[ramie2400]

Originally Posted by shuvc

@B&T, @Navin any details about how the rear tray was damped would be appreciated. It rattles a lot in my car whenever the sub is made to work hard.

Have tried to explain the problem here
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/sound-...imple-ice.html

OT:@shuvc example of how the rear tray area is damped,Honda city 1.3

Ramie

[GTO]

*Update*

So, after 2 months of using the ICE (and experimenting with different HU settings), I had a far clearer picture of its capability. I was now ready for the "final tune" and hence, dropped the car off at Ajay for 2 days of work.

1. Pioneer HU -> iPod original cable installed. Full credit to Navin (and his son) for sourcing it while on holiday in Singapore!! Thanks man, I really owe you one for going completely out of the way. The iPod reaction time is now way better than what it was (as is the read rate). It might just be my imagination, but the HU & iPod seem to enjoy a happier marriage.

2. I gave Ajay a detailed word doc which explained just the kind of sound I liked (and didn't like) with specific song examples (so that he could listen to them off my iPod and know what I'm talking about). In a nutshell:
- I wanted more of the "good" bass, and less of the "bad" bass (Navin mentions something about sub-harmonic sound)
- Some more tuning flexibility with the HU (as in, ability to use HU settings). Audiophile settings aside, I do have my own preferences in the way that I like my sound
- The mid needed to go a tad higher (HU settings didn't help much here)

Done. Sound accomplished. If the sound earlier was 85% of what I wanted, its now improved to 95%. I've heard stories of Ajay's tuning skill, but witnessed it first hand last evening. He's obviously & carefully gone through my comments and delivered exactly what I asked for.

3. Sat with Ajay and understood exactly what each HU setting stands for (for instance, HPF)

4. Noteworthy of mention is the sound normalisation of my entire music collection. If you truly enjoy music, its an absolute MUST. The process has greatly enhanced the audio experience in my car. Complete Guidelines here.

Ajay also got my Civic's interiors completely cleaned (Thanks!)

Only thing thats pending is the Dash trim kit needs to be replaced with a scosche. Panel gaps around the climate control buttons are Fiat-like. This should be done in about 2 weeks.

Originally Posted by navin

Actually the best way to learn is by fooling around. Ask GTO. He will agree that he is not audio guru but he has been tuing his system to his taste and untill he folled around with the system he would never have got it to sound like he liked.

I couldn't agree anymore.

[navin]

Originally Posted by GTO

1. Pioneer HU -> iPod original cable installed. Full credit to Navin (and his son) for sourcing it while on holiday in Singapore!!.

2. - I wanted more of the "good" bass, and less of the "bad" bass (Navin mentions something about sub-harmonic sound).

Clarifications.
My son and I just spent some time in a car audio shop in Singapore. The shop owner was surpsied that Indians knew so much about car audio (we were talking exotic brands while my son was fooling around with some ipod controllers) so GTO, it was kinda fun for us too.

I mentioned sub-sonic not sub-harmonic. The issue is simple.

All speakers are really only efficient in a narrow pass band which is why you have subwoofers, woofers, midranges and tweeters. Outside this 'band of comfort" speakers tend to distort and this is specially true of subwoofers as they also are limited by the dimensions of the cabin (boundary reinforcement) and their internal motor-physics.

If you try to push a sub beyond it's limits or beyond the limits of the cabin it is in you will either have to invest in a damping the standing waves (so created), filter out the frequencies (from the sub so that the standing waves are not created), or live with the "bloom"ing standing waves. These standing waves detract from the music. I'd rather have no bass than bad bass.

If you want to replicate the bass rumble of a 20Hz organ pipe or the visceral impact of a kettle drum in a car you have to work at it. Every component of the car-speaker-speaker box-amp-source chain will have to be designed to accomodate this.

[sandygordon]

Recently went to a dealer in calicut to check out the PIO P4250DVD so that i could consider it for an upgrade. The dealer told me that the distributor was not keen in selling the 4250s due to issues with the flip/slide screen display. He instead asked me to go for the cheaper P3250 which does not have a slide/flip display screen(for 26k with b&W).He had both the hus in stock.

Is there any truth in this??

[GTO]

Originally Posted by sandygordon

Is there any truth in this??

Can't argue with that. Any mechanical part will suffer from wear & tear and, one day, will give up. That said, I'd easily expect atleast 7 - 10 years of life knowing Pioneer (and my experience with the brand). Question is : How often are you going to slide the display open (to load a CD / memory card). I use only the iPod on this HU and thus, slider action is rare (maybe once a month tops).

[kedarwalke]

Hey GTO,

Thats a great setup!I am planning to change the head unit of my new skoda superb,I have already sourced the fascia for the double din.They come with two power harness.I am thinking of going in for the pioneer av 4250 which you have installed.

Can you please confirm if I can use my external sata 320 gb hard drive to listen to music through the USB?Will it display the song list on the HU?

If I am changing the stock head unit I will not see the parktronics,but can i listen to the audio beeps?(the beeps come from the front and rear bumpers)

If I install the reverse camera will it automatically display on the screen when the Gear is shifted to Reverse(mine is a automatic tranny)?

In any way can i use my phone over the bluetooth with the HU?I have steering controls on the steering wheel,can I activate them ?

Thanks,

Kedar

[dkaile]

A fantastic sound system there to say the least. The boom boom must be enough to blow the roof, I presume. I dont like to mess with the stock head units too much but I do sorely miss USB and Aux-in in my Fortuner. Getting ideas from your set-up which don't bode well for my bank balance... lolz

[_raVan_]

Originally Posted by kedarwalke

Hey GTO,

Can you please confirm if I can use my external sata 320 gb hard drive to listen to music through the USB?Will it display the song list on the HU?


