Full System Change

[pyrogod117]

I'm sick of my stereo. It has the stock head unit and speakers, with an added amp and sub that came with the car. The amp and sub work for now, but the head unit and the interior speakers aren't enough. I ride with my windows down most of the time, and when I turn my music louder to make up for the wind noise, they break up. I want to get a new head unit, interior speakers, and eventually a new amp/sub for the back.

From what I have found, my car has 4 door speakers, each of them 6.5" Originally I was going to use Polk MOMO 6.5" speakers to match the subs I am getting, but I can't seem to figure out what the little silver box is that they come with. If someone happens to know what it is, I'd appreciate it if you could tell me. The other speakers that I was considering are the Polk db651s door speakers, which are the slim version that my car needs. I found them for a price of $44.98/pair + shipping, which totals out to ~$130.

These speakers are 55w RMS each, with a peak of 165w. I found the Pioneer GM-6300F 4-Channel amp, which puts out 60 Watts x 4, at 4 ohms. I found this for ~$130.

The head unit I am unsure about. I wanted to get either an Alpine or Pioneer, but I am open to suggestions. I'd like it to have a USB/iPod input and the capability to have Sirius satellite radio, even if I need an adapter. I also need this to replace the head unit, since the stock one is much larger. Also, I really don't know how to pull the whole old one out, it seems like you have to pull the whole panel off, and I can't seem to find a tutorial on it.

For the subwoofers, which will come later, I want 12" Polk MOMO subs. My friend has a pair and they are amazing. Although, I am not sure of the difference between Single and Dual Voice Coils so if someone is willing to explain that to me, I would greatly appreciate it. I found the subs for ~$170 for 2 of them. Since they are 4 ohms and require 400w RMS, running them in series would require just an amp that can push 800w at 2 ohms, since series cuts your ohm load in half for each thing added to it. I'm not sure on amplifiers, so I'm open to suggestions here too.

I know I am asking a lot of questions in here, but if someone would please go over my setup and post suggestions on things or correct me where I could be wrong or may have missed something. Maybe better prices on something as well?

BTW: I was considering doing just the head unit first, then the 4 interior speakers/amp, then subs and amp after, due to how much it costs to do it all at once.

Thanks in advance,

Kevin

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[fbi90909 5,000+ posts]

question: what is your budget?

i see that you have something in mind but overall the quality of the products that you are looking for to me are ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, ya know?

there is a saying, "You get what you pay for."

now i'm not telling you to go big or go home, but you may need to step up a little more.

now to the nitty gritty.

the 6.5component speakers you are talking about have that little box which is a crossover. it basically splits your single speaker run set for your stock speaker/coax and splits it to a midrange and tweeter. 1 input - 2 designated output. a lot of people recommend getting components. if you get components be sure you have a location for tweeter placement. if you don't you may end up having to cut a nice hole into your door panel or sails..

as for the speaker themselves i know little of the brand/type and have no experience with them. i'm sure someone can give you more input on that.

for head unit you pretty much got 2 reliable brands. i have used pioneers and alpines and am currently on an alpine. i run a 9887, which has ipod control, and is SAT ready. another good thing is with the 9887 you can run an active setup, which is recommended by many on this forum. running active is having more control over your audio setup in all the frequency ranges using a set of components.

if you invest in a solid pair of components and get a headunit capable of running an active setup you will be able to fine tune how you want your system. much to learn in that area though.

as for subs this also depends on what you are looking for really. are you looking for sound quality? or do you just want to be louder than the next guy?

 

[pyrogod117]

I know the whole setup will cost about $500 or so, maybe a bit more. But for the price on the CDA-9887, I might as well just wait for black friday and buy a touch screen for $300, which I don't want to do. I'm looking for pure quality out of the subs and the main speakers. And if you look around and find people that actually set up Polk's correctly, they are #1. I haven't found a single component or sub that beats them aside from Bose, but I don't consider Bose to be on the list since they are so expensive and require all of their own amps and stuff.

Also, what do you mean by active?

 

[fbi90909 5,000+ posts]

errrr....

there are TONS and TONS of companies that will out-perform Polks.

a 500 dollar budget for an entire setup is pretty low. if you are looking for pure quality your really going to have to up your budget. your current budget is equivelant to 1 of my amps. :/

be open minded. take in our advice. i see you are already set on a brand because of someone elses setup, but how many other setups have you heard other than his?

 

[mazzasec 5,000+ posts]

Ya what Fbi said. What are your goals? Sound quality and sounding good? Or having the loudest system on the block?

 

[pyrogod117]

I am listening, but I don't care to waste thousands on something that can be done for $500 or so. To me, there really isn't that big of a difference, at least not that can be heard easily, between the Polks and other companies. I also noticed on this forum most people use off-brand equipment that doesn't have a big name to it. Remember I'm still in high school, and I don't make enough money consistently to spend as much as a lot of people here. $500 for me is a LOT. The only reason I want to swap is because my head unit is starting to give out and skip constantly now on bumps and stuff, on all different CDs, and it's starting to make my speakers click.

All I am asking for from you guys is 1) MOMO or DB series of Polks? 2) Suggest a decent head unit that won't empty my pocket. 3) Will the amp I selected work, or should I go to one that can put out say 100w per channel so it doesn't have to be run as hard?

 

[mazzasec 5,000+ posts]

I am listening, but I don't care to waste thousands on something that can be done for $500 or so. To me, there really isn't that big of a difference, at least not that can be heard easily, between the Polks and other companies. I also noticed on this forum most people use off-brand equipment that doesn't have a big name to it. Remember I'm still in high school, and I don't make enough money consistently to spend as much as a lot of people here. $500 for me is a LOT. The only reason I want to swap is because my head unit is starting to give out and skip constantly now on bumps and stuff, on all different CDs, and it's starting to make my speakers click.
All I am asking for from you guys is 1) MOMO or DB series of Polks? 2) Suggest a decent head unit that won't empty my pocket. 3) Will the amp I selected work, or should I go to one that can put out say 100w per channel so it doesn't have to be run as hard?

We all run off brand stuff because its cheaper but at the same time its better //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[pyrogod117]

Well, I did take a look at the Alpine speakers.

Components

Alpine SPS-600C (Front)

Alpine SPS-600 (Rear)

Head Unit

Alpine CDA-9886

Those seem pretty nice and they are cheap. I'm not going to find an off brand for less. It's $128 for the front and rear speakers.