some basic system questions

[BonesDT]

i have the '99 premium stereo w/ 6 CD changer. im looking to design a new system consisting of all Alpine gear. Im interested in 2 12" woofers and a mono amp and a 4 channel amp.

some quick questions:

trying to save some money. can i use the factory CD changer with an aftermarket head unit?

can i use the factory head unit with the new amps? i know there is an amp integrated within the factory unit. this might mean that there are pre-amp outputs from the stock radio inside to the internal amp. can i rewire these to the new amps?

going to be reading and looking into this a lot more, but some quick basic system questions:

how do dual coils on woofers work?
how powerful a mono amp should i get to push the two dual coil type R 12" subwoofers?
how should i wired the woofers? parrallel? 2+2ohm or 4+4ohm?

thanks, and please excuse if these questions are repetitive.

-James

 

[karl_burns]

Bones

Don't be afraid to ask a lot of questions. Most specifically, if you're a visual learner, an Alpine dealer might help you the most since that's what he (sorry to be a chauvenist) will have the most knowledge of.

But here you go:
If you're going to get Alpine amps (or any non-Ford amps) and subs, etc. you must get a new HU. While there may or may not be "pre-outs" to connect an amp from the stock HU (I don't remember off the top of my head) the quality of signal from an Alpine HU will be a drastic improvement over the signal quality and strength of the Ford HU.

Not sure if Alpine can interface with the factory changer (many brands don't). Well, anything can with the right install, but by then you may have spent about half the price of a new CD changer.

Dual voice coils basically means each sound output from an amp will be sent to a voice coil. DVC subs give LOTS of room to change the amount of bass since they can be configured in many ways. You can double the amount of sound by wiring them in parallel, but remember that doesn't effectively double the amount of bass. And that's another lesson entirely.

Hope that's a start. Here's a good site:

Car Audio Australia

Karl

 

[zedsdead]

good stuff, i know one thing, if you're going to get those subs, plan on getting an amp that puts out 800-1000 watts....it kinda dependson if you want it to bump! or to sound good, alpines are tight sounding subs that have the ability to go loud.

dvc subs do exactly what was mentioned, a lot of variations in wiring..... if you get 2 subs and one amp, and the subs are dual 4 ohm, then you either get a 1 ohm or a 4 ohm load on the amp. if the subs are dual 2 ohm, then you can get a 2ohm load on the amp....which most amps do.

heres another site:

www.caraudioresources.net

and maybe, if you got any extra cash left over, get some speakers in the front, they make a world of difference!

 

[BonesDT]

ok thanks. yes, i forgot to say that i bought four Blaupunkt PCxt573 speakers from a flee market for $80 a while back, so I'm just going to hold onto those for a while.

how are the dual voice coils wired? are there four terminals per sub instead of two? do i treat them as two speakers in one, where i can wire them in series or parrallel within the single sub?

 

[zedsdead]

yup, 4 terminals per sub.....man you should see some of the quad coil subs out there.....they just look mean! and yeah, you can kind of think of them that way, and yes, you can wire them in series or parallel per sub.

 

[BonesDT]

so whats the difference between a dual coil and just having 2 subs?

which is better, 2+2ohm or 4+4ohm, or does it depend on my setup?

what is the most ideal finished resistance? im guessing i would eventually want 2ohms for maximum power without stressing the amp.

so to eventually get 2ohms i would need two 2+2 subs and wire them each in parrallel and then in series with each other, or vise versus, right?

 

[karl_burns]

Don't mean to get off topic here.....

.... but how'd you do 4.5" of lift?
Please PM me if you don't wanna answer in this thread.
Thanks!
Karl Burns

 

[BonesDT]

i figured someone might ask me that. i guess it is a little confusing, just trying to make some more room for MORE MODS!!!

its just a 3" body lift with 1.5" TT/shackles. sounds cooler my way though.

 

[zedsdead]

so to eventually get 2ohms i would need two 2+2 subs and wire them each in parrallel and then in series with each other, or vise versus, right?

yup. higher end subs are usually dvc, it just gives you more flexibility in wiring, and usually a stronger sub.