G'day g'day boys and girls,

I've saved up my pennies after paying off the TF wagon and it's about time I bought myself a new head unit, speakers and (if required) amp to up the output quality of the 6 and 6x9s I'll be replacing the stockies with. I've been trying to do my reaserch but everyone seems to have a different opinion on who does the best speakers or most reliable head unit or best value amp... everyone says something different! :confused:

So, I've decided to start a thread on the matter cos I'm confused and need help deciding which brands are sick, which are sh*t and which are just good value for money. I'm asking who do the best speakers, head units and amps, who do the worst and who represent good value for money.

Just as a point of interest, I'm looking at an alpine cda 9855 head unit (possibly clarion or other but undecided) and speakers by alpine, MB quart or phoenix gold. Amps by either kicker, rockford fosgate or phoenix gold. Any info/reccomendations on these brands or any others are welcomed and appreciated.

Cheers guys! Hope this sparks a bit of a conversation and helps me make up my mind, Should end up with a killer sound anyway :)

Lets see...

I've used, sony headunit, kenwood headunit, and using panasonic headunit, and none has ever failed me.

My mtx amp has never failed me

My pioneer, kenwood, hertz, stock speakers never failed me

I think these days build quality is pretty decent if you don't thrush the crap out of your belongings. Oh and by never failed i don't mean they were any good but they do work for what they were designed for.

I can recommend mtx, they make reliable stuff and HEAVY amps, with heavy being good.

If you want to know the BEST car audio speakers it is pretty irrelevent as these cost thousands. I would say Dynaudio are well up there. Also Morel and Focal. HLCD's are also up there but impractical for most.

In terms of stuff to avoid. IMO
Speakers: Sony, Rockwood, Boss, Avalanche (All the cheap sh!t)

Good bang for buck. Jaycar (Although I would never buy them they are cheap and probably the best value for money)
Hertz: Especially HSK-165's Handle a lot of power.

Of the mainstream brands: MB Quartz are very nice and very musical.

But it comes down to budget and taste. No one can really tell you what sounds good as its subjective. Best bet is to get out there and listen. Speakers are the most important aspect of any audio system.

Dont fall for the hype though, many of the commercial brands, (Pioneer Kenwood Sony etc etc) are not what they are made out to be. They have the biggest reputation as they have the most money for advertising, but in the end who really opens up ur doors to see what brand speakers u have? Let your ears do the buying.

And listen to as much as you can. In cars and on demo boards with music u are familiar with.

Peace

Tim

Tim, did Mb Quartz go bankrupt?

If you want to know the BEST car audio speakers it is pretty irrelevent as these cost thousands. I would say Dynaudio are well up there. Also Morel and Focal. HLCD's are also up there but impractical for most.

In terms of stuff to avoid. IMO
Speakers: Sony, Rockwood, Boss, Avalanche (All the cheap sh!t)

Good bang for buck. Jaycar (Although I would never buy them they are cheap and probably the best value for money)
Hertz: Especially HSK-165's Handle a lot of power.

Of the mainstream brands: MB Quartz are very nice and very musical.

But it comes down to budget and taste. No one can really tell you what sounds good as its subjective. Best bet is to get out there and listen. Speakers are the most important aspect of any audio system.

Dont fall for the hype though, many of the commercial brands, (Pioneer Kenwood Sony etc etc) are not what they are made out to be. They have the biggest reputation as they have the most money for advertising, but in the end who really opens up ur doors to see what brand speakers u have? Let your ears do the buying.

And listen to as much as you can. In cars and on demo boards with music u are familiar with.

Peace

Tim

you're so biased :P

yeah, a lot of mainstream stuff, although is no where near as dodgey as a lot of e-bay brands like rockwood...there are a lot of better brands out there.

I've found in car audio, its still pretty much 'you get what you paid for'. Most expensive amps are worth their money in terms of power output, clarity, reliability and warranty. So yeah, shop around, DO YOUR RESEARCH!! car audio isn't cheap ;)

I like Phoenix Gold :D

The easiest way to make a decision is to goto auto shows and find the hottest group of chics. Then study the car they are close to carefully, because as logic would have it, if you have what they have in that car then your car will be surrounded by hot chics too. It's like that.

Eek you think tim is biased, hahaha, ahem, PG...

Oh installation is just as important as what your buying, so make sure you put some money away for that too, instead of splurging on expensive stuff and not having the money to buy wires for it.

Tim, did Mb Quartz go bankrupt?
yeah i think rockford bought them but I dunno. They still make same ol stuff. Under the same name. So I'd still recommend them.

i dont think you can go past the sound4 system from supercheap ... $129 for a cd player and 4 speakers

now tell me ... how much of a bargain is that ?

lightning audio speakers are expencive but well worth it. they also have there low range and high range as does alpine, pioneer and eclipse but IMO these are the best sounding speaker i have herd i got a pair of 6x9s and 6.5" splits and they are cristal clear..they are rated for i think but dont quote me for 90w RMS each...

Cheap is in the Eye of the Money Holder...
Quality is different that is in the Brand..

