Question:

  Here is some food for thought when it comes to high end car stereo items.   First, they’re always listened to/tested in the sound rooms of stores. You sit in a comfy chair, exactly centered between the speakers; you can close your eyes; shut off your mind from the world and listen to what admittedly is a great sound. Well, after spending a couple of K, you install the stuff in your car. And voile, you start to wonder where all sound quality went. You now have road noise working to filter the sound quality, engine/transmission  noise,air conditioner fans,  noise from passengers, other cars, construction etc. You can’t close your eyes and drown out the world now. You can seat in your gararge, turn off the engine, close the door, and the sound quality does return but that hardly counts.  Rather then spend an excessive amount on a car stereo, why not buy a decent one for the car , but save your money for a really first rate home stereo system (this can run you 5 to 20K but that’s another issue). Safe Motorings, Jim (own or have owned Blaupunkt and Bose car audio stuff)

Response:

Here is some more food for thought… Before you go out and spend any amount of money on your stereo system, turn off the stereo in your car and then drive around with the windows up.  Listen for tire noise, engine noise, road noise, wind noise, rattles, etc.  IMHO, sound deadening your car should be the first step in designing a car audio system. The quieter your car, the more MUSIC you will hear.  And enjoying MUSIC, well the thats the whole purpose of having a sound system in your car.         Also, it isn’t necessary to spend thousands of dollars for a great system. One of the best 12" subs on the market today only cost $99(HSU ASW1201, www.hsuresearch.com).  Some of the best components and co-axils can be had for very cheap(Audax, Morel, Vifa, www.madisound.com).  To me, what I just listed is what I consider "high end", and they won’t break your budget by far(some of the best tweeters I have ever heard are the Vifa D26NC-05 1" tweeter and they are only $28.60 each).  Sure there is MB Quart(I actually use Quarts in my own system), Boston Accoustics, Dynaudio, etc.  But let your ears decide and not a magazine advertisement or a some people on the internet decide what goes in YOUR car. Austin   Here is some food for thought when it comes to high end car stereo items.   First, they’re always listened to/tested in the sound rooms of stores. You sit in a comfy chair, exactly centered between the speakers; you can close your eyes; shut off your mind from the world and listen to what admittedly is a great sound. Well, after spending a couple of K, you install the stuff in your car. And voile, you start to wonder where all sound quality went. You now have road noise working to filter the sound quality, engine/transmission  noise,air conditioner fans,  noise from passengers, other cars, construction etc. You can’t close your eyes and drown out the world now. You can seat in your gararge, turn off the engine, close the door, and the sound quality does return but that hardly counts.  Rather then spend an excessive amount on a car stereo, why not buy a decent one for the car , but save your money for a really first rate home stereo system (this can run you 5 to 20K but that’s another issue). Safe Motorings, Jim (own or have owned Blaupunkt and Bose car audio stuff)

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –   Here is some food for thought when it comes to high end car stereo items.   First, they’re always listened to/tested in the sound rooms of stores. You sit in a comfy chair, exactly centered between the speakers; you can close your eyes; shut off your mind from the world and listen to what admittedly is a great sound. Well, after spending a couple of K, you install the stuff in your car. And voile, you start to wonder where all sound quality went. You now have road noise working to filter the sound quality, engine/transmission  noise,air conditioner fans,  noise from passengers, other cars, construction etc. You can’t close your eyes and drown out the world now. You can seat in your gararge, turn off the engine, close the door, and the sound quality does return but that hardly counts.  Rather then spend an excessive amount on a car stereo, why not buy a decent one for the car , but save your money for a really first rate home stereo system (this can run you 5 to 20K but that’s another issue).

Well… 2K is not all that much.  In fact, if you want to do a half-way decent system, that’s how much it’s going to cost. Imagine a in-dash CD with a changer in the trunck.  This combo will cost at least $500.  Front speakers are perhaps the most important component of the sound system, so spending $300 and up for a pair of good component speakers is well justified. For subs, you might go with one or two drivers, housed in a pre-built or custom-fab box.  Prices begin at about $150 for a single 10" sub in a simple sealed box of decent quaility. Next comes the amps.  I guess if you didn’t care for a sound system that can double as a pain generator, you can spend about $500 for two solid amps or one good 4 channel amp with good power. Add in another $150 for interconnects, power wire, battery hardware, fuse holders, power distribution blocks, speaker wire and other various odds and ends necessary to perform the installation.  So far, you are at $1600 without cost of installation, which will make the total dangerously close to $2000 if figured in. There is really no point in putting ultra-high quality compoents in cars.  That’s why high end out-board DACs, EQs, and ultra-high end amplifiers only show up in competition vehicles and company show cars. Clean source, clean amplification, and clean drivers, these are the necessary components to a good sound system. Safe Motorings, Jim (own or have owned Blaupunkt and Bose car audio stuff)

– Lee Cao – http://www.leecao.com/      READ THE FAQs BEFORE YOU ASQs    /  = http://www.mobileaudio.com/rac-faq/ =  /    http://tutorials.jlaudio.com/    

Response:

<… Rather then spend an excessive amount on a car stereo, why not buy a decent one for the car , but save your money for a really first rate home stereo system (this can run you 5 to 20K but that’s another issue).

