Car Audio Advice from the Audio Gurus: Use "Search thread" before posting a new Q!

[navin]

the KCA420I is for Ipods only. it is also one the reasons i chose the ipod over the iriver. i wanted to see the ID3 tags on the Hu display and control the ipod from the HU. I still have not found the KCA 420i in India however. I need 2. one for each HU/car.

[k_ajay]

Originally Posted by aseem

Hi Ajay and All, I feel so dissapointed. Having gone for Sony 8800 for 14k, I just found out that a shop in JC road bangalore is selling Alpine 9830 for 12.5k with bill and warranty. Ajay if you have not already bought the system than buy it from JC road car market after the Lal Bagh road. This is not fair, as the Sony sound sucks in front of an Alpine :(

Aseem, mere bhai.... Late ho gaya.... I went to B'lore yest, got the 9833 from Pritam[JBL Showroom] and i'm back home now..... I didn't have access to a comp and aaab, late ho gaya.... but its alright.... I still feel i've gotten a decent deal..... at 19k with Bill and Alpine warranty....

[aseem]

Originally Posted by k_ajay

Aseem, mere bhai.... Late ho gaya.... I went to B'lore yest, got the 9833 from Pritam[JBL Showroom] and i'm back home now..... I didn't have access to a comp and aaab, late ho gaya.... but its alright.... I still feel i've gotten a decent deal..... at 19k with Bill and Alpine warranty....

Did you enquire if he was giving the 9830 with bill and warranty for 15k? The reason I ask is that we are getting it without bill and warranty, and Navin the shop owner had called Pritam, and Pritam told him that they were not giving 9830 at 15k with bill.

[navin]

ajay, there is always be a better deal just after you buy your gadget. such is life. my family got 5 ipods in a week from the same store in Heera Panna with prices raning from 22k to 20.5K and now the prices is sub 20K.

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by pingmepal

Fiat Petra 1.6 ELX Petrol version (I could have entered simple Petra, but this board requires minimum of 20 characters :-))

Then 426e is not the correct size for a petra. 426 is a 4" you need a 5.25" for the petra. You need 526e

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by aseem

. I am concerned about the GTO 636 in the rear. Going through their specs I found:
Manufacturer JBL
Model GTO626
Size (inches) 6 1/2
Type 2-Way Speaker

Price $99.95 pair
Sensitivity 90 dB
Frequency Response 55-21,000 Hz
Recommended RMS Power 60W
Peak Power Handling 180W
Impedance 4 ohms

That their RMS is 60W, so will they be able to handle 67W. The salesperson discouraged me to bridge 2 channels in parallel and two to the tube. He recommended just going with 2 channnels dedicated to the components, and other two channels bridged to the tube. He said that the GTO 636 if amped, will spoil the whole sound of the system... please shed your DIVINE light on this.

The specs you have are of the 626 not the 636. And the 636 work fine with an amp.

Cheers

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by moodswings

Sam please help me on this........Does anyone know whether the Alpine I-POD interface unit KCA 420I willl work for a Creative Nomad Jukebox-40GB which is a similar kind of a MP3 Player. I require this info. urjently so, please let me know if anyone has any idea..........its urgent because i have asked my brother in Canada to get me the KCA-420I

I dont think the i-pod interface will function properly on a product of any other brand. I dont think so

[navin]

ref: post 706. A friend of mine in Europe tried to interface the 420 with an Iriver and it did not work. the 420 according to alpine is for ipods only pref. 4G ipods. actually according to alpine germany the decks made for the ipod are the 9851 and 9853 with glide touch.

[navin]

i really wish i could upgrade the 9830 and 9833 to the 9855 but the numbers are just not worth it. resale on 1 year old 9830 and 9833 is not much.

The 9855 is really the technical equivalent of the 9833/9830 as it has 4V pre out. dont know why alpine killed the 4V pre out in lesser models. even the 9830 has 4 v out.

BTW the 9855 retails for $400-450 in the US.

The 9830 sells for about $250 there is Rs. 12.5K in Bangalore. so local prices are fair.

[aseem]

Hi Sam, Welcome Back. We missed you soo much here. Below is the spec for GTO 636:



Features:

• Oversized Plus One Woofer Cone
• High-Roll Butyl Rubber Surround
• 1" Edge-Driven Kaladex Tweeter
• 1/2" Kaladex Supertweeter
• Intermount III System for Easy 6 3/4" and 7" Fitment
• Mounting Hardware and Grilles Included

3-Way Speaker Specifications


Size: 6 1/2
Sensitivity: 90 dB
Frequency Response: 55-21,000 Hz
Recommended RMS Power: 60W
Peak Power Handling: 180W
Impedance: 4 ohms

Also below are the specs of CS 50.4 JBL amplifier:
Features

High Output PWM MOSFET Power Supply
Gold-Plated Speaker & Power Connectors
Streamlined, Black Casing with Silver Accent Corner Pieces
Variable Low-Pass and High-Pass Crossovers (32-320 Hz)
12 dB / Octave Crossover Slopes
Variable 6 dB Bass Boost
RCA Line-Level Inputs
Preamp Outputs
Fully CEA-2006 Compliant Power Ratings

