Need help picking a system

[Just Nasty]

I don't know a lot about car audio, so can someone give me some pointers and let me know what I should pick up.

For the subs I'm thinking about these
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1051384109574&type=product
700 continous sounds good.

I also like these, especially since it comes with a good box already
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...21064&productCategoryId=cat03081&type=product

Or the Sony's
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...27765&productCategoryId=cat03081&type=product
I hear bad things about their amps, so are their subs also bad?

So what do you guys think about those subs?

Also when they say it is able to handle say 1000 max, but only 300 continous, then what good is the 1000 max, or how do you even get it to put out that max power?


As for amps I have no clue what I want, so can someone point out their top 3 picks for amps, nothing over 250 though.
I want nice bass and boom but clarity is just as important to me.
Thanks.

 

[f4st]

Dont pay attention to the peak power, just look at the continuous or the RMS. Sony subs suck and the power acoustiks would pound but probably have little sound quality. I would look at 2 infinity perfects, kicker compvrs, or 1 of these bad boys (same price as 2 of the power acoustiks) http://www.stereointegrity.com/Magnum12.html which will get loud and at the same time sound awesome . Shopping at bestbuy for car audio is prob a bad chocie there is much better stuff out there. Look for a hifonics mono amp off ebay, you can find them for under 250.

 

[sjwelna]

As with all car audio related questions, we need to know a couple things to help you effectively:

1) How much are you willing to spend on each component?
2) Are you going to be installing all this yourself or paying someone else to put it in?

I could point you towards a really nice system, but 1300 dollars of just bass isn't for everyone.......

What size/number of subs are you looking for, and why do you want that combo? You can get some single 12's to sound as good and get louder than a pair of 10's or 12's. It's all dependent on #1 the install, and the equipment.

Do you have any kind of aftermarket speakers? If you just have the stock stereo in there, having subs will overpower the stock stereo in a hurry, thus leading to your stereo sounding really bass-heavy.

Personally, I would never buy a prefab box after seeing and using some various ones in the past. Plus, you can build a custom box for easily less than 50 bucks if you have a drill, and jigsaw, which is all I have ever used to build any of mine.

Most importantly we need a budget for you. Then we can really start to give you suggestions.

Personally, I hate shopping for car audio at best buy, simply because you can usually find better quality components than the mainstream ones that they sell there, for cheaper.

-Steve

P.S. I wouldn't touch sony speakers with a ten foot pole, but that's just me, I hate the way they sound, and in my experience, they can't handle much (clean) power without distorting and sounding like complete ass.

 

[Just Nasty]

Well the reason I would preffer to get them at Best Buy is because I know someone that works there, and he gets close to a 50% discount on all audio equipment, so I figure it would be nice to pick up some nice 300 dollar equipment for like 150 or so.But if I can get something better than what Best Buy carries for no more than 200 a set then I can be happy with that.By that I mean no more than 200 for the amp, no more than 200 for the subs.The system will be going in a 2g GSX, all audio equipment is stock, but I will be upgrading all the stock speakers, just not soon I doubt.If I was to get the system from Best Buy then yes it would be installed by a professional, if I get it elsewhere I know someone pretty good with cars that could help me out.

Other than that I'm not sure if I want single 12s or double, if a single 12 can work just as good as 2 then I guess I'm fine with that, enlighten me though.

thanks again.

 

[SpYYder]

I have the same problem. i work there, and often times the car audio discount is over 50% on certain things, but the best stuff we have is rockford (subs wise) and the pioneer speakers, but no pioneer components which sucks... i want to build a system using my discount but i don't have much to work with... i might try the power accoustic subs, i can get them for nothing and they handle 1200 watts or something... if it doesn't work out i guess i will get rid of them or put them in my winter car.

 

[84fiero4speed]

This seems to be the same thing everyone wants. "I want a good system but don't want to spend any money". For the most part, you can't get both sound quality and bump for cheap. It just doesn't work that way. As far as good sounding subs for the money, take a look at Image Dynamics. Their ID and IDQ series subs are pretty good, I've got two Image Dynamics IDQ 12's and a Rockford 750 watt amp and that's enough bump to take my rear view mirror off. Also on EBay you can find a Kicker SoloBaric L7 15 inch for around $200, that's a lot of bump for the money, but not very good sound quality. Just my two cents from someone who knows a little about car audio.

 

[SpYYder]

i understand you can't get great quality for cheap. if you read my post, which you probably didn't, i dont claim to be a car audio expert, however im not an idiot and i know the stuff we sell is not top quality. I'm simply trying to see what is the best i can get using my discount; if its not good enough, who cares, ill put it in my winter car or sell it, or it doesnt even matter what i do with it, considering i will only be paying 40% of what the price is when you walk into the store and look at the tags.

