I finally got a car to call my own (a Ford '91 Laser, lol).

Listening to music is a pretty big part of my life so naturally I'm wanting to get a decent audio setup in my car. I basically know nothing about car audio, and AFAIK i don't really have any mates who could tell me much more either.

My car still has it's stock system which is some POS radio and tape deck, and some s*** speakers.

I'm wanting to get a *decent* system, just something that sounds nice (i listen to rock mainly) and can go a bit louder than a stock system when needed.

As i understand it, i need a head unit (i want one that can play mp3 cds, and an aux in would be nice if it's not gonna cost too much more), an amp, speakers (someone told me just getting 2 front speakers should be fine?), and a sub.

As i said, i have no idea about the brands/specs of any of these components.

I also don't know anything about installation and what cabling etc. i'm going to have to buy.

So yeah, any advice would be great. Oh, and at the moment i've got about $700 put aside for this, i know this isn't very much at all for a system but when i get paid i can stretch it out some more.

personally i wouldn't spend too much money on a car audio system coz the interior of a car is never going to be an awesome sound studio so you may as well keep it fairly basic. i just got a cdr/mp3 headset n wired it up to my car's existing original speakers.. it's not great but for listening while driving its fine & quite capable of high volume. i won't recommend the headset i got (cheap sanyo) coz it can be a skipping pos at times :[

i see on the strathfield site there are a couple of headsets that now have front aux-in & usb which would be cool. like this one.

$700 will do you fine, just don't get sucked in by the sales guys where you go.

In my 2 previous cars I had the following.

VL Commodore 4 x 45w CD headunit + 180w Pioneer 6x9's on the parcel shelf - this went pretty loud and most people who I took around in it was suprised when I said I had no amp at all.

1970 VG Valiant - 4 x50w mp3 headunit + 600w alpine amp + 7x10's in the rear parcel shelf. This went loud enough to start being uncomfortable.


I never felt the need for a sub, its overkill imo and makes your whole car rattle and vibrate.



Both my cars have been large and yours has less interior space so a similar setup would be even louder for you.

I would recommend getting a 4x50w headunit, an entry level say 500w amp and some 6x9 speakers a step above entry level plus a cabling kit. You should be able to get all that for easily less than $700. Obviously if you install it yourself you will also save a bunch of money, and really its not that hard.

The sales guys will try and talk you into getting all sorts of s***, splits for the front, top end speakers for the back, bigass amp and a sub. Yeah the sound quality may be a bit better but the questions you have to ask, how long on average do you spend in the car per week? and is it worth dropping large sums of money on a rediculous sound system that could make you deaf if you cranked it up full blast?

My answers were not enough, and no.

if you want quality and dont mind paying for it

just go to northfield at moorooka

Thanks for that post rubba-chikin. And spook, im poor so i don't want to pay too much.

A headunit+amp+2 6x9"s seems like it could work for me, and yeah i would be putting them in my parcel shelve.

The Sony Head Unit in the 1st column, 3rd row looks alright. Anyone know anything about it?
http://www.strathfield.com.au/images/Catalogues/20070305/JPG/p6.jpg

As for the speakers it looks like a pair of 6x9"s is gonna cost me $100-200?

About the speakers, they are described as "2-way", "3-way", "5-way", etc. Wtf does that mean?

Last is an amp. Do i need 2-channel or 4-channel? And does it matter what power it is as long as it's more than the speakers?

sky is the limit. my setup (total cost installed < $1300 if u can haggle) is as follows.

