System Finalized, Getting Installed Tomorrow
 

Hey guys. I have finalized my choices for speakers and amp and will be getting them installed tomorrow. Here's the lineup:

Alpine MRV - T420 (110W x 2)
Kicker RS6C Component Speakers (6 1/2 mids + dome tweets)

Any final thoughts before I do the deed? :LOL:

nope.

glad to see you looking into head units though. (crosses fingers) ;)

Can't say he didn't give his choices some thought. ;)

You guys are killing me. Thanks to all of you in the forum for all the guidence. I've learned a lot. I'm convinced that I'll be adding an aftermarket HU with in a few months, but these were the priorities for now.

i'll say that again for you... ;) :p :LOL:

It's always good to do your research first. :-)

You will like the 6.5" Kicker components.

I put the 5.25's in my doors and am very pleased. The 5.25's actually fit in the stock baskets with no modifications or adapters.

If it's the same installer you've been talking about lately then don't forget this:

Upgrade

J/k :LOL:

Good luck!

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mas
[B]

If it's the same installer you've been talking about lately then don't forget this:

Upgrade

So what happened!?

:what: :what: :what: :what:

I don't pick it up until Friday night. Long story, I live in NYC and this guy is in NJ and I have plans tonight, so I'm picking it up tomorrow. dropped it off last night and he is doing the install today. I hope it sounds as good as I'm expecting. If not, we'll all be talking head units soon :-)

*crosses fingers*

let us know how it goes...

Just got a call from the installer. HUGE change of plans.

The Kicker compnents that fit in the door are 5 1/4", not the 6 1/2 so I am going with those so we can use the stock mounts. He also said there is a perfect spot for the crossovers and he wonders if Honda put them there on purpose. He suggested (now that he has the car to look at) a different amplifier. I am now getting the Alpine MRP-F240, which it a 40x4 but puts out 100x2 at 4Ohms when bridged. This amp fits under the driver's seat without affecting seat mobility :-)
Also, the price comes in $100 lower with these new parts. Comments?

William did mention that the 5.25's dropped in w/o modifications... with a smaller set of midbass speakers (5.25 vs 6.5), you're going to probably want that sub sooner than you realize. the 6.5's should fit into the doors, but you'll probably have to have them make a spacer/adapter (an MDF spacer should work). if you plan to do a sub soon, the 5.25's should be fine, if you don't plan to do a sub, i'd consider sticking w/ the 6.5's.

the new Alpine amp doesn't appear to be a slouch, but it isn't the same caliber amp that the other is... still, all things considered, it probably isn't a bad choice for you. i'm not terribly familiar with the Alpine line (especially the non V-12 series), so i can't really tell you anything regarding sound quality. Alpine amps are typically good equipment though... i'm surprised to hear that it will fit under the seat though...

[QUOTE]Originally posted by PJK3
[B]William did mention that the 5.25's dropped in w/o modifications...

Didn't you alreday purchase the lucid speaker adapter? Even if not, the installer should be able to make a spacer (or use a $10 generic one ) and install the 6 1/2s. For this car, I'd strongly suggest you go with a 6.5.

He did say that he could make an adapter without a problem, but I opted for the smaller speakers.

(note - i edited my other response above)

well, that leaves the space in the spare tire open for a sub amp. :thumbup:

and William's boxes are pretty non-intrusive to trunk space... i'm using one, and if you click on his sig above, you can check out his site for more info... he's also pretty flexible on getting various subs at good prices... for your system, a kicker solobaric 8" L5 or L7 would possibly be a good cost effective match... check with William, as i'm sure he'll have some good suggestions.

Assuming I went for one of these puppies, what kind of amps should I be looking at to power an 8"?

depending on how long ago you talked to him...

i'd also encourage you to go w/ the 6.5's. this car loses a LOT of sound to the wind when the top is down... you're going to need all that you can get... and the 6.5's will give you noticably more bass. if you're saving money on this install, this isn't the place to do it...

