One look at James Cotta's screamin' yellow 2001 GMC Sierra tells you that this is not your run of the mill pickup. Once you shift your attention from the slick tribal ghost flames to the even more impressive audio system that lurks inside, you will begin to see exactly where James sets his priorities. With IASCA and USAC competition in mind, James turned to Chris Merril and his crew at Audio Illusionz in Redding, CA to create a system that would feature the perfect blend of sound quality and custom installation. Arguably, the finished product is a complete success.
Dead and Wired
In preparation for an audio system of this magnitude, Chris and his crew applied multiple layers of sound damping material to all interior surfaces to keep resonance to a minimum. A single Yellow Top Optima resides in the factory location under the hood, while a pair of Stinger SPV44 batteries and a pair of ARC Audio 1-farad capacitors mounted in the bed supply the extra voltage required to power the system's four amplifiers. All batteries and capacitors are linked with Monster Cable 1/0-gauge power cable while 4-gauge strands feed the amps. Monster Cable interconnects, cut to the correct length, and 12-gauge speaker cable has also been used throughout the installation.
Stellar Source Units
The music starts with a top of the line Nakamichi CD-700 CD player/tuner, mounted in the custom-built center console/amprack made of MDF, smoothed and color matched to the exterior. Mounted directly below the head unit in the center console is an ARC Audio MEQ-30 30-band equalizer that feeds a prototype ARC Audio DXE five-band, quasi-parametric EQ/crossover. For additional music selection, a Nakamichi MF-51 Musicbank CD changer is flush mounted in the rear of the center console below the amprack.
[Each amplifier is mounted with the power end facing forward so that all controls are easily accessible. This unique mounting technique not only looks super trick, but also makes on-the-fly adjustment of 1950 watts worth of ARC amplification that much easier.]
Amprack
The rear of the center console is molded into the amprack, which extends all the way back to the rear of the cab to house three ARC Audio 4150-XXK four-channel amplifiers, which power the front stage and rear demo speakers, and a single ARC audio 2500-XXK two-channel amplifier, which powers the subs. Each amplifier is mounted with the power end facing forward so that all controls are easily accessible. This unique mounting technique not only looks super trick, but also makes on-the-fly adjustment of 1950 watts worth of ARC amplification that much easier.
Front Stage
To create the front stage, a pair of custom fabricated kick panels that house a set of Rainbow Reference CS 260.30 6.5" components have been added. The kick panels are actually sealed fiberglass enclosures that, like the center console/amprack, have been sanded smooth and shot with the same lemon chiffon pearl yellow as the exterior. Complementing the components in the kicks are two pairs of Rainbow Reference 160 6.5"midbass drivers and an additional pair of Reference tweeters, mounted in their own custom fabricated fiberglass pods and grafted to the factory door panels. With such a powerful front stage, rear speakers proved unnecessary and thus they were omitted. For demonstration purposes, however, a set of 6.5" Rainbow Vanadium components were mounted in the fiberglass insert that wraps around the inside of the bed.
Quadruple Bass
For low-end duties, four ARC Audio 12D-2 12" subs -- firing right at the driver and passenger -- make their home in two separate enclosures on either side of the amprack where the rear seats used to be. Each 2-cubic-foot-sealed enclosure has been molded from fiberglass and finished in the same shade of charcoal gray as the factory components of the interior.
Mobile Entertainment
For entertainment, a Microsoft Xbox, mounted beneath the passenger side sub enclosure, serves as the DVD video source for the AcceleVision 7-inch fold out monitor, which now occupies the factory radio location. For demonstration, video signal is also supplied to two AcceleVision 15-inch TFT flat screen monitors, which were mounted in fiberglass pods that cover both rear side window openings.
James Cotta has certainly set his priorities correctly, as this Desert Rose is one gorgeous beauty.
TECH BOX
· 4-foot Superlift Suspension Lift with four shocks up front and eight in the rear
· 16" x 8" Centerline Rims
· BF Goodrich Off Road T/A's
· Reflexion Hood and Rear Roll Pan
· Lemon Chiffon Pearl paint with tribal ghost flames
· Tonneau Cover with remotely operated polished billet linear actuators
· Fiberglass and aluminum insert in carpeted truck bed
Subwoofer Enclosures-
Serious bottom end comes by way of four ARC Audio 12D-2 12" subwoofers mounted in two separate fiberglass enclosures on either side of the amprack in the area formerly occupied by the rear seats. Each pair of subs breathes in 2 cubic feet of airspace within their enclosures, which fire directly at the driver's and passenger's seatbacks. For the finishing touch, the enclosures have been color matched to the same shade as the charcoal gray interior, and topped with four chrome grilles to protect the subs.
