Amps and Car Audio

Yes, your going to get 4 total speakers.

Your going to get a pair of 6x9's in the rear and a pair of speakers for the front.

You have a couple of options for your front speakers. You can either replace the factory speakers with aftermarket speakers of the same size or get component speakers. Your car probably has a pair of 5" - 6" speakers in the front doors. For good sound imaging you would want to get a set of component speakers (seperates) containing a pair of tweeters, woofer, and crossover. This allows the tweeter to be placed up near ear level, instead of down by your leg.

Your gonna need a big amp to power those subs. You usually want a amp that can produce enough watts in the upper half of what the sub can handle. It also depends on the subs sensitivity(dB) rating. For example, a speaker rated 3 dB higher than another requires half as much power to produce the same output (volume).

Yes, MTX subs are all very good except the Thunder4000's.

[Rand0m]

I talked to a friend of mine last night who helped me out a lot. SandStorm what your saying is I need a pair of 6 x 9 speakers in the rear, and a set or compononet speakers in the front at the door?

Also when getting the rear speakers should they be 4-way or 2-way?

Random, EXACTLY what year/make/model are we talking about? Then we can answer the speaker questions more easily (as well as make sugg.).

Generally your rear speakers are 2 or 3-way, whereas the fronts you want seperates, which are KINDA 1-way( 1 woofer, mostly midrange sound, and 1 tweeter, soley for high-end). Trust me, if you like guitars, you want tweeters in the front!

Your ideal shopping list should be (in order of importance):
1.Head unit. like sandstorm said, this is the hear of the system

2. Good speakers, all 4 corners. (you can live without bass, but bass is nothing if tha's all you hear)

3. Subwoofer(s), Sub box, and Sub amp(s). Consdier them one purchase, since no single one functions without the others (essentially).

4. Speaker amp. You'll want a 4 channel amp, the wattage will depend on what speakers you buy, and what they can handle.

5. Crossovers, Caps, Equilizers, etc (essentially, the stuff that cleans up/enhances your sound, but isn't required for enjoyment. This is more for audiophiles ).

Also, don't dump a bunch of money on good gear, then wire it together with generic radio shack cables.....spend a little dough here too, it'll help.

Start posting model numbers if you know them for the stuff you're looking at, it'll make answering questions easier (since I can look up the specs that way, and answer my own questions about # of coils, RMS, etc).

[Rand0m]

For subs Im thinking of one of these two, I like the black ones though, they are exactly the same basically just different colors and minor things.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&tc=photo&item=5700126644&category=39779

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=18804&item=5700920247


Is this a good cd player for the price?

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-SwJi9Cxd4K1/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=300&I=113KDC2025&o=m&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y&search=

Originally posted by Rand0m
For subs Im thinking of one of these two, I like the black ones though, they are exactly the same basically just different colors and minor things.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&tc=photo&item=5700126644&category=39779

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=18804&item=5700920247


Is this a good cd player for the price?

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-SwJi9Cxd4K1/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=300&I=113KDC2025&o=m&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y&search=

CD player isn't bad, my only complaint would be that it only has 2 amp pre-outs

I'd have to check, buy I think that 10" is the exact same sub I have now....it rocks

[Rand0m]

Ok I think I have made my decision on a head unit or cd player what ever you want to call it.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-VMtTMRmnVjQ/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=300&I=113MP425&o=p&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y&search=

If your too lazy here are the specs. If for some reason something sticks out to you that will screw me over and I shouldnt get it let me know.


fold-down, detachable face
multicolor, dot-matrix display
plays MP3 and WMA files on CD-R and CD-RW
plays CDs, CD-Rs, and CD-RWs
CR-2 tuner
18 FM/6 AM presets
seek tuning
HD Radio-ready (requires Kenwood HD Radio tuner, available in 2004)
System Q Sound Control
6 preset EQ curves ("Rock," "Top 40," "Jazz," "Easy," "Pops," and "Flat")
bass, treble, and midrange controls
Speaker Setting function adjusts output with three settings (factory speakers, larger aftermarket speakers, smaller aftermarket speakers)
source tone memory
SIRIUS satellite radio controls (SIRIUS subscription, tuner, and antenna required to receive the satellite radio signal) — service is available only in the lower 48 states, not available in Alaska, Hawaii, or U.S. territories
CD changer controls
optional auxiliary input
2 sets of preamp outputs
high-pass and low-pass crossovers
wireless remote
clock
22 watts RMS/50 peak x 4 channels
CD frequency response 10-20,000 Hz
CD signal-to-noise ratio 105 dB
FM sensitivity 9.3 dBf
warranty: 1 year

On the preamp outputs I seen this exact model at best buy and got this description-

Number of Pre-Outs: 2 pair

If that helps, the other one only had 1 pair, this has 2. So will this one do or do I need more pre outs?


Actually I looked closer at the top it said:

2 preamp outputs (2V)

Are preamp outputs and pre-outs the same thing?

