[Ender Wiggin]

I'm not sure if this forum even technically covers car stuff, but I figured I'd ask here anyway just in case.

I'm looking into upgrading the sound system in my car. I know that is a really ambiguous statement because I could probably do a million different things to help improve the system. Recently, one of the stock speakers in my 98 Camry LE screwed up, so I got to thinking about just upgrading the system since I had to replace the speaker somehow anyway.

I'm not looking for anything uber expensive or technical. I just want to fix the problem and not have to spend too much.

1. Where should I buy the parts?

I'm probably going to go to a local Soundwaves store and have them do the installation since I don't know what I'm doing, but if I can find a really good price on speakers online I'll buy them online instead of at a Best Buy or Soundwaves.

2. Should I just replace the front two speakers or go for all 4? Will it really make a huge difference? If it helps I was pretty happy with the quality I had before.

3. How can I find the specifications for the sound system in my model car? The people doing the installation will probably need to know, and I guess it would help you guys with recommendations too.

4. Should I throw in a new head unit as well with my purchase? Recommendation?

All in all, I want to try to keep the total expense around $200 because I'll have to pay for labor too and don't want to exceed $300 total. If this isn't feasable even for just two speakers and no head unit, let me know.

Thanks for any help you can offer

 

[RedLeader]

Got a few things to clear up here,

1. Where should I buy the parts?
A. big box stores are not a good idea. They generally have a poor range of choices, and are quite often overpriced. Check forums such as this one (I got my stuff from www.canadiancaraudio.com) or go into audio stores.

2. Should I just replace the front two speakers or go for all 4?
A. Stereo is all you should have for SQ. The only reason I still have my rears in, is so that when I have people riding in the back, I can fade some signal back there so they can hear the music better. 99% of the time they're either off or on a tiny bit for some fill in a couple mid-frequencys my fronts/car has problems with. At that price range, I would suggest a set of components for your fronts. Components have seperate tweeters and woofers, and generally offer much better SQ. For your price range, Infinity has a good sound to them.

3. How can I find the specifications for the sound system in my model car?
A. There are only a couple things in terms of specs. First, what speakers will fit in your doors (since custom work you cannot do, and is way outside your price range for someone else to do it). Go to www.crutchfieldadvisor.com, and go to "What fits my car". This will give you speaker sizes. Second is your deck. This is called DIN size. 99% of aftermarket HU are single-DIN. This is the normal size you think of when you think of car stereos. What is your stock stereo? Will the stock slide out and the aftermarket slide in? Or will you need a size adaptor. If you need an adaptor, the people that install it will know what to do, but be advised they usually charge way too much for this service. A $20 plastic part shouldn't add $100 to the install bill. The last will be the wiring harness. Each car manufacturer has a wiring harness for their stock stereo. This connects the speakers, power, etc. These are relatively easy to find, and cost around $10. Again, this is probably included in the install price. All you have to know is what speakers will fit, you'll pay for the rest without having to worry about it.

4. Should I throw in a new head unit as well with my purchase?
A. Yes, absolutely. Your stock headunit will have very little power to drive your new speakers. Since you are keeping the cost down and aren't going to be using an external amp, look for a HU that has a decent internal amp. They will have power ratings on them, like 50x4. That means 50 watts of output, to each of 4 channels. Be careful though, that is usually referred to as peak wattage. Try and pick the one with the greatest RMS wattage. Decent speakers will not be driven to their full potential by cheaper HU, but they will sound much better than stock. Anything from Alpine is good, and if you look cheaper Panasonic or Clarion both have some good decks. Avoid Sony if you can.

Overall, if you spend $200 just on speakers and dont replace the HU, you will be disappointed because there just isn't the power there. The best bet if someone else is installing, is to spend $120-140 on the deck and $60-80 on the speakers. Feel free to drop me a line about any of the equiptment you're looking at, and I'll help you out as best I can.


EDIT : Apparently components are more expensive than I thought. Something like these
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-HubRFo1...0&I=113KFC1739
paired with this
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-HubRFo1...0&I=130DEHP370
would probably do you quite well.
I can take a look on ebay and give you better recommendations if you would like, but I'm going to sleep now.

 

[Ender Wiggin]

Awesome, thank you so much. That helps a lot. So two speakers and a head unit it is.

One last quick question. Is there any way to drop the head unit's price down to around 100~ish? I'm trying to keep the total price before labor below $200 if possible, and that would make it $180 + tax which would be perfect.

And if I have an mp3 player (Creative Zen Micro) are there head units that would allow me to connect the Micro directly to them, or should I go the FM transmitter route for that? Or is this feature extremely expensive, because if so I could always go for simply mp3 CD or DVD readability on the HU.

