Nate,

Some people are going to say "told you so". I thought PJK3 gave you a nice reality check on this system.

As I said when you were installing this system, if you want volume with the top down, you've got to get speakers closer to your ears. That's why I recommended you going with an amp to drive 4 channels rather than 2. If you get the S-Pods, you'll find that you can power them a LOT less than you might think and still get very nice mids and highs.

I figured the Clarion would be ok. Most quality head units would be ok. 4 volts out of the head unit is just fine. In fact, it's probably the least of your problems.

There is no way I'd go with a ported sub if I wanted tight bass. The suspension in the sub will loosen up (surprised they didn't burn it in for you) and it will get lounder, but not tighter. This is one reason the Eclipse (and new MTX, and Resonant XXX, and Adire Brahma) are as popular as they are. They can still give tight bass in a ported enclosure. Install a good sub, or seal that puppy.

Make them take that damn Memphis back and get an amp. Maybe two like we talked about in the beginning. As NFR said, a 150x4@4ohms, and then something to properly drive that sub. Now that it'll be sealed, it'll need even more juice to get loud. That JL 500/1 or the MMats or whatever. Probably something class D to keep it small and running cool.

The rattle is not surprising at all. Very few installations I have ever seen where SQ is important, didn't start with sound deadener. Maybe you can just get away with doing the trunk.

In any event, I think the rear speaks will handle your volume issue, and I think the sealed encllosure will take care of the sloppy bass notes.

As the other guys have said, and I've avoided saying to allow benefit of doubt, these guys don't seem all that sharp. I'd be looking for another shop to be honest. Never in my life have I seen a shop recommend a ported enclosure to someone looking for clean and tight bass. They are practically polar opposites. This notwithstanding their apparent lack of knowledge on the stuff the other guys picked up on.

I wish you the best of luck with this setup and I hope they make things right for you like they promised. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

 

I have a sub in my car eating about 420RMS....and I have no soundproofing of any kind, and I do not have one rattle in my trunk. However, I did install it myself, and lined the entire trunk with home depot foam insulator (big sheet of pink foam)

 

Just a couple of things here too:

1. If you want Quart sound, buy Quarts. No shame in that. If that's what you like and expect, have at it. It's your money.

2. Where have you heard this before?

3. Bingo

4. Everyone on this thread suggested either Alpine or Eclipse. Now you know why.

5. Number one reason not to spend money with a shop.

6. Wasting time is one thing (and your loss). Them doing a system you didn't ask for shouldn't cost you any money. Make them fix it, or rip it out and return the car to original.

7. Have you heard this somewhere before?



[QUOTE]Originally posted by natedoggs2k
AWESOME FEEDBACK!

Thanks.

1.

 

Thanks SCoach.

I need to do just that. Either a seperate amp for mids/highs (150x2) and one on bass (500x1) or a nice 150x4 amp to power the whole thing and not take up too much room.

You're right, the Clarion HU is the least of my problems and probably the only thing that is "right" according to the setup. I need to upgrade the Focals, Amp and Sub the most!

I've "told them so" at the shop as well.

I tried to trust them and give them the benefit of the doubt. And I proved them wrong. All of this could have been prevented if they had listened to what I wanted.

I'm tempted to have them take everything out and go elsewhere.

But I will see what they will do for me now that they know I'm not pleased. I'll give them a chance to make up for it, but if not, I will take my business elsewhere.

I'm not upset because I paid a little more buying stuff from an authorized dealer. Yes, I could have saved money buying things online, but I wanted the warranties, etc.

I am upset because they never listened to what I wanted. They only wanted to do what they thought would be best.

So, we'll see about fixing things now.

They can get it right, or I'll get my money back and go elsewhere. :anger:

 

Or else just go with what we discussed. 10 times better than what those fools are shoving down your throat. And they may be redoing it for "free"....to me, time is money, and the fact that you have to bring you bar back, again....is enough loss for me.

