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Thanks to all the people who have been helping me out with advice for my 99my 4 door.
I want an Alpine system that is hidden from the outside. My ICE dealer has suggested a subwoofer in the r/h alcove in the boot & I want to put a changer in the glovebox. We are also looking at DDDrive speakers in the front. So that the Woofer can get it's sound into the cabin the ICE dealer has suggested removeing the rear speakers & just leaving holes with oem grill coverings.
Is this "A Good Thing"?
I have no holes between my boot and the cabin, as there are a pair of speakers in the holes! The bass box is behind the rear seat and you can certainly hear the bass ok. I was dubious if this would work, but my installer let me try several tubes/boxes and I had no problem hearing any of them, some gave too much bass in the cabin.
If you are planning a strong sub system for the rear, you can do as your dealer suggests however you will need to consider that you will also need either dedicated speakers covering bass, mid and high range sound reproduction in the rear.
Obviously if you use the empty holes to allow the sub bass into the car, you will need to find somewhere else to mount the rear fill in sound system speakers, if you don't it will not sound right.
You may find that you can fit ports from the boot, it doesn't matter where they come in to the car as Sub bass is not directional.
I wouldn't worry about removing the rear speakers in the car. You will be able to hear the bass fine without the speakers removed. By removing the speakers, you are actually changing the sound profile of the boot (Infinite Baffle Enclosure) as the boot will effectivley be vented.
Many people have argued about the validity of putting speakers in the back of a car, as in competition use, normally front speakers and a sub are used. I find that the sound is much more complete with the speakers in the back and the front.
Have you considered Rockford Fosgate instead of Alpine? - I have found that although the DDDrives sound good, the Rockford Fosgate Fanatic X's (FNX1614) that I have in my scooby sound better! (www.rockfordfosgate.com)
I have also got my install people to do a custom job on the rear speakers. This means that although they are not completely hidden from the outside world, it's very difficult to work out what they are! If you are considering seperate Mids and Tweeters, I can post or send a photo to you (when I get the film developed!) of the install in my boot and rear parcel shelf.
Finally, always use a good and reputed ICE dealer. I have found some real cowboys in the past but my current bloke is excellent! (Free Plug - Darren or Dave at Safe n' Sound on 0181 288 0181)
Finally, component speakers will always sound better than 2 or 3 way speakers, as long as they are correctly placed!
Sounds like myself and Andy have very similar systems ;].
Firstly, no need to leave holes in rear shelf. Any additional porting of bass this provided will be negated by the lack of any rear fill speakers. I have Infinity 2-ways in the back, RF 12" enclosure in the boot and you can hear the bass *plenty* :]
As for DDDrive/RF argument, the DDDrives are expensive (ok, not that the RF Fanatic-X's are cheap) but I've heard mixed reports on the Alpines.
The RF's are okay, depends upon the music you listen to. Rock/general pop is fine, although the drivers/tweeters do tend to start straining when you demand real fidelity from them (classic stuff). Still, they're definately worth checking out. Like Andy, I have the Fanatic-X's and am very happy with them. BY all means feel free to hear a demo next time we're in the same area. I'd also be interested in listening to Andy's car for a comparison.
I'm not saying stick stonking great rear speakers in your parcel shelf - far from it - but *some* rear fill would be better than none at all - sub or not.
