audio set-up for beginners [continued]

**sientobente** · August 16th, 2016 02:04 AM

^ Kasya 6.5" sa '97 Accord sir. How much budget are you willing to spend?

**Egan101** · August 16th, 2016 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by sientobente

^ Kasya 6.5" sa '97 Accord sir. How much budget are you willing to spend?

5.25" ata stock size ng front speakers ng 5th gen Accord, same sa 6th gen.

Palagyan mo na lang ng spacers (made from MDF plywood) to fit a 6.5" speakers.

**sientobente** · August 16th, 2016 07:14 PM

I remember my dad had a 5th-gen '96 Accord. It was all the car I ever wanted. He set it up back then with 17" Rota Tuner rims and had Mickey's install a sound system for him costing 50k. In today's money, that might cost around 200k now. It composed of a pair 6.5 inch Boston Acoustic Coaxial speakers and another pair of 6x9 speakers from the same brand powered by a pair of Orion amps. It was pretty kickass. Too bad, I inherited the AE101 not the Accord. lol.

**ealdree** · August 23rd, 2016 11:06 PM

Originally Posted by jhnkvn

As far as I know, all aftermarket head units nowadays comes with mp3/iPod functionality. If we are to use industry-leader Pioneer as reference, even their most affordable head unit (the DEH-X1 series) at Php5,000 has the said functionality. Personally, I'd pick any head unit brand that's fairly well known: Sony, Kenwood, Alpine, Pioneer, etc. for the purchase.

For reputable shops, to be honest, any in Banawe would do. The installation process is quite easy so even those barkers on the street actually knows how to install one. However, I would recommend you stick to a shop for peace of mind

For the shop recommendations, just pick any. They don't really differ that far in price and this is a given seeing how the shops in Banawe are lined up one after the other (making comparisons quite easy so the area is price-sensitive).

If you'll be around "old Banawe", you're looking at the likes of Maspro, Perfect Circle, and Ryan Audio. In "new" Banawe, you're looking at C3, TeamCars, JetCar, etc. Of course, famous budget-friendly Araneta Car Accessories also deserves a mention although they're at Araneta Avenue going to Sta. Mesa.

Yup. Don't buy into these "pairing" stuff that shops sell to you. Anything lower than Php10,000 usually sound the same because they're limited by their budget. You can't just try to throw in diamond tweeters and price them at Php5k now can we?

i'm back mg bro. it seems my kd 80.4 kinetic amp is overpowered by my firland ev 612 seps. i'm planning to change my amp to a more poerful one. any suggestion for a very good powerful amp?

**JohnM** · August 24th, 2016 10:59 AM

I asked some shops for advice re a budget upgrade for my 3. I was initially choosing between separates and a small sub but it looks like the separates upgrade with deadening is the way to go. My usual sources are FM and MP3s via Bluetooth. I don't want to drown out outside noise too much as it helps with situational awareness. I'm only looking for a bit more boom for the buck.

Here are the offers that met my 5-8k budget:
TEAC seps + Kinetic Amp + Acoustipad
Ryan Audio seps + StP
JBL seps + Silent Coat
Infinity Reference seps + Silent Coat

I haven't auditioned these yet so I have no idea how they sound. I prefer a warm sounding setup.

Advice? Tnx!

**markygy** · August 24th, 2016 02:49 PM

Originally Posted by ealdree

i'm back mg bro. it seems my kd 80.4 kinetic amp is overpowered by my firland ev 612 seps. i'm planning to change my amp to a more poerful one. any suggestion for a very good powerful amp?

Before we give you some options on what to do we need to know the ff:. May I know what exactly you are powering with your existing amplifier? Saan ka nahihinaan, sa output nang seps or subs? Who tuned/installed your system?

**Egan101** · August 24th, 2016 03:08 PM

Originally Posted by JohnM

I asked some shops for advice re a budget upgrade for my 3. I was initially choosing between separates and a small sub but it looks like the separates upgrade with deadening is the way to go. My usual sources are FM and MP3s via Bluetooth. I don't want to drown out outside noise too much as it helps with situational awareness. I'm only looking for a bit more boom for the buck.

Here are the offers that met my 5-8k budget:
TEAC seps + Kinetic Amp + Acoustipad
Ryan Audio seps + StP
JBL seps + Silent Coat
Infinity Reference seps + Silent Coat

I haven't auditioned these yet so I have no idea how they sound. I prefer a warm sounding setup.

