Car Stereos

[Sippo]

Ha ha. Mugged off by 4D.

[mystical_goat]

Don't get the appeal of subwoofers in cars but each to their own. Honestly no need for an amp as well, a decent head unit will have a good enough amp to drive the speakers.

A sub is key for me, just like on a home audio system. Takes the pressure off the 6x9's in the back of the car too, since most of them are pretty feeble at creating the low end frequencies that sub bass utilises. If you're going to run a sub then an amp to power it and probably the back speakers (fronts can go off the head unit okay) is also a must.

I went to the car audio shop here in Marston today and got some pretty good advice. I'm replacing the current cassette (!) head unit for an Alpine CD one (bloke in the shop said Alpine has the lead on Pioneer in terms of sound quality), keeping the current rear 6x9's, upgrading the front speakers, and putting this little badboy sub in beneath my seat which has an amp built in:

[url width=439 height=289]http://pioneer.jp/carrozzeria/products/ts_wx110a/img/feature_img01_01.jpg[/url]

Oh and also putting some deadening material in the doors which improves sound quality. I'm massively looking forward to picking it up next Thursday evening.

[Simon Pieman]

6x9s too? Chavtastic!

[mystical_goat]

6x9's are factory fitted in the back of Mini's as standard. Probably quite shite with tweeters made of cardboard, but you won't really notice them with a separate sub and good front speakers.

[jonny72]

Halfords do seem to do pretty well on their fitting service. But I'd rather give my money to a local, family owned business than a massive national firm who've caused me a lot of hassle in the past.

Think I'll be going for a Pioneer from Halfords with them fitting it as well - so I've got one place to blame if something goes wrong. Looked at other brands but really wanted a bigger display and in my price range that meant Pioneer.

Did try Autoelectrix but they said they only do Clarion, which I didn't fancy.

Why do they still insist on including CD players? Who uses CD's in a car, especially on a stereo that links to your phone?

[sonicyouth]

I do

[mystical_goat]

I do. Better sound, and better than faffing around with an iPhone whilst driving.

[jonny72]

I do. Better sound, and better than faffing around with an iPhone whilst driving.

There is no way you could tell the difference between a CD and an AAC 256kbps on a car stereo. And that is a fact.

Why do you have to faff around with an iPhone whilst driving? You control it through the stereo, the same as a CD.

[Bukkake Regiment]

AAC 256kbps?

Apple Lossless my friend.

[sonicyouth]

you don't need anything more than two tin cans and a piece of string

[jonny72]

Apple Lossless my friend.

I use it for ripping my CD's, but it's overkill for playback especially on a mobile device with limited storage.

[Sippo]

I use an SD card

[Bukkake Regiment]

I use it for ripping my CD's, but it's overkill for playback especially on a mobile device with limited storage.

I have a 160gb ipod so not a problem for me, plenty of room.

[sonicyouth]

I like to play old cassettes and turn off Dolby.

[Honkytonk]

AAC 256kbps?

Apple Lossless my friend.

Apple Lossless sucks donkey dick. FLAC every time baby.

I often use 320kbps mp3 for ease of reading by various devices however. When it gets to that stage I find it difficult to differentiate between it and losless formats in knockabout real-life listening.