wmebert Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 I ended up selling a bunch of woodworking tools and blew most of the $$ on a decent sound system from Crutchfield. The Sony Xplod HU has a front aux input so I can plug my MP3 player in to it & rock for hours! Keep in mind that I'm in my mid-40's & don't need to "thump". I just want to be able to crank up some Van Halen & forget about my troubles for awhile 8) ItemNumber Description Qty 15410115 Dynamat 158GT300 Sony CDX-GT300 Head Unit 120992020 Buick Regal Kit 1988-up, S/E, 065S95 Boston Acoustics S95 6" x 9" 065S75 Boston Acoustics S75 4" x 6" 065S45 Boston Acoustics S45 4" 065S45 Boston Acoustics S45 4" Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supreme Cutlass Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 for the sony. could've done much better for that price; it's not the "thump" in better brands, it's the quality of sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Have fun installing that Dynamat. Im up to 13+ hours in my rear deck, trunk and trunk lid. $600 for all that is kinda cheap.... But just remember, alot of these brands dont have a very good sound quality to them. But if all you want is better than stock, thatll be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slick Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Definately nothing wrong with Boston Acoustic speakers. Just be sure to put some dynamat on the doors and rear deck before putting the speakers in. It makes a world of difference! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puggsley456 Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Good job in going with the Bostons.......They are very nice quality speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 All the Customer Reviews I read on the Sony were very positive. One of the main reasons I got it was for the front mounted auxilliary jack for my MP3 player. I'll let you all know what I think once I install it...... I'm sure it's got to be better than the stock unit I almost went with Infinity speakers but Tech Support at Crutchfield recommended the Boston's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Imagine how far you could have made $600 go if you didn't buy the stuff from Crutchfield. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garrett Powered Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Im sorry but $600 isnt dick to be spending on a system. A modest system may have a few components that are more than $600 each. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryk2003 Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Imagine how far you could have made $600 go if you didn't buy the stuff from Crutchfield. ...but good luck with it...if u havent messed around with car audio much then its probably a good thing to buy your stuff from crutchfield...u get good instructions and tech support and everything u need to do a nice clean install... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
97loudcut Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 haha...yeh 600 isnt shit my HU, Capacitor, and 6x9's were more than 600 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Wow, this is a tough crowd. :shock: $600 bucks might not be much if you still live at home but when you have a BIG Mortgage, utility bills, insurance, child support, divorce costs.....etc....etc... it's a LOT money. :bawl: Thanks for your honest input though. I thought Crutchfield was a pretty decent place, price-wise, to buy from. I guess I should have done some more research. :? If I decide to upgrade the HU I guess I'll know better.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puggsley456 Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Wow, this is a tough crowd. :shock: $600 bucks might not be much if you still live at home but when you have a BIG Mortgage, utility bills, insurance, child support, divorce costs.....etc....etc... it's a LOT money. :bawl: Thanks for your honest input though. I thought Crutchfield was a pretty decent place, price-wise, to buy from. I guess I should have done some more research. :? If I decide to upgrade the HU I guess I'll know better.... Dont let the tough crowd get you down. All audiophiles start with an initial purchase. You will get the upgrade bug again, And when you do......buy in pieces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 Well I managed to get my HU & Rear Speakers installed today while watching my 15 m.o. son. Just a word of advice. Do NOT consider having a kid while your in your 40's...... I Love the little guy but is he a lot of work . He wears me out by the end of the day . Anyhow, because of the little guy I wired up the wiring harness in the house, mounted the DIN frame(?) in the dash kit, and as soon as I had him occupied by an Elmo DVD I headed outside to mount up the HU. It went pretty smoothly and Elmo was working out fine keeping Jake happy. I fired up the new unit, turned on my Sirius receiver and made some audio adjustments. I must say I was quite