300e Car sound systen help

Fol20

At the moment im looking around for my first car.I already have a thread on the problems that have arose in insurance and a certain dealer.I know whatever happens, i want a "good enough" sound system.I love me music so its a necessary purchase:).I know its not gonna be show car worthy but i want something that should do its job fairly well.I have a budget around 300e for it and would like to buy a complete package.It doesnt have to all come from one guy but should include 2 speakers,car stereo,amp and subwoofer.Internet is the best bet as its the cheapest so can anyone suggest links to good deals.Comment on the below links as well pls.Any suggestions welcome.

I was thinking of something like this.
Car stereo:
http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=180357853279

Speakers:
http://cgi.ebay.ie/Sony-Xplod-XSF-1326-13cm-2-way-150W-car-speakers-SALE_W0QQitemZ250425099665QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Audio_TV_Electronics_In_Car_Entertainment_GPS_Car_Speakers_PP?hash=item3a4e7fc591&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65:12|66:4|39:1|72:1301|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:200

Amp and sub:
http://cgi.ebay.ie/Sony-XS-L120P5A-Sub-Amplifier-1500Watt-box-3in1-Deal_W0QQitemZ350196608981QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Audio_TV_Electronics_In_Car_Entertainment_GPS_Car_Speakers_PP?hash=item5189582fd5&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65:12|66:4|39:1|72:1301|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:200

Fol20

Am i in the wrong forum or does anyone have suggestions?

colm_mcm

try readfing Max Power or one of the other car comics, they usually do reviews on that sort of thing. Personally I just buy whatever seems good value and hope for the best. If you're not looking to win competitions and just want better sound, then you can't go far wrong with what you've chosen there.

Personally I'd get a stereo with a rear ipod input/lead, much neater than front USB drive.

Eric Cartman

kenwood and alpine make better head units, some have ipod direct control which is excellent. i have mutant subs in my car and theres a fair kick out of them, also pioneer or blaupunkt make excellent low cost speakers

BIG NOTE : AVOID FUSION OR RIPSPEED LIKE THE PLAUGE !

Fol20

Can any of ye comment on pioneer head units and subs..They seem to be another popular brand,just iv never bought anything from them.

colm_mcm

you're talking about reliability/

Eric Cartman

pioneers mid to high end head units are good, but some of there dirt cheap stuff is just awful. there navigation units are alright but not a patch on kenwood-garmin units

pioneer subs are alright, nowhere on a par with JL, MB Quart , but all of those are rediculous money.

T1 make decent amps, mutant subs are alright, but if you can pony up the money for JL or similar subs go for it

Zascar

Head unit looks good. Stay away from cheap speakers, you're wasting your time. Amp and sub looks ok, but don't forget a decent wiring kit and installation - can be pricy.

My advice is to spend the €300 to get a head unit, speakers front and rear, and amp the lot. You can add a sub later if needed. Get some decent front speakers and a pair of 6x9's for the rear, and a 4 channel amp for them all. A decent setup like this will get you much better sound than crappy front speakers and a entry level sub.

Any more questions let me know

Run_to_da_hills

Get a quote from DA Autostore in Stillorgan. They may have some EX Stock lower end Ground Zero stuff. The had a few months back. http://www.daautostore.com/

Eric Cartman

Zascar wrote: »

Head unit looks good. Stay away from cheap speakers, you're wasting your time. Amp and sub looks ok, but don't forget a decent wiring kit and installation - can be pricy.

My advice is to spend the €300 to get a head unit, speakers front and rear, and amp the lot. You can add a sub later if needed. Get some decent front speakers and a pair of 6x9's for the rear, and a 4 channel amp for them all. A decent setup like this will get you much better sound than crappy front speakers and a entry level sub.

