what kind of system should i get?

[kamikazi]

hey guys, i am going to put in a system in my baby and i dont know which system is good, can u guys help me out?
since my car already is stock JBL, should i get the whole system? my second option was to get MTX Audio, any idea? i am looking for a nice sound quality to it with a good bass


_____________________________________
1999 SLE auto.
HID lights. red neon lights, JVC KD-AVX1 DVD/CD Receiver

[theprodigy79]

Of your choices above, I vote Alpine...

[tacti]

i have Eclipse HU with Alpine Amp, Memphis sub and Diamond Audio Component speakers.
i'm still on the stage of adjusting them, but it sounds sooooo great.

What i learned from some of the audio forums, is "don't try to buy the whole system at once.
save enough money to buy one good quality HU or Amp.
it is better to have better head unit than having crappy whole system.

it is just my 2 cents.

[QuickSEV6]

i have Eclipse HU with Alpine Amp, Memphis sub and Diamond Audio Component speakers.

I can not possibly overstate how good Diamond Audio is. I'm glad to see someone else agrees with me.
Alpine deck with Diamond audio TDX speakers and amps would be like a sore weiner. You just can not beat it.

[dude]

i dont know a whole lot about specific audio products but i was wondering how much you would want to invest and what would these other systems cost including a full high quality professional installation.

[Sol-Toy]

Alpine is the best but you will pay for it.

What about Rockford Fosgate! I've had two set ups in the past and I can honestly say, both have pounded.

[solaraluv]

One of the hardest things to dowhen building a system unless you know alot about car audio. Every name brand tends to do better in some areas than others but for the ones you have listed I would consider Alpine espcially for headunits and inshash screens. Have you looked into JL audio, Eclipse, Boston accoustic, Facal, MB Quart?

[tacti]

I personally love eclipse for its clean sounds. i heard that some people says eclipse sounds too clean, but i like that.
and it has the best value for the price IMO...

if you are trying to save some money, you might want to look into 05 year models.
the 06 models just came out so 05 should be on discount and can get cheaper. i think..

[Jackass-Jeff]

i have Eclipse HU with Alpine Amp, Memphis sub and Diamond Audio Component speakers.

I can not possibly overstate how good Diamond Audio is. I'm glad to see someone else agrees with me.
Alpine deck with Diamond audio TDX speakers and amps would be like a sore weiner. You just can not beat it.

Diamond Audio HEX: A diamond in the rough indeed.

They are the best until you can convince yourself to spend $800 (cost, not MSRP) on the next tier... or even more to reach true mobile audiophile equipment x_x...

If you're going w/ those brands, Alpine would be the clear winner... just get a full alpine set up. JBL/MTX aren't that great. Kicker... they used to have good stuff... it's quite different now.

EDIT: Were you looking for a full system, or just a bass add-on ? If you're looking for a bass add-on, you should look into getting an RE-SE and a 500/1 JL amp. Resonant Engineering makes a great bang for the buck sub (12" RE-SE will run around 250-300, 150-200 used). You can get a different amp if you'd like, but the JL 500/1 is my recommendation.

Get an Eclipse headunit and make sure it has a non-fade output... the Eclipse internal amp is, IMO, the best amp in a headunit for mid-range speakers. It'd be a battle between Alpine/Eclipse if you were going for a full system though (Eclipse flagship v Alpine Flagship, not counting the F1).

Good luck

[Sol-Toy]

One of the hardest things to dowhen building a system unless you know alot about car audio. Every name brand tends to do better in some areas than others but for the ones you have listed I would consider Alpine espcially for headunits and inshash screens. Have you looked into JL audio, Eclipse, Boston accoustic, Facal, MB Quart?

Not only that, but it depends on the music you listen to as well. If you listen to rock, you want tighter speakers and tighter enclosers. If you listen to rap, you want big enclosers and speakers the utilize the space and respond with a lot of air movement to create deeper bass. If you listen to a lot of electronic music, you want something in the the middle - same with the variety enthusiest.


...and as far as head units, if you have the money, alpine has been by far the leader in quality, inovation, and coolness factor - same with "Quartz" as far as speakers go (very crisp!)


