Radio Speakers??

[pistonboy]

Cookies
But if you block them a lot of things get unhappy

I guess that is correct. I see ads for other things I have looked at online, and the ads are specifically directed at me based on what I have look at before.

I'm glad nobody sees my ads.

 

[slinches]

Hey Ty, you worked at Circuit City too? That's where I learned all about audio sampling, filtering and ADCs that I've put to use in my engineering career.

You're right about the sealed subs needing less volume, but you forgot to mention that you have to be very careful with the sizing since you can easily end up with a volumetric resonance in the range of the speaker. That's what makes poorly designed systems have that monotone thumping character. It's not so great for music, but if your goal is to put out a ton of SPL at a single tone ...

 

[Ty]

Hey Ty, you worked at Circuit City too? That's where I learned all about audio sampling, filtering and ADCs that I've put to use in my engineering career.

You're right about the sealed subs needing less volume, but you forgot to mention that you have to be very careful with the sizing since you can easily end up with a volumetric resonance in the range of the speaker. That's what makes poorly designed systems have that monotone thumping character. It's not so great for music, but if your goal is to put out a ton of SPL at a single tone ...

Guilty... didn't want to get TO technical. I did install a killer box in a guy's car with his 1,000 Watt stereo. He was disappointed. I backed my car up to his and hooked up my Blaupunk BMA350 to his speakers, turned it up and knocked his mirror off his windshield it hit so hard.... Ah, being young and dumb. If only I had invested some of that money back then...

 

[Trusting]

Guilty... didn't want to get TO technical. I did install a killer box in a guy's car with his 1,000 Watt stereo. He was disappointed. I backed my car up to his and hooked up my Blaupunk BMA350 to his speakers, turned it up and knocked his mirror off his windshield it hit so hard.... Ah, being young and dumb. If only I had invested some of that money back then...

I hate head pounders!

 

[TCBronson]

I thought the idea of using MTX was to be able to upgrade easily in the future. Like Paul said, when was the last time you saw a cassette player in a new car? The cars that had those as standard equipment are still driving around but most people aren't using the cassette player anymore. So since the MTX system that Elio is going to use is upgradeable, then maybe the speakers will be too. The number of speakers I think makes a difference. I hope that since the Elio is half a car that they don't use half the speakers, lol. Since there is limited space, then maybe 4 speaker, 2 up front and two in the back seat area. Maybe a 5th with a sub woofer under the driver seat? I also hope that there is sufficient sound insulation to make the inside as quiet as possible and isolated from road noise. Just a thought.

 

[Sethodine]

Maybe the Elio just needs a seat like this one?

 

[Lil4X]

Before anyone goes crazy installing a mega-sound system in their Elio, your first consideration should be the acoustic environment. Remember this is designed from the outset to be an economy car - so it's not going to be hauling around a lot of expensive insulation. At present there seems to be NO insulation in the cabin, only a thin plastic shell between you and that noise-maker up front, and three tires droning away to either side and out back. You're going to start with a noisy little box, and no amount of kilobucks is going to overcome that. It's going to be LOUD in there. The fix is relatively cheap, but it is going to be fiddly.

I'd consider a complete insulation package as a first step - pull out any interior pieces you can, seats, any trim panels that you can safely remove, then trim and stick slabs of Dynamat everywhere you can reach, particularly to the firewall and floor - all the way back to cover the rear wheel housing. This MAY get you up to par with the cabin silence of most mid-line cars. Check any holes in the cabin and install close-fitting rubber bushings where wiring or mechanical linkages pass through the firewall and engine noise can enter. You may want to install a tach - after treating my boat in a similar manner, I found it was about the only way I could tell when the engine started.

Once you have most of the thrashy and rumbly bits silenced, your Elio may still have some sound leakage issues, particularly in the single-seals around the door, hatch, and lightweight windows. Luxury cars today often have triple door seals, even extra-thick windshields that positively seal the cabin from road noise. There's not much you can do with these, but by controlling most of the exterior noise from entering the cabin, you'll have a huge head start on building an entertainment system that will justify its expense.