        $20k is not by far a maximum, mind you… high-end speakers can         easily set you back far more than a Ferrari (or two) would,         good amplifiers (pre- & power-) aren’t cheap and spending         a 6-figure sum in a turntable isn’t a problem.         (…and someone thought I’m a bit crazy when I freshened up my         #2 system with JMlab Alcor speakers and a Michell GyroDec         turntable last year -Henri —      #  Nissan Skyline GT-R ; ‘71 Corvette LS-6 ; GMC Typhoon ; etc…#      CAUTION: Before engaging mouth make sure that the brain is in gear.

Response:

Here is some more food for thought… Before you go out and spend any amount of money on your stereo system, turn off the stereo in your car and then drive around with the windows up.  Listen for tire noise, engine noise, road noise, wind noise, rattles, etc.  IMHO, sound deadening your car should be the first step in designing a car audio system. The quieter your car, the more MUSIC you will hear.  And enjoying MUSIC, well the thats the whole purpose of having a sound system in your car.

Well, the same argument can be extrapolated to cover air conditioning noise in homes, as well as traffic and overhead air planes.  But I do agree that it is good to start with a solid foundation on which to build a system.         Also, it isn’t necessary to spend thousands of dollars for a great system. One of the best 12" subs on the market today only cost $99(HSU ASW1201, www.hsuresearch.com).  Some of the best components and co-axils can be had for very cheap(Audax, Morel, Vifa, www.madisound.com).  To me, what I just listed is what I consider "high end",

Those are good quality drivers, and they are definitely good in a budget system.  But I have no doubt that better drivers exist in aboundance. and they won’t break your budget by far(some of the best tweeters I have ever heard are the Vifa D26NC-05 1" tweeter and they are only $28.60 each).  Sure there is MB Quart(I actually use Quarts in my own system), Boston Accoustics, Dynaudio, etc.  But let your ears decide and not a magazine advertisement or a some people on the internet decide what goes in YOUR car.

You are now talking about an entirely different sub-culture of high end sound.  I am sure that if people knew that you can easily duplicate the sound of a $5000 pair of speakers if you build it yourself with $1000 worth of parts, a lot more of us would be building our own speakers. And as much as I like building my own component speakers (I built the last one I had with great results), I feel that it is a very bad idea to recommend someone who is unfamiliar with complex crossover design to attempt to build their own component speakers with such versatile drivers as the Vifa D26NC-05.  (although my personal opinion is that the Vifa is second-rate compared to a good Focal or Dynaudio tweeter, but that’s beside the point).  Just the mathematics involved in picking out Capacitance and Inductance values for a simple 12dB/octave crossover will befuddle most people. Austin

– Lee Cao – http://www.leecao.com/      READ THE FAQs BEFORE YOU ASQs    /  = http://www.mobileaudio.com/rac-faq/ =  /    http://tutorials.jlaudio.com/    

Response:

   I’ve become interested in adding a really good sound system for my car. I was just wondering what brand you guys recommend for speakers and subs.    Also does anyone have any Input on "Kicker’s" speakers and subs? They seem to have won quite a few awards for their product. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

I really can’t say anything about different products, but here are my suggestions. One, order the free catalogue from www.crutchfield.com.  They tell you all the sizes that fit your vehicle. Second, I suggest lurking and posting in rec.audio.car. Other than a few morons, it’s a rather decent group.  When I asked for info on that group (on getting started) here are the links that I received – http://www.teamrocs.com http://tutorials.jlaudio.com http://www.mobileaudio.com (The r.a.c faq) http://www.andysaudio.com http://hem.passagen.se/gute. Also, the best magazine I have found is Car Stereo Review.  It focuses a lot more on sound for rock and symphonic music.  Make sure you check out the types of subs/head units/speakers for the type of system you want to build. If you want a lot of bass, they recommend one thing, if you want a lot of highs and mids, there’s another set of stuff.  I’m thinking about doing a system that’s set up for classic rock/punk/ska/symphonic(orchestral), so if that’s the kind of system you’re thinking of, I can give you a bit of info.

