Cozmo

I completely gutted my stock system and installed new everything. I have Infinity component 6.5" (the reference series) in the front and the Infinity Reference series 6.5" shallow mount 2-ways in the back. They're powered by a JBL GTO75.4 II which is rated at right about 100w rms per channel. The speakers are rated for something like 90w and 60w.

The problem is that my system sounds loud and hurts my ears even with the volume too low to enjoy. I think it might be because the amp is overpowering the speakers. I can turn it up extremely loud without it geting distorted, it just isn't enjoyable. I've tried tweaking the EQ to no avail.

I should also mention that I don't like treble very much, which I why I didn't get components with metal tweeters.

The gain on the amp is all the way down. I can turn the volume up on the head unilt until it is maxed out (which is pretty damn loud) without any problems. If I turn up the gain on the amp at all I can hear noise from the speakers when nothing is playing.

The issue is that the higher frequencies sound really harsh and I can't stand it. I tried hooking the fronts to a different amp (50w x 2) and it did sound a little better. Listening at even a low volume it feels too powerful like I'm in the front row at a concert.. but there's no bass.

Is my amp too big? I'm considering trying 2 things. 1) Getting a smaller amp (50w x 4) OR 2) replacing the speakers.

Replacing the speakers might not work because it seems in general that the more expensive the speakers are (and higher power handling) the more annoying/bright the treble is.

I love the media capabilities of the new setup but it is sad to say that I liked the sound of the crappy paper bose speakers better.

I don't know what to do, and I'm tired of messing with it. I just want it to sound good.

spiderman3098

What kind of deck do you got? Sometimes certain decks pre eq stuff to make there decks sound better than others same with the amps my only suggestion would be to try swapping out the deck with the original.
If you have the original try a better deck and you said you checked out with a diff amp then its just your speakers.
Hopefully you listened to them in many places before you actually bought them. Which i know alot of people dont do they just find the ones that most ppl say are good but remember good is subjective some people prefer diff things from there speakers. Which i think happened to you because i actually have th infinity kappas upfront and just bought sum for the rears and i love the quality of the speakers, but that doesn't mean u necessarly will.

Cozmo

I have the alpine IVA-W200.
I bought the ones that sounded the least horrible in the demo room at the stereo shop. I admit that I wasn't very impressed when I heard them there, I just figured it'd sound better in my car. :|

spiderman3098

srry dude but normally speakers unless really high end tend to sound a lil shitier in the car then on the demo boards thats cause companies know that the board is what will decide if you like it or not so they make there speakers for the demo board not for a car but infinity is a lil higher end but they still take that into consideration.

As for decks dat seems to be one of the better brands for decks so idk but remeber all companies have a couple of there items that are messed up compared to what they should be so u mite just have defective shit somewhere.

Cozmo

So if you don't like how anything sounds on the board wtf do you do?

spiderman3098

you goto the higher end speakers that typically cost around 300 and above. Or have somebody do a custom install for you. and you wont typically find those speakers at best buy or something you have to goto a dedicated car audio store.

Cozmo

The problem I found is that in general the more expensive the speakers got the brighter the treble is. I wish i could get the same sound that my home studio has in my car.

I probably need to go visit some different shops and see if I can find anything.. hrmmm.

Cozmo

I went and bought a new amp today. The overly amplified feeling at low volumes is gone now. I also disconnected the tweeters from the crossovers in my doors. I can't stand the sound of them and it is much better without them..

I might look into getting new speakers as well, but I'll never buy another JBL amp that's for sure. That thing sounded like shit. I had 3 or 4 people from a couple install shops listen to it today and every one of them was like "WTF?"

I also listened to a bunch of high end component setups and didn't really like any of them. I might just keep the component woofers in the front and look for better 2ways for the back.

My ears are fried.

acepec

i can solve your problem, heres what you can do, get a set of component and use a four channel amp biamp it, whichs two channels for tweeter and two for woofers, so you can adjust the tweeters volume anyway you want.

stic2it

iTrader: (1)

I think it is those infinity components, my boy had those in his accord. I didn't like them at all, they were always a little too harsh, just like you are talking about. He went in the pocket a little deeper and got some Mb quartz problem solved IMO...sounds much better. You can play with them to get them a little better but he never got them sounding perfect. I cant talk my stereo is starting to suck and suck

Cozmo

Hmm I've heard of people bi amping components but I never considered doing it for the reasons you mention. Too bad I just spent a bunch of money on a new 4 channel amp hehe. I might still look into different front speakers, even if they aren't components. I'm gonna have those tweeters in my doors forever though

dnd2984

iTrader: (6)

First off u got shitty speaker(I had them in our RSX), dont get mad just telling you how it is....I totally understand not having metal domes to. But companies like JL and MB use a rubber surround to control annoying high end ringing from tweets. Your amp is decent so dont replace that, and bi amping might not be needed.

I have dont a couple of 2nd gen TLs and I say the first thing is sound dampen the door. Also where is your tweeters located, what part of the door are they in.

ALso again u have a awesome unit, BUT the W200 is not made for great SQ unless u get the processor from alpine also, (did that two weeks ago) .

Buy so highend speakers and u will be fine, Let me know your price range and I can help you out.

In my car I have a set of Alpine SPX 177a with a soft dome Tweeter, with a extra set of ALpine SPX ring radiator tweeters. But my front stage sounds better than most highend home audio.

Any questions let me know, also make sure u upgrade the speaker wire going from the doors to the amp...

Cozmo

Yeah that's what I get for picking speakers because I got employee pricing on them. I'll never do that again. Anyway, I do have the audio processor already.

The tweeters are in the door panels in the space next to / under the door handles. They're angled slightly back toward the front seats.

I also put dynamat in the doors when i had them apart. I also rewired everything with 12 gauge..

Basically I think I did everything except pick speakers I'd be happy with.

SpeedyV6

Do Infinity Reference speakers really sound that bad? What are the tweeters made of?

Cozmo

They're silk. If you go any higher up in price they're metal. They aren't horrible I just don't find them smooth enough to listen at reasonably high volumes for very long.

bullyx2

Have to agree with a lot of other people here. The reference series speakers are really an entry level component. I have had a few friends who bought them and none have been very happy with them. I have to agree that I also never cared for them. Would recommend that if you are going to compromise somewhere in your system, it should NEVER be with the speakers as that is the area where you'll hear that compromise the most. Meaning average electronics and great speakers will almost always sound better than great electronic with mediocre speakers.

no.10

i have a friend that, much like yourself, doesnt like the treble/higher frequency pitches. he tends to prefer diamond audio d6 series speakers. i used to have boston acoustics in my civic, and soon to be in my tl, and by comparison the diamonds have the type of sound you are looking for. i would check online for a reasonably priced set (woofersetc.com sells them for a reasonably good prices, approx $200).

p.s.
jbl sucks now. they used to be the shit back in the days (like early 90's), but all their stuff pretty much sucks now. just a personal opinion.

csmeance

my newb imput is to get some polk audio speakers.