Thread: If you only had 300$ on a sound system...

$300...okay....this is ASSUMING you are not going to HU route...

You can either:
1) splurge on a GREAT 2.1 system
2) get a 4.1 system, and still make it great, but not AS great

ASk 3onDubs, he did some goodness with $300. I did my goodnes siwth $150 then said screw it all. Try to spend $250 on components and the rest on wiring, unless they let you take some home from teh BB install bay.

If you want loud and clear, and not too much bass in the speakers, which keeps it in the subs, where it needs to be, check out Infinity Kappas. CDTs and REs are also good and you can check out Sounddomain.com for their classifieds. Try to get them between $50-$80, especially if you're getting 4 speakers. Try not to cross over $125 for all 4.

Here's why: the amp and subs. Kappa Perfect, ID, Kicker Solobaric. You can get them for cheap (don't go over $70) and get ONE 12"! Done right, you will get all the bass you need. However, done right means you need a good box. Spend $30 and BUILD YOUR OWN. You'll learn lots in doing it and have some pride in your system.

As for the amp, you have ~$75 left. if you have a 2.1 system, get a 2 or 4 channel amp. if you have a 4 speaker system, go with 4. I'd go 4 incase of future upgrades, regardless. Make sure you have everything speced out correctly in terms of watts and ohms. If you can spare a few extra bucks, try to go with the best amp you can find. best advice i can give you. That or jack a car with a system you like

Man...my brother in law works at BB and he gets some fat hookups with his employee discount.

$300 is a good range for lots of good stuff.

I'd get a good (not insane) amp wiring kit. (Because I know you get crazy discounts on accessories like these) These are often under rated but a good buy. Also while I was there I'd snag a harness adapter for your car. Seeing how they charge $20 and you can get em for $2. Then price check a good set of factory replacements.

Then I'd hit up eBay for a good used head unit. I picked up a JVC w/MP3 and a front aux input for around $75. A supurb price. Check eBay for a good set of factory replacement speakers and go with which ever is cheaper. (eBay or BB)

Then knowing me I'd probably snag a used amp/sub/box combo off eBay. I've seen many of these go really cheap. But do your homework...a good matched pair will sound way better than somethign that is mis-matched even though the mis-matched set is bigger and has more power. Plus if you are patient and search by distance you can save quite a bit by picking it up. If you want a good sounding space saving amp/sub check out the BassLink.

Oh, yea almost forgot. Whenever you are wiring up an aftermarket radio ALWAYS run thick positive and ground cables. The stock wiring cannot handle what you want to run through it.

Just my 2 cents.

most high end companies you pay for the name with their low end goodies. Like a $500 "Premium" system form Infinity is easily surpassed by the Kappas that you can get for the same price. IMO, pioneer is okay. Low end alpines are okay. But Alpine is certified and just reliable.

By factory replacements i'm assuming he means replacements for your factory speakers. Listen, i don't know what discoun tyou BB people get, though i know its significant. Just don't do somethign stupid with this "gift" of yours and make your $300 systme sound like crap . From Best Buy, and they sell Infinity now, i hear, the best thing to get is an RF amp. Seriously, get the amp, see if you have a good discount on deadening and get that too. If you guys sell Kicker, get yourself some Solobarics, some lights, maybe some wiring, and that's about it. Get the other stuff elsewhere. You possibly coudl get them for cheaper than your discount

I know you will get tempted by the References, but you said you wanted bass...Infinity doesn't do much bass in their speakers, sadly. Seriously, check out Sounddomain and see what they got going on! You'll get some used high end stuff for the price of new low end stuff, and alot of people on their treat their system bettre than they treat their kids

You have two options: New or Used

If you go new...ur not going to get anything but a pair of speakers or just an amp (with no subs = pointless).

If you go used...you have unlimited possiblities.


Your BEST bet is to check out various car audio forums and look into their classifieds sections. This is the lifespan of a car audio component:

User buys it brand new at a local audio shop (gets ripped off hard) ---> user realizes that for the same price he can have much more --> puts up for sale in the classified section where he's been asking around (people bargain, price goes down a bit) --> only if there is no success with the sale, user puts it on ebay (prices can only go up on ebay).

Ebay is usually the last option as people hate dealing with the hassle and ebay fees. It's easier to just post on a forum and deal privately with the individual.

If you go to any car audio forum (that specializes specifically in car audio) there will be more of a variety of products to choose from and the competition will ensure the prices are very low. Also, you should get references and make sure that the seller is not a scammer before buying as people get stiffed all the time.

For $300, i'd say go with a pair of high quality components up front and get a decent two channel amp to power them...one that puts out clean power. CDT EF-61's are some very clean sounding components and will blow away mb quarts in most people's opinion at only a fraction of the cost. They are around $200 brand new...you can get them used for half of that and have $200 to spend on a good amp. The ED Nine.2 is $200 brand new...you can also get that used for $100. Add shipping and wiring costs and your still under $300.

That is what i recommend....don't try and squeeze your subs in that budget or you won't be happy and you'll only end up spending more money down the line. Get the comps first and worry about the subs later when you get more money. I would set aside $500 for a great sub and amp combo that will get extremely loud and still sound pretty good. In your car...a pair of 10's will sound like a pair of 12's. One 12 will get plenty loud.

http://www.caraudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=159008