I've just recently acquired a 94 Prelude Si and the guy I bought it from seems to have taken out the sub in the trunk or something, cause now the car has pretty much no bass at all when I listen to music (it did when we went for a test drive and he still had whatever he took out in the car).
I have no experience at all with car audio systems so bare with me I'm not looking for any major mods or anything like that, I just want to regain the bass in the sound. It sounds like there is no sub in the car at all now and the rear and front speakers can't make up for the lower sounds. So I want to know what kind of cheap sub options am I looking at? How are they to install? Do I just place it in the trunk? And if I want better sound from the front and rear speakers how much do cheap speakers (that are better than stock ones) cost as well?
Sorry if all my questions seem very obvious. Thanks.
When you bought the car, was it understood that he would take things out like the sub before handing it to you? If not, ask him why he took it out. Maybe he'll give it to you.
Otherwise, it would be helpful to know what kind of headunit you have (stock or aftermarket). There are alot of options.
Regarding subs: They can be easy or hard to install depending on if he left the wiring intact or not. No you don't just place it in the trunk...the power and signal wires need to be routed and hooked up properly. Also, you need to mount the sub properly so it doesn't fly around when you drive. Define what "cheap" is to you.
Regarding speakers: There are many options for aftermarket speakers out there, but you need to find out which ones actually fit your car. Again, what does "cheap" mean to you?
It really depends...We obviously don't know what sound you're trying to replicate. If you want bass that you'll feel a little for a really cheap price, you can go to Best Buy and get a kit with 2 12" subs, a low wattage amp, a box and the wires necessary to hook it up. On the other hand, if you want bass that will shake the rear view mirrors of cars sitting next to you, you'll have to buy everything separately. This is the route I've gone and I'm very happy with it, I've seen the set-ups that come pre-packaged and personally they don't sound good at all. As with everything about cars, it pretty much comes down to how much you're willing to spend.
Also, get Dual-Voice Coil subs, and don't buy cheap wiring, remember, you get what you pay for.
ok. i had the sam happen to me so i kinda have an i dea for you. i went to best buy and picked up a 12 inch infinity 1252 dual voice coil and and amp i would suggest either a kenwood ,pioneer, or infinity mono between 800 or higher. for wireing i have monster cable kit 8 gage. or rockferd fosgate 4 gage would be better. a box can be a pre fab one that requires assembly form any wrere unless you want to buy a costom one. for you stock speaker go get a good pair of pioneer. i estimate about $800 at most if you include installation
I would advise against letting anyone from best buy install things in your car. On 3 occasions they have broken something in my friends' cars, one being a simple head unit installation. But I agree on the Infinity 1252W sub, I have one and it's nice. But if you're getting a 1300 watt sub, don't get an 800 watt amp, cuz then you won't be able to get those 1300 watts out of it and that's no fun. You'll have to shop around to find a bigger amp, but it's worth it.
No, it wasn't understood why he took the bass out. I didn't even know there was a bass in there (and to be quite honest I didn't see one when he open the trunk).
Well, when I was thinking of cheap, I was thinking of around $200. I didn't really want to get into the whole scene. I'm just looking for better sound. I don't know if $200 is just asking for a load of crap to be put into your car, I don't know if it's even worth it that way, that's why I'm asking you guys.
Is it necessary to get an amp and all that stuff when your upgrading your car's audio? I mean, for what I am trying to achieve (which is basically get a sub and a little better than stock speakers) am I going to need an AMP?
Also, the control center, or the actual CD player/radio unit (sorry, I don't know what the technical term for it is) is an after market one, I'll have to check which.
So should I even bother trying to get new speakers and a sub for the price range I'm looking at? I don't want to shake the car next to me, I just want a better sound experience when I get in my car. But I understand how you have to invest a certain amount before you gain that experience. So what do you guys think? Should I just not even bother waisting the money?
I would advise against letting anyone from best buy install things in your car. On 3 occasions they have broken something in my friends' cars, one being a simple head unit installation. But I agree on the Infinity 1252W sub, I have one and it's nice. But if you're getting a 1300 watt sub, don't get an 800 watt amp, cuz then you won't be able to get those 1300 watts out of it and that's no fun. You'll have to shop around to find a bigger amp, but it's worth it.
That could happen at any shop you take it to. I'm an installer at Best Buy, and every installer has broken something at some point; old plastic gets brittle and breaks, and people make mistakes. Best Buy is the only nationwide installation shop that requires all its installers to be MECP certified. As far as your friend's car goes, if Best Buy damaged it, Best Buy would fix it free of charge. As well, we're the only shop with the ability to share information and tips between every single install bay in the company. Oh yeah, we warranty our work for the life of the install
No, it wasn't understood why he took the bass out. I didn't even know there was a bass in there (and to be quite honest I didn't see one when he open the trunk).
