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Assistance needed for NSX "ah-ha's"

Joined
30 June 2008
Messages
347
Location
Winkler, Manitoba, Canada - near Winnipeg
Hi everyone, I have spent the last several evenings searching and gathering Prime postings for any tidbits of information/pictures , etc regarding anything NSX Stereo related. I have a number of great ideas and interesting threads that I have bookmarked. I found the door panel removal pics, as well as installing the Ztoolman sub pics (although I will be using an Angus box)
I have also recently ordered a repair manual on CD, but it has not arrived yet.

My question is this: Is there anyone out there who has a particularly high level of knowledge of the ins and outs of the NSX itself, and would be willing to provide a few "ah-ha's" to me, before I proceed to do my installation? (we can work through PM's, or regular email so not to plug up valuable thread space)

For example, I am thinking things like:
*good spots to run 4 gauge from battery through cabin to trunk
*best mounting spots for amp (s) as it pertains to body structure of car
*best spot to run RCA's through from cabin to trunk
*anything unique to do when I remove seats , or other interior panels
*familiarity with the factory wiring as it relates to the OEM Bose system...(this is a biggy)...as I will be doing an integration of the OEM Bose with an aftermarket Signal converter to my aftermarket amps. (things like output voltage of leads at head unit, best place to splice into wiring, etc)
*interesting spots in the car to hide away various components like speaker crossovers, processor's, etc

Even if you have a tip for one of the above, or something I haven't thought of, it would be appreciated. I have done numerous installations over the years, but those all followed the typical car set up, with "ample" room for components, clear pathing for wiring, etc. This NSX kind of freaks me out a bit, because 1) I don't want to break/compromise anything in the process of doing this, and 2) just not as courageous as I used to be to tear things down like the interior as I used to be 3) want to minimize down time with the car so any knowledge ahead of time will help that....(heck, I want to be driving it)

Like anything, first time is always an adventure, although not always a good one, you can spend a lot of time, effort, and money working through things initially, so if anyone has been through some/all of this, and cares to share their findings, it would be very appreciated. I'm sure that when I get the repair CD, it will put alot of things into perspective, but I can't wait....I want to get going on things.

I recall when I bought my MDX. I ordered it in the spring of 2002, was delayed from factory due to various items, including runs of paint color...finally got it in Nov 2002 (2003 model) and it went straight from dealer to my garage, and was not back on the road for 4 months....working every day on and off around work schedule. Thats almost 8 yrs ago, and everything is still working perfect,with a few small additions/tweaks along the way. I got tonnes of PM's from other MDX'ers asking questions for their own install...thats what is great about these owner's forums...

http://www.mdxers.org/forums/7-gallery/11558-basically-complete.html

Anyway, this will be a lot less complex in terms of system, but the small cabin, mid engine, and other NSX specifac traits will certainly make it a challenge. The biggest is that I am going to try to integrate the factory head unit with aftermarket everything else, using this product:

http://www.reqsound.com/

I have never done this before, (always used an aftermarket head unit) but want to try it and see how it goes...as I like the look of the OEM headunit as it is in the console...it also avoid me having to do a rebuild of the center console, which I understand can be user "unfriendly"....
If anyone has used this unit in some way, I would love to hear your thoughts...

Thanks all for any assistance you care to share...
 
Hi everyone, I have spent the last several evenings searching and gathering Prime postings for any tidbits of information/pictures , etc regarding anything NSX Stereo related. I have a number of great ideas and interesting threads that I have bookmarked. I found the door panel removal pics, as well as installing the Ztoolman sub pics (although I will be using an Angus box)
I have also recently ordered a repair manual on CD, but it has not arrived yet.

