Where to buy DLS Audo Equipment...

[chuyler1]

www.dlsamerica.com

I want an A5 but there are no retailers in New England. Is there any place that sells them online or will I have to contact one of the retailers in say NY or PA to have them ship one to me?

I'd also can't find the price anywhere.

Also, has anyone listened to their component speakers?

 

[FrigginGLI]

No place online. Contact your local retailer. Im running the DLS Ca-23 amp, got it from a seller here in the Orlando area. The A5 is going to run you upwards of $500, maybe more.

 

[got wake?]

there are places online that sell DLS, but they are not authorized. and generally you don't save any money. unfortunately a guy that used to sell DLS that was cutting really good deals on authorized equipment is no longer carrying DLS. scott bawalda is who i bought my A6 and iridium 6.3's from. he sells the A5 for $509. as long as you don't have a DLS dealer close to you, he'll sell to you.

which components where you interested in?

 

[chuyler1]

I don't know...I'd have to see what the price ranges are. I'm using a set of 1999 Eclipse 6.5" components now. They cost me about $360 at the time.

I'd like to go 3-way but that would mean custom kicks. However, the DLS 3-ways have a dome midrange which might take up less space than your standard 4" speaker. If I could make kicks and still have the dead pedal I'd go for it.

 

[got wake?]

the dome mid needs a bit of mounting depth, but it isn't too bad. the nice thing about domes is that they don't as precise of aiming. scott bawalda won world finals with them facing each other, not aimed at the listeners at all.

if you moved your fuse panel out of the way, you'd definitely be able to keep your dead pedal.

expect to pay around $600-$700 for the iridium 6.3's. i've seen them a little under $600, but that's not often.

 

[FrigginGLI]

I don't know...I'd have to see what the price ranges are. I'm using a set of 1999 Eclipse 6.5" components now. They cost me about $360 at the time.

I'd like to go 3-way but that would mean custom kicks. However, the DLS 3-ways have a dome midrange which might take up less space than your standard 4" speaker. If I could make kicks and still have the dead pedal I'd go for it.

Good choice on the speakers.

 

[chuyler1]

What's the price on the UP36 or UR36S? Is there a noticable difference?

Do you think the 50 watts from the A5 is enough to power any of these or should I be looking at something with more power for the fronts (for example the A7 with the fronts and rears bridged)

 

[got wake?]

the prices scott gave me that are from january of '04 list the UR36S at $629 and the UR36 at $439. you could probably find them for $100-$200 less. the A7 jumps in price to $789. if you are looking into the ultimate line of speakers, the UR36's and the iridiums are more efficient than the UP series, so you could use the A5 on the UR36S or iridium 6.3's.

as for the difference in sound, if you are considering the UP36's, i'd suggest checking out the MS6's, which use the same tweeter as the UP series, and add the UP2.5 dome midrange for $129. the MS6's are $209. i don't know if it's been tried before, but essentially it would be the UR36's with a different 6.5" driver that is more efficient.

 

[chuyler1]

Ok, thats something to think about. I originally thought about the UR36S only because I assumed the Iridiums were outrageously expensive. If its only a $100 difference, I might as well splurge. First step, however, is to get the Amp.

I'm running MTX amps now. I just finished tweaking my fiance's system (Precision power PPI 5440 powering CDT Classic 3-ways) and I realized the quality of my system is very harsh. I think it may have more to do with the amp powering my components (a used MTX Thunder 302, 75x2/12.5v, 110x2/14.4v) than my speakers.

 

[FrigginGLI]

Those A series amps from DLS really shine when you get them down to 2 ohms and below, but the 50 watts rms should be more then enough of the Iridiums. Where you plan on putting them?

 

[chuyler1]

The woofer will go in the stock location. Then I will either make kicks for the mid and tweet or place the mid above the woofer in the door and the tweet in the stock location.

 

[FrigginGLI]

Nice your gonna love em.

 

[got wake?]

The woofer will go in the stock location. Then I will either make kicks for the mid and tweet or place the mid above the woofer in the door and the tweet in the stock location.

the beauty of using a dome mid-range is that the x-over freq is much higher between it and the tweeter than most components. i think the iridiums are 6.3 khz, so you can have the tweeter and mid-range farther apart without the problems associated with normal components. the domes also work wonders off axis. play around with aiming them, but they don't require as much fine tuning as conical speakers. putting the mid-ranges in the kicks, mid-bass in the doors, and tweeters on the a-pillars is an excellent combination. it was keith doney's tiburon that first got me interested in the iridium 6.3's:
http://www.dlsamerica.com/teamdlschat/keithdon.htm

he's got the tweeter on the a-pillars, mid-ranges in kicks, and mid-bass in the doors. it sounds awesome. scott bawalda had the same combination in his old altima, that he sold a while back. but it won world finals like that.

as for an amp, you'll definitely want at least 100 watts on tap, if not more. the A7 with the 4 channels bridged would give you plenty of headroom. or you could bi-amp the components because the mid-ranges use a seperate x-over network. then if you have time alignement on your HU you can tailor the sound a little. or if you need to boost up the mid-range, or tone it down, you'd have that option. that would actually be a very flexible setup.

 

[chuyler1]

$$$ $$$ $$$ as I read your last paragraph.

I agree about the mids download and the highs up high. I've seen that done in several installs also.

We'll see.

 

[FrigginGLI]

Maybe you could move down to the reference 4 channel and bridge it, to save you some cash.

 

[got wake?]

Maybe you could move down to the reference 4 channel and bridge it, to save you some cash.

or just about any other decent powered amp. there isn't really a need to spend a lot on an amp. and by a lot i mean that i had no need to get the amps i have, i just had some extra money and got a deal on them. unless i had a good chuck of spare change, i probably wouldn't do it again.

 

[FrigginGLI]

I hear that, thats why I went with the CA-23 from DLS.

 

[chuyler1]

Normally I would agree...but amps do add a certain coloration to the sound. I know a watt is a watt but from my experience, when you dish out a little more dough the amp won't break up as much under heavy load.

I'm really just looking for an amp that will give me years of great sound with little trouble. I plan on owning my Protege5 for at least another 3-5 years. My next install better last that long.

I'm looking at the other DLS lines and I think the Reference RA-50 might do the trick (4x50+1x250 or 2x200+1x365). However, I'd like to have more power for my subs.

Dammit, why can't manufacturers offer components in 2ohm versions? The only brand I know that does this is Image Dynamics.

 

[FrigginGLI]

Some of the Boston components are 3 ohms. A few other brands have below 4 ohm components.

 

[got wake?]

old soundstream components where available in 2 ohm variety. you generally don't see below 4 ohm often because as the impedance drops, so does the dampening factor. while for a sub it makes little difference, a mid-range/mid-bass driver playing higher freq's it can make a difference. plus at lower impedance the THD goes up.