 

[Coss]

Maybe the Elio just needs a seat like this one?

Nice, but I doubt it would meet crash standards.

Before any goes crazy installing a mega-sound system in their Elio, your first consideration should be the acoustic environment. Remember this is designed from the outset to be an economy car - so it's not going to be hauling around a lot of expensive insulation. At present there seems to be NO insulation in the cabin, only a thin plastic shell between you and that noise-maker up front, and three tires droning away to either side and out back. You're going to start with a noisy little box, and no amount of kilobucks is going to overcome that. It's going to be LOUD in there. The fix is relatively cheap, but it is going to be fiddly.

I'd consider a complete insulation package as a first step - pull out any interior pieces you can, seats, any trim panels that you can safely remove, then trim and stick slabs of Dynamat everywhere you can reach, particularly to the firewall and floor - all the way back to cover the rear wheel housing. This MAY get you up to par with the cabin silence of most mid-line cars. Check any holes in the cabin and install close-fitting rubber bushings where wiring or mechanical linkages pass through the firewall and engine noise can enter. You may want to install a tach - after treating my boat in a similar manner, I found it was about the only way I could tell when the engine started.

Once you have most of the thrashy and rumbly bits silenced, your Elio may still have some sound leakage issues, particularly in the single-seals around the door, hatch, and lightweight windows. Luxury cars today often have triple door seals, even extra-thick windshields that positively seal the cabin from road noise. There's not much you can do with these, but by controlling most of the exterior noise from entering the cabin, you'll have a huge head start on building an entertainment system that will justify its expense.

Excellent advice and I couldn't say it any better myself.
One other way to get great sound (but I don't know if it's legal) headphones or a great set of earbuds

 

[TCBronson]

Before any goes crazy installing a mega-sound system in their Elio, your first consideration should be the acoustic environment. Remember this is designed from the outset to be an economy car - so it's not going to be hauling around a lot of expensive insulation. At present there seems to be NO insulation in the cabin, only a thin plastic shell between you and that noise-maker up front, and three tires droning away to either side and out back. You're going to start with a noisy little box, and no amount of kilobucks is going to overcome that. It's going to be LOUD in there. The fix is relatively cheap, but it is going to be fiddly.

I'd consider a complete insulation package as a first step - pull out any interior pieces you can, seats, any trim panels that you can safely remove, then trim and stick slabs of Dynamat everywhere you can reach, particularly to the firewall and floor - all the way back to cover the rear wheel housing. This MAY get you up to par with the cabin silence of most mid-line cars. Check any holes in the cabin and install close-fitting rubber bushings where wiring or mechanical linkages pass through the firewall and engine noise can enter. You may want to install a tach - after treating my boat in a similar manner, I found it was about the only way I could tell when the engine started.

Once you have most of the thrashy and rumbly bits silenced, your Elio may still have some sound leakage issues, particularly in the single-seals around the door, hatch, and lightweight windows. Luxury cars today often have triple door seals, even extra-thick windshields that positively seal the cabin from road noise. There's not much you can do with these, but by controlling most of the exterior noise from entering the cabin, you'll have a huge head start on building an entertainment system that will justify its expense.

I like your idea of installing or adding sound insulation, a lot!

 

[Muzhik]

Nice, but I doubt it would meet crash standards.

Maybe not, but I think it's only a matter of weeks after the Elio is released that someone makes a 3rd-party version of the "Rocker Pro" to swap out for the standard Elio seat. IF nothing else, you need to put the audio controls in the armrests like the captain's chair in Star Trek.

As for the Dynamat solution, I'd welcome someone selling a kit of pre-cut Dynamat material along with step-by-step instructions to allow the minimally-mechanical among us to apply the material, or pay someone to apply it for us.