Ok well I finally got everything installed. Blaupunkt San Jose, and Kenwood eXcelon KFC-Xr61P. Well, at high volumes with certain bass they distort a LOT and its no fun. I was wondering though, since i know nothing of stereo systems, could I be underpowering the speakers?? or do i just scrap those speakers and get new ones?? Im just upset, it took me like 2 weeks to get them in and now they dotn sound as good as I expected them to sound. And 1 more question...how would it sound if I was to get midbass speakers for the rear?? or should I not bother and just go with a sub?? Thanks

 

U could easily be underpowering you speekers...check to see if u have the tight wattage

~Mike

 

Well, as with cars, your first step is to do some tuning. Before we get into that, are you running the factory speakers? If yes, that's your second step.

Ok, so we're getting out of order here. First thing to adjust in your system is you gain. The gain on your amp dictates how much amplification the input signal gets from your head unit. So, set your deck to 3/4 listening volume, set your bass and treble to 0, and slowly turn up the gain until you hear distortion. Now, slowly turn it back until the distortion goes away. That's where you want your gain to be.

After that, you just turn up bass, treble, change balance and fader or whatever user pre-set variables you want to to achieve the sound you want. And don't expect too much from factory speakers. Compare them to even the cheapest aftermarket speaker (ok, not THE cheapest, but cheaper ones) and you can definetly tell a difference. It's like looking at an Iron Duke and then scoping out an LS6. Big difference.

As for subs vs. mid bass, I say get both. Run co-ax's up front with plenty of juice, and some subs. I won't say where and what kind because that is totally up to you. Free air mount them in the firewall (Seen it! Very cool!) if you want to achieve the proper soundstage. Anything goes in car audio

 

The KFC-Xr61P is a 6 1/2" component system.

Components need an amp to sound good. These speakers are rated at 45W RMS and you're giving them MAYBE 20W RMS with that HU. Get an amp that puts out 50W RMS x 2 @4ohms and use that to run them high passed at about 80-90Hz and it will sound MUCH better. If you want better midbass then you'd be better off making kick panels or door pods to put another mid up front. You want the midbass coming for in front of you to create a good soundstage, not from behind you. IMO get the amp to run the components, run the rears off the HU and fade in the amount of rearfill you want or maybe remove it all and if you want some bass get a sub. Later if you find that your system is lacking midbass then go ahead and start looking for a way to add a second mid up front or upgrade the mid you have now.

 

If you really want mids in the rear, and don't have a sub... forget about the mids and just go with a sub that has been proven to play flawlessly into the higher frequencies. Hate to be a broken record, butt he Adire Shiva was designed for home audio full range duty and it would play anything that a pair of mids in the rear locations would.... if you ask me tho, midbass behind is midbass behind and both will be detrimental to the soundstage. Go with a sub in the rear and set the crossover for 80 Hz and you should be golden.

Get an amp to that Component set. With deck power there is going to be dissapointment. 20 watts from a deck is not enough to produce adequate midbass so EQ'ing it and turning up the volume will not really help that much.There is no coaxials out there that can accuratly reproduce what a subwoofer can. To get the best sound reproduction you need a sub!!!!

 

Wow, I had no idea I would get so many responses. I guess I'm just going to go with a small amp up front and save for the sub. How do I wire the amp up, or rather, where do I put it?? since I would be using it on the front speakers?? I'm sure wiring wouldnt be hard once I had it infront of me. Thanks again.

 

You could make an amp rack for the back wall (probably the best if you'll be adding a second amp and say a single 10 or 12), mount the amp in the cubby hole, at the bottom of the well or under the seat if it's small enough. Figure out what you want for a sub and where you're going to put, then you can decide where to put the amps.

Wiring isn't hard, the amp needs a power and ground wire as well as a remote turn on lead from the HU and then you just run the ouputs of the amp to the inputs on the x-overs for the component system. Figure out what kind of amps you're going to want to use first so you can buy the right gauge power wire the first time.

 

Ok well I was looking at the Rockford Fosgate Punch 200S its cheaper and its 50x2 but with a 50watt rms, am I adding the HU wattage to the amp or is it just whats coming out of the amp??

 

That amp would be fine, it has a fixed HP x-over at 120Hz so you won't get much midbass. If you want more midbass get an amp with a variable x-over or get an external x-over.

Now, the next step. What size sub(s) do you want and how many? How much power do you want to run to it/them?

Once you know how much power you're going to be running then you can decide what gauge power wire you need to use.

 

I didnt see that it wasnt variable. What about a Kicker KX200.2?? and I already pretty much decided on a 12" Adire Audio Shiva not sure which amp but in a millhouse box.

 

the kx200.2 would also be fine. the shiva is rated at 600W RMS an is a dual 8 ohm driver so you'll want to find a mono amp that puts out at least 400W RMS@ 4 ohms. So I suggest you go with a 4 guage wiring kit, you'll need a d-block with 2 8 gauge outputs.

 

Oh..Sorry, I assumed he was running an amp with comps. Never you mind

Make sure you have your first fuse within 18 inches of the battery, and before the firewall (Inside the engine bay). That way if it shorts anywhere between the firewall and the trunk, your car won't burn away.

Second, make sure you have a good, secure amp rack. More so for safety than looks. The last thing you need is an exploding cap in your trunk.

Third, run good cable. Doesn't have to be rediculously expensive, but at least 8 guage, preferrably 4 guage for the power.

Fourth, maybe your best bet is to have a place install it for you, but ask that you can watch so you'll learn a lot of little tricks and things to remember on amp installs.

 

You'll need a 4 gauge power wire to the d-block at least, 8 gauge will not be enough.

And I forgot to mention, to find out the fuse rating for the power wire that goes to the d-block add the fuses on the amp(s) and it's a good idea to get a fused d-block. To find out what fuses you need in the d-block add the fuses on the amp and use that value fuse for whatever side of the d-block the amp will be on.