Whats need for a good sound system? Ive researched but still cant work it out, I want to do my boot up with two subs, two amps, new speakers, LEDs but ive also heard of stuff like crossovers and splits etc and the sound system i have atm makes a high pitched noise in tune with the engine which really bugs me lol

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Crossovers split frequency's to the desired output. i.e. higher pitch freq's to the tweeters and lower freq's (like bass) to the woofers.
"splits" have a seperate crossover (generally) whereas co'ax's usually have an inline capacitor.

you really need to know what your talking about first before people say buy this and that.

somehow, i dont think LEDs are going to help SPL.

In its basics, you need a Headunit, speakers, an amplifier and wiring.

In a good sound system, you want a Headunit with 3 pre-outs (higher the voltage the better, I'd aim for 4v pre-outs and up), some good splits up front (usually 2 speakers per side, tweeter and woofer, with a crossover to split frequencies), something decent in the rear (how decent depends on if its just for a bit of rear fill etc), a decent sub and a couple of amps to power the lot (usually a 4ch amp and a mono bloc).

What you go for depends on your budget and most importantly what you like the sound of, it varies from person to person, so no one can really recommend you certain components, but I do suggest you buy quality components first time, and in stages if necessary rather than building an entire system out of cheaper components just to do it all at once with a low budget. Speaking from experience, its money well and truly wasted, so do it once, do it right.

Edit: As far as sound stage goes, 3rd gens are pretty well setup off the bat. Unless your really getting into high end SQ, the factory woofer and tweeter pod locations in the doors will be easily sufficient for your needs. I've tried a few different places and I can't find anywhere that works better.

High pitched noise you mention is alternator wine, usually caused by either a bad earth or poorly run rca's. I'm presuming if your stereo is stock at the moment, it's got something to do with the factory earth.

may i add to the mix here that you factor into your budget sound deadening material, buy something good like stinger roadkill or dynamat extreme, because you can buy the best components in the world but they'll sound like crap if all you can hear is metal rattling... imo the first place to put this is bootlid and the metal where the "ski hole" is between the boot and the cabin...

may i add to the mix here that you factor into your budget sound deadening material, buy something good like stinger roadkill or dynamat extreme, because you can buy the best components in the world but they'll sound like crap if all you can hear is metal rattling... imo the first place to put this is bootlid and the metal where the "ski hole" is between the boot and the cabin...
Agreed. I forgot to mention this. Although I don't know about your choice of first placement. I'd be focusing on the front doors, parcel shelf and boot lid before any other part of the car, the places where the speaker are fitted are the most important, usually followed by the boot lid due to the amount of vibrations caused from the pressure of a subwoofer running in the boot.

I would change it from 2 subs to one decent sub. In my opinion its money better spent. You get a better quality bass, still goes plenty loud enough and you get to keep a bit more of your boot.

I would just stick some cheap 6x9s in the rear. I very rarely have my rears on. Only have then on when I have rear passengers. Spend the extra on better splits up the front.

Agreed. I forgot to mention this. Although I don't know about your choice of first placement. I'd be focusing on the front doors, parcel shelf and boot lid before any other part of the car, the places where the speaker are fitted are the most important, usually followed by the boot lid due to the amount of vibrations caused from the pressure of a subwoofer running in the boot.

i only mentioned those areas because i had a lot of rattling coming from the back of the car, i put it on those areas first and most of the rattling is gone... i do have 2 12's in there though... of course putting it behind the speakers will give you better sq... i just need more money to buy another bulk pack now:cry:

well my boot will mainly be for a show off purpose although the good quality bass would be good :P im still a bit confused as to the difference between splits and x overs and do i need to have splits/x overs wired with every piece of equipment?

well my boot will mainly be for a show off purpose although the good quality bass would be good :P im still a bit confused as to the difference between splits and x overs and do i need to have splits/x overs wired with every piece of equipment?

