Sony XPlod... - Page 9

Trae · 10-20-2005, 10:33 AM

I was already going to get my stuff at Circuit City and that just convinced me. How much does installation tend to cost? (Sorry to hijack the thread)

10-20-2005, 11:18 AM

Quote:

I was already going to get my stuff at Circuit City and that just convinced me. How much does installation tend to cost? (Sorry to hijack the thread)

As far as I know, installtion is free for anyting over $100... At least I know it is for heads. Not too sure about other stuff. Seems like it should vary based on product.

~Ryan

Mendoza · 10-20-2005, 04:44 PM

I would take it to a specaility shop they work off of commision so you can get a cheaper price if you go in knowing what you are talking about.

Metallman56 · 10-20-2005, 09:04 PM

yes lets buy everything at circut city because of the protection plan. who cares if most of it is all bottem of the line stuff. great plan. the truth is most places warrenty stuff. h*ll most manufactures warrenty stuff for atleast 90 days. and i figure if you dont blow something up in 90 days, your probley not going to blow it up at all. my boston amp came with a one year warrenty. dont be fooled into buying stuff at a place because of a warrenty. have you ever seen tommy boy? if you havent your a poor b*stard, and need to rent it right now. if you have its kinda like what he says about the gaurtee, "all it is a a gaurteed piece of s*it". yeah i know i cant spell. anyway same thing here. if a warrenty is your final factor when buying car audio, you might not want to buy car audio. heres what it comes down to, if you dont take care of your s*it it will break. that goes with anything.

Trae · 10-20-2005, 09:25 PM

If I don't take care it will break. If I have a wararnty that doesn't matter.

DevilDriver · 10-20-2005, 09:31 PM

most places don't warranty subs as there are wayyy too many people who use the gain knob like it's a volume knob, thereby clipping the subs and melting voice coils.

Metallman56 · 10-20-2005, 09:45 PM

if your not a dumba*s a warrenty doesnt matter. just take care of your expensive stuff and it wont break. then your not forced to only buy stuff from cc and bb

Trae · 10-20-2005, 10:02 PM

Suppose it is just a matter of opinion.

MantaGreen97 · 10-20-2005, 10:03 PM

I didn't see this thread when it was posted but I have to say I'm pretty surprised at the level of Sony bashing! Though I didn't read through every post I don't think anyone defended Sony...

While it is true that prior to this year, Sony car audio since around 1999 (the advent of Xplod) has been pretty poor. Prior to that, Sony made excellent car audio products. The truth is there were only really 2 Sony HUs that were of any good quality the past 5 years (the CDX-MP70 and the MEX-HD1) but this year Sony has really turned it around. If you take a look at their 2005 products you'll see they've made significant improvements and have a new "Specialty Series" which is roughly the equivalent of "mobile ES" from years gone.

The new Sony products are quite good, and personally I'd take a HU like the CDX-M7815X over an equivalent Pioneer. I do think that Pioneer makes good HUs, though the new Sony stuff is also very good.

Personally I run all Sony source gear, but Sony stuff from "back in the day". Mobile ES stuff. I have a Sony HU, 2 CD changers, an MD changer and an external EQ/DSP and all of it is great. Believe me, a lot of the Sony fans from back then have been waiting for them to return to making good car audio gear and this year has been the year.

As for speakers, I'd honestly stay away from Pioneer speakers if you can afford it. Sony as well... In fact speakers from a lot of companies aren't all that great, despite them making other good quality gear. Pio and Kenwood are classic examples of this--they make great HUs but their speakers are nothing great. I used to have a set of Pio Premier components up front... Switched to a set of Focal Polyglass comps and the difference was night and day--I'll never go back to Pioneer for speakers. The Premier speakers aren't great. The Rev line is a little better I think but still I'd try a better brand if you can afford it.

Oh and definitely, definitely ditch the rear speakers, especially if you are getting a sub--makes things sound a lot better, a lot easier.

