DarkSouljur

Hey, i'm thinking of ordering 2 pairs of kicked KS650's for my civic.

Here's the best buy link.

They were on sale at one point so i ordered them online. 4 weeks and a dozen phone calls later best buy cancels my order without letting me know. I'm really pissed about that.

So i went online and guess what?! I find them much cheaper!

I was going to order them from onlinecarstereo.com but they seemed really sketchy. In the end i ordered them from comp-u-plus.

I wanted to know if kicker is any good? They seemed decent and the guy i talked to at best buy said they were good. at $70 it's also a really good deal. And just as a side note, how many of you have after market speakers / sound systems?

Edit: Just noticed this was in the wrong section, and if i could change the title i would, sorry.

T355

I have those same speakers. As well as kicker 6X9's, blaupunkt tweaters, and 2 kicker comp subwoofers. Over all its a good system. I have the rear and door speakers running off a 4 channel amp to get the most out of them. Your headunit just wont have enough power to run them at their specs. Don't expect a difference in bass just because of those speakers though. Kicker makes a good speaker, especially for the price. You will probably get mixed opinions on here about kicker though. Some people swear by the lesser known brands and wont touch a kicker or jl audio speaker saying they are over priced and over rated.

DarkSouljur

I personally love kicker, i've heard a couple kick products, and loved them all.
When you say my headunit can't run them does that mean they won't run at all? Or they just won't run at their max potential?
How do i run my speakers off of an amp. I heard to get the most out of speakers you need to. Where does the amp go, and whats the price range for an average one?

T355

Do you have a aftermarket headunit, or do you still have the stock one? And what I meant is that they won't run at their max potential. They use about 70 watts rms and your headunit won't get close to that. It is probably putting out about 17-22 watts rms if its a aftermarket headunit. It will power the speakers fine but you aren't going to really get the full benefit of those speakers without a amp. With a small aftermarket 4-channel amp those speakers will really shine and sound very clear and precise. You won't be winning any competitions with them but they will be enough to impress your friends.

I have my amp for the subs in the trunk and the amp for the door and rear deck speakers under my front seat. You can pick up a decent 4 channel amp for about $100 online. Cheaper if you want to get one used from a pawn shop. I would personally stay away from used audio equipment though. You never know how it was treated by the previous owner. Most car audio products will come with a generic installation sheet. If you are even a little bit handy then you can install the amp yourself. Just look online for a DIY. There is probably one on this site somewhere that is specific to a civic and would help you out alot. Alternatively you could take your car and speakers/amps to any car audio shop and they will usually install them for you for about $100 as well. And they should back their work up with a 6 month or 1 year warranty which is nice to have. Whatever you do don't cheap out on stuff. You will regret it down the road. Buy the best you can afford.

DarkSouljur

http://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAu...rm_EV4400.aspx Cheapest 4-channel amp. One person rated it 5 stars, is it any good??

or: http://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAu...orm_F4400.aspx ??

T355

I'd probably stay away from those. I'm not familiar with that brand. I order all my car audio stuff off sonicelectronix.com. And that amp got poor ratings from people that bought it. http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...SL+F4.400.html





This is the amp I have and it does just fine. http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...t+DSC+450.html

DarkSouljur

Alright so that amp, plus the 2 pairs of kickers, and then a headunit.

I was thinking of the Alpine CDA-105 but wasn't sure. Any suggestions?

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

Okay, I haven't read most of the replys,
but personally, I dont really like kickers.
I've never heard the 6.5"s but the subs suck.

I personally have Polk DB651's which sound awesome, I compared them to many, including infiniti before buying
I would recommend JL audio, Rockford Fosgate, and Polk

Headunits, I have a sony Xplod, which is decent, but the newer ones they just came out with, are freaking awesome. You can store your ipod INSIDE the deck, and connect/charge it

DarkSouljur

Hmm, i've been told by many people to never even think of touching a Sony Xplod product :P

I don't know which subs you've heard but i've only heard one kicker sub and thought it was amazing. It high lows perfectly. As for the speakers, the guy at best buy let me go into his car and he had them installed (thats why he recommended them to me). They sounded pretty sweet. But i guess there's not harm in looking into the other companies you listed. Except for Rockford, i would never get a rockford, i don't know why i just can't stand them lol

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

Sony Xplod SPEAKERS are a big no-no
They are the nastiest things alive
However, sony electronics are a different story, thats why their headunits are okay

The only reason I recommend RF is because I've seen what they can do.
If they are used properly, they sound amazing, search youtube for Steve Meade
He has the loudest (30,000watt), and best sounding system in all of norcal

What I currently have in my system is:
I plan to add 6x9's with speaker baffles, and 4 bass blockers sometime in the near future, I currently have no 6x9's to increase airflow from trunk to cabin for subs.
Also, I plan to upgrade to a Sony DSX-S200x like i said earlier, to store my ipod inside the deck

My most recent video of my system was a test of my new HD camera, and trust me, the camera does my system no justice
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Q_UNBxSb_o[/youtube]

lowlife9

i have been around car audio for a long time i have worked for various installer i have heard virtually all brands . the only component systems i would touch from that particular website are Polk Audio,Focal,Diamond Audio,Cadence and Boston Acoustics. kicker would be around the bottom of my choices.

