Punto 90HP ICE upgrade: Now playing PHD, DLS and JBL

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Introducing (Since I did not see this one getting popular in the forum yet) the main actor -

1. PHD Audiophile Sound Systems, Italy. Handcrafted speakers - OEMs for Ferrari, Maserati, AMG and some other high end brands.

(Above pic from PHD site - http://www.phd.it/)


Italian speakers for an Italian car! Apologies to anyone expecting an ultra high cost install - this was just a budget install compared to many other ICE systems we have on the forum.

Special thanks to -

1. Mr. Saravana Prabhu, Powerzone, Chennai - for guiding in product selection, helping me listen to different installs & doing a fantastic installation.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...h-chennai.html (ICE Installation : Power Zone (Royapettah, Chennai))

2. DLS.


3. JBL


4. All the members here in team-bhp who helped me with this purchase decision. Lot of discussions were there in my ownership thread. Although the final outcome was entirely unanticipated - you guys all helped me a lot to arrive at that decision. From being satisfied with the stock system - 20k - 30k - 40k budget. Ending up at 47k. And I'm afraid - this may not be the end of it.

and last, but not the least -

5. My FIAT Grande Punto 90HP - for making some of my dreams come true!
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...unto-90hp.html




Original equipment -

1. Delphi HU - Made in Portugal - and branded for Alfa/ Lancia/ FIAT.
2. Front speakers 6.5 inch - Made in Poland - and branded for Alfa/ Lancia/ FIAT.
3. Rear speakers 6 inch - Made in China.

FIAT has provided a truly international setup. It had a nice sound when i took delivery of my car, but started showing its true nature within a month of ownership. The speakers started cracking at high volumes, then at medium volumes - and then - it was cracking all the way when music was played.

Upgraded equipment list -

1. Stock Delphi HU.
2. PHD Audiophile Sound Systems MF 6.2 Components front - the main singer.

3. PHD Audiophile Sound Systems FB 6 Co-ax rear.
4. DLS XProgram XA-40 4 channel amplifier.
5. JBL GTO 804 8 inch subwoofer.

Overall cost of install - Rs 47,000/- (With B&W)

FAQ - I'm no expert in ICE. Below are based on whatever I have read/ experienced as part of this install. Feel free to correct me/ express your own opinions.

1. Why Powerzone?
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...h-chennai.html (ICE Installation : Power Zone (Royapettah, Chennai))
Most of our users have had good experiences with powerzone - and some ultra high end installs have been done there. Always wanted to have the install done there, ever since I read Mi10's thread sometime back. Also ran into another forum - where Powerzone's active set-up had been described - there was no confusion regarding the installer after going through some of the comments there.

2. Why PHD Audiophile Sound Systems?
After a lot of discussions here on team-bhp, I had finallised on the following set-up for my car.

Stock HU,
Focal Solid4,
Focal Polyglass components front,
Focal Access components rear.
MB Quart/ Infinity Reference 12 inch sub.

After all the conversations and auditions - Saravana was quick to note that the kind of bass i was looking for - required speakers with good mid-bass. (And polyglass was famous for its mid-range, not mid-bass). Moreover - I was deeply impressed by the sound signature of PHD in the demo-car. So, front components changed to PHDs, and the rest of it was designed around it.

3. Why stock HU?

a. Was worried about warranty.
b. Minimizing risks. The whole world (including half the family) will ask - 'Why did you buy a FIAT?' incase something goes wrong with the car.
c. Blue&me.
d. Steering mounted controls. (Though I hear a Connects2 interface can fix this one for some HUs).
e. Stock look. (Even now - everything looks stock inside the cabin. It will be hard to judge an aftermarket system has been installed, except from the sound ofcourse).

Before you guys jump on me - I know the HU is the weakest (and by far) link in the system. I'm thinking of putting an aftermarket HU as well - but haven't decided on the timeframe yet.

4. Why stock mounting locations?
Same reason as above. To maintain the stock look. I've heard of speakers being mounted on the A-pillar facing the other seat's headrest and all, but even Saravana was of the opinion stock speaker locations would do just fine.

5. Why unbranded damping material? Why not Dynamat etc?
a. Budget.
b. I see this material used in some high end installs too. Feels VFM to them. So, why should i worry too much.
c. Results have been good. Punto's heavy doors feel even better now. Unfortunately - front left door rattle remains (was there before install too).

6. Why DLS amp?
a. Budget.
b. Has speaker level inputs.
c. Has Auto power off.

7. Does it drain the battery? Famous Punto Emotion PK issue?
Yes and No. Yes - It does remain on when the music system has been switched off. In 90HP - HU switched off only seems to switch off the faceplate. The system is still very much alive for the blue&me system to kick in. No- it doesn't drain the battery. It switches off when the key is turned off.

