[slayer87]

guys, i too would be upgrading my i20 ICE as soon as its delivered. I have already ordered the Illusion Carbon nd6.1 compos and now planning to buy an amp and sub. Now, I don want to spoil the OEM look and do not want to change the HU. So, should i directly use the speaker level inputs in the amp or should use a speaker level converter. Pls suggest an amp to go along with these compos and would probably be going in for an ID v3 sub. I might get the amp from Singapore by july as all the high end amps like audison, genesis, steg etc are quite expensive here. Please tell me a 4 channel amp and a mono-block.

[@ri]

I have a very basic question and need suggestions from the gurus. What exactly is the OEM spec speakers and the make in the i20 Asta. The feature listing says 6 speakers with 2 tweeters in the front. Now, are the front speakers components?
I have a JBL Comp speaker set in my Zen with XPLOD oval speakers, so when I took a TD of the i20 asta I felt atleast audio wise, the thump was missing. Is it because of (a)Front speakers not being components or (b)Rear speakers in the i20 being puny round ones which completely lack the thump.

In that case, would it be a good idea to first upgrade the rear door speakers to good JBL Coax ones and then replace the front Comps to JBL GTO 6inchers.

Now if the front ones are not Components, then how about replacing the door speakers in the front with JBLs first and then switch them to the rear doors when I have the moolah to put components up front.

I have to go for a phased upgrade as I managed to stretch myself completely to get myself the Asta variant

[Punzabi]

@ri the stock speakers are not components, that's why they fail to produce any thump. These speakers are there just to produce output from the stock HU.

[DerAlte]

Thump has nothing to do with components. The stock speakers are not good enough at the low end. Some stock speakers - coaxials - do have a lot of thump. None in the Indian cars where economy takes a new meaning, but definitely in a lot of European and US cars.

I had once got a rental Renault Megane in France 15 years back, and I spent some time searching for the amp. There was none, it was driven by the HU! (That car had surprised me more than just with the ICE. I didn't realize it was a diesel car in a few days of driving, till I opened the tank flap at the gas station and saw the sticker saying "DIESEL"). I have had the same listening experience in a few Peugeot, Volvo, Ford (Europe-Mondeo, US-Focus), VW Passat, etc. cars that I have rented over the years. And in a rental car, it is bound to be OE/stock. Barring a few, all were coax.

Oddly, never felt the same in Japanese, Korean and Italian cars, barring a Mitsubishi Lancer in US once.

[@ri]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

Thump has nothing to do with components. The stock speakers are not good enough at the low end. Some stock speakers - coaxials - do have a lot of thump. None in the Indian cars where economy takes a new meaning, but definitely in a lot of European and US cars.

I agree. I have also felt the same in a Ford Taurus I drove once. Surprisingly though, a friend of mine who recently piked up a VW Polo in B'lore also seemed to have a good audio output. Looks like the speakers form part of the 50 % imported components that the Polo has

Originally Posted by Punzabi

@ri the stock speakers are not components, that's why they fail to produce any thump. These speakers are there just to produce output from the stock HU.

Ok. so does that mean I can start off by putting a good set of JBL co-axial ones for the rear doors and have components in front without changing the HU. I do not want to change the look of the dash. I do run components on my zen from the Sony HU that I have and find the output to be decent enough

[Punzabi]

I understand your point of not loosing dashboard look but this has been a hot topic among members here whether to go just for speakers or complete audio upgrade. It doesn't mean that you can't go ahead just with speakers but it depends what sort of budget and taste you got. Stock HU isn't capable of producing good sound.

A statement made one of the audio gurus would convey my point easily

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

Lets just say, that you could have the best amps, components and subwoofers, but if you had a head unit that sounded bad, all the various speakers and amplifiers would only further amplify all the bad sound. GIGO - garbage in, garbage out.
A good HU can change the way you listen to music. And the difference is not small, it's bloody HUGE. Lets say you have a cheap HU from say, Pioneer or JVC or sony or whatever.
You keep the exact same rear end setup and replace with say, a top end Alpine, or an Eclipse.
The sound tonality and quality changes completely. Full zameen-aasman. And this has little to do with the voltage of the preout. No i am talking of the quality of the sound.
Thats as good a non-techie explanation I can give. Baaki toh Navin zindabad.

