01 Front Speaker selection

After reading some more I'll try to fill in some details about goals and info and not leave it so vague and open ended. Sorry if I butcher terms as this is my first go at component selection more than a head unit.

Head Unit: (budget $400): Looking for a Duble din Nav unit. Preferably with a tilt and angle adjust to compensate for sitting a bit lower like the Kenwood DNX573S. Fine with a used or refurb unit to assist with cost.
Type of music: Mostly Rock (classic and new) and country
Bass: I enjoy some accompanying lows to fill it in but the wife is not a fan of overpowering bass, so probably gonna do a small low powered 10 or 8 in the future. I had a JLW3 12 in my vette and that was more than enough to knock some fillings out.
Setup: Front stage setup with just the stock rears set to barely audible. 2-way passive setup with a component setup. Looking at the
Fronts(budget $300): Looking at doing 6.5"s or 5.25". I found some brackets and can make some from wood if needed. Possibly Focal PS130v or the Hertz below
Sound Deadening: Will do doors when I do speakers. Rest of cab areas will come later. Looking at Raamat.
Amp for fronts: will be dependent upon front setup requirements

***Parts List***

Head Unit: Kenwood DDX9703S
Front Components: Hertz HSK 165 (in hand)
Amp: Kenwood Excelon X301-4
Amp Kit: Crutchfield CK8
RCA: Crutchfield 4 Channel
Speaker Wire: Stinger 12 Gauge spool
Underseat Sub: Kicker HS8 Hideaway

Again, any help or insight is greatly appreciated.

**edited for more specific info**

 

Other option I found after reading some more. Hertz can get up there in price, so not sure how their lower stuff is.

ESK-165L.5 - Hertz 6.5" 300W Peak 2-Way Component Speaker System with Extra Heavy Bass

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F2PCUHO/ref=psdc_10980771_t1_B00F2OZ2WK

 

I'm running Focal Access 165AS in the front and Focal Access 165AC in the rear. They are wicked.

 

Those seem like a good option too. Not sure if there is a bracket pre-made for mounting larger than the stock size or I'd have to fab one out of wood. Trying to look around now.

 

Honestly got a shop to do my whole system as I don't really know what I'm doing when it comes to that. Also now I have warranty on all my set-up (speakers, amps, subs). The fronts for mine are 6x9 and I put round 6's in so for sure there is a mount put in.
I did tons of research before getting everything done. You get a much more clear sound of round speakers but 6x9s have more of a mid-bass.

 

*edited first post with specifics*

 

Thinking about this head unit now:

Kenwood eXcelon DDX9902S Multimedia Receiver with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto

https://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-eXcelon-DDX9902S-Multimedia-Receiver/dp/B00XK5GC2M
no tilt function, but has android auto which gets me my nav option. Appears to have some good audio features/abilities. found a couple at the $400 price point too.

As for the speakers, after reading a bunch of reviews, I'm leaning towards the Hertz 6.5s linked above. Now I gotta research an amp for them. Anything else component wise that is suggested or needed? Thanks.

 

That Focal kit is nice although some find their tweeters a bit harsh. I have no first-hand experience with Hertz components, but have heard less than stellar things about their lower end offerings. Polk MM5251 gets good marks as does Alpine Type R SPR 50C. JBL GTO 509 set is nice.

Lots to choose from with amps. I'd go with maybe 150W each side for the front stage, but certainly no less than 100. Any of those above should work nicely with about that amount of power. I'm partial to my JL XD, but most any amp from a reputable manufacturer should give you what you want. Newer Class D amps are smaller and typically run cooler than other topologies.

You will need a few other things - wiring for your amps & speakers, RCA cables, connectors, fusing, etc. 4 ga should be good for up to around a kilowatt and welding cable works quite well here. No need for expensive cabling, but oxygen free copper is the best for longevity. Double DIN will work with your factory brackets so nothing needed there.

 

That's what I was curious about with the hertz. They have nice stuff but you pay for it so not sure on the lower end. I'll have to keep digging through reviews for good setups at that price point. The Polks kept popping up so i'll have to look into those as well. As for setups, My old car had all kenwood excelon, speakers, amps and head unit. I had the JL sub though. Thought it sounded fairly decent but it was more of just a loud in your face setup. Maybe because I never had it tuned or tweaked. I'll keep digging around tonight and see what else I can find for options. Thanks for the input.

 

Even the best equipment is gonna sound like shoes without a proper install & tune.

 

True, I just assumed... I know I know... that it was all set up when purchased. It was already in car when bought. I plan on doing the install on this one then hopefully finding someone local that can assist in tuning.

 

Potential setup decided (added links):

H/U: Kenwood DDX9902S
Fronts: Polk DB6502
Brackets: Found some online for mounting 6.5s or I can fab some up
Amp: Polk 4000.4 125 Watts per channel or possibly Sound Ordanance m100-2 @110 watts/channel if I go 2 channel since I have no need for rears.
Rears: Stock
Amp Install: Crutchfield CK4 O2 free kit
Sub: TBD in future if at all (possibly a self powered compact like the kenwood KSC-sw11)
Sound Dampening: Raamat for the doors, Interior later
Odds and Ends cables and wires buried in garage.

