100% noob needs your opinion!

[Dirtydave289 10+ year member]

Hey there, I'm really wanting to upgrade my audio a little bit and add some bass. I have a budget of ~400 and my question to you is what would you do with it?

I don't know ANYTHING about subs/amps/boxes/wiring/etc. and I'll probably end up having Circuit City or Best Buy installing whatever I end up buying.

I'm looking for the best possible complete (amp/box/sub or subs/wiring/whatever else i need) setup that I can buy for around (preferably under) $400.

I don't know how hard it is for you guys to mock up a setup that I should look at but I appreciate it a lot!

It's going in the trunk of a '66 Mustang. Thanks!

Click to read more...

 

[blazinb2000 10+ year member]

If you plan on buying from a major retail store such as Best Buy or Circuit City and having them install it your budget will not go very far. Not meaning anything bad by it just saying the prices they charge is a lot higher than buying online.

 

[qkassidyw 10+ year member]

What kind of bass do you want? What kind of music do you listen to? Do you want it REALLY loud, really tight? Tens, twelves, fifteen? Stock deck (I hope not), sealed, ported?

A common answer here is buy a type r cheap, get a amp pushing 500-800 RMS, get box made for cheap, get 4 AWG wiring from knu, pay 70 bucks to have BB or CC install it. Ill look for a good setup and post links in a couple minutes...but first answer the questions.

EDIT:I will be selling a Dual 2 Ohm Type R in a MTX Ported box here soon if your interested. (gets real loud!)

 

[alex5857 10+ year member]

Do you already have a aftermarket HU?

 

[funkyab 10+ year member]

if you have the skills to be playing with a 66 mustang,,, you definately have the skills to do a simple sub setup.. is actually very easy. we will help you along.. DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING INSTALLED BY CIRCUIT CITY OR BEST BUY ON THAT CAR!!!!

i know you know this car,,,, would you take that car to firestone to do the brakes???? HELL NO,,, so dont make the same mistake with the audio....

what kind of sound are you looking for??? what internal speakers?? what source??

 

[Tehgregzor 10+ year member]

yeah, installlation is a pretty penny.

I would suggest, for you, to just get a nice headunit, and 4 pioneer coaxial speakers, if you don't want to spend too much. That will fit your budget for it being installed at Best Buy, etc. too. Side note, although its hit or miss with these stores, the Circuit City here in paducah (about an hour from me) did great work on my girl's headunit install in her 96 dodge dakota.

 

[qkassidyw 10+ year member]

if you have the skills to be playing with a 66 mustang,,, you definately have the skills to do a simple sub setup.. is actually very easy. we will help you along.. DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING INSTALLED BY CIRCUIT CITY OR BEST BUY ON THAT CAR!!!!
i know you know this car,,,, would you take that car to firestone to do the brakes???? HELL NO,,, so dont make the same mistake with the audio....

what kind of sound are you looking for??? what internal speakers?? what source??

Thats crap....don't judge all CC's and BB's. Go and talk to them first and find out if they have worked on the car...that car is F-ing cake anyway.

 

[blazinb2000 10+ year member]

Yea doing it all yourself and buying online will save you a lot of money and you will be able to purchase better equipment for your budget. Do a little bit of researching and it will save you a lot of money.

 

[bones22 5,000+ posts]

Thats crap....don't judge all CC's and BB's. Go and talk to them first and find out if they have worked on the car...that car is F-ing cake anyway.

i dont care what BB or CC you go to the install people DO NOT do it right.

doesnt mean they dont know what they are doing. just means they are supposed to do it as fast and cheap as they can for the store.

im sure they have guidelines to follow to **** people on installs

 

[Dirtydave289 10+ year member]

I listen to rap mostly, and my ideal subs would be low hitting and loud.

For some reason two subs are calling my name as opposed to one but in the end I'm just looking for whatever will hit lowest and loudest.

What is RMS?

Stupid question but at least I'll never have to ask it again lol.

And yes, I restored/modded my car I just wanted the install because wiring is my least favorite thing to fix on my car and I guess somewhere sometime I heard wiring was tough/confusing so I didn't want to do it, but I guess I could.

I have a Pioneer HU that I put in not too long ago for my Ipod, and I have two like 5-1/2ish? Pioneers up front and two Pioneers on my rear deck which I'm not sure if it's the stock deck or not.

Thanks so far

 

[qkassidyw 10+ year member]

Back to a setup though:

2 RE AUdio 12" RE Series (175 W RMS each) $200 (pair) http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=4905

1 Hifonics Zeus ZXi 4006 (2x200RMS @2 Ohms) $150 http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=4201

Get a box and wiring and install will be around 70 at CC or BB.

A little bit more than 400 but scrape some cash for a week or two and it will be worth it, this will be a decently loud setup. You could probably go with a prefabbed box for these twelves too.

OR For boomy bass on a budget...

2 12" Kenwood 4 Ohm Subs: $150 (pair)

http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=5524

1 Kenwood KAC-8104D Amp: $140 http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=6401

Then box, wiring, install!

 

[dragnix 5,000+ posts]

RMS is basically the power a sub will handle or power an amp will put out continuously and not blow up.

Edit: look around the classifieds for some pretty good stuff for sale

 

[Dirtydave289 10+ year member]

What's the sound quality difference between those subs?

 

[qkassidyw 10+ year member]

I listen to rap mostly, and my ideal subs would be low hitting and loud.For some reason two subs are calling my name as opposed to one but in the end I'm just looking for whatever will hit lowest and loudest.

What is RMS?

Stupid question but at least I'll never have to ask it again lol.

And yes, I restored/modded my car I just wanted the install because wiring is my least favorite thing to fix on my car and I guess somewhere sometime I heard wiring was tough/confusing so I didn't want to do it, but I guess I could.

I have a Pioneer HU that I put in not too long ago for my Ipod, and I have two like 5-1/2ish? Pioneers up front and two Pioneers on my rear deck which I'm not sure if it's the stock deck or not.

Thanks so far

Ok, I was almost positive it wasn't your stock deck, you would have had two knobs and it would have had a pony on it...

As for your setup, check my post above and those should suffice...The RE setup will be tighter but I think the Kenwood setup will get lower and are perfect subs for Hip Hoppers on a budget. (But who do you know that has RE...youll be the coolest kid on the block!) Get two subs because the amp will be the same (for this setup at least) whether you go with one or two and the box will cost about the same too. So spend a little more and get a louder setup.

RMS is the continuous power a sub/speaker can handle and that should be the number you look at when matching up subs and amps (amps and speakers). Peak power doesn't mean crap.

 

[Dirtydave289 10+ year member]

RMS is basically the power a sub will handle or power an amp will put out continuously and not blow up.
Edit: look around the classifieds for some pretty good stuff for sale

Preciate it man.

Is there anything I need to watch out for when buying used stuff? Like blown subs or anything like that?