8. I want to fit these components speakers without an amplifier - for a low budget install? Can I?
A lot of people will tell - no. Without an amp - an HU does not do justice to a component speaker and so on. I believed so too, till I saw a particular zen, thanks to Saravana.

This Zen was running a cheap Kenwood HU + PHD FB series components (IIRC). Thats it, no amp - no sub, no damping- nothing. But it was producing beautiful music. Amp might help in giving clean power to the components - but its always true that components wont sing well without HU.

9. How good is the FIAT provided Delphi HU?
Again - I heard mixed opinions on the forum. However - my experience lends me to believe that the HU is indeed - very very cheap. Specially - if you are playing songs off a CD. The Media Player USB option avaible with the Blue&Me system seems to be marginally better.

And how could I forget to mention this - browsing songs/ folders is a royal pain in the *** with this HU.

10. Why JBL GTO 804 sub? That too, in a sealed enclosure?
a. I wanted tight bass, that did not overpower music. Totally dislike the boom boom effect from bass heavy systems.
b. PHDs are good with mid-bass. And this kind of tight bass does compliment it well.
c. Minimal space usage. Wanted the boot space to be as less affected as possible.
d. Budget.

Now, for the pics - Unfortunately - all are cellphone pics. I had kept my SLR ready, but in my excitement, forgot to take it with me for the install. -

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Stock HU comes out -


Stock front door without doorpad -


Stock rear door without doorpad -


Stock speakers riveted on the metal door -


Stock front -


An Alfa, FIAT, Lancia branded front speaker rated for 20W.


Stock front speakers -


All set for new install -


The damping sheet - Its not branded, but VFM. Saravana does seem to use this material in many of his installs.


Stock Delphi HU (Branded for Alfa, FIAT and Lancia) - Made in Portugal.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

The box MF 6.2-


The packaging -


The crossover -


The midbass -


Damping in progress -


Damping in progress -


Made in Italy - Now with MDF ring -


Stock Rear speakers - Made in China.


Stock Rear speakers -


Stock front and rear -

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

An Italian car -


Seats double folded (Someone had requested this in the ownership thread, i believe) -


MF 6.2 midbass -


The rear co-ax FB6 box -


Rear co-ax packaging -


Rear door damping in progress-


Handcrafted in Italy - Notice the gold plating -


Front left door damping in progress -


Front left door damping -


MF 6.2 midbass -

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

DLS Amp getting ready for installation in the boot-


DLS X-Program XA-40 Amplifier -


Front left door with the midbass installed -


MF 6.2 midbass -


JBL GTO 804 subwoofer -


Got GTO singing in my boot -


JBL!


Getting fitted into a sealed enclosure made specifically for this sub-


Minimal boot space utilisation -

[khan_sultan]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line (The "Assembly Line" Forum section) to the ICE Section. Thanks for sharing!

[Driving_Nomad]

Nice setup you have got there Crazy Driver!! Would you mind sharing the break-up of the INR 47K? The reason am asking is - I am looking for a superb setup on my 90HP but my pockets are on a strict diet. I have zeroed-in on a superb installer here in Bangalore (Bannerghatta road) and haven't yet finalized on what to get installed. I neither want an el-cheapo setup nor a wallet/credit card buster!! The max I can stretch is 50K, not a penny more than that!

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Driving_Nomad

Nice setup you have got there Crazy Driver!! Would you mind sharing the break-up of the INR 47K? The reason am asking is - I am looking for a superb setup on my 90HP but my pockets are on a strict diet. I have zeroed-in on a superb installer here in Bangalore (Bannerghatta road) and haven't yet finalized on what to get installed. I neither want an el-cheapo setup nor a wallet/credit card buster!! The max I can stretch is 50K, not a penny more than that!

50k will get you a good install for sure. I'll PM you the amount.

But the main question is - Are you planning on retaining the OE HU?

[esteem_lover]

Congrats on the new stock like setup. Are you sure you liked the speakers because they are Italian ?

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

Congrats on the new stock like setup. Are you sure you liked the speakers because they are Italian ?

They do induce passion into everything though. Installer could go on and on describing about PHD and yes - they truly had some nice quality features. Even a newbie like me could notice the quality and the attention to detail. Not to mention - they are handcrafted.

One of the 'foreigners' in the setup now - the Portuguese HU is definitly the weakest link in the system.