DevilDriver · 10-20-2005, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metallman56

if your not a dumba*s a warrenty doesnt matter. just take care of your expensive stuff and it wont break. then your not forced to only buy stuff from cc and bb

what do you know, we agree!

10-21-2005, 07:22 AM

I just thought I'd say, I'm not wanting to buy stuff from Circuit City because of the warranty. That's just what a friend said. "Blow it up, and bring it back." Which I have zero intentions of doing. I'm an avid bass and guitar player, and I know way too many guys who ride the gain knob on their combos. All a bunch of retards who need their screaming hardcore ESP's louder than reasonable. I am not this kind of person. It's also why I'm easing my way out of playing in my area. I know the difference between the "gain" and "volume" knobs. I also take hella good care of all my gear, no matter how cheap it is. I have no intentions of blowing anything up on purpose. Sure, they would just give me something else to eff around with for free if that happened, but I'm paying the gas money to get there, and waisting MY time on going and getting a new piece of equiptment. Something I hate doing, waisting time.

(Current list: Pioneer "DEH-770MP" Premier head, Boston Accoustics "S95" and "S55" speakers, Alpine Type R subs. I'll be buying the speakers first, I'm afraid if I bought the head first, I'll blow whatever speaker life mine have left in a heartbeat.)

~Ryan

MIAaron · 10-21-2005, 07:46 AM

For the first time installer, warranties are well worth it. That is easily the time when the most mistakes, and costly ones at that, are made. There have been many times in my life where even quality products have died, or exhibited a drastic loss in performance. Leaky caps in an amp, and worn out spiders in a speaker are prime examples. Sure they can still work, but that doesn't mean they are functioning properly.

And saying that something is fine if it doesn't die within 90 days is the exact opposite of my experience. I personally have found that the majority of the time an objects failure rate is directly proportional to its age.

Nessuno3400 · 10-21-2005, 09:37 AM

I work for Circuit and I buy the warrantees...cuz I know what happens when you don't...your stuff works up until 35 days after the purchase, then it breaks and they can't do **** for you....I never said it's a deciding factor to shop there...go to Best Buy or mom and pop shop for all I care, but all I'm saying is if ur gonna buy it from somewhere that offers warrantees it's well worth it to get it....cuz ur gonna be really pi$$ed when your $1000+ system stops working after 2 months, and no1 can deny that...and don't say it only happens to crappy products cuz it happens with every electronic company, they atleast have a small handful of defective products.

10-21-2005, 11:28 AM

Right now, I'll be buying my subs and my speakers from a place called "High Tech HiFi" located in Merritt Island, Florida (for anyone close to me). I think I'll be ordering my head from www.onlinecarstereo.com, and my amp(s) are still a guess, since I havn't decided 100% on a brand. I am contemplating two MTX though. (4 ch. and 2ch.)

~Ryan

Nessuno3400 · 10-21-2005, 01:32 PM

post some model numbers of what you're looking into...

10-21-2005, 09:27 PM

Well, I'm just now looking into the specs of Boston amps, but for a four-way, I'm looking at the GT40, and for a two-way, I'm looking at the GT 28. However, the GT28 looks like it doesn't have alot of watts for the price of it. I was wanting to pump 300+ to two Alpine Type Rs, seeing as the reviews seam to say the more the better. Most said around 500 was good. However, the two-ohm wattage looks like it would work just fine, (around 350 each) So, what's the diference between the Alpine 2 ohm and 4 ohm subs? (I dont know anyting about ohms.) All of the reviews I have found were for the 1242 (12" Type R) not the 1222.

I was also looking into MTX for a cheaper alternative from CC. The models I am looking into are the 5302 two-channel and the 5604 four-channel. The four-channel seems to be the wattage I'm after, but again, the two-channel is looking a little weak at only around 200 (I think, too lazy to pull the site up).

