stadtberlor
Junior Member
I mostly want to check and run this by you guys and see if you have any suggestions. I want to make sure all these components will work together and will provide a decent system and that my money is being spent relatively well.
Car is a 2016 Corolla. I'll be keeping the stock radio and unplugging the rear speakers. My overall budget basically includes what is listed below. I can't go much past that, especially since there will be another $100 in various costs for tools and install gear and wires, etc. Total (including the misc expenses) i'm looking at about $800.
Goals for this build: primarily SQ based, and i also want everything stealth except for JUST the sub in the trunk. I will do minor modifications but for the most part the car needs to be able to be returned to basically stock if i decide to trade/sell it in a few years. I need my trunk space and need to be able to empty it out without unplugging a bunch of wires, which is why i'm not running the amp in the trunk. I'll be mounting the amp under the passenger seat. Crossovers will probably go behind the kick panels, depending. The LOC i'm thinking in the glove box or under the seat with the amp. I want to keep things relatively simple, hence the small amp under the seat and just a single 12 in the trunk.
Parts:
Morel Maximo Comps - 90w RMS/ea - $150
PPI Phantom 900.5 - $180
Audiocontrol LC2i - $65
Image Dynamics IDQ12 D4 v4 - 750w RMS (or possibly just the IQ12)
Sealed ~1cu ft prebuilt enclosure
I will probably run the comps passively off 4 of the channels bridged at least to start.
Couple things i have questions about:
1) are active components even worth it for a build like mine? I don't know that ill have the tools or skills to really tweak things anyways, but my amp should be capable of crossing over the tweeters/mids for an active setup. My amp only does 70w @ 4ohm for the mids, which is why i was going to bridge them and keep the passive crossovers. Thoughts on this and if it would be doable to go active with the wattage i'm working with? The only main advantage i can really see with active is being able to tweak xover, volume, and eq between the mids and tweeters better. Please correct me if i'm wrong.
2) DSP. I know people make a big point of this especially in builds with a factory radio/touchscreen. My research has led me to believe that i should be fine with just the Audiocontrol adding bass back into the signal. I have no doubt that being able to time delay and eq precisely would benefit me, but I don't really have $300+ to throw at a DSP right now, and even if i did i'm not sure i'd be capable of tuning the system and taking advantage of the DSP anyway. I'm open to suggestion if anyone can convince me that a DSP is absolutely essential and will dramatically increase the quality of my system. Do these DSP systems have enough automation to where i can let the software adjust things or use a mic to tweak things or see what needs to be changed? Is the LC2i good enough for what i'm wanting to do?
Alternatively, if the factory radio is causing big issues and impacting the sound, i had also considered putting in this small, cheap little Clarion EQ (755), and using that as a clean source, seeing as how i will primarily be running music from my phone and it has an AUX. Basically bypassing the entire stock head unit when i need to but still retaining steering wheel control functionality, etc.
3) Ive been questioning the wattage of the sub and the wattage that the amp can put out for the sub. The amp will do 450W @2ohms. Is it okay for my sub to have a much higher RMS? I was told that it won't damage anything and will leave me room to upgrade to a louder amp/monoblock down the line but i'm concerned about it not being enough power/loudness. Would it be better/louder to step down to something like a 450W or 500W RMS sub? I want the system to kick and be able to enjoy it. I realize i'm not going to be shaking the whole street or anything. Is putting like 350W (leaving enough headroom so the amp doesnt clip) into a 750W sub going to be plenty loud to enjoy some low end on hip hop/trap stuff?
I'm not opposed to making upgrades down the line like maybe a touchscreen android head unit, or some type of DSP, or a dedicated sub amp. But for now, do you think this is a good start to get me a system that i can enjoy music and drive around with? Again, i can't be spending like $1000+ just yet. Also not opposed to buying used or on forums, but i'm pretty set on that amp and Morel comps.
Car is a 2016 Corolla. I'll be keeping the stock radio and unplugging the rear speakers. My overall budget basically includes what is listed below. I can't go much past that, especially since there will be another $100 in various costs for tools and install gear and wires, etc. Total (including the misc expenses) i'm looking at about $800.
Goals for this build: primarily SQ based, and i also want everything stealth except for JUST the sub in the trunk. I will do minor modifications but for the most part the car needs to be able to be returned to basically stock if i decide to trade/sell it in a few years. I need my trunk space and need to be able to empty it out without unplugging a bunch of wires, which is why i'm not running the amp in the trunk. I'll be mounting the amp under the passenger seat. Crossovers will probably go behind the kick panels, depending. The LOC i'm thinking in the glove box or under the seat with the amp. I want to keep things relatively simple, hence the small amp under the seat and just a single 12 in the trunk.
Parts:
Morel Maximo Comps - 90w RMS/ea - $150
PPI Phantom 900.5 - $180
Audiocontrol LC2i - $65
Image Dynamics IDQ12 D4 v4 - 750w RMS (or possibly just the IQ12)
Sealed ~1cu ft prebuilt enclosure
I will probably run the comps passively off 4 of the channels bridged at least to start.
Couple things i have questions about:
1) are active components even worth it for a build like mine? I don't know that ill have the tools or skills to really tweak things anyways, but my amp should be capable of crossing over the tweeters/mids for an active setup. My amp only does 70w @ 4ohm for the mids, which is why i was going to bridge them and keep the passive crossovers. Thoughts on this and if it would be doable to go active with the wattage i'm working with? The only main advantage i can really see with active is being able to tweak xover, volume, and eq between the mids and tweeters better. Please correct me if i'm wrong.
2) DSP. I know people make a big point of this especially in builds with a factory radio/touchscreen. My research has led me to believe that i should be fine with just the Audiocontrol adding bass back into the signal. I have no doubt that being able to time delay and eq precisely would benefit me, but I don't really have $300+ to throw at a DSP right now, and even if i did i'm not sure i'd be capable of tuning the system and taking advantage of the DSP anyway. I'm open to suggestion if anyone can convince me that a DSP is absolutely essential and will dramatically increase the quality of my system. Do these DSP systems have enough automation to where i can let the software adjust things or use a mic to tweak things or see what needs to be changed? Is the LC2i good enough for what i'm wanting to do?
Alternatively, if the factory radio is causing big issues and impacting the sound, i had also considered putting in this small, cheap little Clarion EQ (755), and using that as a clean source, seeing as how i will primarily be running music from my phone and it has an AUX. Basically bypassing the entire stock head unit when i need to but still retaining steering wheel control functionality, etc.
3) Ive been questioning the wattage of the sub and the wattage that the amp can put out for the sub. The amp will do 450W @2ohms. Is it okay for my sub to have a much higher RMS? I was told that it won't damage anything and will leave me room to upgrade to a louder amp/monoblock down the line but i'm concerned about it not being enough power/loudness. Would it be better/louder to step down to something like a 450W or 500W RMS sub? I want the system to kick and be able to enjoy it. I realize i'm not going to be shaking the whole street or anything. Is putting like 350W (leaving enough headroom so the amp doesnt clip) into a 750W sub going to be plenty loud to enjoy some low end on hip hop/trap stuff?
I'm not opposed to making upgrades down the line like maybe a touchscreen android head unit, or some type of DSP, or a dedicated sub amp. But for now, do you think this is a good start to get me a system that i can enjoy music and drive around with? Again, i can't be spending like $1000+ just yet. Also not opposed to buying used or on forums, but i'm pretty set on that amp and Morel comps.
