Audio Help.

[ry94stang50]

Ok I've been driving a few months now without a radio. Just the sound of the exhaust. But now I decided to go ahead and finish up what I had started last summer.
Last summer I bought the car radio didn't work. So while I had the interior gutted already I pulled prob $200 worth of wires from over the years. The previous owner or owners decided to do all the audio themselves as most people do. Only prob is they had no clue about anything. I decided that by the amount of duct tape that was used throughout this disaster of a wiring job. I gutted everything they did and went back to factory or as close as I can get it. Except the rear speakers Ihad to run them straight to the head unit. And the fronts ddon't work either bad wiring or the fact that they are the original speakers and don't work anymore.
So I have to buy all new speakers. And I'm curious as to what I should lool for. I don't really know what all this stuff means. Any tips on what I should look for? I have a 1994 mustang gt convertable. Since I have a vert I don't want to have to rely on a subwoofer set up, so I want the best sound quality and a lot of bass aswell all from the door speakers. So what should I do? A decent pair of 3 ways in the front and maybe a pair of 2 ways in the rear focused on the mids and bass? And what if I wanted to add speakers can I do that? Or even have the 4 I have now run off a seperate amp for more power?

 

[ry94stang50]

Also I'm doing this myself. I've done this a ton of times throughout the years. I just never really focused on the different types of speakers and what they do. I'm experienced in wiring but not a pro. I know speakers have come a long way since the last time I've had to buy them back in 2003 lol and never for a vert.

 

[3FordFamily]

1) Don't add an app to factory or old speakers. You'll end up roasting them and they will sound awful when they do work.
2) Get a good head unit, with a subwoofer outlet. You buy a POS unit and they will fry, sound awful, put out very little power, overheat after 20 minutes of use, etc. I am HUGE on pioneer.
3) You won't really get much bass without a subwoofer. Door speakers are notoriously garbage at handling bass, even higher quality speakers IMO. This can get very expensive, fast if you try to buy super high quality speakers with SOME bass. It's probably more sensible to get a subwoofer to handle bass, and tune your other speakers to handle everything else.
4) If you want to add speakers, I have always done this by running 4 off of my head unit's power (that you will need to get a good one of) and buying a separate 4 channel amp (1000 watts or so) to power yet another 4 speakers, and find a good place to mount them. It's a pain to wire all that but at least your highs will kill it.

 

[ry94stang50]

That's all I needed to know lol. I will just get decent 6x8s and add either 2 12's or 2 10"s in the trunk. Will I get anything from the woofers with a convertavle though?

 

[Audiophile]

Getting quality sound in a convertible can be, and often is, a challenge.

My general recommendations for you would be to look at some efficient speakers for your setup. The efficiency rating is given as DB per watt/meter. For example, a spec you would see on a speaker might be 90db 1 watt/meter. Without getting too technical, basically this tells you how well a speaker uses the power that it is given. This has no indication of how they will sound, just how well they use the power that they are given.

I recommend getting a quality 4 channel amp along with a good head unit. The combination of efficient speakers as well as an amp will put you in the right direction to be able to overcome the extra noise you experience in a convertible.

I would definitely eliminate any wiring that was left from the previous install. That's a problem you don't need. If you are experienced with wiring, its not a big deal and then you will know exactly what you're dealing with.

Good luck!

 

[3FordFamily]

Yeah, convertibles can be tough but yes you will hear subwoofers, just not as much as otherwise.

 

[7991LXnSHO]

I go with Crutchfield every time. It is worth every penny to have exactly what I need and to have it fit without hacking up the car.

 

[Audiophile]

Good point above from LXnSHO. I've been ordering from Crutchfield for 20 years. While you are not going to get any super discount prices there, their service and tech assistance is very nice. They have a great website and you can usually get someone on the phone within just a few minutes if necessary. I don't buy everything from them, but anything I do buy from them has always been spot on.

 

[ry94stang50]

Thanks guys right now I have the cheapest headunit I could find just to get some m usic going. So for now I'm going to buy all 4 speakers. So after I get the speaker ill get a good headunit. I want the unit with the big screen for nav comes out. Some of them are nice. I think the headunot I have now is only150 watts for all 4 speakers . So when I do get one should I get one with a higher watts? So would one that os say 400watts is what I should look for?

