Getting my Altima 3.5 tomorrow

[dandlewood]

What's up guys? I'll be joining the ranks of altima owners tomorrow (Finalizing paperwork for 26k at 4.9%: Premium package/leather)

Now on to the audio/video portion so that I don't get moved!

To start off, I'm a complete idiot when it comes to wiring/installing these things so I really don't want any part of that. That being said, I know good sound and I like good sound. When I tested out the car I noticed the bose had decent sound but it lacked in the bass department and the sound overall wasn't GREAT.

There's a company that I've worked with on previous cars that have installed (expensive) but very clear/powerful sounding audio systems.

I've read a lot on how good alpine, kicker, etc are, but the main company that these guys source from is Focal and they swear by them. Are focal speaker's top notch? Or should I find someone else to fix up my sound (when I have some money saved in a couple weeks)

[AppleBonker]

Well, if you ask 25 people what the best speakers are (regardless of price), you'll probably get close to 25 different answers. With that, I would bet that there are some Focal speakers that would be mentioned. They definitely have good products. However, like all companies, their more expensive lines are significantly better than their entry-level speakers. It really all depends on your budget and your tastes. If you're familiar with the shop, go in and check out some of their speakers. You should be able to demo some of the Focals and see if you like the sound.

On a different note, welcome to the club! I'm sure you'll love the car as much as the rest of us.

[dandlewood]

They have a setup where you can listen to the varying levels of speakers. I don't know the model #'s, but I have the $400 dollar (for a pair) composite speakers installed up front and 200 "Budget" focal in the rear. Overall it gave me better than factory sound. I was going to get sub/amp but I knew I would need a new car soon so I didn't worry about it (had 02 Jag Xtype with premium sound before mods. That car is a POS) The salesman was trying to sell me on the 800 dollar composite set (they sounded amazing) but that wasn't in my budget at the time.

It just seems like if you go to CC Polk speakers are much less expensive and get "better" reviews

[rjdmmfl1]

FOCAL UTOPIA 3 way component speakers are some of the best SQ on the market. Unfortunately, even at ebay prices, they run like $1200.00... I think you can get better sound for less money, but you would need to go with the off brands.

[mzinsmeister]

I wouldn't say top notch as the best out there but they ain't no cheap flea market crap speakers either.

[LongBeachCoupe]

Cherry Hill NJ represent!Welcome!

[AppleBonker]

They have a setup where you can listen to the varying levels of speakers. I don't know the model #'s, but I have the $400 dollar (for a pair) composite speakers installed up front and 200 "Budget" focal in the rear. Overall it gave me better than factory sound. I was going to get sub/amp but I knew I would need a new car soon so I didn't worry about it (had 02 Jag Xtype with premium sound before mods. That car is a POS) The salesman was trying to sell me on the 800 dollar composite set (they sounded amazing) but that wasn't in my budget at the time.

It just seems like if you go to CC Polk speakers are much less expensive and get "better" reviews

Wow, I know someone who just traded in an X-Type and took a bath on the value of the car. Anyway, I'm assuming you mean component speakers (where the tweeter is mounted separately from the mid range)? When you go in there to listen to some speakers (the current models), let us know which ones you like and what your budget is roughly. I'll see if I can find anything else that might be worth a demo.

Also, don't go by reviews unless you trust the source. No offense to anyone here, but I take CC/BB reviews with a grain of salt. The average shopper at either of those stores has no idea what they're doing. I just read through some of the reviews and most of them are a joke. The best quality speakers are not sold at BB/CC (not to say all their stuff is bad, but they don't cater to high-end clientele).

[AppleBonker]

FOCAL UTOPIA 3 way component speakers are some of the best SQ on the market.

Haha. I remember you talking about this before so I was waiting for you to chime in after my first post.

[dandlewood]

thanks for all the input, I'll definitely post up any prospective speaker options. Also, yeah, I did mean Component (I make the same mistake when talking about TV wires as well).

I generally take CC/BB reviews with a bit more than a grain of salt since many of them are something like, "5 star review: This speaker is pwnage"

Most reviews that I look at are via google on forums such as these, to which I accord a bit more relevance.

In my opinion, the car dealer is taking a bath on my car. The thing is crap. It costs me 300 dollars a month in repairs and it only has 65,000 miles.

The dealership is giving me a great deal: if you go to KBB the value of the car in excellent condition is just over 5000 for a trade in. My car has 2500 worth of body damage in the back. There is some sort of problem with the dash where there are spots that can't be cleaned (jaguar quoted 1900 to replace dash). Driver's seat leather is in poor condition. There is a burn mark in the roofing (from before I quit smoking). and many other small quirks.

[AppleBonker]

Glad to see you're getting a good deal then.

[rjdmmfl1]

thanks for all the input, I'll definitely post up any prospective speaker options. Also, yeah, I did mean Component (I make the same mistake when talking about TV wires as well).

I generally take CC/BB reviews with a bit more than a grain of salt since many of them are something like, "5 star review: This speaker is pwnage"

Most reviews that I look at are via google on forums such as these, to which I accord a bit more relevance.

In my opinion, the car dealer is taking a bath on my car. The thing is crap. It costs me 300 dollars a month in repairs and it only has 65,000 miles.

The dealership is giving me a great deal: if you go to KBB the value of the car in excellent condition is just over 5000 for a trade in. My car has 2500 worth of body damage in the back. There is some sort of problem with the dash where there are spots that can't be cleaned (jaguar quoted 1900 to replace dash). Driver's seat leather is in poor condition. There is a burn mark in the roofing (from before I quit smoking). and many other small quirks.

You are having all of these problem because you are driving a Ford! When Ford took over Jaguar, the build quality went to $hit!.... So sad to see that happen to such an elegant car... D*mn domestics!!!!!!!!

[AppleBonker]

You are having all of these problem because you are driving a Ford! When Ford took over Jaguar, the build quality went to $hit!.... So sad to see that happen to such an elegant car... D*mn domestics!!!!!!!!

True story. The guy I know who traded in his Jag bought a Honda. The Jag was an '02 X-Type fully loaded I believe that he paid about 42 for. He sold it this year (so 6 years old) with only about 26,000 miles on it (so still pretty new for an '02). Trade in value was only like 7 grand. Just for the hell of it, he checked what an '02 Accord would be worth with the same mileage. The dealer would've given him about 5k more for the Accord, even though sticker (on the '02 Accord) would've been about 10k less. For that reason alone, I'm not too sure why anyone would buy anything other than Japanese right now, just throwing money away IMO.