Hey guys, the time has come where the old lady wants to put some bass in the back of our scion xB. Unfortunatley, I lack the knowledge to know what would make a decent "middle grade" sub, amp, box package.

Here's some info! I would like to stay with one single sub since anything bigger will make the rear cargo room useless. Price is another factor as I would like to stay under $400 total for everything.

I still have the stock head unit in the car also. So, I assume I would need some type of converter to accept the RCA plugs from the amp?

What are your opinions on the kicker L5 series?

Anywho, please let me hear your recommendations as it's greatly appreciated. Thanks, Dan.

 

stay away from square subs because your system will sound mushy enough with the stock headunit powering the subs. the L5 is loud but not very clean sounding.

I woul go with a diamond D3 12" or alpine type S 12" both will run you about 110 and I'm pushing the alpine MRD-605 which is a 600w RMS digital class D amp with built in digial tone and freq controls for about $250. It also has computer controlled cooling and voltmeter. That leaves you $40 for the kit and RCAs. I would get Stinger premium RCAs and a 4ga power kit(any brand)

Hope that helps you out! Also let me know if you need a dealer I pick up Alpine & diamond as wholesale and the factory warrantys are valid... i usually get stuff for slightly below ebay costs but with a warranty and no wait for shipping.

 

how do you warranty alpine if you are not a authorized reseller? how hard is it to get warranty done if needed?

 

there are many differant brands.. you could do an infinty 12, there buy one get one free at circuit city now, they sound decent for the price, 2 for 105. just buy one and ebay the other or hold it incase you blow it. an amp for one will be easy to find, we have a bazooka that some people like to run with it because it is 160 bucks and pushes 300 watts rms (Same as sub). but you can go with infinity, kicker or mtx (if you stay at CC for stuff) if you did that, your around 250, go to walmart or ebay for wirinng, just a box is needed then, if you wanna buy a pre-made one from CC your looking at 60 to 100 depending on the box.. you can find cheaper though. warrenty on the subs is like 25ish a piece for 2 years. (blow them or anything, just bring em back and get new ones free

 

A good head unit is the cornerstone to any system, crappy head unit = crappy sound. First invest in a soild unit and then build your system around it.

 

Because I am an independant dealer, I just ship it back to my retailer, who ships it back to alpine under my name.

so far I've only had to ship 3 items back, two subs and one amplifier. All to Alpine coincidentally. The amp was replaced with a new one in 3 weeks, one of the subs was rejected for abuse from the customer, the other one was 'repaired' though I doubt they did because it looked like a breand new sub(possibly refurbished). The rejection took 2 weeks and the replacement took a month to be returned. You have to pay shipping to put in a warrantly claim.

 

Id probably do a single JL 10 or 12 on an E-series amp. You dont need a 4awg amp kit, an 8awg will be more than enough. If you swing by Sound Advice on Fowler ask for Matt or Jay, we can show you what we have.

 

if your just looking for added bass, dont worry about a head unit.. yeah itll help but unless you plan on rocking the windows or are willing to pull out your wallet for a clean sound, leave what you have.. there is a converter that hooks to your speaker wire and gives the rca outputs..id recomend the infiintys i said before, if not id do the jl. as stated before, the square subs give alot of noise but do not sound that great IMO.

 

If you're still looking, I have a couple inexpensive systems.

First is just for bass...2 12" subs, 400w amp, enclosure, and wiring kit for $315. Its good stuff...Distinct Audio (made by Crossfire). I had a complete distinct system in a 94 Caprice wagon I sold, and we've put a couple in customers cars, with nothing but complements.

If you stay with the factory deck, you'll need a converter. A decent one is about $30. A really good one can be over $100. As others have said, buy a deck. I sell a DUAL AM/FM/CD/MP3/WMA with RCA pre-outs (and deck power) for $175 installed. You could run the factory speakers on the deck power, and run the RCA's for the subs. When you upgrade to more amps and better speakers, you're still in good shape.

Second is the above bass system, with an AM/FM/CD/MP3 player, a second 400 watt amp, and 4 coax speakers for mids and highs. $1100 installed. Again, Distinct and Crossfire.

I am an authorized dealer for Crossfire, as well as Pioneer, JVC, DUAL, Audiobahn, and Lightning.

Toby Johnson

 

Wow... Dual huh