Ok, so I'm new here, first post, and new to car audio. My only experience was in high school. Had a very basic system put in my mustang (2 small Sabre Sound brand subs in ported boxes with an amplifier and an Alpine head unit, and a couple of 5 inch coaxial alpine door speakers). I bought these used off a buddy and had them installed. But to be clear, I know mostly nothing. That same buddy knew some, but more importantly had virtually unlimited funds and spent tons of his parent's money on a very powerful system. At the time he had a pair of alpine's most expensive competition-grade 12 in subs in a custom ported box powered by a high end alpine amp, 6 disk changer, and alpine full range speakers all through his car. Not only did it sound amazing, it also had unbelievable amounts of clear powerful, bone-rattling bass.
So, fast forward 30 years to now, and I am interested in having a solid system. I do not want to enter any competitions, and I do not want to annoy the neighbors, or rattle everyone's windows. I plan to buy a new silverado crew cab in the next 6 months, and would like to add a respectable amount of bass, to play all types of music, and sometimes pump some decent bass. I don't want to spend much (under $1000, maybe less). TO keep costs low, I want to keep the head unit/infotainment that comes with the truck to maintain all functionality of the back up cameras and other systems. Also, if I can keep the OEM full range speakers and only add the bass I am wanting, then that would save more money. I just want the sound to blend well and be balanced. To this end, I have many questions:
So, the main issue I am running into is the lack of space in the truck for mounting regular depth subs. I see many shallow sub options, as well as compact powered subs that are built to slide under seats. Obviously I want to avoid these more compact subs as I can't imagine they would add enough bass. I do not know if there is space behind the second row in a crew cab or under that second seat for a regular depth subwoofer, but maybe you all can guide me there. Right now, based on my high school experiences with my friend's system, I am gravitating toward the Alpine R-Series subs, possibly the 10 inchers, but it seems unlikely that these would be mountable in a truck due to their depth. Any thoughts there?
If the R-series subs just will not work physically, then my next choice is the S-Series, as I have read that the current S-series are much shallower than previous versions and have been updated with a lot of the tech found in the R-series. Yes, I do prefer Alpine. I know some here probably love Alpine, and others may not, but I want to stick with this brand. Partly because of my good experiences, and partly based on nostalgia.
So from there, I have read that some people run these subs with no amp, and some go with an amp. Would a no-amp setup really do much? Sounds very low power. This could save money, but if there is very little bass in this setup then I do not see the point of spending the money on subs. Another note is that I see some people talking about having to upgrade vehicle wiring, adding a second batter, or upgrading the alternator, and I am not interested in this at all. Finally, I am perfectly fine adding a single sub being that bass is omnidirectional. I would think 1 well-powered sub would be enough for my needs, but your thoughts here would be helpful.
In the ideal world that exists only in my head, I would keep the OEM head unit and full range speakers that come with the truck, and then add a single 10 inch R-series Alpine sub in a ported box, that magically would fit either under or behind the rear seat with no fit/space issues, and powere it with a perfectly matched amp, and this would all sound balanced and amazing together, and allow me to enjoy some serious bass with my music.
So who has thoughts on all this? I'm sure I am misguided on much of the above, but that is what is in my head.
I appreciate your feedback. Thanks!
--Derek
