# What do I need?



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

Hello,

I would like to setup a nice sounding audio system....
My question is would 1 10" sub be enough to give me nice bass without ripping the trunk apart? Also what type of power will I need amp wise to handle say a 300-400w amp?

What I have now is 

2 5 1/4" chrome shit speakers in the door with 2 6x9 3 way jbl's in the back.... pioneer deck 6400 ....


----------



## infrared (Aug 1, 2002)

First thing you need to know is what you want .
Do you want a multi amp system ,are you upgrading any existing speakers ?
Do you want a clean all around system or just spls (heavy bass) ?


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

i would like clean with nice bass....
I don't need the whole car shaking.


So
I would need a multi channel amp if I wanted to hook my speakers up to it as well?


----------



## 2002JustBlue (Sep 9, 2002)

10" will probably be plenty for you. I have found that the Infinity Basslink not only produces a clean sound, but is easy to install. It actually had less of a distorted sound than my brother's 12" in a box and kicked just about as hard.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

yeah but what kinda amp do i need to push it?


----------



## infrared (Aug 1, 2002)

Well basically you need 2 amps for a clean all around system. A 4 channel amp for the door and rear speakers and a 2 channel thats bridgeable to one channel (or a mono amp if you can aford one) for the sub(s).
There are some 5 channel amps out there but they dont offer enough power for me, plus they can be bulky which limits your mounting options.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

i only have about 5 bills to spend... they got some pioneer 12' on sal 2 for 89.99 450 watt.....then i got about 450 left for the amp


----------



## akapaul (May 25, 2002)

Do you have the stock radio in?

If yes, it does not have preamps to connect to the amps unfortunately


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

nope i have a pioneer dehp6400...
right off ebay $215.00


----------



## SentraStyleEMW (Aug 15, 2002)

*What to get?*

I would highly recommend that you listen to those Pioneer subs you were looking at before buying them. In my opinion...they just plain suck. You would be much better off getting a single good quality sub rather than the two mediocre at best subs. Look at a JL 12W0, Alpine Type R (SWS1241D), or even a single Kicker CompVR sub (01C12VR2). You will be much happier with any of these single subs than you would with two of those Pioneers. I used to install at a shop which sold the Pioneer subs...and I'd say about 80% of them were returned because they didn't perform like the customer wanted them to (but what do you really expect from a $45 sub???). 

The most important part of a subwoofer is the enclosure it is installed in. You can have the most expensive sub out there...but if it is in the wrong size box...it will sound just a good as the cheapest $10 sub you can find.

Since you already have a nice radio, you should be able to find a great sounding system for $500. I would focus on your front stage as far a speakers go. Get a good set of component speakers. Don't focus too much on your rear speakers (but don't neglect them either) as you will be primarilly using them for fill. (I happen to have a set or two of Polk Audio DX3065 components and a set of DX6's for sale if you are interested (6 1/2" components and 6 1/2" coaxial). Get a nice 5 channel amp and your good to go.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

i mean as long as my speaker hit good i don't need a sub...
so i guess i would have to get rid of the door speakers and get a 4 ch amp...
but how big of a amp do i need?

my rear speakers are jbl 6x9 3way 200w...

nice magnet 2 about 2-21/2"


----------



## infrared (Aug 1, 2002)

The 200watt rating is a little overated .
Your jbls can probalbly handle about 30 to 50 watts of constant power. 

look for a four channel amp with a range of about 40w per channel .
I know you may want to be brand loyal but Pioneer subs do suck.
Kicker comp subs are good value for your money and they can work in variety of enclosures.You can get a 10" comp for about $79.99 (rated for 125 to 250watts per voice coil) and a 10' comp vr for $119.99 (150-300watts).

These are dual voice coil speakers meaning they are like 2 speakers built into one unit but they roughly equal one and a half .
By using a DVC sub you can build a box for 1 sub and get the results of a big box with 2 subs.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

cool thanks


----------



## akapaul (May 25, 2002)

> _cool thanks
> 
> 
> __________________
> ...


OFF TOPIC: dude, i sent you emails and pm's but you dont respond  where did you buy your clear corners?


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

bro i replied to your email 


i bought them off of ebay for like $15 bucks....
they might be cheaper now


----------



## akapaul (May 25, 2002)

my bad, i dont recall getting that email  oh well, what brand are they?


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

not sure.... cheap brand...


but the are just fine for me....


----------



## infrared (Aug 1, 2002)

BTW Selrider your door speakers are 6 3/4" with a maximum mounting depth of 2 7/16" . When you upgrade them it may be easier to remove one from the door for a comparisson with the new speakers .


