Best Audio Company

mmltml · 05-26-2010, 12:48 AM

The title pretty much says it. What do you think the best in-car audio company is in your experience? I'm just curious to see what people have to say. I'm looking to do a complete Kenwood system minus the Dayton sub from EMS. My dad has a Rockford setup in his truck and a Blaupunkt/Pioneer setup in his '70 Camaro, so my experience with different audio setups are limited.

Feel free to share opinions, stories, setups, pictures etc.

LeePeyton · 05-26-2010, 12:53 AM

Sony is the only one I would question and Pioneer from Wal-mart. I don't even see how it gets the sticker. Such a hard question.
I've rocked Pioneer in most of my cars, (except the TL came with Bose, why F*ck with perfection?) but between you guys and some of my friends I think I'm going to try some Alpine.

bigred · 05-26-2010, 01:00 AM

Had an alpine headunit, worked flawlessly for the time I had it, lots of features like scrolling through your ipod on the unit itself instead of having to change songs on your ipod (pretty standard im guessing ) Good quality sound, ability to change Hz settings on the fly for pull-overs (if your that kind of bass freak), nice looking, quality made...no complaints. hope that helped

Maruki-kun · 05-26-2010, 01:06 AM

depends on what you're going for, I wont go into depth, but pioneer isn't walmart, sony sucks all around, and kenwood makes some good headunits for mid budget...

most of the best companies you guys haven't heard of, so I'll step out of this thread for now. if anyone has questions for me, let me know. thanks..

canadam · 05-26-2010, 01:07 AM

I choose other. My vote goes to a nice Nakamichi system.

mmltml · 05-26-2010, 01:11 AM

I just pulled some bigger well-known names from Crutchfield. I'll have to check Nakamichi out.

I'm looking to spend less than...i'll say $700 for a complete system (HU, sub(s), amp, speakers all the way around).

Maruki-kun · 05-26-2010, 01:23 AM

PM me.

RePete · 05-26-2010, 02:12 AM

Always been Alpine for me, love their rugged design, their features and their quality. Ergonomics are also superior, very simple and uncomplicated buttons, dials, displays - very intuitive. Everything else feels kind of rinky-dink and too blingy to me. Stay away from Sony! Nakamichi used to have excellent home stereos, don't know about their car audio.

nocashrider · 05-26-2010, 03:10 AM

i have infinity all the way around for speakers and i like the way the sound, and im rockin a panasonic head unit. they sound nice to me but i know there is better stuff out there but you always pay for better...

TomsMR2 · 05-26-2010, 03:29 AM

you can get better speakers for less money if you shop outside of the "car specific" brands. try parts-express. building your own crossovers is really really easy, pretty cheap (50-75 bucks for a good set) and pays big dividends to sound quality.

then again my idea of good is a lot different than other peoples idea of good. a car with a 800rms amp blasting a huge woofer doesnt sound that great to me.. it really matters what you want from your sound. planning the system out with well matching parts pays off more than the brand stamped on the parts themselves.

.. and i cant gush enough about liquid sound deadener. its worth it. just a couple quarts make a HUGE difference.

Archidamus-R · 05-26-2010, 01:44 PM

I just want to hear and understand what's playing in my car, (not an audiophile) but I'm partial to Pioneer's stuff. And if Sony didn't own half the movies/music on the planet, I'd delete them from my world view entirely.

Waterblooper · 05-26-2010, 03:01 PM

I voted Kenwood because IMO they have increadible quality for the price, but if money was no issue I would say Alpine.

MSAGRO · 05-26-2010, 04:46 PM

Why isn't "Eclipse" on the list. Even their relatively 'low cost' units sound great.

mmltml · 05-26-2010, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MSAGRO

Why isn't "Eclipse" on the list. Even their relatively 'low cost' units sound great.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mmltml

I just pulled some bigger well-known names from Crutchfield.

I've never heard much about them, so I didn't consider them a polling option...meh bad

killermillermr2 · 05-28-2010, 02:13 PM

Might take a look at Memphis and Planet Audio. I have Memphis in my MR2 and Planet Audio in my T4R. Both are great, but the PA stands out because it is a little less expensive so they are great for a budgeted install.

immorality · 05-31-2010, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RePete

Always been Alpine for me, love their rugged design, their features and their quality. Ergonomics are also superior, very simple and uncomplicated buttons, dials, displays - very intuitive.

I'm a very happy camper after switching to Alpine products and would definitely agree with Pete's comments, and would recommend Alpine stuff to anyone.

Servin · 05-31-2010, 12:15 PM

Alpine has the best quailty stuff out of all the big name brands. Like with most items the absolute best are usually unheard of or custom made. I dont have a lot of experience with car audio so I would be interested in hearing about the some of the lesser known brands.