 

[Audiophile]

Thanks guys right now I have the cheapest headunit I could find just to get some m usic going. So for now I'm going to buy all 4 speakers. So after I get the speaker ill get a good headunit. I want the unit with the big screen for nav comes out. Some of them are nice. I think the headunot I have now is only150 watts for all 4 speakers . So when I do get one should I get one with a higher watts? So would one that os say 400watts is what I should look for?

I don't want this to come off as rude, that's certainly not the way I mean it. However, I've never seen a headunit that can put out 150w, much less 400. Amplifier design really just doesn't allow it in a headunit chassis. If you see one that advertises that, I would stay away from it. Most aftermarket headunits are somewhere around 15 - 40 watts a channel, but that is PEAK power. The most RMS power I can recall seeing as of late is in the neighborhood of 18 - 20w a channel.

It really depends on how much you would like to spend. I certainly wouldn't go for the cheapest, but you don't have to seek out the most expensive either. Many decent ones can be had for around the $150 mark. Probably the best bang for the buck on the market right now is the Pioneer DEH-80PRS. A very high quality unit with all the features including 5V pre-out, 16 band EQ, crossover, time alignment, Bluetooth, etc. It retails for $350.

 

[ry94stang50]

1. It'd not rude lol. I just want decent sound. So from what was said I've come to this. I'm gonna get four 6x8 speakers decent quality price range around 150-200$ for all four. I've been looking and there not that bad my onlyquestion is avout the 2 way and 3 way. Should I go 3 way for all four? Or 3 ways in the front and 2 ways in the rear? After I get the speakers figured out I have to figure something out for a susubwoofer. What is a good subwoofer? I want some punch with decent bass but I don't want to drown out the actual music from the bass lol. I really only want one woofer. That way I can get a decent mono amp to push the subwoofer. So any suggestions on a good setup? Keep in mind I have a vert too. I will get two subwoofers if I have too but I really only want one.
2. Also idk anything about headunits. I thought I read somewhere something about 150 watts. I'm going to get another headunit too. I want one with the moterized screen that pops out. And something with a good eq so I can set up the system better.

 

[Audiophile]

I'm not sure that there will be a ton of difference between 2-ways and 3-ways in that price range. I think it will probably come down to personal preference.

I certainly think you can get away with only one sub. In a convertible, I would go no smaller than a 10", maybe a 12" if you think you can spare the room. I would more than likely look for a sub that works well in a ported enclosure and tune according to what type of music you normally listen to, and specs of the particular sub of course. A ported sub is more efficient than a sealed. I think you are going to need everything you can get out of it in the convertible.

Other than your typical mainstream subs that are out there, I would take a look at Parts Express. They carry not only car audio subs, but also raw drivers that are of very good quality, work really well, and typically are a better value. I use a Dayton 12" HF sub with 500W amp that I built the enclosure for in my home theater. It's an outstanding performer and I've used it for over 8 years without a problem.

If I could offer any advice on sub setups it would be to make sure that you don't skimp on the enclosure or the power. You can take the best speaker in the world and put it in the wrong enclosure or power it incorrectly and end up with not only very poor performance but also more than likely a dead paperweight.

I will be happy to help any way that I can. If you are not familiar with the following sites, they are a great resource for assistance and reassurance:

http://www.bcae1.com/
http://www.the12volt.com/

Hope this helps.

 

[ry94stang50]

Thanks man helps a lot. I've had experience withs subs just not recently. My jeep had a complete aftermarkt system that I pit a lot ofmoney into. With two 12" earthquake dbx12 I swear you could hear me in the next state over. Only priblen was even tuned to low power I still ccouldn't hear the highs and mids. I even had really good door speakers 6of them lol thanks for the advice on the setup I should be looking at tthat's what I needed to know. Mainly what enclosure. Ill be ordering my speakers soon since nobody has the oddball 6x8 speakers only a family owned audio store that's redic exspensive. Atleast $20-30 more than everybody else. I'm gonna look at some JL audio stuff. My buddyhad 2 12's in the trunk of his accord and iI've never heard anything sound so perfect and he was only running 800 watts bridged. The speakers were rated for 1500 watts peak power each.

 

[madspeed]

6x9 are much more common, better sounding, and will fit. You may need a cheap adapter ring though

 

[madspeed]

6x9 are much more common, better sounding, and will fit. You may need a cheap adapter ring though

 

[ry94stang50]

One more question. how is the pioneer DEH-P4200UB headunit. I've got a chance to snag it for $40 I know it retails for around $199. Its only been used for a month then he sold the car and kept the headunit. Now he wants to sell it to me for $40.