It got here today and I futzed around with it for an hour...

Jstas
Jstas Posts: 14,820
edited December 2004 in Car Audio & Electronics
...got it installed and working right and my stereo is now complete.

Yes, complete.

I now have a Kenwood eXcelon KDC-CX87 CD Changer in my truck! 20 bit quad D/A converter and a ton of freakin' options! Best part is, it sounds OUTSTANDING!

So yeah, it's complete.

How do I know? It brought tears to my eyes! My wife asked me why I was crying and all I could say was "It's...it's beautiful!" But she doesn't understand.

So complete list of components now:

Kenwood eXcelon KRC-X858
Kenwood eXcelon KAC-X650D
Kenwood eXcelon KDC-CX87
Polk db3065
Polk db6510
Polk db104

So unless something breaks or I add the music keg or an HD/Satelite tuner, it's done.

So yeah, happy me, merry christmas to me!
Expert Moron Extraordinaire

You're just jealous 'cause the voices don't talk to you!
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  • swerve
    swerve Posts: 1,862
    edited December 2004
    Originally posted by Jstas
    ...got it installed and working right and my stereo is now complete.

    Yes, complete.

    I now have a Kenwood eXcelon KDC-CX87 CD Changer in my truck! 20 bit quad D/A converter and a ton of freakin' options! Best part is, it sounds OUTSTANDING!

    So yeah, it's complete.

    How do I know? It brought tears to my eyes! My wife asked me why I was crying and all I could say was "It's...it's beautiful!" But she doesn't understand.

    So complete list of components now:

    Kenwood eXcelon KRC-X858
    Kenwood eXcelon KAC-X650D
    Kenwood eXcelon KDC-CX87
    Polk db3065
    Polk db6510
    Polk db104

    So unless something breaks or I add the music keg or an HD/Satelite tuner, it's done.

    So yeah, happy me, merry christmas to me!
    Nice, I wish I was all done, but waiting only builds for more satisfaction...

    -adam
    cats.vans.bag...
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    C'mon now John. Ya know our systems are never done! ;)
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • swerve
    swerve Posts: 1,862
    edited December 2004
    Originally posted by MacLeod
    C'mon now John. Ya know our systems are never done! ;)
    It's done momentarily....too bad momentarily only means for like 1 month...
    :D

    -adam
    cats.vans.bag...
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    Yup. My original intent was to just put a system in here and leave it. Nothing fancy just basic and I was done. Tomorrow Ill be installing the 4th set of speakers to be in this truck. LOL
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • swerve
    swerve Posts: 1,862
    edited December 2004
    Monday I'll have my first "real" piece of audio equipment....
    I'm already addicted, so that will only add fuel to the fire.

    -adam
    cats.vans.bag...
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    Thats how I got started. A Sony 25x2 "Power Booster" 5 band EQ. Ran it thru the stock speakers and stock tape player before I bought a pair of MTX Road Thunder boxes with an 8" sub and peizo tweeter in each. I was hooked from then on.
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • swerve
    swerve Posts: 1,862
    edited December 2004
    The first thing I had for my car was.
    Low end Alpine head unit
    4 polk gxr's
    Massive Audio Sub (RAWR)
    Jensen amp...

    what's up now kids? that's right... nothing can top that

    -adam
    cats.vans.bag...
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    Yup! Those were the days!
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • swerve
    swerve Posts: 1,862
    edited December 2004
    Originally posted by MacLeod
    Yup! Those were the days!
    Oh and my box was really crappy... didn't meet any specs... and made from the worst wood you could possibly find.

    I did get a fosgate amp after the Jensen though..

    -adam
    cats.vans.bag...
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  • exalted512
    exalted512 Posts: 10,735
    edited December 2004
    the only thing audio ill be buying until my system is complete is new amps, sound deadening, and some new SW 6.0 rca's. after that ill be done...whenever that might be...
    itd really help out if i won the damn lottery or something...lol
    -Cody
    Music is like candy, you have to get rid of the rappers to enjoy it
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    Well duh! Youve got pretty much top of the line everything. Brahams, Iridiums and eventually US Amps. There really isnt anywhere left to go! LOL

    If I was running MB Quart Q's, Xtant amps and a W6, Id be done too! ;)
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • Jstas
    Jstas Posts: 14,820
    edited December 2004
    No, it's pretty much done. I literally have no desire to "upgrade" anything because I would have a seriously hard time finding stuff that could outperform what I have now. Like I said, I'd only add on things like a Music Keg or a fancy radio tuner to adapt to new technology. The audio reproduction part is done. I have teh speakers I always wanted and I have a very nice Kenwood head unit and a very nice Kenwood CD changer and 1200 watts of very nice Kenwood power. What's to upgrade?

    Sure, I can go whole hog and buy amplifiers costing a 1/3rd of the cost of my truck and get the latests speakers made from unobtanium and so on but I really don't think that there is currently anything out there that will best the dB's that I have. I may find an amp with better specs but I don't think a 12V based SS amp can get any cleaner.

