1999 camry LE COMPLETE audio upgrade!(help needed)

[daveofstrength]

sorry about a repeat but ive decided to do a COMPLETE upgrade and not just speakers/amp..
* I drive a 1999 Toyota Camry LE w/o pocket below factory radio
Front door speakers - 6-3/4''
Rear speakers - 6x9''
Two small tweeters - by the sideview mirrors(interior)
In-dash stereo depth - 7-3/4'' *

I am looking for new speakers(component front coax rear)
Amp for said speakers
A good subwoofer
Amp for said subwoofer
Any accessories/parts to optimize the setup

I am completely lost here the head unit is the only part ive made a decision on :
Pioneer DEH-P9800BT - http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?search=Pioneer+DEH%2DP9800BT&i=130DEHP98 0

I listen to mainly rock, hard rock, metal, classical but would still like to have the option for rap/hip-hop type bass driven music as well. Mainly looking for clean crisp and punchy. that also accomodates for warms highs and lows.

For speakers ive got two brands focal- http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?...roduct_ID=1164 (component) http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?...Product_ID=907 (6x9 rear) and boston acoustics but other than that no clue
no clue on the amps or the sub either.

would i also need a new battery for my car? or two batteries?

My budget is "open" but im mainly looking midrange nothing too extreme or radical. perhaps 2 grand at the absolute maximum!

[darksparkz]

You may definitely want to upgrade to a new battery with all that stuff, the Optima Yellowtop would be good if your planning to use the speakers a lot with the car off, otherwise just add the yellowtop to your trunk and use your existing battery as well. You may even need to upgrade your alternator for an high-output one.

As for accessories, you'd need quite a bit of sound deadening on the car, mainly in the trunk and door panels. Also some nice 2ga or 0ga wires running around the car.

You wouldn't need the spend that much on rear speakers. Most people don't even get them at all. Especially since your planning to get a sub already, the rear speakers would be unnecessary. But then, if your planning to have rear seat passengers often, you may want some cheap upgrades for the rear.

As for front components: http://www.iqcaraudio.com/rainbow_audio.html
Any of the Profi or Profi Vanadium line would be good, make sure you get 6.5" ones though.

An amp to power that can be quite a few ranging from Alpine PDX-4.150, Precision Power PC 4800.2, or even the Jl 450/4.

I am actually selling my Alpine Type-R 12" w/ a Q-Logic Sealed/Vented enclosure and my Infinity REF1600A 894W @ 2ohmz amp. I'm in Chicago as well, let me know if your interested.

[daveofstrength]

thanks!

[TRDSleeper]

Hey there, I have the same gen4 Camry LE just like you. I had a factory JBL sound system but I upgraded to a full aftermarket JBL sound system with a 6-channel amp and 12 inch bandpass subwoofer. I have the 6 3/4 in components in front and 6x9 coaxials in back. Like darksparkz said, you definitely need a stronger battery if you want to do a full system upgrade. I bought a Diehard battery from Sears for my car and it performs well. Optima would be the better choice and if you really want to be serious about power, get Kinetik batteries. One battery is enough unless you plan to get a system that is stronger than 1000 Watt total. I also got a Tsunami 2 farad capacitor for my system since it really helps prevent headlight dimming and strain on the battery and alternator.

In terms of speakers, I haven't heard of the brand Focal before so I don't know if they are good. If you want to spend in that price range then try looking at JL audio or Boston Acoustics. They make excellent speakers and subwoofers, but they tend to be more costly than their competitors. Just depends on how serious you are at high quality sound. For the lower budget, but great value then you should look into Polk Audio or JBL.

For amplifiers, I like the Alpine PDX series amps since they are much smaller than other amps and can fit it many places. However, I personally like getting a matching set of amps, speakers, and subs. It just looks better and I feel like my system is more complete. Also, I strongly suggest you get some sound dampening like Dynamat because it really helps control annoying rattling from your car body panels when you crank up the volume. No use getting an expensive sound system and having it sounds like crap from excessive rattling. The same goes for speaker wiring and RCA interconnects. Get high quality wires like Monster cable or Stinger so prevent noise and interference. Expensive speakers and subs mean nothing if the signal from the head unit and amplifier can not be carried cleanly to them.

My JBL sound system totaled to around $1800 with dynamat, wiring, and parts. I put everything in myself to save on labor. So I think you should have no problem with a two grand budget. Good luck!

[rebel8ball]

lets see...
pioneer head unit
factory fronts soon to be changed to blau 6.25s
blau 6x9 rears
both run off the pioneers 25 watt per channels main outs

2 blau 12s in iso bandpass
1.2 farat cap
crunch 1000

thats what i run. dont know if u have a fry's there but i got the 6x9s and the 1000 watt amp for 150$ over there and the cap for another 20... soon i plan to build a new box custom for the trunk so i can get to my spare and have the correct air space for my subs.

[daveofstrength]

Originally Posted by TRDSleeper

Hey there, I have the same gen4 Camry LE just like you. I had a factory JBL sound system but I upgraded to a full aftermarket JBL sound system with a 6-channel amp and 12 inch bandpass subwoofer. I have the 6 3/4 in components in front and 6x9 coaxials in back. Like darksparkz said, you definitely need a stronger battery if you want to do a full system upgrade. I bought a Diehard battery from Sears for my car and it performs well. Optima would be the better choice and if you really want to be serious about power, get Kinetik batteries. One battery is enough unless you plan to get a system that is stronger than 1000 Watt total. I also got a Tsunami 2 farad capacitor for my system since it really helps prevent headlight dimming and strain on the battery and alternator.