pleased. It sounded much better than the 14 year old stock unit. I figured I'd go check on my son & if Elmo was still doing his job I'd try to install the rear 6" x 9" Boston's. I crawled in the trunk, pulled out my Kenwood KFC 6949S rear speakers & replaced them with the Boston's. I was pretty psyched to hear how the new speakers would sound. Well, I was not pleased at all. The mids & highs were great but the bass just wasn't there. The freebie Kenwood's I took out had more bass! What a let down. Could it be that the (17 watts RMS/52 peak x 4 channels) HU just doesn't have the power to drive any bass out of the Boston's? I really don't want to start adding amps or subwoofers. At this point the $$ I spent could have been used more wisely, I really can't afford to spend any more $$$. I plan on putting the Kenwoods back in & send the Boston's (all of them) back to Crutchfield. I was pleased with the way the Kenwood's sounded, I just figured the Boston's would sound better, not weaker. What do you guys think? Thanks, Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 Really the only way to get a great deal of bass out of 6x9's is to amp them ( or so Ive found ) But the wattage rating for the HU is what most are. Honestly since you like the Kenwoods, Id get like a 8" sub and amp ( prolly will cost about as much as the speakers your sending back.... maybe a touch more ) then youll have plently of bass, but not overwhelming. But like I said to get any real kind of bass out of speakers, you gotta hook em up to am amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 How about a powered subwoofer? I ended up buying 2 sets of 4" Boston's because I thought I had 4" in the Dash as well as the doors. When I popped the speaker covers off of the dash I found emptiness :oops: . So I have $80 coming back on those & if I send back the 6"x9"s that's another $120.00 for a total of $200 bucks in credit. The Audiobahn ATB10AT for sale at Crutchfield.com goes for $180 so I'd be $20 ahead. Here's a link: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-lMpPr9DdJjM/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?a=&s=0&cc=01&g=51000&id=review&i=037ATB10AT&pg=4&sortBy=3 What do you guys think? It's been reviewed very well & sounds like just the amount of bass I'm looking for. Thanks again, Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 Ive heard that before when I was at circuit city. Id rather go with this: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-UtsVXYxDg9r/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=51000&I=108BASSLIN yes more money, but your getting more bass and better SQ. The audiobhan is in a ported enclosure, which means it might get somewhat kinda loud, but itll sound like poop and wont hit very hard, and woont hit the low notes. The Infinity, is sealed, will hit lower and sound better. Honestly a 100 bucks more is deff worth it. Ill let others say their opinions on which one before I say anything else. ( sorry but Im not a big fan of audiobhan at all ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 Thanks but I definitely can't afford $300....... Being poor sucks! I quit a 6-figure job a year & half ago because I was stressed out :shock: due to my crappy 1st divorce. I've had nothing but crappy jobs since then and now I've been out of work for 4 months. I have applied for over 100 jobs & have had zero luck. :bawl: I've already spent more $$ then I should have....... Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garrett Powered Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 this is the only way I could get any bass out of my Bostons, but they are only 4" and are HPF 'd on the deck at 99khz. because the JL W-7 gots anything below that covered 8) Yur going to return the Bostons? why, I ran these off deck power and honestly they sound the same as amped almost just because they dont really need that much power to run. I got home stereo super dooper high freq. 30khz tweets and 2 way x-overs that handle tons of watts that will need an amp. the 2 ways will be powering 8 inch Boston cabin speakers and the silk tweeters from Vifa are going where the 6x9s are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THe_DeTAiL3R Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 My Infinity Reference 9602i had more bass at the store on display than they do in the rear deck of my car. Mine are amped too, but my 12" sub makes up for the bass so it's not a big deal. They still have great sound so I'm pleased. Don't count on ANY 6x9s giving you any bass unless you do something drastic to the car, with that said it's still easier to buy a cheap amp and a single sub that will still put out more bass... Heres a nice little package that would do the job (you can find a cheap box somewhere, or build one yourself) http://www.crutchfield.com/S-pYxPGd6vvEP/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=208250&I=700ROCKP10 or this one WITH a box (I've had great luck with my Kenwood stuff) http://www.crutchfield.com/S-1VN0MkWiUGm/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=208250&I=700KENPKG1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 I just checked Ebay for the Infinity Basslink that 19Cutlass94 recommended. There are all kinds of sellers with brand new units with a warranty for about $200 delivered. That's definitely an option at that price 8) ..... Any thoughts?.