My question is this: Is there anyone out there who has a particularly high level of knowledge of the ins and outs of the NSX itself, and would be willing to provide a few "ah-ha's" to me, before I proceed to do my installation? (we can work through PM's, or regular email so not to plug up valuable thread space)

For example, I am thinking things like:
*good spots to run 4 gauge from battery through cabin to trunk
*best mounting spots for amp (s) as it pertains to body structure of car
*best spot to run RCA's through from cabin to trunk
*anything unique to do when I remove seats , or other interior panels
*familiarity with the factory wiring as it relates to the OEM Bose system...(this is a biggy)...as I will be doing an integration of the OEM Bose with an aftermarket Signal converter to my aftermarket amps. (things like output voltage of leads at head unit, best place to splice into wiring, etc)
*interesting spots in the car to hide away various components like speaker crossovers, processor's, etc

Even if you have a tip for one of the above, or something I haven't thought of, it would be appreciated. I have done numerous installations over the years, but those all followed the typical car set up, with "ample" room for components, clear pathing for wiring, etc. This NSX kind of freaks me out a bit, because 1) I don't want to break/compromise anything in the process of doing this, and 2) just not as courageous as I used to be to tear things down like the interior as I used to be 3) want to minimize down time with the car so any knowledge ahead of time will help that....(heck, I want to be driving it)

Like anything, first time is always an adventure, although not always a good one, you can spend a lot of time, effort, and money working through things initially, so if anyone has been through some/all of this, and cares to share their findings, it would be very appreciated. I'm sure that when I get the repair CD, it will put alot of things into perspective, but I can't wait....I want to get going on things.

I recall when I bought my MDX. I ordered it in the spring of 2002, was delayed from factory due to various items, including runs of paint color...finally got it in Nov 2002 (2003 model) and it went straight from dealer to my garage, and was not back on the road for 4 months....working every day on and off around work schedule. Thats almost 8 yrs ago, and everything is still working perfect,with a few small additions/tweaks along the way. I got tonnes of PM's from other MDX'ers asking questions for their own install...thats what is great about these owner's forums...

http://www.mdxers.org/forums/7-gallery/11558-basically-complete.html

Anyway, this will be a lot less complex in terms of system, but the small cabin, mid engine, and other NSX specifac traits will certainly make it a challenge. The biggest is that I am going to try to integrate the factory head unit with aftermarket everything else, using this product:

http://www.reqsound.com/

I have never done this before, (always used an aftermarket head unit) but want to try it and see how it goes...as I like the look of the OEM headunit as it is in the console...it also avoid me having to do a rebuild of the center console, which I understand can be user "unfriendly"....
If anyone has used this unit in some way, I would love to hear your thoughts...

Thanks all for any assistance you care to share...

1 You don't need to run wire, In the engine compartment, look at the fuse box. You will see a direct connection to the battery. It is marked as a jumper.

2 I ran the amplifier in the tools location. I am using an XTANT 603 and it fits perfectly. I have also used an XTANT 604 when I was using a dual coil subwoofer. It is available.

3 Run the RCA cables through by the fuse box. It is a direct connection through the rubber membrane into the cabin of the car.

4 Leave the power attached to the seats until all 4 bolts are removed. It is easiest to remove the seats with the top off of the car. Also put a blanket on the side sills to protect them. After you remove the 4 bolts holding the seat in, tilt it sideways to remove the bolt retaining the seat belt then remove.

5 Carefully remove the rear panels. They are pretty to break. I think that it is worth buying those cheap panel removers, around 5 dollars at my local auto parts store. Remove the top piece and then the panels directly behind the seats.

6. You will need to remove the center console and just follow the instructions. No big issues except removing the vent. Use a plastic sheet or possibly painters tape to prevent scratching the area.

7. I know that you are planning on using the Bose head unit but there is a HUGE difference in sound quality between the Bose unit and an aftermarket piece. I previously had 2 different Eclipse head units in, both great, but switched them out to put in a Kenwood single DIN NAV. Eclipse head unit available:biggrin: Someone else posted about cutting the factory bezel and then using a carbon fiber overlay from SOS. Definitely the cheapest way to go and looks pretty good. I spent alot getting mine done by the guys in CO and then getting an overlay but I also deleted the ashtray and put in gauges with CF overlay. Look in my gallery for pictures. I did use the SOS system to mount my single DIN unit.

8. I put the crossovers into the doors, the woofers are in the factory location but I cut holes into my panels for the tweeters (Focal K2 system) I know someone else put the tweeters into the AC vents. No rear speakers in my car but I have seen a system with rear speakers, not impressed but speaker quality wasn't that great.

