New System!

[blackhawk60]

I have little knowledge of what high-end brands are good for a component system. I need some expert advise before I fork out the dough. Let me know your opinions on these brands or any others. Keep in mind that I am primarily looking for a quality not quantity type system. Here are some brands for component systems that I am looking into:

1.MB Quart
2.Focal
3.Boston Acoustics
4.Polk
5.JL
6.CDT Audio

 

[blackhawk60]

Apparently no one has good taste.

 

[underdog1924]

MB Quart- Harsh, twangy highs unless you go with the QSD, which will run you 800...you can get better for less.

Focal- Highs are harsh also but not as bad ad MB Quart. A very good speaker.

Boston Acoustics- Don't know much about them but have heard good things.

Polk- Don't look into these, better things can be found with the $$ these cost.

JL- Have heard mixed reviews about these. Some like them, some don't. If you look into them, look at the XR series.

CDT- Very nice equipment. Go with the Cambria series and you'll be very happy. Warm mids and smooth highs.

Also check out the Image Dynamics Chameleons and Infinity Perfects. I highly reccomend Image Dynamics...their products are high quality sound quality machines.

 

[thebigjimsho]

My personal favorite is a/d/s/. Their components are extremely smooth and their subs hit hard and hit quick with excellent clarity.
I am quickly becoming a big fan of Focal. The tweeters don't sound nearly as tinny as Boston Acoustics or MBQuart. The Utopia line is absolutely incredible!! I like them better than my a/d/s/ components.
Also, if you have the dough, check out Dynaudio. They are hard to find but the transformation from sound board to car door is not as drastic as others. Plus they are shallow, you can usually fit them in tighter spaces then many others.
CDT is pretty good.
Polk is the premium-for Crutchfield anyway.
JL Audio is great for subs, not bad for components.

 

[LOUDSHO92]

Well for Boston Acoustics you end up paying way to much for them. Ive heard their stuff and its pretty good though not enough for the pricing. I have Poly for my back speakers and they sound really good and can put out a lot. JL is good for subs, the amps are high priced and I havent heard anything else about their other products.
I have MTX for subs and amp and they sound really good and can put out a good amout as well. Their digital amps use less energy and have very good quality. Kenwood and Alpine are also very good for qality and power. The alpine amp I have has very good quality sound for a very large range and didnt cost to much. The kenwood head unit has lasted me a couple of years and sounds very good. I also have kicker tweeters which sound very good when added to 2-way speekers for additional highs. Hope this helps.

 

[thebigjimsho]

Yeah, I forgot about MTX. Awesome subs and great amps.
I totally disagree about JL's amps being high-priced. The watts per dollar is very comparative to other high end amps, they keep the same output no matter what load and their damping factor is EXTREMELY high. Those amps were gone over a number of times before release. They work and sound awesome!!

 

[blackhawk60]

I think I've narrowed it down to 3

CDT
Image Dynamics
Dynaudio

I found some dealers in NW Chi burbs and goin to check it out. Thanks everyone for all the info.

Now lets talk amps. Obviously I'm interested in quality so in order to get good production I need a clean amp. I am mainly looking at Orion. What others can compete?

<small>[ June 12, 2002, 01:02 PM: Message edited by: blackhawk60 ]</small>

 

[underdog1924]

If you're looking for some nice sound quality amps I would reccomend Phoenix Gold Ti series, JL, Brax (if you have a large amount of $$$), a/d/s, and Xtant. While many think that JL's amps are overpriced, they are very, very high quality amps that put out very clean power. You really can't go wrong with any of those choices. Orion makes good equipment but I think there are other companies that make better for the same price.

 

[slickn56]

I love orion amps. If they werent so expensive they would be the only amp in my system. I have the orion xtr-400 for my subs and let me tell you this thing is way under rated. Well worth the money I paid for it...which wasnt much cause I got it off of Ubid at the time. But if you are looking for a good quality amp, dont expect it to be cheap.

Nick
89 Sho

 

[blackhawk60]

OK I am leaning towards the PP amps now. Anyone have the 6 chan version?

Also I listened to the 346 a/d/s today. BEAUTIFUL! For availability reasons I think I would go with these.

 

[thebigjimsho]

Yes the a/d/s/ 346 is very nice. I have the predecessor, the 336is.2 in my Accord. They sound great. You'll be happy.

