Dat what I'm talkin' bout' ... I can't relate to swapping crap for crap ... as some are so easily inclined to do ... baffles me! BTW, nice location for the amp ... I did the same. Just used a piece of pressboard and tried my best to match up the carpet.

 

Just because you people spend 2 grand on a system doesn't mean a $600 setup is crap Maybe some people listen to classical sometimes and just want a quality radio with 5 band parametric equalizer and 6-position crossover and 6ch digital time correction. Why would someone want so much bass that rattle everything in the car loose? If i wanted a stereo in a car i'd choose a E500 or something with good sound denting throught the car not an Evolution by far.

Personally i'd rather spend 2 grand on TE37's. I'm interested in clear music and some crisp bass without ratting my car loose. Any advise for a sub?

I dont' understand. Why would i need an external amp. The speakers seem very powerful after i installed the headunit? Anymore power I'd go deaf I just want more bass at low volume. Any suggestions?

 

Press the tuning knob in once and then turn the bass up a few notches. I'm just pulling your chain, gtr.

 

The funny part is when i press on the turning knob and turn it turns up the power on the sub i do not have

 

That's strange. It just says Bass with +-# right? Very weird.

 

I just finished replacing the speakers with Kenwood eXellons, and installed my Sony MXP70 head unit. With just the Sony the stock speaker sounded incredibly more full, eith the kenwoods life is very good. Now I just have to drop in the JL sub/Alpine amp and the XM radio out of my Lightning. Once you have bass, you can't go back, and once you have 100 plus channels of XM, along with MP3s on the Sony, stock pretty much sucks from then on...

 

When I push on my volume it say sub +/-.

Do you have a bass engine and a bass control knob Strange.....

 

Are we talking about the stock system? If so...it cycles through bass, treble, then fade/balance in whatever order...but I don't get anything for sub that I've noticed so far anyway.

 

um, what did you expect? of course the sound is going to be better....there would be no market in aftermarket speakers if stock sounded better. the only sound systems i wouldn't touch (if i had the cars) would be merceds, bmws, and high end acuras.

 

I didn't mean to come across like that gtr, my bad. I'm just not into mass market stereo equipment -- IMO -- you can get a lot more for just a little more $. If a clean and crisp sounding stereo is what you desire, then better speakers and clean power is the recipe. More, clean power does not have to = a loud stereo, although it will play louder and cleaner if you crank it. Believe me, I'm not into rattling cars apart, and winning SPL contests, especially being that I'm 30 years old now. But a clean amp will allow you to hear things in the music that you wouldn't hear with using the amps in the headunit, or using any low quality amp for that matter. That is why I say opt for more, clean power -- clean power extends your highs, creates a smooth/flat and full mid range, and allows your system to sound more dynamic (tighter, and more controlled bass punch, etc). Basically, clean power will allow your system to come to life ... and this WILL NOT HAPPEN if you're using the headunit amps to drive your system. Of course, if your speakers are weak, then the difference will be more subtle, but I say ... if you are going to make the change ... then do it right. Once again, all need is 4 good speakers, a decent headunit, and 1 quality multichannel amp to achieve clean, crisp, quality, detailed sound from a system. As far as the subwoofer ... yes, I like a little more bass than most ... that's I run 1, 12" Kicker Solobaric sub, but a single 8" would work fine for most. Just my 2 cents ...

 

2 cool, as I stated ... I'm running a 12" Kicker solo and it slams ... although it would be too much or most people, it's perfect for me ... the slam is there if I desire. What is your JL ... W0, W3, W6, etc.? I agree with your bass statement ... just be sure that your box can be lifted easily for when we go to the track. BTW, is your Alpine amp one of those old faithful V12's?

 

gtr ... to answer your question,

If you want more bass at lower volumes, you need either ... more "clean" power (e.g. an external amp), and speakers that have good bass extension always help too. BOTTOM LINE: A clean external amp will have your speakers sounding better at lower volumes, and when you opt to turn it up ... it will sound clean instead of that "blow your eardrums out" distorsion type loudness that you described (headunit amp). I've had many, many systems ... trust me when I say that this is what you need if you want more bass at lower volumes ... or more clean volume when you turn your system up just a little.

 

So your saying an external amp will suit my needs better than a sub What amps would your recommend? I was just planning to play only music from speakers and use a sub for bass to seperate them to have a very clear sound and nice bass.

 

First off, if you opt to go with a sub ... then you will need an amp to drive it anyway (obviously no way possible that your headunit can do it). So, why not kill 2 birds with 1 stone, and you can thank me later. Go buy a 5 channel amp. This way, your new amp can drive all 4 speakers you just bought (I think you said you replaced all 4, right) ... well, regardless ... your new 5 channel amp that has (4 channels for your speakers), and 1 dedicated bass channel. Since your looking to save money, allow me to recommend a very high qaulity, "mid-priced" amp (you don't want to go too cheap as the amp is very important), it is a KICKER, KX600.4 ... check it out here http://www.kicker.com/ShowPage.cfm?f...html&menu=AMPS

Then to cut down on costs, get one of JL Audio's preloaded 8" sub boxes (like $200 or less), or a Bazooka bass tube, or even one of Kicker's loaded boxes. So for say ... $500-600 more for everything (amp & sub included), you will have a very, very nice sounding system. You can check out Kicker's pre-loaded boxes here http://www.kicker.com/Loaded.cfm

Of course, the Bazooka bass tube will save you the most $, but it will not be as much clean and tight bass ... also less output. Lastly, the sub option you choose isn't as important as the amp, so if you want to cut costs ... do it there ... but try not to think that you can do one and NOT the other ... because to have more bass you need a sub, and then you need an amp to drive it. Of course, you could always buy the kicker amp listed above 1st, hook it up, and if you are satisfied with the amount bass increase you get without the sub, then so be it ... and you will ALWAYS have that extra sub channel on the amp if you decide to go with a sub later on down the road. Hope this helped ...

 

dtr,

You could always shop for more 5 channel amps as well, as there many, but my favs that I've tried are the Kicker and a more expensive JL Audio 500.5 ... you can usually find them for $500-550 on the internet, but MSRP is $899 -- very, very clean & powerful amp that will drive your system with ease.