Newbie here! best head unit for iPod???

 

New member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 2
Registered: Jul-06
hello!!! i'm a beginner when it comes to car audio set-up... need all the help i can get... which is best head unit for iPod? does it give good SQ? i'm just using a mini so no video required... i just want the most reasonable head unit there is... also need help in choosing subs, seps, and amps for my car... which are the best brands and models that give value for money... working on a $700-$900 budget... is that enough? it should include labor, wirings, and sub box already... is this possible? and still get good SQ and loudness? i'm looking for something in between clarity and noise... i have a wide range of music... from classics, love songs-jazz,R&B- hip-hop, rap- house, techno- alternative, rock... i listen to almost anything...

what should i get???

like i said, i need all the help i can get...

thanks soo much!!!
 

Bronze Member
Username: Do_em_dirty816

Kansas City, MO USA

Post Number: 86
Registered: Jan-06
personally i like infinty kappa for sq subs but they might not get as loud as you want mine are perfect.....how many are you wanting
 

New member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 8
Registered: Jul-06
maybe just 1x12" would be enough... getting 2 would be more expensive right? and i should also get a bigger amp? so that would translate to more expenses...

can anyone help me arrange my set-up that would fit my budget... i know there's a lot but i really need your ideas since i'm really new with this...

thanks!!!
 

Silver Member
Username: Dkchillin

Vermont

Post Number: 178
Registered: Mar-05
In terms of best HU for iPods, there's really not much difference in the newer name brand units other than a few differences in how they're interfaced. I just wrote a long winded thing in response to another post that talks about Alpine and Pioneer iPod hookup, go here and check that out if you want. In general, I like Pioneer, Alpine and Eclipse HUs, in that order.

A $700-$900 system can certainly be done, but keep in mind that all the stuff you mention at the end there "labor, wirings, and sub box" will probably run you in the area of $150-$250 depending on where you go and what you get. Also keep in mind that if you have it installed at a major outlet, the price will be cheaper but your install may not be as complete or reliable. If you do have it done at Bestbuy or Ciruit City, keep in mind that Bestbuy requires their installers to be certified, CC does not.

Some basic thoughts on head units and subs can be found here. There are a few posts I made in that thread in response to someone looking to build a $500 system, but most of it holds true for your budget as well. On a small budget I generally reccomend a single sub setup, but you could get away with a pair of lower to mid-range subs.

By "seps" I'm guessing you mean component speakers. It would be helpful to know what size you'll want/need so what kind of car you have could be useful and the stock speaker sizes if you know them. In general, I like Polk, Boston Acoustic and Alpine at the mid-range price point. You'll hear a lot about Infinity and while they are nice speakers in terms of quality, I've just never been a fan of their sound but I would definately reccomend getting out and listening to as many speakers as you can. When it comes to comps, the best thing you can do is contrast and compare.

Your amp will depend a lot on what sub/subs and speakers you want to run and of all the equipment I think there are more differing opinions on amps than anything else so start with the other equpiment first. At least that's what I would do.
 

New member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 10
Registered: Jul-06
wow thanks!!!

well a friend also suggested using FOCAL speakers... it's more expensive but he assured me that i will get good value for it... real good SQ... i know boston acoustics is a good brand... polk and alpine is ok... can u suggest good brand & models so i can search the net for it's specs?

also, i'm caught between getting an alpine HU against a pioneer HU... any comments or suggestions? someone suggested to me that i should just get the pioneer deh6800... how about for alpine? pioneer premiere? what's nice and has good value?

how about my subs? someone also suggested that i get the kicker cvr12 2-ohm... any comments on this unit? any alternatives or better offers? someone suggested me to get audiobahn aw121t but i guess the kickers are better... i plan to get 1 sub set-up only...

comes down to which amp to get... someone is offering me pioneer prs-x340 for almost $200... it has been used that's why it's cheaper... is this any good? i have read a lot about overpowering... that i should get a bigger amp even if i have small subs to make sure it can handle extremes...

so now, if i get these:

head unit=pioneer deh6800?
speakers=boston?
subs=kicker?
amp=pioneer prs-x340?

now what??? :-) hehehe!!!

i'm open to changes specially if i get good quality with much cheaper price...

thanks sooooo much!!!
 

Bronze Member
Username: Mrsq

California

Post Number: 97
Registered: May-06
ok please lets focus on hu topics, because this is a hu forum, any hu that has ipod ready will work fine but i really prefer pioneer because their high end hu will take full control of the ipod browsing which means once its hooked up you just control it through your hu rotary commander, if your budget is 700, thats good amount for a good hu and pair of nice speakers and subs by the way.
 

Silver Member
Username: Dkchillin

Vermont

Post Number: 184
Registered: Mar-05
Again, it would help to know what size components you were looking to get (5.25 or 6.5) but I'm going to assume 6.5's. You'll definitely love the sound of Focal speakers, but I'll tell you right now that you'll probably spend a third of your entire budget on a nice set of Focal comps. If that's what you want to do then great, but you're probably going to have to make sacrifices in other areas of your system if you want to stay on budget. For cheaper alternatives you may want to check out the Boston SX60s or the Polk db6500s. I'll grant you that a set of Focal comps would be great if you can find a deal, and you may be able to track down a decent price on the Focal 165A1 comp set. It's up to you, just make sure you get out and listen to the different speakers if you can. In the end it comes down to what sounds best to you.

I'm a Pioneer guy myself but I know plenty of big Alpine fans. A couple of things with Pioneer decks though. First, if you can find the Premiere version of whatever deck you're thinking about it'll generally have higher preamp voltage which is always a plus. Also, make sure you track down the deck at a store and test out the controls. I almost picked up the 6800 myself but hated the commander knob and stepped down to the 5800 which has most of the same features, just personal preference, but it's important since you'll be dealing with it every day. I know some people really like the commander knob for controlling the iPod because it's similar to the click-wheel on the iPod itself. I personally like using the iPod itself for control, but again, that's just me. Alpine and Pioneer are pretty much on par in my opinion, I've just always used Pioneer products.

I've never been a fan of Kicker, and that's just me. Again, it comes down to preference and my own experiences. I'll take an Alpine Type R any day of the week over a cvr, but you may like the spl of it over the more sq oriented type R. Either way, if you're going to go with a single sub, I'd recommend getting a 4ohm dual voice coil version unless you plan on running a 1 ohm stable amp which is harder to find and generally more expensive. Not sure if I linked it before, but here is a page that will let you enter your number of subs and ohm and voice coil configuration and tell you what ohm loads you can wire it to. A DVC (dual voice coil) 4 ohm sub can be wired down to present a 2 ohm load to your amp and will be more economical to power, again unless you can find a cheap 1 ohm stable amp, in which case a 2 ohm sub would work well for you since you can wire it down to present a 1 ohm load.

In terms of that amp, I couldn't find much info on it and I think that's probably because it isn't offered here in the states, but I got most of the specs from this site and it looks like that's a 4 channel amp. Usually I like to stick with mono amps when powering a sub. THat amp would be great for your speakers if you wanted to go that route, and you COULD most likely use it to run your sub, but I'm not up on my wiring enough to try and walk you through how you'd do it. I would think you could bridge it down to 2 channels and run one channel to each voice coil, feeding them each 150W RMS if you got the 4 ohm version of a dual voice coil sub. But don't quote me on any of that because I could easily be way off base. I would say it might be in your best interest to seek out a different amp for your sub, but definitely decide which sub you want first and what ohm load you want to run it at. That would be a great speaker amp though, like I said.

As far as overpowering goes, it's not a bad idea to have a little room at the top, but you don't want to go more than maybe 100W over the RMS of the sub, at least in my opinion.

Hope some of that is helpful.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 13
Registered: Jul-06
wow this is a lot of help for a beginner like me... now i just need to figure out what u mean... hehehe!!! i'm not used to these terms yet nor am i equipped with knowledge of set-up, wirings, ratios, and etc... i can see i have a lot to learn... long way to go... i just wna make things right and SAFE... simplest possible set-up but would be good enough for many...

i agree when guys say i need to go around and listen to end users or find HU in malls to see what i really want... i'm just starting to get the feel of things... just want to know how experienced guys think...

here, i've listened to older, more experienced people, or veterans and see their reasons and points... but they don't listen to the same type of music i listen to... that should be a big problem right? hehehe!!! i have a wide range of music that i listen to... from classic, soft or mellow to techno, rock, hip-hop... i listen to almost everything... a lot of unplugged/acoustics in between... that's why i also need good SQ with a good bass for loud music i play...

i know i'm not the only one having this kind of problem, but when your in this position, u just have to open your mind to all possibilities... i have to admit, i'm having a difficult time trying to fit everything all at once in my head... but at the same time i've already learned a lot...

so here goes, i might just get a pioneer head unit and will just decide which model to get...

for speakers, BA is a good brand... i have heard a lot of good things with it... but i'll try to bet a good deal with the focal first...

subs, i guess down to 2 choices? the alpine against the kicker? any more suggestions?

amp, still looking but agree that i have to find speakers first before decide what to get...

like the saying goes, "knowing is half the battle", so i guess i just want to know as much as i can before going into it... good thing i'm in no rush... but it won't hurt having all this in mind already...

again, thanks for the comments... and keep it coming!!! :-)

any suggestions for my set-up? what should it be and how it should be done?
 

Bronze Member
Username: Mrsq

California

Post Number: 100
Registered: May-06
are you in pinas or u.s.? want to know so i can tell you the spot to get them
 

Silver Member
Username: Mrsq

California

Post Number: 102
Registered: May-06
im serious about what im gona suggest to you i know alot of people are gona go against this, try jvc new exad hu series, they have been forgotten for quite awhile now, trust me japan victor company has done a superior sound to it, im not a big fan of it but i think its better then the other high end hu, sige pare just reply na lang
 

Bronze Member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 16
Registered: Jul-06
yup i'm in pinas! u from here too?
 

Bronze Member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 18
Registered: Jul-06
any more suggestions? thanks!!!
 

Silver Member
Username: Mrsq

California

Post Number: 106
Registered: May-06
no im at u.s. but my friends usually get their audios at banaue manila, by the way did you decide yet on your hu, basta pre make sure it has 24 dac then your set
 

Silver Member
Username: Delsole

Post Number: 412
Registered: Feb-05
check out aa subs really cheap and no one will give them a bad name
 

Silver Member
Username: Delsole

Post Number: 413
Registered: Feb-05
http://www.ascendantaudio.com/index.html
 

Silver Member
Username: Stnorris

Eldridge, IA US

Post Number: 589
Registered: Apr-06
j lee. if your going for a 1 sub setup, thats not too expensive, and your also getting an hu, box, wiring with ur budget, i would look at getting 1 12 kicker cvr, and a phoenix gold 400.1, off of ebay. you can get both of these for about 240 i think.
 

Silver Member
Username: Stnorris

Eldridge, IA US

Post Number: 590
Registered: Apr-06
u can also look at assassins, they are about the same price as kickercvrs, but they will give you more sq.

http://www.ascendantaudio.com/
 

Bronze Member
Username: Twinkleph

Philippines

Post Number: 21
Registered: Jul-06
still planning on what to do... so much to consider... need all the help i can get... thanks!!!
 

Silver Member
Username: Mrsq

California

Post Number: 115
Registered: May-06
my recommend, 2006 kd-sh1000 jvc head unit,jbl gt0606c 6.5 component speaker set, two sw12w subwoofer by swiss audio 400watts rms each, phoenix gold x600.1 mono amp because this amp is 600 watts rms at any ohm from 1ohms to 4ohm but since the subs are single voice coil per each i would set it at 2ohms mono and they will bump good trust me, your totall should be $476.24
 

Silver Member
Username: Mrsq

California

Post Number: 116
Registered: May-06
oops forgot to add the amp price, $180, so your total for all around system is $656.24
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