Car speakers - high sound quality

[RCDave]

Upgrading the stereo in my wife's new Mercedes Metris van. The stock system is OK but the head unit is lacking.

Will be installing a higher end Kenwood cd/dvd, 7" high resolution screen, bluetooth, Android auto, etc etc.

Want to install strong and high SQ front stage. So an amp will be added and a set of 6.5 components. The shop is pushing Focal but I'm not that familiar with this brand, except listening to them in the shop. As reference, I'm coming from very high JBL GTI 660'S ( competition level set) which have amazing mid bass and very accurate tweets.

Any thoughts on Focal or other preferred SQ front stage component speakers?

 

[Mrdeadair]

Focal is high end car audio

 

[Waffles]

Focal is high end car audio

Focal
McIntosh
Kef
Dynaudio
B&o

All great companies [emoji106]

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[Riverbound]

In regards to SQ there are very few out there that are in the same league as focal.


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[was thatguy]

Upgrading the stereo in my wife's new Mercedes Metris van. The stock system is OK but the head unit is lacking.

Will be installing a higher end Kenwood cd/dvd, 7" high resolution screen, bluetooth, Android auto, etc etc.

Want to install strong and high SQ front stage. So an amp will be added and a set of 6.5 components. The shop is pushing Focal but I'm not that familiar with this brand, except listening to them in the shop. As reference, I'm coming from very high JBL GTI 660'S ( competition level set) which have amazing mid bass and very accurate tweets.

Any thoughts on Focal or other preferred SQ front stage component speakers?

Focal is my go to components with high power behind them.

You can’t go wrong with them.

 

[Lord M((Squared))]

Hertz Audio. I just did these in the OL. Expensive but I'd put them at the top as far as sound quality in an open air environment of a boat.

 

[ElAzul]

I can tell you all you need to know and ship Focal if needed shoot me a PM

 

[DEEZNUTS]

Another big focal fan here. As i get older i cant stand the brassy highs of a lot of components. The focals are clean, smooth and loud.

 

[RCDave]

I prefer smooth highs too. Harsh is ugh!!!

 

[Tank]

Focals are the bomb, but you have to spend the extra cash for the high end ones. I've had the high end components and the medium range components and the high ends are in a totally different category. The medium range stuff is no better than Fosgate, MB Quart, etc. High end Focals provide absolutely amazing sound.

 

[RiverCruiser]

I have always been partial to Boston Acoustics pro’s.

 

[Mrdeadair]

Focal
McIntosh
Kef
Dynaudio
B&o

All great companies [emoji106]

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I wish McIntosh was still doing car audio they had the best amps

 

[Tank]

I wish McIntosh was still doing car audio they had the best amps

I had one McIntosh amp powering 12 12" JL W6 subs in a suburban. Crazy amount of power they put out.

Ever heard of Zapco? Sounds like a shitty knock off swap meet brand but they're far from that! those little amps are straight LEGIT!! small package, huge power.

https://www.zapco.com/

If it wasn't Zapco, my other favorite was PPI power connected to JL subs and Focal components. I was a Kicker Sub guy FOREVER, until JL came out and basically dominated the industry in clear, hard bass. But I will always have a soft spot for Kicker. Shit, I have a set of 12" kickers in my Tahoe now. Had a set of 18" kickers in my 78 El Camino when I was a teenager lol

 

[pronstar]

A clean signal to the amp, and clean amp power (plenty of it) are just as important as speakers, so don’t skimp on any part of the chain [emoji106]


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[COCA COLA COWBOY]

Focal is an amazing brand. Hertz isn't a bad second either.

Someone mentioned Zapco and Mac...I'm a hauge fan of their amps as well.

 

[warlock250]

I had one McIntosh amp powering 12 12" JL W6 subs in a suburban. Crazy amount of power they put out.

Ever heard of Zapco? Sounds like a shitty knock off swap meet brand but they're far from that! those little amps are straight LEGIT!! small package, huge power.

https://www.zapco.com/

If it wasn't Zapco, my other favorite was PPI power connected to JL subs and Focal components. I was a Kicker Sub guy FOREVER, until JL came out and basically dominated the industry in clear, hard bass. But I will always have a soft spot for Kicker. Shit, I have a set of 12" kickers in my Tahoe now. Had a set of 18" kickers in my 78 El Camino when I was a teenager lol

We had Zapco back in the 80s. They kicked Ass.

