300 audio upgrade budget... how to spend?

[madbyron]

I'm considering upgrading the stock audio system in my 03 P5. Fine. But I have only $300 to work with. The head unit is, well, okay. The spare tire sub is not so good. The speakers are marginal. And I have no cassette deck. So here's what I'm thinking...

Keep the hu, the sub, and the rear speakers. Add a cassette deck and upgrade the front speakers. That'll about use up the 300. Anybody gone this route and been happy with the result?

[jnorion]

I used the HU from my 03 LX. It worked great, but I would highly recommend using an external amp with it. Even if you just amp the front speakers it'll sound a lot better. Other than that though, the whole thing sounds good. The front speakers are the most important if you're only going to upgrade one set.

[Kevin]

joel has hit it on the head.. front stage with amplification . although having all those nice cassettes lying around collecting dust being put to good use is an attractive option, i'd switch to cd's as add on cassette options are very minimal. what i would suggest is looking in the market for a double din cd/cassette deck.. but likewise, this option will exceed 300 to get anything nearly worth your bother.

as far as suggestions that fall within your spectrum, i would suggest cdt front 6.5 inch components and a Hifonics Falcon amp

http://www.thezeb.com/p-CDT-Audio-CL...tem-101083.htm $149 for speakers

http://www.thezeb.com/p-Hifonics-Fal...ier-106501.htm $99 for a 2 channel amplifier

though the attractive option to play cassettes and cd's is an entirely new head unit like this pioneer http://www.thezeb.com/p-Pioneer-FH-P...ver-108639.htm set at exactly 300 bucks, plus shipping, wiring harness, and mounting kit would take you up to $345 to $360. aside from these, i think you should fare out pretty well with either of these options.
kevin

[MisterT]

My first upgrade was just simply replacing the head unit with my Alpine CD player. That alone was enough to make the stereo sound louder. If you can upgrade the front speakers, I would do what was suggested (getting a small amp and then a decent set of speakers for up front).

[madbyron]

Thanks for the great suggestions, guys. Yeah, I really do have a boatload of cassettes I'd like to use. I suppose though I could get cds to replace some of them... the real problem is that better than half of my collection is on vinyl, hence, the homemade tapes.

You've sold me on amping the front speakers, though, and the Hifonics Falcon looks like the way to go. I did look at double-din hu cd/tape options. I found only two: the Pioneer, which you recommended, and a Kenwood unit, the DPX MP-4070, I think.

Speakerwise, I think the stock fronts are 5"X7". Are you suggesting going with a different size, or is there a particular speaker that size you would recommend?

Thanks for your insight.

[madbyron]

Actually, it looks like there are more that two combo dd hu's out there.

But on a related topic, I know next to nothing about car audio installation. Is there a resource you can point me to that help me figure out what the heck I'm doing? I figure I've got to rip some door inner panels off and lay out some wiring and would like to not end up with a second-rate job.

[MisterT]

A lot of people have said good things about Infinity Reference and Kappa series speakers. You can use 6x8s, 6 1/2s, or 5 1/4s. With the 6 1/2s, you may have to cut a little bit of metal to make them fit. If you use the stock head unit, you will need to get a RCA converter to utilize an amp. I think the best one out there is a Navone LOC (?) There is a how to tutorial on how to take the door panels off, surprisingly it is easy to do. As for after market Double DIN units, there aren't any that I really like. You could get a cassette player with CD changer controls, but that will run you around $300 for both before getting an amp and front speakers.

[whistler]

Infinity references are definitely good.... i use 2 X 6.5" in my front door panels and they're just awesome.

[Kevin]

well.. as far as HOW, search the how-to section for a little help, i know joel and a bunch of others have gone at great length to provide resources for just that purpose. aside from this, yes, utilizing the stock head unit, you will need LOC (Line-Out Converters).. which basically will allow you to take a pair of speaker wires and derive an RCA audio signal which can then be amplified by which ever amp you choose. the one's that BlueLedz recommends are provided at http://www.davidnavone.com/ .. though personally, i've always utilized aftermarket headunits that offer 3 sets of rca's.

as far as availability of combo cassette/cd player headunits that are available out there, it is such a limited need product, finding one with any measure of sound quality, features, and reliability is severely limited. personally, either the pioneer listed or the kenwood would suit your needs, though i like the kenwood's feature more.

aside from these two options, you also have:
a clarion product: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YQ8b2s8...00&I=020ADB340 not entirely sure.. mixed feelings about this one, though it looks nicer than the kenwood

a sanyo: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YQ8b2s8...0&I=140FXCD135 very skeptical about this unit, though it offers cd and cassette in a normal single din size

and of course, a JVC http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YQ8b2s8...0&I=257KWXC777 dunno.. reminds me too much of those ****ty mini-stereo systems people use on their book shelves.

needless to say, my recommendations don't come with out a minimal amount of custom fabrication. over all sound production should yield a good result with the either the pioneer head unit, the hifonics amp and the cdt components.. but if extremely crunched to find the want to custom fabricate mounting brackets to get a 6 1/2 set of components, i suggest a pair of Alpine Type-S 5x7 components.. these can be had a little cheaper than the CDT's, and argueably similar sound.. if not close enough for the common music lover. you can find these on ebay on this link: http://search.ebay.com/SPS-571A_W0QQ...leZSPS-571AQ20

and the specific model number is the Alpine SPS-571A . i've had 2 sets of alpine type-s speakers and had wonderful results from their sound production. it's definately better than most kenwood, pioneer, and most definately sony options available out there. infinity is another good brand as was mentioned, however, i have no first hand commentary on their products.

my best recommendation to you is do your homework, find out whats available.. what specifications are important in the products you buy, and also.. although not as important, what kind of reputation the products hold with audiophiles alike.. it's nearly the best advice you can get. moreso, i would encourage you to take on much of the install yourself, as most likely, on top of the 200 to 300 you'll spend on the equipment, you need tools, wiring harnesses, heatshrink or electrical fasteners to install your front speakers and amplifier, once you get down to it, paying an audio shop an additional 80 to 200 bucks to do JUST the work, let alone the materials cost, there is no greater gratification of a Do-It-Yourself job well done .
kevin

[jnorion]

Also, even if you end up buying things online, go find a local audio shop and listen to some speakers there and ask any questions you have. Most places will be happy to answer questions for you.

And as far as installation costs goes... the first amp I got I had installed in my car, and it ran me close to $500 for a $350 amp. Then I took it out myself... completely dismantling the system took me almost 8 hours, but when I put it back in later, it only took 4 hours, and probably about 2.5 or 3 when I took it out again after that. It takes some time and you WILL screw a couple of things up, but if you're interested in car audio it's definitely worth it.