First off, hello all. I am new here, been lurking however reading as much as I can and learning. I am not by any means an "audiophile" however I know I love good music, that sounds great. I have a couple of questions if I may.

I commute 35 miles one way to work, and spend a lot of time in the 2006 F-150 Supercrew. That being said, I purchased some products this week to get a better sound than my factory speakers, etc, and would like you guys to let me know if it might sound good. I understand all bets are off, but you know how it is. I generally am not worried about how loud it is, as long as it's somewhat loud. I don't look to break any world records in SPL, but I would like it to be powerful enough to make me think man does that sound good. Here is the hardware.

Headunit: Kenwood KVT-717 DVD (Have had this a couple of years)
Front Door: Diamond D661's (Given to me by brother in law cheap!)
Rear Door: Diamond D661's (Given to me by brother in law cheap!)
Sub: Diamond D3 10" in Probox (ported under rear seat)
Front and Rear Amp: Infinity Ref 7541A (111 watts RMS x 4 channel at 4 ohms)
Sub Amp: Lanzar Vibe 240 (1 x 800 Watts Max at 4 Ohms Bridged. I have had this one a while sitting in the garage)
EQ: Soundstream MPQ-5XO Parametric EQ w/ Crossover (Also have had this in the garage from a friend)

Again, I just want some decent sound quality, but wouldn't mind it if it was pretty loud. I listen to Rock, Heavy Metal, Jazz, Classical, .... ok I listen to a lot of different stuff

I would think if I had a pretty weak link in this setup it would be the amps correct? The Lanzar is a pretty cheap amp, but I had it already. Anyway, nice to be here, and let me know. Thanks in advance.

 

im scared to say lol

it should sound alot better then stock tho...

 

That sounds like an overall good set-up. The only thing more I could reccomend is getting some sound deadner in your truck. It will greatly improve SQ and reduce road noise. It will also seal up your doors and make your door speakers sound much louder.

 

Thanks for the input BestNTx. I plan on doing that, with some Edead or something similiar, Fatmat, etc. I noticed you live in Fort Worth also! Hi neighbor

My EQ and such wont be here until this Thursday so I have a little time to research what sound deadener I would like. Used to be Dynamat out there and that was it, but now there's alternatives.

 

if your really serious about SQ deaden your front doors at the minimum and lose the rear fill

should sound pretty nice then after a little tweaking

 

Get rid of the rear fill? Why? Would my rear passangers not have much sound?

 

What's up neighbor! as far as sound deadner... It really depends on what you want to pay, I went with edead and im satisfied, 80 cents a sq ft with the forum discount. If you want to know more about the different deadners, try the website http://www.sounddeadenershowdown.com/

 

Getting rid of your rear fill makes it so that you have a better sound stage for better sound imaging. Think about it like being at a concert, you normally dont have speakers from behind you. I personally like a little rear fill, I've always been a fan of surround sound even though im not quite set up for it yet.

 

quality sounremoving the rear fill lets you experience the ture stereo sound as it was intended, with a better soundstage and better imaging

stereo music should sound as though it were being performed in front of you. I find with rear fill it sounds like the musicians are performing inside your head. basically destroying the imaging. you don't see high end audiophile stereo systems set up with a mirror image in the back of the room, right? well why should we se it in a vehicle?

 

I see. I guess it doesn't hurt to test and play with it. Thanks for the help guys. It's time for me to go get some Dynamat or Edead. Hmm.... Edead I would have to wait though, since they dont have local dealers here in DFW.

 

He's hearing voices!!!

 

lol I like hearing a sense of distance between me and my music

 

You order your Edead directly from elemental designs. I live in the DFW area as well and just oreder 120 sqft. It took 2 days to get here and cost about 16 bucks to ship. It works excellent too, not hard to install at all just time consuming. Here's the link.. www.edesignaudio.com
Also, I would try and steer clear of mainstream products sold at best buy and stuff like that. You'll find that there is so much better out there for cheaper.

 

Sonova ..........

Speakers, everything is here now, except the EQ. Went with the Dynamat (found a closeout sale price here in DFW) and did the entire back, hooked up amps, caps, ran wire, RCA's to opposite side, etc etc.

Did all the pre work. Then go to check out the subs ... Diamond D3's ... and WHAMMO .... frickin sub doesn't fit in the Probox ... to damn deep. Now I don't know what to do other than build a small lip ... I'm about 1/3 - 1/2 inch to short. BAHHHHH. Oh well. I have to build 4 x 6 1/2" baffles for my mids anyway, what's one more stinkin hole?

 

Well, I got everything in. What a job. Dynamated everything in the doors, behind the back seat, built the "rings of doom" for the 6.5's all the way around, mounted amps, added a lip to the sub box, put the subs in, new battery, ran RCA's, ... etc etc and even put in a "hood underlining" from Dynamat to deaded engine noise. After getting everything hooked up, I powered the truck up, slipped in a Tool CD, then a Jazz CD, then a George Strait CD (yes, my music is a broad range) and man oh man can I say I LOVE the sound. Took a little to get the EQ and the gains and such set on the amps, tweaked it out, and then it's just nice listening.

Funny thing is, aside from the stereo and EQ mounted in the double din slot, it all looks stock. Oh yah and the box under the back seat. But it does sound great. Ported 10" sounds GOOD and CLEAN.

Thanks to all your help here. I referred to this forum a couple times during the install. Next project is rims, tires, billet grill, some chrome, then some engine/exhaust stuff.

Damn this site for taking my money ......