So here's the scoop. I have A 2004 Dodge Ram quad cab that i plan on outfitting this spring, and I am very indecisive so I figure I better start planning things out now. I have learned from this forum and my own mistakes to start with the front stage, so that's where I'm at. Right now there are 6x9s in the front and 5.25s in the rear. I am thinking of doing 6.5 componants up front and just leaving the rear alone, unless it is greatly beneficial. I guess my first question is active or passive. I have never run active, but if the sound difference will be noticebale than it's worth it to me. The head unit right now is an alpine 9886, I do not have the imprint option for it, and I'm not sure if it is worth it or if I would be better off with a different head unit altogether. I listen to mostly hip hop along with some rock,alternative music. There are so many options out there I guess I just don't know where to start. I would like to keep the budget around $300 to start with and see where that takes me, and I'll adjust if need be. I will more than likely run whatever I buy off of an appropriate sundown amp.

Sorry for the long post but hopefully theres enough info to start with. Any Input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

Chad

I am starting to lean towards building a custom 2 way system rather than take my chances on a pre-made set. Active seems like it is going to be the best option, so I guess I have quite a bit of researching to do. Once again any ideas or suggestions are more than welcome to chime in!

if you're going to go active $300 for mids/tweets should be plenty. does the ram have the typical dash tweeter location like most dodges? If so you can fit a large format tweeter perfectly there and get a lot of performance for dollar. in the doors look at some 7s

www.partsexpress.com and www.madisound.com should be your friend

Hi chad I'm chad(haha) I have a 2007 dodge 2500 quadcab. I have been thinking of upgrading my current set up as well, as soon as money allows. From the reaserch I have done I know with minimal trimming and a .75" baffle you can fit 8" midbass in the doors with up to 4.25" mounting depth. These trucks also have quite a bit of room in the dash. The kick panels are quite large as well. there is even room under the dash to fit horns. I am not sure what direction I want to go with as of yet but I am open to ideas as well and look forward to your build.

Yeah my doge has spots for tweeters in the dash. I have never taken the dash apart to see what kind of space is available. I was also looking into the 7" woofers as well there are quite a few options out there it seems, so it could be a tedious process for me lol.

if that's the case i'd go with a large format tweet and an 8 if you can find one that goes high enough to mate properly

Thanks for the tips. I am looking into some of the seas lines at the moment, there seem to be some options that would work out. Do you have any experience with seas products?

ran the tdfc tweet and it was ok, but i personally prefer the morel mdt29 that i have now over them. BUT plenty and plenty of people love the seas, they're both great tweets and simply a matter of preference. You can't go wrong either way IMO.

I've also ran the P18 woofer and the CA18 woofer, both are more than capable drivers.

Do I need to worry about anything in particular with these going into a door? Will some work better than others? There seem to be several different space requirements? I know these are questions, but this is new for me, so please be gentle with my learning curve By the way thank you for all your help

depends on what speakers you choose. the seas line are mostly perfectly fine for doors (aka IB aka Infinite Baffle), most of th ethers are to but you'll still want to check ith s just to be sure before buying.

I will be sure to double check before I buy. I'm not set on seas yet still plenty of options to explore. I have done the ole impulse buy 1 too many times, I don't want to go down that road agian.

Since you can easily fit an 8 and mention Seas I'd seriously think about the L22; however, the breakup mode at 4kHz pretty much makes it non-usable above 1kHz and even then I'd put a rather steep slope on it. Mixed with a large tweet playing to 1.3kHz or so though would work just fine with it.

I didn't pipe up before since you have the 9886 and I didn't figure active would be something you'd pick. You will need to upgrade to the 9887 or something beyond the 9886 to do this.

Yeah i wasn't thinking active before, but a new head unit isn't a big deal and I figured it would be worth it in the long run. Do you have any tweeter recommendations that would mate up good with the L22, or even other mid options worth looking into. On another note would a 2 way system be sufficient or would I be better off upping the budget and doing a 3 way system? I was thinking of keeping it simple since I am pretty new to this, but I also don't want to be disappointed wanting more when I am done either.

Big jump to go from a 2 way to a 3 way. I'd start with a 2 way personally.

Getting a tweet to play low enough will require either a large budget for a small tweeter or if you go large format there are a lot of options. Are you going to put them in the dash?

The tweeters will be going into the dash, unless that's a bad idea, it seemed like there would be more options that way. I haven't dealt with a large format tweeter before, so not quite sure on what to look for there. Is there somewhere I can read up on tweeter differences ie small vs large format, or is it as simple as bigger = more sound?

Here is an example of a large format tweet, one I am particularly fond of.

http://www.madisound.com/catalog/product_i...roducts_id=1744

Funny you mentoion that one, I had actually looked at itl thinking it might go well with the L22, but wasn't sure

There will be a little underlap required or perhaps not having your gains as high as you could if they were crossed perfectly, but nonetheless it would be a sweet 2 way.

Thank you for all of the help ///M5. I think my front stage is now decided :bigclap: Now I can start sorting out the rest.

looks like a very solid front stage. what are you going to use for processing? what amps do you have in mind?

I am very interested in this build as I have stated before. please keep us updated on your progress. also if you run in to any issues.

thanks chad

amplifier and processing/head unit are next in line for decision, I wanted to figure out the front stage first, usually I end up doing things backwards and end up regretting it later! Will probbably post some more questions in the other forum sections shortly!

I'd figure everything out before buying anything.

yeah that is what I'm doing, it's hard for me to control my insta-buy impulse, but I think I finally have it under control!

Just curious if anybody knows the power handling is for the peerless hds tweeters? I'm getting ready to start the amplifier hunt, but can't seem to find the power specs on these

Not a spec that is meaningful. I'd get an amp that does at least 50w and if larger no problem, the gain knob will allow you to do what you need.