I want to get aftermarket speakers and head unit for my car.
I bought the vehicle about 3 months ago off a guy.
I recently purchased a system (2 300w kickers comp "12 and a 1,000w amp.)
They are fine, I just want to get the most out of it by getting a new head unit and speakers.
Problem is, Im new to cars and audio so I'm not so sure what to get.
What are the speaker sizes in my car?
any suggestions on a HU and speakers/tweeters?
How many watts should they be to get the maximum power out of my set up?
Also, should I get a new battery?
Not sure how much volts it currently is or anything but is it worth it?
Any help is much appreciated.
So your questions leave many broad answers with a lot of gear that can fit into the criteria. First for Headunit I would say just make sure you get one with all the features you want ie CD, ipod/mp3 compatability, bluetooth.. etc. Also how much eq you want to be able to control, if its just bass and treble a decent entry level will suit. If you want a parametric/graphic eq you will probably have to go to a midlevel unit. Other thing I would say to look out for is that theres enough RCA outputs on the back of the HU for your amplifiers (front/maybe back and sub).
As for speakers, you did not specify if you have the factory JBL or non JBL system, without JBL crutchfield says the fronts and rears are 5 1/4 and with JBL fronts are 6 1/2 and rears are 3 1/2 (wierd?). But this part is important.. focus all of your attention on the fronts and use rear for either fill or not at all. The front speakers are what will give you the best sound stage and changing up the rears draws your soundstage back and honestly does mess up your SQ of the system. After doing this in my old car I know thats the only way to go. I would suggest a nice 6 1/2" set whether or not you have the JBL system as to me the 5 1/4 would probably have you feeling a sense of lacking in the midbass department. For the case of speakers I suggest listening to see what you like theres no replacement for your ears, I ran Morel Maximo components and loved them, but others dont. Find what you like and run it. For power honestly you don't need a lot I got speakers screaming off of 50 watts, what you will gain with increased power is better dynamics though. For example at 50 watts a channel on my amp was full power and starting to clip, but the same 50 watts is barely breaking a sweat to a 100 watt a channel amp. If you are concerned with too much power being drawn I suggest looking into class D amplification as it offers increased efficiency and a smaller footprint versus classic A/B class amplifiers.
