Basic setup questions

damn, thats a lot of bang for the buck.  how does this work? ... 

  • Advanced Sound Retriever (ASR) for improved sound quality from compressed music files
you usually leave it off, not needed, its just a treble boost to compensate for sh*tty 128kbps files which you can fix with 320kbps to lossless files from the start.

 
Alright, getting close to pulling the trigger here. Looking at this setup:

Infinity Reference REF-6532ex speakers
Sound Ordnance B-8P sub
Pioneer DEH-S5120BT deck

and mayybe
Pioneer GM-A3702 2-Channel Bridgeable Amplifier

Toying with the idea of installing everything myself. I have the free time and I'd prefer to save the ~$300 for the shop labor if possible. If I went this route, what else would I need in terms of accessories/tools to complete the installation? Obviously the amp wiring kit for the sub, and a second one if I get the amp, yes? What else? Crutchfield includes a free receiver wiring harness and a dash kit with the deck, and speaker wiring harnesses with the speakers. Is there anything else? I'd prefer to know in advance so I can order everything at once if possible. Thanks in advance for any advice. 

 
What do you mean by "in a 4th"? 

Keep in mind it's a budget first-time build. Not shooting for the stars here. If you have a better recommendation in that price range, I'm all ears. 

 
What do you mean by "in a 4th"? 

Keep in mind it's a budget first-time build. Not shooting for the stars here. If you have a better recommendation in that price range, I'm all ears. 
You listed a powered 4th order in your list, Sound Ordinance to boot.

For $500 I'd focus on H/U, deadening and an amplified frontstage... deck power the rears if wanted and once you're done you might have a bit left over. I'd not waste my funds on crap you'll most likely need to replace after you're underwhelmed by the lacking output and extension. 

Imho... yes, it'll be THAT bad if you choose a prefab, powered "Sound Ordinance" 4th.

Personally I'd focus on the front and save what you can then pony up a bit more to get something worth having. I'm no salesman but others on this forum can recommend far better options than that garbage. 

Jmo

 
Huh? What does it matter what order I listed them in? 😂

Thanks for the opinion but I'm taking it with a pretty big grain of salt. Unless all those ratings and reviews are fake then you calling it garbage seems pretty extreme. Anyone else wanna chime in here? 

 
Infinity Reference REF-6532ex
Pioneer DEH-S5120BT
Dynamat 10415 Xtreme Speaker Kit

I'm just gonna start with these 3 items and go from there. I'm a bit confused though. I watched a bunch of youtube videos on installing speakers in a Civic like mine but they were all taking out existing speakers and attaching the new ones to existing wires. My car has no speakers or speaker wire in the door, at least not visibly. Do I need to buy wire to run through? If so, what kind? Will appreciate a recommendation/advice. Thanks. 

 
Hi everyone, I'm looking to upgrade my setup for the first time and have some questions.

I'm not an audiophile (maybe yet, haha) but I do love music and want it to sound reasonably good, considering price. But I wanna start with something basic and go from there. My plan is to buy the parts and get a local shop to install everything. Hoping to keep it around $500 (I'm Canadian but using USD to presumably make it easier for people here) all in if possible.

I have a 1997 Honda Civic CX. There's an aftermarket Kenwood deck in it but its old and I'll be replacing it. Beyond that there's 2 stock speakers in the back, and none in the front, just the plastic things that look like speakers, which I found kinda odd.

So onto the questions. How many speakers do I actually need? Can I just get a new deck, 2 speakers, and a powered sub and call it a day? Or do I need 4 speakers? The first scenario seems more convenient, because if I understand correctly (correct me if not), I can only plug in 4 things to the average lower-end deck. 4 speakers plus a sub would require me to get an amp, yes? Prefer to not go down that road if possible for budget reasons. Can I get 2 new speakers and keep the existing rear ones? Would that sound bad?

