I am getting my car stereo "reinstalled" on Tuesday because the last shop made a mess of it by doing a "speedwire" install among other things. I want to pay the money and get the job done right. I am buying some of the parts myself (interconnects, speaker wire, distribution blocks, etc.) and then having Mobile Concept in Chicago do the installation (who impressed me when I walked into their shop the other day). I was just wondering about your opinion on a few of the parts I am considering.
First off, here is the gear I already have:
HEAD UNIT: - Alpine CDA9835 CD/MP3
FRONT STAGE: - Focal Utopia 165W Components - PPI Ax400 (to biamplify the Focals) (4 channels at 50W per channel)
REAR STAGE: - RE-XXX 6.5" Midbasses - US Amp 400x
SUB: - Image Dynamics IDQ12 Dual 2-ohm hooked in parallel - Orion HCCA 225 G4 (will see a 1-ohm load and put out 400W)
SOUND DEADENING: - Brown Bread is dampening all doors, but I am not sure how well the other shop did this. It is probably sloppy and needs to be redone
Here are some of the parts I am considering for an installation in a 1999 VW Passat:
- (3) Stinger Bullet SBT17 Interconnects - (36 ft) Stinger High Performance (HPM) Twisted speaker wire in Blue - (36 ft) Stinger High Performance (HPM) Twisted speaker wire in Purple - (1) Stinger SF4 Crossflow fan for the Orion Amp - (2 or more?) Stinger Distribution Block
Some Questions:
1.) Do you think that the Crossflow fan for the Orion HCCA will be necessary, or is it overkill? Although the amp is stable at 0.5 ohms, I know that it does run pretty hot at 1-ohm. If the fan is a good idea, which model of fan best suits my purpose?
2.) How many power distribution blocks am I going to need in this setup? I know that the US Amps 400x is a little different in that it needs two positive and two negative 8 ga power wires. Is there a Stinger part number for a distribution black that could split the power to all of my amps? Maybe if I got two SDB3PT's, one for the positive, and one for the negative? It's description is that it "offers a 1/0 or 4ga input and two 4ga and three 8ga outputs". See attached photo.
3.) Is there another distribution block that you would recommend? I already have the 4 ga power wire running to the trunk.
4.) Without getting a new alternator, is there a way to prevent the car's lights from dimming? Is this what a capacitor is for, or is that more of a marketing gimmick?
nice choice on equipment. those focal utopias sound awesome. i got rid of the xover that came with it and running it off the audiocontrol 6xs xover. it sounds so much better that way.
A Capacitor is more of a gimmick, it does help, well actually masks the problem. If your charging system can't keep up, I suggest another battery, or high output alt, but before you go that route makes sure you do or did the Big 3. A capacitor puts more strain on the charging system b/c the alt has to charge that, plus your normal acc. Well, i'm sure someone will have a better answer for you than me