Sony head deck with time alignemnt, 13 band EQ, mp3/aux support, 3d sound enhancement..... 4* 55w output as well (tho im not using it). ~$300

2 * pioneer 6" 4-way + splits in the front (kicker splits (dont ask why they arent matching, long story :P) ~$150

2* pioneer 6" 4-way in the rear for fill ~$120

12" 400 watt sub (peak, ~200 rms) ~$200

JBL 6 channel amp ( 4 * 115 watt for speakers, 2* 115( 1 * ~230) watt for sub (last 2 channels are bridged) ~$500

= $1290 equip cost + a bit for installation but if u buy it all at once, they should throw in a free install.


i find it is awesome to listen to at any volume.. at max the bass is loud, but doesnt drown out the awesome top end provided by the 4-ways and splits... again its all subjective really... u need to decide what u want.

edit: my head deck is the one in the bottom left of the catalogue - highly recommended

last edited by Strik3r at 12:41:05 05/Mar/07

go northfield, they the masta's of car audio.. I went there to get a sick head unit put it in my 350Z... recommended.

So the "wattage" of the head's is basically like a built in amp? Is the whole headunit vs amp thing similar to computers where you can use onboard sound which does the job or get a soundcard which can make a huge difference?

i too reccomend northfield anywhere.

basically jb hifi and wow sight and sound have reasonable prices on low end equipment, but its the install charges that get you. I went to northfield, and for the same amount of money, instead of getting cheap pioneer/kenwood stuff, i was able to get eclipse gear put in.

its moreover that a head unit has a small wattage it can output. its fine for just speakers.

if you need a sub, thats say 1000W, you need an output of about 300W (RMS). thats why pioneer and kenwood suck, as their 10-12inch entry level subs are up around the 1000W mark.

Kicker isnt too bad as their entry levels start at about 600W which is 200W RMS, which most cheap amps can easily output.

______________________________________________________


my first car i just had a JVC headunit and a pair of 3way 6x9s. they did the job, gave enough bass etc, but basically stopped me from upgrading without buying new speakers, amp, sub etc. if its a laser, just go with 6x9s and a headunit, the bass is more than enough out of those.

oh yeah, and ive now got a JVC mp3/cd headunit, with a 3.5mm input for the ipod. its only 250ish these days, well worth it.

Ok, im starting to lean towards head unit + 6x9"s and possibly an amp.

Do any of the 6x9"s on this page look any decent? And would they work with a 200W head unit?

http://www.strathfield.com.au/images/Catalogues/20070228/JPG/p5.JPG

Also, if im just getting speakers and a head unit, does that make it easier to install them myself?

To connect an ipod or w/e to the aux input, do you just need one of the cables where both ends are the 3.5mm input jack?

yup, bought one for 3 bucks, bought a universal holder for like 5 bucks, for 8 bucks i can have 60GB of music playing through my head unit

always reccomend JVC head units, ive had 3 of them in 3 diff cars and have never had an issue.

installation if you dont know what you are doing is hard. just go to northfield and haggle a bit and youll end up okay.

i dont really like the look of any of those 6x9s, the wattage seems a bit high. have a look for clarion or eclipse gear, at northfield (note: strathfield is brisbane car sound, the only thing i have bought from them is an alarm system, sound wise dont go with them).

hang on, 200W headunit? are you talking 4x50W because then its not 200W headunit

that means that you have 4 outputs, each with 50W. this is fine for running speakers that are 150W each.

a 200W headunit would be bloody expensive if thats single output...

forget subwoofers, especially if you're going to listen to rock music

get a nice mp3 head unit, make sure you spend a bit extra on the head unit cause thats where it all starts

get some 6" splits or whatever your car can fit in the front doors and some 6x9 or 7x10's for the rear parcel shelf

and make sure you get a 2 channel amp for the 6x9's, so you can get plenty of volume when you want it and you aren't going to waste your head unit like most clowns that have their s*** running at 90% to get the same volume i get at like 50%

people still mistake my setup for for having subwoofers, think i paid like $770 at the time

i agree with pave, except you may not need the amp, depending on how loud you need it to go.

if you are just going with 6x9s, you dont need an amp, but it can help

i dont agree with the head unit that much, theres not much difference between a 200 dollar head unit and a 700 dollar head unit, its only once you get into the high end do you notice the difference. and in a ford laser, i think the 250 mark is a fair hit for a good one

hang on, 200W headunit? are you talking 4x50W because then its not 200W headunit

that means that you have 4 outputs, each with 50W. this is fine for running speakers that are 150W each.

a 200W headunit would be bloody expensive if thats single output...