OK Crap Brands.. Sound 4, Sound Force, Boss and for me KENWOOD ( I hate kenwood with a Passion)
They all (Bar Kenwood) cost next to no money there fore the cost of Parts and Construction used are cheap)

Main stream Brands all have their " Why the hell did you buy that for' and the " OOOH I want that"
So SONY, Pioneer, JVC and Clarion all make reasonable gear, you get what you pay for, you skimp on the money, you skimp on the Quality..

Great Brands.
Boston, Hertz,Mb Quart, JL Audio, Cadence and Focal all make great gear, they also have their " what the helll did you buy that for" and the " Damn these are expensive but worth it"

The lower Spec of these Brands are equal to the Higher spec of the Main stream..

Installation of any Brand will determine the Sound Quality of the Product.

a $500 speaker will sound crap if it is poorly installed where as a $250 speaker installed properly will sound better..

Your ears are the Best judge in the end..
Follow this Guide line and you cannot got wrong.

1. Sound
2. Budget
3. Looks.

Looks are the least important part of any Car audio gear, what is the point of it looking flash if it sounds terrible..

Not much in the H/U's for mine but I've always gone with kenwood (mainly for conectivity) and not had any probs.
I also am a fan of pioneer, alpine and kenwood speakers for sound quality and price. Have sony seakers atm (cause they were dirt cheap) and even though they were top of the range, I'm not happy with them sound wize. 6x9's struggle with the bass and overall sound quite tinny, never again.
These coments are only bassed on MY experiances in MY cars and am sure there are plenty of other brands out there that are great also.

Alpine, phoenix gold and rockford are three brands readilly available to me, and for a moderate price. My car is far from show quality and i'm not intending on spending show quality money on show quality audio. That said, I still want awesome sound: enough to cruise down the freeway with all the windows open and still be able to only hear the music :P

In my experience, stock systems have a better note than sound4 and cheap (supercheap) brands (this includes sheap sony systems). I can't that mitsubishi have failed to provide my wagon with acceptable sound, it sounds good... untill you open a window or go quiker than about 100ks. It might not have the depth of many aftermarket systems, but it does OK.

I'm searching for the next level, not just for the cd player, or speaker upgrade, but sound that you can appreciate without taking it to the extreme.

That in mind, Alpine, Clarion, Pioneer and upper range sony are contenders for the privelage of riding in my car lol and I know the alpine decks have been praised so for $700 the cda 9855 os lookin prime. As far as speakers and an amp goes, its up in the air, so I have the following Q's:

Alpine speakers any good? (I'd doubt they'd be crap due to their reputable quality but I thought I'd ask)
Are phoenix gold and rockford any good? (I havent heard much about them)
Are splits that much better than component speakers?
Will I need an amp if I have a good head unit?

I'll be playin just about anything, and installing the lot myself (I've had bad experiences with installers)

Cheers to those not studying for exams this saturday night, have a beer for me :cry:

Splits are component speakers, Splits is a local term for a component Speaker system, generally a 2-way Split of a woofer and a Tweeter individually seperate for greater mounting possibilities

Component Speakers is the same term , speaker sets made of seperate components, EG Tweeter, Crossover and Woofer..


Coaxial is when a Speaker has a Tweeter mounted directly over a woofer, two speakers on the same axis.. EG 2-way Coaxial, a Tweeter mounted Directly over a woofer..

Both have advantages and diss advantages.. To Answer you questions...

1. Alpine, Rockford, PG, all make great gear.. Either company will result in a great system, but to my limited knowledge I don't think Phoenix Gold make a Head unit..

2. An Amplifier will always be beneficial to a sound system even if you get a good deck..
and Amp is essential to run a Sub and will give a great sound boost to your chosen speaker...

Are phoenix gold and rockford any good? (I havent heard much about them)
Are splits that much better than component speakers?
Will I need an amp if I have a good head unit?


1. Yes
2. Yes
3. Depends how loud you have your music, if it's low enough i doubt you'll notice the difference.

I cant say as I'm no expert, but are splits really any better? I cant see why other than spreading the point of sound

OK, here is the thing,
Treble is very directional, if you have a co-axial speaker mounted in your door and your passenger puts their leg in front of it.. Bye Bye Treble and the whole sound image is ruined.
With Splits, you mount the tweeter higher up to raise the sound stage so that your passenger's leg doesn't block out the treble..

Splits are used to raise the sound stage from your legs, to give you the feeling that you are surrounded by the music..
Splits also come with Cross Overs to filter out bass signals fromt the Tweeter reducing audible distortion.
Co Axials come with simple capacitors that do a basic job and are not really that effective, except in the high end ones

Just to add to that, splits allows your cone to stay intact without a hole down the middle to hold your tweeters up like coaxials do. More cone area = more mid bass.

Also even if your tweeters can be moved on the co axials (like momo polk co axials) they can't be moved very far, i think 15 degrees is their limit, which is not enough to have it pointing at the opposite side's ears.

I think Gary's car audio gave me some good advice on this: If youre going to spend money on speakers, find out how much to spend and buy it because it just sounds right not because it's a splits pack or co axials. e.g. don't get boss splits thinking they are better than the polk momo co axials.

