Planning a nice audio upgrade for RNS510 in Octavia

[wfdTamar]

Yes, I know it's overkill, but the next cheapest (only like $80 cheaper) were in the lower range of stuff. The whole setup is ridiculously expensive for my needs (evean at refurb prices), but I get into tinkering mode and have found in the past when faced with 'that'll do' and top of the range, the latter is more satisfying.

Here's Polk Audio's refurb ebay page - not always the cheapest around, but worth a look.

http://stores.ebay.com.au/Polk-Audio-Direct

[wfdTamar]

Rockford Fosgate 3sixty.3 can go under the passenger seat, the two amps won't fit so have to go in the boot, left side for the amps and right for the sub. Bought 12mm MDF to make a sub box into the cubby hole. I figure this is easier than the fiberglass method.

Going to Dynamat Extreme and 1/4" DynaLiner the whole car - as near as $1000!

In the wagon sound deadening thread:

Octavia Wagon sound deadening

[readerr0r]

Just FYI, I used a generic VW T harness for my amp install.

CT10VW01 Volkswagen Parrot SOT Lead Bluetooth T Harness CAR ISO Wiring Adaptor | eBay

The brown connector has all the speaker outputs, one side is the radios output, the other goes to the speakers. You can even buy extender cables up to 5 meters. I was able to wire up my amp with zero damage to factory wiring.

[wfdTamar]

Even better I got this one ($28 shipped)

BLAUPUNKT- EUROPEAN THA/PnP ADAPTOR CABLE 7 607 622 016 001

Blaupunkt European THA PNP Adaptor Cable 7 607 622 016 001 | eBay

[wfdTamar]

Photo's of the original speakers and upgrade in progress:












Original speakers front and back. The bigger ones are fixed in solid plastic surrounds that move it out from the door 60mm front, 40mm rear. The tweeters are mounted by three points you can cut through with a sharp blade.

[wfdTamar]

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The new Polk Audio tweeter (and all the optional mounting hardware) and at right the original one. Once I dug the Polk tweeter out of its grill it fit on easy with hot melt glue.


The Polk tweeter in and out of its grill and the factory one.





The factory and Polk front door speakers. The new speakers a bit smaller which required spacers (also to mount them out from the door like the factory ones).

[wfdTamar]

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Factory and Polk Audio speakers.


The Polk Audio crossover.




The Polk Audio 8" sub.

[wfdTamar]

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Polk Audio sub.


This is the drivers door showing the MDF mount made from 3 x 16mm layers. I left the speaker grill on so it shows through the door panel a bit. The Polk crossover is mounted to the left of the speaker near where the red wire hangs down. You can either use the factory speaker wiring (you can get adapters online - just search for VW speaker wire adaptor), or if you want better wiring you can get it through the door bellows.




What it looks like after a door is done.

[wfdTamar]

The rear door and a close up of it (above). The front door (below). Those spots are about the only place you can mount a crossover and not hit something inside the door and have enough room between door and trim panel.



Speaker wire for the doors runs through the factory bellows, then out the bung just near the bellows to run to the crossover, then the red wires go to the two speakers.


The two amps - sub woofer one on the left - it's huge compared to the one for the door speakers. Lots of thick wires for all this lot.

4 gauge power (the thick blue) and ground wires (thick white) for each amp. I attached the power cables in the engine compartment to the factory terminal block just to the left of the battery. I used the fuses that came with the amp wiring kits I got. Might also need to add an additional power cable from battery to that terminal block.

The wiring goes from the RNS510 head unit speaker wires, via the bypass wiring unit I got off ebay ($28 - bargain!). I soldered the 8 pin speaker connecter cut from that bypass unit to the 3sixty.3 speaker input connector. This turned out very neat, plugs into the 3sixty.3 and also into the bypass wiring units connector.

Then RCA cables run line level signals from the 3sixty.3 back to the two amps. From the amps wires run to the speakers and sub.

Each amp has a dirty great fat fused power cable run straght from the battery (or a terminal block close to it) - and a ground wire. There may also be sensing wires to turn each device on and off automatically (not sure if I need to use those yet).

There is also a remote sub amp volume knob, and a remote two knob thing for the 3sixty.3 that can be used for whatever you want. These are dash, or similar, mounted so I need to work out if I want to use them and where to mount them.



The Rockford Fosgate 3sixty.3 will go here under passenger seat.

[wfdTamar]

This is the rear left wheel arch chocka with wiring now.




Complete Dynamat and Dynalayer. More detail on this in the Octavia wagon sound deadening thread.

Octavia Wagon sound deadening