3 way or 2 way for yukon?

hellbender · Post by **hellbender** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 11:49 am

Hi all, I just got a 97' yukon and i want to upgrade my existing a/d/s 236 IS 2 way set with either a 3 way set (DIY or a matched set) or a better 2 way set. The goal i am trying to reach is great sound quality with alot more output. The a/d/s tweeter is too laid back so a more aggresive tweeter would be ideal i think. Its also gotta have thunderess midbass with a very clear/detailed midrange. What brands should i be looking at? I will run this passive for simplicity's sake. I will be sending it 200 wrms per side to keep up with my AA 15" avalanche sealed sub. I listen to mostly rock like Tool and Korn but venture into classic rock like rush and on the other side, trance and Sarah McLachlan. I have the lower front 6.5" door speaker location and qlogic kicks to work with. The stock tweeter is in the front armrest location. I will be deadening the kicks with more 'glass and then some edead if you think this would help. I dont mind cutting into my door panels a little bit if needed for a bigger speaker but i need something to work in the locations i mentioned as i dont know a thing about making custom door pods nor do i have the time to learn. On a final note something that will perform well out of the box with the least amount of custom tuning would be best as i know even less about that lol. My budget is around $500 for the front stage. Sorry for the long post and thanks for any resonses!

JeremyC · Post by **JeremyC** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 12:59 pm

3 ways are great, but they require way more time and efford during the planing and install phase. IMO a good 2 way is the easer way to get to sound good. Yes the 3 way can sound better, but it takes a ton of work to get there.

solacedagony · Post by **solacedagony** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 1:12 pm

If you want something that will "perform well out of the box", then you should be going 2-way. Your best bet, IMO, would be to go active 2-way and learn how T/A, crossover points/slopes, path lengths, on/off axis response, EQ, etc. work (if you are really looking to go 3-way).

JeremyC · Post by **JeremyC** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 1:58 pm

solacedagony wrote:If you want something that will "perform well out of the box", then you should be going 2-way. Your best bet, IMO, would be to go active 2-way and learn how T/A, crossover points/slopes, path lengths, on/off axis response, EQ, etc. work .

Yep he is dead on.

The bigest downfall of an active setup is money. You will have to have a headunit or processor thats capable of running active, and enough amp chanels to run your mids and tweets sepratly. Your also making things way more complex. Yes the benifits in the end will be better, but the time and effort to get there have increased.

I do have a question. How much sound dampening have you installed in your doors, or truck in general? That will make a HUGE diffrence in your mids, especially once you seal off the door.

solacedagony · Post by **solacedagony** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 2:31 pm

I feel that, although active is more money, it's easier to setup than a comparable passive system. You have the convenience of time delay/driver attenuation and instant changes in crossover points/slopes. You also have this with bi-ampable passive crossovers, but I really don't see too many of them. The other nice thing with going active is that you can swap drivers on a whim (obviously installation isn't simply a whim, but you catch my drift) since you won't need to build or hook up a new passive crossover with each new setup.

So basically, there are pros and cons in both situations, but if you're strictly looking to enjoy your audio, then get a decent 2-way system with passive crossover and just do a good job in installation.

hellbender · Post by **hellbender** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 2:59 pm

I have the pioneer premier 860mp, can i use this to go active 2 way? I have a phoenix gold xenon 200.2 amp that i will use for my front stage(not the best amp but what i have for now until i get a zapco later). I have my current system installed ina s10 blazer since i just bought my yukon. My yukon isnt deadened yet but i will deaden all 4 doors in/out sheetmetal along with the floor with raamat bxt or similair plus a layer of ensolite before i put my system in there. I think i will stick with a 2 way passive or active setup first and get to know T/A, crossover slopes ect. before moving onto a 3 way. What do u guys think about the 2 way setups that use 2 woofers per side? Like some of mbq's line or the rainbow cmx 465 extreme? Is this esentially the same as a 3way? On a final note what i stil lwant to upgrade from my a/d/s 236's so what brands should i look into for more output/better midbass with a more aggressive tweter? Thanks for the comments guys!

solacedagony · Post by **solacedagony** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 3:33 pm

Just stick to a standard 2-way (tweeter+midrange). If you're planning on getting into car audio for a long time, you can either go active with a HU or an external processor such as the Alpine H701. I'm currently running an Eclipse 8454 which supports a stereo 2-way plus sub and I love it.

I can't seem to find any info on your HU, so you'll have to refer to your owner's manual on its crossover abilities.

I'm running the Bravox Diamond 5.25" comp set and, properly setup, sounds beautiful. The only problem I've run into is that the tweeters will begin sputtering and slurring at moderate to high output levels (read: Louder than should be played.)