Leonidas051
CarAudio.com Newbie
Dear Audiophiles and enthusiasts.
As a kind of layman I need to ask for some clarification...
I've always been lead to believe that aside from loudness, a quality setup sounds cleaner, in a way.
Now english is not my first language so bear with me while I try to put it in words.
For example, sitting in a bar with cheap speakers and the volume up you can barely hear yourself think, let alone talk to someone. Sitting in my favourite restaurant with a Bang&Olufsen above my head I can easily hold a conversation even with the volume up. As if a cheaper sound system smothers the entire frequency range while a quality one plays exactly what it should and nothing more.
Now, to my point. I one of my cars, basically a workhorse I've done nothing but replaced the head unit (just for bluetooth connectivity) and obviously, it's crap. It goes reasonably loud but the quality is such that you get a headache after a while on high volume. That's what i meant with the bar comparisson, yeah it's loud but it gets painfull to listen to.
Meanwhile in another car I sold tecently' I had a decent setup. It was years ago so I don't remember the specifics but a run of the mill Pioneer head unit, Hertz speakers, Infinity Kappa amp and a Focal 10'' sub. Nothing crazy but it was a decent sounding system. Important thing was, even at max volume I could still (kind of) have a conversation. Not a very clear one mind you but the midrange wasn't smothered completely.
Well recently I got a new car and had to do something about the audio setup so I kept it simple, JBL all around. Two way components forward, coax due to space in the rear, a small 8'' sub (it's a tiny car), all driven by a jbl club 5055 amp.
Only thing I haven't managed as yet is changing the head unit, still waiting for the "infotainment" adapter (damned vehicle settings and menus going trough the head unit). But the plan is to install an Alpine Halo9 eventually.
And finally I arrive to my point, sorry.
The system as it is now (factory head unit) is frankly more reminiscent of my crappy car then the previous one with a cheaper sound system then I have now.
Yes, it's loud and while it's still not distorted at high volume, it just feels like there's more noise than there should be...it gets painfull after a while on high volume and can't even heat myself think let alone talk...
Finally, a question. Does anyone think a new head unit will improve the overall experience or did I just fck up with the JBL setup..? Cause honestly, I expected more from speakers with SQ in the name...
Thanks all and sorry for the long post!
As a kind of layman I need to ask for some clarification...
I've always been lead to believe that aside from loudness, a quality setup sounds cleaner, in a way.
Now english is not my first language so bear with me while I try to put it in words.
For example, sitting in a bar with cheap speakers and the volume up you can barely hear yourself think, let alone talk to someone. Sitting in my favourite restaurant with a Bang&Olufsen above my head I can easily hold a conversation even with the volume up. As if a cheaper sound system smothers the entire frequency range while a quality one plays exactly what it should and nothing more.
Now, to my point. I one of my cars, basically a workhorse I've done nothing but replaced the head unit (just for bluetooth connectivity) and obviously, it's crap. It goes reasonably loud but the quality is such that you get a headache after a while on high volume. That's what i meant with the bar comparisson, yeah it's loud but it gets painfull to listen to.
Meanwhile in another car I sold tecently' I had a decent setup. It was years ago so I don't remember the specifics but a run of the mill Pioneer head unit, Hertz speakers, Infinity Kappa amp and a Focal 10'' sub. Nothing crazy but it was a decent sounding system. Important thing was, even at max volume I could still (kind of) have a conversation. Not a very clear one mind you but the midrange wasn't smothered completely.
Well recently I got a new car and had to do something about the audio setup so I kept it simple, JBL all around. Two way components forward, coax due to space in the rear, a small 8'' sub (it's a tiny car), all driven by a jbl club 5055 amp.
Only thing I haven't managed as yet is changing the head unit, still waiting for the "infotainment" adapter (damned vehicle settings and menus going trough the head unit). But the plan is to install an Alpine Halo9 eventually.
And finally I arrive to my point, sorry.
The system as it is now (factory head unit) is frankly more reminiscent of my crappy car then the previous one with a cheaper sound system then I have now.
Yes, it's loud and while it's still not distorted at high volume, it just feels like there's more noise than there should be...it gets painfull after a while on high volume and can't even heat myself think let alone talk...
Finally, a question. Does anyone think a new head unit will improve the overall experience or did I just fck up with the JBL setup..? Cause honestly, I expected more from speakers with SQ in the name...
Thanks all and sorry for the long post!