Hi guys,

I've recently decided that i'm going to be keeping my current Fabia until it dies, which is likely to be a fair few years yet - so i'm going to be looking into installing a decent sound system inside!

Here's my current shopping list:

Set of new component speakers for the front (Tweeters & Midrange)

4 Channel amp

Sub & Enclosure

heaps of sound deadening material.

Plan is to leave the rear speakers as standard, unplug the rear tweeters, replace the front speakers and tweeters and amplify them and use bridge two of the amps channels to power the sub. The HU i have is up to the task so i dont feel i really need to upgrade that just yet.

So here's the question. The standard front speakers are sounding okay at the moment, so i really don't feel the need to upgrade them just yet and my budget is pretty tight so i'll be doing this over a couple of months i expect. Am i going to get a noticable difference from amplifying the standard front speakers? Was thinking of getting the amp first, then the sub, then uprating the front mids & tweeters and installing the sound deadening whilst i have the doorcards off.

Another question... What componants for the front? Will aftermarket tweeters just fit in the plastic housing that my current speakers are in? Can anyone point me in the direction of a good set of mids/tweeters for the fabia please.

Bottom line, is it worth getting the amp first? And will it make any real difference to how the standards sound at the moment? (also, should i mount the amp in the boot, even though its powering the fronts (and sub) and just run wires from front to back?)

Thanks! :yes:

i'm going to be.... installing a decent sound system......Here's my current shopping list:

Set of new component speakers for the front

4 Channel amp

Sub & Enclosure

heaps of sound deadening material.....

Nothing wrong with that shopping list..... !

....Plan is to leave the rear speakers as standard

Yes. Drive them off the new head unit and you will retain control of balance between front and rear.

I would question the order you have planned for the upgrade path and my choice would be as follows:

Do it in stages to accommodate your budget:

First: Change the head unit.

The source is the most important part of any sound system.

Any amp. can only amplify the signal it is being fed. It can't improve it. Crap in = crap out.

Next stage: Fit a new 4 channel amp. and front components at the same time.

The new tweeters will go in the stock positions near the mirrors.

Careful with the mids. there isn't too much room for 6.5" speakers behind the door cards in a Fabia.

CDT do good quality, shallow-fit speakers or else consider a custom door build to accept other brands.

Fit the sound-deadening at this point as you will have the door cards off.

Last stage: Fit the sub.

I have suggested that order of upgrading as the improvements would be progressive.

e.g. The new head unit would make the stock speakers sound better while you are waing to carry out stage 2, and the system would sound good while waiting to have the sub. installed when funds allow.

Plus, doing it that way means you won't be doing anything twice over....

Just my opinion of course....

.....Can anyone point me in the direction of a good set of mids/tweeters for the fabia

Here is a link to a good value, trusted and reliable retailer who will also answer any technical questions you might have before you buy. Have a browse of these 6.5" components:

http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/speakers/component-systems/6.5-inch-comp-17cm.html

.... should i mount the amp in the boot...

The usual reasons for mounting the amp. in the boot are because of insufficient space in the front and to aid cooling air to circulate around the amp. (The boot is usually cooler than the cabin.)

Heat is not good for amp. reliability.

Good luck.

Part of me is saying at the moment that i don't really want a sub, i'm not really interested at the moment at having the car shaking with base everytime i turn up the volume and i'm beginning to think that just a 2chan amp and the front companants will give me the sound i'm after. (plus it means i can buy a better set of speakers and amp as i'm not forking out for the sub etc).

One more quick question about the sound deadening. am i going to be aiming to put it on the back of the doorcard, or on the door itself, or (hope not this way) behind the window mechanism etc onto the inside of the outer skin?

.... i'm not really interested at the moment at having the car shaking with bass every time i turn up the volume...

Don't make the mistake of thinking that a sub is only for "shaking the car"..... It isn't.

It adds so much to the sound quality by leaving the front speakers to only having to deal with the mid and upper frequencies.

I listen to blues, jazz and classical music and I couldn't imagine not having a sub as it so plays a part in achieving a balanced sound.

Even if you don't want to fit a sub now, a 4-channel amp is still the best idea because of it's flexibility.

If there is even the slightest chance of you fitting a sub in the future, don't get a 2 channel amp. now as you may well regret it later and it will end up costing you loads for making the wrong decision now.

Two examples of the difference a quality sub makes...........the cellos in Elgar's Cello Concerto and the effects in Wagner's Ride of The Valkyries.

Try to hear an A/B comparison test and then tell me you don't want a sub !

And that's a genre of music not known for bass-heads!

... about the sound deadening..... am i going to be aiming to put it behind the window mechanism etc onto the inside of the outer skin?.......

Yep. 'Fraid so.

No-one ever claimed good sound quality was easily achieved... !

If on a budget, do you need a sub at all? You could uprate the front speakers, power them from a decent head unit, and you should have good sound. I have done the whole ICE thing and looking back seemed a bit of waste, but then I did have 3 amps, 2 12" JLs. I now run those previously amp driven comps from the pioneer headunit which does a reasonable job for me. The weight to me, was in the end too much to have hanging back there. I swear it added up to 80kg odd once you took into the amps, 2 subs & the false floor into account.

I also don't think the fabia needs sound deadening really. Build quality is OK and I never had issues when running my previous setup.

I will probably end up getting a 4channel amp, but i will probably end up tossing a coin to decide on a sub - or wire it all up ready for one then get one when i have some spare cash lying around!

I get some shakes and vibrates in my car from doorcards etc when i have my stereo turned up, so the sound deadening may be a larger job - i'm pretty much in it just for a project. Plus i do love my music, and love spending time in the car so a decent system will be a big plus for me. Am i looking around the £100 for a decent headunit? I do have an aftermarket JVC one which i've had for a couple of years, probably an upgrade of that would be a sensible plan. In all honesty i found the standard symphony hu powered the speakers better (they seemed to have a better range anyways).

