Car Audio Forums?

Ruffrider · Oct 29, 2003

Hey,
I'm looking into putting a system into the '03 and want to do some research. Every forum I end up at for car audio is always dead or has a bunch of idiots talking about everything but car audio lol. Could you please direct me to some good forums so I can figure out what I want to do.

Thanks
John

BBrinks · Oct 29, 2003

Here's a couple I post on:
www.caraudioforum.com these guys are pretty helpful and you usually get a few replies if you post there.
http://www.caraudio.com/vb/ not bad, just not as many people as above.
EDIT: What do you plan on doing to it? Everything or just subs?

Ruffrider · Oct 29, 2003

BBrinks said:
What do you plan on doing to it? Everything or just subs?

Thanks for the links. I plan on doing everything to it, mostly for SQ. I heard my friends car that had all this low end kenwood stuff, and it still made the Mach 460 sound like crap.

If I've done my research right and everything stays in my price range it looks like this is what will be my system

DEH-P850MP
Infinity Kappa Components with the 6 1/2" woofers if I can find kick panels
Not sure of what amp for components
Infinity Kappas 6x8 for rear fill(not sure wether to power them off an amp or HU)

Im not sure about the subs and amp yet. I have a Audiomobile Mass2012 S24 that was powered off a MTX 6500D from my '88 GT... but I wanna go all new.

-John

BBrinks · Oct 29, 2003

You can get much better components than kappa's for the money. If you're going for SQ, then the kappa's may be a little too bright. I'd go with CDT's, crystal, Diamond Audio, or JL for components. You can make a bracket that adapts the 6x8 opening to a 6.5". I made one up in AutoCAD if you want one.
For subs, I'd recommend Elemental Designs, JL, etc. There are a lot more I just can't think of on the top of my head.
Just ask around on some of the forums and you'll get a lot of info from the guys over there.

Ruffrider · Oct 29, 2003

BBrinks said:
You can get much better components than kappa's for the money. If you're going for SQ, then the kappa's may be a little too bright. I'd go with CDT's, crystal, Diamond Audio, or JL for components. You can make a bracket that adapts the 6x8 opening to a 6.5". I made one up in AutoCAD if you want one.
For subs, I'd recommend Elemental Designs, JL, etc. There are a lot more I just can't think of on the top of my head.
Just ask around on some of the forums and you'll get a lot of info from the guys over there.

Thanks. I'm reading a lot over there and realized that going with the infinity stuff may not be the way i wanna go.

Ruffrider · Oct 30, 2003

Well I've been reading a lot of stuff over there and this is what I've come up with so far... It may change though. Please make any suggestions you want.

Headunit: Alpine CDA-7995 - People say Pioneer is crap for SQ.
Components: CDT HD-52 5.25" component set
Amp: Don't know yet
Subs: 2 ED e12A's - Don't know if I can fit them in the stang though.
Amp: Don't know... something around 1200w though.
Box : Found a guy who will make me a 2.5cF sealed box for $60

How's it look so far? Any help with the amps?

BBrinks · Oct 30, 2003

Sounds like a great list. I'm going to be replacing my head unit over the winter while it's in storage, and I'm probably going to go with a CDA-9813 or the one you mentioned. I'll probably get the 7995 because I'm using external amps anyway, so I'd stick with that HU if I were you. Pioneer isn't really crap, though. A lot of the guys are very biased towards certain brands even if they haven't heard or owned them. I used to have a Pioneer HU, but I just like Alpine better.
As for the front components, I run the CDT Cl-61 series and they're about the most natural sounding speakers I've heard, so you can't go wrong with the HD series (even though I haven't demoed them yet), and for an amp for these, I'd get an Avionixx AXA 400.2: http://www.avionixxusa.com/ep/axa_4002.htm.
As for the subs, that's what I was going to run, but I want to save some trunk space, so I changed my mind. They're great subs, and you shouldn't have any problem fitting them. They have a lot of their stuff on backorder, though, you might have to wait. Not sure on the A-series, though, so you'll just have to check. For an amp for these, you could get another avionixx axt 1200.2: http://www.avionixxusa.com/ep/axt_12002.htm if you want to keep the amps the same, or go with a JBL 1200.1: http://www.ikesound.com/product-product_id/209. I'd go with the Avionixx, but the JBL is about $100 cheaper.
Sounds like you have a good system planned out, though.
I don't know if you have any links to this stuff, so here's what I could think of:
CDT's: http://www.thezeb.com/caraudio/CDT_Audio_Components.html
HU: http://www.etronics.com/product.asp?stk_code=alpcda7995&store=&catid=317

Ruffrider · Oct 30, 2003

Heres a quick question... how much power can the stock alt. take before it craps out lol. Im gonna be pulling a decent amount of power from it.

Edit: Thanks for the links, the etronics.com place is the cheapest I've seen online yet.

