Any other Car-audio geeks on here?

LastDetail

LastDetail

Whose yer DADDY!??!?!?!?!
Are there any other car-audio geeks on DC?
I got the stereo bug at the same time I got the detail bug, the day I got my license.
Over the years I have probably spent upwards of 10 grand on various car audio set ups, and it would be nice to have someone here to geek out with. Any takers?
 
I'm not a true enthusiast, but I do like having an nice setup. I'm still partial to Premier and Kicker only because that is what I have always used.
 
I have been off and on. Last year I finished the a/v set up in my nsx. Threw more money at it than I would like to admit, but I am satisfied with the sound. It is a tough vehicle for SQ.

Some of the components are:
kenwood excelon ddx7015 in customized console
image dynamics IDQ10v.2d4 in custom fglass box
cdt es 630
cdt upstage m519t in custom made a pillars
us amps 5600x

Nothing over the top, but much better than the stock Bose (bozo) set-up.
There are some pics in my gallery here:
http://www.nsxprime.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=8577
 
Image Dynamics? Yea you're not kidding when you say "not cheap".
Wow man, that is one clean mother-freakin honda. Excellent install, that dash kit is simply superb, and I like that you didn't overpower it with bass. With a car with such minimal air-space a 10" is absolutely perfect.

..... and speaking of Image Dynamics
This is the measure of how much of a car-audio dork I am, when I first moved to southern california all of my friends who had just moved here wanted to go to Disneyland, all I wanted to do was go visit the ID shop, and then head over to USD to try and meet the Holdaways. Yeah I am a complete dork.
 
The reason I bought the Image Dynamics 10" sub, is the fact that it was rated down to the size (smaller than .5 cf) of my passenger side floor sub enclosure. I sold the previous sub that wanted more box than I had available. Not much room to work with.
My friend went much further than I did and he DIYd the whole project! See it here:
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40146
 
i got 2 12's Alpine Type R's with a Alpine head unit. got 500 watts goin to each sub. with and audiobahn amp. 4 guage wire. 1 farad cap.
 
Iv been into car audio for the past 10-15 years. Ive gone from small systems to big, and have competed in between! I guess you could say that I have settled down a bit in my older age! Ive had varius different products from many many manufactures! At one point I had changed head units in my car (a 2000 ford focus) once a month!

My current set up is an Alpine head unit MB Quart component Interior speakers in modified stock locations. I needed to adjust imaging a bit. Finnaly I have a Single kicker XPL 12in 2ohm sub!

All powered by Rockford fosgate amps
there is a lot of other stuff in there but that sums it up!
 
I love Fosgate, always been awesome amps. I am a die-hard Phoenix Gold fan, I have had the same ZX350 for almost 9 years, I push the hell out of it almost everyday and it still sounds just amazing. knockwood.
When you say "modified" locations do you mean you installed a bezel into the factory cutout or are you using QForms or something like that to adjust the imaging?
Yeah it's a sickness allright, my stereo guy is (purposefully) an hour and a half away to keep me from emptying my bank account. I only head up there about once every 2 months to get my fix. I swear its like crack.
 
Looking to replace the speakers someday, just not sure what is in there right now. If I do maybe go with Diamond Audio again or some Polk Audio.
 
John Styrnol said:
Looking to replace the speakers someday, just not sure what is in there right now. If I do maybe go with Diamond Audio again or some Polk Audio.
Click to expand...

John, if you are looking anytime soon the Infinity component speakers i have (6000CS's) went on closeout across the board to make room for their new line. They used to be $250-300 a pair but can be had on eBay and some other audio sited for about $100 per set, and at they price they are a steal. Give them a look.
 
LastDetail said:
I love Fosgate, always been awesome amps. I am a die-hard Phoenix Gold fan, I have had the same ZX350 for almost 9 years, I push the hell out of it almost everyday and it still sounds just amazing. knockwood.
When you say "modified" locations do you mean you installed a bezel into the factory cutout or are you using QForms or something like that to adjust the imaging?
Yeah it's a sickness allright, my stereo guy is (purposefully) an hour and a half away to keep me from emptying my bank account. I only head up there about once every 2 months to get my fix. I swear its like crack.
Click to expand...

Well besides the fact that I modifide the stock locations to house larger components but The front imaging was far from great! And mind you that I drive a Mustang Convertible! This fine machine was by far not ment for high quality audio! So I made my own mounting hardware so that I could adujust the direction/ placement of the speakers!

Compared to the sound quality in my past cars this one is by far the worst due to the fact that I am trying to keep it as clost to stock as possible!
 
MS22 said:
John, if you are looking anytime soon the Infinity component speakers i have (6000CS's) went on closeout across the board to make room for their new line. They used to be $250-300 a pair but can be had on eBay and some other audio sited for about $100 per set, and at they price they are a steal. Give them a look.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the heads up.
 
I have prefered Nakamichi ( www.nakamichi.com )ever since I first found out how good they sound. To start off they are not cheap but well worth the money (You have to hear or own one to understand). The first thing you notice is that it is very plain but do not let that fool you. What it lacks visually it makes up for internally. The first thing I noticed was that there was in addition to the bass and treble was a mid-range setting. What a difference the mid-range makes. The other thing was that it comes with RCA jacks for connecting to car/amp/speakers. Before this turns into a book I have added the features below for the Nakamichi CD500: (Go to a local Dealer and hear for yourself)

Key Features include
9 Colour Illumination Option
24 Bit D/A Converter
0.005% (1kHz) Total Harmonic Distortion
MP3/WMA Compatible
CD/CD-R/CD-RW Compatible
CD Changer Controller
Detachable Panel
Rotary Volume Encoder


