$400 budget - Speakers only, or amp too? What about $600?
02-08-2010, 12:49 AM
#1
Teching In
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 15
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
$400 budget - Speakers only, or amp too? What about $600? Okay, have a T/A with the Monsoon system. The HU wouldn't play CDs anymore, the left sail panel speaker died, the mid in the driver's door comes in and out, and the tweeter might, too.
I've replaced the HU - got a JVC Arsenal KD-A805, and am really enjoying that. And now I've got some budget to do the speakers.
What do I listen to? Rock, mostly. Maybe a little hard rock / metal. Not so much pop/rap/R&B. I still remember being at a Virgin Records back in 2000 or so and listening to Metallica's S&M album with the SF Symphony on their demo headphones. I want a system that sounds like that! (Also, a buddy of mine had the stereo in his SS redone, but neither he nor the guy who did the install remembers exactly what they put in, and he's since sold the car.)
Let's suppose I've got $400 to spend. Do I keep any of the stock speakers? The ones in the hatch still work. I'm guessing I keep the Monsoon amp. I see Kee's intro package is in that price range; it doesn't seem like the upgraded speaker package makes sense unless I'm doing the amp, too.
What about at $600?
I've replaced the HU - got a JVC Arsenal KD-A805, and am really enjoying that. And now I've got some budget to do the speakers.
What do I listen to? Rock, mostly. Maybe a little hard rock / metal. Not so much pop/rap/R&B. I still remember being at a Virgin Records back in 2000 or so and listening to Metallica's S&M album with the SF Symphony on their demo headphones. I want a system that sounds like that! (Also, a buddy of mine had the stereo in his SS redone, but neither he nor the guy who did the install remembers exactly what they put in, and he's since sold the car.)
Let's suppose I've got $400 to spend. Do I keep any of the stock speakers? The ones in the hatch still work. I'm guessing I keep the Monsoon amp. I see Kee's intro package is in that price range; it doesn't seem like the upgraded speaker package makes sense unless I'm doing the amp, too.
What about at $600?
02-08-2010, 04:10 AM
#3
Put a set of Polk MM6501 (around $175-$190) components up front, and in the rear sail panels a set of Polk MM651(about $120) coaxial speakers, you can't go wrong with the Polk MM speakers;loud and clean sound!
For a Amplifier to power them take a look at the US AMPS XT-800.4 v2 (50w x 4, $170), the US AMPS XT1600.4 V2 (100w x 4, $200), and the US AMPS MERLIN MD-42 (75w x 4, $207).
Total around $465 to $517.
And IMO, get a 4AWG Amp kit (Stinger, or Street Wire), and put some sound deadening in the doors and in the sail panels.
For a Amplifier to power them take a look at the US AMPS XT-800.4 v2 (50w x 4, $170), the US AMPS XT1600.4 V2 (100w x 4, $200), and the US AMPS MERLIN MD-42 (75w x 4, $207).
Total around $465 to $517.
And IMO, get a 4AWG Amp kit (Stinger, or Street Wire), and put some sound deadening in the doors and in the sail panels.
02-08-2010, 01:31 PM
#4
Shoot me a PM....I can set you up with something in that price range that will perform very well and have an aftermarket amp that will compliment the A805 nicely.
CDT is having some really cool specials for February that have free rear speakers. I will be posting that up later tomorrow.
CDT is having some really cool specials for February that have free rear speakers. I will be posting that up later tomorrow.
02-16-2010, 06:58 PM
#6
Speakers and amp are your best money spent, make sure you have a decent LOC and you'll be happy. Dedicated sub-bass drivers will help further. Asking full range speakers to provide solid sub bass is simply not practical in most cars. The monsoon style setup with 6.5" "subs" in the sails is a decent quasi-solution but once you hear a properly set up system with a decent front and sub stage, you won't go back. Everything else will sound hollow. Kee can set you up properly for reasonable money. He's not cheapest but he may give you the most value, which is most important. CDT is an excellent foundation and you need clean, reliable amps that are properly grounded and tuned with more than rated power - you don't need the highest end brand. Have fun!
02-16-2010, 11:41 PM
#7
in all honesty, i'd skip the sail panel speakers entirely.
one of the cleanest installs you can do in these cars is a good set of 6.5" or 6.75" components up front, a single 10" or 12" subwoofer, and a nice, powerful 4-channel amp, preferably 75watts x 4 or so. wire each of the front component sets to the front 2 channels of the amp in stereo, and bridge the rear channels of the amp into the single subwoofer.
this is the way i've gone with my system, and i love the way it sounds....you'll probably never set any SPL records with a setup like this, but it's plenty loud enough to hear over engine/wind/road noise (and then some).
one of the cleanest installs you can do in these cars is a good set of 6.5" or 6.75" components up front, a single 10" or 12" subwoofer, and a nice, powerful 4-channel amp, preferably 75watts x 4 or so. wire each of the front component sets to the front 2 channels of the amp in stereo, and bridge the rear channels of the amp into the single subwoofer.
this is the way i've gone with my system, and i love the way it sounds....you'll probably never set any SPL records with a setup like this, but it's plenty loud enough to hear over engine/wind/road noise (and then some).
