MEMORY LANE -- Where did you start?

teamradrz1 · Post by **teamradrz1** » Fri Jan 20, 2012 10:55 pm

thank god I don't have pictures of my first install 65 Malibu SS in high school late 80s with a 200W uniq amp and two Pioneer tower home speakers in the trunk

but soon I graduated from that to RF Punch amp and subs

JayGold · Post by **JayGold** » Thu Oct 11, 2012 2:40 pm

I finally scanned the Polaroids.

This isn't exactly where I started but more like where I ended. This was taken back in 1996, installed in a 1995 Honda Civic EX. One of the 0.5's ran my 3-way front stage comprised of Canton Pullman's. Source was a 6-disc Nakamichi MB-100, crossover duties were split by a Linear Power XO-4 and a PLD-1 was pumping up the voltage. I actually won a local competition with this set-up.

These are the only pics I have of the system:

Three 10" Kicker Solobarics in individual sealed enclosures, half of the trunk still useable.

Drock · Post by **Drock** » Thu Oct 11, 2012 8:38 pm

I did not own a camera when I started doing installs. Lol. I wish so bad I had some pics to post. I installed for many shops in Calgary, sounds around, visions, g&s audio, circuit city, future shop (the original one.) anyway I could never afford a nice system. So when I could finally get what I wanted I went all out. My first system consisted of a 86 jimmy 4x4, h/u was a Sony CDX-c910. Still I think the best deck Sony ever built. I had the mobile VCR under the seat and 7" screen which was installed in the dash were the factory center 5x7 was located. It was installed with a power antenna motor to lift the screen in and out of the dash. The rear tailgate was modded to countersink ( flush mount ) 2 alpine 3558 class a amplifiers. You could seriously cook an egg on those monsters. For a 4x40watt rms amp this thing was amazing. Each amp was running a pair of alpine 6062 comp sets. I sold my 3 way mbq's to buy them. Lol, for sub duty I had two alpine 3549's running 4 alpine 10" svc 6060's. and last was a really old alpine 3539 2 channel amp that seamed to have endless power running two 8" kicker solobarics hidden in a custom center console which also rocked a Super Nintendo. I also had an alpine graphic eq in there. I can't remember the model, something like 3134 I think. It had the hideaway unit and then the controller face you could mount anywhere.
Funny thing is when I was installing this system I was so excited I would stay up till all hours of the night. It took like a week to put it all together. On the last night I was so close to being done but needed a break. So I decided to walk to the corner store and grab a snack. It was about 12:30 am, I was gone for about 30 min tops. When I got back my heart felt like it was ripped out of me. Some fuck had gotten into the garage and ripped every thing off. It had started to rain just before i got back and there footprints still on the floor. I was so pissed. I closed up the garage and went to bed. The next morning I went out called the cops and started pulling out all the wire and putting shit back together. They just ripped everything apart. After about an hour I grab the bin of garbage to put out in the ally and I see this big bag. I think to myself what the fuck is this? I put the bin down and open the bag and there's all of my gear laying there in this frigging bag. I can't even begin to explain that feeling. My gut sank with unbelievable luck. I should have bought a lottery ticket that day.

Drock · Post by **Drock** » Thu Oct 11, 2012 8:41 pm

Oh and that day I got an advance from soundsaround where I worked and bought the alpine 8081 alarm system with all the bells and whistles. It included a paging system and cell communicator. Lol. It was like $1400 back then

Drock · Post by **Drock** » Thu Oct 11, 2012 9:01 pm

I thought it was cool I was the only guy that could call my car from anywhere and make the windows toll up and down. Lol, all from my 5 pound brick of a Motorola 8000 cell phone. At 18 people looked at me like I was a drug dealer on Miami vice.
Ahhh. Those were the days.

Post by **ttocs** » Fri Oct 12, 2012 10:58 am

those alarms were great when put with the cva 1000 deck the onscreen reporting and programming was something I wish modern systems still did.

ICE-Xtra · Post by **ICE-Xtra** » Fri Oct 12, 2012 12:24 pm

This was my first install in my car...
JVC in combination with GroundZero sub and speakers on a Sony Xplode radio/CD
This was around end of 2001 when i had this install

regards Henry Eibrink
http://www.ice-xtra.nl

ICE-Xtra · Post by **ICE-Xtra** » Fri Oct 12, 2012 12:39 pm

My project close after that in 2002 was with AudioBahn...
Due to money problems i never completly finished this install...
Loved the flamed subwoofers, speakers were a bit harsh and loud and we do love some more sound-quality here in Europe...
It was a pain in the ass to saw a those flames...

