ClimberDHexMods Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 About to pull the trigger, just wanted to be sure I have chosen equipment properly. Never done any audio before! This is actually for my LS400, the idea being if after a while I still really like it then I'll order the exact same things for the Legacy or do a transplant It's relatively relevant discussion to the Legacy and thus the LGT community. Update Post: Ordered the following (prices include shipping): $71 Alpine CDE-125BT $13 Plastic adapter face for dash $4 Wiring adapter harnesses -$ Working on the Alpine-to-iPhone adapter cable -I will be running the stock amp/sub in rear deck with the new head unit Now for the component speaker selection! Stock woofers are 4", but I can fit 5.25 or even 6.5" courtesy of my extensive array of dremmel bits. Both up sizes have been fitted to the car. Goals: -Make good sound at reasonable volume level; I don't like hurting my eardrums for the sake of self validation -Have speakers somewhat compensate for mediocre factory sub performance by making some amount of light bass, while still being excellent with mids and highs. I don't want music to feel like bass is totally missing and thus double total system cost with a sub. -Overall goal is to not spend a lot of money! Thanks in advance!!! [CENTER][B][I] Front Limited Slip Racing Differentials for the 5EAT now available for $1895 shipped, please inquire for details! [/I][/B][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 On your Receiver of choice, I have not had much experience W/ Kenwood. Is there any specific reason as to why you have chose such a Model? As far as your Front Door Speakers: If you "Value A Good Tweeter," I don't understand why you are heading W/ Coaxial's VS Components. Location will be the key to "valuing" a Good Tweeter. ...your shins are deaf As far as "Sub-Bass" goes, focus on your installation. I advise you to look into Sound Deadener & apply it properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClimberDHexMods Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 On your Receiver of choice, I have not had much experience W/ Kenwood. Is there any specific reason as to why you have chose such a Model? Crutchfield reviews are very good across the line, also has the full iPod/Bluetooth/color matching feature set, at a lower price than competition. Also outputs 22Watts RMS x4, as opposed to ~18 for most other brands. Small bump to help with non-external amp situation. As far as your Front Door Speakers: If you "Value A Good Tweeter," I don't understand why you are heading W/ Coaxial's VS Components. Location will be the key to "valuing" a Good Tweeter. ...your shins are deafThis was an educated guess for me. Do you go with a reasonable starter level component setup, or one step up the quality ladder to coaxials that are half the price?... also I noted no one ever said in any review I found that they wished they had gone component because the highs were less than awesome; that it's more about the selection of speaker than the fact that it's coaxial. I have made a lot of cuts from the ideal setup to keep on budget, this being one. I hope it all turns out to be a nice balance of tradeoffs? As far as "Sub-Bass" goes, focus on your installation. I advise you to look into Sound Deadener & apply it properly.I will definitely do that. Should I work on sealing the speaker enclosure to the extent reasonably possible, or just add mass to drop door resonance? [CENTER][B][I] Front Limited Slip Racing Differentials for the 5EAT now available for $1895 shipped, please inquire for details! [/I][/B][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dbl_D718 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 You will almost always lose bass response when going from factory to aftermarket speakers while still powering them with the factory head unit. Aftermarket speakers are less efficient, so they need more power to produce equivalent volume levels. Since lower frequencies require the most power to produce, they suffer the most. Properly deadening your doors, like Fiberglass said, will help quite a bit. Especially if you amp your speakers. Deadening isn't all that cheap though and it takes some time to apply it. Check out: http://secondskinaudio.com/ http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/2008-2-5i-le-install-86731.html (especially post #13) MODS: PW TMIC, Cobb catted DP, HKS cat-back, AVO filter, Bren e-tune; Konis/Epics, Advan RCII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClimberDHexMods Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 You will almost always lose bass response when going from factory to aftermarket speakers while still powering them with the factory head unit. Aftermarket speakers are less efficient, so they need more power to produce equivalent volume levels. Since lower frequencies require the most power to produce, they suffer the most. Properly deadening your doors, like Fiberglass said, will help quite a bit. Especially if you amp your speakers. Deadening isn't all that cheap though and it takes some time to apply it. Check out: http://secondskinaudio.com/ http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/2008-2-5i-le-install-86731.html (especially post #13) I already have sound deadener left over from my loud exhaust days, so no added cost there. Learned a LOT about sound deadening to combat my old exhaust, before I grew up and sold it for a quieter one Receiver: Kenwood Excelon KDC-X695 No