Budget system with a LOC. Need advice!

[SuB-CoNsCiOuS]

Hey what's up EliteCM?  I've been hovering around for some time and finally decided to make an account.  I'm in the process of piecing together a budget system and have been doing some research for a while now.  The sub I'll be using is an Infinity 1050w (SVC, 60-260 watts RMS).  I created a thread in a car audio forum which I will post here.  I was wondering if you guys can kind of critique what these guys are saying in terms of their suggestions.  I'd rather get input from 7th gen owners rather than randoms because you guys know our cars best.

Please read my first post in this thread:

http://www.canadiancaraudio.com/online/ ... g-box.html

So, I guess the things I'm unsure of is:

1. Is it really worth it to go to the trouble of getting a box made  to spec (incurring the costs and what not) if I'm just using a used sub that I picked up for 30 bucks? (Keeping in mind that I don't have an aftermarket deck, this is a budget system, I'm using a LOC, and other such factors)

2. Given the fact that I will be using a LOC, and that I'm anticipating a lower bass output because of this... should I go ported or sealed?

3. I haven't chosen an amp yet... should I go with a 4 channel to run two channels bridged to the sub and use the other two to power the front speakers in order to kind of balance out the sound?  Or should I just pick up a mono amp?  In the last post in the thread I created, one guy says that doing the 4 channel method is pointless because amping the fronts will sound bad because I'm using a LOC.

My apologies if my description/questions are kind of vague.

Thanks!

[Fenix]

from my experence in the ported or sealed question, it depends on what kind of bass you want. My box has the option to do both. For bass that lingers go ported, for hard hitting bass go sealed. Like I said thou this is only MY experence and im sure others will have their opinions.

[Mike]

I'm not an audio expert but, one thing I have learned through expirence is to always have a box built to spec.

[AV6NHBP6SPD]

what is LOC? low on cash?

[timot_one]

From your post in the other forum:

Well, many people who own 7th Gen accords know that the only real option we have is to mount an aftermarket deck in the lower cubby holder (which I really don't want to do... not to mention I'll lose dual climate and steering wheel controls and what not).

I'm not sure where you got this information from, but it is incorrect.  If you use the lower cubby mount, you will retain your dual climate and can add steering wheel control functionality to an aftermarket deck.  The only way you would lose your dual climate is if you use the Metra Turbo2 upper dash kit, which I would advise against using for 2 reasons.  First, the obvious reason is losing dual climate controls; second, the kit just sucks all around in build quality and functionality.  PAC makes adapters for OEM steering wheel controls with aftermarket head units.

Also, having a second deck underneath the factory deck looks kind of ridiculous IMO. Unless it's a 7" screen (which I don't have the cash for).

This is true.  It does look rather ridiculous.  I am not a fan of the "dead space" you would have with the OEM CD payer.  Having the dual climate controls, you would need to keep your OEM LCD display, or lose the fan speed information if you fabricate something useful in the upper head unit area.

1. Is it really worth it to go to the trouble of getting a box made  to spec (incurring the costs and what not) if I'm just using a used sub that I picked up for 30 bucks? (Keeping in mind that I don't have an aftermarket deck, this is a budget system, I'm using a LOC, and other such factors)

2. Given the fact that I will be using a LOC, and that I'm anticipating a lower bass output because of this... should I go ported or sealed?

3. I haven't chosen an amp yet... should I go with a 4 channel to run two channels bridged to the sub and use the other two to power the front speakers in order to kind of balance out the sound?  Or should I just pick up a mono amp?  In the last post in the thread I created, one guy says that doing the 4 channel method is pointless because amping the fronts will sound bad because I'm using a LOC.

My apologies if my description/questions are kind of vague.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're just trying to get cheap bass.  It seems like you're not really going for sound quality.  Since you want cheap bass, just get a pre-fab box, use a LOC or find a mono amp with speaker level inputs (like the Alpine V-Power Amplifiers) for as little money as possible.

Since you're asking for opinions, I'll add this.  There's a right and wrong way of doing things.  Do not expect to get good audio quality from cheap products and installation methods where you cut corners.  If you wanted to build a quality audio system, I would recommend abandoning all ideas that you have and starting fresh.  In addition to that, I would take whatever those guys in that forum have to say with a grain of salt.  I read all their comments and some of it was okay, but there's some bad information too.

If you need help with designing a quality audio system, I can help.

from my experence in the ported or sealed question, it depends on what kind of bass you want. My box has the option to do both. For bass that lingers go ported, for hard hitting bass go sealed. Like I said thou this is only MY experence and im sure others will have their opinions.

Depending on the design of the enclosure, you can get tight or sloppy bass from either a sealed or ported enclosure.  Ported enclosures have a natural bump in the frequency response at whatever frequency you have it tuned to.  I prefer sealed enclosures because they give you a flatter response curve.