9 I had the ztoolman V3 subwoofer and it was a very nice unit. I wanted more passenger foot room since I wanted to put more equipment down in that location (XM receiver and module for hands free phone) so I made my own subwoofer with the 8 inch Earthquake subwoofer. .25 cubic feet and I got about 2 more inches of leg room.

10 I don't have a processor but if I did, I would probably put it into the trunk where it bumps up, this is supposed to allow you to put in your spare tire but I have 18/19 wheels so there is no spare and no way to put in the tires. Plan on run flats in the future with monitoring system.

11 I am only 5'9" so I have short legs, planning on making a custom rear panel to sit behind the seats using 2 Earthquake SWS6.5 subwoofers. They require only 1.5 inches of mounting depth so I wouldn't be losing much. I will then remove the floor subwoofer which sits under the carpeting and regain more than enough of the leg room lost on the passenger side for my wife who has long legs.

The only thing that I haven't done is change the wiring to the door speakers. I simply couldn't get any wiring through the factory holes.

Let me know if you need any other help.
 
Very good help guys...I will start to explore moe about the car once I have time to "get in to it"...once I start, I don't like to stop. I think the plan would be to go aftermarket at some point (which is how I've always done my other installs in other vehicles. ) this ReQ5 is supposed to take away the OEM tuning built in by the manufacturer, and re-shape it to replicate a high quality sound balanced over all frequencies...I just don't know if it will work with the Bose leads or not from the head unit (low level vs speaker lead level) If I have to get signal from the speakers, it means its after the door amps, meaning another set of wires to work with in the door hinge area (yikes!)...Its only the console thats holding me back from aftermarket.....Great tips on mounting location though and wire routing...

PS-I did see that jumper connection, but thought that it would be best to go direct from battery (fused of course) than from that jumper location....

RCA-s through fuse box area? would that not potentially have noise enter the system ....the old rule of RCA's on one side of car, power lead on the other? But I haven't looked yet, so it may be fine through that location..

Thanks again. Curtis
 
Very good help guys...I will start to explore moe about the car once I have time to "get in to it"...once I start, I don't like to stop. I think the plan would be to go aftermarket at some point (which is how I've always done my other installs in other vehicles. ) this ReQ5 is supposed to take away the OEM tuning built in by the manufacturer, and re-shape it to replicate a high quality sound balanced over all frequencies...I just don't know if it will work with the Bose leads or not from the head unit (low level vs speaker lead level) If I have to get signal from the speakers, it means its after the door amps, meaning another set of wires to work with in the door hinge area (yikes!)...Its only the console thats holding me back from aftermarket.....Great tips on mounting location though and wire routing...

PS-I did see that jumper connection, but thought that it would be best to go direct from battery (fused of course) than from that jumper location....

RCA-s through fuse box area? would that not potentially have noise enter the system ....the old rule of RCA's on one side of car, power lead on the other? But I haven't looked yet, so it may be fine through that location..

Thanks again. Curtis

I think that the power lead actually goes under the car but regardless, I have no issues with noise. LOL, I didn't know about the power connection in the fuse box so I actually ran a 4 gauge wire from the battery back through the car and then out the passenger side. To get from the battery to the interior of the car, look to see where the front fuse box is located and then you can see the wiring harness that goes into the car. I ran through that location, down the side of the car and then up and out through the passenger side into the engine compartment.
Tim
 
Yes, I have your original post bookmarked, and refer to it often. ITs very impressive.... I've always had a few questions about it.

1) what was the reason for modifying the Angus box?

2) where did you obtain the templates for the door speakers from (make your own?)

3) some of those pics are so close-up, Its tought to tell where on the actual car they are...lol...I will have to look a bit closer at mine with carpet liner removed

4) I see also that you are using the battery jumper boost location for main power...any problems experienced with this spot? Is it a direct line from battery anyway?...or does it have some type of circuit protection?

5) I see you glassed the back of the door speakers to essentially make them a sealed unit....what was the reason, vs having a free air speaker in the door (sound quality, moisture protection, etc?)....does this small air space effect the tone of speaker say in the mid bass range, lower vocal range?

6) lastly, wiring the speakers, I can't quite determine if you ran new wire from body to door, or used existing ,,,via the rubber flex tube that houses all door wiring? This may be the toughest part of install, if trying to re-wire...that expandable rubber tubing is really tight in the NSX ...(I did it in MDX with no problem, but it was larger, and much better access to get your hands in there to fish it through...)