[QUOTE]Originally posted by PJK3
[B]

depending on how long ago you talked to him...

i'd also encourage you to go w/ the 6.5's.

something on the order of 300Wrms or so per sub (L5 has a max of 300Wrms, and the L7 has a max of 450Wrms), with some nice handy crossover options built in. given your locations, budget, and the tastes you've expressed - i'd look mainly at class D type mono subwoofer amps.

depending on whether you intend to do 1 or 2 subs, it will change your wattage and voice coil options...

in a 1 sub orientation, i'd probably suggest something on the order of 1 L7 w/ a 4 ohm DVC setup in parallel (total 2 ohm load) and a Kicker KX 400.1, which would pump about 400Wrms into a single 8" L7

if you wanted a 2 sub orientation, i'd be more apt to suggest 2 L5 subs w/ a 2 ohm DVC setup (coils in series, subs in parallel - total 2 ohm load) and either a Kicker KX 400.1 or a Alpine MRD-M500. the Kicker would pump about 200 Wrms into each L5 and the Alpine would pump about 250Wrms into each L5.

if you wanted to start w/ a 1 sub setup and leave the door open for a 2 sub setup later... i'll have to think more about that, as it's not as straight forward.

if trunk space is a premium -- do the 1 L7.

edit
i'm currently sticking w/ only Alpine and Kicker gear, since you seem to favor those, and i've noticed in the past that you like to keep your gear fairly uniform by manufacturer. plus, the solobaric subs are quite loud for their size, so 1 solobaric will give you a lot of oomph for the money.

it's your car, and if you feel more comfortable with that, then :thumbup:

and it's hard to judge cleaner sound like that... in theory you should obtain a smoother midrange at the expense of the lower bass, but in practice, who knows...

here's the thread where William makes a great comparison between a variety of subs in his enclosures... you'll notice that the L7's are strong for volume, but not top dog for sound quality. if you're looking for something w/ stronger sound quality, check out the Elemental Designs subs that a few of us are using... quite strong subs with a good smooth sound quality.

you'll have to go almost the entire way down to get to Williams review.

Well, it's your car..... But, trust me, the Lucid adapter is a VERY clean & easy way to install 6.5 speakers. A 6.5 will not only give you more bass but more mids as well - which are desperately needed the way the woofer/tweeter locations are in the MY2002 & later cars. IMHO, a subwoofer will not make up for this difference.

Like I mentioned above - I have the 5.25 Kickers in my car now and could not be happier. Previous speakers were - Stock, PPI 6.5" components, Rockford FNQ 6.5's, Rockford FNX 6.5's and Panasonic DVD 6.5's.

I think the Kicker 5.25's sound the best (the Kicker Comps have a very nice natural sounding tweeter) and did not see any reduction in mid/low range performance. I do have my door speakers cut-off at 80hz (hi-pass) since I have a pair of subs. Perhaps if I was running them at full range (including the less than 80hz freqs) I would have noticed a difference.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by WLAURENT
[B]Like I mentioned above - I have the 5.25 Kickers in my car now and could not be happier. Previous speakers were - Stock, PPI 6.5" components, Rockford FNQ 6.5's, Rockford FNX 6.5's and Panasonic DVD 6.5's.

All speakers sound different. Wlaurent, if you did not compared the kicker 5.25s with the Kickers 6.5s, it's not a fair comparison.

I just know that I tried the Focal 5.25 & 6.5 back to back in the car (with a sub) with HPF set to 80 and I was able to notice a significant difference in the mids & the sound stage was much more better.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mas
[B]All speakers sound different. Wlaurent, if you did not compared the kicker 5.25s with the Kickers 6.5s, it's not a fair comparison.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by WLAURENT
[B]

mas -

Good amp selections for a single 8" DVC sub:

JL Audio 250/1 (nice small package)
Rockford 351M Power Series (Not as small as the JL, but still small enough to offer some flexibility in mounting location)
Kicker 400.1 (great amp - but Kicker amps tend to be very large).

I run 2 8" subs with a JL Audio 500/1. It is mounted on the wall behind the the drivers seat (heat sink up) and I only lose about 1" of seat adjustment. You could do the same with the 250/1 with almost no loss of seat adjustment. The Rockford 351M is to thick for behind the seat, but you could mount it in the trunk like this (Rockford 250M shown in image):

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...4f0021f940.jpg