Hope that helps you help me. Right now, I still am kicking around what size speakers to get. I've pretty much decided on Boston, it's just going to take a trip to HighTechHiFi to listen to them, but I'm pretty confident in them right now, more than just you guys are saying that they'r the best for the price range. So, Should I just go with 5.25" and 6"x9", or go with 6.5" all the way aorund??? I'll be doing the install myself, seeing as HTHF is pretty darned expensive (like $100 for a head) when it comes to that stuff. I am good with a cutting wheel, dremel, grinder (hope i wont need it) so I shouldn't have a problem with adapting plates to accomodate a 6.5". Can any of you guys point me in the direction of a tutorial, or send me a quickie walk through, like a cliff note of the instructions and steps of the conversion???

Any help from you guys, is obviously appreciated. You have all helped me so much, and I'm glad I came here for the answers! Otherwise, I'd-parking the equiptment I'm looking at now. Thanks =).

~Ryan

Metallman56 · 10-21-2005, 09:37 PM

wow punkorama we agree! the end is near.

all i am saying is that a warrenty is one of the last factors in buying electronics. should you get one? absoulutly! all things that are made by man can break. the good thing is most stores and companys stand behind the stuff they sell. i said most, not all. find the speakers or amps or whatever you like, then talk about the warrenty. dont think warrenty before value, or sq. almost everything ever made will not stand up to the test of time. s*it wears out. it happens. nothing is perfect.

hey have you heard any boston or are you just going to get them because we told you to? you might hate them. its possible.

i have a question for you mantagreen.how can a company only put out 2 good hu's in 6 years, and not get bashed? i will also agree with you that pioneer premier is really nothing to great. however i would rather do my whole car in premier than any system i could peice together from best buy or cirut city. and the only reason i have rev 6x9's are because they really hit hard. i got them before my subs so my car was really lacking lows. and they worked just as i wanted them to. but now i am looking to get rid of them and throw in some boston sl95s.

Metallman56 · 10-21-2005, 09:46 PM

ok ok hold on just one second. how much $$$ are you looking to spend here man? a gt-28 is $1000! and the gt-40 is $500. thats 1500 in amps alone. i have a gt-28 and love the thing. i have it hooked to my 2 g5s. its rated at 350 watts per channel at 12.6 volts. but if you run it at 14.2 volts, which is crusing speed, it puts out 450. thats the rms on the g5s.

as for the 6.5s all the way around. if you want them to fit in the door your going to need a sawzall. atleast i did for my z6s. speakers were to deep, they would have hit the window. so now i had my door panels fiberglassed to fit the d*mn things. as for the back, i have no idea.

MantaGreen97 · 10-22-2005, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metallman56

i have a question for you mantagreen.how can a company only put out 2 good hu's in 6 years, and not get bashed?

Well they put out perhaps more than two good decks but their main problem was build quality/reliability for those years. Sony is an enormous company, considering all the different things they have their "hands in". In certain divisions of their consumer electronics they "cheaped out" and car audio was one of the worst hit. In cheaping out they went too far and the products were by-and-large substandard. It seems, however, they've finally realised they went too far and are offering good products again it seems, and they are even more competitive with pricing. From 1999 to 2004 if you were buying "Xplod" you were almost certainly buying overpriced junk. Now, particularly with the Specialty Series, you're getting a competitive product at a competitive price point--so Sony has certainly learned a lesson at least.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metallman56

i will also agree with you that pioneer premier is really nothing to great. however i would rather do my whole car in premier than any system i could peice together from best buy or cirut city.

Well having components of all one brand is not really that bad, depending on what you buy. If you take a look at any one company's "all them" show cars you'll see cars which have rather impressive sound systems overall. This points out two rather important points. Product/brand bashing isn't really productive on the whole (and such bashing is usually not allowed on many car audio forums). Secondly, the install is often just as important or even more important than the product.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metallman56

but now i am looking to get rid of them and throw in some boston sl95s.

You mean more 6x9s??? Ugh, really I'm still going to recommend you remove and/or disconnect the rear speakers altogether. Unless you for some reason carry people in the back a lot and care about what they are hearing, I'd advise against rear speakers. I've fooled around with rear fill a lot, even crossing over rear 6x9s to play with 3500Hz low pass (meaning removing all the highs) and it still sounded better with the 6x9s off. In the end I just removed the 6x9s altogether, gave them away to a friend, and never looked back.