Well, when I was thinking of cheap, I was thinking of around $200. I didn't really want to get into the whole scene. I'm just looking for better sound. I don't know if $200 is just asking for a load of crap to be put into your car, I don't know if it's even worth it that way, that's why I'm asking you guys.
Is it necessary to get an amp and all that stuff when your upgrading your car's audio? I mean, for what I am trying to achieve (which is basically get a sub and a little better than stock speakers) am I going to need an AMP?
Also, the control center, or the actual CD player/radio unit (sorry, I don't know what the technical term for it is) is an after market one, I'll have to check which.
So should I even bother trying to get new speakers and a sub for the price range I'm looking at? I don't want to shake the car next to me, I just want a better sound experience when I get in my car. But I understand how you have to invest a certain amount before you gain that experience. So what do you guys think? Should I just not even bother waisting the money?
Hmm. There's way too much involved in piecing together a sound system to make good Bass.
You won't be able to put a Subwoofer, Amp, Box and cables for 200 dollars. Even going to wal mart ( which I, and no one will recommend) won't get you a decent sub, wires, and box. Assuming that you don't know how to install it yourself you'll also have to pay for that.
Like mentioned before, if you still have the cabled hooked up, it's pretty simple to hook up am Amp and a Sub.
You can find MTX subwoofers for around 70 bucks each on Ebay. Put one of those in a box for another 50 bucks and for 120 bucks you have a pretty good Sub with around 600watts of peak power and clear bass compared to Xplods or Dual subwoofers that are much cheaper.
YES, you DO need an Amplifier to power the subwoofers. This is where it gets costly...
A decent Amp can be anywhere from 150-300 dollars, and again, that's one to just power ONE Sub to it's capacity, if you have two subs you might need a 1,000-1,500 watt amplifier, those of course are more expensive.
Seeing how just want "some bass" I'd recommend One sub, an amp to power it, 4-8 gauge wires and to have someone install them for you, while learning where everything goes.
Putting a system together is expensive man. It's also good to know how things work and are installed, otherwise when you make a sharp turn and all of a sudden your bass dies, you wont freak out and can simply know which cables to check.
Also, you can always consider changing your speakers to better ones, maybe some 2 way or 3 way speakers. This you can do for 200 bucks...It won't be loud Bass but it should be pretty clear and semi loud.
Good luck.
Last edited by darkbluelude; 02-05-2008 at 12:21 AM.
1st: You need to find out whether the head unit (HU) is aftermarket. If it is, give us the exact model number so we can find the specs.
2nd: If there is an aftermarket unit installed, you then have to find out if the previous owner did in fact have a separate amp and subwoofer installed in the trunk. Then, find out if the wiring was left intact.
3rd: After step 1 and 2, someone can then start to suggest possible options for your $200 limit.
If yes on both 1 and 2, since you're not looking for ground shaking bass, I would highly suggest the Infinity Basslink. Since it is a powered sub, you're looking at the easiest install without confusing the novice. You can probably find these pretty cheap on ebay or the like.
Well now that we have more info, it sounds like your best bet is a powered sub like the Infinity mentioned above. Don't listen to the guys who are saying "You need to buy a sub, a box, an amp, and have someone wire it up for you with 6 gauge wire...blah blah blah." You don't need that. There are halfway decent powered subs for just under $200 if all you want is a bit more bass and they are relatively easy to wire up if you have a bit of car and electronics knowledge. Look here:
Crutchfield is a great place to buy car audio. You might spend a bit more, but they give you great instructions, they will help you with technical issues over the phone or email, and they have an amazing return policy.
Answer the questions above posted by ImagePree and we can help some more.
I'm still unsure about the HU model and make, but I think there is wiring in the trunk for the audio. At least I saw something, I think it's for the audio. There was a red and white ended cable and a black cable which looked like it might be a power cable for something (possibly a sub???)
I did a search for MTX on my local craigslist and came up with: 12" Rockford Fosgate P3 w/MTX Amp What do you guys think of that? It's an amp/sub combo for $225. While I was thinking about the whole situation I decided that I would be willing to invest a bit more into the whole audio thing. Closer to $350, and install the stuff myself.
I haven't gotten a chance to talk to the guy who sold me the car (he is my neighbor, but hasn't been home lately) and I'm still going to have to check on the HUs make and model.
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I'm not looking for any major mods or anything like that, I just want to regain the bass in the sound. It sounds like there is no sub in the car at all now and the rear and front speakers can't make up for the lower sounds. So I want to know what kind of cheap sub options am I looking at? How are they to install? Do I just place it in the trunk? And if I want better sound from the front and rear speakers how much do cheap speakers (that are better than stock ones) cost as well?
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