nbpEMCivic

iTrader: (1)

Two of my buddies have spent some money on thier sound system in thier Civics. They both have, among other things, subs. I hate them, any time I try to listen to my music (rock, alternative...Strokes! Radiohead!) it sounds like crap on thier systems, as all I hear is the brrrrrrr of the sub. Sure its find and all for rap, but I dont like that crap. What kind of a sound system would you all recomend for the good old fashion rock and roll type here (hahaha)? A new head unit shouldn't be too hard for me to decide on, I want one with mp3 capabilities. I'm guessing I should replace all four speakers and power them off of an external amp, not the new reciver. Or can I just get the new reciver, and amp, and use the stock speakers? What would be the most effective route to go? Effective meaning a balance between cost and sound quality. Thanks guys.

Voiceofid

iTrader: (3)

i would say get a 400x4 external, a mp3hu and change out the stocks. if it isn't enoguh, u can get a little id10 and put it in your trunk for low bass support(not superloud). and i highly recommend a component set for the front

nbpEMCivic

iTrader: (1)

Any recomendations on specific models? Amp, speakers, reciver?

WhiteRabbit

depends on your budget. if you have a small chunk of money, and looking to not get subs, id reccommend a pioneer head unit, doesnt have to be the super-expensive ones, a pair of infinity kappas on a 2 channel amp of yoru choice, id go with earthquake cause they are clean and cheap, and have a decent (its effective) crossover network. $100 for an 85x2 watt amp.

fo rthe rear, id go with new kappa 2 ways on deck power, or I would go all out and get kicker 8 inch freeairs and install them in the rear deck.

if you dont want to take teh fabrication time and effort to fit those boys there, then i would get kicker 6.5 inch freeairs (no 6x9's) and depending on the setup, i dont know if i would run them off deck power, or if you should get a 4 channel amp to power everything.

if you get regular speakers for teh rear (not kicker freeair) then you get a 2 channel amp for the fronts, and run the rears on deck power.

if you do get kicker freeair subs, or any free air subs (dang, who else makes freeairs?) its a tossup, 8's youd need power for sure, but im not sure if you can run the 6.5's offa deck power or not.

running the freeairs would be ideal over a full range, because then you are limiting teh frequency range playing out the back, and you are using the rearfill for what it truly is, which is rearfill. properly crossed over, it will not destroy your soundstage, and even raise it up higher.

and your friends need to get off their RF overly tuned poorly crossed overgain controlled sub setup and learn how to build a quality system [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/IMG]

nbpEMCivic

iTrader: (1)

haha I actually understand what your saying Whiterabit....never really got into ice myself, but a good quality sound system is looking more attractive every day. I don't know too much about audio systems, but I do get what your saying. Thanks for the help, I'll do some searcing and pick out speceifc things and post back here later on today with prices and such.
Edit: lemme get this straight before I look for anything
So the best set up for me would be a Pioneer reciver, 2 infinity kappa's (components) in the front powered by an external amp, and 2 regualr 6X9's in the rear powered by the reciver. What about my tweeters...how do they play in all this? I have an Ex...so it came with them (or do all models come with them?)

nbpEMCivic

iTrader: (1)

Pioneer Reciver
Check that one out...it look any good for my set up? Yes I know I can get it for cheaper if i search, just using crutchfield to find what I want.

WhiteRabbit

by definition, a component speaker set comes with woofers for the doors, and tweets for the mirror.

and that deck looks fine, just make sure your not going to pay alot for a bunch of features your never gonna use!

mohawkboom

iTrader: (1)

A Free air setup in the rear decks of our cars is impossible without some welding..some fiberglassing and some MDF..the rear decks are too thin a sheetmetal to support actual bass.and will rattle to hell..

What I would reccomend is getting a good 4 channel amp.. preferably 50Wrmsx4 Get JL audio XR components for the front and a 10" JL audio 10W0 subwoofer.. for rock..yes you still need a sub.. gotta feel then kickdrums...

A Single 10" sub with 100 Watts of power will give you that low end extension your looking for without anything buzzing or being overpowering....

Cheers
Mohawk

WhiteRabbit

<< A Free air setup in the rear decks of our cars is impossible without some welding..some fiberglassing and some MDF..the rear decks are too thin a sheetmetal to support actual bass.and will rattle to hell.. >>



kicker freeair 6.5's? 6x9's?



