Hey everyone, I was hoping some of you might be able to help me with a few car audio questions. I currently have a Pioneer DEH-P7400MP deck (yes it's very old but it still works great) and I am interested in hooking up some Polk Audio db6501 component system speakers. Now my questions are: Does it really matter what gauge wiring I use from the receiver to the crossovers and from the crossovers to the woofer and tweeter? If so, what would you recommend? I was thinking along the lines of 16 gauge wire if wire really did matter. I tested my woofer/tweeter and connected 24 or 22 gauge wire from the receiver to the crossover to hear what kind of sound I would get and the signal seems to be a little dirty. Keep in mind I was playing a CD (not burned). Is under driving the woofers/tweeters causing the dirty signal or is it the wire or combination of both? Following up on my previous question, does it seem absolutely necessary to purchase an amplifier to drive the woofers/tweeters more and clean up the signals at the same time? If so, what would you suggest? I'm not completely familiar with amplifiers but I have an idea. Anyway, I hope someone here on DB can help me out here. My car's interior is partially in pieces right now, LoL.
16 to 18 gauge is fine try to keep it away from any power wiring as that induces noise into the signal. The Polks want 10-100 watts RMS which is just normal operating power the deck is at best putting out 22 watts RMS so yes an amp is pretty much a necessity. Amp buying is tricky unless you know the full path you plan on going down in the future. So do you plan on adding more speakers later on are you looking to add a sub would you mind having a multi amp setup? there are a lot of questions and then probable the most important one what is your budget? Edit I just want to say yes they will physically work on that deck but the performance would benefit greatly from an amp. Didn't want to sound like they just wouldn't work period. /edit
You would be better off getting a small amp and put it on that component set. It wouldnt take very much and it would sound better for sure. A small amp like a 50wx2 would really open them up and you should get alot more sound out of them. Just my 0.02$
Yeah, they're all hooked up now with 16 gauge wire and they sound pretty clean but I can tell that they aren't being driven enough. Now I just have to search for a decent multi-channel amp and where I'm going to place it in my car.
There are several good amp manufacturers out there. I'm a Kicker guy myself. Rockford Fosgate, MTX, Kenwood,Hi-Fonics, and Alpine all make good amps. There's so many to pick from these days.
Yeah, I think when I did some research back in the day I was looking at Phoenix Gold, RF, or Alpine. I guess I'll have to check out the car audio forums again.
There are several good car audio forums. I was looking through one when I decided to get my CVX 10's. U can find something about any amp or speaker made!
An amp would definitely make a difference in the system, but if you are happy where you are don't go crazy. I did a lot of research online on various forums before I did my current sound system build-up. Some of the ones I really found usefully were ICIX sound and DIYMobileAudio. Good luck. Car audio is fun, but is a money pit... even more than detailing.
Hopefully you're puttin some raamat or dynamat in some key spots like around the speaker housings. Too bad you don't live near me, I'd sell you my old Alpine 4 channel for cheap. Gotta keep the 2 channel RF for the Boston Pro sub I plan on wiring in. I'm too lazy to deal with all the other crap. Plus, I've already lost enough of my hearing to the exhaust and sound system in my previous car.
Not to further threadjack, but I was mighty impressed when I first got it, along with my Boston Pro components, back in 2001...I've got the 10.5LF...not sure what it's current model counterpart would be.
To be honest, I really don't have enough juice right now to justify putting Dynamat in the panels. I was thinking of running a multi-channel for my front components and my rears. I was thinking of just going with filler for rears, like some half decent 2-ways or 3-ways... maybe Pioneer, Kicker, or some cheaper Polks. After I do the amp and the rear filler, I'll think about putting the Dynamat in. If I'm not content with whatever bass I can push out with those speakers, eventually I'll get another amplifier and maybe just a low-profile 8- or 10-inch subwoofer.
Get a 5 channel amp if you only plan on running one sub. Two for your components, two for the deck and a mono channel for the sub.
Screw the filler for the rears. Whoever sits back there is just SOL. That way you can just stick with a 4 channel...1 for the front left , 1 for front right and 2 bridged for the sub, let the crossovers sort out the fronts. Dynamat is expensive...I believe RAAMmat is more affordable. Also, just semi-enclosing your speakers in sound deadening material will help clear it up. I'm not talking about layering the whole floorboard and such. Like in the door panel, just put some behind the speaker and then fab something up to encase the speaker so you don't loose the sound into the door cavity. Now if only I could also do what I say and not just tell others :
I agree with this. There is no need to waste money on the rears. On my car I left the rears running off of the factory Bose head unit/amp and replaced all of the front stage. I simply have the HU faded to the front all the time. This is better for stereo imaging anyway. If I have a rear seat passenger who NEEDS music louder in the back I can always fade it back a bit. I am using a 5 channel amp running the fronts via active crossover and the 5th channel for a sub. I'm pleased with the setup, but it is probably overkill for most. I say MadOzodi is right a 4 channel (or 3 channel, though rare) amp would be a good solution.
Well, I guess I'll go with a 4-channel then and just run the stock rear speakers off of the head unit like it is right now. I'll look into enclosing my components with some RAAMmat as best as I can but it's fairly tight in there as it is. Now I just have to do a bit more research and window shopping for a 4-channel amp, hehe.
I've got my rear speakers on deck power. I think if you put an amp on the rear's they'd be kinda over bearing and really screaming at you. Just my opinion though!
Change the rear speakers even it you plan on using the head unit to power them. The difference is astounding in terms of sound quality. I ran another set of components for my rears in my last Mustang so thats why I amplified them. As for amps theres a ton out there but I've always been partial to Alpine, Kicker and Phoenix Gold. I'm also a big fan of Infinity, Boston Acoustics and Kicker speakers but its all subjective.
