mgoblue002 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Hello All, I drive a 2004 Accord LX with a factory system installed. Needless to say, this system doesn't sound very well. I'm looking to upgrade my system but I am not sure what exactly to do and I don't want to break the bank. I don't really want to mess with putting another head unit in, but if I had to I would keep the climate control panel and just put the head unit in the free space under it. So the question is can I get away with just buying new speakers, just buying a new head unit, or should I just scrap the whole thing and replace both the speakers and head unit? Thanks in advance!! Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmgogo Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 you can keep the stock head unit, just get an amp and new speakers (and a small sub), run the deck outputs to the high level input on the amp, then distribute accordingly. Also from the amp run NEW HEAVEIR GAUGE WIRE, do not use the stock crap wire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgoblue002 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 Thanks for the quick response. I'm assuming that the only reason for an amp would be for the sub. If I didn't want to put a sub in, do you think new speakers would be work well enough with the stock head unit to make a big enough difference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmgogo Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 no, amp for your speakers as well. You can put the worlds best speakers into your car and run them off the stock head unit and it will sound like utter ass. Reason being is they are underpowered and you need to turn the volume up to provide enough wattage to drive them, and when you increase the wattage from such a small internal amplifier you introduce alot of noise into the line. This is why you run an amplifier for your speakers (and sub if you go that route). You take the load off the already underpowered head unit and let the amplifier do its job of increasing the wattage out, making for a more stable, better sounding system. The reasoning behind the larger wires from the amp to the speakers is you will be putting out more wattage to the speakers, this require more SA for the electrons to travel to reach the speaker. You stock head unit produces on average 10w per channel, the speakers im running operate in a range of 60w rms to 120w peak per channel, and these are not exactly high power speakers (although they are very VERY nice speakers, and have great SQ) If i was to run them off my after market head unit which only put out 20w/ channel I would still be WAY under powered and have to turn the volume probably close to max just to hear them, and at that volume the signal is EXTREMELY distorted, so instead I am running not only my sub, but my speakers as well off a separate 755W 6channel amp (2X left front 2X right front and 2X sub) which provides the perfect ammount of power for my system. What i want you to do is answer a few questions for me 1. whats your budget 2. how experienced are you with automotive electronics 3. how comfortable would you be installing a system (this involves soldering wires, installing clips, running wire, etc), if your not comfortable doing it yourself are you taking it to a shop to do the install 4. what are the sizes of your stock speakers 5. sub or not (this actually makes a HUGE difference on speaker selection) 6. are you going to install sound deadlining into the cabin and trunk If you could awnser those for me I can give you a fairly good idea of what/where you should be looking for your audio equipment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgoblue002 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 I don't really have a set in stone budget but I would definitely like to stay under $300 more like in the $250 range. I'm not very experienced with AUTOMOTIVE electronics but I do have a decent background with regular speakers and just general electronics. Given the right instructions and the right equipment, I think I could manage to install myself.(Crutchfield) I'm not exactly sure what the size of my stock speakers are, but on crutchfields website it says I can fit anything from 5 1/2 to 6 1/2 in the front and I guess a 6x9 in the rear deck. I do not want to get a sub, I'm more concerned with the mids and highs than the bass. And lastly, I wouldnt install sound deadlining into the car. Thanks again for all your help, I only have limited knowledge of car audio, all I know is my audio sucks right now and it's the only thing that I don't like in my car. I know I can do better and stay within a reasonable price!! Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmgogo Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 300 isnt going to get you much, sorry to say. Just my front door speakers retail for 250-300 and those are entry level, the are the low end of the manufacturer I prefer. Honestly your not going to improve anything for under the cost of either 1. a new head unit that can provide a better signal/power ratio than your stock head unit (which you said you would prefer to keep), and most decent head units are upwards of 200 2. a set of speakers and a small amp to power them (anywhere from 400-1k) plus the wiring needed (another 60-120) and the time to install (2-8 hours) Honestly I would save up, wait untill you have close to 600, then proceed from there. Sorry for the bad news :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgoblue002 Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 Okay, thanks for all of your time and help!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aviorlando Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 If you have a problem with finding room to fit the subs you should just look into getting some new door speakers and hooking it up to an amp. This will give you quality sounds with enough bass that you can live with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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