As part of our 20th anniversary retrospective, we're showcasing some of our favorite vehicles of the past two decades. You'll be able to vote on your favorite car later. Here's another stunner for which to choose from.
In the car audio arena, one name synonymous with winning and championships in the last decade is Gary Biggs. And he's done it all using the same car.
The road to championship started out in high school when a buddy of Biggs' was a huge car audio nut. Biggs also got into the stereo scene and installed a modest system in his 1979 Ford Mustang. "My friend upgraded his system at my expense because I would buy all his used parts," recalls Biggs. He entered a local show, won, and knew he had found his calling. Over the years the Buick has seen several changes. Here's a look at the 2002 award-winning version.
A Japanese-only Denon Z1 is the head unit of choice. It's mounted in a custom console that straddles the transmission hump of the car. Biggs went into the circuit board of the Z1 head unit and tapped on to the track up/down and the power on/off buttons. He then wired those functions to a relay circuit that allows the steering wheel controls to operate the head unit via RF. The volume knob is motorized from the steering wheel controls. You can actually see it move when you push the volume buttons on the steering wheel.
Keeping the frequencies playing just right is a pair of Rane ME30 studio equalizers. Both pieces have been converted to run at 12 volts. Biggs knows that there are other equalizers available specifically for the car, but he loves the feel of the sliders when tuning is taking place. A Rane AC23 three-way crossover (also converted to operate at 12 volts) sends signals to the amplifiers. All three Rane pieces are mounted between the two subwoofers in the rear. Their housing is made of fiberglass and painted silver to highlight the area.
If you've followed Biggs' career you know that he is a huge sound quality nut. The first step in achieving the proper sound meant removing a good portion of factory metal behind the kick panels to allow for additional air space. A steel frame of 3/4-inch steel tubing was welded into the car and " billet aluminum was used to construct the baffle in which the mid and tweeter would mount. "Steel and aluminum are much stronger than wood and fiberglass," Biggs explains. "Once they are welded in place they will not swell, warp, or bend." All this work gave him approximately one cubic foot of airspace for a pair of JBL 508GTI 5-1/4" components.
The original dash had many sharp angles (a deterrent to good sound) and looked cosmetically outdated, so Biggs designed a new one. The new dash minimizes reflections from the speakers. Auto Meter gauges were installed above the radio in a pod, which floats within the opening and is backlit with neon. Finishing off the dash are fabricated grille panels for the top and bottom, which are the same as those used for the kick panels.
The Regal uses two subwoofer systems, one for sound quality and the other for SPL. Biggs placed a Kicker Solo L7 10" subwoofer up in the right front firewall where the air conditioning unit normally sits in a perfectly round enclosure to help minimize any internal cancellation. For SPL, Biggs constructed an enclosure directly behind the front bucket seats. It occupies 14 cubic feet of space in the rear of the car and into the trunk for a pair of Kicker SoloX 18" subwoofers. This set is used to bring the volume to ear shattering levels.