[SuB-CoNsCiOuS]

Ahh ok, thanks for clearing up the deck issues I was afraid of Tim.  You're right though, I'm looking for cheap bass as of now.  If I had cash to throw around I'd do it up proper.  Unfortunately my situation is pretty tight.  So, that's why I'm making a budget system.  

Just out of curiosity, what does a "flat response" mean?  Also, do you agree with the one guy who said getting a 4-channel amp to power the 2 front speakers is a bad idea for this particular setup?  At first I was just looking for a mono amp, but I got the idea of amping my door speakers from reading one of your previous posts (you were mentioning something about front speakers being overlooked often and if you had to choose between amping the fronts or the rears, go with the fronts).  Maybe I misinterpreted...

Any opinions on this Planet Audio EC-10?

Thanks again for the input guys!

[ibcnunv]

what is LOC? low on cash?

LOL; Line Out-put Connector

[Fenix]

Depending on the design of the enclosure, you can get tight or sloppy bass from either a sealed or ported enclosure.  Ported enclosures have a natural bump in the frequency response at whatever frequency you have it tuned to.  I prefer sealed enclosures because they give you a flatter response curve.

thats why i said my experence. My buddy has the almost identical set up as mine (12" Alpine Type R sub, infinity refrence speakers, Kenwood KVT-617DVD+nav) the only thing that differs is the amp. And his system sounds much different than mine (mines louder )

[CrackerTeg]

what is LOC? low on cash?

LOL; Line Out-put Connector

Actually, its a Line Output Converter

[rich]

damn. tim beat me to this. i have nothing else to say except "x2!"

[timot_one]

Just out of curiosity, what does a "flat response" mean?  Also, do you agree with the one guy who said getting a 4-channel amp to power the 2 front speakers is a bad idea for this particular setup?  At first I was just looking for a mono amp, but I got the idea of amping my door speakers from reading one of your previous posts (you were mentioning something about front speakers being overlooked often and if you had to choose between amping the fronts or the rears, go with the fronts).  Maybe I misinterpreted...

Any opinions on this Planet Audio EC-10?

Thanks again for the input guys!

A flat frequency response means that from 20 Hz to 20 kHz (the range of human hearing), there are no dips or peaks in amplitude (volume).  

Unfortunately, you misinterpreted the point I have made in the past.  As you have already said, you are trying to get cheap bass.  When I made that recommendation, it was for someone that wanted to put together a full high end audio system.  If you want cheap bass, get a mono amp with speaker level inputs or a line out converter to connect the amp.

I've never used Planet Audio stuff, but at first glance, it looks kind of cheap.  I know that AudioControl  has been making products for a long time.  I used an AudioControl LC6i on an install once, and was pleased with what it was capable of.  Realistically though, you're not going to get anything amazing when you cut corners and go cheap.  That doesn't mean that you must spend top dollar for good audio quality.  My point is that you shouldn't expect anything great.  You should expect "cheap bass" and nothing else.

I put a lot of time, effort, and money into my audio system.  Even without a sub, I have gotten plenty of compliments on the sound quality of my system.  That's because I researched the equipment, got educated on what it takes to put together a quality audio system, and made sure to not cut corners on the installation and equipment used.

[SuB-CoNsCiOuS]

Ah ok... just out of curiosity, is there any particular reason why you don't have a sub in your setup?  I noticed you have an alpine double din -in dash unit.  Does this unit restrict what you can do with your setup?  The reason why I'm asking is because I'm now wondering if I should look into picking up a used alpine IVA-W200.  I'm also looking at a pioneer AVH-P4000DVD.  

Just for argument's sake, let's say that what I was planning on doing is using the internal amp on one of these two units to power the door speakers (which I would probably replace with aftermarket speakers later), and I was adding a sub and amp as well.  Are these two units capable of doing this?  Which would be the better choice?

The Pioneer unit says it has 2 (F+R or S/W) pre-outs.  Are there any restrictions to this with what I am looking to potentially do?  Also, the Alpine unit has front, rear, and subwoofer preamp outputs (2-volt), is this the same as the pioneer unit?  The wording is different which is why I'm confused.

[timot_one]

If you read my profile, it hasn't been updated in a while.  I wasn't running a sub at that point in time because I was getting a few things lined up.  Since I haven't taken the time to update my profile, I'll just let you know that I'm running a sub in my set up right now.  There's no reason why I wouldn't recommend getting some sort of subwoofer for a high end audio system.

I don't really care much for Pioneer products.  I would assume that if they say it has 2 sets of pre-amp outputs, it is not the same as the Alpine IVA-W200.  You would limit yourself in the future when you upgraded your amps.  I'm not sure why Pioneer would do something stupid like this, but I'm guessing it's a way of cutting costs (a.k.a. - half assed and cheap).  Again, this helps my argument of why I don't like Pioneer products.  This in my own personal opinion, so don't take it to heart.  If you want my opinion, get an Alpine product that has front, rear, and subwoofer outputs.  You can power the speakers with a head unit that has an internal amplifier.  If you want to save money and do it in stages, that's cool.