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[EvilMSP]

if you are going with passives, spend your money on a high quality set of components, since much of what you are paying for are the passive x-overs. amp the hell out of them. 100x2 minimum. you could also look into 3 channel amps, but given your budget, a good quality 2 channel amp and nice components are going to be plenty.

Yeah that is what I am going to do it seems. I don't drive other people very often so I only want 1 pair of speakers for me basically. So basically I want to find a decent HU and quality 100x2ish amp then get the best speakers I can.

I'll look into all those mentioned companies and see what I can find. What should I look for in a HU since I've stated I like quality sound over light shows.

 

[got wake?]

Yeah that is what I am going to do it seems. I don't drive other people very often so I only want 1 pair of speakers for me basically. So basically I want to find a decent HU and quality 100x2ish amp then get the best speakers I can.

I'll look into all those mentioned companies and see what I can find. What should I look for in a HU since I've stated I like quality sound over light shows.

alpine or eclipse for HU's.

the DLS A3 is a 100x2 amp that puts out more like 150x2. here are the specs.
here's a guy that is selling one for $400 shipped, brand new.
that's a steal, since they go for about $540 brand new.
add in the UP6S components for $469 and you'll have plenty of mid-bass and an awesome tweeter.

the alpine 9833 would be a pretty good choice for a HU, and at just over $300 it's a pretty good deal.
for a little more you can get the 9835.

this eclipse unit is a sweet HU as well, and is also around $300.
i almost bought it, but i really want the ipod interface that alpine has coming out.

 

[EvilMSP]

Thanks you again wake you are so helpfull. I love how you actually post the links to things cause then I know im looking at the right thing. I'll check out those specific ones now and see what makes them good

 

[EvilMSP]

Hey I thought you were supposed to be Adire's speaker *****

It seems like DLS is your main woman now

 

[1sty]

I think we are starting to talk way outside of th ebudget here. A head unit, good amp and component speakers can be WAY outside of your budget.


I would suggest starting with the speakers and really listen to many different sets. Considering your other desired purchases, keep the speakers to under $400. There is nothing wrong with passive crossovers. Sure active can be more flexible but if your not going to take the added time to set them up properly or don't have the electronics to do so, then they can do more harm then good. Also biwiring and Biamping is not needed and for this budget I would ignore it. If the components you get support it then cool, if not don't worry about it.

For me, headunits are an appearence and feature driven purchase. Don't be terribly concerned with preout voltage, S/N rations and even power output as you'll be amplifiing. Buy what you like ergonomicly, has the features you want and not a ton you don't care about. $300-$350 can get you a very nice head unit.

For the amp, get something of decent quality and that has the power you need in the real world. $300-$350 will do the job, expecialy for a 4 channel bridged to a set of components.

 

[1sty]

Hey I thought you were supposed to be Adire's speaker *****

It seems like DLS is your main woman now

He flips onto something new bi-weekly

He praises everything about Adire yet buys orion subs to compete with.
Now he's on a DLS kick, I can't keep up
(confused)

 

[got wake?]

He flips onto something new bi-weekly

He praises everything about Adire yet buys orion subs to compete with.
Now he's on a DLS kick, I can't keep up
(confused)

the brahma is going in my truck for SQ. the H2's were too good of a deal to pass up, however i recently sold them since i no longer need them. $50 profit from letting them sit on my shelf isn't bad(thumb) the H2's are more of an SPL driven sub, and i was going to compete for SQ and SPL with them. now i scrapped that idea and am going all out SQ for my truck, and later i'll start on my blazer for pure SPL(glare) after hearing the DLS components and opening up the amps, i must say they are very high quality, so why wouldn't i recomend them?(poke) i branch out and try new things rather than relying on the same old recomendations(first)

 

[got wake?]

Hey I thought you were supposed to be Adire's speaker *****

It seems like DLS is your main woman now

i may look into sponsorship from DLS after next season. once my truck is done it will be evaluated by DLS to determine if it's good enough to be part of team DLS. there are only like 15 members in the US, and they are very strict about who is allowed in. course the main reason why i probably won't get in is because the contact at DLS america and i got into an arguement after they shipped me the wrong components. so far it seems that his attitude sways him against letting me even submit my truck for review. needless to say that i have connections to go straight to the president of DLS america if this bulls*** continues(glare)

 

[1sty]

i branch out and try new things rather than relying on the same old recomendations

I did, its called a Katana

I don't have the time or dispedable cash to buy audio just for the hell of it any more. I can't even find the time to finish up my kick panels or to restart my doors.

