hey guys ive been searching for quite a while now and learnt a few things i never used to know, and well its completely turned my views on car audio around. ive recently been mucking around in Rod Meagher Radio in toowoomba and the boys there have made me more interested in SQ rather then a crapload of bass like i used to strive for. so now i have sold most of my previous system that i had accumulated over the years and gone back to the drawing board. here is what i am looking at now...

Source unit: JVC KD-LH915 (own)

Front sound: Focal 165K3P 3 way component system (yet to purchase)

Rear sound: focal 165KP 6.5" component system (yet to purchase)

Subwoofer: Lanzar opti-1224D (own)

Front amplifiers: 2x Crossfire XP-4802 (120wrms x2) (yet to purchase)

Rear amplifier: Crossfire XP-4802 (120wrms x2) (yet to purchase)

Subwoofer amplifier: Crossfire XP-1000D 1000wrms x1 (yet to purchase)

Sound deadener: Xtreme Dynamat bulk pack possibly x2 (yet to purchase)

Cable/wire: all supplied by Rod meagher radio (i think they use axis) (yet to purchase)

Battery: Optima yellow top (yet to purchase)

i just want to know what everyone thinks about this system so far, please tell me any other things i should buy such as external equalizer or tell me if i should sell my H/U and/or Subwoofer and try something different. all comments and questions are welcome cheers.

Looks good!

Im not that familiar with the JVC decks so I dont know how much control it gives you over the system. So you may want to run an external EQ ( it depends on how much you like to play with your system setup )

The only thing I would suggest is try and keep your speakers ( front and rear ) the same series. Possibly look at something the Focal 165KF's for the rear. I think they would work better with the fronts.

The Focal 165K3P can handle heaps of grunt and are rated at 200wrms. Possibly look at running 2 x VR602 for the fronts and some thing smaller like a VR302 for the rears. The K3P's come with 2 sets of crossovers per side so you can do this without having to run the system active.

I take it you have listened to all the speakers already if not I highly recommend doing so before buying any speaker. All the things I have mentioned obviously cost more so it all comes down to your budget really.

2 VR602 amps would MELT the Focals, a VR602 bridges makes about 750wrms into 4ohms...

I have a few of them sitting here, about 5 to be exact...

RE:Dual mono

hey mate thanks for the advice, i was wondering whether i might have to look elsewhere in the front amp stage. if the xp series amps have a higher powered 2channel amp i will definatly go them if not i will go for 2 smaller amps.

yeh i have been in and listened to the speakers allready and fell in love, these focals sound great, thats why i decided for the 3way system as i like the full range of sound that came from them more so than the 2 way system.

as for the rears i will go the k2 series rears as well then... i was kinda looking more at the price, after all $1300 for the fronts isnt exactly cheap haha, i wont be paying that though got sweet hook ups lol.

the H/U has got a built in fully adjustable EQ but is nothing like what an external EQ can provide. i think ive pretty much covered everything lol keep the info coming. cheers

I wasnt talking about bridging the 602's to run the Focals. The K3p's come with a crossover for the midbass and another for the midrange and tweeter. Run one of the 602's on the Midbass the other on the Midrange and Tweeter.

I have run over 500wrms into 165K2P's in the past and they loved it!

RE: HISPL

hey yeh i was just thinking damn thats alot of power haha i would more likely go 2x VR402's or 2x VR302's but i would like to find out if the XP series make a 2 or 4 channel to suit my needs, but ill have to go up to Rod Meagher Radio to find that out as the website dosnt say anything about them, i only know of the mono because i installed one for a mate just yesterday and it was great.

From memory the 165KF's arent that much more expensive than the 165V2's but check with the guys that are hooking you up.

RE:Dual Mono

oh yeh i forgot about the dual crossovers but then again will it work as the channels are L+R on either amp? will that make the midbass L and the midrange R??? would that affect the sound or is there another way of doing things.. or would it run fine anyway? cheers

oh and ive found that they do have a 2 channel amp in the xp seris its the XP-4802 so i would be buying 2 of those to keep the same series as the sub amp.

ok ive just been going through the prices of everything and i think im starting to get a little bit over the top... i might have to sacrifice the 3way system and settle for the normal 6.5" 2 way system 165-K2P they sound great alone so i might just get them to save about $500.

what's your total budget?

there may be other options to consider within that price range.

or are you set on crossfire and focal???