Trending Topics
02-17-2010, 01:43 AM
#8
just did a quick price-up over at Kee Audio, and the following system should work pretty well for you:
Infinity Kappa 60.9CS (6.5" 2-way component speakers) - $169.00
Drivers side MDF subwoofer enclosure for 10" subwoofer (2nd enclosure on page) - $139.00
CDT Audio EF-100 10" subwoofer - $89.00
Infinity REF475A amp (4 x 75 watts) - $199.00
DB LINK 8AWG Amplifier Installation Kit - $29.00
DB LINK 17 FT. Competition Series RCA Cable - $13.00
total: $638 + whatever they charge for shipping
this should be everything you need to install the system, other than the tools & the free time...
the amp installation kit includes the power/ground cables, the fuse & fuse holder (which should be installed within 12" - 18" of the end of the power cable closest to the battery/power source), a set of RCA cables, remote turn-on wire (so your amp turns on with your head unit), speaker wire, and all the little accessories to help with the installation.
the second set of RCA cables is for your head unit's subwoofer output, which is essential if you want to use the head unit's built-in subwoofer level adjustment to change the volume of the subwoofer from the head unit without affecting the rest of the system, as well as to have a different crossover point for each of the two pairs of channels (front & sub), one high-pass (front) and one low-pass (sub).
mount the infinity component speakers up front in the doors (i personally cut a small hole in the plastic grille to flush-mount the tweeters in front of the woofers).
mount the subwoofer in the enclosure on the driver's side in the hatch area....stuff the inside of the enclosure with fiberfill or pillow stuffing....this "tricks" the subwoofer into performing as if it were in a slightly larger enclosure, which will help to even out the frequency response and dampen the sound a bit.
mount the amp to the front wall of the hatch area, just below the pivot point of the tonneau cover (be sure not to drill into the gas tank when mounting the screws). run the front 2 channels in stereo to the front door speakers (1 set of components per channel), and bridge the rear 2 channels into a single channel to power the single subwoofer.
run your power cable, speaker wires & patch cables under the carpet, making sure to keep the power cable separated from the patch cables & speaker wires as much as possible to help prevent "alternator whine". if you do need to cross the power cable with any other cable related to the audio system that's carrying an audio signal, always try to do so at a right-angle to each other....NEVER, EVER run the two parallel to each other.
since there is a hole in the firewall that you can bring the power cable into the cabin through (behind the car's computer in the engine compartment on the passenger's side), i'd run the power cable down the passenger's side and run the patch cables down the driver's side, up next to the driveshaft hump on either side (just make sure you don't mount your seats down on top of the cables & pinch them when reinstalling the seats).....then run the speaker wire for the left & right sides down each side of the car, as close to the outside of the vehicle as possible, again making sure not to pinch them when reinstalling the seats. i'd run the remote turn-on wire down the same side of the car as the power wire.....since both are just delivering power and not actually carrying any audio signal, it won't hurt to run them parallel to each other. your head unit should have an output on the back for connecting the remote turn-on wire to, which acts as your amp's on/off switch...turn the stereo on, the amp turns on, and vice-versa.
i'd set the head unit's front-channel crossover point somewhere between 70Hz & 100Hz (high-pass), and the subwoofer between 80Hz - 120Hz (low-pass)....just experiment with these settings to see what sounds best to you....but it generally helps the soundstage out a lot (keeping the audio sounding like it's all coming from up front, the way it's supposed to be) if you keep as much bass up front as possible, as long as it doesn't cause distortion, so i'd set both the front & rear x-over points fairly low (such as 70Hz - 80Hz high-pass up front and 60Hz - 80Hz low-pass for the sub).
