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Posted by leeboy13
Hey all, im looking to upgrade my car sound system.

Basically i have a pioneer cdplayer 45w per channel
6x9's sony (good enough).

So i need front speakers 17cm
And id like a amp with something to kick out a lot of bass (im lovin it at the mo) so either a sub or bass box thingy (as you are aware im crap when it comes to car audio)

right to save some questions i have a cavaliar M reg and by no means have any intention to attempting to be a boy racer or chav... i just wanna feel the bass in my belly!

I reckon ebay is my best bet and have looked a fair bit (but again i dont know what to look for) also i want it as cheap as i can with out compromising too much quality (bargin hunters at your ready!) lol


But yeh, any help guys and gals would be very muchly appreciated

Have a pleasent day all - its sunny as hell here in cardiff today (i think thats what got me thinking about my car system (roadtrips this summer)

Lee



[ This Message was edited by: leeboy13 on 2006-04-28 09:58 ]


Posted by pmerryman
check my reply here, pretty good prices.

http://www.esato.com/board/viewtopic.php?topic=120486#post1631751

Posted by methylated_spirit
Kicker or Vibe subs are great. Steer clear of Sony Xplod speakers, they aren't that great, althought their subs and amps are pretty decent. To be honest you won't go wrong with Pioneer or Alpine.

Posted by leeboy13
thanking you two!

Although meths you just said the worst thing you could of said... i bloody bought sony X-plod speakers didnt i... lmao! damn it! they are my 6x9's

May have to upgrade the whole lot then

Really appreciate teh help though guys!

Lee

Posted by JK
6X9 errr i like pioneer to be honest.... 460W.

Im actually looking for a Sony xplod deck, with duo pro insert. Is it available, does it even exist?? I know of the JVC one with SD cards.

For you, get some sony mids for the doors 220w run it and your 6x9s of some cheapo amp.... i suggest calibra or blaster.

and get yourself 1 12" Pioneer DVC 1000w sub, with a mono block or any decent amp... hook up a cross over and you set!!

[ This Message was edited by: 786KBR on 2006-04-28 15:24 ]

Posted by leeboy13
sweet mate! nice one for that....

can i ask one more favour, no rush do dude, if you could find an example of soemthing like i need on ebay that'd help coz i really dont know.... failing that i will post things that i find and maybe people could critise

As for you song deck with the card input. i aint seen them mate but tbh if they aint done - why????? tahst a lovely lil idea so if you do find them be sure to post where

Cheers

Posted by JK
Heres the sub



Heres the JVC radio with sd cards and satelite radio



and the amp



Posted by leeboy13
ace! thanks for taking the time buddy! at least i know what im looking for now

happy days

Posted by lamont
i can personally recomend the 1230w infinty refernce subs, these are really cheap but amazing bass! also if you want something that kicks loads bass and looks amazing and really cheap go for the auidobahn AWC12T!! and get matching amps!

Posted by WelshTom
DO NOT put speakers in the back (especially 6x9's they are usually designed to play loud but sacrifice quality for harsh treble)

Music coming from behind you only muddies sound

think about it....
do you goto a gig and stand with your back to the band? nope!
are your ears facing forward for a reason? yup!

a good pair of amped component speakers up front will do you

if you sometimes have people in the back then by all means uprate the speakers in the rear panels but have them running of the head unit amp and fade them out if no one is in the back.

you will be amazed at how good just a pair of componets up front with a good amount of power will sound.

as for subs in the boot and 6 x 9's you will kill the 6x9's the sub will be pounding the same air as the 6x9s and eventually they will die. take the 6x9's out re cover the shelf so the holes for the 6x9s let bass into the cabin

So - in summary

Dont have speakers in the back unless you take people regularly - if you must have speakers in the back run the off the head unit but fade them forward if noone is in the back remove the 6x9's and recover the shelf this will let bass into the cabin

get a good 2 channel amp for your front speakers.

A quick guide to putting together a good, basic system:

Before we start this is a great quote to remember:

"It is unwise to pay too much but it is worse to pay too little. When you pay too much you lose a little money....that is all. When you pay too little you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the things it was bought to do."

Remember that! Spend wisely over time and the end result will be spot on

Head Unit
A good CD head unit will start the system off nicely. Spend around £200 or so if possible and think about your current and future plans when choosing. Look at the number of pre-outs, the pre-out voltage, security (removable face?) etc etc
Good brands to look at are: Alpine, Blaupunkt, Clarion, JVC, Kenwood and Pioneer.
To fit an aftermarket you may also need an ISO Adaptor (converts your car's specific wiring into standard used by most units) and maybe a Facia adaptor, to fill the hole left by fitting a different sized unit (thou. off the top of my head i am quite sure the cavalier is a standard single din slot so you won't need one of these). ISO adaptor will set you back around £15, Facia adaptors are roughly the same.

Front Speakers
Component speakers are a very good choice here, as you can customise the sound to your exact taste by moving the tweeters position / angle. These are harder to install because of the external crossovers and separate tweeters... but the effort can be worth it.
However, coaxial speakers can sound very good if installed well. These are far easier to install as there is just the one speaker which is a direct swap for the OE speakers (plus the necessary fitting adaptor / baffle).

Spend around £100 if possible, more if you can. Speaker choice is a very personal thing, as what one man loves the next will hate. So do audition as many brands as you can before choosing.
Good brands to listen to are: Infinity, Pioneer, Boston Acoustics, JL Audio MB Quart, Rockford Fosgate, Phoenix Gold, Diamond Audio, Crystal. Focal are great speakers but a little on the expensive side.

