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What you think? My setup.

Posted: Fri Jan 20, 2006 6:32 pm
by npcout
Alright, just so you guys no, im a teen, dont have all that much money, and this is my first ever system, in my 1st car. 1998 Plymouth Breeze 4DR sedan.

Head Unit: Alpine CDE-9345
Front Speakers: 6.5 Kickers 2 ways
Back Speakers: 6X9 Kickers 3 ways
Subs: Duals 2 12inch's (Cheap, but sound alright, got them for free)
2 Channel Amp bridged Mono: Power Acoustik 980Watt Max 560 Mono RMS
4 Channel 600 Watt Jensen Amp: 60 Watts RMS per each channel
Capacitator: Power Acoustiks 3 Farad Cap

Future Plans
Dynamat the Trunk
Get 1 12inch Kicker L5 in ported box

Thanks guys.. what do you think? I'll try to get some pics up soon, maybe tommorow or sunday. Me and my friend installed everything today.

We ran 2 power wires, one 8-gauge to the 4 channel amp, and one 4-gauge to a distribution block where branched 8-gauge wire to the 2 channel amp and the cap. Ran 12-gauge speaker wire to all four speakers and the subs. Grounded the cap, and 2 amps underneathe the back seat. Everything is mounted on the back seats. We ran 3 RCA cables, 2 to the 4 channel, and 1 to the two channel. Had to use Y Splitters up front.

Overall, i think it looks really nice, we hid everything good, as ill show in the pictures hopefully really soon. Sounds really good to.

Posted: Fri Jan 20, 2006 8:12 pm
by swimmerdude
Many people on here will recommend to stay away from the Kicker square subs because they have many problems.

But what you have so far beats what my first system is. I have an alpine cda-9851, 2 15" Kicker comp vr's and Legacy 2 channel amp. Nothing done to the door speakers yet but need to. I did everything myself, with the help of my dad.

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 5:44 am
by Ryan from Ohio
Doing it yourself is how you learn. Thats how many of us have learned.

I think your moving in the right direction. Your subs are the weakest link. Im not sure if I would reccomend the Kicker L5 or L7. They just came out with a new sub that looks promising and round. If your set on a kicker I advise this one:

CompVX

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 7:52 am
by GlassWolf
I'd have gone 3 way in front, 2 way in back.
lose the power craptastic and jensen amps, and maybe get a single 5 channel solution, or at least more reliable amps like JBL or Avionixx. still cheap, but much better build quality.
I won't knock the duals since they were free, but skip the L5 garbage, and look at round subs. Kicker compVR, or other brands will do much better unless all you want is cheap and loud.
those square subs suck.

the rest sounds pretty good.. those are my suggestions for improvement.
that capacitor isn't really helping you either, by the way.
see the FAQ section on capacitors and charging systems.

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 8:17 am
by smoker
beats the hell out of my first setup....the best way is to just do it and learn from your mistakes...im sure we all have made an "upgrade" and wondered what the hell we were thinking so im sure that along the way you will make a few steps back but just keep at it....those power acoustik amps are not top notch but they are like the buicks of the world....when you want something good but cant buy a cadillac

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 5:36 pm
by GlassWolf
eh I was just giving my thoughts.. didn't mean to sound harsh.. but when people ask for opinions ya know.. I oblige

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 6:27 pm
by smoker
KikiTheCat wrote:eh I was just giving my thoughts.. didn't mean to sound harsh.. but when people ask for opinions ya know.. I oblige

yea........we know ;)

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 6:39 pm
by Ranger SVO
KikiTheCat wrote:.
see the FAQ section on capacitors and charging systems.
Can not find it where is it?
Search didnt do any good

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 6:44 pm
by Jonathan
http://www.caraudiocentral.net/forums/f ... order=desc

That's the FAQ section, capacitors tutorial is 5 up from the bottom.

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2006 6:47 pm
by Ranger SVO
Found it. Very accurate. I was looking in the wrong place