Post by **ttocs** » Fri Oct 12, 2012 1:03 pm

audiobahn speakers catching fire = irony

jammin · Post by **jammin** » Fri Nov 30, 2012 10:31 am

THis is from 1997 I ran a audio art 100hc and two autotek 66 amps and 4 kicker xpl 12s in a 89 mustang gt.

zztunnell · Post by **zztunnell** » Fri Apr 26, 2013 6:44 pm

Ice,I always wondered how those Audiobahn's sounded. I have a new in box AW1206Q that been under my bed since like 2000. Been thinking bout pulling it out and throwing it in a box to listen to it.

If you don't count the 2 pioneer 12" home speakers I threw in the back seat of my moms Buick Le Sabre. The first system I installed in a car of my own was as follows:

'85 Dodge Charger
A Sanyo shaft style cassette deck.WITH auto search! I know big pimpin right,lol.
A set of Optimus 6.5" coaxs in doors.
An L.A. Sound Hermosa 150S.
Heres where it gets interesting. So I found this nice box build in Car Audio or Car Stereo Review (cant remember which). That used a 10" Kicker Competition sub in a,I want to say 2 cuft, ported fourth order bandpass box. The guy gave it great spl and sq reviews so I bought 2 10's and proceded to build 2 separate bandpass boxes for the Charger. This turned out to be an adventure as I was only 16 and these are what I chose to build as my first ever sub boxes. I went to the local lumber yard and bought 1(yes 1!)sheet of 5/8" particle board. The build suggested MDF. I didnt even know what MDF stood for back then. When I told the guy I wanted a sheet of 3/4"MDF he just gives me a look,kinda like a dog that hears a high pitched sound(arrrruugh).So I bought the particle board instead. Guess what? it wouldnt fit in the hatch of my Charger,so he cut it in half for me. Big mistake. Needless to say 6 trips to lumber supply and countless miss cuts later I was the PROUD owner of 2 very nice looking and well built bandpass boxes. Man did these puppies hit!! I loved those subs. I have never to this day heard 2 10" Kickers that sounded as good as these. After that build I spent the next 6-7 years trying to build anything that came close to the way those 10's sounded.

instro84 · Post by **instro84** » Sat May 18, 2013 5:24 pm

dont have any pics but my firts system was in a 1988 isuzu imark turbo, i had a MB quart component set set in the doors and a 2 polk 8 inch subs in the trunk rank off a single mps2220 with custom crossovers designed by a buddy of mine chis from Bossier Louisiana installed by me. man i wish i still had that amp.

yeddy · Post by **yeddy** » Mon May 27, 2013 1:06 pm

Holy I just came across some old pics of an old install of mine and I had to post them!!!! These were scans of real pictures, no digital cameras back in the day!

This install was done in the late '90s, when the JL w3 first came out.

alpineaudio · Post by **alpineaudio** » Mon Jun 03, 2013 6:44 pm

So here's my 2nd system done around 1993. It's really my 1st, as when I was putting together my 1st one before I was even done, someone broke into my car and stole that first system. Due to that, this ensued as well as an addition of an alarm to the car. I did all the install myself with some help in the wiring. He helped with all the RCA's as we did custom lengths on all pieces. For the gear:

The car is a 1983 Olds Cutlass Ciera
Head Unit: Alpine-7525
Changer: Alpine-5957
EQ: Phoenix Gold-EQ230
Sound Processor: Alpine-3342
Center Channel Processer: Audio Control-System 90 Model 11
Front Amp: Phoenix Gold-MS275
Rear Amp: Phoenix Gold-M25
Sub Amp: Phoenix Gold-MS275
Front Speakers: MB Quart-QM160TX with a extra 6.5" driver MQ Quart-328.01CX
Center Channel: MB Quart-QM100MX
Rear Speakers: MB Quart-QM160KNS
Sub: Alpine-6015 15" sub made by home audio company Gauss

I upgraded the alternator to a 160 amp one as the stock one just wouldn't cut it. All power, speaker and signal wire is Phoenix Gold. I ran 4g from the battery to the 1 farad cap in the trunk. When all the panels in the trunk were closed, you wouldn't see a thing. I still could even get to the spare tire even with a 3 cubic foot box for the sub. I did compete a bit with it getting a few 2nd and 5th place finishes in IASCA competitions.