I was just going by the Strathfield catalogue (I'm probably not going to buy anything from there, just using it as a rough price/parts guide). They have all their heads as 180W/200W/208W, i guess that probably equates to 4x45/4x50 etc but just sounds more impressive for sales purposes?

I'm still not sure about needing an amp or not - some of you are saying yeah, some are saying nah.

Can anyone recommend a head unit and 6x9"s with their prices that would work half decently?

Alt F4, you are right. nothing is '200w', it is 4x50 etc. yes it is done for sales purposes. 4x50w in parallel =/= 200w. if it was serial, then yes.

tung is right. you don't need an amp. certainly not if you're wanting to do it on the cheap.

Just get a Kenwood/Pioneer MP3 head unit, and some good brand name 4/6" Splits for the doors and some nice brand name (again, i like kenwood) 6x9s for the rear.

That should be a pretty rockin setup.

http://www.strathfield.com.au/images/Catalogues/20070228/JPG/p4.JPG
bottom two head units would be the r0x0r.

http://www.strathfield.com.au/images/Catalogues/20070228/JPG/p5.JPG
and the kenwood 6"'s would be good. just then get a set of ~$120-$150 kenwood 6x9s for the rear.

that'd be the ultimate best value for money and quality at the same time setup.

Yeah, $700.00 is definately enough.
I have a 96 Barina Swing, kept the orignal speakers and got the following:
Kenwood headset on sale from Strathpine, was about $170 great features and has ipod connectivity option, plays mp3 cds etc. Worth keeping an eye out for sales, the one I got retailed for about $380.
I got a rocky single sub from autobarn (on sale) as well as cables, clarion amp (also on sale)etc.
All up and including install I think I was set back about $600-$700, and its hot, and gos very hard. Happy times :)

Ok thanks Mr Hardware.

Would having 2 6" at the front be a major improvement over just having 6x9"s in the back? And also would the head unit alone be able to power all those speakers?

Also my car doesn't have pre-built slots to put speakers in the front doors, is that gonna be a problem if im getting 6"s in the front?

Lol final question, is there much difference in the higher end $260-$300 head units compared to the $150-200 ones?

i dont agree with the head unit that much, theres not much difference between a 200 dollar head unit and a 700 dollar head unit, its only once you get into the high end do you notice the difference. and in a ford laser, i think the 250 mark is a fair hit for a good one

yeah i wasn't talking about spending that much, but don't buy some $100 sony job from supercheap

i'd deffinately advise with amp, you won't regret it

Would having 2 6" at the front be a major improvement over just having 6x9"s in the back?

Let me see how to put this. F U C K Y E S.

And also would the head unit alone be able to power all those speakers?

Absolutely.

Also my car doesn't have pre-built slots to put speakers in the front doors, is that gonna be a problem if im getting 6"s in the front?

From what i remember of 91 (KF?) lasers, i'm pretty sure they have 4"s either in the doors or in the dash down low. If there is pre-cut holes for 4"s, then just go with that. I had 4"s in the doors of my corolla (kenwoods) and they went pretty well.

Lol final question, is there much difference in the higher end $260-$300 head units compared to the $150-200 ones?

I put a $100 supercheap job in my girlfriend's 91 swift, and its okay, good for her, but on the odd occasion it spits out CDs. Just get the cheapest kenwood/pioneer CD/MP3 player. Don't touch anything lower than kenwood/pioneer, you're wasting your time.

head into JB or WOW, have a look at their JVC head units with ther 3.5mm input. if they are around 300, offer 250. if they are 250, offer 200. either way its a good price for what you get

go northfield, they the masta's of car audio.. I went there to get a sick head unit put it in my 350Z... recommended.

