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-   -   Audio advice... (https://www.subaru-svx.net/forum/showthread.php?t=23379)

Knightwulf 12-23-2004 02:46 AM

Audio advice...
 
Alright, I've finally settled on a headunit...

I'm going with the Alpine 9833 (http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YcOQTrH...0&I=500CDA9833)

Obviously, I won't be buying it from Crutchfield as they're ripoff artists and I can get it elsewhere for $150.00 less, shipped. However, they do have the best images/info pages...

Now... I was looking at a couple amps. I want to go cheap, but not crap... The two I was looking at were the Clarion APA450 and the Profile AP740 (http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YcOQTrH...&500MRPF240=on)

I've never heard of Profile, but this simply could be my audio ignorance showing through.

What I'm looking for is a good, solid amp with 4 channels for about $100.00. Of course, less is better. If anyone has any other suggestions or can suggest one above the other of the two I'm looking at, it would be greatly appreciated.

In addition, I'm still not certain on speakers. I've been advised to toss a couple Polk 6x9's in the back... Just looking for other suggestions... ..and is it worth it to go with component speakers? Would I have to go with both front and back components if I decided to go that way?

What about subs? I want something to fill out the music.. ..and to be precise, rather than mushy and boomy... Should I go with a single 10"?

Any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated.

In addition... I'm a computer tech... When I want to find out something about a new bit of hardware that's been released before purchasing it.. I can find 100's of customer and professional reviews...

With car audio? I'm finding precisely jack squat... Any suggestions for review sites?

drivemusicnow 12-28-2004 02:33 PM

Okk.. here we go. First I applaud your choice in Head units.. i believe it will serve you well.

second, theres TONS of amps.. and by tons i mean hundreds of amps that will fit your description. you need to pick speakers first, and then pick an amp that will work best with them. (and i've heard good things about profile)

My Next suggestion (regarding the review statement) would be to join www.caraudioforum.com (thats the one I, and Lee and Tim are all on) post something similar to this on there, and you'll get tons of recomendations.

If you could define a budget for the amp, speakers, and wiring (i assume you'll be installing everything yourself?) i could suggest things with a little more confidence

Components are definitly worth it, specifically with our car because we already have a mount in the dash for the tweeters.
I'll give you an example of what I did

I went with components up front, no rear speakers, and a sub. This allowed me to spend a little more on the front sound stage, which worked very well for me. I have a 12 inch sealed sub, which i will probably be porting rather soon.

define a budget and decide whether or not the rear speakers are neccesary (is it for everyone in the car, or just you;) ) and i'll try to give you some brands and products that will work for you

lee 12-28-2004 03:32 PM

OK Greg, this has gone far enough....beat me too it again and I'll never log off. ;)

Given what you listed (IMO) Clarion would be the better purchase...their amps are electrically equivalent to the KAR model of Arc Audio - a most definitely higher-end audio company.

that said, I agree 110% with Greg on components, subs and an amp - most bang for the audio buck. IMO, rear deck speakers are great for a 4-door car and "normal" listening levels - so the folks in the back can hear the music without it being TOO LOUD for the folks up front.

edit: I gave up the audio forum mentioned, too much noise in with the good stuff, now I usually go here: http://www.carsound.com/cgi-bin/UBB_CGI/ultimatebb.cgi
you can frequently find posts at this site by national IASCA winners, i.e., Scott Baille, et al.

Tim 12-28-2004 04:48 PM

I use a profile for my sub amp and it works well.

drivemusicnow 12-29-2004 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by lee
OK Greg, this has gone far enough....beat me too it again and I'll never log off. ;)

Given what you listed (IMO) Clarion would be the better purchase...their amps are electrically equivalent to the KAR model of Arc Audio - a most definitely higher-end audio company.

that said, I agree 110% with Greg on components, subs and an amp - most bang for the audio buck. IMO, rear deck speakers are great for a 4-door car and "normal" listening levels - so the folks in the back can hear the music without it being TOO LOUD for the folks up front.

edit: I gave up the audio forum mentioned, too much noise in with the good stuff, now I usually go here: http://www.carsound.com/cgi-bin/UBB_CGI/ultimatebb.cgi
you can frequently find posts at this site by national IASCA winners, i.e., Scott Baille, et al.

hehe :p

Ok.. so yeah, join a car audio forum, even if just for the time while you're picking out your stuff.

oh yeah... and Lee, I think I'm going to try and give my e12A the full 1.5 ft ported. the sealed box i made isn't bad, but being the first one I'd ever made, wasn't great. Plus I want to know what this thing can REALLy do ;) ;)
Now the problem is just figuring out a box design that will work.... :eek:

Tim 12-29-2004 03:38 PM

I was thinking about building a smaller box for my 10o.44. It currently has a 1.4 cubic foot box with 420 watts going to it.


Either that or getting hte new 10.kv2 and porting it hehe.

lee 12-29-2004 03:39 PM

I just took the two Infinity woofers out of my car today - running components only for the moment. I'm trying to figure out a way to build boxes on each side and have the ports exit into the 6X9 holes. I doubt my fiberglass skills are up to it, but I'm thinking anyway. I want to get back the open area so that I can stick long items in through the trunk when the rear seat is down.