The weight doesn't really bother me too much, Jason Well as i'm only after a smallish sub + amp and i'm not on a power mission with my poor lil' PD100 like yours is

Appologies about my ICE noobness, i've replaced stereos and speakers but haven't really messed around with sound deadening or amps before.

I don't know if it will help but I'm in the same boat as you in terms of what I want to do. I'm thinking the plan will be a set of focal polyglass VR shallow mount speakers. I've found a set for £155 in the sales rather than the usual £220-250. I'll also get a bulk pack of silent coat sound deadening for about £80 so there's some to put in the boot floor and rear wheel arches as well as the doors. And for an amplifier I'm still undecided, I'm thinking of the JL Audio XD400-4 as it is extremely small and efficient. Unfortunately they are still really more than I wanted to spend so I might go for something else cheap 2nd hand in the meantime.

The amp i've been looking at is the Hertz HE4 of which i've seen pretty good reviews and seems like a really good starting point. I'm going to be going for the bulk pack of sound deadening like yourself, but i'm pretty stuck on a set of componants for the front.

The shallow mount ones seem like a great idea but i'm concerned about sound quality from them. Are they the same sort of quality as the regular depth woofers or is a £150 set of shallow mount speakers going to be equivilent to a £100 set of normal depth speakers with a £50 markup for being shallow (if you know what i mean).

I've been looking into Hertz energy 165.3 speakers which look pretty good and i should be able to fit them in with a spacer. Possibility of spending more on the componants, undecided yet though.

Need to get it sorted soon as my passenger speaker has started vibrating like a bugger with any base at all and its driving me nuts!

"I'll also get a bulk pack of silent coat sound deadening for about £80 so there's some to put in the boot floor and rear wheel arches as well as the doors. "

I wouldn't recommend to buy silent coat.

Dig a little bit deeper than CAD forum. CAD are UK distributor of Silent coat and claimed it to be made of butyl.

Look on the Silent Coat website.

It is stated there: "New 4 layer design. 4mm thick to be approved by db rules. Lower layer synthetic mastic kills metal resonance middle bitumen-syntetic rubber layer..."

It looks someone misleading people... Another one: List Price: £99.99 now only £79.99. Look on the older posts on the forum. The price announced before it was launched in the uk never was even close to £100.

That's why i sticked with the largest sound deadening manufacturer Standartplast (StP). Their 2.3mm thick (Butyl based) StP Silver bulk pack (43sq. ft) costs £95.

Add 15 quid and enjoy vibration conversion to low level heat as Bitumen based products can't offered nothing else apart adding mass to the panels.

Another products worth recommendation:

Dynamat Xtreme 1.67mm (£170 on the cad website for 36 sq.ft)

Second Skin Damplifier pro - 2mm thick (£150 on the cad website for 36sq. ft)

and thickest StP gold 2.5mm (£120 for 42sq ft).

Hope it helps

"I'll also get a bulk pack of silent coat sound deadening for about £80 so there's some to put in the boot floor and rear wheel arches as well as the doors. "

I wouldn't recommend to buy silent coat.

Dig a little bit deeper than CAD forum. CAD are UK distributor of Silent coat and claimed it to be made of butyl.

Look on the Silent Coat website.

It is stated there: "New 4 layer design. 4mm thick to be approved by db rules. Lower layer synthetic mastic kills metal resonance middle bitumen-syntetic rubber layer..."

It looks someone misleading people... Another one: List Price: £99.99 now only £79.99. Look on the older posts on the forum. The price announced before it was launched in the uk never was even close to £100.

That's why i sticked with the largest sound deadening manufacturer Standartplast (StP). Their 2.3mm thick (Butyl based) StP Silver bulk pack (43sq. ft) costs £95.

Add 15 quid and enjoy vibration conversion to low level heat as Bitumen based products can't offered nothing else apart adding mass to the panels.

Another products worth recommendation:

Dynamat Xtreme 1.67mm (£170 on the cad website for 36 sq.ft)

Second Skin Damplifier pro - 2mm thick (£150 on the cad website for 36sq. ft)

and thickest StP gold 2.5mm (£120 for 42sq ft).

Hope it helps

Thanks, but it wasn't the CAD forum I was looking on, it was the Talk Audio forum and there seemed to be a fair number of people on there who felt it had performed well when they used it. I'm open to suggestion but this is the only relatively budget product I have seen which people seem to rate from personal experience.

The amp i've been looking at is the Hertz HE4 of which i've seen pretty good reviews and seems like a really good starting point. I'm going to be going for the bulk pack of sound deadening like yourself, but i'm pretty stuck on a set of componants for the front.

The shallow mount ones seem like a great idea but i'm concerned about sound quality from them. Are they the same sort of quality as the regular depth woofers or is a £150 set of shallow mount speakers going to be equivilent to a £100 set of normal depth speakers with a £50 markup for being shallow (if you know what i mean).

I've been looking into Hertz energy 165.3 speakers which look pretty good and i should be able to fit them in with a spacer. Possibility of spending more on the componants, undecided yet though.

Need to get it sorted soon as my passenger speaker has started vibrating like a bugger with any base at all and its driving me nuts!

Can't say exactly how they would compare though they are a set of speakers that retail at £250ish so they should still sound excellent. In terms of how they compare to the non-shallow version of the speaker the only notable difference on the spec sheet is that the low end response stops at 70Hz rather than 60Hz. I expect it will be due to the differently shaped/sized magnet not allowing the speaker to run quite as low frequencies. I plan on getting a sub at some point so I'll let that deal with the low end anyway.