Car Stereo Question

[Neodude1123201]

Small Question for all you car buffs!

I Currently have a Kenwood Head unit (50w Per Channel), Pioneer 4" (150w) Fronts and Pioneer 6" Rears (150w). I'd like to add a bit of oomph as far as bass goes (To be honest, if my system had a bit more bass it would be fine). Problem is i have limited space and not a very big budget. So im wondering do i get;

1. Set Of Decent 6x9's and a new headunit (Roughly $300)
2. Kenwood 12" Subwoofer And Mono Amp (Roughly $400)

The problem with getting 2x 6x9's is i would have to go cutting holes to fit them BUT the problem with the sub is it would sit in a *very* confined area and im unsure how effective it would be.

The Subwoofer in questions is here , 6x9's in question are here

I'm not aiming for a massive DOOF DOOF DOOF here, i just want clear bass that's reasonably loud.

 

[superman22x]

Sub for sure. I have some decent 6x9s in mine, and it doesn't help bass much at all. My friend had a 10 or 12" in his extended cab truck that provided enough bass to make rock music sound great.

 

[root]

to be honest I doubt that you're actually getting true 4 x 50W from your head unit, there just isn't this amount of electrical power available from most auto accessory lines, 4 x 50 watts is 200w, that means that you should at least have a 20 amp fuse on the back, and I'll bet that like most radios it actually has a ten amp fuse.

couple that with the fact that most of the electrical power into any amplifier is wasted as heat (and there isn't enough space in that iso mount stereo hole in the dash to actually dissipate this heat anywhere anyway... and you see where I'm going...

that 4x 50 watt, it probably more like 4 x 10watt rms, they just call it 50watt per channel using some strange numbers to increase marketing...

the downside is that you'll have this same problem with almost all head units...

so if you do get another head unit you'll probably still want a separate amplifier anyway.

so if you're happy with the existing sound for the mid and HF range of the audio, then you're going to do better to get a separate amp and a sub for the bass.

 

[Neodude1123201]

Ok, so if i go with the sub it will be put inbetween the rear seats and the tailgate, roughly about 50cm of space there, will the subwoofer be effective in such a narrow position?

 

[root]

do you have a parcel shelf?

you could always try mounting the sub on a flat board in place of the parcel shelf, then you have the entire boot/trunk as a sub box.


Other than that, the acoustic properties of a car are frankly terrible anyway. with clever design of a box, and an exactly matching woofer, yes that possibly is enough space.
in car stereo land it's bunches of space, ignore the massive sub boxes for a moment and look up some hidden or stealth boxes, those are tiny.

if you're an absolute audiophile then I'd say no, it's not enough space, and you actually need a box van with careful positioned panel speakers and an arm chair in the middle, sound proofing on the walls etc, but lets face it, you're not looking to create a symphony hall in your car.

so yes, that'll be plenty of space.

 

[Neodude1123201]

Thanks heaps root! I Have my eyes on a JBL Slimline Sub/Amp package thats on ebay.... im afraid next paydays spending money has found its next home hahaha.

Also have you had any experience with Cadence Subwoofers?