rogan

IMO a cap is a complete waste of money. It's a bandaid for bigger problems. Try running with the OE battery and if there's problems, upgrade the battery first. Exide orbitals can be had for around $250 so there's a battery upgrade for the price of a cap. In the wife's E30 I've got a standard battery, flash h/u running a pair of components and rear coaxials, then a 400rms amp running a 10"Soundstream exact. Never had a problem with flat battery / dimming lights etc. Been like that for about 3 years although the wife doesn't give it death. I'm running 5 amps in my next project - somewhere around 2500rms and will just be running a two battery set up with one battery dedicated to the stereo. Will probably fit an extra alternator or upgrade the existing one if I can't fit one on the engine. I do SQ so I won't be using anywhere near the power the amps are capable of but should be more than sweet with a single grunty battery and decent alternator. If you're competent at wiring or have a rough clue what you're doing and know your way around a multitester then I'd have a go yourself. If you've got no clue then get it done pro. Wiring a headunit can be tricky, but wiring an amp is real easy - as pair of RCA from the h/u, remote on cable from the h/u (hardest part is running the cables through the car). -ve from amp to chassis, power from battery to amp with a fuse near the battery, then speaker cables from amp to sub. All very easy but if you don't have the tools (crimp, soldering iron) then I'd get it done pro; see if you can work the installation cost into the overall price

Easy way to check if the fuseable link is blown is to run a wire from the outer shield of one of the RCAs (NOTE NOT THE INNER PIN - THAT'S THE RCA POSITIVE AND YOU'LL DO BIG DAMAGE) to the headunit chassis or the h/u earth. This effectively bypasses the fuseable link and if it sorts out alternator whine then you know what the problem is. Monaco Corp (NZ Pioneer distributors) technicians replace the fuse with a piece of wire if they go wrong. Not sure on cost but I got mine done under warranty. Apologies for the Off Topic international

The general rule is that a small sub (8"or 10") will sound the tightest, a a large sub (15") will go the lowest, and a 12 will be somewhere in between, but then some brands' 15inch some can sound tighter than other brands' 10inch. So although it's a good general rule, don't assume that brand A 12 will be better for what you want than brand B 10. Porting is essentially venting your sub box with a tube of of a certain diameter and length to tune the sub box to a certain frequency. This will increase the bass output at the tuned frequency but can have impact on the quality of the sound. Very generally ported boxes will be louder and boomier than a sealed box but the sealed box will put out better sound quality. Note this is very general and not always true. Ported boxes take up alot more space so consider your boot needs. A ported box for a 12" sub will usually be in excess of 1.5 - 2.0ft3 whereas a sealed box for the same sub will be around 1.0 - 1.3 ft3. Also note that some subs are designed for sealed, some for ported and some will run well in either. Don't port a sub that's intended for a sealed box application. My advice would be to go down to Car Stereo Specialist, take along your own CDs and have a listen to what they've got. If there's not enough product there then head over to places like Paul Moneys in Mt Eden. Don't buy on the spot, have a listen, see what deal they can offer you (Paul Moneys probably won't include installation) and have a good nosey around. With headunits, you can't go too far wrong with known brands, avoid the "for you" and the like trademe stuff cos it's garbage in a pretty box. Remember, you can't polish a turd but you can chrome it. This applies to car stereo as well, the blingiest product is not usually the best stuff to buy. If you want street bass (SPL - boom boom that you can hear from three blocks away) then go ported; note a ported box will be slightly costlier to build - more MDF, extra cost for port and bigger box so will need more carpet to cover it. Got erectile dysfunction, go for SPL. For best quality (SQ) on a tight budget you want sealed but you'll still have plenty of volume - you might only be heard from 1.5 blocks away. Just off the top of my head this is what I'd look at. Sub: Alpine type R - either 10 or 12"depending on budget, Can be run in either ported or sealed boxes. Remember that your sub needs to suit your amp. Some amps make the most power at 2ohms and some at 4ohms. You need a sub that can be wired to the correct ohm load for your amplifier. Amp: the Pioneer one you're looking at - looks good $$ per watt rms Headunit: Whatever branded make/model you can get with the rest of your budget that has mp3 compatability and a subwoofer RCA out. Preferably 3 RCA outs for future system expansion. Don't bother amping the fronts yet and don't bother disconnecting the rears, Just leave the fronts and rears playing off the headunit internal amp. Remember, only look at power ratings in watts RMS. Max and Peak power are marketing BS and should be treated with complete contempt. Don't get too hung up on specifications. Some brands rate their products in different ways to others so comparing something like subwoofer efficiency can be difficult and misleading. One way to tell how loud a sub can go is to look at the sD and the Xmax. sD is the effective surface area of the speaker cone and Xmax is the distance it can move before hitting the mechanical limits. Multiply these two together and you get the volume of air that a sub can move. Obviously the more air it can move, the louder it can go. My main advice tho is to get professional help, have a shop around and use your ears to determine what's best for you in your budget. Parrallel importers can be cheaper but beware that they don't really give a damn about you after they've lightened your wallet. There's been a few warranty issues with Parrallel imported product as they send the stuff back to China or whereever to get fixed. As long as you don't get addicted to car audio, you should be OK.

Jump on http://forums.nzicemag.co.nz/index.php probably the best place to ask. They'll point you to a website if none of the gurus there know the answer

The DEH2950mp is a pretty base level head unit, only has 1 RCA out so there'll be no control over the sub volume from the h/u. $220 for the h/u from what I can see on TM Amp is $230 (car stereo specialists) for 380rms - quite a good price I'd go 1 good sub over 2 average ones. The box for 2 subs is more $$ as well so you're better off just having one decent 12". Amp kit can be around $80. Install - guessing $200 So it looks like an OK price ... nothing fantastic but you're not getting ripped. If you haven't already, go to Car Stereo Specialists, 153 Wairau (ph444-1105) and have a chat to them. They do some great specials and give good advice. Good fella that Blackrazor (aka BR aka Dan) but is no longer in the car audio scene. There's another rule that relates specifically to Pioneer headunits. Never never never connect or disconnect RCA cables unless the head unit is switched off and the amplifier is earthed. There's a fuseable link in the headunit RCA earth track that blows. Everything will still work but you end up with hideous alternator whine and CD tracking noises.

I'll give you a call

Another way to do it is to use 12mm or small wooden dowel and bent it to shape and temporarily screw it in place. Then give it a coat of bog just to seal the gap and then fill with f/glass resin. Sounds complicated but actually quite easy. Here's my current install in my Alfa 156, but will soon be upgrading to 2 Image Dynamics IDmax12 as a bit of a show boot install. Dowel held in place Coat of bog to seal the gap (didn't seal that well and some f/glass leaked through so just needed a light sand after. Finished with the carpet on Got a very similar install in the wife's E30 to Mike's, even using a Soundstream Exact 10. Gives off a decent whack of bass and I don't have a centre armrest

Need both front asnd rear seats for a 4dr E30. Budget around $100 but will pay a bit more for good condition. Located on Nth Shore so round Ak is OK

New to this forum, but the wife has set me a near impossible task, she wants a red manual NZ new E46 to replace her ageing red manual NZ new E30 (which took me 2 years to find!!). There was one that just went on trademe which I missed out on, so the search goes on. Anyone know of any for sale, willing to come up with a small finder's fee if someone points me to one I buy. Doesn't matter what engine size but must be NZ new and manual. Will also look at black ones but prefer red. Live in Auckland but will travel 1/2 way down the nth island if needs be Thanks