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Frustrated with the audio quality in my 2019 SVR I decided on a complete revamp. Installed two new Audison Forza class D amplifiers (one a DSP) powering new Hertz Legend ML speakers all round with dedicated wiring. Also fitted is a JL Monoblock amp running a 10" sub in the boot to provide over 2500 watts in total with still room for golf clubs. OEM amp gone and replaced with Digital Ethernet Decoder (not a Mobridge as they won't say when theirs is ready). Maybe the first currently installed in a f type. If you have M.O.S.T protocol (fibre optic ring) in your car instead of the most recent ethernet then you use an Audison Bit DMI instead of the Digital Ethernet Decoder. Either one goes between the head unit and the DSP. Without these you leave the OEM amp in place and use the speaker outputs from the amp as your low level inputs to your new DSP amp. Still a nice sound but elimination of the OEM amp brightens things up albeit naturally a little loss in volume due to the elimination of that amp. But not much though as it's insanely loud :-). Catch more info of my self build at new instagram page.....TrueBlueSVR.
Two Forza amps sit behind alcantara covered beauty panel. Amps and digital ethernet decoder mounted to ABS panel. Re-worked pods for mids and custom grp enclosures for woofers. Re-modelled tweeter sails covered in nappa leather. 180mm woofers installed in highly insulated doors. DRC fits perfectly in hole left by cigarette lighter. Set to control sub volume and channel selection.
Last edited by Dale Melton; 10-22-2023 at 04:55 PM.
Nice install man, really nice I mentioned in the other 'removing meridian' thread that I quickly dismissed removing the HU in my XES, but an install like this is still on the cards.... I wasn't liking the idea of designing the whole thing from scratch without knowing someone who'd done this already, but now you've put all this info up it makes me feel a bit better about the idea! I was (still am) considering upgrading from the 380w Meridian to Meridian Surround - to keep it all factory - but, while I've got some of the speakers and Cambo has the rest, I'll be buggered if I can find an amp that will match my car.. been searching for a year, no luck.
I did a HEAVY Dynamatting of my doors and it made a world of difference to the stock system, although the sub is now lagging behind... I want to give it a good Dynamat treatment too but access to the enclosure in my car is through one of the rear wheel wells 🤣
I LOVE your blue interior stitching, is that factory or did you get white stitching and dye it?
The wonder that is the Digital Ethernet Decoder. OEM amp in the bin! Alcantara covered beauty panel with RGB cob led lighting behind. Nice! Bespoke sealed grp enclosures for new rear woofers. Re-modelled mid housings for new mids. OEM plug on the mid was a temporary thang! After bridging channels to the woofers even 14 channels of DSP wasn't enough to go active all round so installed Focal cross overs on ABS mount in the empty space left by the OEM amp.
Wow, super nice. I have seen lots of amps piggybacking off of the stock amp signals (which I've done), but replacing it altogether is a feat. How does the stock head unit control it?
This is the bit I'm interested in as well. I've built a ton of car audio systems but always with a new head unit of my choice, so I've never understood how to go from a proprietary HU to an aftermarket system.
@Dale Melton could you give us a bit more info on the decoder?
Before the DED was integrated (final part of the install) my amps were piggy backed off the OEM amp as you say. On ethernet based cars this was the only way to do it until now. On M.O.S.T based cars, which was the protocol before ethernet, you replaced the OEM amp with an Audison Bit DMI which was the digital interface between the head unit and the new amps. This I installed in my sons 12 year old BMW that had M.O.S.T (fibre optic). Earlier f types had M.O.S.T also so I know those that have upgraded the audio have a Bit DMI incorporated so again their OEM amp is gone. The head unit controls the new amps via either the Bit DMI or the DED (vehicle dependent) as it did the OEM amp. All you do is unplug the ethernet lead from the OEM amp and plug it into the DED. The connection between the DED and the DSP amp is a Toslink (fibre optic) cable off Amazon. Of course you have to set up the DSP amp and assign channels accordingly. If you have the funds, believe me, starting virtually all over and just retaining the head unit is way easier than you think. You don't need LC7i this and LC2i that to sum signals or cure bass roll off as audio installers might lead you to believe....or any other **** in fact. I could pull my entire system out of the car leaving the head unit in place with just power provided and the ethernet cable connected between the DED and the the head unit and it would work on the bench. My sub volume is half up in the DSP and that's more than enough. I don't know who makes the box as there were no details with it other than a setting up procedure (in Chinese) to reduce the alarms, parking sensors and radar volume etc. I probably had the first one for JLR in the UK so had to sort it all myself.