Maruki-kun · 05-31-2010, 02:17 PM

^^ This, there isn't a "best" for anything, just a "best" of what you can afford.

no single company hold the title for "best" just "best in class" Generally, for a larger sub budget for SQ I'd say go for a Fi Q or Ascendant Audio, can't really do wrong with those. amps follow the same trend, the only amps that don't suck that are mainstream are high end Alpine (PDX Line), high end JL (I hate JL) high end Rockford Fosgate, Kicker (atleast they aren't overrated, but Signal to noise could be better) and high end Memphis (Belle line)

but so many more exist, like Sound Stream, PPi, PBB, and plenty more.

RePete · 05-31-2010, 03:39 PM

Not sure why Alpine is being constantly referred to as 'high end', that might scare some folk away. They used to be expensive 10+ years ago but they're much cheaper now on account of $0.15/ per hour Chinese labor. They're also available at pretty much any local car audio shop, at least around here anyway. I think they're a bargain given their rugged construction & quality.

MSAGRO · 05-31-2010, 05:12 PM

The best audio company is one that you are happy with.
Here is my set up:

AURA Stage2 5350 amp @ 450 watts:

Crossfire DB3 Subs. Sounds like God's thumping your backseats:

Eclipse AVN 5435 NAV/CD/DVD:

Quite happy with the set-up, except of course I have to put the T-tops in the trunk instead of behind the backseats.

View Poll Results: Best Audio Company
Alpine	24	19.20%
Boston Acoustics	4	3.20%
Infinity	10	8.00%
JL Audio	30	24.00%
JVC	1	0.80%
Kenwood	8	6.40%
Pioneer	12	9.60%
Polk Audio	7	5.60%
Rockford Fosgate	6	4.80%
Sony	5	4.00%
Other	18	14.40%
Voters: 125. You may not vote on this poll

05-26-2010, 12:48 AM	#1 (permalink)
mmltml MR-Slow Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Linesville, PA Posts: 96 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts iTrader Rating: (1/100% )	Best Audio Company The title pretty much says it. What do you think the best in-car audio company is in your experience? I'm just curious to see what people have to say. I'm looking to do a complete Kenwood system minus the Dayton sub from EMS. My dad has a Rockford setup in his truck and a Blaupunkt/Pioneer setup in his '70 Camaro, so my experience with different audio setups are limited. Feel free to share opinions, stories, setups, pictures etc. Last edited by mmltml; 05-26-2010 at 12:54 AM..

05-26-2010, 01:07 AM	#5 (permalink)
canadam MidshipExpress Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Beautiful British Columbia Posts: 10,399 Thanks: 120 Thanked 142 Times in 121 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (34/100% )	I choose other. My vote goes to a nice Nakamichi system. __________________

05-26-2010, 03:29 AM	#10 (permalink)
TomsMR2 Still not heraldo. Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Pineapple under the sea Posts: 4,911 Thanks: 18 Thanked 406 Times in 303 Posts Blog Entries: 1 iTrader Rating: (4/100% )	you can get better speakers for less money if you shop outside of the "car specific" brands. try parts-express. building your own crossovers is really really easy, pretty cheap (50-75 bucks for a good set) and pays big dividends to sound quality. then again my idea of good is a lot different than other peoples idea of good. a car with a 800rms amp blasting a huge woofer doesnt sound that great to me.. it really matters what you want from your sound. planning the system out with well matching parts pays off more than the brand stamped on the parts themselves. .. and i cant gush enough about liquid sound deadener. its worth it. just a couple quarts make a HUGE difference. __________________ Science fact: If you took all the veins from your body and laid them end to end, you would die.

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05-26-2010, 12:53 AM	#2 (permalink)
LeePeyton Building Motor from Hell Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Tennessee/USA Posts: 1,696 Thanks: 23 Thanked 67 Times in 61 Posts iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	Sony is the only one I would question and Pioneer from Wal-mart. I don't even see how it gets the sticker. Such a hard question. I've rocked Pioneer in most of my cars, (except the TL came with Bose, why F*ck with perfection?) but between you guys and some of my friends I think I'm going to try some Alpine.

05-26-2010, 01:00 AM	#3 (permalink)
bigred the rock and roll clown Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 61 Thanks: 6 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (1/100% )	Had an alpine headunit, worked flawlessly for the time I had it, lots of features like scrolling through your ipod on the unit itself instead of having to change songs on your ipod (pretty standard im guessing ) Good quality sound, ability to change Hz settings on the fly for pull-overs (if your that kind of bass freak), nice looking, quality made...no complaints. hope that helped

05-26-2010, 01:06 AM	#4 (permalink)
Maruki-kun Cage Fighter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Millington, MD Posts: 2,487 Thanks: 9 Thanked 74 Times in 67 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (5/100% )	depends on what you're going for, I wont go into depth, but pioneer isn't walmart, sony sucks all around, and kenwood makes some good headunits for mid budget... most of the best companies you guys haven't heard of, so I'll step out of this thread for now. if anyone has questions for me, let me know. thanks..

