Hey Guys, I am a total noob when it comes to audio. I've decided to invest in a system but don't really know what brand(s) to buy etc... I don't want something window shattering since I'm not one to play my music cranked up at all times, but I would like a decent setup that can be felt outside the car. I'm also on a budget and am looking to spend between $350-400 on sub(s), amp, and a box (ported).

A friend of mine said I can get a decent setup for that price range, and said he would be able to get me deals from a local shop. While he is able to get me deals, it all depends on what the store is carrying at the time and right now they don't have anything I'd want to run or can run in my price range, so I turn to you guys for help.

**Edit**

I forgot to also mention that I already have a Pioneer headunit and Pioneer speakers all around.

My friend is a little biased towards Rockford Fosgate and is trying to steer me towards their P1,P2, or P3 models and suggested these:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/2-10-ROCKFORD-FOSGATE-P310D4-WOOFERS-Q-LOGIC-ENCLOSURE_W0QQitemZ330116009647QQcmdZViewItemQQptZ Car_Subwoofers_Enclosures?hash=item4cdc728eaf&_trk sid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262&_trkparms=|301%3A0|293%3A1| 294%3A30

This is the local store's ebay site, so whatever they offer on there can be picked up. If I were to get these, this would solve my problem of getting a box and subs, but I would still need to find a good amp that would be able to power these and still keep me under $400.

I was also thinking I could get a 12" Kenwood KFC-W3011 (or maybe 2), a ported box from the shop and also get a refurbished MA Audio amp. Would this be a good setup?

Here is the Kenwood sub:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...pf_rd_i=507846

and here is the MA Audio amp I was looking at:
http://cgi.ebay.com/MA-AUDIO-M700XE-1000-WATT-2-CHANNEL-CAR-AMPLIFIER-AMP_W0QQitemZ350198126588QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCar_Am plifiers?hash=item51896f57fc&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14& _trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A2096|240%3A13 18|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50

Sorry for all of the links, I just don't know where to start lol. Could you guys give me some help and advice? Thanks.

 

either one looks good,
i would reccomend getting the rockfords, but thats me.
my buddy had 2 kenwoods in his 4 runer and it beat hard.
save your money 400 isnt that much when it comes to buying audio equitment.
you get what you pay for.
and dont buy from ebay, you dont know if they are going to work for a month and then quit,

 

dude this guy is your friend and suggested p1's to you? that would be no friend of mine....

ha jk, no those subs are CRAP, i worked for a rf auth dealer for a few years, customers would always bring the subs back, and you could see where the "plastic" cone would hairline crack along the surround of the woofer. so Don't get those..

Ok, here is the thing, your spending YOUR money, you can either buy really cheap and be replacing it in a year or two, or buy quality and keep it for years..

for a Head unit, i would go with alpine, eclipse, or nakamichi if you can afford it, if not, pioneer is a decent runner up.

dude, i used to be hardcore Rockford fosgate, i admitt and it i used to swear by it, but they brought this upon themselves -, their stuff made this decade, well, is just crap.. the last good amps they made were the a2 series amps with the angled end caps..

brands i can vouche for, have competed with and would buy anyday for a daily driver system are, Resonant engineering, Memphis, crossfire, jl audio, elemental designs, this is all good stuff, will hold up. and you can usually (if priced right and not paying retail) can piece together something good.. good luck. don't forget to take out 20-50 bucks for an amp kit...

 

Thanks for the advice, I forgot to mention that I already have a Pioneer headunit and Pioneer speakers all around, I just wanted to take care of the bass now and maybe get another amp for the speakers later down the road. I'm not a big audiophile, I just want a setup with decent bass that wont make my car too heavy.

Yea like I said he's really into Rockford. Any suggestions on a specific setup I may want to consider?

Thanks again for the advice.

 

If you can get the items above for cheap, and your not really looking at shaking down the block. The setup above will work. The ma amp will not put out 1k watts as the title says. Not on that amp series. You should look into the hk series if you want ma audio for your amps. And they are power hungry amps.


This might fit your budget.

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/s...120%26tp%3d115

2 of theses
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_236T451...?showAll=Y&c=3

and you get a free enclosure

I seen a bunch of setups to fit your budget.

 

Just do what I did...go to crutchfield and read reviews on their subs, keep an eye out for deals, like the one WRX presented. Personally, in my train of though two is most of the time not better than one unless it covers a different sound range. I've always had two but one as a back up just in case the first one dies...lets just say the second one has been sitting in my garage for 5 years. As for brands, you really just have to find what you like...If I were you I would stick closely to what you already have...pioneer seems to be decent but I couldn't tell you because I have never used them. They seem to be decently priced and the reviews seem positive.