- Stooge007 out

I would look at an alpine or eclipse headunit - will have far better tweeking and sq

3way up front and use a powerful 2 channel amp 2 x150watts rms should be a nice start.

no need for rears or rear amp and thats got to save lots of money in that area.

I wouldn't be too worried about the rear speakers, especially if you're going for SQ. Better to spend the money on splits up front rather than forking out a decent amount for rear speakers which you won't get as much value out of.

My system is a work in progress but at the moment I'm running the Focal K2P165 splits up front in my Mazda SP23 off the standard headunit and they sound great, so getting some nice clean power from an amp going through them should really liven things up if you decide to go with them.

Focal do make pretty nice amps if you haven't considered one of them...
Dynamat is gold, so the more the better...

And what type of car do you drive?

yeh im going for crossfire and focal cause im kinda good friends with the guys at Rod Meagher Radio in toowoomba and they showed me their stock and this is the gear i liked so yer im kinda set on it. Money is no object as its a slow build up and ill spend what i have too, keeping in mind im not rich lol



yeh i thought about it as i know theyre great for SQ but i allready have this H/U and i wouldnt be able to get much for it anymore as its an '05' model unit so i might go with an external EQ


well i might ditch the rears and have none at all and just get the 3 ways, im set on the crossfire amps as theyre cheap but not quite high powered (120wrms x2) so ill just buy 2 of them for frons and not worry about a rear set-up.



i have considered thwe focal amps they bloody brilliant actually but uber pricey so i dont wanna go outrages.
as for car im on the market for another car as i recently sold my first car (1989 Mitsubishi Magna) im kinda wanting some kind of hatch like a suzuki swift or nissan pulsar (early 90's models) anyone know of any in the Toowoomba to Brisbane area giv us a shout cheers.


thanks for the replys guys keep em coming it helps to learn more.

If you're trying to keep the $$$ down a bit, then it might pay to know exactly what car you are going to get before you get your heart set on a particular set-up as your install could get expensive if paying to have it done professionally.

Remember a good audio system is only as good as it is installed and if you need full custom pods etc... can get costly
Don't spend all your budget on equipment and then shortcut the install.

i understand what you mean but its ok i will be installing it myself, i have done many installs and all have been successful.

i almost had an apprenticeship with Rod Meagher Radio except for one problem... the apprenticeship dose not exist anymore only a pissy 1 year traineeship which would be too costly and i do not expect them to go out of their way to get me the job, they are keeping in contact with me and will be trying to look for some kind of alternative in a month or so, but thats another story.

so yer im quite capable of the install as i also have the team at Rod Meagher Radio as backup to give me a hand here and there. im aware of materials such as MDF, FG, Material, Wiring ect and i have it all planned but i know im gunna be spending about $5k in the long run. i just dont wanna spend any unnecessary $$$ on something that may seem better but will not make much difference e.g. rear speakers...

as ive stated im looking for some kind of small hatch back and theyre all quite similar , soi will get the gear and modify the install to suit the shape and size of the car i buy. it all seems quite simple to me as for my first install i bought all the gear and it ended up in an old magna i just made eveything to fit the magna. so i will do the same for the car i buy (looking for something like a pulsar, swift, starlet ect) something cheap to buy as well as cheap on fuel all i want it for is a daily driver with a nice SQ system that i may even end up entering into CAASQ comps? but thats all in the near future so for now i just wanna plan everything to see how much i need to start saving ect. cheers

Are you sure about that?

^^HAHA SNAP! u got me there, but at least i identified the things i had done wrong, and well it was temporary was only like that for about a week until my mate had enough time to come around and let me fix it up... so not entirely my fault as it was the idea of the owner, who was more worried about getting the install in in one night rather than taking time and doing everything properly. (u tend to do the yeh whatever thing at 3am) its a bastard when ur mate comes round at 6pm after u just get home from long days work and orders u to do his install for him... FOR FREE! come on thats just not fair now is it?

Shame! Shame! Shame!

Oh that was such a naughty thing to do to a mates car!

LOVE IT!

hey why was it moved to beginners?... it was put in SQ discussion for a reason! i want opinions from people who know more about SQ not just random gear.

not sure. i'll move it back.

Im guessing it has something to do with Simon's new powers

This isnt really SQ worthy along the lines of what the new direction for 'SQ forum' is going..

It really IS a beginners question

thanks shiny


hmm in a way its kinda a beginners question as im new to SQ, but im far from new to car audio lol, but yeh i just really wanted opinions of other audiophiles cheers