Sound System

Alpine, Eclipse, Sony, etc are good brands. Just find the one with the features you need with the best price.

SexyGT488 said:

Well i have had my car in storage for a while now and im ready to get it back. with that said i wanna install a nice head unit, interior speakers, amp, and 10 inch sub. i already have a amp which 920watt kenwood which i will just use for the sub. but not to sure on what kind of head unit i should buy, sub, and interior speakers i shold get. i really dont wanna spend too much money on this the only reason doin this is because i dont have the mach stereo system in my car so any suggestions would be good.

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Hi, I just did the entire system in my GT... picked the coldest months of the year to work outside but now it rocks for spring. It was designed with SQ in mind, not SPL.

For SPL, get two 12" enclosed subs, they will slam with that amp! Is it mono or can you run your other speakers from it too? Amps are soo expensive... it's great that you've got one major part in the bag already.

Not knowing the amount of your budget or your sound preferences, I'll put in my general 2 cents...

I'd say put more of your budget up front now. Look at the high quality name brands as their newer lines come out. The older models get cheaper b/c stores need to clear out their inventory.

I rewired all the speakers with new 16 gauge copper. There's not one shred of stock wiring left in the doors or down the sides. It was skinny, kinked-up old stuff. Didn't skimp on amp distributor blocks or cables either. Bad wires can introduce noise & interference which ruin an awesome setup.

I covered the doors with Dynamat; that's very helpful. A lot of road noise comes through those long doors.

You can pick up an Alpine HU and the adapters/wiring at Crutchfield for a decent price. The '06 models have high-speed iPod cables, so last year's are bargains and the S/N, freq. response & sensitivity are great throughout the product line. Kenwood and Pioneer HUs are also very good.

I stuck with Alpine amps for consistency (more watts per $ than others of comparably clean sound), Infinity components and 2 Infinity DVC 10" subs because they were on sale at the time (buy one get one free).

You'd be pleased with even the least expensive of any Alpine or Infinity product. These aren't "cheap" in any sense of the word but I made a big spreadsheet comparing specs,watts & price before starting this project. Other winners for best quality for price were Boston, MB Quart, Rockford Fosgate... my choice often hinged on "what's on sale."

Hope this helps! - AM

I had a really nice sound system in my GT. I was using a 5423 eclipse head unit...which now theres another 5 series head unit to take its place now. i had JL XR components (6 1/2s) and JL XR 5x7's in the rear (my car didnt have the mach system stock). The speakers were powered by a JL e3200 amp (not sure if that was the exact number) but if i could have i wouldve bought another eclipse PA4212 amp like on my subs to power my fronts. I had eclipse subs which were powered by the PA4212 eclipse amps. my subs were 12" and i had the c pillars, under the spoiler, and behind the license plate insulated. but i also had a 96 which dont seem to rattle as much as the 99-04's...it was a damn good system and would love to get it back. good luck with your search.

poorcollegekid said:

I had a really nice sound system in my GT. I was using a 5423 eclipse head unit...which now theres another 5 series head unit to take its place now. i had JL XR components (6 1/2s) and JL XR 5x7's in the rear (my car didnt have the mach system stock). The speakers were powered by a JL e3200 amp (not sure if that was the exact number) but if i could have i wouldve bought another eclipse PA4212 amp like on my subs to power my fronts. I had eclipse subs which were powered by the PA4212 eclipse amps. my subs were 12" and i had the c pillars, under the spoiler, and behind the license plate insulated. but i also had a 96 which dont seem to rattle as much as the 99-04's...it was a damn good system and would love to get it back. good luck with your search.

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did you have any problems fitting the 6 1/2s in the door? i know the stock door speakers are 5x7s, so i am torn whether i want to get the 6 1/2 components (if they fit) or the 5x7 components. not trying to hijack your thread OP!

For a headunit, stick with the features you're looking for, most name brands sound good unless you're looking for perfection. I have 1 12" in my trunk with a Rockford Fosgate amp. The amp is a great amp and definetely sounds better than a cheap imitation. Shop around for what's on sale. With subs you get what you pay for...most name brands make good quality products. Same with the interior speakers. Look for things like quality surround material, 3 way speakers, match the power handling to the power of your headunit, same with the sub match the power range to your amp. I buy all my stuff from either crutchfield.com or soundomain.com

Have fun!

I have a jl audio 13w7 in my car and its a great sub. It can get loud and slam when i ask it to, and play as soft and clean as possible with rock and such.


I currently still have the stock mach 460 speaks and they are ok for now. I plan on re-doing the whole deal.

Definitely dynomat, you wont be sorry.


4-way speakers are the new thing on the market, they come with a super high tweeter, regular tweeter and a mid bass cone. I'd stick with componets personally. Placement and control of the crossover is effective in making the sound YOU want.

2 6X9's on my dash...not in it...on it.

sbc44 said:

did you have any problems fitting the 6 1/2s in the door? i know the stock door speakers are 5x7s, so i am torn whether i want to get the 6 1/2 components (if they fit) or the 5x7 components. not trying to hijack your thread OP!

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i didnt put them in. i had the place do it but i did take em out and it didnt look like they had to cut the panel any to get em in. looked like the fit in there just fine.