CK1991 · Post by **CK1991** » Wed Jul 10, 2013 12:23 pm

heres my first install. This was 4? years ago...The kenwood radio in my van kept shutting down (which I now know was a speaker wire grounding out) and the factory speakers were 100% blown, so I improvised on the uuber cheap (and since I thought the electrical system was the problem, I didn't want to use my nice JVC flip face tape deck w/ remote CD changer so I dug out a crap clarion radio)
The funny thing is even with the low wattage of the system, it pounded pretty hard and my friends thought it sounded great (I just never cranked it up loud because the distortion was insane).
here's what I had
clarion 15 wrms x4 (lies!!!...it was super overrated) shaft radio
jensen 20x2 wrms mini amp. I ran it at 2 ohms on the rear components. You could have fried an egg on that sucker, but it never shut down.
kenwood midgrade 6.5 full ranges (they were like $100 or so a pair)
blaupunkt transparent series 3.5" full range
infinity 6.5" 2 ohm woofers in the back doors
I still have all this stuff stored away. I liked it all enough to take it out when I junked the van. I don't like it enough now to use any of it.

the kenwood that came in the van

the clarion radio

my amp (had to be careful to not burn my leg on it)- and yes, I ziptied it under the steering column. LOL

infinity woofers

and a lovely interior shot. Man that van was a POS

Nils · Post by **Nils** » Thu Aug 15, 2013 11:13 am

I havent got any pics of my first install, but it all started in 1991 that's when the drooling on car audio began, in 1994 or 95 i bought my first car stereo system, the Components were: Denon DCT850 as a headunit Phoenix Gold MS275 for the front and a MS2125 for the subs. One AX204 an a 1,2farad Phoenix Gold cap, Phoenix Gold speaker, Power cable and Rca Front was Boston Acoustics PRO6.4 and 2 pcs of Boston Acoustics PRO12.4. This was mounted in my first car wich was a VW polo 1978Mod, With a 0.9L engine and 40 ponies

an Orange of course

Thats my beginning

CK1991 · Post by **CK1991** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 6:03 am

Dang, could that VW even drive and play music at the same time?

Nils · Post by **Nils** » Wed Aug 28, 2013 6:44 am

CK1991 wrote:Dang, could that VW even drive and play music at the same time?

It wasn't exactly a muscle car

but none of my friends believed me when I told them hov little the"engine" was, because they said I drove it like it was a VR6... I have a history of a heavy right foot.... I had also a HO alternator with whooping 35 amps

so I was only playing music when going downhill

ajaye · Post by **ajaye** » Sun Feb 02, 2014 1:11 am

I wish I had pics of mine. I had a 1993 Grand Cherokee, in 96 or so I bought a freshly back from PG w/ V2 upgrade ZX350 from a buddy for a good deal. Another buddy worked at Best Buy so he got me a Sony CDXC660 on his discount which was 50% off retail back then. Not a super high end player but that thing never, ever skipped. I put 6.5" Polk coaxes in all 4 doors running off the head unit with "bass blockers." I used the ZX350 to drive 2 base model Eclipse 12s in a chipboard box me and my dad built. The best part of the whole thing was the ridiculous snow leopard shag fabric I covered the box with. Since it was an SUV you saw the box in the back, and people loved that thing. LOL so cringeworthy now but I was 16. My brother ended rolling it a cpl years later while I was away at school, but fortunately my dad got the amp and the subs before leaving the jeep with a family friend at his salvage yard. Sold the subs/box but still have the amp which I'm about to use again for the first time since back then.