[Rand0m]

I did some more looking and for a few more dollars I found this Kenwood with 3 pairs of preamp outputs at 2V's. Is 2V's good enough, I've seen others with 5, does it make that much of a difference or it shouldnt matter in my situation? The 4-5v preamp ones run in the 300-600 dollar range which is getting out of my league. I never thought I'd spend over 200 dollars for a cd player.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-5ioBNs1LBvb/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=300&I=113KDCX579&o=p&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y&search=

Second one is much better. Includes a dedicated sub-out for the amp, has slightly better specs in some areas (110 StN ratio, versus 105), and has a longer warranty (2yr vs. 1yr). It's also part of the eXcelon line, which are their premium head-units (I've got a ~$400 eXcelon, but it's 3yrs old, so my specs are very similar to that one).

The only potential downside, which you'd have to spend a chunk more money-wise to get around, is it doesn't support a video display. Now, I could give a shit less personally, since I don't plan on putting an LCD in my car/truck. However, it is something to be aware of, if that's something you'd want to do later on......

[Rand0m]

No I would never put an LCD in this car. Maybe if it were newer but Im only hooking this car up strictly audio wise. So I guess I'll take the plunge and go with this one, it looks nicer too I think compared to the other one. But the picture also doesn't help much, its a bad quality picture.

[King]

The rockford HE2's are badass... i have a pair in my explorer... w/ the windows down you can see my roof go up and down... the mirrors shake like all hell and its a good massage too.

[Rand0m]

Originally posted by Kingofbeers
The rockford HE2's are badass... i have a pair in my explorer... w/ the windows down you can see my roof go up and down... the mirrors shake like all hell and its a good massage too.

Yea they are awsome I just don't see any amps powerful enough to support the RMS watts for them. Especially anything over 400 watts RMS x 2 subs at 4 ohms each.


I think Im gonna hold off on that head unit another weak and maybe get a top quality one.

[Rand0m]

bump and more info

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-3aoGZ06ixgJ/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?a=1&s=0&cc=01&g=62700&id=features_and_specs&i=113KDCX679

Thinking of getting this one now...more money more high end better looks. I also saw a Panasonic in the same price range, wondering how much more of an affect the more rms watts will have on sound quality to the speakers. Looked at my rear 6 x 9's they are 10 ohms! Damn GM can do something right besides its factoy paint job.

Heres a side by side comparison;

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-0A8wbFab12P/cgi-bin/ProdComp.asp?g=62700&c=3&s=0&cc=01&pt2=0&ITM113KDCX679=on&ITM133C8400=on&IMAGE4.x=29&IMAGE4.y=3

Kenwooed 22rms watts x 4, peak 50 watts
Panasonic 26rms watts x 4, peak 60 watts

Will the rms play a bigger role than looks? Sounds funny, I know, but if it doesn't look nice why in the hell would you get. it

1.Head unit: IMO kenwood=too busy lookin...lot of shit crammed into that face, but the one u picked isnt bad about that...pioneer always good, their premier line is better quality...panasonic's not bad, neither is blaupunkt! if u wanna fork out a little more $, u cant go wrong w/ alpine, eclipse, naka.

2. Good speakers, all 4 corners: if ur nub, its easier to just replace what u have w/ better quality speakers...i.e. if in the back, u have 5 1/2's, dont try to cram a 6x9 in there...some sorry ass installers could fux the cutting up too.

3. Subwoofer(s), Sub box, Sub amp(s), and Speaker amp: ok, since ur kinda nub @ this, and i didnt see u post anything about a bass comp u entered...i'd say, just get 1 amp (for sub) for the sub, get JL best sound for the $ IMO, all u'd need is something like 1 JL 10w0, in a ported box...ported box = lots of air moving = lots of bass....kicker's good, so is rockford fosgate. and dont be nub man, dont point ur sub @ ur back....point it away from u...u get the best quality sounding bass that way...u prolly gonna have to make license plate stop rattling...but thats easy. and the head unit will power the 4 other speakers, and the sub wont drown them out...unless u make it o yea, get like a 2 channel 400-500w amp & bridge all that shite to the sub ! (and in response to the previous posts sayin something about 'bridgeable amps'...all amps are bridgeable, gg)

4. Crossovers, Caps, Equilizers, etc: pick out a 1337 head unit, and it will do all this..mine does

Also, don't dump a bunch of money on good gear, then wire it together with generic radio shack cables.....spend a little dough here too, it'll help: <<very good point! getting an uberbattery like an optima wouldnt hurt either :x

[King]

oh and random, if you are running multiple amps... you might wanna consider a capacitor... otherwise you'll destroy your alternator.... food for thought. at least a half farrad would do you good.

[Rand0m]

Does anyone have the Alpine CDA-9833?

I know that only one or two of their models have the motorized face plate, this one doesn't. How do you acess the cd, you hit the eject button and slide the face plate out of the way yourself I assume.

This one is the one Im probably getting.


http://www.crutchfield.com/S-qflIM3zUiPB/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=62700&I=500CDA9833&o=p&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y&search=

One plus with that one is you can change the button colors from a choice of over 512 colors!