 

[chuyler1]

I'm going to chime in here...

First, for plenty of ideas check out the $1000 Audio Challenge sticky thread. However, many of the posts in that thread asume people want subs...which I agree, is not always necessary. A set of 6.5" components properly amplified can yeild great results at moderate listening levels as long as you don't enjoy Rap/HipHop. Additionally, you mentioned 1000+ as your limit so since you're looking for SQ (which doesn't come cheap) I'm going to make use of the '+'. I'm also going to asume you don't want to scour ebay for months waiting for the best deal...so this is a new equipment suggestion.

So here's my recommendation...

You mentioned you don't want anything flashy for a head unit. For around $275-350 you can pick up a Nakamichi CD-400. Its a no frills head unit that is all about SQ.

For amplification, I would find a 2 channel amp that puts out about 75-110 watts per channel. Since you don't have to overcome your desire for loud bass like most car audio enthusiasts the power rating is less important than the quality of the amp. I recommend the Zapco Reference 350.2 (100x2) for $469.

Finally, for your components, you're going to want something that will sound great running full range. A set of 6.5" components is a must. If you're up for some fiberglassing you could move up to a set of 3-ways but that may bust the budget too much. So for the easiest install I would recommend a set of CD Tech Eurosport 6.5" braxials. You can pickup last year's model for $500 at www.mmxpress.com. They are regularly around $650.

Of course you need wiring which you can pick up at www.knukoncepts.com for around $100, maybe less. Then there is the install materials. I'll guess around another $100 for miscelaneous stuff: carpet, mdf, screws, glue, jig saw blades, and all that other s*** that adds up.

My grand total:
Nak CD-400 $350
Zapco 350.2 $469
CDT ES 6.5s $650
Wiring $100
Misc. $100

Total = $1669

That my friend would be a sweet system. Anyone that listens to it would not be asking "where's the bass" ... unless you put in Jay-Z's latest album that is.

 

[got wake?]

I did, its called a Katana

I don't have the time or dispedable cash to buy audio just for the hell of it any more. I can't even find the time to finish up my kick panels or to restart my doors.

sorry, no bike in my future, ever. after removing my brothers skull and brain fragments from his helmet before i handed it to my dad, i'm a bit scarred and have no desire to ever even ride on one again car audio keeps me sober, drug free, and from wasting my money on other stupid stuff(wiggle)


how much do you have left on your kick panels? and why are you restarting your doors?(uhm) i liked the insert idea so much that i'm incorporating something similar into my door pods, so i can adjust the positioning of the 3" dome.

 

[chuyler1]

insert idea? please expain.

 

[1sty]

sorry, no bike in my future, ever. after removing my brothers skull and brain fragments from his helmet before i handed it to my dad, i'm a bit scarred and have no desire to ever even ride on one again car audio keeps me sober, drug free, and from wasting my money on other stupid stuff(wiggle)


how much do you have left on your kick panels? and why are you restarting your doors?(uhm) i liked the insert idea so much that i'm incorporating something similar into my door pods, so i can adjust the positioning of the 3" dome.

Sorry to hear about your brother, I certainly understand you staying away from them.

The kicks are basicly done, I just have to finish off the cover plate and grill. NOt to mention dynamat then. get new sill panels to fasten them to (or dye mine) and put some poly fill in there.

I was rather pissed about the doors. I got them almost done when the resin started to seperate from the panel by the seem of the factory door panel parts. I didn't notice it in time and I ended up putting in marglass to reinforce it which further seperated things and warped the panel. I am sticking to the same idea but I have to really do some thingking about how I am going to do this. I was thinking of doing it by laying glass on the door panel in the area I need it and make a door pod of sorts but then mold it into the rest of the panel and cut out the back. I may try it the way I did before too, but I have to first prep the surface of the panel alot better and somehow crunch the seem of the door panel down. Although the door panel has a lip around it aswell so that make me want to just do the pod idea again.
Its a thinker (uhm)

 

[EvilMSP]

Yeah that new grand total is too high but thanks for the excellent info! It was good to hear some more opinions.

