First off, my ITR got stolen about a month ago with my system in it(later found stripped, see sig for the story).. At the time, I was running an Alpine 7893 HU, MB Quart Q series throughout the interior, and had an Alpine 10" DVC Type-R sub powered by an MTX 6500D amp. I had it tuned out perfectly and was really happy with the sound at the time..

Now that I'm starting over from scratch, and in a vehicle I've never built a system for(99 Tacoma extra cab), I wanted to get some opinions.. First off, I expect to get the Alpine CDA-9815 HU(unless I spring for the DVD player, which I probably won't). I plan to get another set of Q-series to put in the doors as well, and will probably dynamat the doors and possibly the extra cab portion, since I have little concern for weight. In addition, I expect to go with the 10" Alpine Type-R sub again as well. Here's where my questions start:

1) Should I amp the MB's? If so, what are reccomendations on a mid/highs amp? Or will the HU push them enough to perform well?

2) I liked the MTX 6500D, but was wondering if there was something that would go better with the Type-R sub?

3) Along with #2, would the 4ohm be better than the 2ohm? Or does it just depend on what amp I go with?

4) I plan to use a generic 1 cubic sq ft box, but should I go with ported since it'll be in the cabin?

5) I've been reading on here about pointing the sub down to get more out of the sub, but is it really worth it to get the customized box to accomplish this?

6) I ran a capacitor before (1 farad), but it seems that it's not really worth it. Am I better off just upgrading the alternator if I'm drawing too much current?

Thanks!!

 

1) Should I amp the MB's? If so, what are reccomendations on a mid/highs amp? Or will the HU push them enough to perform well?

In no way shape or form should you run them off the headunit...

2) I liked the MTX 6500D, but was wondering if there was something that would go better with the Type-R sub?

I would get something different then the R, but I guess I'm a bit biased....I'd run an IDQ12 if it was me....but that's just personal preference. I'd also suggest you get a 4 channel amp to run the whole thing. It will save you lots of hassles in the end. There are tons of amps out there....decide on a budget and we can go from there.

3) Along with #2, would the 4ohm be better than the 2ohm? Or does it just depend on what amp I go with?

Depends on the amp....there is no real difference b/t a d4 or d2 sub

4) I plan to use a generic 1 cubic sq ft box, but should I go with ported since it'll be in the cabin?

Depends on what you want. I wouldn't go with a generic box though. Typically they are poorly made, and are not braced well at all. I'd go the custom route. keep in mind the ported box will be significantly larger.

5) I've been reading on here about pointing the sub down to get more out of the sub, but is it really worth it to get the customized box to accomplish this?

I don't know where you got this from....only some subs are suitable for this kind of application. Firing a sub down can actually hurt you, but car audio subs have such stiff suspensions, that they will rarely move b/c of being hung. The only thing you may gain is some kind of slot loading effect....I don't think it's worth it personally.

6) I ran a capacitor before (1 farad), but it seems that it's not really worth it. Am I better off just upgrading the alternator if I'm drawing too much current?

I wouldn't run one. If you want to know where to get a great rebuilt alternator from an SQ guy who ran a Taco, let me know, I think he still has one for sale.

 

1) Should I amp the MB's? If so, what are reccomendations on a mid/highs amp? Or will the HU push them enough to perform well?

In no way shape or form should you run them off the headunit...

I figured.. might as well not get the headunit with the built in amp then..

2) I liked the MTX 6500D, but was wondering if there was something that would go better with the Type-R sub?

I would get something different then the R, but I guess I'm a bit biased....I'd run an IDQ12 if it was me....but that's just personal preference. I'd also suggest you get a 4 channel amp to run the whole thing. It will save you lots of hassles in the end. There are tons of amps out there....decide on a budget and we can go from there.

I'm spending around $500 on the amp. Less, if I can, but I will spend where it is justified. I just want it all to match up well. Besides, if I can run it all off the one amp efficiently and with good sound quality(low S/N, etc), then I'm all for it. So you're suggesting running the two doors off 2 of the channels and then bridge the other 2 channels down to run the sub on a 4 channel amp? What does this get me over running separately?

3) Along with #2, would the 4ohm be better than the 2ohm? Or does it just depend on what amp I go with?

Depends on the amp....there is no real difference b/t a d4 or d2 sub

So if I had a choice between an amp that ran, say 300x1 at 4ohm versus 300x1 at 2ohm, I should just go with the 2ohm?

4) I plan to use a generic 1 cubic sq ft box, but should I go with ported since it'll be in the cabin?

Depends on what you want. I wouldn't go with a generic box though. Typically they are poorly made, and are not braced well at all. I'd go the custom route. keep in mind the ported box will be significantly larger.

