ummm....

 

Pikkashoe,

Can you reccomend a 500 watt rms sub that is of equal or greater than ID quality? And a 500 Watt amp to go along with it.

And I'm not willing to compromise my spare tire for anything, not even to hide my amps, I will find a way to hide them later I guess.

And rims? Eh.. I dunno, I'm going to leave the outside of my car alone, no more of that.. I wont even lower my car.. I'm not opening up that can of worms.. one thing always lead to another. The audio thing is already sucking up alot of money, that's like 2 paychecks already just for my system.

The sub is probably the easiest of the whole thing, I'm mainly concerned with the mids/highs right now, Do you guys have any comments on Morels, or DLS, CDTs?


Darknight,

Ummm... what? I was saying that I can't stand how my friend keeps talking about his stuff like it's the best in the world or something, if anything I see it as a mid-end if not low-end level system. And the Audiobahn comment, I'm just biased because I've heard so many crappy subs by this company, I'm sure their high end stuff is fine, but everything else they make is just garbage. IMO.

 

Focals new flagship line are the new Utopia Be. with retail prices ranging from $1,600-$4,000, i do not think Beryllium tweeters and huge crossovers justify the price. i believe they are currently not available at this moment.

What Focal actually did with the polykevlar series is, actually making it the current utopia stuff. basically, they did a transition where polykevlar became the current utopia, and the new Utopia Be in a class of its own.

All the new Polykevlar drivers use the "W" sandwich cone but kept the cone yellow so they can keep the Polykevlar name. if you pay close attention to the tweeter that comes with the 165K2P set, it is a TN-51 coated with tioxid for a smoother response, therefore, you get the TN-52 name. the current Focal 165K2P is suppose to be better than the 165W because it has a smoother response from 50hz-20khz with the tioxid coating.

So when some of you say that the Utopia is the best from focal, the 165k2p Polykevlar is actually the best 2-way component set Focal offers, at this particular moment. if you do not believe me, call ORCA yourselves and ask . ask for jesse or larry.

Did i mention that i used to have 165K2P as well? in my opinion, they were awesome until i heard the SEAS Lotus.

Utpoia's put out a good amount of bass, i agree with you on that, but it is somewhat sloppy when compared to the Reference driver. the Reference is snappy the way it should be. when it comes to midbass, you want it to snap. if you compare the Utopia to the Reference just on kick drums, there is a notable difference. you do not want a driver that plays like a sub to reproduce kick drum bass.

 

Mr ASDF

I do recall calling Focal a couple months ago asking questions, and the tech was telling me about the new line, and how it was going to cost $3000 for the set. I guess they are already out or just around the corner, in my opinion $3000 for a set of speakers is just too crazy for me. If you got that kind of money, you would not be driving an S2000.

I remember asking the tech which line was better, the Poly or Focal and he explained exactly what you are saying, but he said the Utopia's where still considered their reference series until the new $3000 one's came out. For someone like me who is not an expert audiophile, I wont be able to tell the difference in sound quality and smoothness between the two lines, so I just went with their reference line. I called directly to Focal and spoke to one of their engineer/techs, as I wanted to justify and make sure my $600 purchase would be exactly what I wanted.

I have been researching that SEAS Lotus line, and i really like what I see. I would love to hear them in person, but down here in MIami we dont have any really high end shops. I understand what you are saying about the midbass, I dont think its sloppy, but I have nothing to compare it to. Overall I am extremely satisfied with my Utopia's.

 

BAO,

The only driver I can recommend would be that one that was recommended to me which I currently have. Its the Alphasonik PSW 810, 10 inch DVC sub. I went thru a couple subs before I finally settled on this one.

Its a great sub, very clear and has great Sound Quality and is very very tight. Not that sloppy Kicker Solobaric bass I had before. I have exactly 500 watts going to my sub right now, and its perfect.


NFRs2000NYC is the sub expert, hopefully he will chime in here with more info on this sub and some of his other favorites and also to compare them to the ID you have.
PAS2KNUT also is running the Alphasonik and he loves it, he is the one who really got me interested in it.

www.alphasonik.com/800subs.htm

Rims was just a suggestion, I am the same way as you, I like the look of my car right now, and I just dont want to deal with the headaches associated with lowering a car, dealt with it enough in the past.

Components, I would say stick to the Utopia's or check out the SEAS Lotus line.
Infiniti perfects are also great if you want to save some money.

Anyone else have any comments on those Lotus components? Curious to see what other people have to say!

 

I did some research on the speaker specs and according to the specs they should sound nice, but i haven't heard them myself... yet They have a nice design to the basket and terminals(screw type )

 

Pikkashoe,

I will check out Alphasonik, I'm kinda loyal to Image Dynamics though, I'm gonna try to find a way to compare the sub you recommended with an IDQ, see which I like more.

And I feel you all the way on the dealing with the past lowered cars thing, I used to have a prelude, it was 2.25 dropped on with a ful wingswest rs lip kit, and i just cant do that anymore, I like the way my car handles, it's already better than the prelude could ever dream to handle.. in it's stock form. I dont have a problem with the S2K looking all stock.. less perceptable to thieves I hope.

I dont know about the mids anymore, starting to give me a headache, what do you guys think of Boston Pro, Z6?

I used to have Inifity Perfects, tweeters were too harsh for my ears.

 

I'm very happy with my Z6s and auditioned several makes and models before settling on them.

Above all, my advice would be to listen in person to the sets you're considering and make sure the quality of the install matches the quality of whatever speakers you decide on.

 

Dierk said it best, let your own ears tell you whats best for you.

I had a 2001 Mustang GT , dropped with coil overs and camber plates and the works and it was the biggest pain, never again. Just like you said, I spent tons of money on my last car just to get it handle like a freaking decent car, and the S comes stock handling like an F1 car, 30 thousand times better than my last car. Have to say though, it was very fast and fun. =) Good old days of ford (fix or repair daily).

Only thing I have done to my S is the sound system, and I have a PRM INTAKE and Fujitsubo exhaust en route. Cant wait for that.

I felt the same way about choosing my sub, I started getting a headache and discouraged. When I looked at components, it was easy, I went looking for the best, and In my eyes and in my situation I think I found them. Tough part was getting myself to accept paying $600 for components, but thats a totally different story.

I wishNFRs2000NYC would chime in here regarding the subwoofer suggestion.

 

I also have the Alphasonik PSW810 and am really happy with it. I built my own designed custom enclosure that sounds fantastic. I have very tight clear bass with no rattles. I have the 04 rear spoiler that likes to dance! I also built one for natedoggs2k on the board. He had a setup done by a shop that he was not happy with. He now is also running the Alpha and could not be happier with the results. I don't think you will be dissatisfied with the Alpha if you go that route.