Figured I would post this because a lot of people probably dont think about it too much. I just got a full system installed in my 03 WRX. Deck 2 amps 4 speakers 1 sub.
alpine 9811 deck
alpine 6.5 front type s
alpine 5.14 rear type s
alpine 50x4 amp
JL 12W3V2 sub
alpine 350x1 amp

Well it sounded like *&^# in my opinon. I mean I just payed a grand for all this and it sounds no better than stock IMO. It was louder than stock but not better, I didnt think it was clearer or sharper at all. Until I realized I forgot one MAJOR step. I had it installed professionally. Whomever installed it loved rap music and nothing else. So he had tuned both amps for rap. Meaning bass gain was turned all the way up on both amps. This is not what you do if you want a good clear sound.

I readjusted the amps and now it really hits hard and has a good clean sound. My only problem is that the trunk rattles way to much, so I have to get some dynamat.

Just figured I would post this to remind anyone who gets a system put in, to check and adjust for themselves the amplifiers. This is my third car with an aftermarket stereo and I cant believe it took me a week to realize that I forgot to check the amps.

Best of luck to all, I'll post some picutres of my system soon. Both amps installed underneath the front seats, its pretty tight looking IMO.

 

Sounds cool. Any recommended resources for learning about tuning your system? I'm installing everything myself and will come to this point soon where i need to "tune" everything. At the moment, i was just going w/ what the manual the amp came with says in it, but if you've got some good resource hook me up.

 

No resources here. Just experience.

Dont turn anything all the way to the max. It may have been what they rated it at, but that doesnt mean that leaving it there wont shorten the life of either your amp or speakers.

I like Rock music so I tune for it. Meaning I turn the lo pass cutoff to about 100 or 120 if it still sounds good. I also turn the high pass cutoff on my other amp to about the same. This creates a sound where your main speakers cut out and your sub kicks in. If you have powerfull main speakers it sounds really good, because you dont have a huge distinction between where the sub kicks in and the mains kick out. If you run your mains off your deck, you will probably notice that when a frequency goes below say 120 it gets really loud, because now that freq is coming out of the sub.

Just play with it really. cut out the sub and adjust the mains, then cut out the mains and adjust the sub. Personal prefernce is the key. If you have it professionally installed have them show you all the adjustments you can make, and if anything will void the warranty. Like turning the gain, bass boost, and lo pass filter all the way up will.

 

I would suggest getting hooked up with a organization like IASCA (International Auto Sound Challenge Association) at www.iasca.com and check out the forums and buy some test CD's. They have offered many great CD's over the past 15 years or so. What makes their CD so good is that they are recorded very well (I mean very well) and the liner notes will tell you what to look for during the track. Ex. At 1:03 sec you should hear the backround singers from left to right. and so on. Even if you don't like the music, you will know if your system is or isn't making the grade. As a IASCA judge for some 15 years now I have listened to thousands of car audio systems and thay all sounded different and many sounded really good. Remember that great sound is a very personal thing. I run a car stereo store and I always ask my customers many questions and ask them to bring several favorite CD's so that I may adjust things for them. I also then invite them to take the car for a week or two and then bring it back so that I can make changes as needed.

Good Luck and Good Listening