NOT 2 OLD YET · Post by **NOT 2 OLD YET** » Fri Mar 28, 2014 11:13 am

So here is how the story goes: Its 1990 Im 16 in High School, I have my 81 AMC Concord that I bought from Grandma. I picked up a Kenwood cassette deck and a Funky Power (yes that's the name) amp. This thing was about the size of 3 credit cards

From some goofball hoodrat out of his locker for 25 bucks. Some Radio Shack 6x9s and Im rollin! I put it all in and it sucked!! I thought to myself I need bigger speakers, I know where I can get them. Mom and Dad are on vacation and its just me and my older brother at home. MMM Dads brand new Bose 901s will fit in the backseat. I was rockin it now

I get to school the next day just blairing this new system thinking I was the shit. I get called to the deans office around 1pm and they tell me that mine was one of several cars broken into in the student parking lot. YEPP you guessed it Dads Bose were gone! They were at least nice enough to leave the piece of shit Kenwood (with no knobs) in the dash. I got my ass kicked when dad got home! He sold my car with the Kenwood and Funky Power amp to replace his speakers. I got older and wiser (kind of)

Years later I started a little install shop in Morris IL with my cousin Chuck (RIP) we did about 50 or so nice high line installs over the years. My favorite for myself install I did was in 98 or so. I just divorced the BITCH and I bought a 95 GMC xcab full sized pickup! It took a bit of time to get all my components together cause I wanted to do all PG! So here goes, starting with the Eclipse ECD-413 head unit, MPS2500 running 3 10" XS subs, MPS2240 running 2 6.5" component sets, 2 EQ215s, 2 1fared PowerFlow Caps, 2 way active Xover (cant remember the #

all wiring, D-blocks ect. were PG also!

Holy Shit that truck was loud! (Trying to find pics) Most of that system is gone now except for the EQs I have them in my truck now. I got remarried, kids are older now And I got the itch back! I still have a system in my new truck just not all PG

Wife wont let me touch her SHO so Im putting together a collection of old PG amps and designing a system for my 69 Mach 1 Build. Thanks to you guys here I am finding what I have been looking for! Corty cheers bro!

Corty75 · Post by **Corty75** » Fri Mar 28, 2014 12:48 pm

NOT 2 OLD YET wrote:So here is how the story goes: Its 1990 Im 16 in High School, I have my 81 AMC Concord that I bought from Grandma. I picked up a Kenwood cassette deck and a Funky Power (yes that's the name) amp. This thing was about the size of 3 credit cards From some goofball hoodrat out of his locker for 25 bucks. Some Radio Shack 6x9s and Im rollin! I put it all in and it sucked!! I thought to myself I need bigger speakers, I know where I can get them. Mom and Dad are on vacation and its just me and my older brother at home. MMM Dads brand new Bose 901s will fit in the backseat. I was rockin it now I get to school the next day just blairing this new system thinking I was the shit. I get called to the deans office around 1pm and they tell me that mine was one of several cars broken into in the student parking lot. YEPP you guessed it Dads Bose were gone! They were at least nice enough to leave the piece of shit Kenwood (with no knobs) in the dash. I got my ass kicked when dad got home! He sold my car with the Kenwood and Funky Power amp to replace his speakers. I got older and wiser (kind of) Years later I started a little install shop in Morris IL with my cousin Chuck (RIP) we did about 50 or so nice high line installs over the years. My favorite for myself install I did was in 98 or so. I just divorced the BITCH and I bought a 95 GMC xcab full sized pickup! It took a bit of time to get all my components together cause I wanted to do all PG! So here goes, starting with the Eclipse ECD-413 head unit, MPS2500 running 3 10" XS subs, MPS2240 running 2 6.5" component sets, 2 EQ215s, 2 1fared PowerFlow Caps, 2 way active Xover (cant remember the # all wiring, D-blocks ect. were PG also! Holy Shit that truck was loud! (Trying to find pics) Most of that system is gone now except for the EQs I have them in my truck now. I got remarried, kids are older now And I got the itch back! I still have a system in my new truck just not all PG Wife wont let me touch her SHO so Im putting together a collection of old PG amps and designing a system for my 69 Mach 1 Build. Thanks to you guys here I am finding what I have been looking for! Corty cheers bro!

I hear you.. Let´s finish that dream of yours!

Then i´ll go back in time, and find MY build from 1998 in a Ford Cortina MKIII 1975.
MS 2250 and M44 amp´s!
And hold on now to your self..... The same f**CKING MID´S AND TWEET´S that are currently installed in my chevy now!!
Talk about taking care of the stuff... HUH!!