 

[beeej55]

Ihave 2 JL audio D4's in an enclosed box made special for the speakers(all wood) with an alpine amp(V12). I run barely over half gain, with the box facing the trunk and MAN can I tell you...IT PUMPS my SHO nicely!!!!
I've always been a fan of Alpines amps(V12's especially) and also a fan of P.P.I. In my old Explorer I had the PPI Sonoma series of amps. The 600watt,the 300 and the 150. Running four JL audio 10's,two 8's,2 6.5 Boston acoustic seperates,2 6x9's pioneer and 2 pioneer 3.5's in the dash. I competed once for fun and hit 117dbs(not bad..hehe) Anyway the point is that alpines and the P.P.I. have always treated me very well. The other thing to remember when getting a system is not only the amp quality, but the wiring and things you put around it.The guys have given a good amount of very good grade options, the thing is to get good wire that a low gauge, have good connections, a block and (a really good to thing to have in ANY system) a capacitor. So good luck and keep us all updated on what you end up with.
Bryan

 

[underdog1924]

Those a/d/s components are VERY nice. I know a guy that has like 3 or 4 sets of them in his Hummer. It's the only speaker he'll use. How much are they at the place where you heard them? You can get them pretty cheap online with a warranty with a little searching and price matching.

 

[SHOstopper]

when you getting components you need to know what you are looking for do you want bassy componets or clear. what i mean is if you planning on getting subs there is no ponit to get bassy components no subs than get some components that hit. the best bassy components are by far Boston Acoustics JL are pretty i have heard polk and for the price you really cant go wrong. Infinity kappas and perfects series are very clear. here is what you do get a hold of rickie frat on the forum and get some MA Audio components and then pick up a nice 12 and your system will be fine

 

[blackhawk60]

The 346's were around $350 or so. But the 6 chan PPI amp was on sale for $750. I am looking for a clear sound with a solid mounted sub-box to resonate through the car rather than straight from the components. Is it worth the effort to find a decent set of rear coax's that would be powered by my Blau San Fran, or leave it empty?

 

[thebigjimsho]

I would strongly suggest the JL Audio 5 channel amp. It gives you a whopping 100 watts for each front component(the a/d/s/ will take it). It also gives you 25 watts for each rear. That will be just enough for rear fill. I believe the mono sub channel puts out 300 watts. And it runs cool. And it has a high damping factor. I do believe you can easily get them at almost any JL authorized dealer for $7-750!!! Check it out please.

 

[kaoticSHO]

Beware.....LONG POST......

ahhh, ADS...I used to own a couple of 320i, then 320is sets. that was a sweet sounding system. that was also in 80's.

Here are a couple of manufacturers that I have had in my car.

Dynaudio, built in Denmark I believe makes a real sounding speaker. sometimes their soft dome tweets are so low key that another set is required up on the a-pillar. Can handle tons of power, needs tons of power at least 200 a side, not very efficient.

Focal, makes some really good stuff as well. I disagree with the member that said their tweets sounded harsh. Of course, it is my ear I am using for reference. Try out their Audiom TLR and Audiom 6w. Very efficient speaker. They sound fine with 50 watts a side.

JL Audio, maker of the W7 and some surprisingly clean amps. I own a couple of sets of these speakers and to me they sound fantastic....with at least 750/1000 watts on each sealed.

Audison amplifiers, made in Italy, great power, small footprint. Kinda pricey. All kinds of options. Reminds me of Brax, yes, I have owned Brax before and it is very nice, however I like Audison better.

MB Quart, great sounding mid woofer in their top of the line setup.

Alpine F#1 status equipment. I have heard this setup beside a new piece from Denon, the Z1 and they were both very close. Great if your entire collection is Telarc, I do have some of their stuff but I also have a bunch of home-made mp3's so with that in mind I will stick with Eclipse and the 3 second buffer.

There is a bunch more that I could say, I have been into stereo stuff in the car since 1977. I used to compete in "George Reed's Thunder On Wheels" back when Rockford Fosgate was king. I have learned one thing from all those years. You buy what sounds good to you, not what others are impressed with. Just because someone wins with a certain product at a competition doesn't mean anything about the product that the consumer can go out and buy at the retail level. Most of my competitors had amps given to them and "re-worked" at the factory to make more power at a pre-determined level.

happy listening

<small>[ June 21, 2002, 01:21 PM: Message edited by: kaoticSHO ]</small>

 

[thebigjimsho]

kaoticSHO:
ahhh, ADS...I used to own a couple of 320i, then 320is sets. that was a sweet sounding system. that was also in 80's.

Hahem, kaotic, you sound old!! j/k. Like you said, go with what sounds good to you. I like a/d/s/, I believe they are some of the smoothest sounding speakers you can buy. The mids are smooth and the tweets, I love. I love soft dome tweeters, but I am still anxious to hear the Focal Audiom TLR!! I just wish they kept the fiberglass tweets like in the old Mistral line.