I would like one or maybe two IDmax 12"s, i Do have the money for that type of system, however i dont see a point in ordering these yet considering i dont have a fiberglass enclosure for them yet. Nor do i see a point in ordering them when my engine is not built. that type of high-end audio i feel isn't nessecary to me just yet. cheap shit i can get from work might be, for the time being.

 

[Just Nasty]

If I had 1,000 dollars to dish out, believe me I would, but I don't.Therefore I have to work with what I got.

 

[chorpie]

If I were you, i'd upgrade the stock stereo system first, and then do the subs last. I put Infinity Kappa Perfect 6.1 component for the fronts and the Infinity Kappa 6x9's for the back and they sound awesome, and put out a fairly decent amount of bass. Not as much as a dedicated sub would, but they sound very nice.

The Image Dynamics speakers are badass, but i didn't want to spend the little extra on them. If you've got the money, they are the way to go.

in terms of getting a box, I was looking at the Audiopipe box with the 10's in it. They are supposed to be fairly decent and I think the whole setup is around $200 (box with 2 subs)

Audiopipe enclosures

This enclosure is at a web store...

 

[nutshot]

This is some of what I have learned over the years*.

In my experience, used equipment is best if you are on a tight budget.

A 250 watt rms Amp and 250 watt rms Sub usually pacifies folks looking for bass.

A single 12 will hit plenty hard for an otherwise stock system.

Don't worry about sealed, ported or bandpass boxes, few people can hear the difference at 250 watts rms.

When buying a sub, ignore max wattage entirely. RMS is all that counts.

Buy a sub for Xmax and sensitivity:

- Xmax is the measure of "throw" (how far a sub moves); big Xmax = big throw = more thump

- Sensitivity is measured in Db (decibels). Every 3 db doubles the volume. I like high sensitivity subs on a tight budget (more sound per watt).

*My experience may not coincide with yours, deal with it.

 

[chorpie]

haha nutshot, i like your little disclaimer :laugh:

 

[nutshot]

haha nutshot, i like your little disclaimer :laugh:

Thanks. The CYA factor has gotten sinister on this forum. Folks get pissed if they have a different opinion.

 

[Chuckster]

I give up. What's CYA?

 

[Attack Eagle]

the same as cymfa just not to as high a degree...

clean translation cover your keester.


sonys stuff is called Explode for a reason.

most bb installs are not done by a professional... they and circus USUALLY have less trained and experienced installers there... thats where folks get started...
Most of their installs are of the "plug and play" variety with little to NO custom work.

comp vrs are loud and pretty clean sounding but for SQ they can't touch a JBL sub.

Adding bass to the factory system is the FIRST thing you should do... when you go to a better speaker for mids and highs you are giving up that "factory" thump.

pioneers aren't too bad but stay away from premade boxed, particularly the plexi boxes.


check a local shop for used demo or trade in equipment.

I got my ix405d 5 channel for 250 my mb quarts for 119 etc... and a single 12 with a nice amp behind it in a sealed and correctly sized enclosure will sound amazingly good in a 2g and might be enough... if not add another.

cheap amps that will provide 300 watts rms are the alpine for 199... or JBL gto series 300.1 for about 250... the jbl is the way to go if you can eke out that extra 50... you won't need to upgrade it later

 

[Chuckster]

If I'd just bother to read one more line, I wouldn't have to edit!! Thanks, Attack!

 

[nutshot]

sonys stuff is called Explode for a reason.

comp vrs are loud and pretty clean sounding but for SQ they can't touch a JBL sub.

pioneers aren't too bad but stay away from premade boxed, particularly the plexi boxes.

On the Sony front, yes. Dead on. I had a $450 (retail) Sony Xplod. Smooth black face. Flip down. I was curious and bought a $300 (retail) Alpine and dropped it in. The sound increased tenfold (clarity was astounding).

Comp VR's, um, I disagree. Maybe pound for pound, okay. Compared against any "real" ($250 retail and above) sub, nothing to write home about.

I owned a Pioneer 10 once. I loved it, until I got a Solobaric. No contest, on the same amp.

 

[biddybengbeng]

On the Sony front, yes. Dead on. I had a $450 (retail) Sony Xplod. Smooth black face. Flip down. I was curious and bought a $300 (retail) Alpine and dropped it in. The sound increased tenfold (clarity was astounding).

Comp VR's, um, I disagree. Maybe pound for pound, okay. Compared against any "real" ($250 retail and above) sub, nothing to write home about.

