The purpose of the cap is only for spikes. It is NOT the main power source. Basically, batteries use chemical reactions to create energy, the alternator does it mechanically, and the capacitor does it via electro-static discharge. It is the FASTEST method of power. Yes its ‘nice’ to upgrade the other aspect of power in the car, but you still risk major damage to your alternator without a cap as the battery is almost never quick enough to provide the power subs want and the power comes straight from the alternator.
I still want to get an upgraded stinger alternator for my final setup - they had a 384 amp alternator in purple just staring at me @_@
And yeah DJ - whats the ride and how much money you got set aside for any of this? You just showing off or trying to do competition? Car Audio goes as far as your money.
I have about a $1300 sound system in my car, at least I think that’s about what I spent. It’s been a few years so I can’t recall.
I hate overly loud music too, though. I just wanted the system for superior sound quality and the possibility to crank it up on a rare occasion I felt like “jammin out” or whatever.
I have the Klipsch Promedia Ultra 5.1 system for my computer, so I needed something at least on par with that for my car so my mp3’s sound great no matter where I listen to them. It’s just a shame that the Klipsch’s cost $350 and deliver phenominal sound, and car systems cost at least twice that much to even compare. =(
Your not pushing enough power to start upgrading your alternator, battery on the other hand, you can. From what I read lately, Red tops > Yellow tops for tCs. Weird, I know, but some of the car freaks on SL are deep in conversation about it. The tC actually has a decent elect. system in it, I rarely see diming lights, and when I do its nothing that will cause you to toss a red flag. Now, if you doing the “Will Treatment” (ROFL) you will need to have a transformer and the lunch box just in case LOL:arazz:
Very VERY tempted to cop my new deck before this weekend so I can show yall…might go to best buy today…dun dun DUN!!!
Koop - GoW tonight??? LOL, your comments last night were GOLDEN!!! Sorry for the headshot:looney:
you an marcus yo… i know yall had jokes:rofl: i was even laughin my self cause i remember walkin out… walkin behind a car an soon as i stuck my head up BLAM!!! im like WTF… thats why i just started bum rushin yall on some street fighter shyt LMFAO yeah im down… im sloppy but i will get it together soon…
so a redtop battery?? cause im bout to turn my amp up cause i just want to an right now my cap is NOT connected an everything is running fine… but I wanna make sure before i juice up the levels… i think i will add the cap just to hold me over till i get the new battery (link me up where i can cop one of these joints)… just tryin to be safe an not wastin loot on “smurfette” (yes thats my cars name :arazz: )…especially with gas prices… maryland is takin they damn time on sendin my plates:annoy::annoy::annoy:…
From what I’ve been reading, Stinger’s redtops are better than Optima’s redtops. I don’t have either, but people seem to like the reliability of the Stinger more than the Optimas…although I hear the same thing vice versa. I don’t know.
Co-sign on the “Dynamat is garbage” thing. People pay TOO much for that name, really. Elemental Designs has this eDead stuff that is incredibly cheap, and it works. They have the roll-on mats, or the paint-on stuff. I bought the paint-on stuff for my tC and it’s freakin’ great. I put three coats all over the interior floor of my car, and it’s a night-and-day difference.
I’m a fuckin’ noob at this car system shit…I never had enough time to actually sit down and read up on it to even get the basics down.
Maybe this thread can help me out…
About 2 years ago I decided to get a system for my civic just because I had the extra money. I got 2 12" kicker competition subs, an amp, and a JVC headset. When I asked them if I would need new speakers they told me that the ones the car came with were good enough (which was BS). At first I noticed that I had WAY more bass than anything else, like my bass was drowning out the high/low’s. Besides that I never really had a problem with it until recently it started doing weird shit. When I open my driver door the speaker just turns off…other speakers still play music just not the driver side, I close the door and it turns back on again. Also, I realized that most of the wiring for the system is coming loose or something because I see a grip of wires coming out of the floor where my brake/gas pedals are.
Should I take it to a shop or something to get it looked at? I’m really not trying to go to another hole in the wall stereo shop again and get ripped. Would best buys take a look at it for me? If not, any recommendations? I always thought that by getting new speakers my shit would be tight but I don’t know anymore LOL Any help is appreciated, thanks.