If you are on a budget and listen to a variety of music, I recomend Kenwood for a head unit and speakers all around, Fosgate for amp, and fairly cheapo Pioneer IMPP subs (when it comes to bass, it's all in the amp and enclosure. Sub woofers are all alike unless your competing or listen to specific music only) You'll spend less then a grand if you install it yourself. I also recomend monster cables and sound proof wrap for the trunk.

Isn't there an electronics section on SG? If not, there needs to be.

[hskrsolara]

hey guys, i am going to put in a system in my baby and i dont know which system is good, can u guys help me out?
since my car already is stock JBL, should i get the whole system? my second option was to get MTX Audio, any idea? i am looking for a nice sound quality to it with a good bass


_____________________________________
1999 SLE auto.
HID lights. red neon lights, JVC KD-AVX1 DVD/CD Receiver

What component do you want to upgrade first? Do you have an mp3 player? If so, you will need a hu with auxillary inputs or i-pod controls.

[trdkamuri51o]

Alpine is the best but you will pay for it.

What about Rockford Fosgate! I've had two set ups in the past and I can honestly say, both have pounded.

alpine = garbage.. and i mean it.. thast where my alarm and two decks went since the all craped out a few days after the warranties went out...

http://www.edesignaudio.com/us.php

very very very good audio.. i have nothing but good comments about them...
and the are very cheap too..

eu700 6.5 midbass hit like subs... thats an awesome setup

mine:
6.5 components in the kicks
6.5 eu700 in the doors
no 6x9s

NiNe4 amp pushing them
Nine.x2 amp for my subs (extremely underrated amps)
2 130.v2

very clean SOUND... and decent bass (its all about SQ)
and running off an N-1 for that matter...

including my headunit it came out to a tad bit over 2k for the setup.. sounds expensive but the avic was half of that..

ther componenets are very nice and crisp.. PAS rated them extremely good.. you could go into more expensive brands (stay away from overpriced JL) but if you want clean sound eclipse is the way to go and its not on your list. (or diamond audio as everyone else stated)

[Sol-Toy]

Alpine is the best but you will pay for it.

What about Rockford Fosgate! I've had two set ups in the past and I can honestly say, both have pounded.

alpine = garbage.. and i mean it.. thast where my alarm and two decks went since the all craped out a few days after the warranties went out...

I wouldn't say "garbage"...it's the best of the mainstream consumer. I know countless people that have had Alpine head units and they have lasted longer then the stock systems that are suppose to outlast the vehicle. It's certianly not "competition" worthy...but it's certianly the high end when it comes to typical consumer affordablility.

[PXLpainter]

I haven't heard their Car Audio components yet, but professional audio engineers have trusted Polk Audio for years and I haven't heard anything this side of Bang & Olufsen that comes close. This isn't for Rap - its for just about everything else though.

http://www.polkaudio.com/caraudio/index.php

I had a killer surround sound system that was all Sony components and Polk Audio speakers. Used a lot in recording studios for monitors too.

So - has anyone heard their car audio stuff yet?

[hskrsolara]

I have a clarion proaudio head unit and I have had great luck with it. Only conern is lack of full control in the built in equalizer, you almost certainly need a stand-alone eq with the clarions to get the full potential out of your speakers. I have used MTX amps before and they were damn near bullet proof, never a problem after 5 years.

I also have an older eclipse unit in my camry, which has run flawlessly as well.

I am currently using 2 kenwood amps on my infinity setup, one 4 channel pushing 800 watts peak, 500 rms, i am pretty sure but may need to double check this amp as it is tucked away in my rear 1/4 panel.
My mono amp for the sub is pushing 1800 watts peak, 900 watts rms.

The Kenwoods are a good bang for your buck, but they seem power hungry. My MTX with similar wattage didnt seem to run as hot and was a very good amp. The nice thing about MTX is you know exactly how much wattage you are getting since they only advertise rms wattage and not peak wattage like the other brands.

Out of all that blabber, I would recommend the eclipse and clarion head units, from my experience, and an economical yet good performing amp selection would include the mtx and kenwoods.