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THe_DeTAiL3R Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 I've never heard the Basslink personally, but I think it's a great idea. Save on trunk space and messy wiring. And it LOOKS good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garrett Powered Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 I just checked Ebay for the Infinity Basslink that 19Cutlass94 recommended. There are all kinds of sellers with brand new units with a warranty for about $200 delivered. That's definitely an option at that price 8) ..... Any thoughts?.... this sub I got 2 for 15 bucks and 1 of em rips it up hardcore, so I say flea market it if youre going ghetto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveFromColorado Posted March 19, 2006 Report Share Posted March 19, 2006 Sony is awesome - I've got an old Sony ES CD player, still works flawlessly! The Xplod stuff is just the ES stuff with a different label (changed over in 98 or 99 I think) I personally never liked those speaker/amp/box tube things - they never sounded right to my ears ... what I'd recomend for the music you listen to is a good 12" subwoofer in a 1 cubic foot sealed box on an amp that's obvious overkill for the speaker itself (IE: 300watt amp on a 100watt RMS driver also, if you can run an 8 ohm speaker on an amp that will deliver enough power for it, you'll get even better sound reproduction) and then run the speaker on the verge of too much power. This will get you extremely tight, crisp hits from the bass drum in the rock music, along with good strong bass guitar tones. Most subwoofers die because they are under powered, not over powered, and in a sealed box, overpowering is less of a problem. I'd also get a powered crossover, these are way more then worth the money you'll spend on one - this will allow you to tune the system to what YOU like, and remain extremely flexable with it. If you shop 'round, I'm sure you can find these items for right 'round the $200.00 mark, you won't need SUPER high end stuff, even the cheap stuff should work for ya.. Dynamat is EASY to work with, and quick too, I can do an entire trunk in under 6 hours (properly even) ... the easiest way to do this is to plan your steps, trace out your areas with paper or cardboard and pre-cut your dynamat, then when installing, use acetone to clean and prep the surface for the dynamat, then use a heat gun (or hair dryer if that's all you've got) to warm the dynamat to a nice warm temp, and use a small (1" - 2" wide) wooden roller to help apply the dynamat, this will help it stick better, and also help you install it without getting air pockets in it. --Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wmebert Posted March 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Update.... I pulled the Boston's out of the back & put the Kenwood's back in. Honestly I was quite happy at that point. The Boston's definitely need more power and I didn't want to spend any more $$. Did some research on Crutchfield.com looking for a better alternative to the Kenwood KFC 6949S's (makes me hungry for some fried chicken....KFC...) and decided, believe it or not.....to go with a set of Jensen Triaxials :shock: yes, I said Jensen. Back when I was a young man in the late '70's & 80's Jensen was THE name in speakers and I always had good luck with them. I checked CircuitCity.com and did a "pick-up in store" purchase, ran to pick them up, installed them, and I am pleased! $45 on Sale! I packed up all of my Boston's and got a "RA" from Crutchfield and will be doing a return/exchange for the 10" Audiobahn ATB10AT powered subwoofer just to add a little more bass to the system. So at this point I'm about $150 ahead of the game dropping my cost to about $450. I'm Happy but I probably won't be impressing any of you guys. Now let me add that I spent 10 years on active duty in the Army as a Infantryman. I fired TOW missiles & a M16A2 during Desert Storm and I have a hearing loss because in war you don't wear earplugs... So I may not hear all the Highs like a 20 year old. Thanks for the input you all provided. The knowledge & the opinions were appreciated. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Jensens are good speakers. My dad had them in his truck, and no matter what I did I couldnt blow em. All that matters is that your happy with the products you bought. Who cares if you dont "impress" anyone here, its your car man, make it how you like it. Thats good to hear though. Youll have to say how you like that audiobahn once you get it hooked up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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