 

Ok thanks for the help. I'm hearing all kinds of different things from my friends so it's getting really confusing and frustrating. What I did realize though with everyone I spoke to is that everyone was biased. I'd ask about one brand and one guy would say it's the best, while another would say it's complete garbage. I called 2 shops and spoke to their audio guys for about 15 minutes each. Both were trying to push their brands (ofcourse they would) and both did the same thing of telling me the opposite brands were garbage. (One shop is an Alpine, JL and Pioneer dealer, while the other is a Rockford dealer.)

I've been looking around and found these, do you think they are good for the price?

http://www.dealercostcaraudio.com/06vcvx124.aspx

http://www.woofersetc.com/p6797/06VS...-Enclosure.htm

I'm a little torn between the two. Also are these sites good places to order from? I do read the reviews on crutchfield.com, I don't really wanna order from them because their stuff is overpriced a lot of the time.


What amp would you recommend me using for that if I were to get this? (Keep in mind one that would allow me to stay within my budget lol)

I wanna order everything in the next few days. If not then I'm just going to say f*ck it and order a set of F2 Type 1 coilovers instead. I'm more into performance than show anyways lol.

Thanks again for the help.

 

take the amp that wrx posted and then your second sub you posted that should give a good thump.
also dont forget about a amp kit.

 

ok I'll keep the amp WRX-Killer posted in mind, but do you guys think this will be a good setup?

Sub:
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...+2+ohms+-.html

Amp:
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...00.1.html#tabs

Amp Wiring Kit:
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...+AMP850BL.html

I plan to order everything on Monday, so I want to have everything down. Let me know what you guys think.

Thanks again.

 

well your gonna be under powering your sub, but for the power you do give it, it should be fairly efficient seeing as how you will be using a box that is specifically designed by a R&D team for that woofer. Your woofer is going to be wired for a 2ohm final impedance according to specs, your subs rms is 750, that amp does a MAX power of 500w @2ohms, meaning that the rms of your amp will be about 250- if that, cause crunch amps are probably overrated.. So to wrap it up, your gonna be putting 250w rms on a sub that wants 3 times that much...

 

if you don't mind going with a used amp, try going on craigslist or an audio forum www.soundoff.org usaci's forum. the other day i got a crossfire vr1000d for 120 bucks, that amp does 1000w rms@1ohm@12v, retails for 700 ish and was a heck of a deal.. that crunch amp might not hold up too long to be honest.

 

ok thanks. Another question, since the subs is wired for 2 ohms does that mean that the amp I get will have to be ran at 2 ohms as well?

For example, if I had an amp which can run push 750rms @ 4 ohms and 500 @ 2 ohms, I won't be able to run it at 4 ohms because it doesn't match the sub?

I'll take a look around on soundoff to see if I can find any deals as well as craigslist. Thanks.

 

well you kinda have it backwards, and alot of people do not necessarily understand this for some reason, but here goes. ohms - is a resistance in electrical force(voltage,pressure), your amp has ratings, for ex, the amp your suggested to use claims a stability of 1ohm, this means that, on the 1 channel that this amp has, you can run any ohm load as low as 1ohm, but it is surely not recommended by the manufacturer to go below this set point.
A large majority of the amps out there are 2ohm stereo stable, even more rare are 1ohm and 1/2 ohm stereo stable amps, occasionally you will find a really nice sound quality amp stable to 4ohm- but i doubt you will ever see that...
so your amp, you suggested has these ratings 1000w @1ohm, 500w@2ohm, 250w@4ohm, the lower the ohm(the less the resistance the amp has to put its power upon) meaning the lower the ohm load, the more power the amp can deliver.. your ohm load is always based upon the final resistance of your coils.
the sub says wired to 2ohms, so you have to go by that rating.. your looking for an amp that can deliver the power you need at 2ohms..
here are you options, and here is what to look for when looking, you need to find either a mono (1 channel amp) or a stereo (2 channel amp), if you find a mono amp it MUST be 2ohm stable, if you find a stereo amp it MUST be 1ohm stable, this is per the suggested subwoofer configuration which has been decided on you,
and the power rating for the mono amp needs to be ( i recommend) 600-800watts RMS.
If you find a 2channel stereo amp, stable to 1ohm, the power rating must claim about the same power, 600-800watts RMS at 2ohm mono(bridged).

now you have an idea of what to look for, also i'm gonna add two more pieces of information in, you may already know this, if so, ignore it, but someone is bound to read this and it may shed some light on them, and i just feel like saying it because it is a MASSIVE pet peave of mine.. it really makes my skin crawl,, ha

RMS Power - this power is not the same as MAX power, the only power you should ever look at is this (RMS), max power is basically a (bull **** rating, aka sales gimmic) and should always be disgaurded. Some companies like sony, pioneer, and now sadly, rockford over this past decade has started doing this dumb crap.. and it makes and confuses people into believing they are buying a much larger amp than what they really are.
The crunch amp, has the power listed as max, this basically means, when lightnight strikes your car, the amp will probably put out that much power..

