sound systems

where's a good place to get new speakers and a sub in the back

You want to hook your ride up with some tunes? Well, if you want some serious music, I would go to a higher end store or specialty shop. Personally, I shop at Tweeter and get all my installs done by them also. They do a great job and they are across the country. You also have to take into consideration what brand of equipment you want. Certain stores will only carry certain brands. Let me know if you have any more detailed questions. I've been into car audio for about 4 years now, I'd be happy to try and steer you in the right direction.

i want to replace all my speakers so that there is no cracking or stuff like that. I want to bump my music and the music still sounds good. plus a 6"-8" sub in the back(im really leaning toward the 6" so i can still hear the music). Also do you know what the price would cost and which brands are good to fit my liking?

Thanks

Well, if you want to get rid of crackling and hissing, then you definately want to use an amp for your speakers. Depending on how far you want to go with this install will determine what amp and how powerful. I'd recommend Alpine if you want an inexpensive amp with some decent power. If you want to step up a little bit, JL audio makes a great amp. A little more money, a little more power, and cleaner sounding. As far what speakers to choose, thats almost like asking whats your favorite color. There are so many to choose from. Alot of this decision may be made for you by what store you shop in to buy them. But generally, stay away from Jensen, Pioneer and Sony(personal opinion). Go to the store and listen to some brands. Pretty much the more expensive the speaker the better it is. In some cases you are paying for the name though. I.E. polk audio high end which has the MOMO name on it. You'll find that certain companies have a different sound than others. Like JL Audio and Rockford Fosgate are bassier, whereas Boston Acoustics will be less bassy and focus more on high end and mid bass. I would also recomend hitting your local bookstore and checking out some magazines. That'll give you an idea of what's out there (and theres alot out there). The current issue of Car Audio and Electronics has the a current model directory of all many brands' equipment. Now as for subs, dont worry so much about the size of the sub when thinking about if it will drown out the music. Plus, its very ahrd to find a 6inch sub. i can only think of one model off the top of my head (JL6WO I believe). And I also think, which is moreover the case, once you have some bass, you'll want more. Keep in mind you can control the bass settings not only on the CD reciever, but also on the amp for the sub as well. There will typically be gain control to tune it to how you want it. Choosing a sub is kinda like shoosing a speaker (or just about any component of the system) theres a lot to choose from. I, as well as many others, would say to buy JL audio. They make pre-fab boxes that can fit just about anywhere in your car. A dual 8 box is a good starting point. JL subs (aside from the brand new W7's) are relatively inexpensive and have incredible power handling. You dont need to throw them much power for them to thump. That dual 8 box probably only needs about 2oo watts of power to perform. Another option for amps would be a five channel amps which most companies offer now, so that you can power you speakers and subs off one amp. Ok I've said more than a mouth full. Lemme know if you want some more info or clarificaion of anything I've said. I'd be glad to get someone else hooked on this stuff.:D

do i need a amplifier for every speaker?

nevermind the question above,but if i get an amplifier will it take the hissing and crackling away?

Ok, heres the low down on sound quality.

crackling and hissing can be caused by a few different things. first of all, factory speakers are made out of paper......vibrating paper doesnt make the clearest of sounds. After market speakers are made from special materials to make them sound better. Amps help this very much. They provide more power, and much cleaner power........BUT, they will still amplify the source. If the source is crappy, like a bad radio station, then so will the amped sound. However if its a CD, then it'll amp a good clean signal. In general the amp will help, but first you should replace the cars speakers with something decent. Plus, you are probably going to want to get a new head unit. The head unit is important in the sound quality because it will perform the conversion of the signal from the source to the speakers/amp.

In general, if you want a good clean system, I would start with new speakers, and if you can afford it initially, a 4 channel amp for them. Then get a new head unit. And finish it up with some subs. There may be some sway to this though. I think I had previously mentioned that most companies are now making a 5 channel amp. 1 channel for each speaker and a seperate channel for subs. This is a good choice for ease and economics. One big question you should ask yourself before you buy anything though, is how far do you want to go with this? Do you want this to be an incredible system with serious power, and and a ton of bass? It would be better to buy the good stuff piece by piece, then buy less than perfect only to upgrade later and spend more money than you need.

There is a service notice now out for the "crappy sounding" stereos and lousy bass response. Turns out that they hooked them up wrong at the factory. We took one in and the difference it amazing. They did not even know about the service bulletin until they searched for it.

This is real. Before you go spending any extra money have the dealer check your wiring. If yours is set wrong, you might like what you hear after they fix it.

Good Luck