audio set-up for beginners [continued]

[rangeles]

Feedbacks please for german maestro separates alpha series. Dati daw po itong mb quart. Any users here of this brand?

[jhnkvn]

Re: Firland Audio

Firland 612 is quite good for the money. We have the 602 in my brother's Civic. For a 3k budget component, it performs admirably.

Re; German Maestro
It's not part of MB Quartz, rather some of the management and top engineers simply opted to "create" a new company. And that's German Maestro. This isn't rare in the car audio industry. As an example in the 1990s: the top engineers of Xtant (A two-time IASCA World Champion used Xtant amps before) went to PPI, which spawned the equally successful PPI Art series which is still considered one of the best SQ amplifiers made, before going to JL Audio in making the Slash series.

It's an uncommon choice, however they're excellent once you tune them well. I haven't heard their entry-lineup but I've heard the 2-way EPIC on a Hyundai i10 and their 2nd-best speakers -- a 3-way STATUS Line on a BMW E36 which sounded simply superb. The said car had top notch installation with extensive kick panel installs just to get the optimal speaker placements. All powered by a BitOne, a 4 and 6 channel McIntosh ;)

If you have an amplifier, I suggest considering the line "above" the Alpha which is the Concept. Reason for this is because GermanMaestro also utilizes Focal's inverted dome tweeter technology to help dispersion and create a wider soundstage. As patents can only last 20 years, pwede na "kopyahin" yun technology since the patent has expired. All of GM's lineup uses inverted dome except for the Alpha line.

Equipment can only take you so far. The top two most important things in getting sound quality is DSP and speaker placement/positioning.

[rj_tim]

Re: Firland Audio

Firland 612 is quite good for the money. We have the 602 in my brother's Civic. For a 3k budget component, it performs admirably.

So ok na ang Firland 612 as part of a decent sound set-up na SQ?

[testament11]

Guys, I need your suggestions...

I'm planning to upgrade my sound system sa Pajero JDM namin. Currently, ang setup niya is a Pioneer 5050UB, Sony 2-way coax sa harap, then 6x9 3-way coax sa likod. I want to achieve a hybrid SQL/SPL sound setup, but leaning towards SQL, say 60/40, in favor sa SQL.

Yun HU ko, isasalpak ko sa Pajero FM namin kasi Jurassic na yun HU nun. Tapos yun from coax ko naman eh ilalagay ko sa FX namin dahil sira na ang speakers nun. I will only retain the 6x9's. Ano ba magandang components para sa gusto kong ma-achieve? I plan on investing on good amps, say price will be around 10k-13k. Medyo cramped ang space ko pala, so I plan a sealed box para sa subs

Seps - ?
Subs - ?
Amp - ?
Sound deadening material - ?

Thanks in advance!

[jhnkvn]

Hmm, no budget on the seps? As a start, I would recommend the Cadence ZRS-6K due to its high sensitivity rating and excellent performance for LnC. This retails around the 6,000php. For sets more than that, you should start looking for raw drivers from Cadence, Beyma, and Ciare (by order of their average price tags).

For the head unit, it's up to you. Many will opt for a 2-DIN head unit from Pioneer such as the 4250/4350 and that would also be nice. If you're focusing more on the sound quality aspect, you might want to check secondhand units of Alpine 9887s which sells around the 10k region secondhand.

For the subwoofer, it really depends on your tastes. How loud do you want it to be? If you're looking of it more from the SPL side, you would focus on this. I would suggest you start with a 15" subwoofer from RE and get the biggest sized box you can find. If space is a premium on your car, going SPL is a bit impossible now so focus on the SQL/LnC aspect.

For the amplifier, you would only need two. A 4-channel and a mono amplifier. For the mono amplifier, you have more freedom on this really. I've heard a Sound Magus mono amp drive a monster 18" subwoofer to deafening levels. However, I would suggest the DC 120.4 and their mono amplifier. Very good amplifiers and you also have brand gravitas to go along with it.

For the sound deadening, you'll eventually know the cost of it once you start playing. Allocate around 5,000php for it since you'll be doing more than deadening the doors. I'm pretty sure your license plate at the back and some windows would start rattling due to the pressure level.

[glenn manikis]

mga sir anyone.... Please.. help comment on this.... im planning to buy this subwoofer and amplifier it has daw a 30mm XMAX?

lightning lab subwoofer 12inch 30mm xmax.mp4 - YouTube

[Brennt]

question lang po mga guru... gusto ko sana palitan yung speakers ko sa harap ng FD ko.. medyo nasira kase.. ano kaya magandang ipalit mga around 5k wala ng ibang mods siguro kung nde papa deadening ko yung front doors tapos baka palitan ko in a few months yung HU ko ng Pioneer AVH-3450. Pero sa ngayon stock pa lang HU ko. Kelangan ko din ba papalitan yung mga cable ng speakers sa harap?

[jhnkvn]

*Glenn

If you want a subwoofer, simply get those that fits the budget. If you want a proven and affordable choice, get the JBL GT5 (2.5k~ish) that's even being used for home audio purposes. Xmax is a parameter that measures one-way linearity and theoretically, gives you an idea of the subwoofer's SPL capability. However, this isn't the case in real-world applications since some manufacturers overstate their Xmax parameters (hint!) and you have other factors to look for (ex. motor, basket type, power handling, box size, etc.). As a practical example, if you put a 12" CV Stroker with 20mm Xmax against a 12" JLW7 with 29mm Xmax, the CV would still win in a loudness match even though its Xmax is lower.

*Brennt

For 5k, you have the alot of choices on your sleeves: Morel Maximo, Firlands EV602/612, Domination D'Lites, Ryan Audio, etc. Don't ask which is the "better" one since there's no such thing as "better". It really depends on your choice. I would suggest asking for the best deals in town, getting the best one, then use the remainder for deadening your front doors. If you'll ever won't be putting an amplifier, find the one that has the highest sensitivity rating (ex. 90dB > 85dB). This way, you do not need a boatload of power to drive the speaker to your desired volume. If you're willing to stretch the budget by 1k, get the Cadence ZRS6K.

[Brennt]

thank you surr.. eh yung cables? kelangan ko pa kaya palitan? or sapat na yung stock? Malaki rin ba difference kapag pina deaden ko yung front doors? inner tsaka outer. thanks!

[jhnkvn]

Biggest difference is when you install an amplifier and then deaden the doors. As for the cables, don't go for fancy ones.. but don't go for generic ones either. Any "branded" cable would suffice (Firland cables are actually a favorite among the budget crowd)

Deadening your doors before installing an amplifier makes little sense because you can't really crank the volume up. And if you don't crank the volume up, door resonance is actually kept at a minimum. If you install the separates and feel something is "off" or nakukulangan ka, get a 4-channel amplifier then deaden afterwards.

As for the deadening, this depends really. Some cars are resonance-happy while some aren't. Take my Sonata for example.. the doors themselves are fully deadened (in, out, and door panel) but I still experience buzzing sounds. If you take a Starex, kahit hindi mo ipadeaden, it won't rattle as much compared to mine. However, general rule of thumb is that deadening your doors is "sulit" because it improves midbass response.

If you're going to upgrade piece-by-piece:
1. Speakers
2. 4-channel amplifier
3. Deadening
4. Head Unit
5. Subwoofer

4 and 5 can be interchanged depending on taste. If you consider yourself to be a basshead, you'd probably go for the subwoofer first before the head unit replacement. But this is fine since I've heard of people using stock FD HUs with the complete set and it doesn't sound bad at all!