can someone please explain car audio?

[thearabian]

when they sell head units "4 x 50w" thats not 4 channels times 50 watts RMS is it?

okay so how much is RMS for such a head unit?

is that why its always to run the speakers off a dedicated amp?

is it better to have separate drivers or to have one speaker that is "3-way"

is it better to have one dedicated amp per channel + sub amp
or to have 1 amp for sub and 1 4-channel
or to have 1 for sub and 2 2 channel amps for front and back

in what cases is a crossover needed?

do 5 channel amps exist (4 chans + 1 sub) all in one? are those good?

if i have 4 inch speakers in my front doors which are running off my head unit, and i have nad sound quality and no high volume at all, what do i do? 5 or 6 inch wont fit?

i guess i need a car-audio tutorial images/icons/smile.gif
im a home audio expert, but car audio is just soo damn different and complicated!
i know they are a lot of questions, but i would appreciate answers greatly!!
thanks!

[Meeks32]

"when they sell head units "4 x 50w" thats not 4 channels times 50 watts RMS is it?
okay so how much is RMS for such a head unit?"

No head units are 50w RMS, they are usually 20-22w RMS. People run speakers off a seperate amp because it will sound cleaner & you can turn up the volume more.

"is it better to have separate drivers or to have one speaker that is "3-way"

Seperate drivers are usually higher quality than coaxials, they are used to get a better soundstage & imaging. Use component speakers up front & coaxials in the rear.

"is it better to have one dedicated amp per channel + sub amp
or to have 1 amp for sub and 1 4-channel
or to have 1 for sub and 2 2 channel amps for front and back
in what cases is a crossover needed?
do 5 channel amps exist (4 chans + 1 sub) all in one? are those good?"

No, just use a 4channel amp for the 4 speakers & a more powerful one for a sub(s). 4channel amps are just 2 2channel amps in 1 case. You can run 4 speakers off a 2 channel amp but you will lose the ablility to fade from front to back. ADS, soundstream, maybe zapco, all of those have 5+ channel amps, ADS has a 8channel one. They are good, but 2 different amps will be better because you can get an amp to power a sub that has more power.


"if i have 4 inch speakers in my front doors which are running off my head unit, and i have nad sound quality and no high volume at all, what do i do? 5 or 6 inch wont fit?"


You can always fit larger speakers usually, if not they may offer some kickpannel inserts where you can mount a midbass & tweeter. If you get a sub, you may not need larger speakers.

[thearabian]

thanks a lot!

[**DONOTDELETE**]

yea don't get sucked into the power ratings war car audio companies like sony, aiwa,...are having. they realize people see these high numbers and buy just based on that, but very few of the cheaper ones actually use real numbers(cheap-under$7-800). usually if you search for reviews on a particular model the reviewers post the true power ratings and unless you're using some average low power speakers you will need seperate amp(s). instead look for features, like pre-outs and their voltage- higher=cleaner signal. pioneer has some cool ones like the deh-p9300 that let you have a lot of control over the speakers and frequencies, also they are satellite ready. that 50x4 rating is w/ the "loud" button on, they probably had rms listed in the 25x4 area. even the 25x4 could be fake, cause they could have just taken the power rating from 1 or 2 channels to get 25watts. "x4" just means it has for channels. the tip is under ~$800 the rms power rating is less likely to be true. i just went to the eclipse site, looked at a $900 head unit its power rating is 13x4(2020,000Hz, 0.8% THD, 4) , but then i look at a $160 sony and its 23rms/52 peak?!?


4" speakers aren't going to do so you can cut larger openings, usually everything is plastic so a good utility knife will do the job. pop off the door panel, measure the depth in the door to make sure there is enough room for the speaker depth, trace the shape on and cut. kick panels are another choice, but kinda expensive.

crossovers- lets say you have tweeters, mid range components, and woofers. you don't want them all trying to produce high, mid, and low frequencies from 1-6, kinda defeats the purpose. so the crossovers come into play, you set the tweeters to play only up high from 5-6, the mids to play only in the middle from 2-5, and subs deep down from 1-2.

there are amps that can handle the all the speakers, but its probably better to go with seperate amps. one for the speakes inside the car and an amp designed for subs- class D.

here are some other forums that are pretty good. http://forums14.consumerreview.com/crforum?14@105.nig1aESTe7V^0@.ee864de http://www.sounddomain.com/
places to buy http://www.thezeb.com/ http://www.crutchfield.com/

[**DONOTDELETE**]

One of the best ways to spend your money is to get a nice set of components up front and unless you are gonna go to compete or your car is reall big inside you really don't even need a rear set.Also try and stay away from 2,3,and 4 way speakers,because most have a tweeter post sticking up through the center,causing you to have less cone area and also the cone is not as rigid=less bass from your speakers. And whatever you do don't waste your time powering you speakers from your head unit.I wouldn't go with a multi channel amp such as 40X4 and 100X1....waste of money.Go with quality components and a good 2 channel amp.As far a subs go,I would recommend 1 10" or 12" in a ported or bandpass box,for any given amp output they will be louder than a sealed box sub.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Ok here we go. First of all most units claiming 50/52 watts per channel are 22 watts rms. If you really want a good head unit for the money stick with pioneer 630/730/930 or higher. First of all there are built in crossovers with Hpf and lpf,dsp, and a eq. What most people dont know is that there is a 12bandeQ settings on theses units. Basically everything you need for as cheap as possible. Personally I set my front components at 50 and higher and the sub 50h and lower. The best thing to do in your case is to buy components for the front and rear. Believe it or not you can run the componets off the deck if you dont buy a crampy deck with a high thd. All componets come with the crossovers you need anyway so the point is mot. Yes of course its better to have and amp on the components but your better off spending more money on a quality sub/ and sub amp unless you have lots of money just buring a hole in your pocket. Personally I prefer Kicker subs L7s. The L7 have the greatest amount of surface area of any sub out there. I beleave 2 12s have the same surface area of 2 regular round 15s. The amps are also great but there pretty expense. What you really need to know is how stable the amp will be at the ohm load you put on it and the power out put. First pick out the subs you want and determine if they are single voice coil svc or dvc. Then find out what the ohms rating will be going off the sub. This will depend on your wiring (series or parrelel). If your lost at this point have a reputable dealer set the sub and box up for you or you can by a meter. Spend the extra money and buy a box for the subs. Each sub is different and takes a specific range of sizes depending on your application. ie spl etc Make sure to put extra silicon around the seams the box should be as air tight as possible. One way to check is to push on one of the subs. If you push it and it returns to its normal position after a few seconds it sealed pretty good.

Back to the subject of amps you need to look for a few things thd(total harmonic destortion) rms(constant power), and at what ohm load the amp is stable. 1/2, 1 ,2 etc

Basically unless you know what your doing take it to someone who knows whats going on it will save you time and money in the long run. The best place to get car audio is ebay hands down, go and find what you want and then look it up on ebay. I know it will be cheaper.