I am finally doing it. I am getting one of my empegs installed this Saturday at a place called Perfect Sounds. After talking to them for about 1 1/2 hours tonight I agreed to the $600 quote they gave me, which includes a custom sealed sub box to fit between the front seats of my van. I am very nervous right now and hope it will be worth the money. It sounds kind of high to me but they sounded very experienced and were impressed with the a/d/s P850 amp and the Boston Pro's I have to be installed. I'll let you guys know how it goes. It's going in my company 2002 Dodge Caravan.

Cool, custom sealed box, that should be cool. Let us know how it goes.

By the way, if they do a good job (and the install includes decent amplifiers), then the $600.00 should be worth it.

It doesn't include any componets, I already have those. It's just for the labor and the box plus wiring and competition grade RCA cables and stuff needed. The amp install is $95 labor. They told me to expect it to take most of the day so that part I liked. It's not going to be a rush job and it's guaranteed for life, at least there end of it. They always seem to be busy when I pass so that I hope is a good sign. And they have been there for a fairly long time.

Well, for a custom sub enclosure, it might be worth it. Would have to be pretty spectacular, though.

And don't get me started on the cable quality thing.

In other words it sounds like a high price for the install then. My neighbors son was going to do it for $100 plus I buy all parts but I was a little afraid to let him at it. Oh well, it's only money that will take me a few months to pay off. I'm beginning to think that shops in general see a female coming and raise their prices by 50%.

Maybe it'll be a pretty amazing custom sub enclosure?

Look on the good side, for that price, if you have even the slightest problem with the install, you can bring it right back to them and they'll have to bend over backwards to accomodate you.

My tip is to reserve your fears until you get the car back. :-) Don't second guess yourself. When you get the car back be absolutely critical about every aspect of the install. Look for scratches and damage if any, listen to the sound, do a channel sweep (left right, front rear) make sure all th rca's are properly connected (common mistake and evidence of a hurried install). Check for clipping turn the volume up. Use the loudness control to exercise the sub, if you have the mlord kernel use the bass control to make sure the sub works as expected.

Is there an empeg in your nova?

Calvin

Nah, no empeg in the Nova as of yet. Considering I spend maybe an hour at the most a week in it I thought it more important for the van. I spend anywhere from 3 - 11 hours a day driving it.

And I'm thinking that I wouldn't be able to hear it very well due to engine and exhaust noise in the Nova. It's loud inside even with the windows up. Plus there are leaks when it rains. When I put one in there I'll use less expensive equipment.

I'll let you know how the install goes tomorrow. I'm thinking that I might replace the dash speakers too with some Diamond Hex series 400-S. Depends on how foolish I am! The Boston Pros are going in the door and the Boston Pro 10" sub between the front seats. The a/d/s P850 amp will be hidden under the back seat which I put back in the van for that purpose though I might have it placed in a back panel in case I need to remove the seat at some time.

They are doing a lot of custom work and the labor itself is $350 so I can't be too unhappy with that.

I'll try to get some pictures of the install up sometime this weekend, heading to the shop soon. Though looking at a van is boring compared to some of your cars and trucks.

The install is complete. I won't say how much I ended up spending but damn it sure sounds great. Crystal clear without a lot of heavy bass. I ended up getting Diamond Hex S400s for the dash and they are incredible. The front doors have the Boston Pros and they sound very good. I got the rear factory speakers replaced with Diamond M391i 6x9's and they sound very good also. The 10" Boston Pro sub sits between the front seats on top of the a/d/s P850 amp, they made the sub box about 4" off the floor to go on top of it, the amp controls are right in front to play with. And the box is shaped to fit exactly between the seats with the sub pointing down towards the floor.

The Diamond Hexs they built a bridge over the top to set the tweeter in and faced them toward the windshield. I was very happy with the job and it took them 9 hours to complete. The guys in the shop were having fun playing with the empeg and were very impressed with it. I spent most of the day watching them and forgot to bring my video camera. I'll borrow a digital camera off my brother and get some pictures this week.

Looks and sounds great!