i am looking for a deck and a sub for my car..
for the deck i would like it to have a removable faceplate(like there isnt a deck that doesnt have one!!) and a sub out channel.
now to hook up subs im a little confused. what is the process involved and what is required? if the cd player has a sub out channel is an amp and crossover actually needed or does it just enhance sound
im sort of a newb to this stuff so yeah flame away if you absolutely have to

in terms of best bang for the buck what would you recomend in terms of a deck, sub and co-ax speakers?
thanks
mike

 

As far as deck choices there are lots of them out there, and almost every after market deck has a removable or hidaway face of some sort... there are plenty of sites that show you pictures and specs (crutchfield, sounddomain) and its really whatever you like the look of, can afford, and has the features you want...

as far as the internal amplification that a deck provides, the best way i can describe it is... IT SUCKS

a deck cant power a sub... (a deck can barely power aftermarket speakers decently)

In order to power a sub you are going to need an amp...

most subs need at least a hundred watts of power... (now thats not going to be loud at all, but its a start... and a headunit isnt going to be able to put out even half of that)

depending on how many speakers you want to run, i would reccomend not caring about getting a headunit that boasts a powerfull internal amp, and just get whatever headunit you like, and connect it up to a decent multichannel amp that also has sub output... there are a lot of options for doing this, and you can pm me for more info

unfortunately, powerfull and economic dont usualy go together with audio systems if quality is of any concern... if you dont care what it sounds like, then you can go loud for cheap... but if you want any sort of sound quality its going to cost you if you also want it to be loud

as far as brands go, ive had good experiences with pioneer head units, ppi and mtx amps, and infinity and focal speakers... however some of those definately dont fall in the economical range... so you have to decide what parts of the system are important to you, and come up with a realistic budget for it all, and then you can decide what parts you can get

 

I fully agree with vectorminds.

I'm putting together my system for my FD, and based on the reading I've done, and the listening that I've been able to do, you're definitely going to need amps. The way I plan to put my system together is:

-Head unit (eclipse, already have)
-4 channel amp (for the 4 speakers) (eclipse, already have)
-4 speakers (boston's probably)
-Infinity Basslink self amplified 10" sub (gotta get this still)

...the reason for the self amp sub is that I don't want to have to buy an amp, and a sub separately. The interior of the FD is so small that anything super powerful is just a waste (well, i think SUPER loud stereos are kinda wasteful anyway, so...). I'm also interested in mounting ease, and since I'll only have to mount 1 amp, and the sub in the hatch, i'll cut down on the parts I have to install.

Just my setup...tentatively, anyway. Got a few parts to get still

 

ask far as the basslink amp, i would try to listen to it before you buy it (preferably in your car) if you can....

ive never heard one personaly, but ive heard some negative things about them (as far as quality for the price...)

 

vector, do you have both your empeg and pioneer installed in the car?

i've got a riocar 60gb, but haven't installed it yet, maybe it'll be something to do this winter.

Jimmy

 

so what i have already:
150watt amp(50watt rear channels 25watt front channels) for powering my speakers(shitty thing with this amp is it cant be bridged)
what im wondering is if this amp will help at all.. willl it give my speakers more power?

i dont think its really worth putting a huge sub in a small car. im not really looking to have my car shaking all over the place all i want is sound that is quality! doesnt have to be too loud i still want to be able to think!!
i was thinking of getting a 10" sub..
in your experiences what type of box works best?

 

what brand is the amp... that will tell you alot if its going to help... but in general any stand alone amp is going to be better than what is in a hu (also i would use the 50 watt channels for the fronts... i personaly like a strong up front image, and never even run rear speakers in my cars (not like its too much of an issue in the vert though :-p)

as far as sub boxes go, im planning on doing a custom fiberglass job (however if you dont want to do the glass yourself plan on paying 400+ for something)

a 10 would be good for a 7... should fill in the bass nicely

as far as speakers go, infinity kappa triaxials can be had rather cheaply and sound preety good... had those in my last car

JimmyJimboJet... yes, i have the empeg installed in the car, its sitting at the top of the double din slot, and then the pioneer is sitting at the bottom

the shifter blocks changing the cd when its in 1st or 3rd... but doesnt bother me since with the empeg i rarely listen to cds.... i have it setup so the pioneer runs into the aux in of the empeg (since the empeg has a much better eq on it)

and i still have to make a black peice to fill in the the gap between the two hu's... things to do things to do

very cool that you have an empeg as well, i really like mine... have you hijacked yours yet... because left right time alignment was great for fixing some imaging problems i was having, if you need any advice with it (i dunno how much you have played with it yet ) just send me a message