|
Silver Member Username: Iufan4lifeulLouisville, Kentucky Post Number: 307 Registered: May-05 | Let me just try to help you out a bit, I just have a bit of free time and feel like contributing something. Glasswolf will probably be accredited to some of this stuff. He is a genius. I am new to car audio, and I confused by definitions, what I need to begin etc... - I like to refer to crutchfield.com a lot, it has helped me with everything. Great website for beginners. A basic system consists of these essential elements (Alternator, Battery, Power wire, ground wire, speaker wire, Head Unit, amplifier, subwoofers, box, and speakers) Do I need a bigger alternator? - For most "starter" systems this is generally a no. A new alternator will only be needed when you proceed into much greater amounts of power. What type of wires do I need? - For starter systems, 8 gauge power wire should be sufficient, 4 gauge would be a plus because it would leave you room to expand. As for the speaker wire, anything around 18 gauge should suffice. What are some good CD players? - I personally own pioneer and love it but Eclipse, Clarion, and Alpine also make great products. Remember, if on a tight budget, JVC's aren't really that bad. I am confused about amplifiers wiring and specs, which ones are best for me? - The specs ARE NOT as important as what people might think, some companies rate their specifications different. The most important thing to look for is the RMS, I repeat, RMS, not peak, power at certain ohms. Try to stay away from Pyle, Legacy, Boss, Sony, Dual, Lanzar, etc. They might look good on paper, but they aren't good. This is my first system, and I was thinking about adding a capacitor... - w........h........y? Its your first system, leave it alone. They don't do hardly anything anyways. Wiring options - If, for example, you have 2 Single Voice Coil subwoofers that are 4 ohms apeice. If you hooked both of those up to 1 mono amplifier the ohm load would be 2 ohms. The lower the ohms, the more power an amplifier can produce (but amplifiers are only stable down to a certain ohm so be careful and research it!). Crutchfield can help with the details on this one... What type of box do I need? - This is personal choice, the options are ported, sealed, and bandpass (the most popular 3). The general rules for boxes are as follows. Sealed offer a tighter, more quality bass. Ported offer a little less quality, but louder/deeper bass And Bandpass usually produces the most bass but at the sacrafice of a lot of quality. My personal choice is the sealed box. What subwoofers are right for me? - This is a question you will have to answer. There are many different types and styles. Focused on SPL (Sound Pressure Level, or loudness): Audiobahn (good buy for people on a budget looking for LOUD!) Kicker (Square, Solo X, L7, L5) Focused on SQL (a mixture of SPL and SQ, loudness and quality): Resonant Engineering Eclipse MTX Kicker CVR's Alpine Just to name a FEW of the cheaper variety. If your amplifier is, for example 1000watts RMS X 1 @ 1 ohms, you can get 2 Dual Voice Coil 4 ohms subwoofers and wire them down to a 1 ohms load (explained on crutchfield) Then they will be receiving 500watts RMS apeice. Try not to overpower the subwoofers too much. My trunk is rattling and I DON'T LIKE IT! - Dynamat (most well known, BUT most effective) - Edead (cheaper alternative) - Peel and Seal (even a cheaper alternative) Just to name a few. They help to add mass and block sound waves, thus reducing or eliminating rattling. This is just a beginners start into the car audio world. I left out a ton and I know it, don't worry. If people would try to add little tips here and there (non biased) then this might become a good thread. Well, I tried... |
|
muddywaters Unregistered guest | i was told that most cars use about 75% of the power that the factory alternator puts out in general operation of the car, so going on that, i would think it is vital to get an upgraded alt as to properly power your system |
|
Silver Member Username: VoodoochildeGreencastle, Indiana Post Number: 125 Registered: May-05 | I don't have any tips at the moment but I sure wish this thread was here when I started out, Thanks for posting this stuff. |
|
Silver Member Username: Big_osoPost Number: 252 Registered: Jun-05 | Cheap equipment is not good and good equipment is not cheap. Like the old saying goes you get what you pay for. |
|
Silver Member Username: Iufan4lifeulLouisville, Kentucky Post Number: 308 Registered: May-05 | Perfect line Oso |
|
Gold Member Username: GlasswolfWisteria, Lane USA Post Number: 8990 Registered: Dec-03 | muddy, that varies a LOT.. I've seen about 50% reserve on some older cars without much leectrical need, and I've seen some cars like hondas that are so tightly run with the alternator provided that adding a 200 watt amplifier caused the car to stall out at lights at "reasonable" volumes. There's such a variance in reserve power for alternators that it's better off not to take chances.. although the best thing to do is install your system and see how it goes.. if you have voltage issues, then worry about upgrading things. A lot of current consumption comes down to teh listener and his habits with the volume knob. |
|
Silver Member Username: TboltCollipark, GA Post Number: 354 Registered: Dec-04 | Don't forget about your page glass. http://p079.ezboard.com/fcaraudiotalkfrm27.showMessage?topicID=48.topic |
|
Gold Member Username: SubfanaticKy Post Number: 4674 Registered: Dec-04 | haha ive been working with the admin on making a sticky he is gonig to post at the top of the website. lol, jonathon has seen it lol, ill add some of this to it, cool? |
|
Silver Member Username: Iufan4lifeulLouisville, Kentucky Post Number: 309 Registered: May-05 | add as much as you want sub. |
|
Silver Member Username: Iufan4lifeulLouisville, Kentucky Post Number: 310 Registered: May-05 | I can also write more up if you would like. |
|
Gold Member Username: James1115Wilton, Ct Post Number: 3838 Registered: Dec-04 | a few links to a few good websites would be a great idea aswell like www.bcae1.com www.google.com www.ebay.com so we wouldnt have to answer the same old questions over and over and over and over and over and over and over (lol) again. |
|
Bronze Member Username: Zero43Kyle, TX USA Post Number: 60 Registered: May-05 | Is there going to be an update on that good bad list its over a year old now |
|
Gold Member Username: SubfanaticKy Post Number: 4679 Registered: Dec-04 | yea i already updated that list, and james all the links are already added, my and jonathon were talking and i also made a section of budget systems for spl or sq, there are alot of things in here, but im trying to keep it to just normal stuff, but i push to do research in it alot |
|
Gold Member Username: GlasswolfWisteria, Lane USA Post Number: 9002 Registered: Dec-03 | CAC actually abandoned EZboard ages ago.. all of the stuff there was moved and updated on www.caraudiocentral.net now that includes all of the FAQ section |
|
Silver Member Username: Big_osoPost Number: 259 Registered: Jun-05 | Use the damn search button. Most of your questions or problems can be easiely answered by using the search button. It is not a hard concept to grasp and its very easy to use. |
|
Bronze Member Username: Zero43Kyle, TX USA Post Number: 61 Registered: May-05 | http://www.caraudiocentral.net/forums/showthread.php?t=32 Updated\more specific version of the good bad list |