Came across something cool the other day - well, actually, I'd seen it before but I'd long since forgotten. Have you ever taken notice of those oddball American lowriders and "hoppers" that are in some of those US in-da-'hood films? They appear in Ice Cube movies and that sort of thing, and they're all pretty hard cars to ignore - doing the pancake, seesaw, front-back and side-to-side (all different types of hopper moves). Apparently the ultimate goal is to make it dance the Lambada!
In a one of my more inspired moments, I decided this was the kind of mindless mod for me. Strangely enough though, I've never seen any hoppers in Australia - only in the US. But I'm damn sure you could have some real fun with one of these wacky machines here Down Under. Imagine how unique it'd be - not to mention the reaction it'd get! Who knows, maybe hopping could "take off" in Oz... (sorry 'bout that pun!)
So what is a car hopper system made up of?
Judging by what I've seen looking around the 'net, the various systems available all use at least one pump, a myriad of lines and hoses, solenoids and switchgear, and the cylinders that force the car up. Mind you, some of the prices listed for these kits range from around US$400 to US$2700 - which, if you look at it this way, is more than the cost of fitting a good exhaust system. One of the American Pro Hopper kits is shown here.
It looks like in most cases you can use the factory suspension pick-up points - the cylinders simply force the ride height up from its base level. Depending on where the mounting points are and the strength of the car, I'd guess that it'd also throw a heap of stress on the chassis - so maybe it'd wise to install some bracing as well. Another problem I thought might crop up is in relation to the car's handling. Can you fit a kit and retain the same ride/handling compromise? I'd guess not. So you can't really put a kit on your suspension tuned streetcar and still keep it's wonderful ability to slice through hillside at extra high speed. D'oh!
But if anyone has any experiences in hopping around or details, please give me a 'mail - and I'll keep everyone posted on the feedback in a future column. So come on, who's gonna make it happen in Oz?!
The price you pay to listen to high quality car audio has certainly taken a dive recently. Of course, you can still pay bundle loads on the very latest professional gear if you want, but for most of us, a clean distortion-free sound along with a bit of pounding bass is enough to keep us smiling.
If you want to get good sounds out of a modern car it's never been cheaper or easier. A fair few of today's cars have a CD player and a set of four speakers already wired into it (some also with remote tweeters) - which can make it simply a matter of playing with cross overs, adding more treble, boosting the power and boxing up a sub. You might get away spending only about $500 (or more depending on the specifics of each component).
Anyone in a sound shop will tell you that the biggest amp is always better (with all-else being equal). While this is generally true, you don't need the biggest amp you can possibly afford. We're told running around 100W RMS to a 10 or 12 inch sub will make it perform properly, and you can do this by bridging a 2 channel amp (if it's rated to do so) or running 2 channels bridged from a 4 channel amp. If you can afford the extra green, going a 4 channel also lets you power up another pair of speakers too (like rear 6x9s for example).
The subwoofer is a bit of a challenge. A single 10 or 12 inch driver (for around $100-300) will perform well enough for most, but you'll have to decide how much boot space you're prepared to lose and how you want the sound to pass through into the cabin. We've discussed this topic in a previous sound story ("Installing a Free-Air Sub"), but the simplest way to do it is to have the driver pounding away in the boot and let the sound pass through the back seat. If possible, you might be able to remove some of the seat's rear trimming to allow sound to pass through more easily. A case of keep it simple, stupid.
Late model sedans have a huge sealed luggage area, which also makes an ideal location to put in a pair of 6x9s. If you want some sound originating from the rear, these oval shaped speakers are full range and are noted for their bang-for-buck performance. A good pair of 6x9s are about $300, and if they're mounted properly on the rear shelf they can sound pretty damn good too.
The front end should really comprise a split system - either a designated aftermarket pair of splits, or simply a remote tweeter added to another low-mid ranger/full range. A pair of quality add-on remote tweeters can cost around $60, and when matched to a factory door speaker, they can really give a boost to treble and imaging. The aftermarket splits will probably sound better and take more abuse, but they can also add a couple of hundred dollars to your bill. And if the car's existing door speakers are managing okay and sound all right, is it worth it?
If at any stage during playback at high volumes you hear any speaker bottoming (distorting), you should immediately look at crossing it over (ie "cap it off"). By inserting a capacitor onto one of the wires to the speaker, it's possible to prevent lower frequencies being passed through and this reduces the wear on the speaker. Oh, and it's also advisable to put a coil on the wires to the sub as well. This works the opposite way to a capacitor - it lets only the lower frequencies through.
Carefully defined cross-overs can make a big difference to both sound and the life expectancy of speakers.
Now we come to one often overlooked area - cable and wiring. Any large electronics-type shop should have reels of different speaker wires - the accepted rule being the bigger the better. And it shouldn't be any more than around $5 a metre - in fact, depending on amp power, wire costing about $3.50 should suffice. Just don't buy too little and find you have to go back for another trip!
There are some problems that you might encounter along the way though. Like what if your headunit only has speaker outputs and no RCAs (like many amps need as inputs)? The answer is you need to buy one of the few amps that will accept speaker ins, or you can buy a converter box for around 40 dollars. That won't break the bank.
See - not everything has to cost an arm and a leg!
And if you do get stuck upping your factory sound system ask an expert for advice - just don't get railroaded into expensive gear you might not need. It's easy to be wowed...
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