Oh Dangoesfast this is only my second install but helps to be an engineer and pretty handy with ones hands :-)
Last edited by Dale Melton; 10-25-2023 at 03:40 AM.
Man I wish you still had the box or something, I've been searching for as many different ways of saying "digital ethernet decoder" as I can think of, and I can't turn anything up 😂 Could there be another name for it? Was there any custom work or did it plug straight in?
Had a flick through your insta, your painted supercharger top is niiiiice 😎
Dangoesfast, I've got the box but it's blank plus the instructions are just a photocopy with no manufacturer details. I guess my supplier in the UK is keeping it under wraps. No custom work needed and the OEM ethernet cable plugs right in. I used an ethernet extension cable which you can see laying next to my cross overs as the stock one wasn't long enough for me what with where my DED is positioned. You give it a permanent 12V, not switched as the unit only fires up when it gets a signal from the head unit. You also get REM OUT to bring on the other amps which themselves should also have a permanent 12V connection. Toslink cable from Amazon connects the DED to your amp assuming it has Toslink input connection
Took a lot of work to get that smooth finish on the charger cover. Yes I know the crank case breather hose is not routed correctly on this photo :-).
Last edited by Dale Melton; 10-25-2023 at 03:20 PM.
Takeapieandrun, I reckon you have M.O.S.T protocol in your car. You can check this by looking for a fibre optic connection on your head unit. This will be a plug/socket with 2 not so flexible wires. If you have then you can pull this from where it enters the OEM amp and connect an Audison Bit DMI to it. The 2 wires are a loop that goes around the whole car so in theory you can splice it in anywhere. On my sons BMW we pulled the fibre optic plug from the telematics unit, took it to the DMI, and then back into the telematics unit so it's simply daisy chained. As it's fibre optic it doesn't matter where any device is connected to the loop and the relevant component/module just picks up the info it recognises from the loop to do what it's programmed to do. Here's a typical M.O.S.T plug/socket. I doubt the wires are orange on the f type and they were green on the BMW but the plug/sockets will be like these. M.O.S.T
Last edited by Dale Melton; 10-25-2023 at 03:37 PM.
Any chance of a photo of those instructions (pm me if you like)? The issue I'm having isn't that I can't find your DED, it's that I can't find ANYTHING when I search that term. It's as if the internet thinks there's no such thing as a "digital ethernet decoder" so I need some different words to try and turn something up and the instructions might give me some different terms to search.
The supercharger top is awesome, I'm pulling my S/C to do the coolant lines soon so I might send it off.. my car is carpathian grey and that would look awesome under the bonnet...
I do custom carbon fibre parts as a hobby and I'm looking for Jag-related projects.... if you could do three parts on your car with carbon fibre, what would they be?
Any chance of a photo of those instructions (pm me if you like)? The issue I'm having isn't that I can't find your DED, it's that I can't find ANYTHING when I search that term. It's as if the internet thinks there's no such thing as a "digital ethernet decoder" so I need some different words to try and turn something up and the instructions might give me some different terms to search.
The supercharger top is awesome, I'm pulling my S/C to do the coolant lines soon so I might send it off.. my car is carpathian grey and that would look awesome under the bonnet...
I do custom carbon fibre parts as a hobby and I'm looking for Jag-related projects.... if you could do three parts on your car with carbon fibre, what would they be?
I have a unit currently enroute to me, hope to have by next week. Once I get a chance to test out to make sure everything is working as designed, the US vendor may be open to a group buy.
Nick in the US is keeping it close to his chest about who makes it. I doubt it's Mobridge (20 miles from me) as when I phoned them a few months ago they weren't very forthcoming with any info on when theirs is available. It's probably the same box from China that I have.
I have a unit currently enroute to me, hope to have by next week. Once I get a chance to test out to make sure everything is working as designed, the US vendor may be open to a group buy.
10-22-2023, 04:43 PM
Goodbye Meridian, helloooow Audison!!!
I mentioned in the other 'removing meridian' thread that I quickly dismissed removing the HU in my XES, but an install like this is still on the cards.... I wasn't liking the idea of designing the whole thing from scratch without knowing someone who'd done this already, but now you've put all this info up it makes me feel a bit better about the idea! I was (still am) considering upgrading from the 380w Meridian to Meridian Surround - to keep it all factory - but, while I've got some of the speakers and Cambo has the rest, I'll be buggered if I can find an amp that will match my car.. been searching for a year, no luck. 
