UnderLoK

16v to the SS's is tossed into the trash. There was far too much confusion on the topic (mainly on my part) and since I've never done it and just doing my first real build in 12 years (give or take) I decided to stick with what I know. 2 300 amp alts and 3 XS 3400's in route with plenty of room for more batts later (when/if I come up with the scratch for 2 more XXX's)

You rock, thanks man.

07 Trailblazer SS I'm pretty sure I have it all sorted out now. I'm going to run a separate 16 volt system, but if I'm wrong please let me know.

So after talking with Nathan and a couple others here (thanks guys) I'm now "sorted out". Isolated 16v system: 3-6 D1600's 1 250 amp alt with brackets and belt(s) 1 VCM Seems like a PITA just to run a couple Soundstream amps... Off to get a quote.

SlappinF150 has offered to help my out of date ass with the build, there will be a log for sure. My stuff from 99 isn't bad, I mean 1700'ish watts to 3 12W6's sealed hits pretty hard (not crazy like this will but still). I was running 4 12's, but I just blew one last night (hopefully just a lead smacking around) so the 3 W6's are going back in later. I actually I need D1600's I guess because the XXX-4000's need 16v. Otherwise they only kick out 3300.

Thanks Nathan!

PM sent, thanks man.

Thanks!

Hey guys, Long story short I plan on running 2 SS 4000's which need 16v to run at 4000 watts. At 14 volts they only put out 3300. I will also be running one or two 4 channels to the interior (700-1200 watts) which only need 14v. I'm way out of touch with this stuff so I'm hoping for some direction. I would assume that the 4 channels should be fine on my stock starter battery (I have a yellow top if things wack out) and factory alt (145amp stock alt) which would be 14v. The two 4000's would need to run on an isolated system which would run at 16v requiring an isolated alternator and batteries. The problem is, how in the hell do I make it 16v? It's the alternator that decides that right? I'm going with Stinger alt/batts and had thought that 2 2150's (rated for 4300 watts each) would be enough for the 2 4000 amps, but would that be cutting it too close? Would I be better off with 4 smaller ones or 3 2150's or? I had shot Stinger a message yesterday for some guidance, but no response yet. I should have started here...

Thanks for the responses guys it got the wheels turning. After going over it 500 times I'm going to go with 2 18 SMDs and 2 XXX 4000 Soundstream amps. The math just works out the best (cubes/cargo space/price/watts) and makes me the most comfortable. The more and more I thought about it, tossing 4 15's in my 07 with 18k miles on it didn't sit too well. I don't want to blow the thing apart (yet)! Now I just have to work out interiors, 4 channel(s), wire, batts, and alt(s).

