noob questions

[Jeremy 0]

hello all,

this is my first post and i am pretty much a novice when it comes to car audio. that being said, right now i'm driving a '97 neon and i'm still running the stock speakers all around with some cheapy audio 3000 10" subs in a bandpass being run by a kenwood amp. i'm looking to get a system where the lyrics are clearly heard and the bass doesn't pound too hard but still pounds. (if that makes any sense)my questions are these:

1. i'm interested in building a half decent system on a students budget. what do u guys/gals think would be good speakers and subs to get?

2. is it better to stick with one manufacturer for the whole car?

3. how does watts,, amps, ohms come into the whole equation?

4. what are good places to shop at?(i live in oshawa, ont., canada)

thanks for reading this huge post.

any info would be greatly appreciated and helpful.

Jeremy

as you can see i have alot of questions. i'll start with these.

[Supa_c 1]

Welcome

The actual budget would be most helpful

Most people mix and match brands since one manufacturer doesnt make the best of everything

Watts, amps,ohms are dependant on the amplifier and speakers/subs.

ss3079 and aneonrider both live in canada, they can help you out on purchasing items from up there.

We are here to help you gain a better understanding in the feild of car audio so all the questions are no problem

[Nikuk 1]

Help us help you

And Welcome.

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

welcome J,

and dont worry between the guys we have on here, we will find a sweet set up for a decent price that will have a good sound

[Chevy350TPI 12]

hello all,

this is my first post and i am pretty much a novice when it comes to car audio.  that being said, right now i'm driving a '97 neon and i'm still running the stock speakers all around with some cheapy audio 3000 10" subs in a bandpass being run by a kenwood amp.  i'm looking to get a system where the lyrics are clearly heard and the bass doesn't pound too hard but still pounds. (if that makes any sense)my questions are these:

1. i'm interested in building a half decent system on a students budget.  what do u guys/gals think would be good speakers and subs to get?

2. is it better to stick with one manufacturer for the whole car?

3. how does watts,, amps, ohms come into the whole equation?

4.  what are good places to shop at?(i live in oshawa, ont., canada)

thanks for reading this huge post.

any info would be greatly appreciated and helpful.

Jeremy

as you can see i have alot of questions.  i'll start with these.

Welcome to the board, Jeremy. Don't hold back any questions you may have as we'll be sure to answer each and every one of them ... with more than one opinion

1. If we have a price range to work within, we'll be able to really help you. Most of us have worked within almost ALL budgets, so finding the best bang-for-the-buck equipment shouldn't be hard.

2. You don't have to stick with one brand throughout the entire vehicle

3. We'll go into that further later on ... huge topic.

4. Buying from the US can be, well, challenging at times. The dollar is getting better, so it is a little more appealing to purchase from down there. Places like CarDomain and TheZeb will both ship via USPS so you pay a flat rate of $5 + tax on the amount purchased. There are a couple online stores in Canada as well - too bad GenuineCanadianAudio is down right now. www.canadiancaraudio.com is a good place to find quality used equipment within Canada - you'll find the majority of the members are from Ontario. I'm sure the guys know of quality retail shops in your area and maybe even your town - who knows, maybe you could find someone to help install your equipment for a fair price.

It sounds like you're looking for this stereo to sound good, but still have that low end kick we all enjoy ... on a budget. It's quite common, so we should be able to steer you in the right direction.

- Steve

[Nikuk 1]

I'll be the first to make a suggestion or two

To go with quality & output on a budget, I'll recommend Adire. I dont know how You northerner's stand with dealers...

But for the money: (1) Shiva or tempest, a pair of Koda 6.5's and a decent tri-mode amp (2 front channels for the mids and 2 rear channels bridged to the sub), and a Box from a SSA teammeber will get you started nicely for under $500 including wiring.

If you have a little more, bump upto a component set up front, upgrade the battery & amplifiers.

-Nick

[Chevy350TPI 12]

www.creativesound.ca

req had a nice real find here amp wise:

http://www.caraudio.com/vb/showthread.php?t=93062

Two amps becomes real affordable that way.

[Supa_c 1]

I'll be the first to make a suggestion or two

To go with quality & output on a budget, I'll recommend Adire. I dont know how You northerner's stand with dealers...

But for the money: (1) Shiva or tempest, a pair of Koda 6.5's and a decent tri-mode amp (2 front channels for the mids and 2 rear channels bridged to the sub), and a Box from a SSA teammeber will get you started nicely for under $500 including wiring.

If you have a little more, bump upto a component set up front, upgrade the battery & amplifiers.

-Nick

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Cant go wrong with Adire

[JimJ 11]

You really can't...especially with some of the new stuff coming out

[Aaron Clinton 2,372]

the KX550.3 would be a good amp to run a good start up system

[ANeonRider 3]

If you are wondering what ohms, watts, amps, and all the other electronical jargon are, visit this site:

www.bcae1.com

Read everything, if you don't understand it, read it again, then ask us. We will be happy to help!