<< What I would reccomend is getting a good 4 channel amp.. preferably 50Wrmsx4 Get JL audio XR components for the front and a 10" JL audio 10W0 subwoofer.. for rock..yes you still need a sub.. gotta feel then kickdrums... >>



said it before, I'll say it again, the word "need" is entirely overused on this forum......

and if he is gonna run rear speakers, may as well run them on deck power, the idea is ambiance, not actual sound. I think his motivation for not wanting subs is somewhat skewed, but if he wants to run all speaker, then tahts the way some people are. its also lighter (most ppl dont care about weight that much tho) tho real world youd never feel the difference. (unless its my car [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/IMG])



<< A Single 10" sub with 100 Watts of power will give you that low end extension your looking for without anything buzzing or being overpowering.... >>



I absolutely agree that his situation would best be solved with the purchase of a single small 10 running off teh rear channels of an amplifier.... would also remove the need for rearfill, especially with components with good midbass like the kappas, or REALLY good midbass like the JL XR series...

again, if you wanna go cheap but decent quality, earthquake make an amp designated "4.3" does 85x4, 130x2 at 2 ohms, and 255x2 at 4 ohms. perfect to run 85 to each side of a set of XR's and 250 to like a w3, or an evo, or a crystal, or an idq, or something [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG] hell, really anything that has a 4 ohm final load and loves low power. a kenwood KFC-3003 (the blue tornado sub) would like that kind of power, and is real cheap too, but wouldnt be able to TOUCH any of the others in terms of SQ.

take a low power sub, put it in a largeISH ported box, tune low, youll get massive low frequency extension for that one song you love that needs it.....and a dead flat frequency response, all at repecatable levels, especially if you get XR's or kappas, easy to keep up with teh bass.... should sound warm and fuzzy [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/IMG]



<< Cheers
Mohawk >>



happy April 20th weekend!

WhiteRabbit

also ive actually found the rear deck to be quite resilient, with only moderate deadening...nothing to extreme...

the only problem fitting something larger than a 6x9 or 6.5 in there is teh fect hat you got your trunk springs, thats where I see the heavy modification being done, not in teh rear deck (tho youd still have to trim it, NOT an easy task....)

that plastic panel on top is a BEYOTCH to holy hell tho. sweet merciful crap, if i have to hear that $&@^ buzz ONE more time in my car, im gonna line it with cork. solve THAT problem RIGHT there

one can always cut 6x9 holes in the side panels and screw any sort of staging to hell. of course yoru car would look rather foolish, too... but you skipp any sort of rear deck clearance or fabrication problem. also you have the frame close by to weld/bolt/fiberglass/stick chewing gum to.

mohawkboom

iTrader: (1)

White rabbit..

Now a low tuned ported enclosure will have a flat frequency in an open room..you're forgetting about a cars transfer function..and for rock a small sealed enclosure works best for tight punchy bass... with rock there's generally no bass below 40hz anyhow..

Cheers
Mohawk

WhiteRabbit

<< take a low power sub, put it in a largeISH ported box, tune low, youll get massive low frequency extension for that one song you love that needs it.....and a dead flat frequency response, all at repecatable levels, especially if you get XR's or kappas, easy to keep up with teh bass.... should sound warm and fuzzy [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/IMG]
>>

WhiteRabbit

<< [take a low power sub, put it in a largeISH ported box, tune low, youll get massive low frequency extension for that one song you love that needs it >>

WhiteRabbit

<< for that one song you love that needs it >>

mohawkboom

iTrader: (1)

but for those that don't a lrge ported box will be rather muddy bass with a fair amount of overhang..not what rockers wanna hear [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG]

WhiteRabbit

lol i love your new sig, god-boy ;p

but yeah, you win. i hadnt taken that into consideration, and you caught me.

you win this round, boom, but ill get you yet! ill get you next time, gadget! neeeeeeeexxxxxt tiiiiiiiiiiimmmmeeeee!!![IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG]

i used to love that show, what a f'ing retard [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG]

nbpEMCivic

iTrader: (1)

keep it coming guys! getting a nice lecture on car audio here, thanks! Oh and I've decided that I really don't need a mp3 player. I've been driving 2 years without one, I think I can save some cash there. [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG]

WhiteRabbit

i just dont like the sound of mp3 in a car. just doesnt work out for me, at any compression ratio.

if your looking to save teh most money, id get teh lowest pioneer deck that has a rotary volume ****. THAT is a feature well paid for ;p and besides, your getting the same cd reader in a pioneer deck whether you buy the 1400 or the 9400, basically. same features from that point. its just you get all teh equilizer junk, the bass controls, teh fancy organic display

and that level of pioneer deck can be had on ebay for les than $150, too. cd-r, cd-RW, dont matter. hell, my 4 year old pioneer plays cd-rw's, never skips, puts out a stable voltage for teh amps, and NEVER clips the signal out teh RCA's. NEVER.

there isnt a better brand for the money.

Ben

save money.. ok here ya go

Pioner Premier DEH-P740MP

better than the one you are lookin at for ......

270$ at www.Smilephotovideo.com i got mine for 240 at the same place but they had the price wrong cause they just came out [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/IMG] so sorry for them ....

i got mine there with no problems and it works great. Mp3 function is slow but i don't use it too often but its nice to have when i need it.