Hi all (Rob here), I’m pretty new to the forums (wuzzzzahhhh!!!) and to be completely honest my car audio knowledge is beyond dated (the gear in my classic caddy I’ve had since 99 for the most part – 3 12W6s, MMATS amps, JL components, Alpine deck, etc). I’ve got the bug back and now I’m going to do a build, but wanted to tap into the knowledge here before I start buying stuff. I am a little long winded so please hang in there. I have a 07 TBSS lease that I’m going to buy out. I want a complete system (amps, deck, subs, components, alt, batts, etc) so I wanted to get some input from you guys on which way to go as far as subs go. Ideally I would like to have the ability to run daily with the ability to drop down the ohms when the need arises. I don’t plan on spending $10,000 or anything like that, but I do want to do it big (I would go B I G rather than big but I was laid off a couple months ago). I’m honestly blown away by the knowledge shared on these forums and just hope that you guys (and gals) can point me in the right direction because I feel like a fish out of water these days and clueless about what is good and what isn’t these days. Please don’t think of this line of questioning as a waste of time because I’m honestly looking for real help here. I don’t want to waste my money nor do I want to buy “shit”. Without your help I would be forced to revert back to my previous knowledge and aim at brands that I know deep down aren’t what they used to be. The cargo area (run down below) in the TBSS should allow 2-3 18’s (3 is doable but complicated) or 4 15’s. Comfortably would be 2 18’s or 4 15’s firing vertical with a rear port. While more is usually better I’m thinking that 2 18’s will be plenty for the little TBSS. With the space below (both options allow for 7 inches on either side for batteries) and considering the vehicle; what brand subs, size, and configuration would you pick? These figures are just the max cubes if I was to put a rectangular box in with 1" wood (no displacement or anything). Again I don’t really remember how to work out the specs for a box, but I think I’m on the right track. 1)With no rear view obstruction and no changes to the back seats (they continue to lean) along with 7 inches clearance on either side for batteries (with room for up to 12+ batts total or 6 with some side cargo space still available): 33 D x 40 W (wheel well to wheel well with batt room) x 21 H = 12.95 cubes 2)With slight rear obstruction and an angle change to the back seats (they would be vertical and no longer lean) along with 7 inches clearance on either side for batteries (with room for up to 12+ batts total or 6 with some side cargo space still available): 37 D x 40 W (wheel well to wheel well with batt room) x 21 H = 14.62 cubes 3)With significant rear obstruction and an angle change to the back seats (they would be vertical and no longer lean) along with 7 inches clearance on either side for batteries (with room for up to 12+ batts total or 6 with some side cargo space still available): 37 D x 40 W (wheel well to wheel well with batt room) x 24 H = 16.93 cubes Going with options 2 or 3 opens the doors as far as 18’s go as to where option 1 limits me a bit as I need subs that require smaller cubes (Soundstream, SMD, etc). On the one hand I spend more money on higher end subs, but I still have room for the amps in the cargo area or I save some money on subs and have to murder my back seat (not out of the question) by cutting out some foam and building a tray for the seat to sit on so the amps can go under the seat (unless I was to get Soundstream towers which I could put above the batts in the cargo area or reduce the H to 18 inches and put an amp rack below the box). My local AA dealer reads these forums so I don’t want to say what my sub budget is, but just pretend there isn’t a limit (within reason please, let’s just say SMD/SoundStream and under)! Thanks!

Did you put a SSD in the computer?

I thought this was a joke... I figured they were going to say it was oregano or something... Are kids really this hard up to get high? Call me crazy, but the people I know just drink and use real drugs. If it's the chems that get you high find a safer method to use them. Since they keep comparing it to THC why not add it to butter and make cookies?

Those motors are way bigger than yours and discounting that you would still need all of the electronics that go with those motors. You're better off getting another car or modifying your existing motor. If you're dead set on a new motor you should be looking at similar models/setups like a Taurus for example. Back in the day it was pretty popular for people to put Sable motors in Contours.

I have no idea... Generally when I go out I drink 7-10 beers with some booze mixed in. The other night I had 6 or 7 beers at the bar and two Captain and Cokes (stupid ass MSU loosing to Butler?! WTF). When I got back to the house I had some coffee with American Honey (honey bourbon) and Carolins. After that a tall (2-3 shots I guess) Buffalo Trace (bourbon). I was pretty hammered, but I'm out of form (tore up my knee so I was on painkillers for the last month - acetaminophen and alcohol = liver failure - no thanks). I never drink to the point of no return because I hate not being in control. I generally drink until I get a solid buzz and then maintain it by NOT doing shots.