Any more questions let me know

6x9's are an awful speaker design that should have died years ago, please op avoid 6x9's no matter what make

Zascar

They are ok for a basic system but yes if you are going for a decent setup, best to avoid them. You'd need to spend a lot more money than he's got though

Eric Cartman

Zascar wrote: »

They are ok for a basic system but yes if you are going for a decent setup, best to avoid them. You'd need to spend a lot more money than he's got though

a 4 channel 200w RMS (50w RMS per channel) amp + 4 13cm round speakers (2 in the front door,s 2 in the rear doors/parcel shelf) would come to about 180 for a basic setup, a decent enough headunit (probably with ipod or bluetooth) can be got for 120-150 euro , worry about a sub later, ill price up 300 euro worth of audio and get back to you in 2 minutes

Fol20

Ok i have a punto now..so it could fit 2 in front(dont know what size yet but if anyone could give me a size) and 2 in the back on the shelf thing covering the booth.There are already 2 poorly cut holes on it so ill stick them in that.

Secondly my favourite type of music is dance and pop music with big beats so thats why i like the umph.


Ok i was wondering would it be ok to have 4 speakers and 1 head unit.Or would i not get what im looking for here.ie a relatively good sound system for dance music.Im just wondering because when you add on the amp,it means i would have to get it fitted by a professional as it would be fairly complicated..then at this stage for an extra 80 i could get the sub as well like.

Car radio
http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=180357853279

Rear Speaker
http://cgi.ebay.ie/SONY-XSF6935-6X9-6-X9-CAR-REAR-SHELF-DECK-SPEAKERS_W0QQitemZ180371944341QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Audio_TV_Electronics_In_Car_Entertainment_GPS_Car_Speakers_PP?hash=item29ff017395&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14&_trkparms=65:12|66:4|39:1|72:1301|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:200

And then a smaller one for the front side door speakers.I could get a total of around 200watts.Do ye think this would be enough or am i better off going for the amp and sub as well?

Zascar

€25 speakers are going to be totally sh!t - no matter what. Start off the booze for a week or two and get something decent, you'll regret it if you don't. You want to be spending at least €80, if not more.

Run_to_da_hills

€25 would only buy you distortion and would be worse than what came out of the car. I spent that amount on the fuze box for my own.

Eric Cartman

i hate halfords, but for convenience...

for the front
http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_236783_langId_-1_categoryId_212533 (total so far : 60 euro)

for the back parcel shelf
http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_264397_langId_-1_categoryId_212533#dtab (total so far 130 euro)

head unit (has ipod control)
http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_720577_langId_-1_categoryId_212600#dtab (total so far 295 euro)

ipod control cable
http://cgi.ebay.ie/KENWOOD-KCA-IP200-USB-DIRECT-IPOD-ADAPTER-CABLE-PLUG_W0QQitemZ370214488007QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Cars_Parts_Vehicles_Terminals_Cabling_ET?hash=item563280c7c7&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A1301|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50 (total so far 310 euro)

if you want to add bluetooth car kit and audio streaming to it :
http://cgi.ebay.ie/Kenwood-KCA-BT200-Bluetooth-Interface-Adaptor-HANDSFREE_W0QQitemZ270416262132QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_3?hash=item3ef610b3f4&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A1301|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50 (total 420 euro)

ive ordered from both those sellers on ebay, also check out dynamicsounds.co.uk , great company and they may have the head unit cheaper or bundled with the bluetooth unit for a lower price

another great headunit, bundled with the ipod cable and bluetooth built in for around 240 euro delivered, http://www.dynamicsounds.co.uk/alpine-cde103bt-cdmp3-tuner-bluetooth-with-kce433i-ipod-connector-lead-p-8687.html

Fol20

Thanks for the replies so far.

I think Id like to stick to 6x9's for the back if possible since there are already holes to suit in the back shelf (from previous owner).

I have measured the existing front speakers and I think they are 17cm from one side to the other.Can anyone confirm this though and tell me where to measure from.Im measuring from both sides as you can see from the pic

I don't really need ipod control but do need aux-in. Im not too bothered about the bluetooth, nice to have it but not a necessity.

