What to purchase for new audio system in my car?

[Johnnymaaaac]

So I've read that if you don't get the right wattage, ohm, and all that other stuff, the speakers can blow. So I looked around, and I think I'm getting 1 Kicker 12" Solo-Baric L7 2 OHM subwoofer with a kicker10DX10001 Mono sub amp. Will these work properly together? I want deep, hard hitting bass but I also want clarity in my music so I'm probably going to purchase some component speakers as well. Also for the wiring, I don't know what I need. give me advice, I'm a newbie!

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[Mr12voltwires 10+ year member]

You'll get tight, accurate bass with a sealed enclosure. The Kicker amp you're looking at will likely need at least a 4 gauge wire from your battery. Use at least a 12 gauge speaker cable from the amp to the subs. There are many different practices as far as subwoofer impedance, 4-ohm gives the best control, while 2-ohm is a good balance between control & loudness. I've never built systems below 2-ohms myself, I believe you'll give up too much driver control below that.

As far as component speakers, go listen to them in your local store(s). Sound quality is very subjective. I'm a fan of Alpine Type-R & Type-X, and Focal. Whatever speaker brand sounds best to you is the right one. Since you're using a large amp for your subs, I recommend at least a 75x4 amp, also powered with a 4 gauge cable and at least 14 gauge cable going from amp to crossover/speaker. Stick with a brand name like Kicker, Alpine (Alpine has always been one of the cleanest amps out there), etc.

There's a million different opinions out there, and the best place to start is at a local stereo shop and not a Best Buy type of store. Good luck with your system.

 

[Bettr n' Revrse 5,000+ posts]

You'll get tight, accurate bass with a sealed enclosure. The Kicker amp you're looking at will likely need at least a 4 gauge wire from your battery. Use at least a 12 gauge speaker cable from the amp to the subs. There are many different practices as far as subwoofer impedance, 4-ohm gives the best control, while 2-ohm is a good balance between control & loudness. I've never built systems below 2-ohms myself, I believe you'll give up too much driver control below that.
As far as component speakers, go listen to them in your local store(s). Sound quality is very subjective. I'm a fan of Alpine Type-R & Type-X, and Focal. Whatever speaker brand sounds best to you is the right one. Since you're using a large amp for your subs, I recommend at least a 75x4 amp, also powered with a 4 gauge cable and at least 14 gauge cable going from amp to crossover/speaker. Stick with a brand name like Kicker, Alpine (Alpine has always been one of the cleanest amps out there), etc.

There's a million different opinions out there, and the best place to start is at a local stereo shop and not a Best Buy type of store. Good luck with your system.

Dont give advice unless you know what your talking about.... To the OP read around these forums for a bit to learn a little about systems and some good brands to look into... If you want clarity and l7 even if in a sealed box wont have any sort of SQ...

 

[Falcons 5,000+ posts]

You'll get tight, accurate bass with a sealed enclosure. The Kicker amp you're looking at will likely need at least a 4 gauge wire from your battery. Use at least a 12 gauge speaker cable from the amp to the subs. There are many different practices as far as subwoofer impedance, 4-ohm gives the best control, while 2-ohm is a good balance between control & loudness. I've never built systems below 2-ohms myself, I believe you'll give up too much driver control below that.
As far as component speakers, go listen to them in your local store(s). Sound quality is very subjective. I'm a fan of Alpine Type-R & Type-X, and Focal. Whatever speaker brand sounds best to you is the right one. Since you're using a large amp for your subs, I recommend at least a 75x4 amp, also powered with a 4 gauge cable and at least 14 gauge cable going from amp to crossover/speaker. Stick with a brand name like Kicker, Alpine (Alpine has always been one of the cleanest amps out there), etc.

There's a million different opinions out there, and the best place to start is at a local stereo shop and not a Best Buy type of store. Good luck with your system.

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[All_Logix 10+ year member]

Well...I agree with the wiring, you will need at least 4 gauge...but the L7 is made to be loud, thats it... if you want clarity, try looking at something like an IDQ or an IDMAX if you want the 1000 watts of power. Also focal is a brand I am found of for your highs...but go look around and see what is out there. Specialty shops usually have the higher end suff to audition...Buuttt...Best Buy type stores aren't bad to go talk to someone for information, given they actually know what they are talking about...but you can run into that at audio shops too...

 

[youngbump 10+ year member]

full kicker system is always gonna sound good and be very reliable as far as amp frying,sub blowing etc.as far as wiring you can't go wrong with 16 guage unless your system is really extreme.for the box i would recommend about 4 cuft with a small size slot port which should hit from about 25 hz to about 45 hz beautifully!

 

[OmegaBunny 10+ year member]

My god... //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

 

[wenn_du_weinst 10+ year member]

hmm so much misinformation in this thread

 

[OmegaBunny 10+ year member]

So much bad information here.

OP just go to Wal-Mart and get whatever looks the coolest. Full Pioneer system or Dual system would work great. If the brands are the same then they have to work together.

 

[JerryEllis 10+ year member]

hmm so much misinformation in this thread

thats what i am saying...

 

[OmegaBunny 10+ year member]

But for real. Take the time to read the forums, use the search button, and ask questions. Take your time, plan your system out, and plan for the future because you are going to go bigger. Stay away from Best Buy is you are looking for advice, ask here. Look at the classifieds and you can build a nice system for way less than retail.

4, 2, 1, .66, .5, .25 ohms. That's the resistance your amp sees and is determined by the voice coil configuration and the number of subs you have. Nothing wrong with running at any resistance given that your amp is stable and you have the electrical to support it. As you drop the ohm load, it draws more from your electrical. Dropping the volts too low can damage your system and car.

 

[youngbump 10+ year member]

i'm with you on that.i bought a couple dual 12s one weekend just cuz i was bored and them bastards hit LOW!

 

[OmegaBunny 10+ year member]

OP if you want a real hard hitting system buy those bnib funky pups fs in the classifieds! Then you will hit the low lows!

 

[murph 10+ year member]

FUNKY PUPS FTW... seriously though kickers do not sound good especially the l5/7 they are over marketed and lower quality subs. Check out the subs on this site and see what you think Sound Solutions Audio - Quality Car Audio Subwoofers

 

[Bettr n' Revrse 5,000+ posts]

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