    Several people have marveled at the detail present with this new CD changer. The bass is stout and will kick hard when pushed. The mid-range is clear and smooth and the transition through the crossover network from the mids to the tweetrs and the highs are smooth, clear, clean and very detailed. They are bright with out being screechy or painful. Imaging, like I said, is not what most of you would think is great but the speakers literally disappear. You cannot localize any sound source and performances sound like you are in the studio or on the stage with the band and they are playing just for you.

    So I'm quite satisfied. I have my $1000 worth of speakers and my $800 worth of amplifiers. I have my $500 head unit and my $300 changer. I have my $1.50 a foot speaker cables and my $80 a pair interconnects. I have my 4 guage power wires and I even have my custom installation and enclosures. I really don't think I can do much better at all.



    Now that I think about it though. I have one more upgrade. I just remembered that I am not using my 3rd pre-amp out for teh sub channel yet. I will have to get one more $80 interconnect to use that properly. That would be the last upgrade.
    Expert Moron Extraordinaire

    You're just jealous 'cause the voices don't talk to you!
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    Originally posted by Jstas
    ...latests speakers made from unobtanium...

    Imaging, like I said, is not what most of you would think is great but the speakers literally disappear. You cannot localize any sound source and performances sound like you are in the studio or on the stage with the band and they are playing just for you.


    Unobtainium! LMAO!!!

    My stage is pretty bad right now. The only good thing is its at a good height but the left is bunched up with the center and the right is waaaaaaaay over at the passenger door. I blame not only the size of my beloved Dodge but also the stupid stock speaker locations. :mad:
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • Jstas
    Jstas Posts: 14,820
    edited December 2004
    Originally posted by MacLeod
    Unobtainium! LMAO!!!

    My stage is pretty bad right now. The only good thing is its at a good height but the left is bunched up with the center and the right is waaaaaaaay over at the passenger door. I blame not only the size of my beloved Dodge but also the stupid stock speaker locations. :mad:

    Well, I don't think that the sound stage is bad, just different.

    See, my speakers at home are a set of Polk Audio SDA 2B's. The cherry about them is that they have a sound stage so wide and deep that you don't get that "stereo effect" of a single souce between the two, floating infront of you. You do get a sweet spot but you can point to where an instrument is located. It is, however, damn near impossible to locate the speakers. They just disappear sonically. That and the sound is so effortless and the cabinets so solid that they seem to just radiate sound.

    In my truck, my soundstage is similar. Without the SDA crossover though, it doesn't have the "SDA effect". Doesn't matter though because recordings have a depth to them that puts stuff where it should be. Like on Aerosmith's "O' YEAH!" album, the song "Dream On" has some real magic to it. Tyler's vocals emminate from teh windsheild area while Perry's guitar is stage right and other stuff is stage left. Drums feel like they are behind me with the bass player sitting in the passenger seat. Amplified instruments like a keyboard come from the same direction that vocals come from too because they are usually run through the same channels. I literally feel like I am in the studio with Aerosmith.

    The other real cool thing is the detail. I can hear Perry's fingers plucking the strings. I can hear drum sticks sliding across the cymbal heads and the clicking of the foot pedals for the bass drum and hi-hat.

    So yeah, while I don't have the single sound source floating, I do like how the sound stage plays out. It's more interesting and life like to me and isn't that what the pursuit of any audio system is? Sound as close to reality as possible?
    Expert Moron Extraordinaire

    You're just jealous 'cause the voices don't talk to you!
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  • swerve
    swerve Posts: 1,862
    edited December 2004
    ahhh aerosmith... noooooo XXXXX
    i had to buy my mom an aerosmith box set for xmas and i got some weird looks at the register.... i'm glad it was just old live recordings not anything new!

    -adam
    cats.vans.bag...
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  • MacLeod
    MacLeod Posts: 14,358
    edited December 2004
    I think we're just doomed, John, to having wierd stages. While full size trucks rule, they just dont seem to be meant for accurate imaging.

    But youre right in that if you like it then its the "correct" stage.

    Personally I could easily live with a skewed stage like this but I was wanting to compete and I want to get it right. However since I dont want to use kick I may be pissing in the wind. Im sure my setup is still quite a bit better than the others in MECA's Amateur class but I still want to go in there with my **** together.
    polkaudio sound quality competitor since 2005
    MECA SQ Rookie of the Year 06 ~ MECA State Champ 06,07,08,11 ~ MECA World Finals 2nd place 06,07,08,09
    08 Car Audio Nationals 1st ~ 07 N Georgia Nationals 1st ~ 06 Carl Casper Nationals 1st ~ USACi 05 Southeast AutumnFest 1st

    polkaudio SR6500 --- polkaudio MM1040 x2 -- Pioneer P99 -- Rockford Fosgate P1000X5D
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  • exalted512
    exalted512 Posts: 10,735
    edited December 2004
    im very pleased with the imaging and sound stage i got from my DLS speakers when i had the mid range in the kicks, tweeters in the a pillars and mid bass in the door...i have never been so impressed with the sound in a full size truck...ever
    -Cody
    Music is like candy, you have to get rid of the rappers to enjoy it
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