Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Audio Help!

Ok, i dont know anything about audio equipment. I need to know how to tell if something is good for the money. Like on an amp whats the deal with 2 and 4 ohms and channels and bridgeable. I really need some help on this because i want a pretty descent system in my car but im looking to spend only $300 total on speakers and the amp.

First things first Good systems and $300 total on speaker and amp are oxymorons. Now I know not everyone can spend thousands, but one decent set of speakers and an amp to drive them could possibly be $300 but then you have to spend about $50 on accessories to wire them properly and 75-125 more to have it installed since you admit you don't know much about what you are doing. 2 ohm and 4 ohm are the impedence of the speakers. it's the load that the amp "sees" If you are running 2 4 ohm subs in paralell, the amp sees a 2 ohm load. You need to be sure that your amp is 2 ohm stable in order to do that particularly if you are bridging channells on a multi chanell amp. If you have a stock head unit I recommend pulling that first because it is a piece of ****. Go on ebay and buy from there. There are ****loads of wholesalers that sell new **** for 50% less than what you would pay at a best buy. Start with the head unit and speakers, then as money allows, get an amp for those speakers, then add another amp for subs. When selecting a head unit, you want flexibility to expand. Make sure it has at least 2 rca pre-outs for hooking up amps, 3 is preferable but not totally needed. Also, if you want a disc changer down the road, keep that in mind to make sure it has changer controls, and I don't mean those ****ty ones that work with an unused fm radio signal! Also, a helpful feature in a head unit is for it to have built in crossovers and equalizers. Once upon a time you had to pay big bucks to add that stuff in separate, now you can get those features in a quality Pioneer head unit for well under 300 (again look on ebay) Crossovers allow certain frequencies to pass, either high pass or low pass. You obviously don't want to be trying to push big bass out of your little 5x7's so the crossover allows you to cut off frequencies to those and then cut off the high frequencies to your subs separately. A lot of info I know, dont mean to swamp you but knowledge is power!!! Lastly, if you are one of those thieves who listens to MP3's make sure that your deck plays them and also that it will play cd-r's. Most decks made in the past 5 years play cd-rs without issue but MP3 capability is just making it's way to the masses. Oh yeah, did I mention XM satellite radio compatibility????

oh yeah, maybe I should answer your questions too!
Channels are basically left and right. A 4 channel amp would allow you to amplify left and right speakers for the front and rear. A 2 channel amp would allow you to do just one set. There are also Mono amps that are used for driving subwoofers. There are even 5 channel amps that allow you to amp all 4 door speakers and run one subwoofer.
Bridgeable means the amp can be bridged to a lower number of channels at higher power so a 4 channel amp with 50 watts per channel may be bridged down to 100 watts by 2

Other things to look for on amps is power rating
RMS power is the power the amp puts out at 12volts
Most amps also list rms at 14.4 which is really the amount of current that a car battery puts out, contraty to popular belief. This is a critical number and the power rating you want to go by. There is also MAX power which is usually listed at 14.4. This is the amount of power that an amp can put out for a brief amount of time, but not sustain, such as a hard bass note. The RMS power is the amount of power that the amp puts out constantly. BEWARE OF CHEAP AMPS THAT FALSIFY THEIR OUTPUTS ON THE BOX!!! i.e. Pyramid Reputable amps such as Alpine v-12, MTX thunder, Phoenix Gold come with a testing certifacate that shows how the amp actually tested Alpines have been known to test out at nearly double what they are rated on the package while the cheapo's often don't put out half as much as what they say.

Okay, let's see now.. How about we do a little playing around? Since you're on a budget, why don't you spend some money at a time. Instead of just spending all $300 all at once for one system, why not spend a little at a time. Like buying something once every month or so?? First upgrade your damn HU! Go on Ebay, and buy a used Alpine or something. They sell it for under $100. If the seller is reputable, then go for it. Then later, buy a 4 channel amp. That'll also greatly improve your sound quality and volume. Get a sub or your components next, and after, vise-versa. You'll be glad you did that, and your ears will thank you!

Well, as i can see, you already have a head unit. You'll also need an amp kit.. i recommend knukonceptz . You could check back here for advise on what you want. A lot of people here know their stuff.. but then again alot of people don't. Just wait, and you shall see

Thanks for all the input, but yea i know i said for about 300 but thats because i dont want to spend alot on a system because this is my first car. Not to mention it has pver 125k miles on it, so im just trying to keep it running good. The most im goin to do to that car is get rims, tint the windows and have a system that isnt stock, but also that isnt thousands. Now at first i wanted to get new 6x8 for the doors then get a couple 8's for the trunk. If you think that this would be a good setup, tell me and tell me what i need to get to make this possible. Right now i have a Jensen CD-315X HU, and i was thinking about getting a Jensen JXP680 680 Watts 4-Channel Bridgeable Amplifier. Would that be too much for the 6x8 speakers or what? For the 6x8 I was gonna go with some jensen 6x8, on the box for a pair it says 120 Watt.