what do i need for a clear sounding car audio system ?

Question

i want to have about an 8 in sub and better speakers than the ones stock in my 02 accord ex coupe i also need an amp but im not expecting a blow my ears out with sound i want a good clear sound i can feel and that passerbys can hear just enough to know what music is playing ....do i need to worry about a head unit? will the stock one do?what kind of power do i need ?do i need to worry about my alternator or battery ? having no expierience should i try this project myself? what will it cost for self installation rather than if i get someone else to do it? how difficult of a task is this for me?in laymans terms how can i get the best sounding stereo on a budget of no more than 1000 dollars? primarily concerned with the actual componants on my car going bad if i have too much power coming off my stereo. what can i do to have my car and stereo running tight?

Answer 1

Hears a nice, simple system, that still kicks some @$$.
Go to best buy, and pick up a of Insignia 12' subs and amp combo, they run like $150, then get a nice ported box (I'm assuming you're wanting to put them in your trunk), it needs to be at least 1.25 cft., and a Rockford fostgate wiring kit. That'll be it for the subs, other than a couple of drywall screws to mount them with. As far as speakers, Honda does a pretty good job with their stock speaker locations, in comparison to some other companies, but I'd recommend upgrading at least the rear 6x9s. Alpine and Pioneer both make very good co-axle 6x9 replacements that run about $100 a pair. Alpines have a much more natural sound, now that they have silk tweeters, but I'm pretty sure pioneers now have silk too, so it really comes down to a coin flip. At this point, you're up to about $500 just for speakers, and if you decide that you want to replace the in-door speakers upfront, they'll be another $100, but I'd recommend waiting on those, cuz the rear speakers should fill in the sound enough compensate for the stock front speakers. With the last $500, i'd recommend upgrading your deck if it's stock, to something a little higher end. If you have rear-outs on your stock deck, that's cool, but I'd recommend uping it to a pioneer premier P680MP, it's a little pricey (bout $400), but it'll make stock speakers sound like components, and it's got tons of options, so you can really "dial-in" your sound.Stay away from Kenwood, Dual, and Insignia decks if at all possible, cuz they wont give you the control you need. As far as locations, Accords are pretty tight on space, and although I prefer the trunk for the amp, i've found that in accords, a pretty simple thing to do is to put the amp under the passenger side seat if at all possible, but if it's too tight, just be sure that it's on the left side of the trunk, away from the exhaust, and that you do not bolt it to the box. Other than that, you should be taken care of speaker wise, for $500. Install is fairly simple if you are atleast remotely familiar with your car. If you are totally lost on the install, try to get help before you take it to a shop, cuz you are basiclly throwing away money at that point. Regardless of wether you are going to have it installed, or you want to tackle it yourself, some things you need to think about: Location for a remote I/O switch for the amp (you don't want it on all the time), ways to cover all your components so that it doesn't become an instant hot list for car thefts. Also something to think about, the subs may distort the rear 6x9s, so you may want to install some rubber boots along with the 6x9s, they run about $15 a pair, and are definetly worth the money, a license plate frame with 4 holes, so you can secure your license plate (to prevent rattling), and some dynamate for the trunk to stop rattles (just a sheet for two on the back side of the trunk should do). If you have any questions on the install, just post again, and I'll try to pick it up, (I'd recommend atleast takin a shot at it, you never learn if you don't try!)... that's a pretty good system right there. It'll definetly push if you want it to, but it's really good for filling in sound, it shouldn't drain your battery at all, just make sure your battery is clean (no-acid build-up), and that all your connections are spaded, and you have a solid ground.

Answer 2

for less than 1k you can get some VERY nice equipment. unless you're running VERY high wattage, (and proper wiring) you need not worry about hurting stuff under the hood. If you have zero experience wiring up a stereo, get a pro to do it. Starting with a new stereo wouldn't be a bad idea, you don't need one that has a lot of wattage, seeing as how you're going to use amplifiers. for a small car, i'd use like 500 watts. that's plenty loud. I'm runng 400 watts to my front, rear, and bandpass sub box, and it can be heard over my exhaust...which is quite loud on my "84 Blazer

Answer 3

I suggest you upgrade to an aftermarket head unit(150-200), upgrade front stock speakers to components (150-300), and and 6x9's on the rear deck(150-300), and a amp to boost it up(250). I suggest Bose or Infinity speakers for their clarity. I had this set up in my stratus and I had people believing I had an 8" sub hitting.

Answer 4

Keep It Simple, replace your head unit ($200-$400), ur speakers($100-$300), sum subs($100-$500), and an amp & amp kit($200+) try looking on the web before you go to best buy or some local stores, ebay.

Answer 5

http://spkrbox1.spaces.msn.com/ for real "sound" advice.

Your system won't mean squat without a well designed box to put your subs in. Some manufacturers have recommendations as to dimensions of various types of boxes. It is best to find someone who builds boxes if you go with something other than a sealed box.

You should always match up RMS (Root Mean Square) watts of Subs and amp per channel as well as impedance's(resistances). When a sub has rating of 600 Watts MAX it really has an RMS rating of about 200 Watts RMS. RMS is the nominal wattage your most likely going to get out of it. Remember, a 200 Watts RMS amplifier has more power output than a 200 Watt MAX.


If your amp is rated at 4Ω don't subject it to 2Ω, it will fry.

Here is the formula for subs in parallel:

Z = 1 / (1/sub1 + 1/sub2 + 1/sub3 + ....)

For series, just add them up (sub1 + sub2 + ...).

You can mix and match these equations to get the right impedance required by your amp.

Example 1: Amp is 2 channel and rated at 4Ω, 4 subs @ 4Ω each. If I connect two in parallel and the other two in parallel and connect the two pairs in series, I would have a total impedance(resistance) of 4Ω. So to the amp, it's just one sub.

Example 2: Amp is rated 1Ω mono, 2 subs @ 4Ω each dual voice coil. If I connect two voice coils in parallel and the other two voice coils in series and connect the two subs in parallel, I would have a total impedance of 1.6Ω. Which would be perfect for a 1Ω stable mono amp.

You should use a capacitor as well.

Recommend for every 500 watts MAX you use a .5 Farad cap
Example: 1000 watts MAX - 1 Farad cap

You will also need what's called a "line level converter" if your stock head unit doesn't have RCA outputs or your amp doesn't have high-level inputs.

Try http://www.soundomain.com/shop you can find some really good deals, and this site is manufacturer certified. VERY IMPORTANT WHEN SHOPPING ON-LINE!!!

If you like I can send you some plans for reference. My plans are for a 4-th order band-pass bass box (A.K.A. bass-reflex) that holds two 12's.

Also included are java calculators you can use to figure parallel and series values given Ω values, tips on box building and types, calculating port diameter and length(if used), calculating box dimensions for types of boxes (sealed, wedge, cylindrical, etc.), materials needed and even how to make a jig for cutting perfect holes for your subs.

Just e-mail me [e-mail]

My system

Blaupunkt TSw1200 subs with a Sony Xplōd XM2200GTX.
My amp is 1200 watts (200 Watts RMS X 2), subs are 600 watts (200 Watts RMS) each, cap is 1.5 Farad

SPL is about 112 db each sub

Total cost(so far) = $410

Answer 6

Another tip is to make sure you run your amp wires AWAY from any other wires going to your speakers. That way you don't get the annoying whine when you rev your engine.