When I said generic, I meant a plain jane box. No fiberglass, no customized shape. Just a standard 1 cu sq ft box.. On ported vs. sealed: Is the ported box(including its larger size) really going to help that much? The past three systems I've built I used sealed boxes on, but they all went in trunks or hatches. I've never put anything directly in the cabin like this. I'd obviously prefer to save space/weight/PITA factor by using a sealed box, but is it going to cost me on sound quality?

5) I've been reading on here about pointing the sub down to get more out of the sub, but is it really worth it to get the customized box to accomplish this?

I don't know where you got this from....only some subs are suitable for this kind of application. Firing a sub down can actually hurt you, but car audio subs have such stiff suspensions, that they will rarely move b/c of being hung. The only thing you may gain is some kind of slot loading effect....I don't think it's worth it personally.


I had seen this in some threads from a few weeks/months ago.. Wasn't familiar with it, that's why I had asked. I'll stick with the standard method.

6) I ran a capacitor before (1 farad), but it seems that it's not really worth it. Am I better off just upgrading the alternator if I'm drawing too much current?

I wouldn't run one. If you want to know where to get a great rebuilt alternator from an SQ guy who ran a Taco, let me know, I think he still has one for sale.


Yep! I'd love to get that info. Thanks!

 

I'm spending around $500 on the amp. Less, if I can, but I will spend where it is justified. I just want it all to match up well. Besides, if I can run it all off the one amp efficiently and with good sound quality(low S/N, etc), then I'm all for it. So you're suggesting running the two doors off 2 of the channels and then bridge the other 2 channels down to run the sub on a 4 channel amp? What does this get me over running separately?

One amp generally means a smaller footprint, less wires, and less chance for noise. Look around and you could probably find an Arc 4150 for that price, great amp for a system like that....there really are tons of options, you could get away for under 500 and get a solid amp - look for something that does around 75w x 4 @ 4 ohm. Then when you bridge the two you would be looking at a theoretical 300x1 to the sub at 4 ohm.

So if I had a choice between an amp that ran, say 300x1 at 4ohm versus 300x1 at 2ohm, I should just go with the 2ohm?

It's really not that cut and dry IMO. It all depends on the amp. But, it's far easier to find the amp, then match the sub to it. Generally amps will have less distortion, a higher damping factor, less heat etc when run at a higher (numerically) load....I wouldn't worry too much.

I'd obviously prefer to save space/weight/PITA factor by using a sealed box, but is it going to cost me on sound quality?

I'm not really familiar with the Type-R, so I can't comment on what box it will do best in. If you take the same sub, run the same power to it, but put them in two different boxes, generally The sealed one will be more accurate and have a flatter response, while the ported one will be louder, not as accurate and have a more pronounced bottom end (as you approach the tuning freq.) That's a huge generalization, so I would find out what the Type R likes, and move from there. I know when I had my IDQ, it sounded excellent sealed, but when I ported it, it kept it's SQ, but had a mean low end to it....very cool sub.

Yep! I'd love to get that info. Thanks!

I'll PM you with it....

 

One amp generally means a smaller footprint, less wires, and less chance for noise. Look around and you could probably find an Arc 4150 for that price, great amp for a system like that....there really are tons of options, you could get away for under 500 and get a solid amp - look for something that does around 75w x 4 @ 4 ohm. Then when you bridge the two you would be looking at a theoretical 300x1 to the sub at 4 ohm.

Well, I actually came across a guy at my work selling an MTX 2100X with the following specs:
280 Watts RMS Bridged (4 ohms @) 14.4v
100 Watts RMS x 2 @ 2 ohms

He only wants $100 obo for it, and this may suit my sub need perfectly..

Which means I'd probably need a similar amp to run the MB Quarts with.. I still plan to take a look at that Arc4150 and some of the newer MTX amps as well..


It's really not that cut and dry IMO. It all depends on the amp. But, it's far easier to find the amp, then match the sub to it. Generally amps will have less distortion, a higher damping factor, less heat etc when run at a higher (numerically) load....I wouldn't worry too much.

Yeah, heat would be a bit of a concern, but I would imagine that with the small cabin size of the Tacoma, air moving through would keep most within good ranges of temp unless being pushed really hard..


[b]I'm not really familiar with the Type-R, so I can't comment on what box it will do best in. If you take the same sub, run the same power to it, but put them in two different boxes, generally The sealed one will be more accurate and have a flatter response, while the ported one will be louder, not as accurate and have a more pronounced bottom end (as you approach the tuning freq.) That's a huge generalization, so I would find out what the Type R likes, and move from there. I know when I had my IDQ, it sounded excellent sealed, but when I ported it, it kept it's SQ, but had a mean low end to it....very cool sub.[b]

ok.. i'll probably stick with my old approach of the sealed box then.. I would rather have clean, crisp bass hits with a flatter response, than pure "loudness".. I should be pushing enough power to make it bump enough..