Being put on trial as an adult and being an adult are two totally different things and depend on the crime. These days are no different than they were when I grew up other than schools are more out of control. I grew up not far from where I live now (2 miles at most) and we border Detroit which I think should say enough. While our town is sheltered from Detroit for the most part it's still an influence. I saw kids with guns, I had guns pulled on me twice and I was shot at once by kids that were good kids who made poor decisions. Had I been shot things would have gone down differently, but I wasn't. As far as the rape thing goes, I don't know the details so I can't even say one way or the other nor would I especially since it is such a hot topic. All I can do is compare it to my experiences and say that every year literally close to a hundred kids a year would have gone to jail for statutory rape here. It was common for seniors and juniors to date freshmen. Girls have always aimed higher around here. The juniors and seniors were with college guys and the sophomores and freshmen were with juniors and seniors. More often than not statutory rape comes into play when a parent decides it is no longer ok. Again, I have no idea about this girls situation, I'm just commenting on the law itself which is more often than not highly selective and open to interpretation which is not something a law should be. I'm not trying to defend these kids, they deserve whatever they get, my comments were more about the population in general and changing laws because of 10 people out of 300,000,000. I understand that often times laws are passed due to specific events and this could prove to be one of those laws, but more laws aren't always the best answer. There were existing laws in place to protect this girl and for whatever reason(s) the police weren't involved, but the fact remains that they could have been because as we all know bullying to an extreme such as this is against the law already. The term bully can be used to describe all kinds of people and this law (while I haven't looked into it so I could very well be talking out my ass) could more than likely be used for all kinds of situations where it doesn't apply. For example a kid calling another kid stupid is technically bullying. A kid making you move out of the way in the hall is again bullying. A guy blocking an isle in the library and not moving so you can get by is yet again bullying. This girl wasn't bullied, she was raped (law is law), assaulted, and harassed.

While it's sad how this situation ended up I completely agree with you. My wife teaches 7th & 8th graders and it's unreal the amount of crap they get away with these days. It's just as shame that parents can't accept responsibility for their children anymore and think that their kids are the schools problem. That is until the schools try to punish the kids or accuse them of wrong doing and then the parents flip. To take that even further parents want their kid labeled with a disability if they aren't popular, if they don't do well in school, if they are lazy... People often talk about the rise in autism, attention disorders, and the like and use those conditions to let their kids get away with murder when there are kids out there that really are disabled. Sorry to get off topic there; kids will be kids. It's not easy growing up but those experiences help mold who we are. I sure as hell didn't get along with everyone and got in my share of fights, arguments, heart break, and the like. If I had gone to my mom and said "mom these kids are bullying me" she would have made me handle it and the administration back then (the 90's) was the same way. Kids have many avenues available to them and while I normally chose to fight often times my friends would diffuse the situation before I even knew there was one. Some people just can't handle the stress and while I know it strikes a nerve hearing that it's the harsh reality. All of us handled things differently. I had friends who if picked on just ignored it, others would throw words back, others would tell on them (bad idea), and others (like me) would attack them physically. I know (again) in this day and age you don't want kids doing that sort of thing, but let's be honest here. The only real way to stop a bully is to shut their big fat mouth. It can be a slippery slope to deal with, but they are valuable lessons because jerks don't stop being jerks once they leave high school. People say "How could this have been prevented!?" well it couldn't have been. The girl obviously had serious issues and the kids giving her problems were more than likely not even the last straw. Maybe the parents could have been more supportive, maybe the school could have done more, maybe her friends (if she had any) should have stepped in, maybe the kids bulling her needed their butts kicked, or maybe this girl just had deeply rooted problems that we will never understand. Some people are just broken and unfortunately if she had taken her life and no one was treating her badly they would have found something else to blame it on (parents divorce, grandma that died, Alice Cooper, Country music, failing a test, whatever). Anyways sorry to ramble guys, but honestly laws like this shouldn't exist. There should be more leeway between a kid being called names and being harassed especially since in the real world as an adult you are forced to deal with situations like this on your own. As usual we are working hard to make sure our kids are clueless on how the world works. Too much sheltering of our children results in kids that either lash out as adults, wind up in jail, or worse. These handy labels that they give out these days won't keep your kid out of trouble once they hit 18 and the sooner they learn how the world works the better.

Plug and play... Depends which OS and which video card really. If you power down the computer hook up both a monitor and the TV and turn it on does the TV do anything at all during the entire boot up process (flash, change color anything)? What kind of video card is it and do you have a utility installed from your video card manufacturer (ATi, Nvidia, Intel)?