This July, of 2018, marks the 1st anniversary of the full LIS Audio Signature installation we did for Tim Soetaert in his 2014 Ford F150! LIS Audio added a custom center console, custom under-seat floating amplifier rack, custom A-pillars, treated the truck with a ton of Hushmat and a few more little upgrades. Tim had work done at another local audio shop that has a very reputable name. His standards were not entirely met, so he contacted LIS Audio to revamp the entire system to his liking! We will go into depth of what we did to make Tim’s system unique and specifically tailored to him, all within his budget.
Tim’s super clean low mileage ’14 Ford F150
A Shuriken 1800 power cell under the hood with the Big 3 Upgrade performed
In preparation of adding aftermarket audio we performed the “Big 3 Upgrade” by enhancing the charging system with Stinger 0 gauge Oxygen Free Copper wire. We swapped the factory Ford battery for a Shuriken 1800 power cell to help dampen the load of the larger system. Upgrading the vehicle charging system wire will allow for proper dispersal of power from the alternator and prevent light dim when playing the system at full tilt. When adding 500-1,000 Watts of additional power to a factory electrical system it is always a good idea to upgrade this wiring, at the very least.
Audio Dynamics 3100 Series component speakers unboxed
The 3100 Series mid-woofers installed in the doors with Hushmat
Tim liked the speakers he had but he wanted more volume, and once he heard a set of Audio Dynamics speakers he was set on making the switch. So we added Audio Dynamics 3100 Series component speakers with the 6.5” mid-bass and 25mm tweeter. We decided to omit the passive crossover and run the front stage active. To get the proper amount of power to the speakers and increase the overall volume of the sound stage, we decided to use the Audio Dynamics 1500.6 Premium Series amplifier. The entire system is wired up using Stinger Oxygen Free Copper and 6000 Series Stinger RCA Interconnectors. This was the first fully active sound quality system out of LIS Audio’s doors!
The front and rear doors treated with Hushmat to create a cabinet for the speaker
The inside of the door cavity with Hushmat on the outer door skins to kill road noise
As we recommend for every truck that gets an audio system, the back wall before and after treated with Hushmat
While we were in the front doors adding the beautifully crafted 6.5” 3100 mid speakers we also covered the inner and out skins of the metal door skins with Hushmat sound deadening material. We followed up with this same treatment in the rear two doors. The back cabin wall of the truck was also treated with Hushmat to cut down on road noise. The back cabin wall of a pick up truck almost acts as a larger speaker that reverberates the noise through the bed and into the bed wall, so we eliminate this with sound deadener. Adding sound deadener to these specific panels in a truck will cut done on the vehicles road noise tremendously!
Fabrictaing the A-pillars to relocate the tweeters for more of a line of sight projection
A close up of a 3100 Series tweeter installed into the newly fabricated A-pillars
The A-pillars with the new tweeters after the mod have much better directionality
The new 25mm tweeters were too large to surface mount into the A-pillars or to be placed in the factory location, the factory tweeter positions didn’t seem to offer much directionality. Seeing as how this is a sound quality build we decided it would be best to fabricate the A-pillars to fit the new tweeters and to give the speakers more line of sight to the driver and passengers ears. Our goal with the custom A-pillars was to make them seem factory yet be functional. It looks and sounds great. I would say we hit the nail on the head with this one!
The Audio Dynamics 2100 Series 10″ subwoofer unboxed and ready
Hand drafted enclosure plans and test fitting the fitment and clearance of the new console
Our LIS Audio custom box tuned and ready to be sealed
For the sub-stage we settled on a single Audio Dynamics 10” 2100 Series subwoofer powered by an Audio Dynamics 700.1 Premium Series amplifier. As it is shown in the picture above we wanted to downfire the subwoofer to avoid being damaged and to be inconspicuous. We drafted up the external dimensions of the center console sub enclosure, including things like cup holders and arm rests, then we sent it into Audio Dynamics to be tuned. Audio Dynamics uses their Acoustical Engineering Software to take into account variables like music preference, subwoofer specs, vehicle type, subwoofer orientation, amount of power to the subwoofer, and a few more detailed options. This allows us to help the client tune their system to be exactly where they want it!
The last test fit of the custom center console enclosure before adding lights and accent pieces
The factory bolts into the factory bracket in the truck
The bass knob and rocker LED light switch built into the center console
The custom center console received our special plasma style LED lighting along the edges as well as some light up chrome cup holders. The bass knob that controls the volume of the 10” subwoofer independently from the rest of the system is also integrated into the center console. The subwoofer enclosure is mounted to the factory center console bracket, which we slightly modified to let more air flow from the front of the downfire subwoofer. The switch to the LED’s lights, which are installed throughout the truck, is incorporated into the console. Right under our LIS Audio subwoofer logo on the rear of the console is the port, which provides a nice breeze for his 3 little monster passengers in the back seat!
Amplifier rack being fabricated from differnet pieces of wood into one solid structure
All edges of the amp rack routered and shaped, ready to be wrapped
Two Audio Dynamics amplifiers and the AudioControl EQS wired up nice and clean in the floating amplifier rack
The custom LIS Audio built floating amplifier rack is under the rear seat and features our plasma style LED lighting on the top 3 windows. We chose to use the EQS to pull factory signal and separate the stages to run active on the highs, mids and lows. The amplifier rack holds the 1500.6 speaker amplifier, 700.1 sub amplifier and an AudioControl EQS Equalizer. We wrapped both the amplifier rack and the center console sub enclosure with vinyl and carpet to match the rest of the trucks interior. It blends very well for a factory yet subtle aftermarket look!
The custom center console finished, installed and lit up
The port facing to the rear on the custom center console sub enclosure
The custom LIS Audio built amp rack finished and lit up
The floating amp rack tucked under the seat with it folded down
The custom LIS Audio floating amp rack finished and lit up
This video will take you through a walk around of Tim’s Ford F150 after we performed the work. The sound quality in the video obviously isn’t justified by the recording mic but you can get a general idea of the output of the 10” subwoofer from the visuals in the video. Take a look…
Our main goal of setting up a high-end sound quality system in the F150 was met. We also planned for adding a bit more down the road if Tim feels he wants to get a little more. At the swoop of a couple knobs and a flip of a switch in this F150 turns it into an awesome aftermarket audio experience! This system sounds fantastic! Even a year later! We hope you enjoy it every time you climb in, Tim! Thank you for your business and Happy Anniversary!
Thank you for reading our blog! Make sure to follow the LIS Audio Blog to see which ride we will be featuring next month!!
Contact LIS Audio if you have any questions…
Call: (913) 912- 6990
E-mail: info@lisaudio.com
Website: http://www.lisaudio.com
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