splits are essentially the front stage - they contain the speakers, crossovers and tweeters. you wire from the amp to the crossover, then from the crossover it "splits" into two frequencies, highs for the tweeters and mids/lows for the speakers/woofers. :)

Did you say show off? Have you seen my showcase thread? :D

splits are essentially the front stage - they contain the speakers, crossovers and tweeters. you wire from the amp to the crossover, then from the crossover it "splits" into two frequencies, highs for the tweeters and mids/lows for the speakers/woofers. :)
Splits aren't a front stage, they are just used as a front stage usually. Splits are just the term for having a separate tweeter driver and midrange/midbass driver. The crossover is what connects the two, it separates the frequencies sending the higher frequencies to the tweeter and lower to mid's as said.

Splits aren't a front stage, they are just used as a front stage usually. Splits are just the term for having a separate tweeter driver and midrange/midbass driver. The crossover is what connects the two, it separates the frequencies sending the higher frequencies to the tweeter and lower to mid's as said.

when have you ever used splits in the rear of your car?

just kidding :P cheers lugo

when have you ever used splits in the rear of your car?

just kidding :P cheers lugo

We put splits in the front AND back of my friends 300zx (along with a 1000wrms pioneer sub) - Sounds great :)

We put splits in the front AND back of my friends 300zx (along with a 1000wrms pioneer sub) - Sounds great :)

yeah, sq would be really good, but in a magna you'd be better off just chucking some 6x9's in the back, unless you were building a car for sq... but generally splits would be the option you would choose for your front stage because imo they usually sound better than coax's in a similar price range...

I agree fully, splits are so much better. But that said, a really good coaxial would demolish cheap splits.

but then a really good set of splits would still be better than a really good set of coax's...

but then a really good set of splits would still be better than a really good set of coax's...

And a LOT more expensive! So really it depends on how many banks you can rob to what is good for you :)

Hehehe, you don't need to rob a bank to get really good splits, my Italian speaker special is proof of this :D

thanks heaps guys, another nooby question lol, if I'm going to have two amps two subs speakers splits etc all in the boot, should i get another battery or run it all off the one in the front?

thanks heaps guys, another nooby question lol, if I'm going to have two amps two subs speakers splits etc all in the boot, should i get another battery or run it all off the one in the front?

will be fine with one battery :) i run two amps off the single battery, just a generic RAA one... if you're using a lot of power, maybe a higher quality battery would do

depends how much output... i use a capacitor, but when i have it cranked up the lights still dim a bit... ask one of the audiophiles and i'm pretty sure they will reccommend a battery in the boot to prevent any future problems, but like i said, it depends on how much power your planning on using...

If you find a head unit that takes a USB input and can process m4a format files you can direct copy your entire iTunes library folder onto a tiny flash drive and have it available in the car and change tracks/folders with the head unit

One high quality battery and a good run of 0 guage cable should do the trick.

One high quality battery and a good run of 0 guage cable should do the trick.

another dumb question but what are 0 gauge cables?

Its the size of the cable. 0 guage is the largest standard cable size.

and is it just the bigger the better?

Yeah I guess you could say that. Allows you to run more power in your system without any problems.

ahhk, and if im going to build a set up for my soundsystem like sub and amp enclosures, is it better to buy the equipment, build the set up then get someone to wire it and install it or get someone to wire and install it all then build the enclosures?

Installation is the last step in a system.

0AWG cable apart from looking damn nice has two features:

Lessens voltage drop to amps if you have the battery in the engine bay.
Allows to run more amps (amps as in current draw amps).

0AWG and a good battery is whats required (Optima Yellow or Blue Top).

Stay away from Capacitors, junk.

Cuffman - LED's dont improve SQ no, however I have them in my car - still fail to see your point.

hey guys, just on this topic, just wondering.. Is it viable to put 4" woofers in the doors just below the plastic part of door trim near the top corner of the door on the cloth.. (hope thats descriptive enough..). I was wondering if anyone has done this and if i have to have spacers or something just incase its not deep enough for speaker.. and then comes the question.. where to wire up from? I have splits in the front, can i jump off the the woofers from the crossovers?