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[ElAzul]

Sadly Zapco and other amazing old school brands are not the same anymore. Zapco, Lanzar, PPI, HiFonics, most Orion all lump under this and more.

Go check out Boland Audio I think Bernie Boland is only on Facebook tho. He is the man behind PPI Art series, Orion and other legends. He is making amps again that are badass

 

[Lord M((Squared))]

Anyone remember the Linear Power Amps. I used to have two 8002's (one per Kicker 18's) a couple 5002's and 2250 with Eclipse head-unit and DSP system. The 8002 sw's were rare but monsters. Had the heat sinks powder coated to match the car....the late 80's and early 90's was an awesome time for car audio. The tech has come a long way but the innovation back then was fun to be a part of. The look on peoples faces when you roll by in a 88 Trans Am GTA with no back seats...just a wall of speakers....was priceless. Then the bass hits and priceless goes to hilarious.

 

[Tank]

Anyone remember the Linear Power Amps. I used to have two 8002's (one per Kicker 18's) a couple 5002's and 2250 with Eclipse head-unit and DSP system. The 8002 sw's were rare but monsters. Had the heat sinks powder coated to match the car....the late 80's and early 90's was an awesome time for car audio. The tech has come a long way but the innovation back then was fun to be a part of. The look on peoples faces when you roll by in a 88 Trans Am GTA with no back seats...just a wall of speakers....was priceless. Then the bass hits and priceless goes to hilarious.

Yep, I remember Linear Amps.

agreed! It was really a good time to be in the audio arena late 80's through early 2000s. The industry leaped forward during that time and was at the peak of it's existence in the auto arena. Sound competitions and car shows seemed to be occurring every weekend nearly year round. I used to love checking out all the crazy competition stuff. I think though in the early 2000's, as with a lot of things, quality went down hill for quantity like Blue said above. A lot of the smaller high end guys sold out to bigger companies and things just weren't the same. But damn those were some fun times. I had some GREAT stereos in my cars, always huge and loud. I think I know suffer from tinnitus because of listening to defining bass for years on end nearly every day. But again, great times.

 

[was thatguy]

Sadly Zapco and other amazing old school brands are not the same anymore. Zapco, Lanzar, PPI, HiFonics, most Orion all lump under this and more.

Go check out Boland Audio I think Bernie Boland is only on Facebook tho. He is the man behind PPI Art series, Orion and other legends. He is making amps again that are badass

True.
I still have some vintage PPI amps, and my prized Orion HCCA Amps.

 

[was thatguy]

I had one McIntosh amp powering 12 12" JL W6 subs in a suburban. Crazy amount of power they put out.

Ever heard of Zapco? Sounds like a shitty knock off swap meet brand but they're far from that! those little amps are straight LEGIT!! small package, huge power.

https://www.zapco.com/

If it wasn't Zapco, my other favorite was PPI power connected to JL subs and Focal components. I was a Kicker Sub guy FOREVER, until JL came out and basically dominated the industry in clear, hard bass. But I will always have a soft spot for Kicker. Shit, I have a set of 12" kickers in my Tahoe now. Had a set of 18" kickers in my 78 El Camino when I was a teenager lol

Kicker Comp VR DVC subs have always been a SOLID choice.

They were always my first choice for quality vs price.
I design my boxes with different computer programs that allow different tuning properties after entering all the sub data. I’d build the box to make the subs perform where the needed to DEPENDING FULLY on what front components were being run.
Debs old Durango was untouchable in SQ with a Kenwood 4v source, a single Kicker 4ch 850, Focal Y2K front components, and believe it or not a pair of kicker comp DVC VR 8” subs.
The box was the secret weapon. I spent hours on the computer designing that bastard, and days in the garage building it.
I don’t know how many hours front staging with tuning discs and isolating frequencies.
That system was absolutely phenomenal due to the hours spent tuning, and of course the box.
No one that ever heard it could believe how simple and “cheap” the actual components were.

The good thing about Focal Y2K’s is that they work as advertised. They can be crossed low, allowing subs to do what they do without sharing so much of the mid bass load. This allows a sub like Kicker to work very well.
The quality of JL subs is unquestionable. I run them now as well.
But many brands can really work well if they are matched up with other components that can each do their job at the assigned frequencies.

