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car subs, amp, and box?

cheekybobcat

cheekybobcat

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 26, 2007
533
0
U-S of A
OK. So, I am officially obsessed with my car. Maybe because it is my first car I officially bought but who knows. Any who... I am planning on installing 2 12" subwoofers and an amp in my car very soon. I know that a couple brands such as Alpine, Kenwood, and Pioneer are good brands but I have a little complication. According to my dealer, Bose sound systems in cars are difficult to set up with additional equipment. So, I was hoping that someone on this forum would be able to help me out. I am tapping into a savings account I set up specifically for my car a couple years back and I have about $1,000 left over from my purchase. I was looking on Best Buy's website and saw a few that I thought were good. However, I am having some trouble with that amp.
Does anyone know what type of amp I should be looking for? I was thinking a 1200-1600 watt amp but not sure what kind I need. Double channel, mono, there are so many and I'm no whiz at sound systems for cars.

Also, does anyone know if there are any brands I should stay away from with the Bose sound system or was what my dealer said not true?
 
If you really want a nice sounding set up, I would find a local shop that specializes in car audio. They can give you a wayyyy nicer sounding set up than best buy.

If you want to do it yourself, it really would not be that hard either, if you have any questions let me know, I do a lot of car audio work.
 
i agree, don't ever get your car stereo installed by either best buy or circuit city. your going to get a much better experience and price when you go to a local dealer, they know more than the employee at the big box store, trust me.
 
There was no way I was having anything installed by Best Buy or Circuit City that's for sure... I would absolutely have a professional shop install things. I was just checking Best Buy for the actual subs and amp to see what I was interested in.
 
best buy and circuit city sell crap. you're better off going to your local dealer. they will have a bigger selection and might cut you some deals. installing it yourself really isn't that bad.
 
TwinCities Dan said:
Check out Crutchfield... (they usually hve good deals)

Google is your friend... ;)
Click to expand...

This site is great. I like how I put my car info in and it shows me what's compatible. Plus, you were right about good deals. A Pioneer sub on Best Buy costs $20 less on Crutchfield. Thanks!

Edit: It also answered my questions about what amp I should be looking at as well. This site is very useful.
 
cheekybobcat said:
This site is great. I like how I put my car info in and it shows me what's compatible. Plus, you were right about good deals. A Pioneer sub on Best Buy costs $20 less on Crutchfield. Thanks!

Edit: It also answered my questions about what amp I should be looking at as well. This site is very useful.
Click to expand...

crutchfield is awesome. if you call them they will go step by step with you for everything you need, and if you buy from them and want to install yourself, they are there every step of the way and they give you everything you need to do the install.
 
yea crutchfield is great. whatever you buy comes with instructions on how to install it and anything you will need to install it, like brackets.
 
I agree with the Crutchfield comment for sure. If you know enough to install the stuff yourself, absolutely do so. You will save a boatload of money.

On the subwoofer(s) DO NOT get some $100+ name brand subs. Get basic, cheap, wholesale stuff. Brands like Motorjoy or DHD or something are great. They sound the same as, say, an Alpine sub or something, yet can handle immensely more power, not to mention they cost half as much. All the people I know who got expensive subs ended up giving them too much power, and blew them right away, meaning they are down a whole lot of $$$. Get 2 Motorjoy 12" subs, and even if they do blow down the road, they are like $20 a pop. My friend's CRV has two of these, and is sounds great and is LOUD!!!
 
oh, and as for setting it up with a Bose, I have a feeling that that guy is just trying to get you to buy something you don't really need to get it to "work right".
If the Bose system has an external amplifier (which it should) it will likely have RCA cables running to it, in which case, you piggyback off those to the RCA in's on your new subwoofer Amp. If it doesn't have something like that, you can always splice into the speaker wires then run that to the line-level input on any decent amp.
As for an amp with ur setup, I have a Profile AP700M (http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Prod...120&i=489AP700M&search=california+mono&tp=115) that pumps out a great amount of power, however, if you are going for two subs, get the one that is basically the same amp, just a two-channel...
 
All the amps and speakers in my car come from a company called Elemental Designs. They are a great independent company that makes unbelievable products. They are also an authorized seller of DLS if you are looking to get some top-of-line stuff in the audio market.

You can check out Elemental Designs at www.edesignaudio.com.

They make great amps, full-range speakers, and incredible subs. Also, their customer service is absolutely the best. Give them a call and they will help you get whatever you need to meet your needs within your budget. Their 13Av.2 sub and NINe.1 amp combo will blow your mind...the 13Av.2 sub is a beast.

Also, I don't work for Elemental Designs but am just a happy customer of theirs.

I installed my car audio myself (2007 scion tC) so if you have any questions let me know. But I would strongly suggest visiting forums like www.icixsound.com to learn up on car audio. Car audio can be very complicated so I would suggest reading up before you make a decision to ensure you are happy.
 