Metallman56 · 10-23-2005, 09:11 AM

i will eventually be going to 5.1 dolby. its kinda hard to have that if i dont have rear speakers.

10-20-2005, 10:33 AM	#161
Trae eh? AKA: none Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: N/A Posts: 91 Vehicle: N/A	I was already going to get my stuff at Circuit City and that just convinced me. How much does installation tend to cost? (Sorry to hijack the thread) __________________ mmm

10-20-2005, 04:44 PM	#163
Mendoza RK-GT AKA: Javin Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Whitehouse, Ohio Age: 38 Posts: 1,642 Vehicle: 2001	I would take it to a specaility shop they work off of commision so you can get a cheaper price if you go in knowing what you are talking about. __________________ 2001 RK-GT http://community.webshots.com/user/Mendoza1113

10-20-2005, 09:25 PM	#165
Trae eh? AKA: none Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: N/A Posts: 91 Vehicle: N/A	If I don't take care it will break. If I have a wararnty that doesn't matter. __________________ mmm

10-20-2005, 10:02 PM	#168
Trae eh? AKA: none Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: N/A Posts: 91 Vehicle: N/A	Suppose it is just a matter of opinion. __________________ mmm

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10-20-2005, 09:04 PM	#164
Metallman56 Bears Fan AKA: Metall Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Indiana Age: 36 Posts: 3,856 Vehicle: 2001 grand am gt coupe	yes lets buy everything at circut city because of the protection plan. who cares if most of it is all bottem of the line stuff. great plan. the truth is most places warrenty stuff. hll most manufactures warrenty stuff for atleast 90 days. and i figure if you dont blow something up in 90 days, your probley not going to blow it up at all. my boston amp came with a one year warrenty. dont be fooled into buying stuff at a place because of a warrenty. have you ever seen tommy boy? if you havent your a poor bstard, and need to rent it right now. if you have its kinda like what he says about the gaurtee, "all it is a a gaurteed piece of sit". yeah i know i cant spell. anyway same thing here. if a warrenty is your final factor when buying car audio, you might not want to buy car audio. heres what it comes down to, if you dont take care of your sit it will break. that goes with anything.

10-20-2005, 09:31 PM	#166
DevilDriver GAGT - Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada Age: 35 Posts: 270 Vehicle: 03 Chevy S10 Xtreme	most places don't warranty subs as there are wayyy too many people who use the gain knob like it's a volume knob, thereby clipping the subs and melting voice coils.

10-20-2005, 09:45 PM	#167
Metallman56 Bears Fan AKA: Metall Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Indiana Age: 36 Posts: 3,856 Vehicle: 2001 grand am gt coupe	if your not a dumba*s a warrenty doesnt matter. just take care of your expensive stuff and it wont break. then your not forced to only buy stuff from cc and bb

10-20-2005, 10:03 PM	#169
MantaGreen97 GAGT - Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Toronto, ON, Canada Age: 43 Posts: 177 Vehicle: 1997 Grand Am	I didn't see this thread when it was posted but I have to say I'm pretty surprised at the level of Sony bashing! Though I didn't read through every post I don't think anyone defended Sony... While it is true that prior to this year, Sony car audio since around 1999 (the advent of Xplod) has been pretty poor. Prior to that, Sony made excellent car audio products. The truth is there were only really 2 Sony HUs that were of any good quality the past 5 years (the CDX-MP70 and the MEX-HD1) but this year Sony has really turned it around. If you take a look at their 2005 products you'll see they've made significant improvements and have a new "Specialty Series" which is roughly the equivalent of "mobile ES" from years gone. The new Sony products are quite good, and personally I'd take a HU like the CDX-M7815X over an equivalent Pioneer. I do think that Pioneer makes good HUs, though the new Sony stuff is also very good. Personally I run all Sony source gear, but Sony stuff from "back in the day". Mobile ES stuff. I have a Sony HU, 2 CD changers, an MD changer and an external EQ/DSP and all of it is great. Believe me, a lot of the Sony fans from back then have been waiting for them to return to making good car audio gear and this year has been the year. As for speakers, I'd honestly stay away from Pioneer speakers if you can afford it. Sony as well... In fact speakers from a lot of companies aren't all that great, despite them making other good quality gear. Pio and Kenwood are classic examples of this--they make great HUs but their speakers are nothing great. I used to have a set of Pio Premier components up front... Switched to a set of Focal Polyglass comps and the difference was night and day--I'll never go back to Pioneer for speakers. The Premier speakers aren't great. The Rev line is a little better I think but still I'd try a better brand if you can afford it. Oh and definitely, definitely ditch the rear speakers, especially if you are getting a sub--makes things sound a lot better, a lot easier.