Amp
For a good, basic system...a 4 channel amp is a great place to start. This allows you to run your front speakers and a sub from the single amp. Spend at least £150 and make sure you do your best to match your speakers and subs power requirements to the amps output. If possible, buy an amp that produces more power than you need. Headroom is a very good thing!
Good brands to look at are: Alpine, Rockford Fosgate, Phoenix Gold, MacAudio, Directed Audio, Viper and Kenwood.

Sub
A good sub will add a huge amount more depth, dynamics and volume to a system. It will also take some of the strain off the front speakers, allowing them to work more efficiently.
The larger the sub, the larger the output (more surface area)... but also the box needed is larger and the amount of power required for good results will rise.
A good all round performing sub would be a 12" sub in a sealed box. This can happily cope with most types of music and offers more output than a 10" sub.
Good brands to look at are: JL Audio, Rockford Fosgate, MacAudio, Alpine, Diamond Audio, Viper, Phoenix Gold, Directed, VIBE.

Don't forget to budget for a box, or the materials to make your own.

Other areas to consider...

Avoid putting speakers of any type on the parcel shelf if your using a sub, as they will be destroyed by the air pressure in the boot.

Cabling: Do try and use a minimum of 4 gauge power and earth cable first of all if possible. This will ensure there is no voltage drop across the cable and will also cater for any upgrades or additions to the system. This is assuming just one or two amps in the system...any more will require larger cable.
ALWAYS use the same size earth cable as the power cable.
Avoid cheap RCA's, but there is little to be gained from spending a fortune on them. Ensure they are shielded and you'll be fine.

Box design: If your making your own sub box, bear in mind the following...
Sealed boxes offer greater power handling and a tighter, faster, more accurate sound. Better for sound quality.
Ported boxes offer around 3-4dB extra output than a sealed box and drop lower. But this is at the expense of some sound quality as they aren't as fast, tight or controlled as a sealed box. They also have to be designed and built specifically for the sub. Very good for hip-hop,RnB and other music with slower bass lines

Sound deadening: Even a little bit of sound deadening will help the system. But, the more you can apply the better! The front doors and the boot are the two most important places. If your only applying a small amount to begin with, concentrate on the area around and behind the speakers in the front doors. This will make a noticable difference to the sound.

All of the above should be used as a guide to help you plan for a simple, starter system hope it helps

Posted by leeboy13
my oh my, thats one awesome reply welshtom, really appreciate that one and fingers crossed it'll help other too

Cheers for doing that and i will have a real good look over the weekend now for some parts... not exactly sure of a budget yet as im suppost to be saving for holidays this summer (shhh teh misses will never find out)... lol

But honestly now, im dead up for having a good crack at this... although id like to show you my experience level - it took me 3 months to finally figure out and rewire my pioneer stereo... ouch... i had a lot of bad recommendations from people and ended up spending a forture on wire connections but got there in the end.

I aint that clueless i think a lot of that was due to laziness, anyhoots, like i said thanks a lot

all the best and have a cracking weekend all

Lee

Posted by Davo_169
if you want really decent bass then dont run it off a multi channel amp with other speakers plugged in.
want you want is a single channel mono or D block amp

anyways for tip top sound your best bet would be a four channel head unit running through a crossover unit which splits the frequency into the desired channels... so run from nought to 300hz through the D-block hooked up to a 10 or 12 inch...then run from say 300hz to 25khz a two or four channel amp (depending on how many speakers you want), and connect your 6x9s to that..then run from 25khz to infinity a component tweeter system.

sounds a bit technical doesnt it but if done right you will acheive superb sound quality

as for branding i would stay well away from sony.. they are over priced and overrated and are for chavs..
for budget you cant go wrong with an alpine head unit. kicker amps. and rockford fosgate speakers
for top end id go with clarion throughout

Posted by JK
Different strokes for different folks!
If you tight with cash do what i said...

If you not try these...













[ This Message was edited by: 786KBR on 2006-04-30 09:47 ]

Posted by carkitter
I agree with everything WelshTom said.

If your Cavalier's not garaged, make sure you get a good alarm with Battery-Backup Siren and Ultra-Sonic sensors. SMS paging may be a useful feature for you too, for peace of mind. Remember, the most important part of an alarm is the installation. Get it Stealth-Installed by a professional.
_________________

[ This Message was edited by: carkitter on 2006-04-30 13:11 ]

Posted by brownlad007
anyone got any recommendations?

i got £120 to spend on sound for a car. dont want to spend to much as the car is going to be 3k and bought stuff like tints already

cheers

Posted by lamont
you wont be able to buy a sub amp and speakers with that money i dont think and defo not a head unit which is needed

Posted by brownlad007
im sure i could buy a decent head unit

Posted by lamont
ye but not along with speakers for £120

Posted by brownlad007
4get the speakers, ill just get some out the argos catalogue lol

Posted by lamont
lol kk

Posted by WelshTom
what car are you getting brownlad007? only asking as some makes of car actual put half decent speakers in as standard - so if you stick in some cheapo gear from argos you may be reducing your sound quality. If you are on a tight budget just get a headunit to start off with. Though you really should try and up your budget to at least £150 for this. Remember it is better to spend the extra little bit now than buy some cheap crap that you throw out in 2 years.


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