Just to add to that, splits allows your cone to stay intact without a hole down the middle to hold your tweeters up like coaxials do. More cone area = more mid bass.

Didnt think of that :nuts: love the bass lol

anybody seen the JVC KD-AVX1 head unit... looks sexy!!!!!

As I have heard from AutoBarn

Pioneer = Bassy
Clarion/Alpine = Sound Quality
Sony = Overall sound, nothing stands out

I have Pioneer 6x9 and find that when turned up the bass is awesome compared to the Sony 6x9's I have had. But the Sony deck I also have doesn't do too bad.

mate for the headunit you cant go past JVC for quality and price, they make the best headunits for decent prices that the average consumer can afford and i doubt you will find any difference between them and alpine in quality. In my opinion go JVC for the headunit and dont spend too much so you can splurge out on the speakers and amp.

cammera lightning audio speakers are far from the best sounding speakers..they distort so early in the peice, the power gear such as amps n subs are not too shabby but the speakers are ****, my mate sells them at motoequip and he has to lie to ppl to get a sale

my opinion is to go to audio stores and test out some of the brands that have been mentioned here rockford fosgate, mb quartz, Pheonix gold etc and listen for yourself

a couple of my mates have pioneer systems and overall they are pretty decent, one in a vt commodore is good with little to no distortion till it is cranked right up and the other one is being offered sponsorship by pioneer so you can say its very decent, i personally find pioneer to be decent for its price but the other brands still come in a bit in front i think

*EDIT* Sony is **** stay away from that crap if you want decent sound

I am an avowed Alpine fan for head units, always have. I find them clean sounding, loads of very useful features, but somewhat pricey. I also like the Alpine Amps, the speakers less so, although they are still fairly good, just a bit overpriced. Never had a problem with any Alpine head unit I have ever installed into any of my Family's or friends vehicles - one is a CD unit with tons of use - approaching 10 years of age. Mine are almost 5 years old and never skip a beat ..... unless I hit a really hard bump, then the CD player skips a little.

The JVC's seem to be the best value for money at the moment as 97_verada has said. I had some quite bad experiences with some JVC head units years ago, it might be time for me to have another look at them.

Clarion also make fairly good head units at a reasonable price. Buy at their upper end of the range and I think you will have no complaints. The lower end have had problems with CD ejection a couple of years back.

I would stay away from Kenwood, and any other cheap and nasty brand of head unit. Sony head units I wouldn't install into my worst enemy's car.

I really don't like Pioneer that much, but they are very easy to get your hands on......quality wise they seem okay.
That said I have Pioneer coaxials in the front and Pioneer 6x9's in the rear. I didn't buy them, they were gifts - so I don't look a gift horse in the mouth. They make sound. :confused:


Just as a point of interest, I'm looking at an alpine cda 9855 head unit (possibly clarion or other but undecided) and speakers by alpine, MB quart or phoenix gold. Amps by either kicker, rockford fosgate or phoenix gold. Any info/reccomendations on these brands or any others are welcomed and appreciated.
That head unit is one of the best and very popular. You won't go wrong with it.
MB Quart or PG for the speakers, the alpines are a little overpriced for what you get compared to the others.
Any of those amps will be okay, PG are probably the best of the group, and probably cost a little more. The Rockfords are great for subs (or they used to be, haven't had much to do with them for a few years). Kicker are a little lower end than the other two.
Consider the Alpine amps too, not quite as powerful as some, but very, very clean (usually).

My choice would be (not knowing the budget involved) the CDA-9855, MB Quart splits in the front.
Amp choice would depend on whether you were going for/have a sub or subs, and what amplification (if any) you already have. Run your 6x9's (the Alpine S-Types are good for this... also Pioneers) off the head unit.

In terms of car audio, don't normally ask me, as I can't justify spending big dollars, so take that into account with my comments...

I had an LG MP3 player from JB, cause it was cheap ($148 about 6 months ago), and got so sick of it that I searched high and low for my receipt, and took it back to JB, and they said, sorry, no refund for you, too old. They were then kind enough to say, but we will give you credit for it, and JVC have this unit at $198. I bought it, and have been absolutely happy with it.

For that price, it plays flawlessly MP3s, it will play WMAs too, but I haven't tried yet, does full disc randoms, neatly displays ID tags, etc, all in an easy to use package, with remote control. Only has one set of RCA outs, so probably not up to the quality of the ones the guys on here like.

I have always been a Pioneer head unit man, just because they work, sound good and are easy to use, and I have had a cassette with stacker in my wife's car since 2000 without the slightest hitch, until I killed the rear stock 6x9s, then bought "Zeus" ones from Strathfield for $29 and they work fine!

I think I have just destroyed the rear 6" speakers in the Galant from using the car as my home stereo while I painted the house a couple of weeks ago. I could play the MP3 disc for hours without changing, so that's why I used it.

So, in summary, don't really skimp and buy LG, but for cheapskates like me, buy the JVC base model MP3 unit, it's awesome!