Topic: Speaker Upgrade Advice

[spicy3480]

In the next few months, I am thinking about upgrading the speakers and amplification since I just changed out the head unit to a really nice model.  I have a bit of experience with car audio speakers, but wanted to hear other opinions and experiences. 

I plan on getting a nice set of 6.5" components for the front, ones that have an acceptable depth, but also have sufficient frequency range and power handling.  I plan on upgrading the subwoofer to the Alpine SWR-T10 shallow mount subwoofer.  I know some modification of the box will be necessary, but I don't see the point of upgrading the woofer to another 8 inch model.  I will be putting it in a sealed box, because I am looking for tight bass, not booming. 



I will be using an Alpine PDX5 amplifier, which is 75x4RMS and 300x1RMS (5 channel).  It is rated very high and is quite compact.  It is also under rated in terms of its power.  After reading a lot about it, it seems that many have seen 100+ RMS for the front 4 channels, and 400+ RMS to the woofer on the fifth channel. 



Here are my thoughts on the components...unless I am going to increase the size of the rear speakers..I might not even use any.  Most competition systems don't use rear speakers.  Our cabin is very small, and my car is already sound deadened.  I might designate all 4 channels to the components.  Here are the components I am looking at.

For budget and to keep all components by Alpine:

Alpine Type-R Components


Without budget in mind:

DLS Gothia 6.3

Morel Supremo 6

Focal Utopia Be Kit No. 7

Rainbow CS 260.30 Reference Line


Any opinions on these speaker options??

[DeepBlueGXP]

Figure out first if you like the head unit and what it does with the stock system.  If the money is burning a hole in your pocket, click the donations tab and type in the balance of your account, that should do it for a while

[spicy3480]

Figure out first if you like the head unit and what it does with the stock system.  If the money is burning a hole in your pocket, click the donations tab and type in the balance of your account, that should do it for a while

HA HA...I am taking your advice from the last conversation that we had.  I am assuming I will be happy with the stock sound and might not even delve into all this.  I am thinking water/meth injection instead LOL.  I am serious, too.  Already emailed Dave about it, instead of going with a bigger turbo.  It is more cost effective and I have nowhere around me to even use the power of a bigger turbo without getting my license revoked for speeding LOL.

[Sly Bob]

I have to agree with Joe Steve. Once you get the new head unit in there you may well no longer feel the need to upgrade the speakers. I couldn't believe the difference when I heard min for the first time.

[spicy3480]

Excellent...then I can't wait to hear it when I get the car back!  Any equalizer setting recommendations?

[Sly Bob]

Equalizer setting are a personal preference. Trust me, if the Pioneer is anything like my Kenwood was, the equalizer's gonna be the least of your problems as there are a PILE of settings that you can customize. What I found made the biggest difference on mine was the individual speaker levels.

It's not 10 minutes with the equalizer to get things set up but it's worth the effort in the end.

[TomatoSoup]

I have the Alpine 17S (as in your photo).  Read about them being harsh and after I got them in at first I thought "Oh Sh*t"!  But after (a lot) of break-in, they are MUCH, much, better and I love 'em now.  Reasonable price too.  I have Kicker 3.5's in back, but basically have them off and I would agree with you that you don't need any rears.  One plus point is that with a little modification of the tweeters, they clip in the stock A-pillar tweeter mounts without modification of the mounts.  The main speakers also fit in the stock door mounts.

Still have the stock (USB) head unit, but with decent amplification, it sounds just fine.

[Go-N Def]

I'm a diehard JL Audio fan.  Check out these:

http://mobile.jlaudio.com/products_components.php?comp_id=65

[G8TR]

Nice range, from the specs I read.

[spicy3480]

Nice range on those...the stock speakers sound a lot cleaner with the new head unit, but I think I still have a thirst for more.  The speakers distort at about volume level 35 on this Pioneer unit.  I will begin saving now for components, an amp, and a flat woofer.  I used to love my JL Audio 13W7 that was in my competition car.  I had a/d/s components though, so I have not heard the JL's.  I hear the Alpine's do the job for the price, but I will continue my research and hope that others chime in.  Thanks:)

[Go-N Def]

I had an Explorer with a 13W7 in it powered by 2 500/1's.  It was awsome.  I had the whole thing Dynamat'd with 2 pairs of MB Quart 6.5 components powered by a JL 300/4.  I had 0 gauge wires under the hood running back to power it.  All together, I had about $6K tied up in it that I installed myself.  I miss the thump and clarity.


When I do my upgrade, I'm going all JL.  I'm gonna use the ZR650-CSi's listed above in the doors and pillars, a pair of C350x's at the shoulders, a 13TW5 behind the seat, and power it all with an HD900/5.  I'll have to do some cutting, fabricating, and glassing but it should be worth it in the long run.

Just randomly thinking here, I'm not 100% sold on the C350x's.  I'm thinking maybe a component speaker, putting the tweeter behind the inside shoulder and wiring it so the passenger side would be at the driver's right shoulder, pointed 90 degrees and vise versa for the passenger side.  This would put the left side sound in the drivers left ear and the right side sound in the passengers ear. 

[SKY888]

hey Steve.....how about Rockford Fosgate?   http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/products/product_details.asp?cat_id=3&series_id=34&family_id=297&item_id=112907&locale=en_US&p_status=

I am very pleased with the RF fronts and mids.......  very clean and strong.