Head Unit/Processors-
A Nakamichi CD-700 CD player/tuner paired with an MF-51 Musicbank CD changer supplies the audio signal for the system. Before being sent to the amplifiers, the audio signal is fed into an ARC Audio MEQ30 30-band equalizer, mounted directly below the head unit in the center console. Further downstream is a prototype ARC Audio DXE five-band, quasi-parametric EQ/crossover. The equalizer and crossover combination provides James with virtually infinite sound adjustment right at his fingertips. All four components (the DXE is a two-piece unit) have been flushed into the custom fabricated center console, which was color matched in the familiar yellow seen throughout the installation.
Front Stage-
Up front, custom fabricated kick panels house a set of Rainbow Reference CS 260.30 6.5" components. Each kick panel is actually a .25-cubic-foot-sealed enclosure that weighs nearly 20 pounds, due to their near bulletproof construction. Fiberglass pods have also been grafted to the doors to accommodate two pairs of Rainbow Reference 160 6.5" midbass drivers and one pair of Reference tweeters. Both the kick panels and the doors have been lined with multiple layers of sound deadening material. Each of the drivers has been mounted without grilles to the fiberglass panels, which were smoothed and color-matched to the yellow exterior of the truck.
Amprack-
The rear of the center console molds right into the amprack, which houses four ARC Audio amplifiers. The amplifiers appear to have taken a nosedive into the amprack as they were each mounted with the power end facing forward, making all controls easily accessible. This method of mounting the amps conceals all power and speaker cables, and also allows for easy adjustment. Everything is within arm's reach of the driver or passenger seat. This was one of the primary goals for the system. Three 4150-XXK four channels are used to drive the front stage and rear demo speakers, while a single 2500-XXK pushes the four subs. Total system power is rated at 1950 watts, with the three four-channels running 4-ohm stereo and the two-channel on the bass running 2-ohm stereo. The finished amprack has also been smoothed and color-matched to the yellow exterior of the truck.
Monitors/Video-
A 7-inch fold-out AcceleVision monitor now resides in the factory radio location. For demonstration purposes, two additional AccelleVision 15-inch TFT flat screen monitors were mounted to fiberglass pods that cover both rear side window openings. A Microsoft Xbox, mounted beneath the passenger side sub enclosure, supplies the DVD video signal to all three monitors. The DVD play back kit has been added to the Xbox. The remote eye was relocated to the dash for easier operation.
Bed--
Two remotely-operated polished billet linear actuators lift the tonneau cover to reveal the custom-built insert, which was molded into the inside of the bed to house the rear-facing Rainbow Vanadium Component set and the system tools. The finished insert has also been color-matched to the exterior and trimmed with custom billet aluminum trim.
DRIVER PROFILE
James Cotta creates his vehicles with himself in mind. While admiration and recognition of his efforts are not entirely unimportant, the driving force for investing the time and money into his vehicles is being able to enjoy the finished product. A grape grower by trade, and a custom car audio enthusiast by passion, James makes his home in the town of Lodi, CA. Some of you may remember James' earlier masterpiece in the form of a radically modified 1956 Mack truck appropriately named "Millennium Mack" and featured in CA&E in December, 2001. Impressive to say the least. The Mack was not, however, the most practical vehicle for James to drive and enjoy everyday.
The Sierra has been created using the same theme as the Mack, right down to the Lemon Chiffon Pearl paint and custom bodywork on the outside, and the Rainbow Reference/ARC Audio components on the inside. As the truck was being built, the name "Desert Rose" evolved in reference to the brilliant yellow hue that was applied to the exterior as well as many interior components.
James admits that he has always had a system of one sort or another in his vehicles and attributes ARC Audio CEO Demetrios Karabinis for getting him started over 10 years ago. According to James, it pays to have friends in high places, and judging by the number of ARC Audio components in his vehicles, he and Demetrios are pretty good friends. Luckily for James, the Desert Rose serves as a test bed for some prototype ARC equipment, namely the high-end analog DXE crossover that controls the whole system. James admits that he may be "old school" but he doesn't believe that digital technology is good enough or fast enough yet to compete with really good analog electronics like the DXE. While James doesn't take the Desert Rose into the grape fields, he finds an excuse to drive it at least once a day. He doesn't take up two parking places but needless to say he is careful when he parks it. Much of what makes the drive so enjoyable is the ultra-high-end Rainbow Reference drivers that have become the speaker of choice in his vehicles. James insists that they make everything sound great, and if you have ever seen the price tag that they carry, you will certainly understand why. It is no surprise that he loves all kinds of music, but if he had to pick a favorite album, Dig by Boz Skaggs would be at the top of his list.
Look for James at IASCA and USAC competitions this year to see and hear just exactly what drives him to create such high caliber sound machines like the Desert Rose.