Looking to do the speakers and amp soon to restore music and then H/U next month. Spent a lot on upcoming suspension overhaul. Decided to step back off the front setup a smidge as I needed to expand the budget for other items. The 652s have really good reviews from reading around and I think I'll feel just as confident in the purchase as the previous options. But as always, those with knowledge or insight, feel free to make suggestions. Thanks.

 

Subd. I like your h/u selection, I want a 2 din setup.

 

Mostly going off of brand familiarity, reviews and wanted Android auto. No tilt but I'll see how that goes.

 

I've always liked ken wood and alpine

 

I've either had kenwood or best buy entry level (current setup) just to get an ipod interface. Soon to be rectified though.

 

Polk's are out ... Working with a member here for some Hertz HSK 165s

 

Ok. Anyone have any inputs or thoughts on Rockville Audio? As far as amps go. They are cheap and I'm sure there is a reason, but I read a lot of reviews and saw some youtube videos doing actual amp dyno runs on them... They are very close to their stated ratings. They even have CEA compliant ratings listed. I am looking at specifically this one: Rockville 4 Channel 1600 watt. The CEA ratings are what I'm going by and would be more than enough to push my front components. The 4 channel gives me an option, if I have this correct, to run my front components (2 channels) and bridge the other 2 to run a small sub if I go that route. I found a pioneer ib flat that I could possibly cram under the seat. I can shim up the seat a smidge to make room as the wife has plenty of headroom to spare over there.

Rockville 4 Channel 1600 watt
Will this amp be enough to run the 165s (RMS 125W) and a small sub (100-300W RMS)?
The RMS ratings are: 500 Watts (4 x 125 Watts RMS) @ 4 ohms
CEA ratings are: 260 Watts (4 x 65 Watts) at 4 ohms and 1% THD+N.

Or should I step up to the Rockville 4 channel 2400 W?
RMS ratings: 800 Watts (4 x 200 Watts RMS) @ 4 ohms
CEA ratings: 400 Watts (4 x 100 Watts) at 4 ohms and 1% THD+N

Correct me if I'm wrong, which happens more than often , but with a 4 channel setup, I can bridge 2 for the sub and have 2 for front components? So, using the second amp CEA ratings, I'd have 100 Watts to each component and a bridged 200 Watts to a sub. Yay or Nay? (gonna go learn me more about amp setups...)

Thanks in advance.

 

I have that same Kenwood deck and here's my review

Pro's:
Bluetooth is awesome, always connects and is ready to go unlike my JVC that I have in another vehicle (strangely enough they are built by the same company).
Menu is easy to navigate, it's very well laid out.
There are plenty of sound adjustments to fine tune your audio except for the EQ (see my comment in cons)
Sirius integration is good, and Pandora app works well although sometimes I have to restart it to get song information on the screen.
Apple Car Play is awesome.
HDMI input works great. I hooked up a Rasberry Pi and played movies & music without a hiccup.

Con's:
It takes about 40 seconds to boot up and start playing when you start the car but the back up camera is available during this time.
Only has a 5 band EQ, the newer model 9703S has a 13 band.
The display has a matte finish and is really hard to read when any light source is washing it out. The 9703S has a higher contrast glossy screen.
Android auto sounds like a great thing but it's really limited in functionality. About the only thing useful is navigation and that works better with some phones vs. others (google it).
No screen angle adjust. Even the 9703 only adjusts from the bottom out, I need it to come from the top out so I can see it in bad light.

Overall I am very happy with it. The cons are more like "nitpicky" items and none of them were a deal breaker for me.

Just for the record my system consists of the following

Head Unit: Kenwood DDX 9702S
Front Doors: Infinity Kappa 60.11cs @ 2ohm
Rear Doors: Infinity Kappa 62.11i @ 2ohm
Amplifier: Kicker KX 400.4
Subwoofer(s): 2- Kicker CompRT10 2ohm Dual Voice Coil wired in series/parallel to give a final load of 2ohms @ amp.
Sub Amplifier: Kicker KX 800.1 w/remote bass adjust (on dashboard)
Amp Kit: Kicker PKD4 - 4 ga. kit with blocks. 100amp fuse near battery and 60amp fuses going to each amplifier.
Speaker Wire: Kicker 16 ga. for speakers, 14 ga. for subs.
Sound Deadening: Back wall & doors (I forget what brand).
Other accessories: Sirius/XM tuner, back up camera, custom homemade sub box & amp rack.

 

Thanks for the input. Good to hear about the Bluetooth as I use it a lot and in our other car it is way too hit and miss (factory connection). As for the android auto, I am just looking at using it primarily for Navi. We almost always use our phones even in the new 4runner, but having it on the display is an added bonus. I was worried about the washout which I guess is the name of the game in the first gen with the unit sitting so low. the newer model with a bottom out tilt may help some in addition to the high res glossy screen. The advanced EQ looks good too. Quick look shows its not too much more than the old model, so may have to go ahead and upgrayedd (with 2 Ds).

Looks like you have a nice setup. At times I miss my Vette system with the JLW3v3 12. That car was basically a speaker box and I always had that thing turned on really low (1600W mono) except to show people what it could do.