Examples of components I'm looking at:

Heads:

https://www.crutchfield.ca/p_105KDX360B/JVC-KD-X360BTS.html

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_130DS5120B/Pioneer-DEH-S5120BT.html

Speakers:

https://www.amazon.ca/Pioneer-TS-F1634R-200W-2-Way-Speakers/dp/B0081SRIFS/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=car+speakers&qid=1560738414&s=gateway&sr=8-5

https://www.amazon.ca/Kicker-43DSC6504-Coaxial-Speakers-DSC6504/dp/B01BLVEVNS/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=car+speakers&qid=1560738414&s=gateway&sr=8-4

https://www.amazon.ca/Rockford-Fosgate-R165X3-6-5-Inch-Full-Range/dp/B00BF6HWCM/ref=pd_sbs_107_10?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00BF6HWCM&pd_rd_r=fd3d6628-913e-11e9-a19e-076b366cd722&pd_rd_w=kgvev&pd_rd_wg=T8GM0&pf_rd_p=5dcda75b-8643-4da3-9bb1-5c0233790500&pf_rd_r=VZNPG9H461JQCD2FM8N0&psc=1&refRID=VZNPG9H461JQCD2FM8N0

Subwoofer:

https://www.amazon.ca/Rockville-RW10CA-Profile-Powered-Subwoofer/dp/B019Z3R582/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=subwoofer+car&qid=1560738464&s=gateway&sr=8-3 (looks like it just sold out)

https://www.crutchfield.com/p_777B8P/Sound-Ordnance-B-8P.html

Will appreciate any help. Thanks!
I would guess your not going to enter any sound off's are you. I would take the Pioneer deck. I looked at the specs and it has a 6 ch RCA output with sub with 4 volt. Also plays FLAC high res audio.

I don't know about the $500 limit but there are some nice inexpensive equipment you can buy to make good sound. Maybe $500 more or less. Maybe some decent Polk, JBL, Kenwood, Pioneer and other component speakers about $125 give or take. I looked and i think front doors are 6.5 inch and not sure on rear. you can get same matching brand speakers for rear fill. You have a hatchback or coupe Civic. Also get some decent subs like 10's and have a local shop build a nice box. Maybe a 6 ch amp or even a 5 ch amp. Pioneer has nice amps that were bench tested on YouTube. Or a decent 4ch and a 2 ch amp set up, one for the 4 corners and one to the subs. and your set. You can shop on-line to find best deals. When i put together my system i purchased my equipment in parts and not all at once. Took about few months with every paycheck. Took my time to do it right what worked for me. I would just recommend to not cut yourself short on some cheap equipment. If you have to spend a little more for something decent and you will not go wrong. Also an option for you to save money is to look at some Factory refurbished amps. Only Factory refurbished units, not 3rd party units. mean they have been ether repaired to factory conditions or they were even new or open box and they just were returned back and inspected by factory and repackaged and sold. I have purchased some refurbished in past including the Kenwood XR400-4 amp and it was great amp. Till i got the Kenwood XR401-4 Hi Def amps.

There is a Factory Refurbished Pioneer GM-D8604 4 ch 100W rms amp for sale on Ebay right now for $120 with factory warranty. There is also a few Kenwood KAC mini 4ch factory Kenwood refurb amps for sale. Those Kenwood KAC mini amps put out some killer power on the YouTube bench test. I think it was Big D tested them. Even Crutchfield sells the factory refurbished Kenwood stuff.



Bottom line is just take your time and do it right and check around and look at what your options are. Just don't cheap out that's all.



I am running two 8" subs Polk Audio in the old Kicker Substation tube boxes. Two Kenwood XR 401-4 Hi def amps and Pioneer 6.5 Hi def component speakers. with Pioneer 6x8 in rear. With Pioneer HU with Hi Def playback 6 ch sub 4 volt. Tacoma Xcab truck
 
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So I got these:

Infinity Reference REF-6532ex
Pioneer DEH-S5120BT

Got the deck installed and wired up, got onto testing the speakers but I'm only getting sound out of the passenger side. I swapped the speakers and they both work. Double checked the wiring and it's correct as far as I can tell. Any ideas why I'm not getting sound out of the driver's side?
 
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