stock headunit, going with this one unless I get a reason not to. Should I expect to be yearning for an amp in short order? People say they make a good difference, but they cost a good amount... [CENTER][B][I] Front Limited Slip Racing Differentials for the 5EAT now available for $1895 shipped, please inquire for details! [/I][/B][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 "Quality Latter": The difference between a $500 Component Set vs a $1000 Component Set only differs User to User. Taste is subjective as everyone perceives sound differently. What's important is how you are applying your Drivers. The reason you have not seen any "regrets" is because the user(s) couldn't make a comparison between Coaxial's & Components of the same Line. Now, tell the User(s) to rip out their suspended Tweeters & place them in their A-Pillars, they will "hear" a difference. If you are a Lap Top, go ahead and "Youtube" your favorite Tune. When it's playing, stand up and place your lap top by your feet & half way through the song, pick up your Lap Top & hold it in your hands & let the song finish playing through. Now tell me what "sounded" better to you. Staging is important, head W/ Components:) - especially if the option is there. Is there any reason you do not want to head W/ Components? I am not sure what you mean by "Sealing" the Speaker Enclosure. Most "Car Audio" Component Sets are designed for IB applications. IB = Free Air. A door is an "IB Enclosure." "Sound Deadener" is for Resonance. You may want to look into this: http://www.sounddeadenershowdown.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi to help you fix your "Road Noise" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowImg Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 The man speaks the truth. The only proper way to pick audio bits is to listen to them and pick the one you like best. It's entirely subjective. Even if you have the most bench-accurate devices in the world, they may sound worse to you than a $15 pair of headphones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2.5GT_dude Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 The only thing that may cost a bit is the adapter for an aftermarket HU and wire harness. It will be easier in the long run if you decide to use amp since aftermarket HU will have output for an amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 "Car Audio" is just like anything else-You can spend as little or as much as you want. Will an external Amplifier Make a difference? If properly Set-up & tuned correctly, hell yes it will. Most aftermarket speakers are designed for a certain amount of wattage. If you want Full Potential out of them than Feed them W/ the correct amount of wattage they were Engineered to handle. I am not trying to persuade you into spending more $$$, just laying out your options & giving reasoning. I hope the reason why you are heading W/ your desired HU is NOT because of its 4+ RMS rating. To be honest, I'm more than positive that you will not be able to hear the difference between 20 RMS & 25 RMS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dbl_D718 Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 x3 on auditioning your speaker choices. Find a local audio shop with a sound board to try out all of their speakers. Even the cheap ones and the ones you can't afford. This will help you figure out both what you like and what you don't. Then you can narrow down your choices to find something you like and can afford, or whether it's worth another $100 to get something you really liked. Aftermarket head unit power isn't much, if any, more power than factory. You'll still lose a lot of bass response IMO. MODS: PW TMIC, Cobb catted DP, HKS cat-back, AVO filter, Bren e-tune; Konis/Epics, Advan RCII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 ^ & after you leave the Audio Shop, go home & find them online for half the price:) When you are there, pay attention to Cone Material & Tweeter Composition. After that, come back on the forum & we will help you out. Reviews are great, but don't sit on them. Threads don't make a "Sound," & you need them for you ears to hear. -Use your ears, not your eyes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClimberDHexMods Posted January 4, 2012 Author Share Posted January 4, 2012 Thank you for the good advice and ideas. I'm not budging on price (much), but will certainly demo whatever I can before pulling the trigger. Also good to know about the receiver RMS rating. [CENTER][B][I] Front Limited Slip Racing Differentials for the 5EAT now available for $1895 shipped, please inquire for details! [/I][/B][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowImg Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Don't just demo after you've chosen something, start with the demo. Find the sound you like then figure out how to get it to fit technically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FJuan Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 For the price point, those are good. Bottom line, it's going to sound 100% better over the stock system. My wife's balls are delicious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Crutchfield is great, but what's the Point of "buying online" when you have to pay near full retail:) http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_31832_Kicker-KS60-11KS60.html http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_31834_Kicker-KS65-11KS65.html It's only a few $$$ cheaper