You won’t get a Kicker to hit hard at 50HZ AND roll off at 200HZ + like a JL.
But you CAN run something like Focals that take over at an honest 70 HZ and viola, you just saved $600!

 

[RCDave]

Sadly Zapco and other amazing old school brands are not the same anymore. Zapco, Lanzar, PPI, HiFonics, most Orion all lump under this and more.

Go check out Boland Audio I think Bernie Boland is only on Facebook tho. He is the man behind PPI Art series, Orion and other legends. He is making amps again that are badass

I used to bank the manufacturer that made Zapco, Lanzar, HiFonics, etc. Great people and products

 

[RCDave]

A clean signal to the amp, and clean amp power (plenty of it) are just as important as speakers, so don’t skimp on any part of the chain [emoji106]


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Thanks! I plan on having an Alpine PDX 5 channel amp installed. While only planning to use the front stage, I figure having the 5 channel will provide more flexibility down the road, in case I decide to power rear speakers or add a sub.

 

[RCDave]

I'm having a hard time not wanting these installed, even though I've never had a pair of Focals

https://www.amazon.com/JBL-660GTi-Component-Speakers-System/dp/B003UHMZCQ

I have a pair installed in my boat's front stage and they are the best sounding components I've heard so far. And they can take 600 watts.

Talk me back into the a pair of Focal PS 165F's

 

[Waterjunky]

Blue, you do this stuff for a living if memory serves me correctly. Where are you out of?

 

[DrunkenSailor]

I miss the good old days of car audio. The Boston Acoustic pro Z series speakers were my favorite but they were $$$. The Focals are awesome and hard to beat in SQ. I rocked a pair of Infinity Kappa Perfect 12's when they came out. Awesome subs. I always wanted Soundstream amps but couldn't afford them. Their old stuff was so cool.
The Tarantula:

The Davinchi

Human Reign:

 

[RCDave]

I miss the good old days of car audio. The Boston Acoustic pro Z series speakers were my favorite but they were $$$. The Focals are awesome and hard to beat in SQ. I rocked a pair of Infinity Kappa Perfect 12's when they came out. Awesome subs. I always wanted Soundstream amps but couldn't afford them. Their old stuff was so cool.

I had four Infinity Kappa Perfect 10's powered by a class D 1200 watt sub amp, in the rear seat base of my former Shockwave 25' Tremor. Man did that set up THUMP. It would move your arm and leg hairs almost anywhere in the boat. Girls loved sitting in the back seat! lol

 

[warlock250]

True.
I still have some vintage PPI amps, and my prized Orion HCCA Amps.

We still have some boxes full of old Zapco amps I think. I remember the Cheater Amps like that Red Orion 45 amp cut down to like a 1/4 ohm or some shit. Lol little bastard would get hot.

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[ElAzul]

Blue, you do this stuff for a living if memory serves me correctly. Where are you out of?

Kinda sorta I have my biz which is building public safety vehicles and custom auto stuff in shared space with an audio shop my buddy owns in Central Or. I do a lot of audio with them we all just get after it and make shit happen on both sides.

 

[DrunkenSailor]

I had four Infinity Kappa Perfect 10's powered by a class D 1200 watt sub amp, in the rear seat base of my former Shockwave 25' Tremor. Man did that set up THUMP. It would move your arm and leg hairs almost anywhere in the boat. Girls loved sitting in the back seat! lol

Mine were in a Wrangler with a hardtop. The top visibly moved, it acted like a passive radiator. It sounded better with the top off but with the top on it hit incredibly hard.

To the OP I really think that you will like the high end Focal stuff. All the really high end SQ guys ran it. Their Utopia series might be one of the best sounding components I have ever heard but they cost 5k for the 3 ways.

 

[ElAzul]

Mine were in a Wrangler with a hardtop. The top visibly moved, it acted like a passive radiator. It sounded better with the top off but with the top on it hit incredibly hard.

To the OP I really think that you will like the high end Focal stuff. All the really high end SQ guys ran it. Their Utopia series might be one of the best sounding components I have ever heard but they cost 5k for the 3 ways.

FYI the high end Focals are like $15,000 now

 

[707dog]

I had one McIntosh amp powering 12 12" JL W6 subs in a suburban. Crazy amount of power they put out.