05-26-2010, 01:11 AM	#6 (permalink)
mmltml MR-Slow Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Linesville, PA Posts: 96 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts iTrader Rating: (1/100% )	I just pulled some bigger well-known names from Crutchfield. I'll have to check Nakamichi out. I'm looking to spend less than...i'll say $700 for a complete system (HU, sub(s), amp, speakers all the way around).

05-26-2010, 01:23 AM	#7 (permalink)
Maruki-kun Cage Fighter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Millington, MD Posts: 2,487 Thanks: 9 Thanked 74 Times in 67 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (5/100% )	PM me.

05-26-2010, 02:12 AM	#8 (permalink)
RePete No Frills Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Western Canada Posts: 3,897 Thanks: 0 Thanked 254 Times in 244 Posts Blog Entries: 4 iTrader Rating: (3/100% )	Always been Alpine for me, love their rugged design, their features and their quality. Ergonomics are also superior, very simple and uncomplicated buttons, dials, displays - very intuitive. Everything else feels kind of rinky-dink and too blingy to me. Stay away from Sony! Nakamichi used to have excellent home stereos, don't know about their car audio.

05-26-2010, 03:10 AM	#9 (permalink)
nocashrider Om Nom Nom Nom Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Puyallup Posts: 1,056 Thanks: 8 Thanked 29 Times in 28 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (6/100% )	i have infinity all the way around for speakers and i like the way the sound, and im rockin a panasonic head unit. they sound nice to me but i know there is better stuff out there but you always pay for better...

05-26-2010, 01:44 PM	#11 (permalink)
Archidamus-R Make it so. Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: SW-MO Posts: 660 Thanks: 17 Thanked 12 Times in 11 Posts iTrader Rating: (3/100% )	I just want to hear and understand what's playing in my car, (not an audiophile) but I'm partial to Pioneer's stuff. And if Sony didn't own half the movies/music on the planet, I'd delete them from my world view entirely.

05-26-2010, 03:01 PM	#12 (permalink)
Waterblooper Noob Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: California Posts: 62 Thanks: 2 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	I voted Kenwood because IMO they have increadible quality for the price, but if money was no issue I would say Alpine.

05-26-2010, 04:46 PM	#13 (permalink)
MSAGRO Cage Fighter Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 1,006 Thanks: 23 Thanked 41 Times in 35 Posts iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	Why isn't "Eclipse" on the list. Even their relatively 'low cost' units sound great.

05-28-2010, 02:13 PM	#15 (permalink)
killermillermr2 Honda Hunter Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Colorado Posts: 864 Thanks: 25 Thanked 28 Times in 28 Posts iTrader Rating: (10/100% )	Might take a look at Memphis and Planet Audio. I have Memphis in my MR2 and Planet Audio in my T4R. Both are great, but the PA stands out because it is a little less expensive so they are great for a budgeted install.

05-31-2010, 12:15 PM	#17 (permalink)
Servin Beams Owners Group Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 1,250 Thanks: 13 Thanked 54 Times in 42 Posts iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	Alpine has the best quailty stuff out of all the big name brands. Like with most items the absolute best are usually unheard of or custom made. I dont have a lot of experience with car audio so I would be interested in hearing about the some of the lesser known brands.

05-31-2010, 02:17 PM	#18 (permalink)
Maruki-kun Cage Fighter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Millington, MD Posts: 2,487 Thanks: 9 Thanked 74 Times in 67 Posts My Google Map iTrader Rating: (5/100% )	^^ This, there isn't a "best" for anything, just a "best" of what you can afford. no single company hold the title for "best" just "best in class" Generally, for a larger sub budget for SQ I'd say go for a Fi Q or Ascendant Audio, can't really do wrong with those. amps follow the same trend, the only amps that don't suck that are mainstream are high end Alpine (PDX Line), high end JL (I hate JL) high end Rockford Fosgate, Kicker (atleast they aren't overrated, but Signal to noise could be better) and high end Memphis (Belle line) but so many more exist, like Sound Stream, PPi, PBB, and plenty more.

05-31-2010, 03:39 PM	#19 (permalink)
RePete No Frills Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Western Canada Posts: 3,897 Thanks: 0 Thanked 254 Times in 244 Posts Blog Entries: 4 iTrader Rating: (3/100% )	Not sure why Alpine is being constantly referred to as 'high end', that might scare some folk away. They used to be expensive 10+ years ago but they're much cheaper now on account of $0.15/ per hour Chinese labor. They're also available at pretty much any local car audio shop, at least around here anyway. I think they're a bargain given their rugged construction & quality.

05-31-2010, 05:12 PM	#20 (permalink)
MSAGRO Cage Fighter Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 1,006 Thanks: 23 Thanked 41 Times in 35 Posts iTrader Rating: (2/100% )	The best audio company is one that you are happy with. Here is my set up: AURA Stage2 5350 amp @ 450 watts: Crossfire DB3 Subs. Sounds like God's thumping your backseats: Eclipse AVN 5435 NAV/CD/DVD: Quite happy with the set-up, except of course I have to put the T-tops in the trunk instead of behind the backseats.