----------



## SentraStyleEMW (Aug 15, 2002)

*DVC Sub???*



infrared said:


> *The 200watt rating is a little overated .
> Your jbls can probalbly handle about 30 to 50 watts of constant power.
> 
> look for a four channel amp with a range of about 40w per channel .
> ...


Those JBL's may be able to handle much more power than that. It really depends on what series speakers they are. If they are the Power Series speakers...you can safely feed them 100+ watts RMS. 

And as far as DVC's go...I think you are a little confused. It is nothing like to speakers built into one. It simply has dual connections. There is not difference between a single voice coil sub and a dual voice coil sub in and of itself. If you were to give both the same amount of power, in the same box, and in the same car...they would sound the same. It is not like a sub and a half. The only difference between the two is that with a DVC sub, you have different wiring options. For example, a dual 4 ohm sub can be wired to an amp at either an 8 ohm or 2 ohm load. And the Kicker Comp VR subs are rated about 250 watts RMS total...not 250 watts RMS per voice coil.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

i will find out the model number...
i don't think they were sold in the USA but Io will let you know..


----------



## omega (Jun 27, 2002)

You can get a 10" Rockford Fosgate HE2 for like 130 retail but you could find it online for a lot less I know that the dealer cost is less then 80 bucks so some people should be selling it for like 100 or so. On top of that Rockford Fosgate makes a 300S and 400S that might be good applications for what your looking for, and both of those will push that HE2 bridged at two ohms, and it is a DVC so your getting in essense a two for one deal, for a four channel RockFord has a 500x, it's rated at like 65 watts times four at 2 ohms and 40x4 at 4 ohms so make sure you have to speakers to match it because Rockford doesn't post max they post RMS. There are a lot of great brands out there you just have to look around, Audiobahn subs are always on eBay and they usually have a good power handling and their sister company MA Audio tends to have good stuff as well(I sell these myself heh) MTX is a nice brand but you'll probally pay a lot retail off the shelf at Circut City and the same for Best Buy with the Rockfords just because everyone knows the name. This is a personal preference thing and a lot of people don't like them but a lot swear by them, you might want to look at the Bazooka basstubes, they aren't bad sounding, true they are better for smaller cars like hatchbacks, but it might be worth looking into, because you can get the non slave tubes with the amps built in and they sound good. Let us know what you decide, and if you have a question about a particular model let me know most of the time I can get it at dealer cost.


----------



## PrOxLaMuS© (Aug 11, 2002)

Heres what I say....

Get some MTX's........ in my opinion they have the best sound.. and quality. Plus they are under-rated.... they say they can handle 300w? Wrong.. the can actually hit up to 375 to 400.

The more powerful the amp, also the more kick the sub has..as well as excellent sound and quality. I would say, got 10% to 15% for power than your speakers can handle, this doesnt mean ur gonna blow the speakers (if ur careful) but they will sound good.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1382287688 2 channel Amp, 1000w, $77$

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1381604403 4 channel, 1000w+remote, $85$

Good deals trust me


----------



## omega (Jun 27, 2002)

PrOxLaMuS© said:


> *Heres what I say....
> 
> Get some MTX's........ in my opinion they have the best sound.. and quality. Plus they are under-rated.... they say they can handle 300w? Wrong.. the can actually hit up to 375 to 400.
> 
> ...


If you get a Legacy amp I will infact want to shoot you, do not trust an idiot pointing you to a proven bad amp, do you know I see on average 2 or 3 of these a week that have blown out, caught on fire or just plain died. Proxlamus, you would do better to not give advice in this situation, your right an MTX sub can handle more than 300w, hell it could handle 2000 watts for a split second right before it burnt up and you had to buy another one, forcing turkey through a PVC pipe doesn't work, and these is what you do when you try to run too much power to a sub rated only so high. Don't, DO NOT, buy a legacy amp, and don't push your limits on a sub unless you have the money to buy two.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

ok help me here can i upgrade my alt... so i can upgrade the battery....


----------



## SentraStyleEMW (Aug 15, 2002)

*Upgrading Alt and Battery*



selrider99 said:


> *ok help me here can i upgrade my alt... so i can upgrade the battery.... *


You can upgrade your alternator...really just depends on how much you are looking to spend. And as far as upgrading your battery...I would highly recommend that. Get yourself an Optima Red Top or Yellow Top battery. The red usually retails around $120 or so and the yellow at $170 (at least around here). 

