any advice?? need good setup

hello all. i have a '91 CRX and i've spent countless amounts of money and time on the exterior. things include custom body kit, "scissor" door mod, closed in rear side and rear windshield, kameleon paint etc. as you can tell, i'm serious about the look of my car. now it's about time to hook up the system. in this day and age, you might as well not enter a show if you can't pack the bass. does anyone have any general ideas of what to look for? i plan on havin' a system that's real pleasing to the eye (to match the exterior kameleon paint) so any info on custom enclosures would be great. also, the system shouldn't only please the eye. what i mean by that is it should be able to kick the pants off the other guy's. I have a fair amount of knowledge when it comes to car audio. i'm runnin' an old kenwood system in it right now, but i think it's time to go out with the old and into the new. also, i'm lookin' to upgrade the stock powerplant with as much power as i can get. any info on that would be great. any help will be greatly appreciated. thanks.

[Accord Man]

Hi, welcome to HS!

Sounds like you have a pretty amazing ride!

So from what I gather, you want an absolute SPL setup. Correct? Is money an issue for you?

Would you like an extreme setup, like taking out the rear seats..

Do you want to compete in Audio? If so which category you're aiming for?

..Or is it simply to improve the *show'n shine* of your ride??

[Accord Man]

Oh and is the weight of the setup something to consider? I noticed you're planning on doing a swap.. So if you'll be racing, a sound system wont do you much good.

I have little knowledge of audio competitions, but i know there are some out there and i'd like to learn about them. as far as the different categories go, i'm pretty much clueless. I'm lookin' for more of an extreme setup, which would require taking out the rear seats. I also, when i learn about it, would like to enter competitions. It's gotta be very pleasing to the eye so i can still enter shows with my new found glory. I don't plan on racing in an organized manner, but on the street, well that's a diff. manner. I'm not concerned much about racing as much as i am concerned about shows, but it would help if my car had alittle more kick. Money isn't to big of an issue with the system unless i can buy a benz with the money i put into it.

[Accord Man]

Sounds good.

The thing about taking out the back seats is that once you have done it, you are more than likely going to be classified under SS (super street with wall (of subs)).

Once in that category.. You need death loads of power. Though in your hatch the bass gets much louder..

So if you want to enter audio competitions (to win), I suggest you leave the seats, so that you may be classifed in a lower category(Non-SS).

But if you dont really care about competing in audio divisions, then take out the back seats and go with 4 sub setup. You'd controle the streats as well as the show'n shine division (depending on subs and amps).


What'll it be?

i think i'm gonna take out the rears for show. if i do compete, it'll be on a local level, nothing professional. I mainly want it for show, but i don't wanna be a low finishin' guy in comps. ok (writes down 4 subs), so a 4 sub setup should get me bumpin'. any advice on how to power them and on other speakers/tweeters? Also, does it matter where i mount the subs? Will the sound quality differ depending on where i mount them? thanks. u can email me at evobikes@hotmail.com

[Accord Man]

What do you have right now?

Do you want to change all of it, or would you like to keep certain components (HU, any speaker...).


Actually for you car, 3 subs (angular box face) facing the rear would be a more strategic choice. You'll need the space where the seats were for the box.

And you will totally need a new alternator, high output baby!!

i'm lookin' to change all of it. when i mean i have an old kenwood system, i mean a real old system as in late 80's early 90's before they put out craploads of power. Right now i'm runnin' a kenwood HU (one of two head units they had in production back then), 4 6x9's 2 in front, 2 in rear, 2 10" subs, and 2 amps (1 powering the 6x9's and 1 powering the subs). About 750 watts is powerin' the whole system. What kind of ampage should i look for when lookin' for an alternator? is 140 amps good enough to power a 3 sub system?

[Accord Man]

ok so what are you looking for in an HU? I dont mean general things that are somewhat necessary.

We can go with 6x9's in the back, but for the front I'd strongly recomment 6 1/2's. Simply to get a more realistic/pure sound.

For subs you should consider 12's or 15's. Being realistic I'd say 12's. As for power, it depends, you could go around the 500-600w rms each or 1000-1200w rms each.
Thats your call.
Note that 3 x 500w subs in your hatch will pound like the devil is trying to escape.

Depending on subs you'll need a suitable amp.
If you do decide to go with 3 x 1000w subs,(with suitable amp) then the 140amp alternator will more than likely not be enough. Even with an amp that powers 3 x 500w subs, you'll be cutting it close with that alternator.

Then you need an interior amp, which will depend on cabin speakers, which depend on your subwoofer choice.



So first you need to pick out a sub and HU.

first of all, let me start out by letting you know how much of a help you are being. i'm lookin' at the Kenwood KDC-X917 head unit and mtx rfl152 15" subs. (once again, money isn't a big issue). i read up on 'em and from what i see those subs are killer. i still plan on runnin' a 3 sub setup. if they're as good as they look, i think i can take some tough competition. it looks like i'm gonna need some good amps and a high power alternator. sound good? also, what kind of alternator should i be lookin' for?

[Accord Man]

That radio is fine.