Ever heard of Zapco? Sounds like a shitty knock off swap meet brand but they're far from that! those little amps are straight LEGIT!! small package, huge power.

https://www.zapco.com/

If it wasn't Zapco, my other favorite was PPI power connected to JL subs and Focal components. I was a Kicker Sub guy FOREVER, until JL came out and basically dominated the industry in clear, hard bass. But I will always have a soft spot for Kicker. Shit, I have a set of 12" kickers in my Tahoe now. Had a set of 18" kickers in my 78 El Camino when I was a teenager lol

lol you would think we grew up together... zeus amp with zapco board was killing it, im still a kicker fan run the higher end models in all my stuff, i love L7's have had many...in the impala right now i have 4 kicker ks 6x9's across the deck off a 1000w rockville compact amp and 2 15" cvs in a sealed box powered by my old trusty 2000w dclass memphis amp but plan to swap them out for a pair of 15" L7's in one of kickers new boxes and add a pair of 6.5's to the kicker panels that should be plenty to blast some oldies or metallica at high volumes

 

[DrunkenSailor]

FYI the high end Focals are like $15,000 now

Are they still making the Ultima line? Those are the ones that came in the suitcase right? I would love to hear what a 15k component speaker set sounds like.

 

[RCDave]

Holy crap! No way I'm installing 5-15K front speakers in my wife's van! LOL

Leaning toward the Focal PS 165F. Or if I spend more coin JBL 660Gti (if I can find a pair)

 

[DrunkenSailor]

Holy crap! No way I'm installing 5-15K front speakers in my wife's van! LOL

Leaning toward the Focal PS 165F. Or if I spend more coin JBL 660Gti (if I can find a pair)

These are great speakers for the price depending on what kind of condition they are in: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Boston-Aco...880205?hash=item3b1b86a84d:g:vKoAAOSwPXdbmDln

I have never bought used speakers and these are out of production so not sure if I would pull the trigger here without looking at them. When new they were 1k and were some of the best speakers I have ever heard. Not sure if the Focal PS series can compare or not. I haven't heard them in awhile but Focal is at the cutting edge when it comes to the materials that they use so I know they wont be bad.

 

[DrunkenSailor]

Lots of JBL 660/670's on Ebay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/JBL-670GTI...e:g:DFIAAOSwmudaCh9r:sc:UPSGround!92618!US!-1

 

[Tank]

FYI the high end Focals are like $15,000 now

Yea, when I said go with the higher end focal I meant like the 600-1200 range components compared to the $250 conponents. Lol. 15k is a bit rediculous.

My dad paid 25k for a home reciever and two tower speakers. You can get stupid with high end stereo stuff.

 

[ElAzul]

Yea, when I said go with the higher end focal I meant like the 600-1200 range components compared to the $250 conponents. Lol. 15k is a bit rediculous.

My dad paid 25k for a home reciever and two tower speakers. You can get stupid with high end stereo stuff.

I have Focal Access coax's in my Denali doors and people flip out when they hear them. I have sealed, deadened doors and decoupled the speakers. I'm running mine on a Gladen RC70c4 with a JVC deck. The entry level and mid level speakers can all sound amazing with the right set up.

If you want any type of quality sound past being "pretty good" you need to spend some time and $$$ treating the doors with deadener, get them sealed best as possible etc. I literally have 2 mid level 6.5 coax's in my doors and 4 10'' L7's. I do demos with subs off and people are amazed then I roll into the real bass and shit gets fun

 

[ElAzul]

Yea, when I said go with the higher end focal I meant like the 600-1200 range components compared to the $250 conponents. Lol. 15k is a bit rediculous.

My dad paid 25k for a home reciever and two tower speakers. You can get stupid with high end stereo stuff.

Haha I was responding to the one's pictured for $5k I pay $2500 more than that as a dealer

 

[SFV2RVR]

I just put a complete Focal system in my 2017 GMC Sierra Denali and it sounds incredible! My friend is the west coast sales rep for them and gave me an amazing deal that was too hard to pass up. Once the system breaks in, it will be getting tuned at Focal in Camarillo.

Alpine X110-SRA 10” Screen
ES 165KX2
EC165K
FDP 4.600 4 channel
FDP 1.900 mono
Mosconi 6to8 DSP processor
Focal 2-SUB P25FS enclosed in Flax subwoofer box


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[82daytona]

I just put a complete Focal system in my 2017 GMC Sierra Denali and it sounds incredible! My friend is the west coast sales rep for them and gave me an amazing deal that was too hard to pass up. Once the system breaks in, it will be getting tuned at Focal in Camarillo.

