Do DAUL headunits just suck?

[gomach1]

I bought a new Dual Headunit from walmart...in a rush to get a headunit as the stock one broke. Its a 60w, noticed that more expensive ones put out a lot more. I have aftermarket pioneer speakers and the sound quality of everything just sucks. Not clean, does hit the notes good.

Im up for changing everything, please fill me in on suggestions. Was thinking about putting a free air sub, as i have 2 amps laying around. Dont want crazy bass, just good overall sound. My previous contour, had a smiple setup with a good kenwood/pioneer speakers and a better headunit and i was completely happy with the sound output.

 

[Smokinjoe]

Yes. Unfortunatly Dual does suck. I just bought a Kenwood MP345u head unit for my Contour and i LOVE it. I'm actually putting in some pioneer 350w speakers this afternoon.

 

[Crazz]

i just bought a Alpine iDA-X305SBT a few weeks back, i love this unit it kicks ass

have all infinity reference speakers, going to order one of infinity's power 10 inch subs in a few weeks. they actually hit pretty good

 

[tourinit]

kenwood excelon or pioneer premiere

 

[Lavell]

I have to agree with Crazz. An Alpine head unit + Infinity Reference speakers = a kick ass sound system!!!:laugh: This is my setup also!

i just bought a Alpine iDA-X305SBT a few weeks back, i love this unit it kicks ass

have all infinity reference speakers, going to order one of infinity's power 10 inch subs in a few weeks. they actually hit pretty good

 

[steelblueSE]

You get what you pay for. Dual has proven to make an inexpensive, sometimes reliable product. Alpine, pioneer, kenwood decks will all put out more power, cleaner sound , last longer and have better filters/crossover adjustments. Make sure to look at the the rms power and not peak/max power. Rms power is the real continuous power that the speaker gets, peak power is always incorrect, irrelevant and is simply a marketing trick to make you think you are getting a more powerful product than what you really are getting. Watts do not mean how loud it will get either.

 

[imnotacop420]

did you bypass the factory amp?

 

[98Mystique2]

You get what you pay for. Dual has proven to make an inexpensive, sometimes reliable product. Alpine, pioneer, kenwood decks will all put out more power, cleaner sound , last longer and have better filters/crossover adjustments. Make sure to look at the the rms power and not peak/max power. Rms power is the real continuous power that the speaker gets, peak power is always incorrect, irrelevant and is simply a marketing trick to make you think you are getting a more powerful product than what you really are getting. Watts do not mean how loud it will get either.

Ugh rms... dont even get me started with that stuff... especially Kenwood amplifiers.... that are cea rated ... Brands and reviews are more important then any "rated" rms or peak....
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_8515_Kenwood-KAC-9103D.html
"rated rms" 900 watts... fuses... 2x30.... P=IV (not including losses due to efficiency of the amplifier circuitry) So ... 60A and at most 15 V but it's really probably only going to see 13... but 60*15=900 ... so assuming some perfect 100% efficent system running at a higher then rated voltage we may see the "rated rms output"

Also The watts do have a lot to do with how loud it will be... Doubling the watts should increase the db by about 3...

If you haven't heard an amplified system (using a stand alone amp rather then a head unit to power the speakers it'll sound absolutely amazing)

 

[gomach1]

Yea. Im gonna look into getting another headunit. With sound stuff you just have to go name brand im finding out... Thanks for all the input guys.

 

[steelblueSE]

Ugh rms... dont even get me started with that stuff... especially Kenwood amplifiers.... that are cea rated ... Brands and reviews are more important then any "rated" rms or peak....
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_8515_Kenwood-KAC-9103D.html
"rated rms" 900 watts... fuses... 2x30.... P=IV (not including losses due to efficiency of the amplifier circuitry) So ... 60A and at most 15 V but it's really probably only going to see 13... but 60*15=900 ... so assuming some perfect 100% efficent system running at a higher then rated voltage we may see the "rated rms output"

Also The watts do have a lot to do with how loud it will be... Doubling the watts should increase the db by about 3...

If you haven't heard an amplified system (using a stand alone amp rather then a head unit to power the speakers it'll sound absolutely amazing)

Terrible terrible example of an amp to use..... That model (actually 9104d) is only cea compliant at 4 ohms, any lower of an ohm load is not cea 2006 compliant, the owners manual states this. Car audio mag did a test and found this to be true, 2 ohm loads were less than 700 wrms.

You are right about looking at all of the product's reviews. I prefer to take it a step further and download the owners manual to see everything that I'm dealing with. Op is very correct in going with name brands, but beware some manufacturers that make one type of product, don't always make a full line of good products. Take kenwood for example, they make great headunits, but their component amplifiers and subwoofers aren't that good in terms of overall performance. Never dealt with their speakers.

edit: heres the car audio mag review of the predecessor of your example: http://caraudiomag.com/articles/kenwood-kac-9104d-review-amplifiers

 

[Lavell]

You are so right on this SteelblueSE! Sony is another perfect example of this. They make some excellent head units, but their amps, speakers and subwoofers are so terrible that they shouldn't be on the market!

On another note, Kenwood 4-channel amplifiers are pretty decent as long as you're not pushing subwoofers with it. I have the KAC-8405 amplifier pushing the Infinity speakers in the doors. It pushes 60 watts RMS to the speakers, outperforming my previous Alpine 40-watt RMS 4-channel amplifier.

...but beware some manufacturers that make one type of product, don't always make a full line of good products. Take kenwood for example, they make great headunits, but their component amplifiers and subwoofers aren't that good in terms of overall performance.

 

[getsum111]

Installed my very first system in my car in 1994, with the help of a buddy who was an engineer and also competed in SQ Competitions. He's the guy who taught me to install amps, components, etc. He was always ADAMENT that in car audio, you always want to buy the highest quality you can. So my first setup was an Alpine 4ch amp, MB QUart components, and a JL sub. The speakers lasted 8 years, the sub 10, and the amp is still powering my wife's setup in her current car.

A quality component will not only sound better, they normally are much more reliable as well. Personally, I try to stay away from anything too flashy/gimmicky (like amps that say 500000 WATTS!!!!!!!!). I also try to get feedback from people I consider to be knowledgable on car audio, which does NOT include Fast and Furious movies. LOL. Next time, post up asking for feedback on a particular item, many here will probably have had some experience with that product, be it good or bad. HTH.

 

[steelblueSE]

He was always ADAMENT that in car audio, you always want to buy the highest quality you can. So my first setup was an Alpine 4ch amp, MB QUart components, and a JL sub. The speakers lasted 8 years, the sub 10, and the amp is still powering my wife's setup in her current car.

A quality component will not only sound better, they normally are much more reliable as well.

This.

Always buy the highest quality EVERYTHING you can afford, including the connectors/wires. My Panasonic h/u is going on 7 years, Infinity kappa door speakers going on 6, everything else is within the past 2 years and I expect it to last just as long.

Also car audio products that are made in the USA are generally made better because there are tighter manufacturing tolerances and far superior quality control. This is very important when you having moving parts (subwoofers and speakers.)

 

[DanMyers]

Gotta agree on the price thing, about a year ago my bro traded in his Cougar on a brand new BMW and gave me his 5 year old Pioneer deck to swap with my old Pioneer unit that was 8 years old, and both of them were working perfectly. In fact, I just upgraded to a Pioneer MVH-P8200 (awesome by the way, even has a color wheel for the lighting and is PERFECTLY matched with stock green lighting) and I gave his girlfriend the one he gave me, I bet it will last another 5 years if not more.