Advice? Tnx!

I would suggest a step by step approach in audio setup mods. If you have a capable head unit already, maybe you can start with buying a good set of separates. Next step would be getting a capable amplifier and the necessary wiring. Last one would be the subwoofer and its box. Deadening is a good addition but it is entirely dependent on you.

If you aim for warm sounding speakers, I would suggest DLS or Morel. These two brands are quite good. Their products can take a good amount of juice and can be tuned for SQ or loud&clear setups.

**jhnkvn** · August 24th, 2016 07:00 PM

Originally Posted by ealdree

i'm back mg bro. it seems my kd 80.4 kinetic amp is overpowered by my firland ev 612 seps. i'm planning to change my amp to a more poerful one. any suggestion for a very good powerful amp?

Hehehe, technically your amplifier can't be "overpowered" as an amplifier simply "gives" power to a speaker. The speaker dictates how many watts does it need to gobble up.

What amplifier will depend on your budget

If you're satisfied with your Kinetic: I would recommend "going up" the brand product chain. For example, you could go for the more powerful KD150.4 Kinetic amp.
If you'll switch brands: Look for slightly more expensive but proven China-made brands such as a Sound Magus VS160.4
An upgrade option at around Php10,000-20,000: Go for secondhand DC120.4 amplifiers. Those are well-built with double power supplies and should last a long time. Similarly, a 2008-2014 Powerbass amplifier was also popular back then. If you can purchase some China-rebrand Sonus Enigma amplifiers, those are excellent too.

If the difference is small, go for the higher wattage amplifier. Power is king and an amplifier does exactly that -- it amplifies. Not only does a higher wattage amplifier give you additional decibel headroom but it also plays cleaner than its less powerful siblings (tons of factors but to simplify it: more power = less gain = less overall noise levels) not to mention better built to accommodate the additional power.

Still, there are ways on how you can optimize your system. But one of the first things you need to answer is: "was it level matched well?" followed by "who's your installer?". A good installer will usually cover the basics, a not-so-good installer would probably won't. You'd want your problem to be actually a problem and not because of somebody's botched install.

**jhnkvn** · August 24th, 2016 07:56 PM

Originally Posted by JohnM

I asked some shops for advice re a budget upgrade for my 3. I was initially choosing between separates and a small sub but it looks like the separates upgrade with deadening is the way to go. My usual sources are FM and MP3s via Bluetooth. I don't want to drown out outside noise too much as it helps with situational awareness. I'm only looking for a bit more boom for the buck.

Here are the offers that met my 5-8k budget:
TEAC seps + Kinetic Amp + Acoustipad
Ryan Audio seps + StP
JBL seps + Silent Coat
Infinity Reference seps + Silent Coat

I haven't auditioned these yet so I have no idea how they sound. I prefer a warm sounding setup.

Advice? Tnx!

1. What's your head unit?
2. Among them all, I'll choose either the Ryan Audio or JBL setup out of sheer bias (hehe)
3. If you're looking for more boom, you might want to look at subwoofers too. Nothing fills out the bottom end better than a subwoofer.

**JohnM** · August 25th, 2016 10:02 AM

Originally Posted by Egan101

I would suggest a step by step approach in audio setup mods. If you have a capable head unit already, maybe you can start with buying a good set of separates. Next step would be getting a capable amplifier and the necessary wiring. Last one would be the subwoofer and its box. Deadening is a good addition but it is entirely dependent on you.

If you aim for warm sounding speakers, I would suggest DLS or Morel. These two brands are quite good. Their products can take a good amount of juice and can be tuned for SQ or loud&clear setups.

I'll just be using the stock HU of the 3. I may be able to get a DLS or Morel by foregoing deadening for now but will they work well without an additional amp?

Originally Posted by jhnkvn

1. What's your head unit?
2. Among them all, I'll choose either the Ryan Audio or JBL setup out of sheer bias (hehe)
3. If you're looking for more boom, you might want to look at subwoofers too. Nothing fills out the bottom end better than a subwoofer.

1. I'll be using the stock HU of the Mazda 3. Installing a LOC is possible but I'm not ready to go down that road yet.
2. Choosing the Ryan will possibly get me more deadening coverage because it's cheaper.
3. I'll reconsider this option.

Thanks guys!