Just installed a Z-Box (pics)

airosey · 07-26-2005, 12:59 AM

Hey all,
My brother in law (PO) found this up in the attic of his house recently. It was in rough shape when I got it, just because the black leather was shrunk and peeling off. I cut some leather off of the extra hide I got when I bought some new seats and doorpanels, and recovered it in no time. Matches perfectly with the rest of the car. I've never seen anyone here on rennlist with one of these, so I thought I would post up a few pics. It only accomodates an 8" sub, but thats fine for me just to get a little more punch. I've got a Nakamichi sp-80 in there now, sounds pretty good for how old it is (installed back in mid 80's). He couldn't find the grill that covers the speaker, so I'm going to have to try to make one. If anyone that may have one of these could make me a template of theirs out of cardboard or something, I would pay them for their efforts. Anyway, here are the pics. Let me know what you think.

DoubleNutz · 07-26-2005, 01:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by airosey

Hey all,

NICE!

Very NICE are you able to make another?

jserio · 07-26-2005, 03:41 AM

I would like one with a sub on each side. Will pay cash for it.

F4GIB · 07-26-2005, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jserio

I would like one with a sub on each side. Will pay cash for it.

Me too.

sublimate · 07-26-2005, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jserio

I would like one with a sub on each side. Will pay cash for it.

I'd like one too, but can I pay in negotiable stocks and bonds? Or maybe gold doubloons?

NYDolfan · 07-26-2005, 10:48 AM

I like that - count me in too if it could be made with dual enclosures and easily moveable/removable. It sure beats the look of the bazooka tube I currently have from a PO.

Scott C · 07-26-2005, 11:36 AM

Z-box manufactured unique sub boxes for Porsches and other high-end cars from about '85-'95.
They are now out of business.

Your local high-end audio shops have the sophistication to manufacture something similar on-site.
It will cost you, but the results will be similar to Chris'.

BTW, Chris, VERY nice car you have.

atb · 07-26-2005, 12:07 PM

Yo Pat,

Rob Fossett has one of these that he reworked awhile ago. I think he still has it, probably just gathering dust in the back of his shop. I think he didn't pursue it because of the size limitation of only fitting an 8" in there. Give him a buzz.

sublimate · 07-26-2005, 12:26 PM

What's it made out of? Fiberglass? Plastic?

airosey · 07-26-2005, 12:33 PM

Thanks for the comments! I wish I could make one of these, its looks like the demand is there. All I did to it was clean it up and recover it. You do have to remove the toolkit to install it, and it uses some of that space behind it. My PO bought the setup for around $1500 (from what he remembers). At the time he had an entire Nakamichi setup put in plus the zbox stuff (around $5000 back in the mid 80's). I was suprised the Nakamichi sub still sounds good for how old it is. I do have some enclosures for the doors that I would be willing to sell. They still have the Nakamichi sp-400's in them. Not sure how they sound, and the enclosures would have to be recovered, but that would be really cheap because of their size. I image you could just replace the speakers with whatever you like. Keep in mind that you would only want to use these on OB's that incorperate the speakers behind the door panels. And you will also have to cut part of your doorpanel for them to fit in. I would have kept them myself, but I've got some later model doorpanels that have the tweeter and mid holes already in the door. They are made of fiberglass, and you could cut the speaker holes larger if you really needed too. Here are some pics.

I will take $100 + shipping for whoever wants them. Just PM me.

aircooler · 07-26-2005, 01:16 PM

Chris, That Z-Box looks great, and you did a fine job restoring it. I think a good car/home audio place would be able to set you up with someone who could make you a grill.

I also wanted to upgrade my audio to include a decent sub to provide a good low end. I have MB Quarts all around that give great sound, but without a sub, I found them almost "tinny" when the music was loud.

Then there was the amp problem. I messed around with trying to find a good amp, small enough to mount in the stock location, but to no avail. So with no other options other than the rear shelf, I put in enough clean power to drive 4 928's, and a 12 sub that, when trying to set up the gain, vibrated my lower spine!

I do plan to get another smaller Sub to replace my 12" Alpine unit. I want to use the outer rim section in the installation, however the current sub requires too much depth into the spare tire well to mount it. If I can find a 10" sub that will give me 2 1/2 more inches of mounting depth, I will install the outer rim section to the center piece.

BTW, with the MP3 deck I could never imagine the convenience of having 140 tracks on one disk! I someone gave me a standard CD deck for free.... I'd give it back and say "Thanks, but no thanks".