[@ri]

@Punzabi: Yes agree on it.

Now say with the limitation that I do not want to change the HU, would a setup using an amplifier and have minimal gain on the HU. would that be a possibility of having a decent sounding audio setup?

[pulsar56]

One of my friend has bought a new i20 and today, while traveling with our favorite music playing, both of us felt that the stock system needs immediate upgrade.


We would like to retain the existing stock HU else, the steering mounted controls will be useless!

There cannot be a compromise on the boot space. Only thing that can be put in the boot is the sub and with an option to remove it while traveling with family and luggage. So, that takes out the Coaxials from the option. (The parcel tray is flimsy and cannot take the weight. No MDF Board please!)

Budget: 20k (can be extended up to 40k )
Songs played most of the time - Classic Rock. Hindi & Telugu songs when kids are in the car!
New Rear speakers must be fit in the current stock location(rear doors). (What are the options?)
Do we need both 4ch and a mono amp to complete the setup?

What are the options to upgrade the system with the above parameters?

We spoke to one of the dealers in Hyderabad today and got a quote of 44k for a Alpine setup with a 4 ch Focal Amp. Don't have the breakup of the cost though!

[@ri]

Originally Posted by pulsar56

One of my friend has bought a new i20 and today, while traveling with our favorite music playing, both of us felt that the stock system needs immediate upgrade.


We would like to retain the existing stock HU else, the steering mounted controls will be useless!

There cannot be a compromise on the boot space. Only thing that can be put in the boot is the sub and with an option to remove it while traveling with family and luggage. So, that takes out the Coaxials from the option. (The parcel tray is flimsy and cannot take the weight. No MDF Board please!)

Budget: 20k (can be extended up to 40k )
Songs played most of the time - Classic Rock. Hindi & Telugu songs when kids are in the car!
New Rear speakers must be fit in the current stock location(rear doors). (What are the options?)
Do we need both 4ch and a mono amp to complete the setup?

What are the options to upgrade the system with the above parameters?

We spoke to one of the dealers in Hyderabad today and got a quote of 44k for a Alpine setup with a 4 ch Focal Amp. Don't have the breakup of the cost though!

This is the setup which I would be going for....
1) Polk Audio 5 1/4 inch Components db5251 for the front doors.
2) Polk Audio 5 1/4 inch Co-axials db521 on the rear doors
3) JBL 10Inch sub in the boot.
4) Alpine 4 Ch Amp.

Wiring... I am in two minds whether to go for the Monster Cables or use the existing wiring (Don't wanna do too much of cutting - chopping to the existing wiring)

The Amp will run the front Components and the Sub with two o/ps bridged.
Total cost is approx 18 K

[nitinbose]

1. Will this configuration complement the OE system?

You may use the speaker outs and an amp that has speaker inputs or a High-low converter. Please note the decrease in clarity because of hissing, static and inteference.

2. Is this woofer over powered to shadow the speaker output ?

If you choose the correct speakers and the subwoofer and have these installed correctly it would not.

3. I've taken a 4ch amp - (in case in future i need to use up for better speakers) can i route the output to the OE speakers itself instead of adding any more.

Please see the first answer.


4. Is this connector a necessity ? It is quoted as expensive as a amp.


Its necessary as the amp requires much higher power and a low quality cable results in heating and even a fire! The connector cables between the HU and amp should be of a good quality so that little or no inteference, static etc are picked up.

[pulsar56]

Originally Posted by @ri

1) Polk Audio 5 1/4 inch Components db5251 for the front doors.
2) Polk Audio 5 1/4 inch Co-axials db521 on the rear doors
3) JBL 10Inch sub in the boot.
4) Alpine 4 Ch Amp.

Total cost is approx 18 K

Thank You @ri.

Any more suggestions? (Remember, the budget can be extended up to 40k)

[spyking]

Hey!


