Hi Guys
I'm new to this forum and new to the entire world of customized audio - just for reference, my home sound system is a standard Logitech z-5500 which I believe sounds almost decent when the volume isn't turned up very high...
Recently I bought my first car (Chevy Aveo Sedan - ?T250?) and I'm now contemplating putting some decent sound into it. I spend about three hours per day in the car, so loudness is quickly trumped by actual quality at reasonable volume levels...
During my commutes I usually listen to dub mixes, drum&bass and other electronic music, but sometimes also metal and rock, like Nightwish and Within Temptation - so I would assume that the best way to go about this is to find a reasonably flat response in the car throughout the frequency range.
The components I currently have come from a previous car I wrecked (nothing serious), though I did not have much say in their purchase, they are as follows:
1x Pioneer DEH-5450SD Head-Unit
2x Rockford Fosgate T1675 2-Way Full Range Speaker Sets (4x woofers)
1x Rockford Fosgate T400-4 Four channel Class AB Amplifier (2010 Model)
2x Rockford Fosgate P3D2-15 500W RMS 15" Sub-woofers (2007 Model)
I have the majority of the power cables sorted, including zero gauge from battery to a rear distribution block, upgraded zero gauge cable for battery and alternator groundings.
I will be spending around US$ 1000 (Relative, we use Rands here) to further help the sound along and would like some advice regarding which items should deserve the most attention.
The current plan is:
Get something like a Rockford Fosgate T1000-1bdCP class B/D mono block for the subs ($525)
Dynamat the doors, floor and boot-lid ($150)
Add a 1 farad Capacitor to the power distribution ($75) (Rockford RFC1D)
Build a 150-odd liter sealed box for the subs ($80)
Replace the stock battery with something like a Bosch Silver Calcium ($120)
I will be building my own box as i have the woodworking skills and suspect there's nothing tricky to it?
My plan has taken this shape from informal discussions with people in the sound installation business, though I would not be surprised if their suggestions are wrong.
Other suggestions were:
To sell the subwoofers and get a single Rockford Fosgate T1D4-12 because it will handle the quicker bass of metal better, without compromising drum&bass?
This will be cash neutral.. So I can go either way.
To forget the class B/D monoblock and rather get an A/B amp with more or less 500W RMS for the sub(s), for sound quality reasons.
This might be cheaper than the monoblock, but is it worth it?
To forget the capacitor and battery replacement, and instead get a second battery in the boot..
Is there anything else that I have neglected and should rather focus on?
Any help will be appreciated!!
I'm new to this forum and new to the entire world of customized audio - just for reference, my home sound system is a standard Logitech z-5500 which I believe sounds almost decent when the volume isn't turned up very high...
Recently I bought my first car (Chevy Aveo Sedan - ?T250?) and I'm now contemplating putting some decent sound into it. I spend about three hours per day in the car, so loudness is quickly trumped by actual quality at reasonable volume levels...
During my commutes I usually listen to dub mixes, drum&bass and other electronic music, but sometimes also metal and rock, like Nightwish and Within Temptation - so I would assume that the best way to go about this is to find a reasonably flat response in the car throughout the frequency range.
The components I currently have come from a previous car I wrecked (nothing serious), though I did not have much say in their purchase, they are as follows:
1x Pioneer DEH-5450SD Head-Unit
2x Rockford Fosgate T1675 2-Way Full Range Speaker Sets (4x woofers)
1x Rockford Fosgate T400-4 Four channel Class AB Amplifier (2010 Model)
2x Rockford Fosgate P3D2-15 500W RMS 15" Sub-woofers (2007 Model)
I have the majority of the power cables sorted, including zero gauge from battery to a rear distribution block, upgraded zero gauge cable for battery and alternator groundings.
I will be spending around US$ 1000 (Relative, we use Rands here) to further help the sound along and would like some advice regarding which items should deserve the most attention.
The current plan is:
Get something like a Rockford Fosgate T1000-1bdCP class B/D mono block for the subs ($525)
Dynamat the doors, floor and boot-lid ($150)
Add a 1 farad Capacitor to the power distribution ($75) (Rockford RFC1D)
Build a 150-odd liter sealed box for the subs ($80)
Replace the stock battery with something like a Bosch Silver Calcium ($120)
I will be building my own box as i have the woodworking skills and suspect there's nothing tricky to it?
My plan has taken this shape from informal discussions with people in the sound installation business, though I would not be surprised if their suggestions are wrong.
Other suggestions were:
To sell the subwoofers and get a single Rockford Fosgate T1D4-12 because it will handle the quicker bass of metal better, without compromising drum&bass?
This will be cash neutral.. So I can go either way.
To forget the class B/D monoblock and rather get an A/B amp with more or less 500W RMS for the sub(s), for sound quality reasons.
This might be cheaper than the monoblock, but is it worth it?
To forget the capacitor and battery replacement, and instead get a second battery in the boot..
Is there anything else that I have neglected and should rather focus on?
Any help will be appreciated!!
The BD class of amps is brand new stuff. It could have some problems that we are unaware of. I know I cannot stand the way a class D amp sounds compared to an A or AB.
I have an old POWER 650 MOSFET I will sell for $600.00 it is class AB and a legend in car audio. I am the second owner of the beast. I haven't really ever even driven it into clipping . No need to it produces way more low bass than any class D amp I have ever heard.
I have heard plenty of class Ds that make more noise . They just do not play music as well as AB.
I have an old POWER 650 MOSFET I will sell for $600.00 it is class AB and a legend in car audio. I am the second owner of the beast. I haven't really ever even driven it into clipping . No need to it produces way more low bass than any class D amp I have ever heard.
I have heard plenty of class Ds that make more noise . They just do not play music as well as AB.
What you have looks pretty good. Apart from the subs: will they perform well in sealed boxes? For sound quality, sealed is nearly always preferable, because the 2nd order roll-off of a sealed box matches the 2nd order boost of "cabin gain". Look at some 10" to 15" drivers that are more commonly used in home subs; they may be suitable, and better value.
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I believe he is speaking about car acoustics. You will have a big hump in your actual frequency response of the bass frequencies. At the resonance point of the system and car the stereo system will produce about 6 db more sound volume with the same amount of power.
This doesn't really matter unless you are shooting for a flat response curve. By the way every 3 DB is twice the volume.
If you are building your own box pay very close attention to what fosgate says about proper box volume for the sub you are using. Also certain shape boxes can change the sound of a speaker.
The sub box is the biggest mistake made by most car audio enthusiast. Go with a sealed box but make sure you can get the correct amount of airspace inside the box and still fit it into your car.
If you cant go with a size smaller woofers. An 8 inch sub in the right box will blow away a 15 inch sub in a box that is too small for it.
This doesn't really matter unless you are shooting for a flat response curve. By the way every 3 DB is twice the volume.
If you are building your own box pay very close attention to what fosgate says about proper box volume for the sub you are using. Also certain shape boxes can change the sound of a speaker.
The sub box is the biggest mistake made by most car audio enthusiast. Go with a sealed box but make sure you can get the correct amount of airspace inside the box and still fit it into your car.
If you cant go with a size smaller woofers. An 8 inch sub in the right box will blow away a 15 inch sub in a box that is too small for it.
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