[j0rd4n]

First, thanks to Crutchfield for suggesting different components for me, as well as the website for suggesting which kits to get along with it.

Here's the setup I'm most likely going to go with. FYI: My head unit will be a car PC in the glove box that will be connected to the amp (ooooh yeah, that's right ;D) in the trunk.

Front door speakers: Kenwood KFC-C6879ie 6"x8" 2-way
Rear deck speakers: Blaupunkt PCx573 5"x7"/6"x9" 3-way
Amplifier: Profile AP740 (60W x 4)
Wiring Kit: Scoche EFX (8-gauge 300W w/patch cord)
Extra cables: (2) 17-ft Stereo RCA patch cable (it said I needed 2 for a multi-channel amp...wtf?)

Crutchfield also throws in extra speaker harnesses as well as the mastersheet instructions and a generic stereo installation guide for FREE.

Total cost (FREE shipping): $272.94

In the future, I'd like to possibly add a subwoofer, but for now, I think this'll work. When the sub comes, I'll get a dedicated amp for it. Would anyone make any other suggestions? I didn't really think I'd need a cap since I won't have the deep bass punch from any sub just yet.

Also, this car PC will be using a Creative Labs Audigy 2 NX, which has a center channel output, as well as a sub output. Does anyone think using the center channel in the future would be worth it for possible DVD movie playback?

EDIT: 6x8 Kenwood's, my bad thx for the correction

EDIT: Current setup:
Rear deck: Kenwood KFC-C6879ie
Front door: Kenwood KFC-P505ie
Amplifier: Profile AP740
Wiring kit: Scoche EFX 300-Watt Amp Wiring Kit
Extra patch cable: Scoche EFX 17ft
Vibration Dampener: Dynamat 10115

Total cost: $368.94

damn, a bit more than i had hoped, but hopefully well worth it. now it's just a countdown until i order everything

 

[silvapain]

those Kenwood speakers are 6x8" speakers, not 6x9". I know because I have them in both fron t and back.

 

[12Volt_rep]

Why would you mix and match your speakers like that? Why not go with Either both sets Kenwood or both sets Blaujunk?

 

[T-3]

How about a good set of components, like Infinity or CDT? You could put some 5 1/4" or 6 1/2" speakers in with an adapter.

 

[j0rd4n]

Originally posted by 12Volt_rep@Jul 27 2004, 06:48 PM
Why would you mix and match your speakers like that? Why not go with Either both sets Kenwood or both sets Blaujunk?

I chose the Blaupunkt because they were 3-way and had a higher RMS, whereas the Kenwood only seem to have 2-way's near that price. Is there that much of a difference? If not, I don't see why I don't just get another set of Kenwood 2-way's for rear as well.

T-3, as for component, why component? Just in front? I really don't know what the dif is w/component speakers. Maybe you could help me out a little?

 

[godspunk32]

The advantage of components over coaxial speakers is that the speakers are separate, and you can direct the highs from the tweeters better, so you get much improved stereo imaging.

There is also nothing wrong with mixing and matching stereo components. If you can get a better sounding set from another company, why not go for it? It's all about getting the best sound, not what looks better (you can't see most of it anyway).

Looks like a good system though...I would move the Kenwoods to the rear though. They'll be more bassy, since they're two ways, and since the Blaupunkts are three-way, they'll give better highs in the front.

You'll like the Profile amp. I used to have one that I used as a sub amp. It was only like 80 bucks on ebay, and it sounded great...not as good as my Infinity amp, but very good for the price!

JR

 

[Ryne]

on your computer, make sure the HD is designed to handle a lot of shock (physical, not electrical). A lot of hard drives will die on you after riding in a car for a while. If you need any components let me know, my friend owns a computer shop.

 

[silvapain]

Three ways are worthless. They use a super tweeter that only produces frequencies above 20,000Hz. The human ear can't hear those frequencies, so it's useless wattage. That's how they can get better RMS numbers for a 3-way.

The Kenwoods are good speakers, especially for their price. As stated earlier, I have Kenwood 6879ie's all-around.

As for a center channel, many LCD DVD headunits are offered in a 5.1 surround output. But you will have to mount a speaker in the dash to make it work. If you are serious about your sound system, it wouldn't be a bad idea to get the fifth channel.

EDIT: if you don't have the tweeters in the door sails, I would get them as well. They REALLY help sound imaging. Also, if you want another referral as to the sound quality of the kenwoods, as SixFoFalcon. He just recently replaced his front speakers in his SHO with the same model.

 

[Xmann01]

Originally posted by silvapain@Jul 27 2004, 07:50 PM
Three ways are worthless. They use a super tweeter that only produces frequencies above 20,000Hz. The human ear can't hear those frequencies, so it's useless wattage. That's how they can get better RMS numbers for a 3-way.

The Kenwoods are good speakers, especially for their price. As stated earlier, I have Kenwood 6879ie's all-around.

As for a center channel, many LCD DVD headunits are offered in a 5.1 surround output. But you will have to mount a speaker in the dash to make it work. If you are serious about your sound system, it wouldn't be a bad idea to get the fifth channel.

EDIT: if you don't have the tweeters in the door sails, I would get them as well. They REALLY help sound imaging. Also, if you want another referral as to the sound quality of the kenwoods, as SixFoFalcon. He just recently replaced his front speakers in his SHO with the same model.