Thanks again for your assistance, Curtis
 
Yes, I have your original post bookmarked, and refer to it often. ITs very impressive.... I've always had a few questions about it.

1) what was the reason for modifying the Angus box?

2) where did you obtain the templates for the door speakers from (make your own?)

3) some of those pics are so close-up, Its tought to tell where on the actual car they are...lol...I will have to look a bit closer at mine with carpet liner removed

4) I see also that you are using the battery jumper boost location for main power...any problems experienced with this spot? Is it a direct line from battery anyway?...or does it have some type of circuit protection?

5) I see you glassed the back of the door speakers to essentially make them a sealed unit....what was the reason, vs having a free air speaker in the door (sound quality, moisture protection, etc?)....does this small air space effect the tone of speaker say in the mid bass range, lower vocal range?

6) lastly, wiring the speakers, I can't quite determine if you ran new wire from body to door, or used existing ,,,via the rubber flex tube that houses all door wiring? This may be the toughest part of install, if trying to re-wire...that expandable rubber tubing is really tight in the NSX ...(I did it in MDX with no problem, but it was larger, and much better access to get your hands in there to fish it through...)

Thanks again for your assistance, Curtis

I did this a few years ago so I'll post what I can still remember.

1. I like many others used the factory wiring to the door speakers because of the tight fit of the tubes.

2. I had time on my time rather than money on my hands so I made my own sub box "don't think I'll ever do it again though, haha", and also the speaker baffles after talking to a few people. If you don't have time and have money just buy the sub box. You can source the speaker baffles from SOS or maybe directly to who made them years ago. Think his prime name starts with a D. If you do decide to make your own then just take some mdf board "I think I used 1/2 thickness for the doors" and make your own. I think I used 3 or 4 factory mounting screws where the original was at. I just remember I had to make a tab for one screw to hold the baffle in place because that's the only way it the baffle could be secured and flat. Use a piece of cardboard first as a pattern and when you're done I spray painted my baffle with water resistant paint or something like that to keep moisture from eating away over the years.

3. I bought components that had a pretty slim crossover so I mounted that on my baffle inside the door panel.

4. I used the engine bay power source but I may be switching it soon to the battery because the wire looks annoying in the engine bay.

5. I mounted my JL 4/300 amp behind the passenger seat. I used some wing nuts and whatever the other sides called with some teeth that grip to the carpet so the amp doesn't move around. I just punctured 2 holes in the carpet to secure the bottom of the amp and drilled 2 for the top on that piece of panel that comes off to access anything behind the passenger seat to secure the top of the amp.

6. I used the SOS harness to keep my factory head unit just because I didn't feel like messing with the CC at the time. I met Tim and he said I should switch to the aftermarket since he's been down that road before. I listened and picked up a first gen Tamoske CC and an Alpine single din unit. Have yet to install it though...

7. For amp grounding I sanded down one of the 10mm bolts in the middle on the bottom of the rear glass window. One that didn't have anything plastic attached to it.

8. I used a grommet hole for the amp power to the engine bay on the rear of the passenger right shoulder if I remember correctly. I just enlarged the hole, ran some of that tube through, pulled the tube and put my amp wire through that. For amp to head-unit wires I just wire tied everything and ran it up the center of the console under the armrest and along side the ebrake.

9. When you use the factory wires for the door speakers when you cut the wires solder on a connection of some sort. That way if you have to remove the speakers for some odd reason or want to change them out you can just unplug the wires instead of screwing around with cutting and splicing again.

10. For the tweeter location I like what Tim did with putting them in the doors. At the time I wasn't planning on modding my car to much at all and didn't like the idea of drilling into the doors... Instead I drilled holes in the ac vent and put my tweeters INSIDE the side door panel bezels. I used a L bracket to fit them. It's bad if you use your heat a lot because I hear the tweeters get pretty hot. I don't drive in the winter to much so it didn't bother me.

Have any questions feel free to ask.

Again if you have the time. Make your own sub box, and your own speaker baffles. I was in school at the time still so I had more time than money "still do, haha" but it was my first time ever doing a stereo install and even working with fiberglass.

Stephen
 
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