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2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Sooo... was holding off on posting anything, but hearing all the good thing about HillybillySQ's 2014 and seeing DavidRam post up his 2018 WK2 - man the inspiration is flowing! Feeling some love for the Grand Cherokees now, and couldn't resist.
Ours has the 10 speaker Alpine setup. UConnect 8.4 - to a 10 channel amplifier, that feeds a single 3" center channel, 1" tweeters in the sail panels, 6x9" woofers in the front doors, 6.5" speakers in the rear doors, 2.5" speakers way back in the D pillars, and a single 8" sub in the cargo area on the passenger side.
Thought about reusing the FiX82 and TwK D8 from our 2016 Challenger, but with only eight inputs, couldn't figure out how to get all 10 signals summed into one. Factory amp bypass seemed like the best option. I see PAC has the AmpPro out, and really neat to get the optical add on, but... I've not had luck with PAC products at all in the past. Seems like the people I know that have purchased the AmpPro have had no issues, which is awesome. Hoping no one thinks I might be bashing that PAC piece, because definitely am not. At least five people I personally know using it have had zero issues. And heck, if it would be a better choice to take this install to the level it needs to be, would definitely consider it. Picked up a Rockford Fosgate DSR1 along with the plug and play harness for the WK2. Amp bypass, eight channels of output with DSP built in. And, that's about as far as I made it.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
So, originally, my thoughts were, could carry everything over from the Challenger.
NVX X-series XSPTW Tweeters (front doors)
NVX X-series XSP65 6.5" Woofers (front doors)
NVX X-series XSP525 5.25" Woofers (rear fill?)
NVX X-series XQW124 12" Subwoofers (on each side of the cargo area)
Pair of JL Audio HD900/5 Amplifiers
Thought about bridging for the 6.5" Woofers in the front doors, but then the idea struck, why not double rear fill? No, not THAT kind. The 5.25" in the rear doors, and maybe the matching SB Acoustics that these NVX X-series speakers are based on? They have a 4" version, could be perfect?
Well... the sub idea was a bust. Bradknobs had already warned me about there not being much space on the driver's side due to the fuel filler and factory amplifier being there.
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Snuck a peek without pulling the panel, and he's right. There is hardly any room there.
So where else do we put the subs and amps? Here I guess:
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Losing the spare tire is not something I'm a fan of, but... we plan on upgrading the tire size on this Jeep since they can tuck 32" tires no problem. Being AWD, would need a taller spare, that won't fit in the tire well anyways. So why not.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Anywho, that's as far as we've made it. Still bouncing around tons of ideas. Was pretty sold two days ago on just going with the NVX speakers and subs, and keep it basic 2 way, rear fill, and the subs. But then DavidRam posts his thread, and all the other Grand Cherokee owners posting their setups, gets the daydream gears grinding again. But... I've decided for now, to just keep it that plan. Tweeters in the sail panels, 6.5" front door woofers, 5.25" rear door woofers, the pair of subs and both amps in the spare tire well.
MoparMike has been helping out tremendously with actually getting motivated, so ordered up all the wiring needed to at least get the processor and amps installed, then can do some listening tests from there.
Anyone happen to know what color the trim pieces are? It's kinda between bronze and like a vintage brass. Thinking about painting the amps to match it:
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Alright, so first thing's first. Let's do some installing!!!
Started out, with fresh oil. Yeah yeah, I still do my own oil changes. Or so I thought. Put my socket on bolt, went to turn it, and... nothing. What the? Tugged a bit more, and... nothing. So I spun the wrench around, to get an upward push, and... pop. Oh yeah baby, there we go, wait. Oh no... yup. It's stripped. And not the tequila induced late night on the beach kind of stripped. Great. Got the vise grips, nope. Bought this handy bolt extractor socket set, and those really grab as advertised. But, still won't budge.
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So, called the dealer, preparing for a battle. Read online someone was quoted $1150 to pull the engine up and replace the pan because of it. But it was their dang fault. Can obviously tell they used an air tool to put the bolt back on, so yeah. Was all ready to have it out, and the guy says, you did what? I explained again, he said, no problem. No problem? Yup, happens all the time, bring it on up here, we'll take care of it. $54 later for the cost a dealer oil change, and they indeed fixed it.
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Cool! First mod to the Jeep done!