BBrinks · Oct 30, 2003

I think the rule of thumb is 10 watts RMS per 1 amp of alternator output. I'll have to check, though. You'll need to upgrade the 'Magic 3', though. If you can run 1/0 wire, do it, but 2 ga. will be fine.
You'll need to upgrade the
+ alt to + batt
- batt to ground
engine block to ground
Check on caraudioforum. There's a guy with a jeep who runs 8000 watts max with his stock alternator. I can't remember offhand what the stocker will take.

Ruffrider · Oct 30, 2003

Headunit is ordered
I got a Avionixx AXA 440.4 because I want rear fill
The CDT Components are ordered

I might be going with just one 12"... not sure anymore. I've been reading the ED e12a gets really loud. I might end up going with two 10s too. Still need to decide this

Thanks for the help.

BBrinks · Oct 30, 2003

I'm going with one twelve, too. I was thinking of going with 2 tens, too, but I want to keep the install stealth, so I'm going to beef up the rear deck and fabricate a fiberglass enclosure to mount from underneath. You should be happy with 1 12a, I think. If you port it, it should sound wicked. What amp do you plan on running it with?
Let me know how the install goes. I haven't heard the CDT HD's, and I think if I ever upgrade mine, I might go with those.

Ruffrider · Oct 30, 2003

Im afraid to go with a ported box since Im mainly going for SQ, I don't know if i'd be able to find someone in my area to tune the box correctly to keep the SQ decent.

As for going with one 12 or two 10, Im still undecided. I'm probably going with the avionixx 1200.2 if I get the two 10s... not sure of what amp Im getting if I get the one 12

Ruffrider · Oct 31, 2003

Well I decided on the subs. I'm gonna get the two e10A's and put them in a 1.5cF box. Im pretty sure Im gonna power them off an Avionixx Axt 1200.2, but Im still researching amps a lot.

Know anyone who builds custom boxes? I want to have a Plexiglass front where the subs mount... I wanna paint the inside of the box ceramic white and put a blue neon in it so the box glows blue around the subs. It would match my car

BBrinks, you've been a great help to me. Thank you very much . I'll let ya know how everything turns out. The only problem I have right now is convincing the guy installing everything that the ED subs and Avionixx amps aren't some cheap stuff I'm gonna be getting ripped off on. He still wants me to use Eclipse Alums. I already printed out a couple reviews of both of them .

-John

BBrinks · Oct 31, 2003

The box isn't too hard to build yourself, especially if it's sealed, if you take your time and brace it and build it right. I like the plexiglass idea, but it will take some thick plexiglass if you plan on mounting the subs to it, so it doesn't resonate. If you plan on firing them towards the back of the trunk, you could make the plexiglass window flush with the opening behind the rear seats, so when you fold them down, you could see the inside of the box and the magnets of the subs. I've seen a few guys who've done this in mustangs, and I'll try to get some links. You could wire some neons above the window so they won't be visible and wire a relay up to the remote wire or a switch to turn them on.
I hope your happy when you get it all installed. Sounds like a great system, and it'll kill the Mach1000 easy for about the same price. Glad I could help.

Imyourzero · Nov 1, 2003

Some more car audio forums:

http://www.termpro.com/

http://www.elitecaraudio.com/

http://forum.sounddomain.com/

BTW, niiice choice of equipment in your earlier post. The Alpine head unit, the CDT components, the ED subs, and the Avionixx amp....ALL very good choices!!

Ruffrider · Nov 1, 2003

Got a problem... I was told that the Avionnix 1200.2 won't work with two e10a's because it's not stable at the Ohms I would end up with... crap.

Any help with that one?

Imyourzero · Nov 1, 2003

The JBL 1200.1 is stable down to 1 ohm. I ran that amp on:

2 - JL Audio 15w3's
2 - Alpine Type R 12's
2 - Infinity Perfect 12's
2 - Audiomobile MASS 12's

As you can see, the amp is EXTREMELY versatile. It's also clean and very powerful. For the price, I really don't think you can beat it. I'd really recommend that amp to you...

BBrinks · Nov 1, 2003

Yeah, I'd proably go with the JBL 1200.1, then. If you do get the Avionixx, you'll only be able to run it @ 4 ohms per channel and only give each sub 300W RMS which won't be enough to power them to their full potential. The JBL is a great amp too, and it's 2ohm stable, but it would've been nice to keep all Avionixx.

Ruffrider · Nov 3, 2003

I was considering the JBL 1200.1 since its good power for the money, but I wanna keep options open.

What do you guys think of the Hifonics BX 1000D?

BBrinks · Nov 3, 2003

Should be a pretty decent amp, but you're still only going to be giving them 350 wRMS each vs 600 for the JBL. You might be better off getting the 1500d. This is probably overkill, but another one to check out is the tsunami line: http://www.avionixxusa.com/ep/db1800.htm

Car Audio Forums?

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