Thanks,

Kedar

I dont have an answer for the rest of the questions, but for the question above, the (or any) player should be able to identify a FAT32 file system. So if your external 320 GB hard drive is having NTFS (or other) file systems or has multiple partitions, I highly doubt if it will work. Also, some players have limitations due to the size of the drive being read.

[leadf00t]

Originally Posted by kedarwalke

Hey GTO,

Thats a great setup!I am planning to change the head unit of my new skoda superb,I have already sourced the fascia for the double din.They come with two power harness.I am thinking of going in for the pioneer av 4250 which you have installed.

Can you please confirm if I can use my external sata 320 gb hard drive to listen to music through the USB?Will it display the song list on the HU?

If I am changing the stock head unit I will not see the parktronics,but can i listen to the audio beeps?(the beeps come from the front and rear bumpers)

If I install the reverse camera will it automatically display on the screen when the Gear is shifted to Reverse(mine is a automatic tranny)?

In any way can i use my phone over the bluetooth with the HU?I have steering controls on the steering wheel,can I activate them ?

Thanks,

Kedar

Originally Posted by _raVan_

I dont have an answer for the rest of the questions, but for the question above, the (or any) player should be able to identify a FAT32 file system. So if your external 320 GB hard drive is having NTFS (or other) file systems or has multiple partitions, I highly doubt if it will work. Also, some players have limitations due to the size of the drive being read.

There are 2 parts to the questions originally asked by kedar
1) Does the USB port on your player give out enough current out put. I had a WED 250 GB passport which failed to work in a Pio 3050UB. The USb port simply doesnt give enough power to drive the hard driver motors.
2) The number of folder levels and number of songs in each drive.

The solution to both problems is as below
1) first try plugging in your harddrive. If you cant feel it spinning or see some unexcepted LED indicators on the drive. I would buy a Y cable with 2 USB ports going to one mini USB into the drive. One USB port goes to the players's USB jack and other goes into a USB Charger on the 12V cig lighter port. That should give enough power to drive your hard disk
2) After step 1 if yo uhdd is detected , just use a empty Hard drive with oen partition and just one or two folders with about 10 15 songs. It is a known issue that hardware mp3 players with a USB port find it difficult to read multipartition hard drives. If those play fine. copy one folder with more than 1000 songs. and one folder with song buried under a 8 level folder structure. Typically the MP3 players cannot read more than 999 files in one folder and beyond 8 levels. Based on the results of your test. You can arrange you music accoridngly.

Its far more simpler with a Ipod. But if you get the above steps working, You can give the Ipod a run for the money with a bigger collection.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by GTO

Has to be heavy on bass.

Finally figured out where I got this from.

Was out on a holiday, this last weekend. Just as we hit the expressway, Dad tells me "You know why I like traveling in your car?" Me : "Sound System?". Dad : "I really like the BASS. I don't enjoy music without strong bass".

Like Father, Like Son

[Ace F355]

Originally Posted by GTO

Finally figured out where I got this from.

Was out on a holiday, this last weekend. Just as we hit the expressway, Dad tells me "You know why I like traveling in your car?" Me : "Sound System?". Dad : "I really like the BASS. I don't enjoy music without strong bass".

Like Father, Like Son

Nice. A little OT for this thread but after upgrading to 17" alloys on my Civic, my father and I shared the same sentiments about improved steering feedback.

[navin]

Originally Posted by GTO

Like Father, Like Son

Why dont you upgrade the sound system in his car then!

Think of it as a brithday present and since when do Birtday presents have to be given ONLY on birthdays?

[noopster]

Nice thread. GTO had referred me to it when I was pondering going ahead with the Pio 4250 over the Caska/Motevo/misc Chinese maal in the market but somehow missed it till today.

I'm a music lover but the thought of selling out 100 ks or more on ICE is kinda chilling (pun intended). When you think about it that's just about 10% of the price of my car but there is a psychological barrier that is difficult to breach, even if Pop isn't paying for it!

Had started an ICE thread for my Vento and ended up, as SoundManiac had predicted, totally confused and with more questions than answers at the end of it. So have not yet taken the plunge, making do with door speakers and stock HU for the time being.

Being a total ICE noob, I hardly ever venture into this forum. Everytime I do I get the feeling the gurus are waiting there bright-eyed to mock me with more three-letter acronyms and weird North European brands!

Some day, I will have my oen ICE... til' then!

[idofsuresh]

@GTO: I liked the way the amplifiers and sub woofers are arranged in the boot. I have a sub woofer and an amp to install in my Civic and wanted to install it the same way. However, I noticed a cross bar behind the rear seat in my car. The installer told me that he has to remove the cross bar, place a wooden board and screw the amplifier to the wooden board. I said no and did not install anything as I was not sure about the purpose of the cross bar. The alternative he provided was to keep the amplifier under the passenger seat of the car. I said no to that because I felt it could interfere with the rear passenger's legs and also it could get heated up because of lower air circulation.

Questions:
1. It looks like there is no cross bar in your boot. Was it removed ?
2. What is the use of the cross bar behind the rear seat anyway ?
3. With the sub woofers installed, how do you access the spare wheel ?

[frankmehta]

I'm bringing alive a relatively docile thread since GTO has not posted a 'long term review' of how his system feels. I am going in for a Civic automatic and plan to install the whole shebang that I am carrying over from the Fiesta S. Only difference is, I intend to have a single din unit instead of GTO's double din. Any idea how bad/good that will look?? I wanna see some pictures.
Also, what should I do about that damn gaping hole in the dash below the head unit :-(