I have a park ave and after looking at the speakers they are pioneers not bose like I origionally thought. Well I was told Bose by the seller. But yeah I want THUMP and BANG to…honestly I want to show off. So by what has been said, no L7 for me, I want my shit to thump mofos hearts. Like when I pick up my girl at her work or home, I want them to go “Damn, thats your man tearing up the concrete!?” u know shit like that.
Best Buy is a whore - they will do anything to/for your car that doesn’t invovle cutting fabric and/or lifting your car - however you pay for it thru custom work. I dunno CC’s rules. Basically it sounds like you got a real shitty installation job done. You can go BAKC to the hole in the wall 0place and bitch to the manager - more than likely they’ll look at it and fix the wires for free.
DJ Ether, - Park Ave - you got room for whatever your wallet desires. If you want some help, post up a budget, any current modifications to your car, and any preferences including why.
RowJoe - NO. Seriously, you’ll be VERY underwhelemed with that package - they didn’t even try to cheat using a bandpass box. The amp they are supplying won’t push much in all honesty. It can do one sub at 75 ohms RMS…thats chump change for a woofer *mine wants 500 RMS, I give it about 400 RMS and I wouldn’t bother with a sub that accepts less than 150W RMS.
I figured it was too good to be true for $299. Oh well… Alright, well I’m looking to spend about $400-500 to get a pair of 10s or 12s and an amp to power them. It’d be neat if I could get something that would let me feel the bass, but I’m mostly going for SQ.
I dislike the customer reviews on Crutchfield since almost every customer just seems wowed by their purchases, so what would you guys recommend for brands that would be appropriate for my budget? Thanks in advance. =)
id appreciate some ideas/help on a system. i just got a civi si sedan and want to upgrade the sound. i guess the main thing is i dont have enough money to do everything at once so if i can i will do it piece by piece
any help is greatly apreciated.
1st- i want 2 6x9’s in the back. im looking at some 3way infinity perfects i saw on ebay for around 150. i think i want at least 75-100 rms going to each. i know they wont fit the stock openings so how much should i expect to pay to have a place cut into it??
what sort of amp should i get to power the 6x9s? i heard audiobahn makes good products and saw a 2 channel amp pushing 75 at 4ohms or 90 at 2 ohms (i dont get ohms at all)
next i want to get 2 12’s. maybe some infinity perfects or a pair of audiobahns or eclipses? im thinking around 300 rms to each.
as i get my 6x9’s and subs im planning on running the font speakers off the stock head unit. is this possible? i might upgrade the front speakers to components or whatever will fit in the stock openings later with maybe another amp pushing 50 rms…
IMO, upgrade the front first…cause, well, thats where YOUR going to be 99% of the time. Audiobaun…nope, go with someone else. Check out Elemental Designs (google it). They have NICE equipment for a low price. I’ve heard there shit first hand, so I can tell you its nice and will not break the bank.
Secondly, match your shit up…not just power. What do you plan on doing in the front? Componenets or just 6.5s? If so try to brand match with the rear. This way the optimal frequency ranges will blend together well, so there won’t be need for an equilizer or anything. Even if you aren’t buying the 6.5s/componenets yet. So pick the speakers you want and check the specs for them. Whats their frequency range. Actually why get a two channel amp for 6x9s? Why not get the 4 channel and do all four speakers? Your goign to end up with a VERY un-even system if you amp the rear - especially since the job of the rear speakers is JUST fill - the front speakers are where the quality is established.
My recommendation then
Grab a head unit you like. I dunno your prefered brand, but make sure it has 3 sets of RCA pre-outs. The higher the preout voltage the better the SQ to the amp. Find the speakers you want. Remember that your looking at a long term setup - so don’t just grab speakers to grab speakers. Try to match brands for front and rear. The door panels are going to be blocked by your legs - so highs don’t come thru as well, this is fixed with components. If you aren’t grabbing components - plan on getting grade A 6.5s *maybe its 5" * for the front you can find with a very durable and strong tweeter built in. if you can aim the tweeter - even better. Once you’ve specced out the speakers, search for a four channel amp that will supply enough power with 3dBs headroom to prevent clipping. Check the frequency ranges of the 4 channel and make sure they cover the dynamic range of the setup. This is very important as all amps are not rated for hte same frequency.
Once you have the important parts picked out begin surgery. Install in this order. Trust.