That makes little to no sense mate.

You mean infront of the door handle? No, not enough depth, you have maybe 1cm before the metal bar that holds the handle.

Why?

Your staging/balance/everything will be crap at best.

4" mids will rattle the trim like nothing else

4" speakers need a good enclosure - that is not one of them.

As for wiring, you would run new wiring. You'd need to run an amp, for all speakers for best performance. Otherwise you can run off the one output, and use a crossover network (custom build would work best) to split the signal.

That makes little to no sense mate.

You mean infront of the door handle? No, not enough depth, you have maybe 1cm before the metal bar that holds the handle.

Why?

Your staging/balance/everything will be crap at best.

4" mids will rattle the trim like nothing else

4" speakers need a good enclosure - that is not one of them.

As for wiring, you would run new wiring. You'd need to run an amp, for all speakers for best performance. Otherwise you can run off the one output, and use a crossover network (custom build would work best) to split the signal.

that sounds way too complicated.. I just want more sound in the front.. I know the magna solara's have speakers in the rear doors (i think), so how about i put 4 "'s there and set them up off the rear through an amp? Problem i have now is there's not much bass at the front, its all in the rear..

Do you run a sub?

Do you run a sub?

yep i have a small 8" sub. i got 2 amps, 1 runs fronts and the 4 channel runs sub on 2 channels and rears on other 2 channels. Would luv a 6channel amps.. would b so much easier.. i also have a 1F capacitor. 2 6"s with splits in front, 2 6x9's in parcel shelf..

8" sub will more than likely be the downfall.

The Magna is a large car, lots of space to try and fill. 1 8" sub aint going to do very much.

I run a 12" @ 500wrms, and its only just enough.

Adding more and more speakers upfront will just make it louder, not better.

8" sub will more than likely be the downfall.

The Magna is a large car, lots of space to try and fill. 1 8" sub aint going to do very much.

I run a 12" @ 500wrms, and its only just enough.

Adding more and more speakers upfront will just make it louder, not better.

the 8" still gives the punch in your back with the music turned up depending on the song so i'm happy with the bass.. and i don't get much rattle either.

that sounds way too complicated.. I just want more sound in the front.. I know the magna solara's have speakers in the rear doors (i think), so how about i put 4 "'s there and set them up off the rear through an amp? Problem i have now is there's not much bass at the front, its all in the rear..
I don't think any Magnas had speakers in the rear doors.

If you're lacking bass in the front, adding 4" speakers is not going to achieve anything. They don't play as loud or as low as 6.5" splits, so why would you want them?

If you want more volume and more mid-bass, I would suggest upgrading your current front speakers (depending on what you have). As an example, my current Cadence 6.5" splits tend to sound quite dry' compared to my old Pioneers. Set them up properly too - MDF speaker mounts, fill up the service holes, and Dynamat the hell out of the doors. There's a guide on Mobile Electronics Australia on what you should do.

cool.. just querying.. I had thought the solara's had 6 speaker system and the rear doors had the 3rd and 4th set.. 4" cos i got a spare set, plus they r small. Gotta admit i got cheapish front speakers..

The '6 speaker' option normally refers to the tweeters, which is a bit deceptive - you have your tweeters in the sail pods, mid-range in the doors, and then the 6x9s on the parcel shelf.

New front speakers will be worthwhile investment. Adding more speakers to a system doesn't usually add to its performance...

If it was me....
*Sell the 6x9's ( they have the surface area of an 8inch sub... why do you need them? )
*Run the sub as is
*Get a component set that can be run active - Morel, Boston etc
*Run the mids off the channels you used to power the 6x9's
*Run the tweeters off the other amp.
*MDF baffles for the mids
*A tonne of sound deadening for the front doors.

You would be surprised how good a simple 5 speaker system sounds....