Brett Jenkins · 07-26-2005, 04:31 PM

I bought a Rockford Fosgate OmniFi MP3 system for $200 from woot.com. It came with an in-house mp3 streamer and wireless card (pulls from my pc), and a 30gb hard drive enclosure, head unit, and wireless card for my car that synchs up with my pc. You can get a lot of mp3's on a 30gb hard drive!.

The head unit is separate from the actual stereo head unit. it attaches via aux input.

DoubleNutz · 07-26-2005, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atb

Yo Pat,

Rob Fossett has one of these that he reworked awhile ago. I think he still has it, probably just gathering dust in the back of his shop. I think he didn't pursue it because of the size limitation of only fitting an 8" in there. Give him a buzz.

Adam, now that I think about it- I woud rather have the setup that you have (I beleive Rob made that one too) with the sub inside the spare. I could then use my already cut wheel rim as a speaker grill.

airosey · 07-26-2005, 07:21 PM

Mike, your setup looks awesome. I was actually doing the same type setup in mine, then the PO called with the zbox, so I scrapped the project. I don't like running multiple amps BTDT, so I got an XTant 3300C a few years ago, and it's the cleanest sounding amp i've ever heard. And its a 5 channel with 1 sub channel. I also have an Alpine type S, infinity reference in the front and rockford Q series in the back. Its not all in yet, but when I do, its going to sound great. I had already made an enclosure for the xtant to be flush mounted in the rear, but it won't work with the zbox. So, I'm going to have to mount it flush inside the spare tire well, so it will be even with the rest of the floor. I'll be sure to send you some pics when I get started with that.

fraggle · 07-26-2005, 11:10 PM

When is someone going to integrate these MP3/wireless things? The best I found so far is:

http://www.estone-tech.com/ Integrated head unit with 20GB drive - rips cd's as you play them. I want it wireless!!

07-26-2005, 12:59 AM	#1
airosey User Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Knoxville, Tn Posts: 338	Just installed a Z-Box (pics) Hey all, My brother in law (PO) found this up in the attic of his house recently. It was in rough shape when I got it, just because the black leather was shrunk and peeling off. I cut some leather off of the extra hide I got when I bought some new seats and doorpanels, and recovered it in no time. Matches perfectly with the rest of the car. I've never seen anyone here on rennlist with one of these, so I thought I would post up a few pics. It only accomodates an 8" sub, but thats fine for me just to get a little more punch. I've got a Nakamichi sp-80 in there now, sounds pretty good for how old it is (installed back in mid 80's). He couldn't find the grill that covers the speaker, so I'm going to have to try to make one. If anyone that may have one of these could make me a template of theirs out of cardboard or something, I would pay them for their efforts. Anyway, here are the pics. Let me know what you think.

07-26-2005, 10:48 AM	#6
NYDolfan Addict Rennlist Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Wurtsboro NY Posts: 469	I like that - count me in too if it could be made with dual enclosures and easily moveable/removable. It sure beats the look of the bazooka tube I currently have from a PO. __________________ Pete W. 1988 S4 A/T Granite Green SOLD !

07-26-2005, 11:36 AM	#7
Scott C Addict Rennlist Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: TX Posts: 3,535	Z-box manufactured unique sub boxes for Porsches and other high-end cars from about '85-'95. They are now out of business. Your local high-end audio shops have the sophistication to manufacture something similar on-site. It will cost you, but the results will be similar to Chris'. BTW, Chris, VERY nice car you have. __________________ Scott C. '05 Cayenne S '89 Targa GP White/Black - "El Blanco" '08 IS350 with some F-Sport mods - Wife's hot rod Former: '81 928 Black/Tan 5-sp '95 993 Black/Black 6-sp

07-26-2005, 12:07 PM	#8
atb Addict Rennlist Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Puyallup, WA Posts: 3,144	Yo Pat, Rob Fossett has one of these that he reworked awhile ago. I think he still has it, probably just gathering dust in the back of his shop. I think he didn't pursue it because of the size limitation of only fitting an 8" in there. Give him a buzz. __________________ Adam Birnbaum '88 S4 A/T Schwartz PacNW 928 Proud Member of 928 Owner's Club