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
So today was a good day, got a head start on the wiring:
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Never used 1/0 before, it's some hefty stuff for sure:
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Love me some techflex and heat shrink:
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Getting all the routing planned out and accounted for, looks like it should work well:
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Asked a few friends whether to use a fuse or circuit breaker, was surprised by the votes for a breaker. Went ahead and plucked one from the install parts bin and secured it directly to the battery cover under the passenger seat (MoparMike is the man for suggesting this!!!)
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Note to self, always read the IN and OUT on the breaker - had to turn it around:
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That's ok though, cut the power wire just a little bit long for routing, so that worked out even better. Still under 18" though!!!
Hopefully soon, will see these goodies going in:
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Talk about a last minute realization. Looks like the harness needs to come back apart. For a silly reason too.
Planned on bridging to the front door woofers. So instead of running larger gauge, I just twisted two pairs together. But, now... having difficulty locating which wires are attached to which on the Maestro harness. I know, I know. Should have labeled all this before techflex and heatshrinking the chit out of it. Lesson learned. Hopefully, can just cut that piece of heatshrink covering the connections and narrow it down right there. Thinking about untwisting those pairs too and not bridging. The HD900/5 doesn't really double power when bridged, just bumps from 100 to 150 watts. Not a huge difference, and I'd rather have that extra set of channels available should the desire to add a set of midranges in the A-pillars occurs later on. Plus with both amps most likely being hidden under the rear cargo floor cover, really would like them to have as less stress on them as possible, to avoid more heat.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Looks like an awesome start, D! Keep the updates coming!
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
So, here is the pair of HD900/5:
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Difficult to tell from that picture, but one amp looks pretty decent:
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The other one though, has this:
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And this:
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Very confident that it would clean up easy enough, but the scratch/swirl marks - can barely feel it in one spot. It's more like rub marks than a scratch. Debating on whether to try and sand that mark out, vinyl wrap, or paint them. Any thoughts?
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
There sure are some cool wraps out there. You could also plasti-dip, so it can be peeled off when you sell.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
i've always thought these would look a lot better in black rather than silver, paint or wrap has my vote :)
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
I'm digging that brushed titanium :D
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
I vote plasti-dip as well.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Quote:
Originally Posted by
BigAl205
Rit Dye
I heard screwdriver stains work the best.
:rofl:
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
So, another afterthought. Didn't realize those subs are a bit wide - far as the mounting flange. Almost 27.25" across for both together. With only 33" of room towards the front of the spare tire well, that leaves very little wiggle room for spacing between the subs, and any sort of trim piece. On the flip side, the amps are about 21.25" wide, and would have quite a bit of room between them if set towards the rear. That is not drawn to scale but represented by Figure No.2 in the ever impressive Post-It Note drawings posted below. Figure No.1 is an interesting concept, but kinda looks crowded to me near the second sub. But, Figure No.3, by reversing the placement, amps towards the front, subs towards the rear, looks like it would balance better. However, the amp connections are on one side, controls on the opposite. Which means I can have moderate access to the controls, but all wiring is pushed towards the front should any troubleshooting be necessary, or flip flop, have access to the wiring side, but then control side is inaccessible unless the amps are removed. I'm thinking... how often do you really have to disconnect the wires. Control access, priority in this case. Cool beans.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Quote:
Originally Posted by
chithead
There's not too much that gets me pumped more than a pic of mid positioning on a dash. Looking forward to this.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Quote:
Originally Posted by
chithead
So, another afterthought. Didn't realize those subs are a bit wide - far as the mounting flange. Almost 27.25" across for both together. With only 33" of room towards the front of the spare tire well, that leaves very little wiggle room for spacing between the subs, and any sort of trim piece. On the flip side, the amps are about 21.25" wide, and would have quite a bit of room between them if set towards the rear. That is not drawn to scale but represented by Figure No.2 in the ever impressive Post-It Note drawings posted below. Figure No.1 is an interesting concept, but kinda looks crowded to me near the second sub. But, Figure No.3, by reversing the placement, amps towards the front, subs towards the rear, looks like it would balance better. However, the amp connections are on one side, controls on the opposite. Which means I can have moderate access to the controls, but all wiring is pushed towards the front should any troubleshooting be necessary, or flip flop, have access to the wiring side, but then control side is inaccessible unless the amps are removed. I'm thinking... how often do you really have to disconnect the wires. Control access, priority in this case. Cool beans.
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#3 would be my vote. Having the final presentation look out of balance would bother me eventually. That is why my amp controls are a little hard to get to, but once they were set I really haven't had to mess with them. I would make a panel to cover it all that could be removed and hinge the amp mount from underneath so you could lift them enough to tinker if necessary.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Awesome sauce! Thank you - definitely plan on a cover panel to hide all the screw holes and such, plus a little extra hopefully :D
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Yeah but be sure the heat can be dissipated.
