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Jay FX4's Infinity Basslink Setup


Jay FX4

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Between TRS and other forums, I've seen quite a few Basslink setups in a Ranger. But every one I've seen has come at the expense of a jump seat, cargo space, or both. I didn't want to sacrifice either of the rear seats in my 2004 FX4, and I definitely need all the cargo space. I wanted to keep the rear cup holders too, since one of the front cup holders holds my ash tray. And finally, I was determined to make sure any modifications I made could be undone, meaning I wanted to be able to return the truck completely to stock form if necessary.

So..... what to do?

The Basslink comes with brackets to mount it either vertically or horizontally. I decided the best way to mount it was vertically, against the back of the cab between the jump seats. On my truck, this is where the jack, lug wrench, and extensions are held.
So the first thing I did was remove the jack cover and pulled everything out. This cover also has the integrated cup holders, and I was pleasantly surprised that the cup holders pop right out.

The first photo is the cover, and the second is the cover with the cup holders removed.





With everything out of the way, there's still a piece of plastic that bulges out, which would keep the wood mounting bracket I was building from sitting flush against the back of the cab. With a sharp box cutter, I cut it out. The first photo is the piece after it was cut out, and the second photo shows the hole in the plastic along the back of the cab.





This piece can always be glued back in later if I need to make everything stock again. In the piece of plastic I cut out, you can see a round hole. The turning knob on the jack cover goes through this hole, but it actually does little to hold the cover in place. The jack cover has two clips, one in each of the lower outside corners, that do most of the work. So the piece I removed can be glued right back in. It won't be visible since the jack cover hides it anyway.
In the photo above, you can see the ugly notch in the plastic above the piece I cut away. The notch had nothing to do with my cutting, it was already there. Having that notch be visible was totally unacceptable, since I wanted as clean a look as possible. So the wood mounting bracket I was building was going to have to cover that.

Here's two photos of the wood bracket as it was being created and test fitted.





In the photos above you can see three holes in the bottom of the wood to mount it to the floor, and two holes in the vertical back of the wood to mount it to the metal bracket that is attached to the back of the cab.
I didn't get any photos of this metal bracket since it's hidden behind the plastic. But I did not add the bracket in myself, it was already there. This allowed me to drill into the bracket to secure the wood, so I didn't have to actually drill into the back of the cab itself.

I added another piece of wood to the top of my wood bracket. This served two purposes: to hide that ugly notch in the plastic and to give a place to mount the cup holders to. Then it was time to paint it up. I chose flat black. Here's a photo of it after I had finished painting it.



Ready to install!

Here's a shot of it installed.



And another with the Basslink's brackets attached.



Here's two more with the sub in place.





Then I added the cup holders. One screw for each.





And it's done!





(Those cups in the holders are just for show. I would NOT keep a cup like that there while driving and the bass pounding! I have no intention of frying my $300 sub. The only thing I put in those cup holders are either my ashtray or an unopened drink.)

So there it is! I was able to keep the seats and cup holders, and I only lost an inch or two of cargo space. IF I ever have rear passengers, they'd lose a little leg room, but not much at all. I have a tonneau cover, so I just threw the jack in the bed. It can just as easily be stored under a seat.

Also, there was no need for the Basslink's wired gain control. While still keeping my eyes on the road, I can easily reach back to adjust the controls on the Basslink itself.

Hope you like it! :D
 


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looks nicee i bet it sound great, did you ever fix the doors?
 

Chris.S.

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Looks good, nice and clean.
 

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MountainMike

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That looks awesome Jay!
 

daniel3507

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i was worried you weren't going to put the cup holders back
 

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looking great!!!
good work
 

Jay FX4

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Thanks for the compliments, guys! :icon_cheers: I appreciate it.

93baker, I haven't dealt with the doors yet, partially because I had been working on this project, and also because the doors don't rattle with the bass down and the sub up. It's hard to get motivated to do it when everything sounds as outstanding as it does right now. I'm tentatively set to go back to work the 1st of October if all goes well, so I'll definitely work on it at some point before then.

As far as the sound quality of the sub.......WOW!!!
It's quite a bit better than I thought it was going to be. This is my first car sub, but had I gone the separate amp/sub route, I would be a sealed box type of guy. I like tight clean bass, not the boomy stuff you get with a ported box. The Basslink has a touch of boom if you crank the bass boost control, but for the most part it has a very tight sound, which I love. Bass drums have a nice tight thump, and you can hear all the individual notes of a bass guitar. The bass is very deep, and it can play very loud - the 200 watt RMS amp has had zero problems handling everything I've thrown at it. Another thing I like about it is even though it kicks some serious ass, shaking the mirrors and making my seat feel like a massage chair, the bass for the most part stays inside the truck. If you turn it up you can hear it outside, but I'm happy that I can blast it without pissing other people off. I really don't have a single complaint about it. Time will tell how long it lasts. I'm not concerned about it, since I don't push it as hard as it can be pushed. But having a sub/amp in one unit means if either the speaker or the amp quits, you're screwed. I did get a 3 year warranty from Crutchfield, though. Read the reviews on it at any site, and you'll see the overwhelming majority of people love it and haven't had any problems with it. I'd strongly recommend it to anyone looking for a 10" sub!
 

plumber1

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what did you use to notch the cover for the jack?
 

plumber1

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what did you cut that out with
 

triumphrider-1

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How much space is behind the rear plastic (the part you cut out)?
 

Jay FX4

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How much space is behind the rear plastic (the part you cut out)?
Well, that's the back of the cab there, which has "ribs" in the sheet metal. In the pic above you can see some of the padding behind the plastic. That padding is maybe 1/2" thick, and the ribs in the sheet metal touch it. Between the ribs, from the plastic to the metal, 1.5" maybe. I'm not positive, I had no reason to measure that. Why do you ask?
 

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