I have been thinking about installing an amp to boost my sound. I was told that I may get a whine if I install just an amp and it was suggested that I also install a new radio to prevent the whine. is this true or is the salesman just trying to boost his income.

 

If you get a new head unit your sound will improve 100% if you just get an amp you will just amplify the factory its like this if you have a piece of crap and you magnify it no matter how much you magnify it its still gonna look like CRAP so my advice to you is just try a new head unit. Dont go for both try one see how it sounds i like my stereo how it is now 100% better than factory im still upgrading but it is alot better. Hope this helps



Later.........



Btw the sales man is full of ***** a whine would come from a few things but not from just amping your speakers off of a factory head unit.

 

You can keep your factory head unit, but I would highly reccomend changing out the head unit to aftermarket. By the time you buy the line in adapters(your factory unit is amplified) your better off just changing it out.

Good luck

 

But if you keep the factory HU you don't have to worry about people busting out your windows to steal your fancy stereo.

 

But then why buy anything if your going to worry about that hell they might like your truck too return that get a less desirable vehicle why spend money to amplify Crap? it wont clear it up just make it sound like louder crap.

 

thats what shaded windows and detachable face stereos are for. Pullleease! If I made decisions on what I buy based on whether I'm afraid someone is going to steal it, I'd be driving a 1972 LTD with a peeling vinyl top and rusted body panels (you get the picture). If you're THAT concerned about it- get a high end alarm and GET THEFT INSURANCE.

oh yeah, heres a little food for your paranoia- Can you guess what one of the top 2 vehicles were stolen last year was?

 

Buy a HU first, then replace the stock speakers, then buy an amp. The great thing about stereo gear is you can buy it in phases. Not everyone can afford to throw down a wad of cash. Take your time, buy quality gear and you won't go wrong.

 

REPLACE THE STOCK SPEAKERS FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is a industry standard, does not good to buy a new head unit unless you need a CD player. Buying a new head unit with 50x4 and sending that to the factory 1-way 5x7's you'll just have the same junk speakers playing music a little louder. If you already have a CD player, then buy speakers, then you can move to a amp later, believe me, I done this a hundred times, used a the factory deck and added a amp, NO WHINE, and the customer has always been happy, if they come back to get a deck later, so be it, the usually just want all the "Flashing Lights".

 

I amped my first subs off the stock HU and had no problems. It sounded no different after I installed my aftermarket HU.

The key to a great sounding system is all in the install.

 

You can have as much or more whine from an aftermarket deck... it's called a "ground loop". Amplifying a OE stereo from speaker outputs doesn't sound as good because you're limited by the frequency response of the amplifier in the deck - typically 30hz to 15khz v.s. aftermarket cd units 15 or 20hz to 20khz. Most people can't hear 20-20 anyhow.

I found the factory 5x7 speakers fairly good considering they're not 2-ways. In my 98 the position in the door can be obstructed by your knee and the imaging is crap, better speakers in there won't do much for ya. Tried it.

I finally went with 5 1/4 MB Quart separates with tweeters mounted flush in the top of the dash. Sounds way better. But taking the dash apart is hell. Let someone else do it and fork over your cash.

 

p_ferlow
How's it going? Are those 5 1/4's mounted flush on the top of the dash or just the tweets? Got any pics? Sounds interesting...

 

I kept my stock HU and put a 5 channel amp behind the rear seat with a custom built sub box under the rear seat. change the front speakers only! You only have to buy line convertors if your amp does not have speaker level inputs. mine did, so the hardest thing was routing wires - and that wasn't hard!

Again, if you want a stealth install you can use the factory HU and it could suit your needs - it does mine.

 

KYFordFreak:
Hi there, how's it going? Lucky I'm checking the forums today. I've been lazy. I've been building a new dual AMD box. An MSI K7D in an Antec1030B case. I've been doing a lot of research on www.2cpu.com and other computer hardware sites.... haven't visited here that often the last while. Replacing my current BP6 box.

No, I don't have any pics but will make some and post soon. Just the tweeters are flush in the dash. 5 1/4 drivers are in the doors. It's a big job to tear apart the dash. The plastic on the top where I cut is quite thick. About 1/8 inch. Unfortunately on the driver's side there's really no flat spot so the tweeter isn't quite 100% flush on that side because the tweeter is flat but can't follow the contours 100% if you know what I mean.

Later!

 

Oh, I see. Just the tweets, yea I imagine that was a heck of a job. If I ever get around to a system I will either put the tweets in the mirror sail panel or in the door. Actaully my local installer/friend recommended just putting them in the door for better imaging.
Good luck with the new PC. Have fun, gotta go search for a new job.

 

Job hunting eh... sucks... good luck though.

I had the tweeters mounted beside the 5 1/4 drivers with metal strapping behind the door grills but found the imaging pretty crap.

I just wanted to use those mb quart tweeters... if I didn't have any I'd definitely buy some 1 inch or 3/4 inch units to try and custom flush-mount them in the sail panels as you say. Unfortunately the clip that holds those little triangle panels on is in the centre of the panel so cutting it for a tweeter would be a real mod job, not impossible though and much easier than the dash mount thing.