07-26-2005, 04:31 PM	#12
Brett Jenkins Addict Rennlist Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Noblesville, In Posts: 1,286	I bought a Rockford Fosgate OmniFi MP3 system for $200 from woot.com. It came with an in-house mp3 streamer and wireless card (pulls from my pc), and a 30gb hard drive enclosure, head unit, and wireless card for my car that synchs up with my pc. You can get a lot of mp3's on a 30gb hard drive!. The head unit is separate from the actual stereo head unit. it attaches via aux input. __________________ 1988 928 S4 5sp - Black 2007 Yukon Denali Mystic Blue 22" Factory Rims, 6.2L V8 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee 2006 Mustang Deluxe 5sp 1990 928 S4 Auto - Linen Metallic - Sold 1988 924S Black - Sold 1985.5 944 NA Grey - Sold How can you find yourself if you never get lost?

07-26-2005, 03:41 AM	#3
jserio User Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: O.C. California Posts: 1,545	I would like one with a sub on each side. Will pay cash for it.

07-26-2005, 12:26 PM	#9
sublimate Gluteus Maximus Rennlist Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 6,378	What's it made out of? Fiberglass? Plastic?

07-26-2005, 12:33 PM	#10
airosey User Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Knoxville, Tn Posts: 338	Thanks for the comments! I wish I could make one of these, its looks like the demand is there. All I did to it was clean it up and recover it. You do have to remove the toolkit to install it, and it uses some of that space behind it. My PO bought the setup for around $1500 (from what he remembers). At the time he had an entire Nakamichi setup put in plus the zbox stuff (around $5000 back in the mid 80's). I was suprised the Nakamichi sub still sounds good for how old it is. I do have some enclosures for the doors that I would be willing to sell. They still have the Nakamichi sp-400's in them. Not sure how they sound, and the enclosures would have to be recovered, but that would be really cheap because of their size. I image you could just replace the speakers with whatever you like. Keep in mind that you would only want to use these on OB's that incorperate the speakers behind the door panels. And you will also have to cut part of your doorpanel for them to fit in. I would have kept them myself, but I've got some later model doorpanels that have the tweeter and mid holes already in the door. They are made of fiberglass, and you could cut the speaker holes larger if you really needed too. Here are some pics. I will take $100 + shipping for whoever wants them. Just PM me.

07-26-2005, 01:16 PM	#11
aircooler Addict Rennlist Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: County Wellington, Ontario, Canada Posts: 1,266	Chris, That Z-Box looks great, and you did a fine job restoring it. I think a good car/home audio place would be able to set you up with someone who could make you a grill. I also wanted to upgrade my audio to include a decent sub to provide a good low end. I have MB Quarts all around that give great sound, but without a sub, I found them almost "tinny" when the music was loud. Then there was the amp problem. I messed around with trying to find a good amp, small enough to mount in the stock location, but to no avail. So with no other options other than the rear shelf, I put in enough clean power to drive 4 928's, and a 12 sub that, when trying to set up the gain, vibrated my lower spine! I do plan to get another smaller Sub to replace my 12" Alpine unit. I want to use the outer rim section in the installation, however the current sub requires too much depth into the spare tire well to mount it. If I can find a 10" sub that will give me 2 1/2 more inches of mounting depth, I will install the outer rim section to the center piece. BTW, with the MP3 deck I could never imagine the convenience of having 140 tracks on one disk! I someone gave me a standard CD deck for free.... I'd give it back and say "Thanks, but no thanks".

07-26-2005, 07:21 PM	#14
airosey User Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Knoxville, Tn Posts: 338	Mike, your setup looks awesome. I was actually doing the same type setup in mine, then the PO called with the zbox, so I scrapped the project. I don't like running multiple amps BTDT, so I got an XTant 3300C a few years ago, and it's the cleanest sounding amp i've ever heard. And its a 5 channel with 1 sub channel. I also have an Alpine type S, infinity reference in the front and rockford Q series in the back. Its not all in yet, but when I do, its going to sound great. I had already made an enclosure for the xtant to be flush mounted in the rear, but it won't work with the zbox. So, I'm going to have to mount it flush inside the spare tire well, so it will be even with the rest of the floor. I'll be sure to send you some pics when I get started with that.

07-26-2005, 11:10 PM	#15
fraggle Addict Rennlist Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Bristow, VA Posts: 1,308	When is someone going to integrate these MP3/wireless things? The best I found so far is: http://www.estone-tech.com/ Integrated head unit with 20GB drive - rips cd's as you play them. I want it wireless!!