I just got a new (to me) car Thursday. It's a '94 Dodge Shadow ES. I love this car, runs AMAZING for it's age.

The previous owner obviously had a system, I don't know if they knew what they were doing or not though. I only have one speaker, and it's blown. This is good for me, because I was planning on putting a system in anyways, and that just gives me an excuse.

I'm going with Alpine, but I wanted to know if anyone knew what the best amp, subs, speakers, etc. would be for my car. Yes, I do like alot of bass, but I'm more into the overall quality of the sound. I want to be able to hear EVERYTHING CLEARLY as if I was right there on stage, or in the studio with them.

My budget is $1,220.

What would be the best Alpine amp?
What are the best Alpine subwoofers?
What are the best Alpine speakers?
What is the best Alpine head unit that has aux. input?

I was thinking of going with:

Head unit - Alpine CDE 9873
Amp. - Alpine MRP-F250
Sub. - PLT-5 (Powered LAT Subwoofer System)
Speakers - SPS-10C2

Any thoughts on what I have chosen so far?

Ummmm...I'd just make sure it has a CD player...lol.

if you want quality... don't go alpine... i'm a BIG audio buff, i do a LOT of systems...

check out boston acoustic... you can get it cheap on ebay, and it's ****IN GOOD stuff... sql and spl both....


head unit, i've allways been a kenwood guy, but to eaches own

but everyone likes what they likes so i'm sure u can figure it out

LOL, actuallly I have a PMP (MP3 player) that I would like to be able to use with the head unit. I've seen media receiver head unit that support Ipods, but mine is not an Ipod.

Thanks mrosebro, I'll check out boston acoustic.

Kenwood was gonna be my second choice with the head unit.

BOISE???

WHAT ABOUT HARMON/KARDON? DARN GOOD UNITS THEY HAVE.

i just use some head phones and a sony walkman all together you out about 100 dollars , heee haw

if all you want is the ability to use a off the wall (sorry i never heard of it) mp3 player, then any deck w/ an AUX input will work, and those are easy to come bye... some ppl swear by alpine decks, i personally swear by kenwood.

now if you wanna talk about inside speakers? my first car i started w/ kenwood... good bang for the cheap buck... then i went to JL audio... gotta say, stuff sounds GOOD... but there problem, it BREAKS! ... A LOT!...


i've used boston acoustic inside speakers before, you wanna make sure you get one of the higher lines,

btw, http://www.bostonacoustics.com

i am a fan of their SL series if your trying to save a buck, their very good!

and i roll w/ a G5-12 sub in a slot ported box, running on a GT-22 amp

VERY solid base, awesome responce on every frequency i can find, and it doesn't clip, it doesn't over heat... never had a problem with it.

if you like a lot of bass, you might wanna roll w/ 2 of them, i only got 1, cause i was jst lookin to complete that low end, but their only about 450-500 wantts rms per speaker



now btw, i've ran it all, from kenwood, to mtx, to kicker, audiobahn, to JL audio, and boston.... all around, nothing sounds as good as a boston, hands down!

have fun!

Good luck with getting a system for 1,200..I wanted to get a fiberglass system and a single 15" Memphis Audio Mojo and that was gonna run me about 5 grand.

I only have one speaker now, and it's blown. I really just want to imporve overall sound quality, even better than factory installed.

Well, I didn't add in the cost of the cables , but I think I can do it for under 1300, if I install it myself.

That's if I go with Alpine, I don't know how much it would cost if I went with Kenwood or Boston Acoustic.

JL audio is good also, I've heard systems with JLs, but yeah they do break alot.

focal are the best speakers.... i've heard mbquart are pretty good too. don't skimp on cables or power though, or any speaker investment won't be worth it. if you get good qual. speakers, you can actually hear the differences in the cables. most places like car toys will skimp on the installation side ie: whatever you don't see... so check their work.

nakamichi used to make a sweet sounding head unit

If you want a good system for your money..i would go for a Sony Xplod one..Dont get the red Xplods get the black ones those would proably good a pretty good choice.