'18 Tacoma Audio upgrade

So I started on my audio system this past weekend and promised in another thread I would come back and share my build log here...

First had to rip everything out




There's a pretty thick carpet pad in there. The plan is to use noico 80mil and I probably didn't need to use this much but I got some pretty good coverage with it.




Also put some butyl rope around the back vents since they had a little play in them. This tightened things up so they definitely won't be a rattle

 

Now with that in, the next step was a layer of ensolite foam attached to some 1lb MLV

 

By this time I was losing daylight so I needed to get things back together. I ran the speedwire I made up to the head unit and under the drivers seat where I'll put my 4 channel amp/DSP combo. The rest of the wires will be run along the side channels and I will just leave those open until I can get to that point.

Things were definitely tight getting back together - especially the AC ducts that run under the seats and the seatbelt bolts in the back. I ended up buying longer bolts for those.

 

So I got it all back together other than some of the trim on the sides so I could run my wires. Here is a pic of the cable I made thanks to the suggestion by @Dkurtz42 in my taco tunes thread...

 

Then on Sunday I had a little bit of time to mess with the doors...

I had a hell of a time ripping off the vapor barrier. Maybe because it is winter?

Getting the wire through the chase on the front door was a pain in the ass. The back wasn't too bad

 

Looking like a pro build.

 

My fronts are 6.5" so I made some templates out of some cheap cutting boards to mount to...

 

Doors also get noico, foam, and MLV....

 

doors

 

That's basically what I got done in 2 days... hoping to get the rest done this week.

Also one thing I wasn't prepared for... my 6.5" doesn't fit directly into the back doors. I am going to need to build a bracket for the back doors too.

 

What kind of box for your 13” JL did you go with? Factory or custom?

 

It is going to be a custom box. My 1st attempt will be to try to build something that fits in the passenger side storage bin but my first mock up looks like that may be impossible. If that is truly impossible, my next option is to take out the drivers side bin and have the speaker box take up that entire area. And final option is to just build it in place of the passenger bin.

 

Great job on that sound deadening. I did my truck but certainly not that cleanly, color me impressed!

 

Awesome job! How much road noise and wind noise do you feel you cut out. I really want to sound deaden my cab and considering doing what you did. Hoping it's worth the investment. I am hearing impaired and it's so hard for me to hear anyone in the truck so really appreciate any feedback on the improvement. Thanks!

 

I think sound deadening is one of the most underrated things you can do to improve the noise and feel of the truck. It changes everything and makes it feel much tighter and less noisy if done right. I am not going to say it will cure all your issues since I am not sure how bad your hearing is, but I think it will help and be worth doing.

 

How did the bin fit back under the rear seat with the MLV under it?

 

Great write up. I’m curious, how’d you get the door panels back on with all the mlv? I had to take mine out because i couldn’t get the door handle screw to line up on the drivers side. Thanks

 

sub'd

i'm from the old school of car audio (IASCA, TOW, etc.) nice to see some quality work is still happening so many years later.

 

I can definitely tell a difference. I didn't get any actual readings to test a before and after. There is still some road noise and it seems to be mostly around the windows.

The bins fit fine but the panel pins no longer would catch as they were too short. I haven't solved this issue yet but I can run some self tapping screws with washers down if it becomes a problem. It is low priority at this time.

This was definitely tricky and I ended up having to mount the L bracket that holds the screw on top of the MLV. Then it took 2 people - 1 to push the panel in and another to drive the screw down. I am thinking of running some butyl rope under the panel edges as well since there is about a 1/4"-3/8" gap in some areas between the panel and the door skin.

 

Got the sub box built this past weekend but still need to cover it with some carpet or possibly paint it.