Alpine X110-SRA 10” Screen
ES 165KX2
EC165K
FDP 4.600 4 channel
FDP 1.900 mono
Mosconi 6to8 DSP processor
Focal 2-SUB P25FS enclosed in Flax subwoofer box


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Any pics of the install?


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[SFV2RVR]

Any pics of the install?


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Everything speaker wise is behind the door panels, so it looks factory. Here is a pic of the head unit and Focal box with 2 downfire 10’s. Amps are mounted behind the rear bench seat on the back wall.

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[Tank]

lol you would think we grew up together... zeus amp with zapco board was killing it, im still a kicker fan run the higher end models in all my stuff, i love L7's have had many...in the impala right now i have 4 kicker ks 6x9's across the deck off a 1000w rockville compact amp and 2 15" cvs in a sealed box powered by my old trusty 2000w dclass memphis amp but plan to swap them out for a pair of 15" L7's in one of kickers new boxes and add a pair of 6.5's to the kicker panels that should be plenty to blast some oldies or metallica at high volumes

That funny.

Im Just running a light set up in my 2door Tahoe. Prefab 12” kicker CVR’s, a kicker ZX750.1 and a PPI PC410, set of focal k2 components and an alpine HD149BT head unit. Nothing fancy. Just some clean semi loud sounds for now until I redo the whole thing. Lol

 

[Tank]

I just put a complete Focal system in my 2017 GMC Sierra Denali and it sounds incredible! My friend is the west coast sales rep for them and gave me an amazing deal that was too hard to pass up. Once the system breaks in, it will be getting tuned at Focal in Camarillo.

Alpine X110-SRA 10” Screen
ES 165KX2
EC165K
FDP 4.600 4 channel
FDP 1.900 mono
Mosconi 6to8 DSP processor
Focal 2-SUB P25FS enclosed in Flax subwoofer box


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Baller.

 

[RCDave]

All this audio discussion is cool!

 

[707dog]

That funny.

Im Just running a light set up in my 2door Tahoe. Prefab 12” kicker CVR’s, a kicker ZX750.1 and a PPI PC410, set of focal k2 components and an alpine HD149BT head unit. Nothing fancy. Just some clean semi loud sounds for now until I redo the whole thing. Lol

lol do i need to add l7's to the imp no hoping the emblems stay on now as it is those focals are bitchin just way out of my spending range for systems im sure id fall in love with my first set then id have another spending problem. my wife was telling my son the other day about my tahoe she hated it, it was one of them knock the snot out of your nose bass systems amazing what 2 15's can do in a well built tune box all driveway built and installed in the hood...lmao

 

[82daytona]

Everything speaker wise is behind the door panels, so it looks factory. Here is a pic of the head unit and Focal box with 2 downfire 10’s. Amps are mounted behind the rear bench seat on the back wall.

View attachment 684679
View attachment 684680


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Bad ass! I have the same deck.


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[DEEZNUTS]

Im running mid-grade focals for front stage, passive system with JL power, and a meh quality head for the moment. I get tons of compliments on the focals and it still needs tuning (as much as a passive system can).

To do it over again, i wouldnt change much, although I am in the market for a new double din HU. I dont need all the gadgets and shit, just SQ.

I cant imagine how badass SFV2RVRs sounds...

 

[was thatguy]

I miss the good old days of car audio. The Boston Acoustic pro Z series speakers were my favorite but they were $$$. The Focals are awesome and hard to beat in SQ. I rocked a pair of Infinity Kappa Perfect 12's when they came out. Awesome subs. I always wanted Soundstream amps but couldn't afford them. Their old stuff was so cool.
The Tarantula:

The Davinchi

Human Reign:

I’ve ran several sets of Infinity Kappa perfect 6 1/2 components as well.
They seem to need some break in time to really perform, but with good power behind them they are a great alternative to higher costing components. Their passive cross is very good and tunable, and I’ve never melted one!

On a side note, I’ve got a pair of Davinci 10’s, Dual 2 ohm coils.
Ive ran them in a ported box, and last ran them in a tight sealed config with 5000 at 2 ohm. (Coils series’d to 4, paralleled back to 2)

 

[RCDave]

I had a pair of 6.5 perfect components too. Very clean but a tad too bright for my tastes. I liked the jbls better.

But those perfect subs hit with incredible articulation and accuracy