A long time ago...far far away....pre-wife and pre-kid....I was a huge fan of audio...and id spend quite a bit of my coin on it...times have changed.

Anyway, 04 TSX with bone stock stereo. When i bought it in 04, i wasnt sure i was going to keep it. Now that im definitely keeping it for a few more years, and i have some coin laying around..so its time for a moderate upgrade. I remember the technicals of car audio, but what are the brands these days? The last setup i got rid of was over 10yrs ago was Polk dB, PPI amps (before they got bought out), AudioControl four.1, etc.

Basically, i want to do a decent upgrade without getting ridiculous. Im fine with passive Eq on components as well. Can it still work these days for ~1200 (ill be doing the install and sealed box build), or do i need to raise that a bit?

I see Polk is still around...im not super-loyal, but always liked their sound for the cost....do i stick with that or is there better for the money now? I guess i have to go with a JL amp due to the balancing act from the stock HU, so thats more or less set. I imagine i can get away with a single 10" sealed sub, although 12" isnt out of the question.

Id like to keep from doing seperate power and/or alternator upgrades as well, so probalby keep it 6-800w and the Red Top (although i wish it was yellow) should be able to keep up.

Anyway, any thoughts to get me started would really help out.


Thanks

Doug

 

Well I've got 2 10's for sale that are great sq subs https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...1#post11683851.

 

A red top is far from meant for car audio use. If something ever happens to your battery, and you have to take it back for a warranty, you will get turned down if they find out you have an upgraded system. That being said, a yellow top is not much better, imo. Yes, they are deep cycle batts, but their discharge rate is terribly slow in comparison to the other brands out there now. For a daily driver, XS Power is your best bet. They're hands down the best daily driving batts out there right now. There are better competition batts (CS 9000 for one) but those are not at all good for daily use. You should be fine with an XS Power D5100 or D5100R (depending on your terminal location).

That being said, I had some Polk/MOMO MMC6500 components and really liked them. I have a feeling that with a better install, they would have really come alive.

With your $1200 budget, it is possible to get what you're looking for, but JL will not help you keep under that budget. I would assume you're trying to keep the stock hu? You might be able to save some money by going with an aftermarket deck and then you can save money on the amp. I would assume you're just looking for front components and the sub? Are you meaning 600-800w total, or just that much for the sub? That will determine which sub range you will be looking at. That will also determine power for your front components, and the brands that you should be looking at for those as well.

 

Makes sense, i know the Red's arent great for a constantly cycling audio system, but i was hoping to get by unless its necessary.

Anyway, 1200 is negotiable +/-300. I want to spend what is necessary for a quality audio upgrade (without going ridiculous). How do the Rockfords compare to JL? Would i be better off opening up the amp selection with a separate BALUN or does that increase signal noise?

I was thinking a max of 6-800w for the entire system would allow me to not have to upgrade alternator/seperate battery, but definitly sound cleaner and actually hit some of the lower frequencies.

End of the day, I just want some better sound in my DD without half-assing it...im not building a system to measure johnsons.

 

Rockford is not as SQ oriented as JL. That being said, I run a Rockford 4 channel in my Acura bridged on my mids and love it. 225w just to each mid is awesome.

With that low of power, you could probably run 1 4 channel amp, and just bridge the rear channels to your sub. This would probably be the easiest way to do it, and then if you ever wanted more bass or to go active, just buy a new sub amp and processor (or active crossover/deck/etc) and you're ready to go. I'd look into component companies like Morel, Dynaudio, Rainbow, etc. Since you're only really going to need an amp, sub, comps and wire, you have the budget room for nice quality gear. If you want to deadener your doors or trunk (I highly recommend Second Skin Damplifier Pro to do this) that will cut your budget, but will maximize the sound quality that you get out of your gear.

For sub(s), I'd look into companies like DC Sound Labs, Fi/Ascendant Audio, etc, rather than the more mainstream companies like Rockford, JL, Kenwood, etc. You should be able to run a single 10 on 500w and be more than happy.

 

I can predict a thread before I read it, onwheel01 tries to sell his 10's, Mattastick says don't buy an optima yellow buy an XS. I wonder why I even read threads in here anymore

Yellow tops are great bats IMO, I have one of the original ones and I've been beating on it for 6 years, for $20 more you can go from a red to a yellow, don't skimp

 

lolz yea I'm tryin to peddle them but hey they are good subs I just want them out of my way, if the wifey would let me do a system in her car they would go in there since they only need .5 cubes each.. Xs are killer batts. But optima can be good ones also.

 

is there any higher amp alternator out there? (preff a honda/acura)

i run a 12" L7 with a 1200w amp and my alternator started to whine a few days ago.. I already ordered an Optima Yellow but, i want to upgrade the alt as well.

my friend used an odyssey alt in his v6 accord. so im guessing it would have to come from another kseries.. does the rdx put out more amps? or is it even same design.. how about an element

 

you should start your own thread for best results