[Supa_c 1]

oh yea, i gotta read that whole site

was something i wanted to accomplish

[Jeremy 0]

hey all, thanks for all the good replys.

i'm thinking about spending about 200-300. is that unrealistic? i was told that it's possible to get some quality stuff off of ebay for reasonable prices. what do u guys think about that?

i've also heard that the amp is the most important part of the system since it controls the output to the subs and potentially the rear 6x9's. is this true?

this is the amp i'm running right now http://incolor.inetnebr.com/weisinator/com...od/kac-649s.htm

this is the first amp i've ever owned it's about 3 years old. i think i'm gonna something that puts out more power RMS.

Jeremy

[ANeonRider 3]

I would consider not upgrading the 6x9's and instead spending that money on the front speakers. I don't even run rear speakers .

Amps and HU are important, but every piece is equally important.

Pick up a set of good quality components, and use that amp to run them. It is a start, and when you get the $$, find a sub amp and a sub.

Piecing together is respectable when you don't have the $$ to buy all of the equipment at once.

[mrray13 30]

$300 on ebay will land u a sub (maybe a pair) and an amp..

u might get lucky u might land some speakers as well..

i'll have to look around and see if i can't find anything..

are u brand specific or can we just suggest what we find? and u lookin to get screaming loud, or sounding really good?

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[Jeremy 0]

i've gotta say, as for forums and clubs this is by far the best i've ever been a part of. the members of this site are by far the friendliest and sincere in helping promote knowledge and supporting fellow members. it's nice to see people taking a general interest in helping others. BRAVO to you all.

to answer your question mrray13

not brand specific at all just whatever sounds good and i would prefer something sounding really good

thanks again guys

Jeremy

[ANeonRider 3]

i've gotta say, as for forums and clubs this is by far the best i've ever been a part of.  the members of this site are by far the friendliest and sincere in helping promote knowledge and supporting fellow members.  it's nice to see people taking a general interest in helping others.  BRAVO to you all.

to answer your question mrray13

not brand specific at all just whatever sounds good and i would prefer something sounding really good

thanks again guys

Jeremy

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks for the compliments, that is why I am advertising this place everywhere I go.

[Tirefryr 1,742]

From what I can tell you are very budget minded. You will see a lot of bashing on other forums of people running lower end (read cheap) gear, but some smart shopping and research will yield you some excelllent buys for the money. If ebay is your ticket, you can find many mainstream, reliable brands out there for equal or lesser prices than the cheap brands. Don't be afraid to buy used equipment either, as long as it is from a reputable source. There are lots of good deals in our classifieds sections, and other forums as well. Just make sure you do some research on the seller before you buy.

With that Kenwood amp, if it still works, why replace it? There's extra money you could have to invest somewhere else.

As for amplifiers being the most important part of the system, that's false.

INSTALL, INSTALL, INSTALL.

Remember that. You'll here it a lot.

The install is the foundation in any good system and without it, failure will result. Also, good sound will vary from person to person. Everyone's ear is different. Their are many "boners" on the net about certain companies and many of us here can tell you that what the majority may tell you is best or sounds good, may not be the case for you. I myself am not a stickler on imaging or bass heavy stuff. In fact, I can wholy do without subwoofers at all. However, I desing my particular applications to fit my needs. I can run my midbass drivers down to 30-35Hz with no need for subs at all. You on the other hand my like a nice BOOM with a toned down upper range.

DO you have an idea in detail or could you vividly describe what you are looking to get out your system?

This is going to sound kinda but what I like to do when I'm designing a system is to sit in the vehicle before I do anything else and try to imagine how I would feel once the install is complete. Kinda like imagining the effects after everything is complete. It helps me to get a good idea of what I want/need to do. I know that kinda vague, but it's all about the desire.

[Jeremy 0]

basically what i am looking for is this:

1. i would like to have clear vocals (when i give it some volume i want the lyrics of the song to be clearly heard)

right now when i give it some volume, it seems like my door and rear spekers are picking up alot of the bass that my subwoofer should be handling and the if i turn the bass down on my deck it takes away from the speaker bass which is good, but also the sub bass which is bad.

2. i would like the bass from my subwoofer to be clean. (what i mean is when it hits, for the bass to be clean and not run into the next hit) if that makes sense.

hope that makes sense

Jeremy

[Supa_c 1]

Makes perfect sense

If you can find a local car audio shop then thats a good start.

Take a " demo CD" of songs that you like and play them on their speakers.

See what you like and take it from there

Not all shops carry the same models/brands so you might want to go to a few and check them out.

From what im gathering it seems like you want a SQ 10 in a small sealed enclosure.

Just something to git er dun, if you know what i mean

[EFFENDI 0]

help out a fellow canadian!