Be prepared to pay extravagant and over the top prices on all installs, especially from teh asses at Northfield.

I run close on $4,000 in my VT Commodore. And I recently installed a ~$600 US Audio setup in my mates VL.

There is obviously going to be huge difference in sound, quality and loudness. Although his setup, isnt too bad for the price. But i'd never drop below mine again, the audio is just intense, which is the only way to have it :)

For all you bulls*** old farts, Jimmy & the Chisel sound awesome on it =D

last edited by eP at 15:44:50 05/Mar/07

Goto northfield moorooka for all car audio needs..They will be straight up with you about anything..

yeah i'd pass on getting it installed by northfield or JB or any of them c***s, see if you can just get a guy to come out and do it

or everyone knows a mate that can install car stezzas

or everyone knows a mate that can install car stezzas

Booyah and Suhaib know lots of people who can 'uninstall' them.

zing

The big diff in headunit prices are the < $300 units have basic single line calculator style LCD displays and all else going up from that starts to have coloured LCD displays which increase in size with price, then comes touchscreen where you are blowing $1k+

just put a huge cannon on the back of that laser and listen to that farty music like everyone else does.

I'm not really in the car long enough to need a decent stereo but (2x)6x9's in the parcel shelf run off a 300w amp (i think) connected to a pioneer mp3 head unit does me just fine. Loud enough to hurt my ears & doesn't sound too bad. Obviously pedantic audiophiles will scoff & recommend some $5000 setup but if all you want is a slight upgrade from stock in a car that isn't worth spending tonnes of money on then just do that.

If you're southside you're welcome to have a listen if you see a big red kingswood floating around. It's nothing special though.

Don't buy sony and don't buy from strathfield is my advice. Sony's products have gone so far downhill its not funny and well strathfield mainly sell s*** stuff. My advice would be to get a decent headunit, 6 1/2" splits in the front doors, a 4ch amp and a small 10" sub. Should make rock sound fanf***intastic.

i just picked up a sony cd/mp3 head unit with aux in and a remote from super cheap for $169. seems like a pretty good deal and even has the sony 2 year warranty :D
i think that sale ended yesterday though (back up to 269) however the bloke at JB said he would do the same HU for $187 or something, so if ya want it head there

for rock music i wouldnt bother with a sub. buy some good quality speakers for the front and rear and it will sound mad, with enough change from $700 to get your a/c regassed ;)

yeah see when i bought all my stuff from JB, the guy told me to stay away from sony

if i buy just a headunit to hook up to my car, cos i want aux in to plug my ipod in, is it very hard to do? ive never really dealt with opening up and attaching audio in a car? any advice?

the missus' kicker sub and amp is actually pretty damn good, the big thing is that the sub is only something like 600W so a 200W amp runs it fine

depends on the speakers in the car jabroney, if they are in alright condition i can't see why there would be any problem

yeah also depends on whether your head unit is a single dimm or not.

my soarer had a headunit that was 2 and a half the size of a standard one, so i had to get a panel made up to fill the gap :o

Complete car sound at enoggera.

I got $1200 worth of s*** installed by them for my first car, and they were fantastic. Total car audio nuts, and they do f***ing outstanding installations. Also, they sell a brand of Italian car audio stuff called Hertz. I have had the same Hertz 6.5" splits for nearly 7 years now, and they still sound f***ing AMAZING... And they are a pretty damn good price, too.

For my second car, I took the splits outta my old one, and went and bought a new head unit and some Hertz speakers for the back... and made the fatal mistake of having one of my mates attempt to install all the s***. Everything went pair shaped, as luck would have it, and he completely f***ed everything up and made a s***ty mess of it. I took it to Complete car sound, they had a laugh at the f***ed job my mate did, kept the car overnight and fixed it up top notch. After the installation, they took me through the whole car, showed me what they did, and why they did it etc. Like I said, they're just all about quality.