Another simple mod that will yeild results is simply upgrading the 10 gauge wire that comes from your alternator to the battery with 4 gauge or 1/0 wire...and do the same for your ground. I did that, and I gained an average of 1.5 volts with full system running. It may not sound like a lot, but if you have an amp with a regulated power supply...that 1.5 volts can make a huge difference (especially if you take the advice of PrOxLaMuS© getting an MTX amp that is rated at 35 watts x 2 at 12.5 volts and 85 watts x 2 at 14.4 volts). And believe me...in most imports, your voltage will fluctuate like the wind.

Just my .02 cents


----------



## 200sxpower (Jun 4, 2002)

kinda off subject, but is there any way to reduce impadence on a single sub without having to wire them parallel? reason i'm asking is i just got an eclipse 15", but it's 8 ohm. it would cost me a fortune to get some power to that thing.


----------



## SentraStyleEMW (Aug 15, 2002)

*Lowering Impedance of sub*



200sxpower said:


> *kinda off subject, but is there any way to reduce impadence on a single sub without having to wire them parallel? reason i'm asking is i just got an eclipse 15", but it's 8 ohm. it would cost me a fortune to get some power to that thing. *


You can in fact lower the impedance of a subwoofer simply by adding a resistor in line between the sub and the amp. You will most likely obtain the same sound though because the added resistor will waste power due to heat. Your amp will be putting out more power with a resistor in line...but your sub will still recieve about the same power...not really worth the trouble


----------



## landlord (Jun 11, 2002)

selrider99 said:


> *
> My question is would 1 10" sub be enough to give me nice bass without ripping the trunk apart? *


one 10" sub is never enough!! at least not for me. i wouldnt suggest doing what i did if you want your car to stay in one peice though...... with my four tens the black plastic thing that goes over the key lock has fallen off, oh shit handle has fallen off, rear spoiler is loose as hell, blown out two window seals (and at comp a freind ran up and pushed on my rear window, said it was flexing like three inches, and this is whith the windows all the way down!! can hear me for a good half mile though (if not more) 

i would suggest two 10" subs and a good 500watt amp. oh and dynamat the whole trunk.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

damn when are you getting a plexi window done?

this dude over here with a cougar the a plexi in the back... he was pushing 6 12's

24 in the back seat and 2 in the trunk....crazy shit... he blew out his winow 3 times...lol


----------



## landlord (Jun 11, 2002)

ill get plexi when it breaks! lol. i only turn the gain up on the amp when im at comp. right now its sitting at about 1/10th of the way, my rear window only moves a little right now, and i still get complimented on how loud it is..... especialy by cops who like it so much they hand me a $81.00 fine every month.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

i bet you its not louder than a civic taking off at a light lol


----------



## landlord (Jun 11, 2002)

true, oh how true!! lol. havent seen many civics flex there back window though..... must be good glass!!! lol.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

btw how the hell to you keep power to all those things....amp subs ect...?

I just want a nice clean sound with a little shake without killing the battery


----------



## landlord (Jun 11, 2002)

bone stock!! im going to invest in some caps...... head lights at night dim almost all the way out, im told i need a second battery and a bigger alternator. oh and when i get home after iv'e been pounding for a while i let my car sit at idle for a good 15 min. with everything off.


----------



## landlord (Jun 11, 2002)

two subs and a five hundred watt amp like i suggested you should be ok maybe a 1 fared cap to keep the sound clean.


----------



## nitestridar (Jun 29, 2002)

anyone ever use those under the seat subs...

do they work or are they crap?


----------



## landlord (Jun 11, 2002)

a freind of mine has them and i think its only good for an ass massage.


----------



## wickedsr20 (Aug 8, 2002)

The under seat subs are a complete waste of money in my opinion. No quality bass at all. 
You might also want to look into either a 5 or 6 channel amp. I am currently running a 5 channel amp (which is a lot lighter than my 2-amp, x-over, multiple cable set-up I was running) that has crossovers for all channels built in. Simple set-up for me since it's just 2 power wires, 2 grounds, the RCA's, and wire up all speakers, mount the SINGLE amp (space savings i.e. weight reduction), and get a nice sub or two. In my set-up, I have the amp in the spare tire well, and when the need for speed arises (track duty), I just remove the box and I'm light again. It worked out very well for me and does not slow the car down much at all. BTW, the less weight you put back there, the less the rear end sags down. Hope this helps.


----------



## SentraStyleEMW (Aug 15, 2002)

landlord said:


> *bone stock!! im going to invest in some caps...... *


You can buy my caps  They are brand new. Three 1 Farad Monster Cable Capacitors w/ connecting gold buss-bar.


----------