vs Crutchfield, but figured I'd throw the option out there. Before you Pull the trigger, head over to diyma.com & check out the classifields. A few good "Best Bang 4 The Buck" Component sets that come to mind are: PPI 356cs : Based of an older High End A/D/S set Phoenix Gold RSD Massive Audio CkV6 (These are Hot on diyma) I know there are others, but there's a few that come to mind. Search Google OR diyma for more options Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2.5GT_dude Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 onlinecarstereo.com is good also...crutchfield is always higher. But their shipping is usaully free and very fast and great tech-supp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 ^ x2 Watch out for onlinecarstereo-Seems like people either have had really good experience or really bad experience W/ this "online distributor." Exactly, Crutchfield's shipping & Tech Support = Awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frkkevin Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 Be careful what you demo and view the install.. sound rooms sound way different than a car. I'd add in the budget some sound deadener to deaden and seal the doors. INSTALL is the most important part of a system. If you skip this step you midbass will be very lacking and will have a hollow sounding midrange I would also advise to go with a component set and not a coaxial setup. the PG RSDs are a good bang for the buck set but I feel you might be better off buying something better although it may be used. Are you stuck on the $220 budget and are you open to buying used? If you start reading up on DIYMA you will see a lot of people building their own component sets with cheap drivers from partsexpress.com .. I've heard some of these setups and was very suprised. 512whp/465ftlb 2005 5EAT Legacy (Build Log) Videos - - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 ^ Now frkkevin, let's not get into "Active" X-Overs quite yet:) Agreed on the Sound Rooms. Oh btw, tell them to Kill the Sub(Woofers) when you are auditing various Component Sets. -They usually hide them behind the "Sound Board." Frkkevin: I know you want them, scroll down to the bottom of the page:) : http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/component-speakers-175516.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frkkevin Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Oh those are temping.. David I'll buy those and sell you the cdt-ef-61set from my wife's car 512whp/465ftlb 2005 5EAT Legacy (Build Log) Videos - - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 CDT Tweeters can't compare to a set from DLS-Granted "DLS tweets" are actually made by Scan:) I've Auditioned CDT's HD Series-very nice. However, W/ any other CDT Set, I found the Tweeters to be a bit "bright." Too bad those ef-61's don't include the M6 Mids-Those are awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClimberDHexMods Posted January 7, 2012 Author Share Posted January 7, 2012 Oh those are temping.. David I'll buy those and sell you the cdt-ef-61set from my wife's car They sound like they're too good for my lacking audio proficiency. Completely separately, I should be clear that as a guy looking for a $200 audio solution, I'm truly not any sort of audiophile. I'm all about the go fast, that's where it really matters to me and that's where the money goes. [CENTER][B][I] Front Limited Slip Racing Differentials for the 5EAT now available for $1895 shipped, please inquire for details! [/I][/B][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 You mean "Too Good" as you wouldn't know how you would apply it, or how it applies? There is no "Too Good" With Audio. You just have to know how to apply it & from there, it's all subjective. Wanna trade knowledge-Audio for Engine? There isn't anything "Special" about the two sets of Components listed above. The only thing that is "Special" is how I hear them VS how you hear them. Speakers are like candy, pick your flavor. You don't have to be an "Audiophile," but you should want to get as much out of that $200 as possible right? If So, Let's revise. Did you ever pick up that HU of your Choice? Did you ever Audition any Speakers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClimberDHexMods Posted January 7, 2012 Author Share Posted January 7, 2012 Haven't had a chance to demo anything yet, and have not ordered yet. Happy to help with engine questions. [CENTER][B][I] Front Limited Slip Racing Differentials for the 5EAT now available for $1895 shipped, please inquire for details! [/I][/B][/CENTER] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiberglassCustoms Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I am not exactly sure how to respond, Figure these 3 Variables: 1.) Budget 2.) Application 3.) Circumstances Start W/ the Source. Figure ^ & choose accordingly. It looks like you have the all three answered: 1.) Budget: "X Amount" 2.) Application: Single Din 3.) Circumstances: Figure out what "features" you want from your HU & choose accordingly. It appears as you are interested in Bluetooth, etc... If the Kenwood fits the equation, than I say opt for it. There may be more options out there that will suit your needs-You can look further into this if you want. Figure ^ & everything else will follow. I can not go about recommending you a set of Speakers W/out Given Cost of your Source. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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