My i20 should be coming in this week, and I want to start out the preliminary research on the ICE! From what I've been reading here, and how much I've comprehended, this is the plan of action that I have come up with!

Right now the budget for the ICE is really low(No, really low!), so want to break it up into stages! Pl advise if this is prudent upgrade path!

My main music is mostly progressive rock (Porcupine Tree, Floyd etc..) trance and a bit of everyday billboard top 10 thrown in..
I would like the bass to be tight, not muddy boomy stuff..

Stage I

-Front Compos
Just replace the existing front setup for now, as can convince the folks to give bout 5-6k max now

So I guess I will be looking for some compo's that are slightly laidback, with silk dome tweeters right?

Stage II (Say, a month down the line)

-4 Ch Amp
-10" sub (need the boot space while traveling)

Bridge 2 channels for the front comps and the other 2 for the sub..
As I will be retaining the Stock HU, Need an amp with speaker level inputs/ Line converters.. tried reading up, but couldn't find to much info about costs of line converters..

Stage III (Hopefully soon!)

-Carputer!
-Rear door co-ax


Edit:
For the same budget, (5-6k) will I get much better components form USofA or UAE? Would the price difference be a lot b/w here and there?

-Thanks!

[abhibh]

Originally Posted by spyking

Hey!


My i20 should be coming in this week, and I want to start out the preliminary research on the ICE! From what I've been reading here, and how much I've comprehended, this is the plan of action that I have come up with!

Right now the budget for the ICE is really low(No, really low!), so want to break it up into stages! Pl advise if this is prudent upgrade path!

My main music is mostly progressive rock (Porcupine Tree, Floyd etc..) trance and a bit of everyday billboard top 10 thrown in..
I would like the bass to be tight, not muddy boomy stuff..

Stage I

-Front Compos
Just replace the existing front setup for now, as can convince the folks to give bout 5-6k max now

So I guess I will be looking for some compo's that are slightly laidback, with silk dome tweeters right?

Try to audition a few components. Bull Audio are quiet good and might be perfect for your taste.

Stage II (Say, a month down the line)

-4 Ch Amp
-10" sub (need the boot space while traveling)

Bridge 2 channels for the front comps and the other 2 for the sub..
As I will be retaining the Stock HU, Need an amp with speaker level inputs/ Line converters.. tried reading up, but couldn't find to much info about costs of line converters..

Depends upon the budget. I would suggest adding a HLA.

Stage III (Hopefully soon!)

-Carputer!
-Rear door co-ax


Edit:
For the same budget, (5-6k) will I get much better components form USofA or UAE? Would the price difference be a lot b/w here and there?

-Thanks!

My comments in BOLD!

[spyking]

@abhibh

Where would the best place be to start auditioning the speakers?
I shall look for some Bull Audio Compos!

Btw, how much do the H/LA cost aprox?

Thanks!

[vijay_n81]

Hi Gurus,
I have booked an I20 1.4 Asta CRDi and am expecting delivery next week.

the car comes with ICE with Built in Bluetooth. Hence I would prefer to retain the HU for the timebeing.

I already have the following items removed from my prev car, that would go into the I20

1. JBL 4 Channel amp
2. Polk Audio 12" sub with factory enclosure.

Items planned to purchase - Advice requried here

1. Components for front Doors - My pref are with Polk, Hertz & JL - Please suggest.
2. Co Ax for the rear door - same brand as front component.
3. Mono Amp - Heard or a amp from Pioneer costing around 9K - Note sure of the model.
4. Capacitor and wiring for the amp.


My plan is to run all the four ( front comp & Rear Coax) from the 4 channel amp and from the line of the 4 Cha amp feed the mono amp to power the sub.

I am sure that I would need a Line In Covertor to feed the amps with RCA. Need advice on the same.

To Summarise.

Need advice on

1. Choice of Components and Rear Coax.
2. Dimension of Comp's that will fit in the door.
3. Line In Convertor - Good one
4. Little info on Mono Amp from Pioneer.

Budget around 25 K for the additions.

Thanks a lot in advance.