SPECIFICATIONS
Power Amplifier Section
Maximum Power Output 47 W x 4 (4 ohms)
Frequency Response (Pre Out) 15 - 30,000 Hz ±1 dB
Total Harmonic Distortion 0.1% (4 ohms, 1 kHz, 3W x 4)
AUX Input Level / Impedance 1 V / 50 kohms
Output Level (Pre Out) 4 V
Tone Controls
Bass 100 Hz ±11 dB
Midrange 1 kHz ±11 dB
Treble 10 kHz ±11 dB
Loudness 20 Hz ±14 dB (Volume level 20)
Tuner Section
18 FM/12AM Presets

Seek & Preset Scan
AMS - Auto Memory Store
One Touch Memory
FM Tuner Section
Frequency Range

U.S.A. 87.5 - 107.9 MHz in 200 kHz steps
Other Area 87.5 - 108.0 MHz in 50 kHz steps
Sensitivity 15 dBf
Signal-to-Noise Ratio 60 dB (Mono)
Stereo Separation 35 dB (1 kHz)
Antenna Input 75 ohms (Unbalanced)
AM Tuner Section
Frequency Range

U.S.A. 530 - 1,710 kHz in 10 kHz steps
Other Area 531 - 1,602 kHz in 9 kHz steps
Sensitivity 32 dBµ
Signal-to-Noise Ratio 45 dB
CD Player Section
CD-DA

System Compact Disc Digital Audio
Error Correction CIRC Principle
Sampling Frequency 44.1 kHz
D/A Converter Type 24-bit D/A Converter
Frequency Response 20 - 20,000 Hz
Signal-to-Noise Ratio Better than 100 dB
Dynamic Range Better than 90 dB
Total Harmonic Distortion 0.005% (1 kHz)
MP3/WMA Section
Numbers of Folders Up to 256
Number of Files Up to 999
Number of Files Per Folder Up to 256
Number of Folder Layers Up to 8 Layers
Bit Rate
MPEG1 Audio Layer3 32-320 kbps
MPEG2 Audio Layer3 8-160 kbps
MPEG2.5 8-160 kbps
WMA 64-192 kbps
Sampling Frequency
MPEG 1 32/44.1/48kHz
MPEG 2 16/22.05/24 kHz
MPEG 2.5 8/11.025/12kHz
*WMA 32/44.1/48kHz
General
Power Source 14.4 V DC, negative ground
(10.8 - 15.6 V allowable)
Current Consumption 9.0 A (At rated power output)
Installation Dimension# 178 (W) x 50 (H) x 158 (D) mm
7(W) x 1-15/16(H) x 6-1/4(D) inches


Outer Dimensions# 178(W) x 50(H) x 170(D) mm
7(W) x1-15/16(H) x6-11/16(D) inches
Mass Approx. 1.5KG / 3 lbs. 5 oz.
Remote Control Unit
Principle Infrared pulse system
Power Supply 3 V DC (1.5 V x 2)
Dimensions* 49 (W) x 26 (H) x 110 (D) mm
1-15/16 (W) x 1 (H) x 4-5/16 (D) inches
Mass (approx.) 60 g / 2 oz (including batteries)


** I am going to hide one in my 69 GTO Judge!
 
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Yeah I like Nakimichi quite a bit, they make excellant products.
I don't like that they have their own internal power supply, as it creats noise when you are using amplifiers, and causes the head unit itself to heat up un-necassarily, possibly warping CDs and doing damage to internal parts.
And the pre-out voltage is a little on the low side, the Eclipse deck that I am running right now is 8V and the sound quality is second to none.
 
LastDetail said:
Yeah I like Nakimichi quite a bit, they make excellant products.
I don't like that they have their own internal power supply, as it creats noise when you are using amplifiers, and causes the head unit itself to heat up un-necassarily, possibly warping CDs and doing damage to internal parts.
And the pre-out voltage is a little on the low side, the Eclipse deck that I am running right now is 8V and the sound quality is second to none.
Click to expand...

I will have to take a listen to the Eclipse then. I have a local dealer who happens to be a friend of mine so this may work out well.

Thanks for the info.
 
John Styrnol said:
Eclipse makes some very nice players, but their priced high. I do not care for the key CD thing though.
Click to expand...
The Key CD feature can be turned on and off. What I love about the key CD along with the ESN (Eclipse Security Network) is the warranty that comes along with it. If your Eclipse head unit is stolen within a year of purchase all you have to do is supply Eclipse with a copy of a police report and they replace your deck for free. Along with a 3 year unconditional warranty, where if your unit stops working or is working poorly they replace it for no charge.

They are a little on the expensive side I agree, (I paid a little over $600 for mine, yea I have a sickness) but you get what you pay for when it comes to Eclipse. However while they make a fantastic source unit, their line of amplifiers really suck.
 
John Styrnol said:
I think I heard someone say their subs are not to bad? Maybe it's CrossFire.
Click to expand...
I have and always will be a JL Audio fan. I had a box with 2 of the 12W6 subs in them, and then it got friggin stolen. And wouldn't you know it, they had discontinued the W6 series. Jerks. Not that I am bitter or anything. I couldn't afford the W7 yet so on recommendation I got 2 of the Eclipse Aluminum Cone 12's.
Lemme tell you, these subs are beyond extraordinary. They don't sound as perfect as the JLs that got stolen, but they are DAMN close. I can't say enough good things about these subs, at first I thought that I was just going to use them as a temporary filler until I could afford the W7s, but I have been more than pleased with them for over year now. As soon as I get the opportunity I will take some pictures of my set up for you guys.
P.S. I have never been a fan of crossfire, flat signal, no tone, bad frequency response, good for rap I guess, but thats about it, any music that has a natural drum in it will sound terrible on a crossfire.
 
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