T355

LOL, See I told you that some would say they would never touch kicker. There is no arguing that Focal, Boston Acoustics, and Polk Audio are really good speakers. But there are also pretty expensive. I've had MTX, JL Audio, Pioneer and Kicker subs. The JL Audios were the best but also the most expensive. You can't beat the bang for the buck of the kicker comps, at only about $65-70 bucks a sub you can't beat that for what you get. If you are wanting to be the loudest sound system out there then yeah, you probably want to move up on the quality scale a bit. You can spend a enormous amount of cash on car audio equipment. Or you can spend a modest amount and still have a really good sound system, just maybe not the best. Hell, I only spent about $600 bucks on my entire system and it sounds just fine.

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

Expense isnt really an issue, if you take the time to look for deals, you'll find them
With this economy, i've been seeing a LOT of JL audio equipment being sold on craigslist for dirtcheap, like JL12W7 + amp for 300 bucks

I bought my JL12w3v2 in box, with amp for $150 on craigslist, perfect working condition
Then, I bought my Polk 6.5" on craigslist, brand new in box for $50

DarkSouljur

Hmm the i've been looking at some speakers and so far these ones have caught my eye:

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...nch+P1653.html

They are Rockford Fosgate (which is a good brand i believe). And they're getting good reviews for 50 people. And at $65 (which is somewhere around my price range) it looks like a pretty good deal :P

T355

Those look like good speakers. I would buy them if I were in the market for new ones. With free shipping as a plus. Their customer service is fantastic as well. When looking through their inventory look towards the bottom of the page and you can see last years models on most of their speakers, if they have any in stock you can usually get those at a hell of a deal. Just something to keep in mind.

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

Although I haven't heard RF speakers first hand, I probably would get them due to reputation, and reviews.

What I suggest.
Head to your nearest bestbuy/electronics/car audio store and listen to demos
Most of the headunits will have AUX jacks you can plug in your MP3 player to test
That's the best way to determine what you want

DarkSouljur

Thanks for the input T355

Hah, i'm down at best buy like everyday plugging my iphone in and playing my music on their speakers and subs, only problem is they have crappy stuff. You won't find RF, or Boston Acoustics, or anything else like that other there. :P

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

True

It really depends where you are though...
cos here, i know plenty of car audio stores, and we have Fry's Electronics, that actually carry some good brands
we USED to have Circuit city which carried some extra brands that best buy didnt have

Walmart works as well

DarkSouljur

Lol. i'll just stick to online I can get stuff cheaper here anyways.

I'm pretty sure i'm good now for speakers, and for decks, i've been looking up a couple...

I just want a deck that is:

iPod compatible
Can play CD's

Any suggestions? I was looking at this one:

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...X-GT740UI.html

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

Looks great
dont know if i'd pay 160 for it though...

T355

I think you will be pleased with that one. I know a couple people that have sony headunits(including that one) and they all love them. I haven't personally had one though. A feature you might want to look at getting would be one that has BUILT-IN bluetooth. That was you don't have to take your phone out of your pocket to answer it. Also most computers come with bluetooth now and you can sync that to your radio. Although I don't know how useful that would be seeing it only takes 5 min to put music on a flash drive and plug it into the radio .That is the only thing I wish my headunit has. I have this stereo http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...C+KD-R600.html (it was $200 when I bought it). The bluetooth adapter is like $100 but the upgraded model that had it built in was only like $30 more. Also I hate to say it but I'm not very pleased with my headunit. I have a 2005 civic and the dash angle makes the screen very hard to see. Also the JVC menu system sucks. I still haven't gotten use to it after about a year now. So I would stay away from the JVC headunits. You may want to look into some of the Kenwood headunits, the majority of them have really good reviews.

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

JVC headunits are cheap, but they all suck, alpines fall into this category as well.
My personal experience, Sony has really top notch headunits, along side with pioneer.
I'm sorry, but i have to say, i am biased against kenwood. Their build quality sucks, and also the sound quality. however, i've known people who has kenwood and loved it, and some who hated it. it's really a mixed bag.
my opinion on it, is that kenwood decks sells on looks and reputation, not quality.

As per the bluetooth comment. I actually have a LG HBF500 Solar powered bluetooth speaker in my car. I don't like pausing my music just to hear my mom/gf nag at me. bought it off meritline for $35 with a $20 rebate, so $15 for a solar powered bluetooth, i couldnt be happier, awesome quality too

DarkSouljur

Hah i never honestly thought about bluetooth. I guess it would be good but i don't think i REALLY need it, not right now at least.

