I enjoy my car stereo a great deal and have spent considerable amount of money over 4 years( appx $9000 plus).A well set-up sytem consisting of 'high-end' components can deliver really great(but never close to the home rig in terms of sound stage and openness) sound.The tonal balance can come very close to the home stereo with an EQ. I have pioneer premier(similar to elite) head CD unit, Pioneer preimer EQ and DSP sound processor( that has studio,club,jazz club DSP set-up and also sound positioning feature that put driver in to a sweet spot with a delay built in. Front speakers are now JL audio 3 way component system, mounted in the door firing up and center, with 8 " mid bass JL audio woofer(all bass in Front), Rear fil are the infinity coaxials( my front infinity kappa componets blew up a year ago, I am glad i replaced them with JL components, very natural non-fatiguing sound) Trunk contain front firing 2-10" Cerwin vega Acurate image sub-woofers in a sealed box and a bazzooka 10" amplified tube subwoofer firing back in right corner increasing a bass-feel.A passive cross over control 100-200 hz bass in 8" mid basses in the front door, two giant capacitors provide reserve power for 3 PPI art series amplifires( heart of the system in my opinion). One A-600 for subwoofer, A-400 for front and rear, A-200 for mid basses. Optima battery aided by high power alternator powers the whole system. Oh yes the JL tweeter are molded on the lower region of A-pillers, at about 45 degrees. I have two additional MB-quart tweeter installed in the rear view mirror bring the soundstage at the eye sight. A multi-cd changer in the trunk also provide tunes a addition to the head unit. The sound in the driver seat is tailered to match the home rig curve. In summary sound is very transperent, dynamic, sound stage starting at about dash land going deeper in the wind shield( at times with good material)without being boomy at all(set-up with restraint)Doors and trunk has been deadened with dynamat. So for you car stereo buffs, I would highly recommend the PPI amplifiers and the JL components. MB-quart and Infinity tend to be very bright. The Cerwin vega accurate image sub-woofers also does a great job.WAIT! I forgot to mention two mid cabin mounted 4 " JL coaxial mid ranges run by a PPI A-100!! Cables: Did not spend much on them but they are adequately sized.
Best Car Stereo
Does anybody listen to music in their car? I am thinking about treating myself to an old 911 or something and thought it might be fun to put some tunes in it. Does anybody keep up with this subject, from an audiophile's perspective? I keep seeing ads for McIntosh but don't know if it's any good. Thank you.