Hi all,

You've all been quite helpful before, so I figured I would once again call upon your expertise.

I've decided to upgrade a little more than previously thought. The car just doesn't have the sound I'm looking for. Help me choose what will probably work best.

I don't want to go all out yet with sub enclosures, multiple amps, etc etc. Keyword: yet. For now, what will give me a broader sound (music taste ranges from death metal to low key hip-hop, to oldies).

Should I go with a true 8" sub in the doors with some upgraded 3.5s?

Or should I choose one of these component speaker sets?

http://www.millionbuy.com/piotsc720prs.html

http://www.millionbuy.com/apnspr17ls.html

And just a little more info about my car. It's an '02 Z06, I recently upgraded the HU to a Pioneer Premier, and the rear speakers to 5.25 Boston Acoustics. I also have a left over 400 watt amp that I could use to drive whatever speaker set-up I get.

I'd really appreciate any insight, this wading pool of audio for Vettes is quickly turning into an ocean

 

The 720prs set is really hard to beat for the money, and that comes from the overly discerning ear of the diy set, who would rather spend 2x the money and build their own set ups vs putting a pre-packaged component system in their cars

I am going to put the 720 set in my DD truck. My advise would be to give them AT LEAST 100w per side as they are a touch on the inefficient side when comparing them to some other brands, but the midbass/midrange performance of this set makes up for the inefficiency.

For the $250 + tax/shipping (if needed) you would be hard pressed to put something together that would perform better, especially if you are running them through the factory passive crossovers.

G'luck on your choices, take the money you save on this system and pick up some raamat or similar for your doors.

Fej

 

compoennts will sound better for sure

 

Most audiable sound comes from the frequencies that Component speakers address. You can always add a subwoofer later if you need more bass.

 

Sweet, thanks for the responses guys. Oh yeah, I plan to dampen the bejesus out of my doors and make myself a partition to further reduce some of the interior noise. Should make a world of difference.

 

If you're going to dampen, go the whole way. Especially the wall right behind the seats.

 

http://www.edesignaudio.com/edv2/pro...products_id=49
go with these and hook em up to your amp.

And deaden your doors with this stuff here. Call and ask for the corvette forum discount on this product
http://www.edesignaudio.com/edv2/pro...products_id=52

Deadening the doors will help make the best of your components and improve the sound a lot

 

Cool, thanks for the links! Approximately how much SQ footage should I need to really cover all the areas I need? A ball-park figure will be fine

 

all depends on where you want to put it? Just the doors I would say about 15 sq ft per door

 

Cool, I'll load up with about 50 sq ft, just to have extra on hand.

 

I was in almost the exact same position as you (even down to the 400w amp powering every thing) FWIW, I opted to go for 6 3/4 CDT HD62 M6 component set w/ no separate sub setup. It's being installed as I type this, and will be ready Friday. I'll let you know how it turns out, especially the bass output.

 

let us all know

 

Yes please! Good luck with the install.

 

Are the Premier speakers or the set from Elemental Designs designed to replace the bose door speakers using the factory HU?? If so, is there a big difference?

 

Check out the faq thorn, but I will give you a brief answer.

The bose, or we call it blose, system is not upgrade friendly. The HU powers the front 3.5" speakers (twiddlers) and the rear speakers. These are 4 ohm. The factory mids in the front doors are powered by tiny amps that sit behind the 3.5" speaker in the door, and are 2 ohms. The blose system has a ton of processing in an attempt to make up for the complete lack of power, and the lack of quality speakers used within the system. IMO it is designed to NOT be upgraded, only drop in replacements for ridiculous cost, or ripped out entirely.

If you want to change something, you have 3 main options:

1) Change your rear 5.25" speakers with drop in coaxials of better quality AND new 3.5" speakers for the front doors.

Pros: Upgrade in the upper frequency range, small improvement in sound quality
Cons: Still using the crap blose midbass speakers, amps, processing (some people have recently done this and were disappointed with the improvement and wanted more)

2) Buy an adaptor to allow you to maintain the factory headunit and you can then purchase all new speakers AND an amplifier to power them

Pros: You get rid of all of the crap blose speakers, and you give them proper power with most of the processing gone
Cons: You still have the crap blose HU, which is now your weak link

3) Buy a new HU, new front components, rear coaxials or components (if you like rear speakers) a 4 channel amp to run them on, or go front components and a sub in an enclosure in the center compartment for your 4 channels of amplification. And there are FAR more levels beyond this setup.

Pros: Eliminate all of the crap blose Far superior sound quality, no holes in the response, solid power to allow some control and accuracy in the reproduction.
Cons: Well, none really unless you count the expense.

Come back with what you are looking to get from your stereo, and how much you want to spend and we can help.


Hope this helps

Fej

 

Thanks so much for the info...I'm going to start deciding what to do. I think I'd like to lose all the factory stuff. My 300M had a factory Infinity system and I changed it all. It much easier to figure out since the speakers weren't individually amped. I do know the final outcome on that system is far superior. Thanks again. If you have any input on brands or setups and the actual adapters needed, i would appreciate it. Thanks again!

 

fej's post is right on target. let us know which option you choose and then we'll give you some options based on our experiences

 

Thanks for the response!

Option 1:

Keep the factory HU, change the 3.5" door speakers. (not sure if this will sound any better)

Option 2:

Keep the factory HU, change the 3.5" door speakers, add amp and sub. (what would be the best amp and sub as in brand, watts and size of sub)

Option 3:

Change HU, replace existing speakers with aftermarket and add amp and sub. (If speakers are replaced, is it best to run them with an amp instead of the HU? Also, Have you tried the iPod connected to the HU? If so, how good is it?)

If changing the HU, what is the best adapter plate for the dash?
What wiring harness would I use?
what door speakers are recommended (brand, watt, size?) Are adapters required to make them fit in the doors?


Alot of questions I know...but this car is totally foreign to me in this department. Thanks for your expertise in this area.

 

See my latest post for info on my system install. Depending on the the type of music you listen to, I would reconsider going subless. Maybe 8's would work better.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1670703

 

Thanks for all info!!

Okay...I think I narrowed it down to:


HU
Doorspeakers (Is it best for regular speakers or go with something like the Elemental Designs eDi 6000s v.2 System?)
Probably a 10" sub.
Or do I use coaxial with a sub and no sub for component?? Hopefully someone can clarify for me.
As for the amp, what should I consider for it to run the door speakers and the sub? It is possible to run all from one amp, correct? How many channel, watt, etc.?? Thanks!!

Basically, what do I use in which situation??