Newbie system question

[schurchill39]

Hey, after being on here for a little while looking at other peoples threads i was starting to get confused.

What my question is: what all goes into a system? I always thought all you had to do is get some subs hook them up to your amp. Speakers to another amp (or same) then relay that to the deck. Then hook it up to the electrical. What else is needed?

I've heard about some Stinger thing (probly a brand) and different alternators and everthing... is this gunna turn out more expensive then i figured?

[cman]

battery to amp(s)
deck to amp(s)
amp(s) to speakers/subs

thats the very very basic explanation

[Weapon_R]

There is no set budget for building a system. It can be as cheap or as expensive as you can dream up.

You need wiring. One power wire to the amp, a ground to the amp, RCA wires to your deck, and a remote wire from your deck to your amp. All of this should be included in a kit (most of the time you'll need RCAs from another source). Stinger is just an overpriced brand. Go to Walmart and pick up their kit for $30.

Next, you'll need an amp. Already mentioned.

Finally, you'll need subs and a box to put them in. Connect a power and negative from your amp to your sub, and you have a basic system. This generally suffices for most people.

You can also buy speakers and amp them separately so they'll sound their best. That means new speakers, and another amplifier.

You can also buy a cap and other miscellaneous stuff. This is often not necessary.

Then, you'll want to do over the subs with better ones after you realize what you have just isn't enough. :D This of course, will require bigger amps, and a whole new cycle haha.

[rahim]

Originally posted by schurchill39
Hey, after being on here for a little while looking at other peoples threads i was starting to get confused.

What my question is: what all goes into a system? I always thought all you had to do is get some subs hook them up to your amp. Speakers to another amp (or same) then relay that to the deck. Then hook it up to the electrical. What else is needed?

I've heard about some Stinger thing (probly a brand) and different alternators and everthing... is this gunna turn out more expensive then i figured?
most newer cars can handle 700-800w rms without to much trouble as long as your battery and alternator are in good working order, if you wanted to go with more power then that then you might need a bigger alt and better battery

if your electrical system is just a little inadequet, ie minor light dimming when you got the ac and stereo going, you could use a cap to help stop that, but its more like a bandaid then a solution

[schurchill39]

By cap do you mean capacitator? what does that do and if the car i get ends up having electrical problems like that how would i go about fixing it, anything i could do myself or would it need to be something for the professionals

[cman]

cap or capacitator "stores" electricity. so when a huge bass note which requires a lot of power hits, you lights wont dim because it uses the stored power from the cap.
again very basic explanation

try searching on the net for detailed system information, shouldnt be very hard at all. you could probably find someting pretty helpful on http://www.howstuffworks.com as well

[rahim]

yes it is a capacitor, if your electrical system can't handle when the bass hits the cap can supply some stored energy for the amp. The only reason you would have problems are if your alt or battery need replacing or you are trying to run alot of wattage

If you want to run a crazy system you would need to upgrade 3 things, the alternator, the battery and the ground wire from your battery to the frame. Nothing too complicated but you would have to decide if you could do it or if you wanted to get it done.