Caravans are the pits

[bad_billy_goat 10+ year member]

All right guys, laugh all you want, getting stuck with a soccer mom van,1999 Dodge Caravan, is terrible. I have already blown my stock speakers, and craving some loud music. I was wondering what y'alls input for a good starter system would be. I normally leave the back seat out, so space is no problem. I would not like to spend tons of money into a system, but I am no small shopper. Please help me!!!!!

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[wErd 5,000+ posts]

id LOVE to have a minivan, you can put pretty much ANY kind of sound system in it, and take out the 2nd and 3rd row seats, put in some beanbags, and bake that thing out listenin to jimi hendrix.

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

I feel for you, the dreaded soccer mom mobile. Do you know why you have blown the front speakers? It is important that you know why first or you can expect the same with an aftermarket system as well. Remeber the movie Days of Thunder and the guy shows him the tires being his way and my way, this is what needs to be learned first. There is a whole pile of gear that you can look at, but to get started on the right path is the first step.

 

[bad_billy_goat 10+ year member]

But I have no music, my speakers are blown. What kind of system would give me the most bang for a buck, but with a enough room for late night fun

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

A system that it used properly and designed to work with what you need. Do you know why your speakers are blown?

 

[TheVanMan 10+ year member]

Ha Ha you have a caravan. Oh wait, I have one too. :thumbsup

Mine is a 92 caravan so don't feel bad mine is old. Well, I have a couple of 5.25" inch infinities in the front of mine and they are doing me well. They provide pretty clean music for coaxial's. Since you don't have have rear seat in you really don't need any rear fill. I know in my car, rear fill sound funny if you sit in the middle seat so I just stick with the front stage. That is good enough for the front and middle. Finally if you decide on subs most subs can get loud in van since you an open cabin. However vans can be bass traps so you really don't have to worry about being heard outside the car (this is a good thing, trust me). If you got room go with a pair of 15's, I am currently building a box for my car for 2 15's. They will sound nice. Plus drop a few jaws of you friends. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[bad_billy_goat 10+ year member]

Forbidden:My speakers are blown, because I max out the volume all the time. Then when I plugged a friends huge amp in to stock speakers the results, are not good to say the least. I will not do that again!!!!!

VanMan: Are you sticking your 15's on the back seat or own the floor. What is your favorite sub maker.

 

[TheVanMan 10+ year member]

On the floor. It look better and is also safer to drive around with. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

Also the box I am making is huge. It is about 7 cubes tuned to 27hz so it really not going to fit on the seat. I just took out the rear seat and moved it to the middle. The plan is to put the box behind the rear bench with the subs facing the back.

As for favorite sub company, it is probably RE (resonant engineering). They make massive subwoofers which are really durable and hard to blow. Only draw back is that they like large enclosures. However this is not a problem for me as you know since I have a van. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/satan.gif.9c6a335ed7aeeed3ee273e573f1fcaac.gif

One thing I would recommend if you going with subs is some dynomat or other sound dampener. When I first put a system in my van it rattled the hatch like crazy. It sound like I was driving a tin can factory. However, once I put a layer on the hatch it silenced it down real quick. Well worth the money.

You might feel embarassed that you drive a van but man you sitting on a gold mine right now. I love my van, had it for 2 years now. If you step inside my van it really doesn't have the feel of a 'soccer mom' van anymore. :up2someth

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

Alrighty then, it seems that you know what is the root cause of the problem. You want good sound at an above average volume level to drown out all the occupants of the soccer mobile. If you are after a moderate to loud system and not give up your entire paycheck, start with a cd player like the Eclipse CD5423 (the most important part of the system), next a good 5 channel amp to power all speakers and give proper protection to all the speakers. Next figure out where you want the sub box to go and how much room you are willing to sacrifice. It seems that you don't want to annoy the neighbourhood with bass, thus the 5th channel on the amp should do more than fine. Make sure the 5channel amp is 2 ohm mono stable on the sub channel, power output of the amp should be about 50wx4 @ 4ohm and 400wx1 @2 ohm. A single 10" sub like the MB Quart Reference 10" in a 1.25cu.ft. slot ported enclosure should do more than enough for you. Post up more questions should you have.

 

[bad_billy_goat 10+ year member]

I was wondering about batteries, should stock hold or would I need to upgrade. This is if I went with, 5.25 in the dash, cd player, and 2 12" subs. On a side note, can you good sound out of kickpanels in a van?

This is a question for ever knows the answer.

In a 1999 Dodge Caravan where are the rear speakers located?

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

Leave the battery alone for now, you have not found out if it will be good or bad yet. i would bet that it sould be OK for now. Yes you can get good sound out of kickpanels in a van, but use what you have first, if you like how it sounds, leave it alone. Your most important speakers are the front ones. Post me you e-mail address and I'll give you some recommendations if you like. As I am a dealer it is best that I reply off open forum. I am not trying to sell you something as the best person to take care of you is the local specialty shop, but maybe we can get you pointed in the right direction without the added hassle of a commission salesperson.

 

[BulldogSr04 10+ year member]

First off, give us an approximate budget. You will need a HU, Front speakers, an amp for them, subs, a box, and a sub amp for what you are trying to accomplish. You will need to spend at least 1g to get a nice system. If you spend more than that, it will be very well worth it.

Second off, what do you listen to? Do you like sq or spl? If you want to be able to blow people away, you will probably need a kilowatt or more of power. You may need a new battery if you still have your stock one in there for that kind of power.

I wouldn't suggest a 5 channel amp for a person who "maxes out the volume all of the time" because the sub channel usually only pushes 200 watts or so.

If you can't afford it at first, stretch it out over time.

 

[forbidden 10+ year member]

I would definitely recommend a 5 channel amp, when properly chosen and used it will provide more than enough power to a person who is maxing out a stock system.