four (actually five) speakers in spider (sorry about wasting spac e)

[Dan Hagrman <DanH@domain.elided>]

Ken & Hal,
(sorry about wasting space, I tried to be short)
I have a Veloce, but wasn't excited about cutting into the original metal
shelf... I also wanted a sub and amps, but didn't want to fill the trunk.  I
ended up making another package shelf out of plywood, sitting about 3"
higher than the original.  I then managed to squeeze a one cubic foot
subwoofer box under it on the driver's side, two amps bolted to the
underside on the passenger side (above the ECU), and rear speakers on the
outsides.  Wires on the shelf are connected to the rest of the car via two
plugs (power in & 4 speaker out) + RCA cables, and the shelf is a snug fit,
so I didn't bolt it down - which means I can remove it with the help of
someone on the other side of the car.  Because of the trunk & gas cap
thingie on the left, it's pretty much held in there until the seats are
folded forward.
I covered it with same color car interior carpet, so it looks very original
to anyone but a Veloce owner, and I leave the top down with confidence
(after removing the faceplate).  I mounted the amps with the knobs facing
forward, so flipping the passenger seat forward and unvelcroing the vertical
carpet flap allows me to adjust things (which I only did once, now I just
use the head deck).
Took a couple weeks to do and I'm very happy with the results.  A fake shelf
that didn't rise would be much easier, and could hold an amp and speakers,
though I had to raise mine to get the proper enclosure for the sub.  The sub
box is bolted to the shelf, and sits on the metal pan to hold up the left
side, there's a riser off the ECU box to hold up the right side, and the
amps are mounted on either side of the riser.  Once I had the height
calculated out, I used a cardboard template and many trial fits at that
height to get the shape of the shelf, then cut the plywood using a
scrollsaw.   
Two complaints though: the rear speakers are much closer to my head than the
fronts, it's hard to balance the sound, and the rear speakers are not
totally sealed, so they're a little tinny, though it's a convertible so
whahh.
Also, the veloce top boot conveniently covers the (old or new) package
shelf, which means that I rarely use it since it does a great job at
muffling the rear speakers.  
I can take pictures, measurements, etc. if anyone's interested, I have done
so in the past to varying degrees.
dan hagrman in KC MO, 89 veloce, with an empty trunk.

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