With CAD/CAM and a 3d printer the mids will be Great :
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Looking good so far Chit. Any updates?
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Starting cleaning up the garage :D
That's about it though. Need the room to start some fabrimification.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Hmmm...
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And hmmm...
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Well that's interesting:
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The floor actually closes. With the motors setting on the very bottom, and the floor touching the surrounds, of course:
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So, let's try one out, see how it does off just 500 watts:
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Should be able to test this weekend.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Sooo... decided to check some things real quick. Simply because, I REALLY want to take this install up a level. Not just in output, but mostly for pure everyday enjoyable bliss. And yes, having strong output on the subs is desirable, of course. But, having said that, do I REALLY want to fabricate an entire floor to have that? We use the crap out of this Jeep, every day. So cargo space is a must, as well as being very durable. To fit the GZ subs, would have to raise that floor at least 3.5 inches. Not too bad. But is it worth it? Well, let's see. The graphs are where I modeled five different sub setups, using three different subwoofers. The Green line represents four NVX VS 15" subs in a 5.5 cubic foot sealed enclosure, Blue is four Peerless XLS 12" in the same size sealed enclosure. Pink is the four NVX VS 15" in a 5.2 cube ported enclosure tuned to 33Hz, Yellow is the four Peerless XLS 12" in the same enclosure, and Red are the pair of GZ 15" in the same 5.2 subes tuned to 33Hz ported enclosure.
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Check out them GZ subs! I mean, dayum. Might be worth it after all. Those Peerless XLS 12" still seem like a fantastic deal though, especially for $160 right now. And if you buy four or more, $140 each :D:D:D
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Hooked up one of the HD900/5 to that single sub this weekend to test output, response, etc. - made the assumption before hand that 500 watts each just wouldn't be enough for these mammoths with their rather extreme power ratings.
Boy, was I wrong. Just using my phone as the source unit, that single sub was crazy. 500 watts was plenty for sure. Volume wasn't as loud as it's capable of I'm sure, as the phone isn't the highest voltage output device - but it was still enough to rattle the garage door!!! So that pretty well sealed the deal, that 15" subwoofers is the avenue I would like to take on this build. However, after preparing for an upcoming vacation next month, it was decided that no, can't raise the floor to accommodate the GZ monsters. So, on the hunt for a pair of 15" subwoofers that work in the available space, but also fit the height requirement as well.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Can’t wait for more on this one.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
You and me both :D:D:D
Lost an auction for a pair of old school Eclipse 15" subwoofers - thought those might be perfect for this, but oh well. Always another option out there somewhere just begging to be found!
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
You change cars way too much. [emoji23].
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Dude! Where you been? How's the wife and baby doing?
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Busy, work and the baby (and the wife) have stalled most of my plans but I'm slowly getting stuff togeather. Hoping to can get some glassing in next Sunday morning to get the sub box on its way. Also going to get that AC 6XS repainted to match the Refs and get them screened.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
That is going to be killer! Soundstream Blue... soooooo hawt. Saw a REF4.400 and REF500.1 on eBay this weekend. If you're looking for anymore of the newer Reference amps.
Might as well update the thread with our new plan. Tweeters in the stock sail panel locations. 6x9" woofers in the stock front door locations. 6.5" woofers in the stock rear door locations. And a single 12" subwoofer in the stock location over the rear wheel well. Keep it as simple as possible, but still achieve an enjoyable sound.
Found a set of Image Dynamics XS69 woofers for sale that kinda triggered this new direction. That led to a set of XS65 woofers on eBay, which then led to a set of XS28 tweeters... that led to a Classifieds search for Image Dynamics subwoofers. Found an IDQ 12 V3 there (he also has an IDMAX 12 that is super tempting) - and so it begins.
Only thing that's arrived so far with this new, "genius" plan - are the tweeters. Image Dynamics XS28 - will be trying to fit these as seamless as possible into the stock sail panel locations.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
I don't need anymore of the Refs the 5.1000 and 2.340 are enough
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Hi-FiDelity
I don't need anymore of the Refs the 5.1000 and 2.340 are enough
Blasphemy!!!
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Quote:
Originally Posted by
chithead
I only have so much trunk space. I mean I do have a kid so it just can't all be taken up by subs and amps.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install
Image Dynamics makes a sexy looking sub.
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Re: 2014 Grand Cherokee Overland Install