Help me build my first system!
 

Hello all!

*Disclaimer, I am a total noob*

I have a 2002 Alero Coupe with the monsoon amp and have blown out half my speakers (one 4x6 and both 6x9s, car was used when I bought it). I want to put a nice sound system in it without getting premium products. My questions are this:

4x6s or 6.5" in the doors? (won't the window get in the way?)

Should I buy a cheap $80 Kenwood headunit and is it good enough or do I need to spend more?

If I put a 12" sub in the trunk, would I still need to get new 6x9s?
If I get a 12" sub, please recommend an amp.

Thanks!

The door will not be in the way. All you have to do it take that door panel off(I think its two bolts and make sure your some what gentle getting the panel off) the speaker is held in by four bolts. You can fit a double din in there(That's if you want navi and all that). Just make sure you read up on the unit before buying. I bought rockford fosgate and polk audio speak. But you can find some decent pioneer and other named brand speakers. If I were you I would replace all the speakers. Those stock ones are JUNK! and I only owned rockford fosgate subs and amps so I can't really point you in any direction for a amp. I hope this helped.

What price range do you have to work with for the system?

6.5's will fit in the doors (you can either attach the speakers to the actual door panel, or behind it in the factory position but you will need adapters), I currently have infinity kappa 62.9i in each front door and they perform quite well being powered by my pioneer stereo.

The headunit shouldn't matter too much but I would stick with Kenwood, Pioneer or Alpine.

If you have a good set of speakers in the front, you wouldn't need to worry about having 6x9s in the back.

For the amp, it really depends on the sub and how much power you want to run. I would recommend the Alpine mrp-m500, or rockford fosgate (older models are fairly cheap and work great), skar audio, soundqubed....there are a ton of options but it depends on what you're willing to spend.

Lets say I have $800 CAN to work with, thanks for the replies so far!

And if I get 6.5" speakers, if I attach the speaker right to the door frame will I need an adapter plate?

That's a good budget for sure on a system, i hate to say this but if you're on Facebook there's a group called "Ontario car audio classifieds" they have done decent stuff but do your research as some people just want to rip you off especially if you don't have a clue....

As for the 6.5 door speakers you'll need the adaptor.... they can't go in the stock plate and the hole is a messed up shape to just bolt in and go lol

Btw where in Ontario are you from? I'm in Lindsay :)

I'm on the border of Toronto and Mississauga! Thanks, I think I'm gonna go with 6.5s and start figuring out how to get / make an adapter.

There's some you can but or you could make them from a piece of mdf...

My brother is out in Oakville ... not too far away!

I'm from Toronto:) but that is a very good amount of money to work with. Should be starting car alarms with your set up in the end.

From what I remember, the wiring from the monsoon amp to the rear 6x9's was kind of funny. There were 3 wires running to it and couldn't hook up some Infinity kappas to it, so I ended up amping just the rears. I also put some Infinity 4x6's up in the front and hooked them up to the monsoon wiring.

If you are looking for a cheap but effective solution, I recommend getting an Alpine head unit plus the Alpine 4-channel power pack and running some speakers off that. I have not personally had experience with the power pack, but always wanted to get one.

You can find cheap subwoofer packages almost anywhere. I had an Alpine 12" Type R that shook pretty good that I got off Craigslist for relatively cheap. I think it runs at 600Wrms.

If you want to do it right the first time, I suggest running a 4-channel amp and running your speakers off that. You will have to create a custom baffle for the 6.5" speakers for the front though. 4x6 was ok, but doesn't compare to the versatility and range of 6.5"

If you do the 4-channel amp, you might be ok without a sub, but nothing compares to a nice rumble.

The rear monsoon speakers are a four wire speaker. Many people gave up on them too easy when they saw that. There is a two wire combination that works properly. It has been long enough since I did it that I dont remember which two anymore, but my 2 wire speakers work great.

I'm not really interested in doing more 6x9s, I'm thinking either a 10" or 12" sub or nothing :)

Is there a price that I should look above for a sub, I don't want to buy something junky or cheap, but I don't need anything premium.

My rockford fosgate P1 made some noise. I don't think it was to much money but i'm sure they have came out with something else by now.

I had this Dual bandpass sub setup in my first car, a 92 Acura Integra, as my first sub.

The original was definitely less power than this one, which is 600W rms. This will hit pretty decent for a first system, especially in the bandpass box. Just get a matching amp and install kit, and you should be good to go!

Here is the sub in my old integra. It helped it was a hatchback for sure.

Ok can anyone post pictures of 6.5" speakers mounted in the front doors / how to do it?

I have found threads that should help me but there are no pictures on them :( (http://www.aleromod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26472)

take some 2in spacers (which I have for sale :coolio: ) and cut them at an angle. Find the lowest spot in the corner you can and keep trimming and adjusting until you get no rub. It took me 2 or 3 tries I think??? I ended up taking just a bit of material off the inner door panel and that got all the clearance it needed. You can go pretty low with the spacers, just watch for the window. I've happily ran kenwood decks and amps with alpine type R speakers for years.

This is how I have my 6.5s