first of all, i'm new here, so hello. :)
secondly:
warning: i'm gonna mention audiobahn and boss, but please bear with me.
i'm getting ready to do my first install. this is my third system, but i'm tired of having other people do it and i really want to learn, so i'm doing it myself from scratch this time.
don't laugh, please, but i'm about to install a boss head unit and and audiobahn amp. why? for one, this is my first try so if i blow either, so what? secondly, the head unit i got for a few bucks because it was repaired (and a piece of crap really...) but don't pray for me yet, it is just a placeholder. what i want to know is what would be a suitable replacement for this head unit? the only requirement i have is that it be double din. that is also the third reason i reluctantly bought this unit, it was one of few double din's i could find and again it was only a few bucks.
i'm installing in a 1990 caddy deville, and a single din would look a bit tacky. i don't want a pioneer organic elcrappo display in my caddy, i want a nice, classy looking unit.
now, i'm more than willing to sacrifice cosmetics for quality sound, but i'd like to at least keep it pleasant on the eyes. this is a beautiful car, i want a beautiful system too. i've owned a sony xplod head unit (i was 16, first car, 50wx4 cool! you get the idea), a pioneer organic thingy (again, 17 and chicks dig the dolphins...), and when i got a little older, i got an alpine (22 if anyone is wondering). the alpine was pretty nice, but pretty pricey. i think it retailed at $550 - CDA 983somethingorother. i can handle paying for quality, but i want to ensure i get my money's worth.
that is all the experience i have, which is basically nothing of quality. all i know is stay away from xplod's. what would be a good unit to go with for a nice system? do i pretty much need to abandon the double din stance or can i find a quality unit of that size? car audio companies seem to cater to those ricers who like shiny stuff instead of good sounding stuff, so i'm struggling to weed through the crap and find that diamond in the rough so to speak.
on to the amp. i bought an audiobahn because it was rated at about the same rms per channel as my subs are, and it was $100 bucks. this was a few weeks ago before i heavily researched the issue (apparently i spend more time researching audiobahn amps than audiobahn does) and its unreturnable. so now its a placeholder until i get a real amp. a lab rat if you will while i learn to install without destroying components. anyway, i'm wanting to run 3 12" Kove KLD series II subs, rated at 250 rms each. i believe they are 6 ohm dvc. i've had these at 2 ohms before, and they sounded as good as you can get with a sony amp (please, stop laughing). so, i assumed i was set on subs (should i buy new subs too? I'm kind of fond of these, but i'm a newbie).
i'm not looking to shatter windows, but i want it loud enough to really get me into the music and also to keep me awake on the trek to work every day. will these subs be enough? if so, what kind of amp should i run? i was looking at phoenix gold, but i'm really not sure.
i've got infinity perfect components and a set of infinity reference 9063i's and i'm very happy with them. i'd like to get a smaller amp that can handle them but not destroy them. in the past i've run a crossfire vr302 to them (300w, not sure on any other specs) and i've also had a 300w mtx thunder amp on different components. both did the trick well enough for me. should i just get a similar amp or does it get better without spending tons more? the mtx thunder i had was old school, probably can't find any more of that model :(
my budget is pretty much unlimited, but i'm not looking to compete or impress anyone, i just want a great sounding stereo because i love great sounding music. i don't need 2000w and 15" subs.
any help would be greatly appreciated, and please forgive me for what i am about to install... even if they are just place holders, i feel dirty.