In terms of speakers, I haven't heard of the brand Focal before so I don't know if they are good. If you want to spend in that price range then try looking at JL audio or Boston Acoustics. They make excellent speakers and subwoofers, but they tend to be more costly than their competitors. Just depends on how serious you are at high quality sound. For the lower budget, but great value then you should look into Polk Audio or JBL.

For amplifiers, I like the Alpine PDX series amps since they are much smaller than other amps and can fit it many places. However, I personally like getting a matching set of amps, speakers, and subs. It just looks better and I feel like my system is more complete. Also, I strongly suggest you get some sound dampening like Dynamat because it really helps control annoying rattling from your car body panels when you crank up the volume. No use getting an expensive sound system and having it sounds like crap from excessive rattling. The same goes for speaker wiring and RCA interconnects. Get high quality wires like Monster cable or Stinger so prevent noise and interference. Expensive speakers and subs mean nothing if the signal from the head unit and amplifier can not be carried cleanly to them.

My JBL sound system totaled to around $1800 with dynamat, wiring, and parts. I put everything in myself to save on labor. So I think you should have no problem with a two grand budget. Good luck!

6 channel amp means 4 chan for speakers 2 for sub?

[daveofstrength]

Originally Posted by rebel8ball

lets see...
pioneer head unit
factory fronts soon to be changed to blau 6.25s
blau 6x9 rears
both run off the pioneers 25 watt per channels main outs

2 blau 12s in iso bandpass
1.2 farat cap
crunch 1000

thats what i run. dont know if u have a fry's there but i got the 6x9s and the 1000 watt amp for 150$ over there and the cap for another 20... soon i plan to build a new box custom for the trunk so i can get to my spare and have the correct air space for my subs.

yes i do have a frys... but quite far

[rebel8ball]

Originally Posted by daveofstrength

yes i do have a frys... but quite far

might be worth a drive out there, just make sure you check that its new not reconditioned, i know blaupunkt wont let them sell recon stuff, and my subs are 10 years old and still rock hard, to me THATS proof enough of the quality.

also something else you can do is go to car shows, cruise ins, gatherings, etc etc etc and get some ideas, or go to a couple of shops, independant would be better, and talk to the installers about what would work good in your car, yes they will try and sell you their stuff but it will still give you an idea.

[TRDSleeper]

Originally Posted by daveofstrength

6 channel amp means 4 chan for speakers 2 for sub?

Yes, I have four of the channels running the speakers (which are 2 Ohm impedance) so I get 80 Watt per channel instead of 60 Watt. With the two subwoofer channel, they are 150 Watt each but I bridged them to get a total of 300 Watt RMS, which is exactly how much my sub can handle. Six channel amps are nice if you don't want to hook up multiple amps and need to save space.

[Blackhawk3D]

Best bang for the buck is the Rockford Fosgate 25 to Life amps. The 150 is rated at 180W mono, but mine is pushing over 900 (proven by many members over at DIYMA) I'd say get this:

RF 25 To Life Punch 150
http://www.millionbuy.com/rocpunch150.html

this is your sub amp.

RF 25 to Life Punch 75
http://www.millionbuy.com/rocpunch75.html

This is for your mids, two if you're replacing the rears too

RF 25 to Life Punch 45
http://www.millionbuy.com/rocpunch45.html

This is for your tweets.

I'd go over to http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/ for recommendations on the drivers themselves, they're SUPER knowledgeable over there. I still recommend this
http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showd...number=295-466 for your sub, it's not the loudest out there but in a 1 cu ft. sealed enclosure it THUMPS and is super clean. I love mine, but do take into consideration that I am not a bass head... If you like tons and tons and tons of bass (which I believe this has, but hey) there are other drivers with more raw output (check out TC Sounds or SoundSplinter) but this thing just sounds GOOD. For the price it can't be beat.

[Black95Cam]

go all boston acoustic. and get one of kenwood excelon kdc-x 689 head unit.

soon my whole car will be boston acoustic. the doors and by9 sounds so nice and crips with an boston amp to them but they are pricey. but i'll be starting out the the bost g3 subs..

[Blackhawk3D]

I'm not a big Boston fan myself. Good for what they are, but you can get much better IMHO.

[daveofstrength]

Originally Posted by Blackhawk3D

I'm not a big Boston fan myself. Good for what they are, but you can get much better IMHO.

my other brand is FOCAL... what others do you suggest?

[daveofstrength]

i have decided on front comps/rear coaxs

what do you guys think??

component - http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?...roduct_id=3400

rear - http://www.woofersetc.com/index.cfm?...roduct_id=3109

[daveofstrength]

i think i would also need a dampening operation now.

now an amp for the 4 speakers
another amp for a sub
and a subwoofer finally.. (housing for sub)

i wonder if im missing out on any other accesories to optimize my planned set-up...?

should i go with one big sub? will that be sufficient enough? or should i go for two? is one good enough to generate a good kick? a better than average punch?