"Budget" ICE

[DaKid]

I have a 55-plate Mondeo 1.8 Zetec, which is great, but the sound in it is awful, especially coming from a Saab 9-5 with the luxury sound system.

I'm hoping that someone will be able to tell me what sort of things I could do ICE-wise (including installation costs) with budgets of £500, £750 and £1,000.

Many thanks in advance for any help

[smellybumlove]

alpine headunits are a must.

i had the 9857r but it was a waste of money and complicated to use, even the simple alpine units sound good, so just get a alpine that has the features that appeal to you most, dont bother spending a little more to get the next one up as its just not worth it!.

use a pdx 2 or 4 channel alpine amp for the front and/or rear speakers.
the reason why i say this is because if your happy having the front and rear speakers at the same volume you can save £200 and get the 2 channel as it puts out the same power in 2 or 4 ohm modes

depending on budget get alpine type r's or type x componant speakers.
i have the new type r's and they are great, choose depending on your budget

alpine mrd 1005 sub amp or if your flush with cash get the pdx version.
the pdx amps stack on top of each other and take up minimal space.

alpine type x 10' or 12' sub woofer, you only need one as its very powerfull anyway.
import from usa (i hate to say this) use ebay its half price!
if your on a budget get the pioneer spl sub, its just as powerfull but not as refined, in my books these are the only 2 subs for the 'sound quality' system

installation of all the above wont be more than £150 TOPS, anymore and go elsewhere, plus install the headunit yourself, its EASY.

if you want links to prices give me a shout
hope this helps

[DaKid]

Cool, thanks for that. Definitely something for me to start from!

Do you have any tips about what to ask for, or how to ask, when I go to an ICE dealer?

[dave87]

I would say the Alpine kit that Smellybumlove listed is a good start. Their kit is top notch imho, only thing I would change is the Sub. If you can get hold of a JL Audio xxW7 series sub, then it will sound a hell of a lot better. I read a review that rated the JL Audio kit as being worth 2 of any of its competitors, take from that what you will.

Component speakers are a must for a good hifi setup, jus make sure you give some thought to the locations of each part. If the tweeter is shooting at your feet, to your ear it will sound crap. I don't know the standard layout on the Mondeo, but if it is anything like the V70 we've got, they've got the basics right.

Hope this helps a little,

Dave

[smellybumlove]

I would say the Alpine kit that Smellybumlove listed is a good start. Their kit is top notch imho, only thing I would change is the Sub. If you can get hold of a JL Audio xxW7 series sub, then it will sound a hell of a lot better. I read a review that rated the JL Audio kit as being worth 2 of any of its competitors, take from that what you will.

Component speakers are a must for a good hifi setup, jus make sure you give some thought to the locations of each part. If the tweeter is shooting at your feet, to your ear it will sound crap. I don't know the standard layout on the Mondeo, but if it is anything like the V70 we've got, they've got the basics right.

Hope this helps a little,

Dave

there are other subs and i guess some people have used other models as well so they can give feedback.
i was just talking from my personal expierence plus the views of my local installer.

daKid:
i have never met anybody i would reccomend as they are all theiving ***** and just try to charge you more then they state on there sites etc.
if its the bottom line in price and a quality install then dynamic sounds in elephant and castle, south london is the best.
just make sure you do a print out of the stuff you want and show it to them as they will say they are giving you the web price but are in fact not

good headunit im using now with pretty much the install i told you to get is the 9883r , its basic and easy to use but sounds as good as my 9857

[Zak33]

9-5 good
Mondeo bad

But £700 of specialist kit....great.

Tbh, I'd avoid sub for a while, and just get the door driver uniuts and tweeters right, and a good headunit THAT YOU CAN USE WHILE DRIVING....ie not too fussy.

Do the sub later. And siting an amp in a car is as hard in 2007 as it was ever....so think about it thoroughly, before drilling anything.

And lastly...I know you sont wanna think about this, but that car's gtta sell one day, and you need to be able to either
a: put it back to standard with no effort and looking normal
or
b: sell it with it all in,.

So..without sounding too dull, as a Mondeo is NOT a 95...how long will you keep this car? Is it worth getting an amp, when many headunits doa half decent job on their own?

[dave87]

there are other subs and i guess some people have used other models as well so they can give feedback.
i was just talking from my personal expierence plus the views of my local installer.

The recommendation of the JL Audio sub was on the basis of having heard it in a mates car, admittedly not that scientific, but the clarity was a lot better, especially with punchy bass than either of the Kenwood setups I've heard. Yet to hear an Alpine sub properly, but from what I read, it seems my impression of the quality of the JL Audio kit was not far off.

At the end of the day, if you are happy with a certain setup, then great, no one can take that away from you. Sound is as much about personal preference as it is components.

[BenW]

Install it yourself, its really not at all hard. Headunit will need some adapters and then its just RCA cable to the boot, power cable to the boot from the battery and speaker cables to the front from the boot.