Anyway, I *highly* suggest you check out Complete Car Sound at Enoggera, and Hertz speakers. I can guarantee you that you will NOT be unhappy with either.

Hertz are good if they have a good amp and headunit to run off, plus they are quite exxy.

last edited by Protius at 19:08:03 06/Mar/07

just stick with brands you know

i like alpine gear

Alpine aren't worth what you pay, you could spend $300 on an alpine unit that will have 1 pre-out and 45w x 4 or you could spend 300 on say an ecllipse unit and get 3 pre outs and more features.

i got 1 spot on my panel where i could fit the new headunit, how tricky is it?

if ive never done it before is it doable by myself reading instructions and looking at stuff off the net?

or is it worth going and getting done

i got 1 spot on my panel where i could fit the new headunit, how tricky is it?

if ive never done it before is it doable by myself reading instructions and looking at stuff off the net?

or is it worth going and getting done

Are you any good with electronics and soldering? Are you any good at pulling out parts of the dash in a car? If no to either of these don't bother trying yourself, you'll waste a lot of time and probably break somehting.

You can get a plug for most modern/popular cars that one end you join to the plug you get with the radio and the other you plug into the standard plug in your car. That's how I did my commodore. I just bought the radio & got the blank->commodore plug and connected the same colour wires on the blank end of the plug to the wires on the plug that comes with the head unit.

The tricky part can be actually mounting the radio in the dash if you're not into fabricating your own brackets or not confident cutting your dash to bits if need be you might want to find a friend who is.

i dont have friends, only u guys :(

Well my setup in the van is pretty uber for its size, and if you prefer clarity over sheer volume i recomend the following.

Pioneer DEH-4950 Head Unit, 2x80w + amp of your choice (perferably descent brand like Audison, Pioneer, Clarion etc, NOT KICKER/BOSS ETC), and either Hertz HSK 165 Splits or HCX 165 Co-ax 6.5" speakers in the front doors.

If you want thumping bottom end doof doof then get a sub (10" Hertz for value) and another amp, but i find theres enough bottom end in the 6.5's for everyday listening without going stupid.

So it should look something like this
Pioneer DEH 4950 $300 ish
Pioneer GM-4300F (for example) $250ish
Hertz HCX 165 $180 ish

For a total of $730 plus wiring etc, best bang for buck in my opinion.

NOT KICKER/BOSS ETC

I have had 2 BOSS 4channel amps in my 2 previous car audio installations. Both running bridged MTX 12" subwoofer. And they pump extremely f***ing hard for the price.

You put it with a decent sub and it makes all the difference. But only if your stuck with a price limit of $150.

I stick with Alpine. Besides my one Audiobahn monoblock, i've currently got all Alpine amps, type-r splits & type-r speakers with an Alpine HU. And I love it.

last edited by eP at 13:56:51 07/Mar/07

Another vote for good head unit + good 6x9's in the rear. A good pair of 4" or 6" (I'd go 6 if they'll fit) in the front doors would be worth considering for a more more even, better sounding audio.

eP thats fine, but notice i was not talking about using one for subs. Not going to start an argument or anything but these amps usually lack enough quality to do good speakers justice full-range.

+1 for Northfield

It cost me $220 for installation of an amp + sub instead of $125 from Strathfield, but they did a great job and used quality cables etc..

eP thats fine, but notice i was not talking about using one for subs. Not going to start an argument or anything but these amps usually lack enough quality to do good speakers justice full-range.

Definitely a fair call man, just thought that I would throw in a comment that in my experience, they can perform half decently on bridge etc.

No arguments buddy =D

if you want quality and dont mind paying for it

just go to northfield at moorooka

You mean paying for a piece of s*** job, yeah.

No employee's of those places give a f*** enough about your car to do a PROPER 'quality' job.

audioson amps
with
dynaudio splits

ftw!!!!

its yummy!!