Higher end car speakers that are 3 ways are perfectly usable. BUT those will have 3 seperate drivers..... bass woofer, midrange and tweeter. But you are right... the 3 way coaxial speakers usually have that crappy supertweeter that does nothing you can hear.

 

[silvapain]

I guess I should be more specific. Look at the frequency response. If it goes up to 40KHz or something, it is worthless. The kenwoods go to 30KHz I believe, witch is high, but not too bad. As I said earlier, anything over 20KHz the human ear can't hear.

 

[Xmann01]

Originally posted by silvapain@Jul 27 2004, 08:06 PM
I guess I should be more specific. Look at the frequency response. If it goes up to 40KHz or something, it is worthless. The kenwoods go to 30KHz I believe, witch is high, but not too bad. As I said earlier, anything over 20KHz the human ear can't hear.

I know... I was just messing with you

 

[silvapain]

I wanted to make sure that Jordan knew.


Oh, and BTW Jordan: you need two sets of RCA cables because RCA cables are only stereo (2 channels). A 4-channel amp needs two RCA cables (front and rear input).

 

[sdavis1465]

I got some kenwood 3-way speakers for the back on my 00 SE and paid under 10 bucks for them before shipping on ebay and I have a pair of Clarion plate speakers in the front door locations that I paid 16 bucks for. Both nearly new at the time of purchase.

 

[j0rd4n]

Ok, so let's move the Kenwood's to the back.

Ryne, it's a laptop HD, so it's designed to withstand a little more beating (although I'm going to try to rig up some sort of elastic suspension)

Silva, no, I don't have the tweeters. So should I get the Kenwood as rears and then a pair of tweeters and component speakers for the front? With a 4-chan amp, how would I wire all 6 units up? Just sort of plug the wires for both front left ones into the same area?

My audio experience consists of reading forums, replacing my own cd player and stuff, and replacing my old deck speakers from my '96GL.

Once I get the parts, there will be a nice long howto w/pics on what I'm doing w/the computer and stuff, because there has to be another nerd out there like me who wants to do something similar.

 

[silvapain]

SHO_Continental did a car computer I think. You could ask him about it.

The front speakers are what really matter. Rear speakers are "fill" - for more volume and to appease the rear passengers. Almost all the sound you will hear in the driver's seat will be from the front speakers.

If you get components for the front, you can mount the tweeters in the door sails. I would actually recommend this. Components come with crossovers - you run the usual speaker line from the HU into the crossovers, and run the wires to the separate mid-woofers and tweeters from the crossover. The crossover will separate the signal and send the proper frequencies to the right speakers. You will only need four sets of speaker outputs from the HU, as normal. I only asked you if you had the stock speakers because if you did, then you wouldn't really need components in front, IMO.

 

[godspunk32]

If you get tweeters that don't come with configurable crossovers, you'll wire them in parallel, the same way Ford wired the 6-speaker systems on the Gen III and IV. There is a single (pos and neg) cable that runs to the woofer cone in the door, then a second set of wires connects to the pos and neg leads off the first speaker, going to the tweeter.

I would suggest buying tweeters with decent crossovers, so that you can isolate the frequencies going to each speaker and you won't harm anything. Even better, get a matched set of components, and put the 6.5" in the door and go to a junkyard to get the sail pods for the tweeters.

JR

 

[j0rd4n]

DAMN component sets are expensive (plus the site says they're not EZ-fit, so how difficult would it be to get it hooked up?)

That raises front speaker price from $79.99 to $149.99 for the Kenwood KFC-P505ie. Now I raise the question: is this actually worth it for the front speakers? Yes, this is where most of my sound will be heard from, as posted in this thread, but I guess I've never really heard a nice system that had front components (my sis got screwed when she paid $1,000 for nothing but cheap factory replacements and a 10" sub, decent head unit and cheap amp. It sounds decent, but it's all mids and low's, no high's.

I opened my new checking account today, so I'll have my check card in 10 days. Once I close my old checking account from my old bank, I should be ordering my system a few days after that. So I think I'll be ordering in umm...14 days approx?

 

[j0rd4n]

speaker bafflers...worth it?

also, would it be worth it to spend $15 on two small sheets of dynomat and throw them directly behind the speakers? not sure if that's really how they're meant to be installed, but maybe that little bit of insulation will keep rattling down a bit

 

[godspunk32]

Components do make a great deal of difference. Separate tweeters are much better than attached tweeters.

They are easy to mount. You can do one of two things. 1- Buy a mounting kit from a local stereo store, which will convert the stock 6x8" holes to 6.5" or 5.25" holes. You install the speakers into the kit, then install the kit into the door panel. 2- Drill new holes for the 6.5" speakers. Line them up the way you want them, and drill the holes small, then use self tapping screws to complete the install. 5.25" speakers will probably be too small for this method. To enclose them, use dynamat or go the cheap route and use some layered electrical tape.

If you do get components, you need to figure out a good way to mount the crossovers. This is difficult to do, since you won't have a whole heck of alot of room to work. I used velcro and velcro'd them to the inside of the door (between metal and glass). You might also be able to mount them next to the speaker, on the outside of the metal door. It all depends on how big the crossovers are.

JR

 

[diesel600]

I think there are some component sets out there that use 6x8 sized woofers, so you would only have to mess with mounting the tweeter. That is the way I would go.