Response:

Kicker makes very good car audio gear!  To the guy that said that Kicker was "dirt cheap"… I’d like to know where you got that idea from.  Anyway, the Kicker Solobarics are great subs.  You can put them in a very small sealed enclosure.  But, they need a ton of power.  The Competition series is also good.  They need an average sized box, but require much less power and cost much less.  If you’re looking for a set of component speakers (midrange / tweeter), check out a set of Kicker Resolutions.  They sound great!  Kicker even makes great amps!  Check out the ZR and ZX series amps. And don’t forget about MTX.  MTX Thunder amps are among the best… hell, the best car audio amps ever!  Also, be sure to check out the Thunder5000 and 7000 subs! Check out rec.audio.car for everything you need to know! Later, Marcus 5th Generation Civic Performance http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/track/9041/civic.html

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –    I’ve become interested in adding a really good sound system for my car. I was just wondering what brand you guys recommend for speakers and subs.         Recently I’ve used mostly Focal, Dynaudio and Soundstream speakers,         depending on the application. I’m particularly fond of Focal’s         Mistral-series (eh… personal preference; I also like JMlab home         speakers as far as sound quality is concerned.         The installation is also at least as important as the sound quality         of the speakers themselves; it’s too easy to get a piss-poor sound         from even the best speakers by not doing everything properly.         Anyway, the system should be chosen carefully – a head unit to suit         your needs, crossover(s), amplifier(s) and speakers; what’s needed,         what goes where and how etc.         If you haven’t done this before or if you’re not 100% confident in         doing this, trust a professional. I’ve seen way too many incredibly         crappy installations and mismatched combinations to encourage         anyone to try to do everything himself.    Also does anyone have any Input on "Kicker’s" speakers and subs? They seem to have won quite a few awards for their product. Any info will be greatly appreciated.         Hmm… I haven’t heard much good about Kicker products, other than         that they’re dirt cheap.

Dirt cheap?  Not when a couple of 10" subs run $500. Their Free-air and competition series, while inexpensive, are definitely not cheap.  They are more than capable of sounding great when installed in the correct box.  A whole generation of highend auto sound competition relied on them.  And there are still quite a few of them being used in really good systems.         All in all, some brands that I can recommend, in addition to the         ones mentioned earlier might be something like: Nakamichi, Infinity,         JBL, RCF, Adcom (amps), McIntosh, Alpine and Phoenix Gold.

Ok are you talking about just drivers or car audio in general? Nakamichi used to make killer decks, very high end.  But I think they were bought by someone and now they sell $200 home audio receivers.  I wouldn’t trust an audio company like that. Their focus has shifted.  Infinity and JBL?  Come on, Circuit City and Best Buy grade stuff.  Average at best…  If I had to buy something at Circuit City or Best Buys, I might pick Polk Audio… but that’s about it…  I have no idea who RCF is.  Adcom amps are really nice but expensive.  And one could argue that the extra clarity and low noise floor is a moot point in a noisy environment such as an automobile.  Besides, with quality amps that sound just as good but cost much less, such as the Phoenix Gold (Rockford Fosgate, PPI and MTX also comes to mind), there is really no point in buying an Adcom, unless you really really wanted one.  The same argument can be applied to McIntosh, though I guess there is an extra prestige factor involved with owning a McIntosh amp… and the dual analog power meter is ultra-cool too.  Alpine used to be top notch.  Then they started appearing in Circuit City. My head unit preference has since shifted to Clarion Pro Audio.  Although Alpine’s newer amps, when chosen carefully, are getting pretty nice… comparable to PPI’s old Sedona and Rockford Fosgate’s old Series 1 amps.  Perhaps the only Japanese amp I would ever consider putting in my car.  Their speakers are still junk.  Can’t argue with Phoenix Gold…         Just remember to stay away from the lower-end stuff as you’ll get         what you pay for – or even less than that.

I hope you don’t consider Kicker speakers to be low end stuff.  Wut the original poster should stay away from are those really seedy brands, like JBC, Targa, Urban Audio Works, BOSS Audio, Pyramid, Rockwood, Kenford… etc… -Henri —      #  Nissan Skyline GT-R ; ‘71 Corvette LS-6 ; GMC Typhoon ; etc…#      CAUTION: Before engaging mouth make sure that the brain is in gear.

– Lee Cao – http://www.leecao.com/      READ THE FAQs BEFORE YOU ASQs    /  = http://www.mobileaudio.com/rac-faq/ =  /    http://tutorials.jlaudio.com/    

Response:

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