I owned a Pioneer 10 once. I loved it, until I got a Solobaric. No contest, on the same amp.

hell, i still have a solobaric i bought in 1999 (s12d) round baby! still slams like the day i bought it. just waiting to get the boston G5 subs in though

i've said it before, but the boston acoustics G2 subs are EXTREMELY hard to beat for the money. a 10 is 150 bucks MSRP and a 12 is 180 MSRP. they absolutely STOMP the jl audio w3v2's, for about 70 bucks less per sub. the are also very efficient. 200 watts RMS of clean power is more than enough to make one do what you want it to. they're rated at 300rms. the G2's outperform the old boston pro subs pretty easily. forget anything you previously knew about them for subs, the new ones are awesome

i've had at least a dozen different brands of head units. alpine, nakamichi, sony, pan, clarion, pioneer, kenwood, eclipse, etc etc etc. i keep going back to eclipse decks for a reason...... they rock. you can't beat a set of 8v RCA pre outs SQ is phenominal, great ergonomics, and i have not one complaint about any of them. i'll stick with eclipse from now on. they cost a little more,but worth every penny

 

[Attack Eagle]

Comp VR's, um, I disagree. Maybe pound for pound, okay. Compared against any "real" ($250 retail and above) sub, nothing to write home about.

agreed!

jbl subs are very impressive, but above his "$200" price point... about 270 for a gto 12, as are the bostons and solos (which are more pounding than SQ)

for under 200 you really can't go wrong IMO with a comp vr... nice balance between pounding bass and accurate bass IF you build the box on the small side and sealed...

 

[Just Nasty]

I found some IDMax's(1000 RMS with .98 XMax) for 250 and those are suppose to be close to competition level speakers, so I may go with them.

I can't find these VR subs your talking about though.

 

[nutshot]

I found some IDMax's(1000 RMS with .98 XMax) for 250 and those are suppose to be close to competition level speakers, so I may go with them.

I can't find these VR subs your talking about though.

Kicker Comp VR. Low on sound, thump and general customer satisfaction.

IDMax sounds like a lot of sub. Remember, you really do want an amp that puts down the RMS of the sub (in this case, 1000WRMS). You may have more leverage if you look into a lower powered sub and a consequently smaller amp.

 

[biddybengbeng]

agreed!

jbl subs are very impressive, but above his "$200" price point... about 270 for a gto 12, as are the bostons and solos (which are more pounding than SQ)

for under 200 you really can't go wrong IMO with a comp vr... nice balance between pounding bass and accurate bass IF you build the box on the small side and sealed...

this is incorrect about the bostons. they are designed for SQ, they just happen to get plenty loud and a 10" sub msrp is 149, a 12" sub msrp is 179. they absolutely stomp subs WELL above their price point from kicker, jl audio, and many other companies. for the money, you won't find a better sub.-

 

[Redmachine]

If I were you, i'd upgrade the stock stereo system first, and then do the subs last. I put Infinity Kappa Perfect 6.1 component for the fronts and the Infinity Kappa 6x9's for the back and they sound awesome, and put out a fairly decent amount of bass. Not as much as a dedicated sub would, but they sound very nice.

I agree 100% here. Upgrade your full range speakers first. Don't skimp here(i did and I am paying for it now) Clear highs and mids brings out good bass. You don't want a tinny/bass setup with no mids.

 

[WarriorCC22]

hey, check my gallery for pics of my system. I have stock speakers, but with the right balance of bass/high/mid, they sound good still. Hits damn hard to in that tiny hatch!

 

[nutshot]

hey, check my gallery for pics of my system. I have stock speakers, but with the right balance of bass/high/mid, they sound good still. Hits damn hard to in that tiny hatch!

With new speakers, it will be on a whole new playing field. Stock speakers are rarely good.

 

[Attack Eagle]

this is incorrect about the bostons. they are designed for SQ, they just happen to get plenty loud and a 10" sub msrp is 149, a 12" sub msrp is 179. they absolutely stomp subs WELL above their price point from kicker, jl audio, and many other companies. for the money, you won't find a better sub.-

sorry see how that was easily misinterpreted...

meant
bostons and solos arebove price point ... stop... ([Solos] are more for pounding than sq)

bostons and JBLs are among the most accurate subs I have ever heard with the jbls barely edging them out... but most folks think subs that don't "hit" aren't playing well when the inverse is true...

buy the best you can afford that suits your tastes..., just remember that the Speaker does the really hard work of converting everything to sound and has the greatest effect on how the system plays, followed very very very closely (or even hand in hand) with install design and quality.