10-21-2005, 07:22 AM	#171
hallows-eve Guest Posts: n/a	I just thought I'd say, I'm not wanting to buy stuff from Circuit City because of the warranty. That's just what a friend said. "Blow it up, and bring it back." Which I have zero intentions of doing. I'm an avid bass and guitar player, and I know way too many guys who ride the gain knob on their combos. All a bunch of retards who need their screaming hardcore ESP's louder than reasonable. I am not this kind of person. It's also why I'm easing my way out of playing in my area. I know the difference between the "gain" and "volume" knobs. I also take hella good care of all my gear, no matter how cheap it is. I have no intentions of blowing anything up on purpose. Sure, they would just give me something else to eff around with for free if that happened, but I'm paying the gas money to get there, and waisting MY time on going and getting a new piece of equiptment. Something I hate doing, waisting time. (Current list: Pioneer "DEH-770MP" Premier head, Boston Accoustics "S95" and "S55" speakers, Alpine Type R subs. I'll be buying the speakers first, I'm afraid if I bought the head first, I'll blow whatever speaker life mine have left in a heartbeat.) ~Ryan

10-21-2005, 07:46 AM	#172
MIAaron GAGT - Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Shelby Township, MI Posts: 584 Vehicle: 2000 GT Coupe	For the first time installer, warranties are well worth it. That is easily the time when the most mistakes, and costly ones at that, are made. There have been many times in my life where even quality products have died, or exhibited a drastic loss in performance. Leaky caps in an amp, and worn out spiders in a speaker are prime examples. Sure they can still work, but that doesn't mean they are functioning properly. And saying that something is fine if it doesn't die within 90 days is the exact opposite of my experience. I personally have found that the majority of the time an objects failure rate is directly proportional to its age.

10-21-2005, 09:37 AM	#173
Nessuno3400 GAGT - Member AKA: Sal Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: NY Age: 35 Posts: 171 Vehicle: 96 Talon TSi AWD	I work for Circuit and I buy the warrantees...cuz I know what happens when you don't...your stuff works up until 35 days after the purchase, then it breaks and they can't do **** for you....I never said it's a deciding factor to shop there...go to Best Buy or mom and pop shop for all I care, but all I'm saying is if ur gonna buy it from somewhere that offers warrantees it's well worth it to get it....cuz ur gonna be really pi$$ed when your $1000+ system stops working after 2 months, and no1 can deny that...and don't say it only happens to crappy products cuz it happens with every electronic company, they atleast have a small handful of defective products.

10-21-2005, 11:28 AM	#174
hallows-eve Guest Posts: n/a	Right now, I'll be buying my subs and my speakers from a place called "High Tech HiFi" located in Merritt Island, Florida (for anyone close to me). I think I'll be ordering my head from www.onlinecarstereo.com, and my amp(s) are still a guess, since I havn't decided 100% on a brand. I am contemplating two MTX though. (4 ch. and 2ch.) ~Ryan

10-21-2005, 01:32 PM	#175
Nessuno3400 GAGT - Member AKA: Sal Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: NY Age: 35 Posts: 171 Vehicle: 96 Talon TSi AWD	post some model numbers of what you're looking into...