I have them on my car and their amps.   

Here's my very simple and basic current set-up:
Pioneer HU, JL audio 3.5" rears,  Martin GMR's 8" sub (running 2 ohms), and a pair of Rockford Fosgate I-beams(under the seat for added bass feel)....and pair of Rockford forsgate tweets/mids.

You will not hear my sound system booming accross the street, but once you get inside the car, its very tight/crisp/clear......very good sound quality

[DeepBlueGXP]

Sky888, now I see why you need all that extra power.  look at all the Dyno matt.    Sound Deadening Showdown does some terrific sound deadening on Kappas and sells kits.  They are a vendor here.

[SKY888]

Sky888, now I see why you need all that extra power.  look at all the Dyno matt.    Sound Deadening Showdown does some terrific sound deadening on Kappas and sells kits.  They are a vendor here.

deep........keeping the rear of the car helps put the power to the ground, especially when I drive her during winter!

but seriously speaking, those dynamat are not the regular dynamat which weighs a ton.    

I chose the dynamat super-lite series....which is even lighter than the dynamat xtreme.   They're very light, and I believe they covered the whole interior of a camry and it only added about 60lbs or so.


With the limited area that I covered, I only used about 18 lbs or so.....

so 18 lbs for a better music.....I'll take it

[Brad Kenny]

It is more cost effective and I have nowhere around me to even use the power of a bigger turbo without getting my license revoked for speeding LOL.

Come hang out with me more often in CT!!! We have all kinds of places you can enjoy that water/meth or bigger turbo without getting a ticket!!!

[spicy3480]

I'm thinking about not even putting in a rear speaker and just go with a really nice set of components with a lot of power going to them.  While the stock speakers are much cleaner, they still don't go as loud as I would like.  I still have to mess more with the EQ and high-pass filters.  I am also a little OCD, and like to stick with the same company for both the amps, speakers, and subs.  I can waiver a little and go with a different sub, but the components and amps I like to be the same.  I have heard really good things about the Alpine PDX5 amplifier, and for the money it is worth it.  I am not looking to spend 2 grand on components and an amplifier. 

[SKY888]

I am OCD with having the same brand too.   Too Bad RF, doesn't have a great head unit  

the rear speakers are just there to "fill up" the sound.   They're not even hooked up with my amps.....since they dont need to be any louder.   They're just getting their juice from the HU.

All the speakers (except the 3.5" rear speakers)........are powered by amps....which will make them cleaner/more powerful.

alpine PDX amps..........from all the friends that have them....love them.  

[Go-N Def]

I'm thinking about not even putting in a rear speaker and just go with a really nice set of components with a lot of power going to them.  While the stock speakers are much cleaner, they still don't go as loud as I would like.  I still have to mess more with the EQ and high-pass filters.  I am also a little OCD, and like to stick with the same company for both the amps, speakers, and subs.  I can waiver a little and go with a different sub, but the components and amps I like to be the same.  I have heard really good things about the Alpine PDX5 amplifier, and for the money it is worth it.  I am not looking to spend 2 grand on components and an amplifier. 

With a good amp, you don't need an equalizer or a high-pass filter.  You can adjust the setting on the amp.  It makes for less thingies in you system and cleaner sound since you have less connection points.

[idkfa]

In your searches have you found which is the better bang-for-your-buck, a different amp or headunit for the Monsoon system?

[spicy3480]

In your searches have you found which is the better bang-for-your-buck, a different amp or headunit for the Monsoon system?

I don't think I would mess with changing the amp and keeping the same HU and speakers.  The Monsoon amp is made specifically to be paired with those speakers, and I believe they run at 2 ohm.  It is not easy to find a good amp that is stable and efficient at 2 ohms, and if you do, can our speakers even handle it?  I would simply start by changing the HU.  The stock speakers are really not that bad with a better preout on the HU. 

[spicy3480]

With a good amp, you don't need an equalizer or a high-pass filter.  You can adjust the setting on the amp.  It makes for less thingies in you system and cleaner sound since you have less connection points.

Right now the system is not amplified with anything but the Monsoon amp, so I just use the filters ad EQ on the new HU.  If I purchase a new amp and components, all of my tweaking would be done on the amps.  That's how it was in my old car.

[Sly Bob]

Hey Steve, I didn't use the same interface as you, I used the GMOS-LAN04. When setting up the chimes for the HU I turned them down with the pot on the interface so the chimes were quite low. I didn't realize, and it wasn't in the manual, that I could see, that the output from the radio was being cut as well. When I was trying to fine tune my setup, I was playing with that pot and realized that when I turned it up the volume for the HU went up as well.

A volume setting of 1 was barely audible before but now it's a nice low volume if I have the wife in the car and I just want background music. A volume of 12 to 15 is loud as I am driving the system a lot harder than before.

You mentioned that your chimes were low and I don't know if they adjust like the interface that I have but check it out. There might be more volume there that you haven't found yet.

[Go-N Def]

I'm sure you know, but doing it all at once is the way to go.  If you are just doing the HU and speakers, and are never going to upgrade after that, then ok, go the route your going.  

If you are planning a complete overhaul including amp and sub, it's less expensive and definitely less hassle to save up and do it all at once...

Just my educated

[spicy3480]

Hey...also looking at the Alpine Type-X Pro Components...6.5"...frequency response is excellent and the power handling is great as well.  I have heard good things about it.  Anyone else?