 

[kontai69]

If you buy car audio speakers and headunits from Crutchfield, they will include "for free" all the extra parts required to install the headunit. These extra parts include the dash kit to install the headunit as well as the wire harness adapter to plug the headunit into the factory wiring of the car. They even provide detailed step by step instructions if you choose to install yourself. It really isn't all that hard. You pay more for the equipment when compared to say eBay, but these added benefits may be worth the added cost.

 

[RedLeader]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kontai69 If you buy car audio speakers and headunits from Crutchfield, they will include "for free" all the extra parts required to install the headunit. These extra parts include the dash kit to install the headunit as well as the wire harness adapter to plug the headunit into the factory wiring of the car. They even provide detailed step by step instructions if you choose to install yourself. It really isn't all that hard. You pay more for the equipment when compared to say eBay, but these added benefits may be worth the added cost.

Precisely what I was thinking. You should be able to do the HU yourself. Then the install cost for the speakers won't be that much, allowing you to save the $ there. But if you get a pair of 6 3/4", you can look online for a guide to popping off your door panel (very easy to do, takes about 5-15 minutes depending on the car) and you wont have to spend anything on install, meaning you can get even better sq. And I wouldn't suggest spending $100 on a deck if you're actually using the internal amp. If you want to limit it there and not be disappointed, going to have to go used/ebay. Not a bad idea, but I'm not sure if thats what you want to do.

 

[RedLeader]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ender Wiggin And if I have an mp3 player (Creative Zen Micro) are there head units that would allow me to connect the Micro directly to them, or should I go the FM transmitter route for that? Or is this feature extremely expensive, because if so I could always go for simply mp3 CD or DVD readability on the HU.

It's not all that expensive. It's something called aux-in. Just means there is a set of RCA inputs that you can plug any source into (DAP, Carputer, etc). When you're looking, just look for one that has 1 set of aux-ins.

 

[kontai69]

You can also look up your car here to get an idea for what is involved in installing the headunit...

http://www.installdr.com/InstallYourself.html

 

[ilikemonkeys]

Get a good idea of what crime is like in your area.

I cant keep my car from getting broken into.......and I haven't had a radio in it for about a year now.

Theives are really dumb people. Thy'll smash a window even if you DONT have a radio in it.

And, i would suggest that you check with your homeowners/renters insurance company to make sure you're insured well when your car is broken into.

Personally, I wouldn't upgrade so that it was noticable. AND, dont put those stupid stickers on your car. nothing creams steal my radio like a nice Alpine sticker on the back window.

Dont mean to rain on your parade, but I've been a victim more than enough to keep my mouth shut.

B

 

[kontai69]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ilikemonkeys dont put those stupid stickers on your car. nothing creams steal my radio like a nice Alpine sticker on the back window.

That and driving all over town and neighborhood with the subwoofer thumping full blast.

Here are some good auto security tips...
http://forum.sounddomain.com/ubb/ult...c;f=9;t=001941

 

[RedLeader]

where do you live? I had a friend that left his doors open, windows down, stereo on in downtown for over an hour, and when he came back everything was still there, it was happily playing away.

 

[Ender Wiggin]

I live in a little suburb, there's no crime like that of any kind.

And I wouldn't mind trying to install it on my own, because I'm sure it's not too difficult, and I build my own computers and have taken apart lots of electronics before, but my parents would freak out so it's not an option.

So what exactly were you saying about the $100 deck not being worth it to get?

 

[RedLeader]

if you can find one with aux-ins and sufficient power, then go for it. I'm just saying it'll be hard to find.

 

[Illah]

So yeah, here's some tips to not get your system stolen:

1. Don't bump up to your parking spot. In Chicago cats would follow cars that bumped, see where they parked, and come back a half hour later and clear them out.

2. Get a removable faceplate stereo. Having something that looks shiny and nice in there is a big attractor.

3. Keep your car a little messy. This sounds ghetto but a car full of papers and empty soda cans doesn't look appealing to a theif. Just clean it out when you have a reason to impress someone. I usually leave junk mail on the seats and a roll of paper towels in the back - nothing like rotting chicken bones or anything

--Illah

 

[Ender Wiggin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedLeader if you can find one with aux-ins and sufficient power, then go for it. I'm just saying it'll be hard to find.

How much power should I be looking for on it again?

And aux-in isn't essential, it'd just be nice. I'm not willing to pay a boatload extra for it.

 

[RedLeader]

It depends on the front speakers you choose, but anything under at least 20watts RMS just wouldnt get much volume before distorting