I'll reply in-line...

Garrett


Dean wrote:

Just bought a VW GTI, have many questions, all input will be much
appreciated.

1. Do component speakers sets require cutting door panels for
installations?

Depends on the speaker components and the door panel. If your door
panel has provisions for factory tweeters and the midbass cut out has
adequate room you most likely will not have to cut.


2. What do amp specs mean? 2 ohms? 4 ohms? Class D?

Refers to the speaker impedence load placed upon the amp to drive that
level of power.


3. If my sub can handle 250w rms, should the amp output more, less,
or the exact same amount of power?

IMHO more power is almost always better than too little. From what I
understand, a low power amp driven to hard cliping will heat up the
voice coil and burn it out quickly and suddenly. Ive never blown a coil
though so I dont have first hand experience. A high power amp playing
clean may overload the subwoofer spider, surround and cone but you'll
hear signs of that as a warning before its too late.



4. I want a pair of subs, and 2 pairs of speakers, how many amps do I
need?

Depends on how many amp channels are available on your amps. You could
get one multi channel amp to drive the whole system, or 6 monoblock amps
each driving a single speaker.


5. Is a 1 channel mono amp best for subs? Why?

The only thing I can think of is you dont have to try and balance the LH
and RH gains. With a mono amp, one gain/one channel.


6. Can a four hundred dollar deck adequately power my speakers or do
I need a seperate amp for them? What features should I look for?

Define "adequately". How loud are you playing your tunes? How many db
are you trying to hit? What kind of speakers? MB quarts are notorious
for needing gobs of power, while cerwin vegas are highly efficient. If
you ask my oppinion, the answer is no, for my needs factory decks are
inadequate.

Look for whatever features you desire. If you need a head with sub
crossover, 7 band EQ, vehicle alarm, then get those items.


7. What are considered good sub brands other than Kicker/JL/Fosgate?

Elemental Designs, Adire Audio, JL audio, Focal... IMHO any sub that has
low VAS, low res freq and Qts tuned for sealed enclosures.


8. What's the general consensus on Nakamichi decks?

Great. My dads 4-runner has PPI amps and a Nak CD head. costly, but
reliable and solid transport. Its ancient, Circa 1991 before ESP
circuits were available... never skips.


9. Are factory made boxes better than custom boxes? I was thinking
of the MTX Thunder8000 box with their matching subs, any good?

I make my own enclosures out of 3/4" MDF, dry wall screws and GE
sillicone.


10. Are Boomerang trackers any good?
No experience with them..