Head Unit
front/rear speakers same time and only after changing head unit
4 channel
Listen to the system for a bit to see how much base you really need. A civic with 2 12s is beyond overkill. You said SI - is that the htachback? Just get one really good 12. The brands you listed make me think you’ve been looking at CC. From there I’d look at Eclipse. Ask them what Eclipse shit they can order, the good stuff they won’t have on display or even tell people about. Better off goign to ‘Tweeter’ as they carry the full JL & Eclipse line - the two best IMO brands in the ‘non-extremely large budget’ category. Pick one sub. Just match the brand on it as it wil lbe rated typically EXACTLY for that woofers frequency range and power rating, ensuring best sound quality.
And listen to reason - running anything that will hit 1000W not RMS - should have a cap. Plain and simple. The job of the cap is to cushion ‘spikes’, the battery is a chemical reaction…the power needs to be created. Cap is electrostatic - the energy is stored in electric form already. The general rule is 500W =.5 Farad. Your system wil lbe fine with 1/2 a farad more than likely, but please dont’ get diluted by the ‘adding cables up front’ or ‘making the ground connection better’. It IS good for a system, but it does not protect your alternator from abuse. Typical alternator is designed for 75-100A at 14.4V, your system will approach that by itself - not including your other car functions.
If you want to use the stock head unit, your wasting your time doing much of anything. A amp for the rear will only amplify a spliced ‘line-level’ input - meaning a VERY weak and easily distorted signal that could possibly fill up with road noise. Do the head unit.
well i finally got the pieces together for my system. thanks to anyone who gave input/advice.
head unit - alpine 9887
front stage - phoenix gold rsd65cs
front stage amp - cadence txa 150x2
no rear stage
subs - 2 12" alpine type r’s
sub amp - cadence txa 1000x1
this was pretty much the most budget system i could put together. i was originally going to include hd radio and have rainbow components instead of the pg’s but eventually decided against it.
So I have 2 amps… and only one is in right now.
Would it be better to have the more powerful one power the subs, while the other powers the stero?
I also want a bass Nob installed. I really think thats the only way to maximize your subs. Just having your subs and radio plugged together seems to limit the subs…
First off only put amps designed for high frequency use, on normal speakers. If an amp is designed for sub-woofers, the faster switching will get bogged down by the capictors inside the amp…in lamens terms, your shit won’t sound good…it wil lget muddy. amps are more than just ‘power’. Check the specs o nthe subs…the RMS value, then match the subs to that. dont’ go over. Otherwie you’ll hit that one real nice bassline and … boooom…shit stops working. And if you have an aftermarket head unit, you can do most of the bass-tuning upfront already.
So I finally ended up getting some stuff. I work at BB and used my discount to buy some stuff.
Alpine multi-channel amp 300w RMS (bridged)
Kenwood mono amp 900w RMS (at 2 ohms)
2 Kenwood 12" subs - They were like $40 for each, not bad for the price I guess.
My car seems to be on the verge of crapping out (delayed shifting in low gear), so I’ll probably take out all this stuff and get some comps if I have to get a new car. I’ve just got a pair of budget JL coaxials right now.
I’ve read good stuff about those PG RSDs, but no one around here that I know has heard of them. =/ How’d they work out for you Morphiend? This is definitely gonna be my next upgrade, I’m willing to spend about $150 on a pair of comps. I need something clear but not too bright. My doors currently are not deadened or anything so I’m not expecting to get too much midbass. =/
I have an older Pioneer deck. Has a decent EQ and I was even able to find the cable to get the aux. input to work for only $20. Would getting something like a 9886 be a good upgrade? I can get one of those for about $200.
the phoenix gold rsd’s are ok. i paid 87 bucks shipped so they’re definately worth that. i’m not really hearing the midbass everyone talks about with them though. my driver side door is deadened pretty good with a couple layers of raamat and ensolite which helps but i’ve been too lazy to finish the passenger side door. the tweets are fine and have only been too bright maybe once or twice. last i heard the rsd’s were sorta hard to find since they’ve become so popular.
i think for my next system i will go with the hertz hsk comps and try to sell my amp+box+subs to get something that hits a little tighter.
i was even laughin my self cause i remember walkin out… walkin behind a car an soon as i stuck my head up BLAM!!! im like WTF… thats why i just started bum rushin yall on some street fighter shyt LMFAO yeah im down… im sloppy but i will get it together soon…