I'd suggest you get over to talkaudio.co.uk but he's what i'd suggest:

HU: http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/alpi...081f16dcd8791d
Subwoofer (These are SQ rather than SPL - excellent value): http://www.talkaudio.co.uk/vbb/showthread.php?t=222376
Amp for front speakers and sub: http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/perf...081f16dcd8791d
Speakers: http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/dls-...081f16dcd8791d
Wiring Kit: http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/valu...081f16dcd8791d
Wiring/facia adapters: http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/ford...081f16dcd8791d

Then you'd need some MDF to make a box for the sub and some baffles for the speakers. You're really looking for 18mm MDF (available at wickes) or you'd probably get away with 12mm

EDIT: don't get the alpine type-x subs, i've heard bad things about their reliability.

[Zak33]

Then you'd need some MDF to make a box for the sub and some baffles for the speakers. You're really looking for 18mm MDF (available at wickes) or you'd probably get away with 12mm

EDIT: don't get the alpine type-x subs, i've heard bad things about their reliability.

don't get me wrong, I'm all for DIY, but what size, what dimensions? total volume of the box? What ports? What length and tuned to what frequency? Compund enclosure?

You see, a bass sub system is a very special thing, and most sound truly bloody dire. And that's cos they dont match the system, drown it out or miss the frequency needed and make it painful to listen to.

Badd bass is worse than no bass. In my opinion. Natch

[DaKid]

Lots of good advice here; thanks.

Re: the Saab v Mondeo ... totally wrong. The Mondeo is MILES better than the Saab was. It was a 3.0t V6, and was like a barge. Couldn't corner at all, even if it was quite powerful. The sound system was great though ... pioneer headunit, 9 harmon kardon speakers and a harmon kardon amp. Sounded great. The Mondeo has a pitiful stereo, but it drives superbly, and it's comfy and well-equipped. If I'd have a good Saab, I'd maybe agree with you though ... maybe I'll go back to 'em one day and get one! As regards keeping the Mondeo, I realise that I'll not be able to take the install with me, but I do expect to keep the car quite a few years, so this isn't a problem.

I'm mostly wanting something that'll give body, bass, space and precision to classical music (choral often) without distortion - which seems very easy to get with choral music - but something that can reliably handle rock and dance music on occasions too without getting overwhelmed.

I've found that there seems to be accessories available that should tie my headunit into my existing steering column controls, and headunits probably won't be a big problem choosing (but will try and steer towards Pioneer after the advice above), but I will leave myself in your hands with regard to speakers and amps. I'll probably try and find a dealer in Oxfordshire though, rather than travel to London. I'm sure I'll be able to find some forums somewhere on the web that can recommend some.

Probably won't be able to afford what I want in the immediate future, but I like to try and know what I'm doing in advance, and bonus later this year will probably be spent on this if I have enough left over

Keep suggestions and advice coming ... I'll definitely take note of all of them when deciding!

[Saracen]

....

Badd bass is worse than no bass. In my opinion. Natch

And mine.

But one thing to bear in mind is that sound quality is subjective. What sounds great to my ears might be naff to someone else. I've heard FAR too many subs that, to me, have just been loose and floppy bass, and give nothing more than boom-boom-boom ..... and give me a headache.

Which is why I'm always very cautious about recommending kit, and if I do, ALWAYS attach the caveat of .... "but go and listen for yourself. You might not like the sound".

Of course, that isn't easy in a car, because the car design and acoustics of the car, and for that matter, installation, can have a dramatic effect. Fortunately, I have a very good local installer (or at least, had one, since I haven't changed kit recently) who was prepared to switch out kit, even speakers, if they didn't sound right in the car. Perhaps, DaKid, it's worth trying to find such a dealer local to you that is that accommodating. It might mean you pay a bit above internet prices, but to me, getting the setup right makes that well worth it.

[Zak33]

Re: the Saab v Mondeo ... totally wrong. The Mondeo is MILES better than the Saab was.

I meant stereo..... lol

[DaKid]

Ah ... yes, of course. I knew you'd meant that.

*blush*

[DaKid]

Perhaps, DaKid, it's worth trying to find such a dealer local to you that is that accommodating. It might mean you pay a bit above internet prices, but to me, getting the setup right makes that well worth it.

Sounds like a plan to me!

[smellybumlove]

sound quality does sound different to everyone that is true.
but just to be safe get alpine, that way nobody can complain as its top quality kit.
just avoid all the type-e/s/d alpine brands as they are cheap ****e, type-r as a minimum

[BenW]

Whats your obsession with alpine? They're good for headunits but no better than ok for speakers, there's better available for the money.

With regard to box design and DIY, you can get all the specs (recommended volume etc) from the manual and theres a piece of software for box design. Cant for the life of me remember what its called. I think the RE (resonant engineering) website has something on it which may be useful