[iceman7]

That looks like a nice setup. A few questions though:

1. You can still continue to use the Blue&Me setup and steering mounted controls right?

2. I had heard that the stock HU on Linea's and Punto's are either Delphi or Blaupunkt. I will need to check which one is on my Linea

3. you mentioned this earlier but I want to make sure, can i install components directly with the stock HU? Is an amp a mandatory requirement?

[Driving_Nomad]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

50k will get you a good install for sure. I'll PM you the amount.

But the main question is - Are you planning on retaining the OE HU?

Thanks a ton for the PM!! Yes, I want to retain my stock HU at the same time would like see the possibility of adding an Aux option. Don't know whether this is possible. AFAIK, Blue and Me is connected to the Aux port in the HU.

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

They do induce passion into everything though.

Passion it is, mate!!

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Installer could go on and on describing about PHD and yes - they truly had some nice quality features. Even a newbie like me could notice the quality and the attention to detail.

How do they compare with Focal Polyglass, Infinity Reference/Kappa and JL Audio?? I had shortlisted these three brands and hence asking this.

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

One of the 'foreigners' in the setup now - the Portuguese HU is definitly the weakest link in the system.

I thought it was a Blaupunkt HU I was running

Wait a minute, I remember the HU warranty card/manual and the code card say that they were Blaupunkt! Saw Iceman7's post and remembered

[anachronix]

Congrats sir! Great setup there!

But its not the PHD thats used in the Ferrari, but its the Harman products & JBL thats used in the Ferrari 458 Italia

Harman - JBL Professional® Premium Sound System selected for Ferrari 458 Italia Spider

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by iceman7

That looks like a nice setup. A few questions though:

1. You can still continue to use the Blue&Me setup and steering mounted controls right?

2. I had heard that the stock HU on Linea's and Punto's are either Delphi or Blaupunkt. I will need to check which one is on my Linea

3. you mentioned this earlier but I want to make sure, can i install components directly with the stock HU? Is an amp a mandatory requirement?

1. Yes. I did not mess with the stock system at all. Only the speaker level outputs coming from the HU (to the front speakers) have been used to drive the amp - which inturn feeds the front components and the sub. Rear speakers continue to be driven by the HU.

2. I heard recent ones are from Delphi.

3. Its a highly debated topic. There are installs where people have changed just the speakers and have been satisfied with the install. As i told earlier - I heard beautiful music being produced from a cheap kenwood HU feeding a PHD component speaker. Although our stock Delphi HU seems to be even cheaper than that entry level Kenwood HU. Don't waste too much money on the speakers though - in case you plan to drive it off the HU. But one this is for sure - It will beat the stock sound anyway. The stock front speakers are of very poor quality - rated for 20W.

If you visit TFI - have a look at the ICE threads there. I saw a few of them running components successfully with the stock HU.

Originally Posted by Driving_Nomad

Thanks a ton for the PM!! Yes, I want to retain my stock HU at the same time would like see the possibility of adding an Aux option. Don't know whether this is possible. AFAIK, Blue and Me is connected to the Aux port in the HU.

I dont think Blue&me connects to an AUX input on the HU. Read somewhere that it connects with a standard ISO connector.

Had googled for this earlier, and found something. Not a simple procedure though.

MP3 Aux Input on 500, Grande Punto, Linea, Panda & Stilo

Originally Posted by Driving_Nomad

How do they compare with Focal Polyglass, Infinity Reference/Kappa and JL Audio?? I had shortlisted these three brands and hence asking this.

I'm a newbie in ICE too, and wont be able to do justice if I were to answer this question. However, just small things from my experience- Regarding Focal Polyglass - they are excellent speakers - and have built quite a reputation for themselves. They have an excellent mid-range. PHDs have a stronger and tighter mid bass though.

Infinity Reference is their entry level, right?

Previously - I had this setup in mind. Its a tried and tested one - and will comfortably fall around the 45 budget.

Stock HU
Focal Solid4 amp.
Focal Polyglass components.
Focal Access co-ax.
Focal Access Sub.

Originally Posted by anachronix

Congrats sir! Great setup there!

But its not the PHD thats used in the Ferrari, but its the Harman products & JBL thats used in the Ferrari 458 Italia

Harman - JBL Professional® Premium Sound System selected for Ferrari 458 Italia Spider

I got a JBL GTO in their somewhere. So, I'm still ok with the thread title, right?

[anachronix]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

I got a JBL GTO in their somewhere. So, I'm still ok with the thread title, right?

Oh yeah, thats what I was saying mate! It wasnt the PHD thats used in the Ferrari, but the humble JBL in the boot