I personally have never liked kenwood or jvc so i don't think i'll ever buy their head units.

I really like sony and alpine (alpine being my favourite) but one thing i hate about alpine is that you can have a couple good features, but you can never have all of them, and alpine decks are terrible when it comes to bang for your buck.

I might go for that sony one, unless i can find a deck with bluetooth :P


Edit: Found this one with blue tooth:

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...X-BT3800U.html

OR my original

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...X-GT740UI.html

my original also comes with bluetooth but add another $70 to the price -.-

T355

Thats the good thing about the built-in bluetooth is that it automatically mutes whatever you are listening too. Soon as the call is over it turns back on its own. The mic you run behind your dash and into your a/c vent. So you wouldn't be able to see it unless you were seriously looking for something inside your vent for some reason. The only thing I don't like about my JVC is the menu system. It is all controlled from the one **** and a single button. Sounds simple enough enough but you constantly are backing up to the previous menu when getting everything set up. After that you are fine. I don't believe all JVC sucks or all of any certain brand sucks just because I had one bad product from them. I might not buy that particular product again but its no reason to just write off a brand completely. There is always something else newer and greater coming out all the time so no particular brand will always have the latest and greatest.

To the OP, regarding choosing a headunit I would advise you to go to any car audio center/bestbuy and mess around with their display models untill you find one you like. As you can see by the different responses in this thread you will get a ton of different opinions on choices. The car audio world is full of opinions. Bottom line until you start getting into some really really high dollar products, the rest are pretty much the same.

But, I still go back to my original statement that bang for the buck you are going to be hard pressed to find anything better than kicker. Get some opportunities to sit in friends/relatives cars that have different brands of speakers/amps and figure out what your favorite is, then buy accordingly.

T355

Either one of those you posted I would buy. The one you posted in your edit looks the best to me, if that counts for anything ha.

DarkSouljur

The only thing i dislike with the one in the edit is that it only has single line display where the other one has multiple

I'm also worried that sony's feel cheap, correct me if i'm wrong, i know alpines are built well they're durable, but are sony's the same way or do they feel REALLY cheap and plasticy?

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

I didnt say the brand in general sucks, i say that particular brand just sucks for that specific line of products, IE. Sony makes VERY crappy speakers, but their headunits are pretty decent.
JVC and Kenwood makes decent speakers, but crappy decks.
It's true that everyone is entitled to their own opinions on brands, this is mine, based on my research and experience while looking for my system.

I honestly don't like how in dash bluetooth's pauses the music, my civic has a lot of roadnoise over the phone, and everyone i talk to would rather listen to my background music than roadnoise

@ Dark
The sony with the bluetooth looks ugly, I dont like front loading CD plates, looks cluttered

But honestly, check out the Sony DSX-S200x. Even though it doesnt play CD's, honestly, who needs it. I plug in my ipod touch on my deck and never touched another CD. CDs make my car messy, and changing CD's is a B****. for 150 bucks, stash the ipod inside the deck, let it charge and play your music

Kennykid2002

iTrader: (1)

Although it's plastic, it's been really durable to me for about a year so far.
This includes constant removing and reattaching the faceplate everytime i get out of the car

T355

Lol, if you ever feel a deck that doesn't feel cheap and plasticy let me know I have yet to find one. The single line display is the main reason I like that one. I go by the saying 'less is more'. And Kennykid2002 has a good point about possibly getting a stereo that doesn't have a cd player. I really can't tell you the last time I put a CD into mine. They really are becoming obsolete, I put all my music on a usb drive and go through the albums through the headunit itself. Hate to say it, but I have never owned a Ipod. Never really listen to music except when I am in my car. Also, have to agree with you on the sony speakers Kennykid2002, I have never heard a single one sound even close to acceptable to me. My friend had a pair of the Xplod subs in highschool and those things melted from the surround the first hot day of the summer.

DarkSouljur

Okay so let me explain something quick. My civic isn't TECHNICALLY mine. My dad bought it for me and says i can use it under his rules, so any modifications to it have to go through him. He doesn't support any music playing in the car (he's religious, and thinks its stupid) so i don't think he would let me get a deck, but i know for a fact that when i tell him why we should get one he'll let me buy one. Now, since it's not really my car (i just drive it more than anyone else, he sometimes uses it ... and if he ever wants to put in a CD there won't be one... but i don't think that will happen so i'll try to convince him to let me get the DSX-S200.

@T355: You're right lol, i don't think i have ever seen a deck that doesn't feel somewhat plasticy.

Anyways, i really like the idea of the DSX-S200, and i really want one now lol so i'll talk to my dad tonight or tomorrow and see if he'll let me get it