factory head ok?

[tsunami]

hey

in the next few months i plan on doing my stereo build up on my new m3 5 door, i have the 6 disc changer in the dash and really really like the way it looks, and having the 6 disc is way nicer then my old 1 disc....

anyways here are my plans

looking like boston Z series (carbon fiber cones!!) for the front and rear doors.... thinking of either adding the two tweets from the rear set to the sub box or leaving them inbound?

then i will have 2 boston pro series 10' 4ohmers in what i am planning on being a fiberglass box to hold the two subs to each corner and then display my two amps in the middle...

for power i have a jl audio 4300 for the door speakers and looking at a 1400d or 1800d for the subs...?

but my question is can the factory deck handle this with good quality? my stereo guy said probably not and wants me to upgrade.... thats a lot of $$ and like i said i like the way it looks now.... any ideas...suggestions...or directions?? any help is grateful...

[MisterT]

You could always try it and see what you think. A girl I dated had her brother's camaro with a fosgate amp and subs and aftermarket amp on the highs (she didn't know what brand of satellite speakers), but it sounded pretty good. It was all being run from the AC Delco factory stereo. I think there is a Navone adaptor you could use to get RCAs for the amp. Lastly, Sir Nuke is using his Protege's factory head unit in his ride as well. It would be hard with a Mazda3 (to use an aftermarket stereo, esp if you have a navigational system). It looks clean with the style factory radio versus the Protege OEM radio.

[blue LEDz]

i wouldn't waste your money on boston Z components for rears. believe me, when you get a sweet front sound stage, you will never use rear speakers, unless it's for a little bit of rear fill.

which sub amp brand are you looking at?

as for using the stock HU, get a high quality line output converter (LOC) from david navone.

call him up and see what he recomends for your plans, but here's a good one. 2 of those would give you front and rear channel seperation.

[tsunami]

gettin the boston z's at a sweet deal.... real sweet, so i don't mind puttin them all around, was going to just use my jl components but when i took em out of my last car i found i had blown one of em...do'h.... the sub amp is jl as well..... since i already have the 4300 i want to stick with the same line.... going to see what info i can find with navone... thanks for the info...

[jnorion]

It seems like it would be particularly important to have an EQ with the stock head unit, just so you could have some control over the sound. Blue, any comments?

[Intruder]

Just a precaution - whatever you do, don't go to Elemental Designs for any of you car-audio needs... don't even think about them... your head will explode.

[poseur]

WHat kind of boston deal are you getting anyway? because if you're talking about getting z's all around, then calling a HU expensive I'm VERY curious to get in on some of that.

I am also of the opinion that z's all around is NOT worth it in the least. I think that boston makes some stellar speakers, and infact am currently back in the process of earning for a set of Pro's, If you still decide to go z's all around, just make sure they're getting substancially less power than up front. Your front speakrs should REALLY blatantly be the star of the show. Rears are for fill which is questionable at that, really. (Honestl yI personalyl alternate between having none at all and having my factory speakers hooked up to HU power) BUt honestly, why hire Pavoratti as a background vocalist? it makes no sense. Possibly worth it for bling value, but little else. Even an extra set of z's on a deal HAS TO be a good chunk of change that could be soomuch better spent...

As far as your deck, I'm pretty sure you're kinda stuck there, but I haven't been keeping updated. new factory streos are nastily integrated because manufacturers somehow don't see the need for aftermarket and wish to fight it. Go the navone route, that should do you quite well. If it doesn't, LOC's are cheap, you can always do more later.

[tsunami]

i'll see what i can do about gettin some more z's but no promises.... as for the eq i hadn't thought of adding one.... may ont be a bad idea... though i always thought they were kinda quirky..... yeah navone had some good info and products, hopefully they work as well as advertised and i will be all set....

thanks for the help guys...

[blue LEDz]

gettin the boston z's at a sweet deal.... real sweet, so i don't mind puttin them all around, was going to just use my jl components but when i took em out of my last car i found i had blown one of em...do'h.... the sub amp is jl as well..... since i already have the 4300 i want to stick with the same line.... going to see what info i can find with navone... thanks for the info...

ah yes, i forgot about the e-series of amps from JL.

when boston Z's sell for about $1k, unless you get dealer accomidatition on them, they are still going to be rather high priced.

as for an EQ, i'd recomend it, since when properly adjusted they can work wonders. but if you get a 30 band eq, have it professionally adjusted. 7 or 15 band eq's aren't as involved, so they would be easier for you to adjust.