Tim 12-29-2004 04:07 PM

I think I also need to take a step back to think about how I'm going to redesign my trunk.

drivemusicnow 12-29-2004 05:39 PM

Tim, i'll get you the dimensions of my box right now.. its about 1 cubic foot exactly, and you can make it longer or shorter depending on what size you want it.. allows pass through, and faces forward at present.

odepaj 12-30-2004 01:55 AM

Rockford Fosgate
 
what are your opinions on Rockford Fosgate equipment?

Tim 12-30-2004 07:40 AM

I personally would try to stay away from anything like Rockford, Audiobahn and Sony. They're pretty overrated and you can get much better equipment for the money.

Audiobahn is arguably good, but it's very subjective. I think the price you pay for them is the chromed out look. They do get fairly loud but the sound quality isn't really the best on it, but I dont know what you're gearing your sound for. I'm geared for all out sound quality.

I know at Best Buy they sell the Rockford 6 1/2 components for $170. For $150 you can get the CDT CL61's online which are arguably the best components in that pricerange. Try to look for something with a silk tweeter if you want laid back sound but look for metal dome tweeters if you want "In your face" sharp highs.

I personally use the CL61's with 3/4" silk tweeters. I basically traced the metal speaker frame around a piece of wood, cut the whole for the speaker so it fit flush against hte wood. Then I sealed the back and front with hot glue to close up any air gaps. The main reason I used hot glue was because it dried quickly and you can take it off if you make a mistake. Be wary using silicone or anything else that gives off fumes when it dries because it could eat the rubber surround on the speaker. Then I mounted the wooden baffle to the dynmatted speaker hole and screwed it in, then resealed the ring to the door with more glue, then dynmatted all around the speaker ring.

I've also seen a decent amount of Infinity components and to me they seemed rather harsh sounding and very tinny. It did lack midbass and didn't blend with the subs too well in my opinion. I did hear the Kappa Perfects 6.1 and they were pretty decent sounding in my opinion. They were pretty smooth and balanced but they were really expensive.


Subwoofers I would recommend Infinity, Image Dynamics, and Pioneer if you're looking for SQ budget.

If you're looking for SPL on a budget I would recommend something like the Kicker Comp VR. I've heard it in a sealed box and it got pretty loud but the low end wasn't all there. It can't hit the low notes very well (below 30 hz) because I ran some test tones and the subwoofer just didn't do anything. I did have a lot of kick in the seats if that's what you're looking for.

I would probably read up on ICIXsound.com and caraudioforum and read up on the different kinds of speakers, subwoofers, and amps.

Remember also that a big key in sound quality is the install. Most of the setups I've heard were pretty well set up but they did not take the same amount of time that I did sealing the midbasses and subwoofers.

lee 12-30-2004 09:16 AM

Like Tim, I also run the CDT CL61s. They replaced a set of Pioneer (the Premier line) components and the sound quality jumped up a notch that was more than just objective, i.e., I heard sounds in my car that I'd previously only got at home or with headphones. Of course there are better speakers than these, but none that I've heard at $150.

From low - to - high in price, I personally would buy Pioneer, Infinity, Image Dynamics, ... By the time you get to Image Dynamics IDMax series price point you should also have considered brands that include Elemental Design, Adire Audio, Diamond Audio, Resonant Engineering, JL Audio....

BTW, I also don't much care for their (Infinity) component speakers based on a price/quality trade-off.

Tim, if you ever decide to redo your door mounts try a little dumpster diving at a kitchen counter fabrication shop (what I did - of course I guess you could just buy the stuff, but where's the fun) - find a piece or two of Corian. Cuts like hard maple (so wood tools can be used) but has resonance characteristics almost like you mounted them in granite or concrete.

And let me know what you end up thinking about doing with your trunk. I'm torn between under the rear deck or in the area at the far back - just to the sides of the trunk lid. I really want to be able to stick in the occasional 2X4 so at least the middle has to be open.

Tim 12-30-2004 10:20 AM

Unfortunately there are very few mounting options for the amps in an SVX :(.

I'm still working on finding a way to do this and keep it all organized. I really need the trunk for my surfboard :(.

What i've been doing is folding the front seat all the way back and have the board lie in the front.

lee 12-30-2004 11:44 AM

For lack of a better place, I mounted my amp to the back of the rear seat. I don't carry anything wet (surfboard) so no worries there.

http://www.subaru-svx.net/photos/files/lee/23716.jpg

I ran the wires under the plastic strip that attaches the trunk carpet to the seat. Could be better, but until I figure out the final config, it's the best I could manage.

drivemusicnow 12-30-2004 02:03 PM

yeah i mounted both my component 100x2 amp, and teh 1500x1 sub amp on the back of the seat... however right now its a wiring nightmare. in the next three months i think i'm going to try building a ported box thats removeable, and clean up the amp installation....

I must say though.. the two matching hifonics amps glowing blue when the seat is folded down... looks impressive. especially with the e12A facing forward. minus all the mess and the plain MDF box... :rolleyes:

oh yeah, and i ALSO have the CDT CL-61 speakers... (and i crossed them over at 80 hz :eek: and they sound great :D )


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