I'll keep looking around but that HU does look very nice to me. Seems like a no frills HU for SQ. As for the speakers does anyone know a place where I could hear all these. They all seem so good but I haven't seen any of these brands at a major store. I guess I'll have to find a specialty car audio shop somewhere.

From the looks of things I would like to spend like 300 on HU, 250-300 (not sure really) on the AMP and then whatever I can on speakers.

The AMP I can just read the stats and go from there but it would be nice to hear and see the speaker/HU's in person.

Anyone know places in Cali that carry stuff like this? Or atleast some kind of search tool. Thanks again.

And yeah I won't be listening to Jay-Z as often as Greenday/Dashboard/Metallica

 

[EvilMSP]

And I did look a lot at the 1000 audio challenge but everyone there seems to build the best overall system for the money. Always includes 4 speakers, 1-2 subs yada yada and I am no longer interested in that.

I had that kind of setup in my old T-Bird and now I want a minimal system built around SQ. And I know I'm not spending much money for the world of SQ but its a lot more than those systems.

And I am still liking the simpleness + quality of that Nak HU. You didn't mention that company Wake was there any reason why you like Alpine/Eclipse better than them?

 

[EvilMSP]

Also I thought of a new question, primarily for Wake. I was looking more at the CA-50 you first suggested do you still think that would be a good idea? Bridging the channels and then using the same amp for my sub whenever I get around to it (I would get to it much faster if I already had an amp ready).

OR would it be a better idea to get a Amp for my speakers and then get another Amp for just the sub when I get one. Is there a difference in quality or anything like that?? I'm not sure so I'm asking. Is the 170 watt from the CA-50 just as good as a amp on its own? Thanks

 

[got wake?]

Sorry to hear about your brother, I certainly understand you staying away from them.

The kicks are basicly done, I just have to finish off the cover plate and grill. NOt to mention dynamat then. get new sill panels to fasten them to (or dye mine) and put some poly fill in there.

I was rather pissed about the doors. I got them almost done when the resin started to seperate from the panel by the seem of the factory door panel parts. I didn't notice it in time and I ended up putting in marglass to reinforce it which further seperated things and warped the panel. I am sticking to the same idea but I have to really do some thingking about how I am going to do this. I was thinking of doing it by laying glass on the door panel in the area I need it and make a door pod of sorts but then mold it into the rest of the panel and cut out the back. I may try it the way I did before too, but I have to first prep the surface of the panel alot better and somehow crunch the seem of the door panel down. Although the door panel has a lip around it aswell so that make me want to just do the pod idea again.
Its a thinker (uhm)

sounds like what happened to my doors in the protege i didn't secure them well enough and they warped a bit. this time i'm making covers, inserts for the front, then bolting them to the pod that will be behind the door panel. the door panel will be sandwiched between the 2 parts and i'll use some weather stripping to seal them up. but this way i don't have to worry about warping and messing up my door panel(thumb)
here's the front panel. i'm making it so that i can rotate the 3" up or down.

 

[got wake?]

Also I thought of a new question, primarily for Wake. I was looking more at the CA-50 you first suggested do you still think that would be a good idea? Bridging the channels and then using the same amp for my sub whenever I get around to it (I would get to it much faster if I already had an amp ready).

OR would it be a better idea to get a Amp for my speakers and then get another Amp for just the sub when I get one. Is there a difference in quality or anything like that?? I'm not sure so I'm asking. Is the 170 watt from the CA-50 just as good as a amp on its own? Thanks

that would actually be a very good choice. it'd put out about 100-150x2 and then either 170x1 or 280x1. the quality will be there. it's a class AB amp, so SQ will not be a problem for the sub channel, if you could hear a difference at all.

 

[EvilMSP]

Cool that is what I thought you would say.

Do you have any opinion at all about the Nakamichi CD-400? It seems like a nice no frills HU but I also like the Alpine/Eclipse like you mentioned.

 

[got wake?]

i've heard only a few complaints of nak over the years, but i also haven't heard anything outstanding about them lately i'd rely on the fact that they've always put out a solid product with SQ in mind. but i can't really comment on their new equipment.