10-21-2005, 09:27 PM	#176
hallows-eve Guest Posts: n/a	Well, I'm just now looking into the specs of Boston amps, but for a four-way, I'm looking at the GT40, and for a two-way, I'm looking at the GT 28. However, the GT28 looks like it doesn't have alot of watts for the price of it. I was wanting to pump 300+ to two Alpine Type Rs, seeing as the reviews seam to say the more the better. Most said around 500 was good. However, the two-ohm wattage looks like it would work just fine, (around 350 each) So, what's the diference between the Alpine 2 ohm and 4 ohm subs? (I dont know anyting about ohms.) All of the reviews I have found were for the 1242 (12" Type R) not the 1222. I was also looking into MTX for a cheaper alternative from CC. The models I am looking into are the 5302 two-channel and the 5604 four-channel. The four-channel seems to be the wattage I'm after, but again, the two-channel is looking a little weak at only around 200 (I think, too lazy to pull the site up). Hope that helps you help me. Right now, I still am kicking around what size speakers to get. I've pretty much decided on Boston, it's just going to take a trip to HighTechHiFi to listen to them, but I'm pretty confident in them right now, more than just you guys are saying that they'r the best for the price range. So, Should I just go with 5.25" and 6"x9", or go with 6.5" all the way aorund??? I'll be doing the install myself, seeing as HTHF is pretty darned expensive (like $100 for a head) when it comes to that stuff. I am good with a cutting wheel, dremel, grinder (hope i wont need it) so I shouldn't have a problem with adapting plates to accomodate a 6.5". Can any of you guys point me in the direction of a tutorial, or send me a quickie walk through, like a cliff note of the instructions and steps of the conversion??? Any help from you guys, is obviously appreciated. You have all helped me so much, and I'm glad I came here for the answers! Otherwise, I'd-parking the equiptment I'm looking at now. Thanks =). ~Ryan

10-21-2005, 09:37 PM	#177
Metallman56 Bears Fan AKA: Metall Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Indiana Age: 36 Posts: 3,856 Vehicle: 2001 grand am gt coupe	wow punkorama we agree! the end is near. all i am saying is that a warrenty is one of the last factors in buying electronics. should you get one? absoulutly! all things that are made by man can break. the good thing is most stores and companys stand behind the stuff they sell. i said most, not all. find the speakers or amps or whatever you like, then talk about the warrenty. dont think warrenty before value, or sq. almost everything ever made will not stand up to the test of time. s*it wears out. it happens. nothing is perfect. hey have you heard any boston or are you just going to get them because we told you to? you might hate them. its possible. i have a question for you mantagreen.how can a company only put out 2 good hu's in 6 years, and not get bashed? i will also agree with you that pioneer premier is really nothing to great. however i would rather do my whole car in premier than any system i could peice together from best buy or cirut city. and the only reason i have rev 6x9's are because they really hit hard. i got them before my subs so my car was really lacking lows. and they worked just as i wanted them to. but now i am looking to get rid of them and throw in some boston sl95s.

10-21-2005, 09:46 PM	#178
Metallman56 Bears Fan AKA: Metall Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Indiana Age: 36 Posts: 3,856 Vehicle: 2001 grand am gt coupe	ok ok hold on just one second. how much $$$ are you looking to spend here man? a gt-28 is $1000! and the gt-40 is $500. thats 1500 in amps alone. i have a gt-28 and love the thing. i have it hooked to my 2 g5s. its rated at 350 watts per channel at 12.6 volts. but if you run it at 14.2 volts, which is crusing speed, it puts out 450. thats the rms on the g5s. as for the 6.5s all the way around. if you want them to fit in the door your going to need a sawzall. atleast i did for my z6s. speakers were to deep, they would have hit the window. so now i had my door panels fiberglassed to fit the d*mn things. as for the back, i have no idea.

10-23-2005, 09:11 AM	#180
Metallman56 Bears Fan AKA: Metall Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Indiana Age: 36 Posts: 3,856 Vehicle: 2001 grand am gt coupe	i will eventually be going to 5.1 dolby. its kinda hard to have that if i dont have rear speakers.