First of all, Hi. I've been lurking a while and am in need of some more pointed advice before i start throwing money around. Little background:
Me: I'm an electronics guy. I speak wire. I have a selection of solder... I've been doing "sound" for about 20 years, plenty of live, some theater, some studio work. My home system (when i can source parts to keep it running!) consists of a mirrored pair of DQ-10s pushed by a Hafler p500, source units run the gammut from 8-track to a 5.1 digital decoder. I like full, warm sound with detailed highs and tight bass. Spl
The car: 00' e39 touring. Large interior volume, miserable stock rear speaker placements, plenty of juice. I've gone and spoiled my son, so the "side" fills in the rear doors will be for him. Twisted pair signal and speaker so I've no plans to replace any wiring; 4 channels sent from dash to rear.
The gear:
Current speaker/amp design:
-polk db5251 each side getting 2x40 by an a/d/s p440 (don't hit me, i like polks!)
- I *could* rework to 3-way if I can find a sub-1.75" mid...
-polk ex 4" components in the "side" powered by an a/d/s powerplate 80
-and my old faithfull excelon 10" dbpro tornado (sealed) pushed by a sony xm-1252gtr
crossover:
-Soundstream DX3 +/ SX2 (both mint, both gorgeous inside)
or
-Denon DCE-280
I'll make the decision once I get a chance to test the DX3.
And I've a Denon DCL-410 i just purchased that might help me... couldn't resist the price.
Adding an EQ is an option, I tend to choose parametrics if it matters.
Source:
Yeah here's the issue. Factory HU leaves tons to be desired. Zero aux in, tape deck, crappy radio quality. BUT it's blessed with 5v outs so it's been able to hang until now. I have a pioneer deh-3000ib that works flawlessly, but it looks horribly mismatched in the car, and I'm tired of it...
There are so many headunits out there, i don't have time or desire to test dozens until i find a good one. I do have some features I'd like to see tho. I would like it to have bluetooth and HD radio, and a rear audio input. HD I've been doing with an HDZ300 for 3 years now, and it works just fine - as long as i have inputs. I'm normally a pioneer fan (still have an indash 8track!) when it comes to cars, but ... BLUE? WHY? WHY IS IT ALWAYS BLUEBLUEBLUE...
ok...
I'm calm now...
I finally have a real car, and unless i want to resolder smt leds into the faceplate (done it, it *****) I need a headunit that matches the amber dash. Ahh.. but the new pioneers with color changing? The MVH sounds horrid, and pioneer has begun option crippling it's decks like verizon used to cripple their phones. the p710bt is appealing, but more than i want to spend, and if the interface is like the 610 I already hate it. It doesn't have to be new, used gear is often the better choice. 4v seems to be the level for me.
Alright, so after all of my ramblings, anyone have some input? It's model changeover time, any exceptional HU models i should look for going cheap? (cheap=under$150)
This could be considered a wanted thread, and this is not the wanted forum, so please don't flood me with offers for sale unless you've got something local that's really special //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif
Me: I'm an electronics guy. I speak wire. I have a selection of solder... I've been doing "sound" for about 20 years, plenty of live, some theater, some studio work. My home system (when i can source parts to keep it running!) consists of a mirrored pair of DQ-10s pushed by a Hafler p500, source units run the gammut from 8-track to a 5.1 digital decoder. I like full, warm sound with detailed highs and tight bass. Spl
The car: 00' e39 touring. Large interior volume, miserable stock rear speaker placements, plenty of juice. I've gone and spoiled my son, so the "side" fills in the rear doors will be for him. Twisted pair signal and speaker so I've no plans to replace any wiring; 4 channels sent from dash to rear.
The gear:
Current speaker/amp design:
-polk db5251 each side getting 2x40 by an a/d/s p440 (don't hit me, i like polks!)
- I *could* rework to 3-way if I can find a sub-1.75" mid...
-polk ex 4" components in the "side" powered by an a/d/s powerplate 80
-and my old faithfull excelon 10" dbpro tornado (sealed) pushed by a sony xm-1252gtr
crossover:
-Soundstream DX3 +/ SX2 (both mint, both gorgeous inside)
or
-Denon DCE-280
I'll make the decision once I get a chance to test the DX3.
And I've a Denon DCL-410 i just purchased that might help me... couldn't resist the price.
Adding an EQ is an option, I tend to choose parametrics if it matters.
Source:
Yeah here's the issue. Factory HU leaves tons to be desired. Zero aux in, tape deck, crappy radio quality. BUT it's blessed with 5v outs so it's been able to hang until now. I have a pioneer deh-3000ib that works flawlessly, but it looks horribly mismatched in the car, and I'm tired of it...
There are so many headunits out there, i don't have time or desire to test dozens until i find a good one. I do have some features I'd like to see tho. I would like it to have bluetooth and HD radio, and a rear audio input. HD I've been doing with an HDZ300 for 3 years now, and it works just fine - as long as i have inputs. I'm normally a pioneer fan (still have an indash 8track!) when it comes to cars, but ... BLUE? WHY? WHY IS IT ALWAYS BLUEBLUEBLUE...
ok...
I'm calm now...
I finally have a real car, and unless i want to resolder smt leds into the faceplate (done it, it *****) I need a headunit that matches the amber dash. Ahh.. but the new pioneers with color changing? The MVH sounds horrid, and pioneer has begun option crippling it's decks like verizon used to cripple their phones. the p710bt is appealing, but more than i want to spend, and if the interface is like the 610 I already hate it. It doesn't have to be new, used gear is often the better choice. 4v seems to be the level for me.
Alright, so after all of my ramblings, anyone have some input? It's model changeover time, any exceptional HU models i should look for going cheap? (cheap=under$150)
This could be considered a wanted thread, and this is not the wanted forum, so please don't flood me with offers for sale unless you've got something local that's really special //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif
