|
New member Username: CrusadePost Number: 1 Registered: Jun-13 | So after buying a secondhand car ('94 Mitsubishi Magna I think)I noticed the rear speakers the previous owner had fitted were pretty ruined. cracked cones and whatnot. They were 450w clarions So I went out and got a pair of 400W xplods, installed them and a new head unit a friend had given me. Now they do sound great, but at higher volumes they lose bass. I have noticed that if I change the balance so only one side is playing the bass is spectacular. Have I done something wrong? Can't the head unit power the speakers properly? |
|
Gold Member Username: Joe1234Post Number: 1831 Registered: May-09 | It's bad when you can't tell what car you just purchased but anyways check polarity of the connections to the speakers. Also for any car speaker to sound great you need to go with an amp. |
|
Gold Member Username: Kpa2727Old Bridge, NJ USA ! Post Number: 1647 Registered: May-07 | That's not true Joe, Your problem could be many things. Sony is not known for quality could be a bad polarity or the head units clipping causeing you to distort them causeing them to cut out. |
|
New member Username: CrusadePost Number: 2 Registered: Jun-13 | The speakers are fine, when balanced to either side the bass is crisp and clear, no distortion. I'll invest in an amp and sub for low end bass. |
|
Platinum Member Username: GlasswolfColumbia, South Carolina America Post Number: 14862 Registered: Dec-03 | First off, Sony is one of the worst car audio brands on the market, but that aside, a head unit only puts out about 10-12 watts per channel of clean power, so when you're turning up the radio, you're putting out a lot of distortion, and not much power, and you need power to get low frequency response at audible levels, so your solution is simple. You need a dedicated amplifier for the speakers in your car. I'd recommend you go with a 4 channel amp rated for around 35-50 watts per channel RMS (not peak, or max, or any of that nonsense) and use that for the front and rear speakers. After that if you still want more low wne, look into adding a separate self-amplified subwoofer, or a sub or subs, and a dedicated amp for the sub(s) |
|
Gold Member Username: Joe1234Post Number: 1846 Registered: May-09 | Get a 5 channel amplifier and a sub, that way you have all your amp needs in one device. I am assuming that you just want a simple good sounding system. Something like this: http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_67855_MB-Quart-OA1100.5.html By itself it can take care of 4 speakers and a sub. |
|
Gold Member Username: Joe1234Post Number: 1847 Registered: May-09 | Or even this on if you are really on the cheaps: http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_24210_Precision-Power-PPI-S580.5.html |
|
Platinum Member Username: GlasswolfColumbia, South Carolina America Post Number: 14865 Registered: Dec-03 | I'm not a fan of 5 channel hybrid amplifiers. They never supply enough power to the subwoofer, and don't allow you to upgrade just the sub amp or just the amp for the door speakers, without making the amplifier you already bought partially useless. It was a ncie idea, but usually only good for upgrading a factory radio to something barely better than factory when the OEM radio fails. |
|
Platinum Member Username: GlasswolfColumbia, South Carolina America Post Number: 14866 Registered: Dec-03 | PS, don't ever buy an amp that only rates it's power in peak or max ratings, and refuses to print it's RMS specs, like that MB Quart linked above. |
|
Gold Member Username: Joe1234Post Number: 1851 Registered: May-09 | Sonic messed up, the OA1100.5 is rated 1100W RMS @ 2 ohm (150Wx4 + 500), MBQ rates RMS. |
|
Platinum Member Username: GlasswolfColumbia, South Carolina America Post Number: 14869 Registered: Dec-03 | That did seem a little odd for MB Quart, who typically makes quality gear. Had me scratching my head a bit, but I'd just seen another post about an amp that also had NO details on usable specs, even with a google search, so I didn't really look into it. Still, as a caveat emptor, do make sure you, as a buyer, can always find the RMS rated power for an amplifier. Otherwise, you'll never have an accurate idea of the power the amp is really producing. |