I read up on a lot of products and talked to my uncle about it (he is a huge car buff and does all the work on his car himself). He was looking at stuff with me on Cruthfield and I have pretty much decided on the following:A 900W Kenwood Amp and a 3 10" pre-enclosed JL Audio subwoofers. Nothing is final right now but after a bit of research I found these to be of good quality and a price that I can handle. Any more suggestions though are welcome though. I won't be purchasing anything until December more than likely.
 
cheekybobcat said:
I read up on a lot of products and talked to my uncle about it (he is a huge car buff and does all the work on his car himself). He was looking at stuff with me on Cluthfield and I have pretty much decided on the following:A 900W Kenwood Amp and a 3 10" pre-enclosed JL Audio subwoofers. Nothing is final right now but after a bit of research I found these to be of good quality and a price that I can handle. Any more suggestions though are welcome though. I won't be purchasing anything until December more than likely.
Click to expand...

Congrats! Let's see some pics after it's installed! :cool:
 
TwinCities Dan said:
Congrats! Let's see some pics after it's installed! :cool:
Click to expand...

Of course!! I actually may be getting it earlier than expected so I'll post some pics asap. This is what I have to work with...
mmrmfq.jpg

Just pretend the subs are in there already :p
Thanks for all the help everyone!
 
ehduque7 said:
All the amps and speakers in my car come from a company called Elemental Designs.

You can check out Elemental Designs at www.edesignaudio.com.

Their 13Av.2 sub and NINe.1 amp combo will blow your mind...the 13Av.2 sub is a beast.

I installed my car audio myself (2007 scion tC) so if you have any questions let me know. But I would strongly suggest visiting forums like www.icixsound.com to learn up on car audio. Car audio can be very complicated so I would suggest reading up before you make a decision to ensure you are happy.
Click to expand...

Awesome. I have been looking for a trunk box for my tC for a while now, but have been unable to find one that would still give me ample trunk space.

I wonder if i could get one of my 10" JL Audio subs in that box, it kind of looks like i would need a short sub though. Thanks for the find.
 
illegallydead said:
I agree with the Crutchfield comment for sure. If you know enough to install the stuff yourself, absolutely do so. You will save a boatload of money.

On the subwoofer(s) DO NOT get some $100+ name brand subs. Get basic, cheap, wholesale stuff. Brands like Motorjoy or DHD or something are great. They sound the same as, say, an Alpine sub or something, yet can handle immensely more power, not to mention they cost half as much. All the people I know who got expensive subs ended up giving them too much power, and blew them right away, meaning they are down a whole lot of $$$. Get 2 Motorjoy 12" subs, and even if they do blow down the road, they are like $20 a pop. My friend's CRV has two of these, and is sounds great and is LOUD!!!
Click to expand...

I politely disagree.

Match the RMS to the sub and ANY sub will sound good.

You pay for longevity, warranty and true the the word, actual #'s not BS made up 1000WATT AWESOMENESS!!!1!!1!!
 
Help with final aspects?

I have the subs and amp all chosen. However, my friend was telling me that I will need 2 amps in order to use this sub set. I was wondering if anyone knows whether I can just use this single amp with JL subs or if I will need another amp. Thanks.
 
definatly look into elemental designs like a previous poster said. I wouldn't buy any hardware from best buy or circuit city. Go to car toys or some place and see some equipment first hand. Then do some searching on the net for best deals.

You also might want to think about buying some nice 10" before you put money in some low end 12"...IMO.

And...if you want that kind of base you're looking at a large powered amp. I would suggest two seperate amps.
 
cheekybobcat said:
I have the subs and amp all chosen. However, my friend was telling me that I will need 2 amps in order to use this sub set. I was wondering if anyone knows whether I can just use this single amp with JL subs or if I will need another amp. Thanks.[/QUOT

What size jlaudio and what class are they? Ideally you'd want one amp per sub for he fact you don't want to over heat or share power for that matter ( imagining having to share one set of iPhone specs for two iPhones).

High powered 10" and all 12" I would get the 1:1 ratio.

I would get more detailed about it, but I'm kinda stranded with no power in the midst of hurricane ike.
Click to expand...
 
In my old car i had a JL Audio 250w? Mono-block amp powering two 10" JL Audio 10W0 subs, and it worked perfectly. No issues what so ever.


If anyone is interested i am currently looking to sell these JL audio Subs, which are still in Mint condition. I am looking to get $100 for both 10" subs. Just an FYI.
 
Check out SwissAudio, this is one of those odd brands that no one has heard of. Really up until you get into the top of the line JL Audio (which is really only relevant for: a. showing off to your peers and b. being able to here a blocka way) they compete if not outperform and are significantly cheaper. I have known a couple people that have used these abusively and they seem to withstand anything.

Ans most def. 10" over 12"
 
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