NOT 2 OLD YET · Post by **NOT 2 OLD YET** » Fri Mar 28, 2014 12:58 pm

Corty75 wrote:
NOT 2 OLD YET wrote:So here is how the story goes: Its 1990 Im 16 in High School, I have my 81 AMC Concord that I bought from Grandma. I picked up a Kenwood cassette deck and a Funky Power (yes that's the name) amp. This thing was about the size of 3 credit cards From some goofball hoodrat out of his locker for 25 bucks. Some Radio Shack 6x9s and Im rollin! I put it all in and it sucked!! I thought to myself I need bigger speakers, I know where I can get them. Mom and Dad are on vacation and its just me and my older brother at home. MMM Dads brand new Bose 901s will fit in the backseat. I was rockin it now I get to school the next day just blairing this new system thinking I was the shit. I get called to the deans office around 1pm and they tell me that mine was one of several cars broken into in the student parking lot. YEPP you guessed it Dads Bose were gone! They were at least nice enough to leave the piece of shit Kenwood (with no knobs) in the dash. I got my ass kicked when dad got home! He sold my car with the Kenwood and Funky Power amp to replace his speakers. I got older and wiser (kind of) Years later I started a little install shop in Morris IL with my cousin Chuck (RIP) we did about 50 or so nice high line installs over the years. My favorite for myself install I did was in 98 or so. I just divorced the BITCH and I bought a 95 GMC xcab full sized pickup! It took a bit of time to get all my components together cause I wanted to do all PG! So here goes, starting with the Eclipse ECD-413 head unit, MPS2500 running 3 10" XS subs, MPS2240 running 2 6.5" component sets, 2 EQ215s, 2 1fared PowerFlow Caps, 2 way active Xover (cant remember the # all wiring, D-blocks ect. were PG also! Holy Shit that truck was loud! (Trying to find pics) Most of that system is gone now except for the EQs I have them in my truck now. I got remarried, kids are older now And I got the itch back! I still have a system in my new truck just not all PG Wife wont let me touch her SHO so Im putting together a collection of old PG amps and designing a system for my 69 Mach 1 Build. Thanks to you guys here I am finding what I have been looking for! Corty cheers bro!

I hear you.. Let´s finish that dream of yours!

Then i´ll go back in time, and find MY build from 1998 in a Ford Cortina MKIII 1975.
MS 2250 and M44 amp´s!
And hold on now to your self..... The same f**CKING MID´S AND TWEET´S that are currently installed in my chevy now!!
Talk about taking care of the stuff... HUH!!

O yeah! How do you think I got my ears pierced? Wasn't a needle, it was those 6.5 component sets!

wish now I would have never sold them.

vwdude · Post by **vwdude** » Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:43 pm

Damn, how did I never post in here.

The year was '96. The vehicle was an '86 jeep wrangler. I was 16

The gear: pioneer deh-735, pioneer 6.5" components, kove audio 6x9s in back, mtx thunder 4300x, mtx thunder 2300x, and an Aura force 12 (never got a second one)

Sorry these are all of the pics that I have left...

Haha check out my cool pager...

It was my second install that started my PG infatuation. No PG amps, but it included an eq232, pg 1/0 power and ground, QLX RCAs, the led distro block (it matched my mtx amps) and a kenwood excelon deck.

6ix · Post by **6ix** » Sat Apr 09, 2016 1:02 pm

I wish I had the pictures from the 1990s. However my fist kit was pretty decent mix of Rockford Fosgate, Phoenix Gold, Infinity.

Post by **ttocs** » Sat Apr 09, 2016 9:25 pm

I had to laugh a little today as I got to remember where I am sure we all started at one time. My motor guys 16 yr old son got ahold of me and said he was trying to replace a bad deck in his 89 mustang with a sony his dad has. He said the sony wasn't compatible, so I asked why and he said the wiring would not work. After some back and forth, yes he thought that because the ford harness did not plug into the sony, that it was not meant to work. Its been decades but I can remember how disappointed I was when I discovered that after finally getting the dash off my 91 ranger(2 screws and a solid tug held it in but of course not knowing how to take it off it took me 3 hrs) that I could not plug my ford wiring into my blaupunkt pull out.... So I went over there and before I even started I asked if he checked all the fuses to make sure it was not just a blown fuse and of course not. So we go to put the sony in and of course it has no power. I start pulling fuses and of course find a blown one, replace it and now the sony works. Checked two more fuses and fixed his power mirrors as well.

So I think he learned to always check the fuses as well as how to wire a deck. Time will tell....