I think il go for an amp now because the radio im looking at on ebay is only about 17W Rms/chan. Id put the amp in the boot and use it to power the back shelf speakers and possibly a separate sub.
As I would be trying to install it myself id rather not run wires to the front speakers.. the output from the head unit should be enough for them since most of my bass will come from the rear.. right?

The main type of music I listen to is Dance/pop so bass is pretty important.

Also, the radio im looking at is around the 120 mark after shipping so would it be possible to get a good speaker setup like Im describing for about 200?

Id rather buy everything online too..

Thanks
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Top Dog

I take it your more interested in volume as opposed to quality of setup?

Fol20

Top Dog wrote: »

I take it your more interested in volume as opposed to quality of setup?

A mixture of both would be nice

Top Dog

Reason I asked is that if you were more after quality then your best bet would be a decent set of front components, and a sub in the boot. Use the 1 4-channel amp to power them both (2 channels bridged to run the sub). Its the recommended setup for more quality sounds as it brings the imaging forward - and when talking about quailty its always best to have the sound appearing to come from in front of you like at a concert etc.

If you look about the place (like adverts for example) then you should be able to get most of the bits for within your budget. Only thing you're unlikely to find and might have to source directly from a shop would be the necessary wiring.

Fol20

So cany anyone tell me the size of the speakers,or where to measure from?

Eric Cartman

you have 16cm / 6.5" speakers there

Fol20

Can anyone comment on vibe amps..And this amp in particular

http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=270398057208

colm_mcm

HERE is a guy i know selling a Blaupunkt GTA470 amp and boxed Blaupunkt sub for 200 quid, only fitted recently to his car, which he just sold. also includes a set of kicker R13 tweeters and crossovers (still in box). with the 100 quid leftover you can get a wiring kit and a set of 6X9" speakers.

How's that?

Fol20

Sounds good,just hes up in dublin..It would be a nice system alright.Would he know anyone going down to cork any time soon.

I recently asked my friend to collect something in dublin and dont want to be bothering him too often.So i dunno the only way im really interested in it if he knows anyone coming down to cork in the near future.

Btw whats the model no of the sub because i am interested in it.

colm_mcm

I can forward your phone number on to him if you wanna PM it to me.

Fol20

Sorry for taking so long to respond,just been really busy with work.Anyway,yea could you pm me his no

colm_mcm

I don't have it handy, PM me your number and I'll forward it on

david

If you want decent sound don't bother with cheap 6x9's and a sub. It will sound cack. And to be honest one less punto driving around with thumping dance/pop the better.

If you're actually interested in decent sound quality I'll post a few links tomorrow.

colm_mcm

I forwarded on your number there Fol

Fol20

david wrote: »

If you want decent sound don't bother with cheap 6x9's and a sub. It will sound cack. And to be honest one less punto driving around with thumping dance/pop the better.

If you're actually interested in decent sound quality I'll post a few links tomorrow.

Iv already bought front and rear speakers..

Ahem,whats wrong with a punto going around with dance music.If i drove around with heavy metal,would you be ok with it?Dance is my choice in music and you dont hear me dissing other genres of music.You cant just stereotype people on their music,im not a knacker that like do whatever.I just like that type of music for better or worse and i cant play music loud at home so what better way to listen to music but in your car.

Fol20

colm_mcm wrote: »

I forwarded on your number there Fol

Cheers

colm_mcm

He sold them on Friday Fol

Fol20

awww,how much did they go for anyway

colm_mcm

not sure, but I know they cost him a lot more than 200 quid a few months ago

Esse85

Where can someone from Cork munster region get an amp and components installed?

Fol20

Getting them installed is a bit of a rip off but as far as i know halfords and many of the car shops install them.

Fol20

ok just to let you guys know i went with the following.I still might get a sub and a amp depending on how good i think the sound is.

radio:
http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=150356883339

front speaker:
http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=180377439417

rear speakers:
http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=370233698593