Audiophile question

[180sx]

Installing a new Pioneer system in my Mazda Tribute. Stock size is 6x8. I want to install components in the car. I can put 60W nominal (260W max) 2 way 6x8's no problem. But I want components up front. The components are 35W nominal (180W max) and are 5.25" (only non 6x8 that will fit). Does anybody think this will be a problem of matching the two (front/rear). I was thinking about the amp and how it will limit the rear speakers if I can only have 35W continuous. Should I just do 6x8's all around or components all around? I was leaning towards the components all around but wanted some opinions. Thanks!

 

Stock: 6x8

6x8 2 way 60W Continuous (260max)

5.25 component 35W continuous (180max)

 

Jose

[tmoore4512]

Listen as long as the speakers are quality, and the head unit's output voltage matches the input voltage on the amp, then it will sound great.

 

The days of having to send 2 and 300 watts to a set of speaker are over, clarity is king!!

 

Components are awesome, but the new 2 and 3 way speakers that are available are impressive...

[Simon]

Don't worry about overdriving the 35w RMS speakers either. Clean power from the amp (not the $hitty amp in your head unit) won't hurt speakers. It's the distorted crap running from a "50w per channel" head unit, that blows speakers. The RMS rating on just about any head unit on the market is about 17w.

 

You could probably run 50-60w clean into those speakers without a problem.

Edited July 23, 2010 by Simon

[FUELER]

i would do compoenents in the front and 2ways in the back. In fact, thats what i currently have in my QX4

 

with amped components up front, you dont even need rear speakers... it'll just give a little bit of "rear fill" for a fuller sound

 

and yeah run a small 4 channel amp, like tmoore says, clarity is king

[GrimGreg]

The component has a 5.25, but what are the specs for the tweeter? A lot of 2 ways aren't able to hit the highs well. Though with a good set of 2 or 3 ways, there is no need for a sub.

[ILoveMyPatty]

What make are the speakers, and what amp are you planning on running?

 

A 50x4 RMS amp with the 35W RMS and 60W RMS speakers would honestly be fine. As long as you keep your gains down, you should be good to go.

[tmoore4512]

Just match the voltage, and your golden.

 

Most of your quality amplifiers and head units will have the voltage listed.

 

On the amp if it is not listed, you can adjust the voltage via a multimeter and the gain control...

 

Having the gain all the way up throws the voltage out of wack and literally adds distortion.

[180sx]

Thanks for the help guys. All the stuff I'm going with is Pioneer (only brand I use). So I'm going with components front and the 2ways rear. The amp does 60Wx4 continuous, so I'll adjust it accordingly. Thanks again!

 

Jose

[Kingman]

If you have an extremely high quality (not power rating) deck, you'll almost be guaranteed great sound. I have JBLs up front and Kenwoods in back and an Alpine deck that allows me to turn the volume up all the way with almost zero distortion and sound so crisp and loud it makes your ears ring. The previous Panasonic deck made everything sound like @!*%. It's so clear now that a separate amp for the speakers would be pointless. Mostly distortion from speakers comes from the internal amp on the deck it's self.

 

The thing with car audio is, you'll almost never find any component that puts out as much power as it's labeled to. It's not really how much power you can produce, it's how well the component handles it's self while doing it.

[180sx]

If you have an extremely high quality (not power rating) deck, you'll almost be guaranteed great sound. I have JBLs up front and Kenwoods in back and an Alpine deck that allows me to turn the volume up all the way with almost zero distortion and sound so crisp and loud it makes your ears ring. The previous Panasonic deck made everything sound like @!*%. It's so clear now that a separate amp for the speakers would be pointless. Mostly distortion from speakers comes from the internal amp on the deck it's self.

 

The thing with car audio is, you'll almost never find any component that puts out as much power as it's labeled to. It's not really how much power you can produce, it's how well the component handles it's self while doing it.

That's true. I stick with Pioneer because of the decks. Always sounded the best. But I've never used component speakers with coaxial speakers before, and wasn't sure if the difference would make any difference. Also, I agree about not using the amp if you have a good deck, but in my experience using an amp for components almost always sounds better. I deal with a lot of infiniti and RF gear that people bring. Always ended up using an amp. Maybe it was just the decks? I don't know, but that many decks couldn't be wrong (most were Kenwood or Sony, but had a couple Eclipse and Alpine decks). Thanks again.