New subaru audio questions

This is my first post here, so first of all hello.

Anyway I just bought a new 07 outback wagon - which I am really excited about - and am about to install a new stereo into it, however as this is my first non-truck I had a few questions....

First of all, I am putting a pair of components in the front door and was wondering if it is usually prefered in a wagon to also use components in the rear doors as well?

Second, should the rear doors be amped as well or does this lower the front soundstage?

And lastly, I was thinking of putting in a small low profile downfiring box in the rear cargo area up against the back seat for both stealth and for protection from cargo objects, but would a different orientation of the subs or placement of the box be better?

Thanks

It all depends on your ultimate goals and budget. If money isn't a concern and sound quality is... yes, amp the rear doors, but they should not be full range, thus no need for component speakers. The best front sound stage will have at most only bandpass mid bass drivers in the rear doors, if anything at all. I'm a two channel, front speaker only kinda guy.

Member msmith is a VP at JL and used his LGT wagon as a JL demo car. I'd say that would be a good place to start...

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49639

It all depends on your ultimate goals and budget. If money isn't a concern and sound quality is... yes, amp the rear doors, but they should not be full range, thus no need for component speakers. The best front sound stage will have at most only bandpass mid bass drivers in the rear doors, if anything at all. I'm a two channel, front speaker only kinda guy.

 

Member msmith is a VP at JL and used his LGT wagon as a JL demo car. I'd say that would be a good place to start...

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49639

Thanks for the link. That is real similar to what I am looking for - although a little more simple.

As far as goals, I want excellent sound quality and front stage, but I also have a 8 year old son and sometimes other passengers who ride in the back as well so I want good sound there too...If I put a pair of 6.5 midbasses in the rear doors would the highs from the front stage be enough for the rear seat?

Also as far as a budget I have quite a bit of gear around from my previous truck so I have alot of options, I just am unfamiliar with the acoustics of a wagon.

Thanks again.

Your best bet for keeping things simple & getting a respectable front soundstage is 6.5 coax's in the front & rear. Use a higher-end pair up front, you can use cheap or even the stock drivers in the rear to keep a presence in the back seats.

Ideally for amping you'll do around 75/35 wpc front/rear, or whatever incarnation of that ratio works for your ears. Around half power in rear will raise your front soundstage just a bit. More than that & it becomes a movie theatre IMO.

What you really don't want to do is use components up front with the tweeter in the stock location - it creates a time differential & ends up sounding abrasive. Lots of threads on this where ppl - me included - learned the hard way. Stick with a coax setup.

Want to get tricky? Get 3-way components up front, put the midbass in the door & build tiny little kicks for the mid & tweeter. Best soundstage, least simple.

Anyway, that's enough to start with.

Your best bet for keeping things simple & getting a respectable front soundstage is 6.5 coax's in the front & rear. Use a higher-end pair up front, you can use cheap or even the stock drivers in the rear to keep a presence in the back seats.

 

Ideally for amping you'll do around 75/35 wpc front/rear, or whatever incarnation of that ratio works for your ears. Around half power in rear will raise your front soundstage just a bit. More than that & it becomes a movie theatre IMO.

 

What you really don't want to do is use components up front with the tweeter in the stock location - it creates a time differential & ends up sounding abrasive. Lots of threads on this where ppl - me included - learned the hard way. Stick with a coax setup.

 

Want to get tricky? Get 3-way components up front, put the midbass in the door & build tiny little kicks for the mid & tweeter. Best soundstage, least simple.

 

Anyway, that's enough to start with.

Thanks for the reply, although its a bummer to hear. So, since I allready have a nice set of components and would prefer not use coaxials for the front, would it work better if I mounted the tweeter low in the door near the midbass?

Also, is my local JL Audio dealer the only place to get the Stealthbox?

So, since I allready have a nice set of components and would prefer not use coaxials for the front, would it work better if I mounted the tweeter low in the door near the midbass?

 

Also, is my local JL Audio dealer the only place to get the Stealthbox?

Yes and yes.

^^ Agreed, but you've got some options.

Depending on who makes your component set you can probably mount the tweeter on top of the mid. Not too tough.

Check around here on the classifieds, there are sometimes members selling their stealthboxes. Rare, but it happens. Otherwise expect about $6-700. You could have a shop do a custom FG box for around $300 before your sub cost.