. I also punched holes out in the deadener to allow access for all of the nuts and clips on the door. I really wanted to run new wiring into the doors but the molex plugs are pretty tight and I didn't want to drill out those plugs so I used some adapter plugs to plug into the factory speaker plugs. That will be sufficient for the power that's going to the speakers. As for mounting the speakers, it's still the standard Toyota 6.5 inch mount that's been used for over a decade. I would normally build my own mounts for high end speakers but these Toyota mounts that we bring in are solid plastic all the way through. It's super solid and saved me a bunch of time.
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
That's awesome! A friend of mine was the Hawaii rep for Arc, he had me in line to fly up to do an overhaulin car but right after that Arc dropped out and kicker took over
Yeah I'm heading up there in a few weeks for a visit but I'm putting things together to make a move up there and hopefully start a new shop.
the only way to run new wiring through the molex is to drill new holes in both sides of the connector. There is a small empty space in the middle where no pins are located. Tight… but works out if you plan on upgrading to a heavier duty AWG for door speakers
1 - 20 of 31 Posts
