When most car audio systems are being designed it's practically given that you will have to sacrifice some of the interior space. Elaborate enclosures, sophisticated amp racks, and a multitude of mobile entertainment components can take chunks of cargo area in no time. What happens when the vehicle in question is a truck that sees more miles and passengers than a Vegas taxi? When the people at Eagle One began this project, they had several goals they wanted to achieve. The first order of business was keeping the interior as close to factory as possible. This Ford is a daily driver and, more importantly, it is a demo vehicle that is mainly used for taking customers out and attending shows. The overall goal was to have impeccable, clear and clean sound with tight bass and crisp highs while keeping the interior fully functional (use of the folding rear seat).
Working with the Ford F150 Super Crew to achieve these goals was a challenge especially for the insertion of the subs. Space was a major constraint leaving only two options for construction of a subwoofer enclosure, the armrest or behind the rear seat. Being that Ford changed the interior on the 2001 F150, JL Audio had not updated their enclosure for the armrest, and as a result, the guys at Competition Sound Works expertly crafted a custom enclosure behind the rear seat housing two JL Audio 8W0-4 subs. This remarkably small, sealed enclosure produces amazingly tight bass with no distortion. What's more, there was no cutting or trimming of the fire-wall necessary; and the rear seat is still functional.
When it came to picking a head unit, the biggest consideration was having full control of sounds as well as a DVD player. For the parties involved the Alpine DVA-5205 in-dash DVD player and CVA-1005 in-dash head unit were together a no-brainer. The CVA-1005 comes equipped with a 6.5-inch widescreen that consists of a fully motorized TFT Active Matrix LCD Color Monitor, AM/FM Tuner, Ai-Net Control and three pre-outs, producing an amazing picture even when viewed at sharp angles. Both of these units were stack-mounted in the dash where the factory head unit was located. A very nice fit; and it complements the nature of this Ford quite nicely.
Moving on to the sound routing, Alpine's CHA-S624 CD Shuttle was enlisted to supply digital feeds to the amps for processing. An Alpine's NVE-N751AS CD-ROM based navigation computer feeds the driver with proper instructions through the L.A. freeway system, while offering enough entertainment to make you forget that you are barely moving and surrounded by road rage prone commuters. Both components are controlled through the head unit in the dash.
When it came to powering the system, space was again a concern. JL Audio's 300/4 4 Channel 300-watt amplifier supplies power to the mids and highs, while one 500/1 JL Audio 500W Class D mono amp gives the subs their needed punch. Routing sound and power through the amplifiers was accomplished via Monster Cable, which ensures complete delivery of power and sound throughout the entire system. Rounding out the system are two pairs of JL Audio XR-570CX 5" x 7" coaxial speakers mounted in each door. Thanks to the amplifiers, these have enough power to produce the clean sound Eagle One was looking for.
Underneath it all is a complete lining of Dynamat to keep everything solid and minimize rattles. Thought and hard work contributed to supplying a mobile entertainment system capable of those long drives along L.A.'s congested freeways while still maintaining the factory interior.
The system is uncomplicated and well done and serves the purposes of the demo vehicle's sponsors quite well. In the end, what more can you ask for except maybe wings to go with the Eagle theme.