The subs are a little too overkill though.
Just to give an idea of the amount of power those subs need, with 3 of them, with appropriate amps, you'd need 5 alternators like you wanted to get for the amps to run properly.

Plus for daily listening, or simply listening to music they suck!!

[2ndGenTeg]

Here's what I would do ( assuming money isn't a huge concern, but still an object):

Pioneer Premier 9200 -or- Kenwood In Dash DVD/CD/TV
-Both pretty showy, and incredible pieces

AudioControl Three.1
-No system is complete without it

A/D/S or Diamond Audio Front Stage
-Pick a budget. They'll have you covered and sound incredible

Zapco Amps
-A little pricey (their D class is a $2K piece), but worth it. Better sound and cleaner power than anybody else on the market

Alumapro Alchemy Subs
-Go listen to them. Send them power and have them installed well, and they will out SQ and out SPL most any sub out there (extreme cases excluded- Stroker 15s, for example). They look cool, too.

Stinger Accessories

Most importantly, and I mean MOST importantly: Find a good installer. Just as a good installer can make bad equipment sound good, even an above average installer can make top of the line cutting edge product sound like garbage.

As for the alternator- be careful. Honda engines spin in the opposite direction from just about every other engine out there (K series excluded). Yeah- I went through 3 alternators before I figured that one out. I had mine custom built by a company in California. If you want, I can get you their contact information.

yea, that makes sense about the mtx's. what do you think is a good sub for the setup i'm lookin' for? i was also lookin' at the kenwood excelon KFC-XW12DB 12" sub still stickin' with the 3 sub configuration. what other subs out there do u think would fit my needs? also, where do i look for alternators?

[2ndGenTeg]

The Kenwood sub is a good one, but nowhere near what you're looking for. A lot of people may tell you the Eclipse aluminum and titanium subs are the best, but they're wrong. I've worked with them plenty, and trust me- they're not all they're cracked up to be. If I were you- here's what I would be looking at:

Alumapro Alchemy
JL Audio W6
Diamond Audio M5 and Mac Daddy (lives up to its name)
Orion HCCA

I'm dropping by to speak with my installer about gutting my system in the next couple of days. I'll get that alternator info for you.

BTW- 2 things.
1. Not ALL CRXs came with a back seat. You might be able to get away with removing it without affecting the class you're competing in. It was a pretty useless back seat anyways.
2. In a CRX, I wouldn't even do rear speakers. The car isn't big enough to handle a rear stage without seriously screwing up your imaging. If you get a nice, clean set of front separates and have them installed well, you won't even miss rear speakers, and neither will the judges. Once again- it's all in the install.

good advice. i'm also lookin' at kicker 15" subs (1000w), or is that alittle to much. ok, what subs should i be lookin' for? what kind of wattage are we talkin' about? thanks for all the help.

[Accord Man]

For subs..

DD 9512 --- Hcca15 --- IDMAX


From left to right, SPL to SQ.


But they're all monsters. Even the more SQ oriented IDMAX.

The DD9512, is an SPL machine that has reasonable SQ.

The HCCA15 is somewhat in the middle.

who makes those subs?

[Accord Man]

DD9512 : Digital Designs
HCCA : Orion
IDMAX : Image Dynamics

k, how bout 3 orion 15" hcca's? what kind of amps should i power them with? and how bout front speakers?

[Accord Man]

I sugges 1500w rms to each sub.

You will absolutely kick ass!

I suggest this box 4.0 cu.ft. 33Hz.. Must be ported!!

So you may not be able to fit 3 subs.


Even with 2, you'll blow your trunk open.



Oh and the 1500w rms, will come in handy at comps when you burp the subs.

For normal listening, it sits comfortable at around 1200w.

so an amp at about 1500w rms powering each sub. 1 amp per sub. any suggestions on amps? i'm lookin' at 3 orion xtr900's. yea, i'm buildin' a custom enclosure, so i think i'd be able to fit 3 and keep 'em stable and cool. how bout alternators? i have a feeling the system is gonna eat it alive. and how bout front speakers?

[Accord Man]

Sorry, I had forgotten XS-1500.1 about this thread.. :o

I love the orion amps, all of em. . But they are very power hungry.

You could go with Autotek XS-1500.1.. Very good quality and not that expensive.

Class-D Mono Block with Dual 2 Awg. Power and Ground Terminals
450 WATTS X 1 CHANNEL @ 4 OHMS
900 WATTS X 1 CHANNEL @ 2 OHMS
1500 WATTS X 1 CHANNEL @ 1 OHM (Perfect match!)




If going with 2 subs, 1 Earthquake PHD2 (aka SHREDDER) would do the job well.



Alternators you could check out Ohio HO alts. Or a rebuilt (for higher output, could be from different car) alt. You may need a setup of more than 1.



What are you looking for in a front speaker?

front speakers, i'm lookin' for somethin' that will give me a realistic "concert hall" feel when i'm listenin' to music at both low and high volumes.

[Accord Man]

HD-642DTM by CDT audio.

http://www.cdtaudio.com/hd42_cdt4.htm


They're 3 way..



They are amazing.