 

ok, guys, well I was with nate when he had pickded up his car. these are some of the observations I picked up, and compared them to my own system which is still in the building stages.
the workmanship of the install was great, I must say it looks very clean and professional. As far as his sound, it didn't sound all that bad, but for his expectations and how much he spent (no offense nate) but I think you can get better stuff for the money spent.

front speakers..Lets start off his front speakers, he and I both agree they need to be upgraded. As much power as he wants, I am comparing my boston pros, against his and I can say mine are louder and can hold more power, if he upgrades he should be fine. I personally think he should stick with mq quartz because he always refers to them.

rear speakers..I believe rear speakers are a must, nothing fancy but it will make the sound fuller.

trunk..his rear trunk does in fact rattle, I was checking where it was coming from, the lisence plate wasn't all that bad, but the actual lid shook enuff to rip the welds off lol. A good dynomatt should fix some of the problems.

Box.. Again I agree with the others and you, a sealed box is what you need, not sure why they gave you a ported. But you have listened to mine and given its not as clean due to the sub I am running, but it isn't as ratty.

Amps.. I agree to do the 2 smaller amps for cleaner sound. 1 4ch and 1 mono. It made a big difference in my car when I added that second kicker amp. Jl makes some good amps if you ask me.

Deck... as others said the deck isn't a bad choice, however i am partial to eclipse because that is what I have, and the sound is just amazing. Given you loose some features for the time being, but in the long run you maybe happy. thats a personal preference.

Sub.. I liked it period. lol


in general you have a pretty clean system but just need that extra umph. I really wonder if they will make a new box sealed? That is a lot of work to redo.

 

Trunk rattles because the enclosure isnt right. He probably has what I like to call "ghetto bass leftovers"...meaning, long after the bass note is over, the sub is still humming.....Nice tight bass shouldnt have rattle issues, epecially the fact that his sub has a good bit less power than mine.

Next, many of us here have different opinions on rears.....

For the time being, he should concentrate on getting the front to 100% If he is still not happy, then rears time.

125wrms in the doors, and the sub done right, would be a very very loud system in a car as small as an s2k. The shop just set it up very very wrong. There is no arguement here.

There is no real need of 2 seperate amps. A good 4 channel powerful amp is sufficient.

 

well the reason i said for 2 amps is that if he decides to get rears then it would be good to use the 4 ch for the interior and a deticated mono for the sub. I have always used a similar setup was content. Its just personal preference like you say. I am sure a good 4 channel should work out as well.

 

Im saying, for now, a 4 channel is more than enough. If he needs rears, then he can get a mono amp for the sub, and use the 4 channel for the speakers.

 

Well, they will tune it for me tomorrow morning. Right now, the crossovers are set flat on the mids and highs, thus not giving me the "brightness" that the MB Quarts usually give.

I am thinking of getting the same Eclipse HU that you have (8343 or 8443?). Being an 8-volt unit will make a difference as well (compared to the Clarion's 4 volt). Also, I've found that the small buttons and hard-to-read display are a problem with the Clarion. So I will most likely upgrade. My last system had an 8volt Eclipse HU, and it worked great.

They keep saying that going to the KP's won't make the sound better because of the way it's set up in the S2K. Still, they said that if I'm not satisfied after they tune the amp/crossovers, I can go ahead and go to the KP's. But my friend says that the quality won't be as good as what I have now.

As for the sub, my friend says that he can and will build me a sealed enclosure if that's what I want. But he said that it will sound worse and not give me the bass or volume I want. I don't understand why, as everyone on here has a sealed enclosure and seems to be getting tighter, cleaner bass while putting moderate power on the sub (300-500w). He said to at least give the sub more time to break in because the TREO subs actually get tighter and better as they break in. He said they are different from other subs for that reason.

I could go with rear speakers with my current set up. Instead of bridging all four channels to my mids/highs, I could easily run 2 channels on the Focals and 2 channels on a pair of speakers for rear fill. So that is an option.

As for amps, they said that if I go to a two-amp system, I'll basically have what I have no, only it will take more room and more wire. But as for power and quality, it would be a small difference if I did 150x2 on mids/highs and 500x1 on bass.

Of course, I can always upgrade to the bigger Memphis Baby Belle and have a 75x4 @ 4 ohm and 1000wx1 on bass. But that would also mean more money to make the upgrade.

I'm not disappointed with the Memphis. I'm actually impressed with it's small size and quality of sound and power.

I know it needs some tweaking to get me the volume and clarity I want all in one, so I will let them do that tomorrow.

In the meantime, I'll move up to the Eclipse HU and let them tune it. I can always do rear fill speakers if I wish. And I will give the sub more time to "break in" so I can see if it does get better. If not, they will rebuild a sealed enclosure.