Bridging- when i say check the bridged rating, this means the amp is in bridged mode, which means the 2 channels of the amp, are now driving a single load, that single load could be 1 transducer (speaker,sub) or 8.. the amp will not produce more power bridged than in stereo mode, that is a urban legend that i'm sick of, if an amp does 200w x2 rms@2ohm stereo, its gonna do 400w x1 rms@4ohm mono, your just taking two channels and making one, regardless of what the guy down the street says.

when i worked at audio shops i would have everyone and there mamma get mad cause i didn't bridge their 6x9's on their amp to make more power( when in all reality it doesn't make more power, just allows a different wiring configuration)

 

Ok, thanks a lot for all of the info, now I finally have a clear understanding about ohm ratings and bridging now. I knew about rms power and that's what I've been going by the whole time, and it annoy me too when the people I talk to go by the max wattage instead of rms. Ok, I guess my search still continues. I'm searching around right now so I'll let you know what I find.

Thanks again for your time and help.

 

rockfish fosgate? only in the 90's...... he on the right point... about the head unit... but me personal ill stay way from pioneer too much engine noise with pioneer unit ... but if your must buy pioneer look into they're Premier line they are the higher end pioneer something like honda and acura .... if your not into super loud music and want decent sounds look into morel, hertz, rainbow... if that too high end... ill go with boston , alpine type r or x , on amps ill go work zapco, audison, arc, alpine pdx, and on lower ends will go with kicker, alpine, on box and subs.. its really what kinda muzic you listen too really... if rock, metal something with a fast beat ill stick with a seal box ... but if your listen to rap or anything with deep bass you would want a ported box something under 80 hz to 40 hz

 

under power your sub = dc to your sub... good luck with your chruch amp and pray it don't start a fire....

 

dude i like your high end and low ends! ha, i've always considered the oldschool stuff like zapco, rainbow, etc to be high end stuff... ! don't forget old focal.. i saw where crutchfield sells there stuff now, but i don't think its gonna be anything like the old poly glass, utopia, and poly kevlar lines they use to have..

 

your cuttin the power of the amp in half when you put 4 ohms on a amp that ask for 2 ohms ....

 

i use to be a big audio head in the 90's i grew out of audio and into racing.. but i install car audio but not really into it... i feel sorry for people who is buying product.... that has be brought back to life by d.e.i and maxxision (how ever you spell them) .... i had a closet full of old school amps... but they are long gone now... only kicker outta all over amp company, still rates they're amp at rms... yes they are under rated if you want big bang for your bucks kicker amp is the way to go....its funny how they say electronic get cheaper by the years... but yet old school amp get high and high as years pass...

 

yea i got out of installing and competing in usaci.. my last comp i entered was in 06, and early 05 before that, but i been trying to build my integra a few years, but i've realize i'm way better at building spl systems than racing.. and plus i'm tired of fixing my car, broke 2 shift forks and messed up a gear in 3 years.. got to crawl under my car and put now my 4th transmission on the car next weekend.. sucks.. but i'm getting back into usaci after that for sure

 

VI boost, if your not opposed to buying a used amp, try usaci's for sale forum, the reason i say go there is because, all of us on there, are running 1000's of watts.. i don't know anyone that competes with less than 2000w rms, and all those guys have just old 200w, 500w, 1000w class d amps just laying around, that they don't give a crap about and will sell for nothing.. cause i watch them all day sell memphis 2500d's for 250 all day, 4000d's for 400-500 bucks all day.. so i know if you post your looking for something around 500w rms your gonna find it cheap.

 

i love spl ... but one thing sucks tho after you had big boom... 2 10's or 2 12's wont cut it no more for a dd...

 

its ok to buy use amps .... ill stay away from used speakers tho... unless they are reconeable

 

yea for years i would run single sub setups, the reason i would do this is because if you have one sub, one enclosure, one port, there is no way your gonna run into some problems that you would normally experience with multiple sub setups.. my last spl systems, was one.. 800w memphis amp on 8 kicker comp 12's, and one memphis 2000w amp on a pioneer spl 5000 12", and that was my daily driver setups.. ha ha.. my next setup i think is gonna be two re sx 12's, or 1 re mt 18 on a cactus sounds amp, they have one that does 600w rms@4ohms@12v and something like 4000w rms@.38ohms@16v.. should be fun...

 

Ok thanks guys, I'll go on usaci's forum now and take a look around. I did find these though:

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...nce+1600a.html

600w x1 @ 2 ohms

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_...KAC-9103D.html

900w x 1 @ 2 ohms

If I am not able to find something on the forums would one of these be good? The Kenwood's rms ratings are higher than the sub's, would this be a problem?