Ready to start from scratch

[Johnny Law.Lulz 5,000+ posts]

Not having a HU is about the dumbest thing i have ever heard. And you said that you dont want to lose you steering wheel controls, if you just plugging up your ipod to the amp then steering wheel controls aint doin jack shit for you anyway. I suggest a good eeclipse HU which will make your life a lot easier. $2g's is a high budget really. Considering also selling your old Alpine gear too. Youll be surprised what you can do with that. If you want any equipment suggestions PM me.

 

[csu87 10+ year member]

i think you should do some research before you drop 2 grand into your audio. If you think an Ipod into an amp is good, I'm guessing you think Sonys sound good too?

 

[drpeeb 10+ year member]

Not having a HU is about the dumbest thing i have ever heard. And you said that you dont want to lose you steering wheel controls, if you just plugging up your ipod to the amp then steering wheel controls aint doin jack shit for you anyway. I suggest a good eeclipse HU which will make your life a lot easier. $2g's is a high budget really. Considering also selling your old Alpine gear too. Youll be surprised what you can do with that. If you want any equipment suggestions PM me.

OK, I am honestly just trying to understand the "HU must-have" consensus here ... So let me ask this: If I had no stereo in my truck whatsoever right now, was planning/ designing an all-new system, and knew for absolute sure all I ever want to listen to is my iPod, what is the HU for?

Tks ... and I'm not trying to be a dik, just trying to understand.

 

[drpeeb 10+ year member]

i think you should do some research before you drop 2 grand into your audio. If you think an Ipod into an amp is good, I'm guessing you think Sonys sound good too?

I am trying to do research, as well as asking questions to folks like you with experience. I've already spent some $ as you can see, but would like to plan the rest thoroughly before spending more.

Can you tell me what wouldn't sound good about an iPod into an amp? Where does it come up short?

 

[drpeeb 10+ year member]

SQ and coaxials...not a good combo.

You're saying components are a must-have for a high-SQ system?

And I was about to buy a 2nd set of the SPS-600 coaxes. Very glad I asked now.

Now, here's the thing ... I could either spend a certain amount of $ buying some comps now, which I've never owned before, probably hear them and go "Ah-ha now I see!", and then end up spending more buying another different comp set closer to top-of-the-line ... I'm hoping to avoid spending needlessly during the process. Maybe it's unavoidable, I dunno. For those with tons of experience, if you wanted to try to skip the spending-during-trial-and-error phase, what would you suggest I go to as top-of-the-line you'll-never-regret-these speakers? Or, maybe there is no such?

Here's a great example: I have a 23' Cobalt bowrider boat with a big-@ss 496 V8 Mercruiser. When I wanted a new boat I knew I didn't want to regret later having bought a compromise brand, so I bought a Cobalt - There is no better boat. It's probably 20-25% higher than the next best, but they skimp on nothing. And, I didn't have to buy this brand, then that brand, to try to figure out what's best. It's Cobalt. Plain and simple. That's what I'm looking for in car audio. Does it exist?

 

[Worlddre 5,000+ posts]

pickl up a peripheral pxamg + phni1 i think it is will let you run the ipod on the factory radio. Add an a factory integration unit such as the Cleansweep, imprint, 3sixty, BitOne (my favorite of the bunch) or DQL8 and move along from there....This will retain your steering wheel controls and let you listen to your ipod. As for the keeping the spkrs in the factory locations you can still purchase components and fab up a bridge to mount the tweeter in a coaxial manner. thus giving you what you want.

 

[Pemrick69 10+ year member]

You're saying components are a must-have for a high-SQ system?
And I was about to buy a 2nd set of the SPS-600 coaxes. Very glad I asked now.

Now, here's the thing ... I could either spend a certain amount of $ buying some comps now, which I've never owned before, probably hear them and go "Ah-ha now I see!", and then end up spending more buying another different comp set closer to top-of-the-line ... I'm hoping to avoid spending needlessly during the process. Maybe it's unavoidable, I dunno. For those with tons of experience, if you wanted to try to skip the spending-during-trial-and-error phase, what would you suggest I go to as top-of-the-line you'll-never-regret-these speakers? Or, maybe there is no such?

Here's a great example: I have a 23' Cobalt bowrider boat with a big-@ss 496 V8 Mercruiser. When I wanted a new boat I knew I didn't want to regret later having bought a compromise brand, so I bought a Cobalt - There is no better boat. It's probably 20-25% higher than the next best, but they skimp on nothing. And, I didn't have to buy this brand, then that brand, to try to figure out what's best. It's Cobalt. Plain and simple. That's what I'm looking for in car audio. Does it exist?

It doesn't, but you're about to hear 6,000 different opinions on which brand it is.

As far as your ipodintoamp vs HU debate, the problem is SQ. The ipod doesn't process the signal well. If you want it to sound really good but skip your HU, you would have to send the ipod signal straight into a crossover with a good line driver. Honestly, I've never even heard of what you're doing. The amp for your sub and the amp for the coaxials, your running different minircas out of your ipod into each?

Get a HU. From your budget and what it sounds like with experience and listening experience, you want something that sounds good to you, not something competition winning. A good HU and you don't really need to bother with a crossover, you're not gonna need an equalizer, you won't need a line driver. It'll sound better with those things, but you won't notice the difference if you don't know the difference.