Infinity Kappa 60.9CS (6.5" 2-way component speakers) - $169.00
Drivers side MDF subwoofer enclosure for 10" subwoofer (2nd enclosure on page) - $139.00
CDT Audio EF-100 10" subwoofer - $89.00
Infinity REF475A amp (4 x 75 watts) - $199.00
DB LINK 8AWG Amplifier Installation Kit - $29.00
DB LINK 17 FT. Competition Series RCA Cable - $13.00
total: $638 + whatever they charge for shipping
this should be everything you need to install the system, other than the tools & the free time...
the amp installation kit includes the power/ground cables, the fuse & fuse holder (which should be installed within 12" - 18" of the end of the power cable closest to the battery/power source), a set of RCA cables, remote turn-on wire (so your amp turns on with your head unit), speaker wire, and all the little accessories to help with the installation.
the second set of RCA cables is for your head unit's subwoofer output, which is essential if you want to use the head unit's built-in subwoofer level adjustment to change the volume of the subwoofer from the head unit without affecting the rest of the system, as well as to have a different crossover point for each of the two pairs of channels (front & sub), one high-pass (front) and one low-pass (sub).
mount the infinity component speakers up front in the doors (i personally cut a small hole in the plastic grille to flush-mount the tweeters in front of the woofers).
mount the subwoofer in the enclosure on the driver's side in the hatch area....stuff the inside of the enclosure with fiberfill or pillow stuffing....this "tricks" the subwoofer into performing as if it were in a slightly larger enclosure, which will help to even out the frequency response and dampen the sound a bit.
mount the amp to the front wall of the hatch area, just below the pivot point of the tonneau cover (be sure not to drill into the gas tank when mounting the screws). run the front 2 channels in stereo to the front door speakers (1 set of components per channel), and bridge the rear 2 channels into a single channel to power the single subwoofer.
run your power cable, speaker wires & patch cables under the carpet, making sure to keep the power cable separated from the patch cables & speaker wires as much as possible to help prevent "alternator whine". if you do need to cross the power cable with any other cable related to the audio system that's carrying an audio signal, always try to do so at a right-angle to each other....NEVER, EVER run the two parallel to each other.
since there is a hole in the firewall that you can bring the power cable into the cabin through (behind the car's computer in the engine compartment on the passenger's side), i'd run the power cable down the passenger's side and run the patch cables down the driver's side, up next to the driveshaft hump on either side (just make sure you don't mount your seats down on top of the cables & pinch them when reinstalling the seats).....then run the speaker wire for the left & right sides down each side of the car, as close to the outside of the vehicle as possible, again making sure not to pinch them when reinstalling the seats. i'd run the remote turn-on wire down the same side of the car as the power wire.....since both are just delivering power and not actually carrying any audio signal, it won't hurt to run them parallel to each other. your head unit should have an output on the back for connecting the remote turn-on wire to, which acts as your amp's on/off switch...turn the stereo on, the amp turns on, and vice-versa.
i'd set the head unit's front-channel crossover point somewhere between 70Hz & 100Hz (high-pass), and the subwoofer between 80Hz - 120Hz (low-pass)....just experiment with these settings to see what sounds best to you....but it generally helps the soundstage out a lot (keeping the audio sounding like it's all coming from up front, the way it's supposed to be) if you keep as much bass up front as possible, as long as it doesn't cause distortion, so i'd set both the front & rear x-over points fairly low (such as 70Hz - 80Hz high-pass up front and 60Hz - 80Hz low-pass for the sub).
02-17-2010, 05:29 PM
#10
Actually with most of that stuff when you order a package I throw in amp kit, any additional RCA cables needed, install gear for the HU's, etc. Also I generally include shipping in those prices to the lower 48 states. So the price you see is the price you pay. I also discount package deals.
I am updating the site soon as well with all the new 2010 JVC gear that just arrived. New HU's are in stock now. Also Clarion has a bunch of new 2010 product that just came in including their new double DIN units that are really nice.
I will also be carrying Hertz in very small quantities. Obviously the Hertz stuff is extreme high end and doesn't pertain to this thread but figured I'd mention it.
The CDT EF-100 is no more also. They still have the EF-120's but they are all being replaced sometime in March by the new EF series (if they calll it that). They will have a carbon fiber cone and completely new motor structure. I was able to get ahold of one prototype that went out to a customer and it was VERY well received! Can't wait to get ahold of those.
I am updating the site soon as well with all the new 2010 JVC gear that just arrived. New HU's are in stock now. Also Clarion has a bunch of new 2010 product that just came in including their new double DIN units that are really nice.
I will also be carrying Hertz in very small quantities. Obviously the Hertz stuff is extreme high end and doesn't pertain to this thread but figured I'd mention it.
The CDT EF-100 is no more also. They still have the EF-120's but they are all being replaced sometime in March by the new EF series (if they calll it that). They will have a carbon fiber cone and completely new motor structure. I was able to get ahold of one prototype that went out to a customer and it was VERY well received! Can't wait to get ahold of those.
02-17-2010, 07:47 PM
#11
TECH Enthusiast
iTrader: (21)
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: DFW
Posts: 504
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The absolute best bang for buck speakers are the Phoenix Gold RSD6.5cs. For the price (about $85-90) they can not be beat. Trust me.
The Polk MM6501 that 99Bluz28 mentioned are also nice, but over 2x the money.
As far as the sails... worry about those last. They are generally supposed to be faded out anyway.
The US AMPS XT1600.4 V2 will serve you very well. I say spend $300 on the XT1600.4 V2 and the PG's, and either save the rest or add a sub. You will love it.
The Polk MM6501 that 99Bluz28 mentioned are also nice, but over 2x the money.
As far as the sails... worry about those last. They are generally supposed to be faded out anyway.
The US AMPS XT1600.4 V2 will serve you very well. I say spend $300 on the XT1600.4 V2 and the PG's, and either save the rest or add a sub. You will love it.
03-16-2010, 12:06 AM
#12
I have a 96 Trans Am 10 speaker system, non-Monsoon.
Ian said that system has an amp that powers the sail panel speakers only.
If I were to upgrade to Kee's premium package minus the rear 4", how would my sail panel speakers be powered?
Does the factory amp stay in place and continue to power the sail panel speakers, if I did a 4 channel amp to power my front speakers and a subwoofer?
I've been reading up on Crutchfield to learn about wiring amps/subs and how they work, but I'm still confused about this stuff.
Ian said that system has an amp that powers the sail panel speakers only.
If I were to upgrade to Kee's premium package minus the rear 4", how would my sail panel speakers be powered?
Does the factory amp stay in place and continue to power the sail panel speakers, if I did a 4 channel amp to power my front speakers and a subwoofer?
I've been reading up on Crutchfield to learn about wiring amps/subs and how they work, but I'm still confused about this stuff.
03-16-2010, 12:51 AM
#13
So I want to do pretty much what 02Z28LS1 said, and have my amp power my front components and a 10" sub.
how is this amp:
Pretty new Pioneer model
GM-D9500F 4 channel 800 watt
Amplifier Class D (class fd)
Number of Channels 4
RMS Power (4 ohms) 75 watts x 4 channels
RMS Power (2 ohms) 100 watts x 4 channels
RMS Power (1 ohm) N/A
Bridged RMS Power 200 watts x 2 channels
Total RMS Power Output 400 watts
Peak Power Output 400 watts x 2 channels
Total Peak Power Output 800 watts
Maximum Input Gauge Size 4
Minimum Impedance Unbridged 2 ohms
Minimum Impedance Bridged 4 Ohms
THD at Rated RMS Power 0.06%
Speaker Level Inputs Yes
Preamp Outputs 1 pair
Built-in Crossover Low-pass (LP)
High-pass (HP)
High-Pass Crossover Frequency 40 - 500 Hz
Low-Pass Crossover Frequency 40 - 500 Hz
Subsonic Filter N/A
Signal-to-Noise Ratio 95 dB
Channel Separation N/A
Bass Boost N/A
Bass/Gain Remote No
Fan Cooled No
Fuse Rating 40A x 1
CEA-2006 Compliant Yes
how is this amp:
Pretty new Pioneer model
GM-D9500F 4 channel 800 watt
Amplifier Class D (class fd)
Number of Channels 4
RMS Power (4 ohms) 75 watts x 4 channels
RMS Power (2 ohms) 100 watts x 4 channels
RMS Power (1 ohm) N/A
Bridged RMS Power 200 watts x 2 channels
Total RMS Power Output 400 watts
Peak Power Output 400 watts x 2 channels
Total Peak Power Output 800 watts
Maximum Input Gauge Size 4
Minimum Impedance Unbridged 2 ohms
Minimum Impedance Bridged 4 Ohms
THD at Rated RMS Power 0.06%
Speaker Level Inputs Yes
Preamp Outputs 1 pair
Built-in Crossover Low-pass (LP)
High-pass (HP)
High-Pass Crossover Frequency 40 - 500 Hz
Low-Pass Crossover Frequency 40 - 500 Hz
Subsonic Filter N/A
Signal-to-Noise Ratio 95 dB
Channel Separation N/A
Bass Boost N/A
Bass/Gain Remote No
Fan Cooled No
Fuse Rating 40A x 1
CEA-2006 Compliant Yes
03-17-2010, 04:50 PM
#16
TECH Apprentice
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 368
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I have an alpine head unit, infinity references in the doors, some kenwoods in the sail panels, and a 10 inch mtx road thunder sub hooked up to a pyramid amp. I have to change out the kenwoods in the near future. I would go with the infinity speakers in the door, the components are the best bet, I have the tweeter located up top by the window and the woofer in the door. I listen to hard rock, heavy metal, and rap, and it all sounds pretty damn good. The 10 inch sub really gives nice bass, and does not sound flabby like a 12" sub sometimes sound.