Multi-Channel Amp Specifications
Amplifier Type: Multi-Channel
RMS Power @ 4 Ohms: 67W x 4
THD at 4-Ohm RMS Power: <1 %
Bridged RMS Power @ 4 Ohms: 143W x 2
Speaker Level Inputs: Yes
Preamp Outputs: No
Built-In Crossovers: HP/LP
Bass Boost: 0 - 6 dB
Frequency Response: 20-20,000 Hz
Signal to Noise Ratio: 86 dB
Fuse Rating: n/a


Below for Sony 504 Z:
Amplifier Type Multi Channels

RMS Power at 2 Ohms 60 W x 4

RMS Power at 4 Ohms 50 W x 4

Bridgable Not Bridgable
Performance
Frequency Response 5 Hz - 50000 Hz

Signal to Noise Ratio 100 dB

THD at Rated RMS Power .01 %
Crossover / Equalizer
Bass Boost Without Bass Boost
Other Features
Input Voltage 10.5 volt

MOSFET Circuitry Yes

3 Way Ready No
Dimensions
Width 13.88 in.

Depth 9.25 in.

Height 2.25 in.
Miscellaneous
Product ID 22571974

I am getting the Sony for 4k and the JBL for 7k. I have the following questions.

1) Now that I already have a Sony HU and 606E components in front and GTO 636 in the rear. I am getting slightly harsher music than I am used too. I am ok with it, and in time will love to enjoy it. My criteria of songs is Eminem, 50 cent, etc. However I want to maximize my remaining system and sound. The shop owner who was selling JBL amp discouraged me to use 2 channel for the JBL amp in parallel for four speakers, rather insisted that I just amplify the components and use the other two channels in the bridged mode for the tube. He said that GTO 636 if amped will distort the music. Now I will take Sam's word for this not his. As for me Sam you are the one So what do you suggest? The RMS of the JBL amp is 67 watts as opposed to Sonys 60 W, and 636 have mean handling RMS of 60 watts? So will this mean that Sony is more ideal for the 636 setup than the JBL?

2) You had suggested that I should not use the CS 50.4 for the tube/woofer as its not designed to run them, however power wise, it is giving more output than the Sony in bridged mode? So even though CS 50.4 is not designed for woofer/tubes, but given the specs it will drive the woofer/tube better than the Sony 504Z in question here?

Sam you are the undisputed Audio Guru here. Any information that you will share with your deciple will go down till his grave. Looking forward for your answer

[Sam Kapasi]

Aseem ya, what is this guru disciple stuff. Chill, we are all friends here.

As you can imagine, I've seen those specs often before. I never recommend a CS50.4 to run subs. It sounds great, but unlike cheaper amps, all JBL CS50.4 have clip-limiters built in. Now as Vivek and Navin have rightly pointed out, very often, more power is never an issue. However when a lesser powered amp is over driven, it creates clipping. Some of us cannot recognise this clip. When the CS50.4 clips, it reduces power, or sometimes goes off. The cheaper sony will play regardless, clip and all.
There is no doubt that the JBL amp is better, i'm not that biased. However if you need to overdrive an amp, even a little, the JBL will not co-operate with you. That is why i just find it safer to suggest that the 50.4 is no good for a sub.
I recommend the 75.4 for that.
I repeat that the 636 sounds nice on any amp. Like Navin said, it is a 6" woofer and will sound better on any amp.

[Vivekphadnis]

Sam, Navin, this is what I found. I ripped apart (and successfully put back ) all the plastic panels below the AC switches and the ignition. I found 12.23 V on a thick white wire with a green stripe (and black) soldered on the ignition switch. I removed the harness on the autocop and found that it had 12V between the pure red wire and the black wire.
Yesterday, I checked out my friend's Wagon R. The guy who fitted it seemed to have connected the battery of the HU to some thin wire he has found on one harness just behind the place where you fit the HU. I found the ground and the ignition but this battery wire is eluding me. Please understand that I am very keen on doing this myself not to save a trip to the electrician or save a couple of hundred rupees but just for the thrill of doing it myself. DIY spirit you see

[moodswings]

Thanks Navin and Sam......I will ask my cousin not to get it...

[navin]

aseem, see post 697 and 698 regarding power handling of speakers.

[navin]

Vivek, the last time in installed a system was in 1996 so i cant help oyu here. my back wont let me get into all those contorted postions anymore.

Aseem, it is great that you put all that info on this thread but seriously it is information overload. You have to discern what information is nesscary and what is not. I know you have the knowledge to do that. To run all your speakers without straining your amps it is recomended that the loads not be below 4 ohms in stereo mode and 8 ohms in bridge mode.

some amps can handle 2 ohms loads without complain and other can but with some restrcitions but it still nicer on the amps if they are run as said above.

If I were you and wanted most bank for the buck I'd get teh 50.4 or 340 for the 4 speakers and run the sub of 502. total will be 9.5-10K (7K for the 50.4 and 2.5-3K for 502). too rich. get the 504 and 502 for 6.5K. still too rich get the 504 and add another amp later.