Reus Stereo & Guages Installed!
#46
07-21-2005, 09:37 AM
Originally posted by neil.schneider
Doug,
After reading and seeing this pic it is obvious you know your ****. Through time, energy, trial, error, experimentation etc.
I did the best research I could locally and with the web and I kept comming back to Reus. I love my system in my cab and it is hard to imagine a much better sounding system given the constraints of the car. That being said, it is certainly possible and maybe probable that your system would exceed the sound of a Reus system in a similar car. I wish I lived near you and we could get together, I would love to hear your feedback on my sound(good/bad) and I would love to hear yours. I live in NJ.
As far as head units go, I heard that the Naks are not dependable but sound great, and the Mc also. I had no access to those. Believe me Rick would put any head unit in there I wanted, he suggested eclipse and others did so I went with them. The cheapest part of the system. I do not like the ergonomics of the unit but I thought the sound is great. I felt that if in the future a better sounding and more user friendly unit becomes available I could switch.
Doug,
After reading and seeing this pic it is obvious you know your ****. Through time, energy, trial, error, experimentation etc.
I did the best research I could locally and with the web and I kept comming back to Reus. I love my system in my cab and it is hard to imagine a much better sounding system given the constraints of the car. That being said, it is certainly possible and maybe probable that your system would exceed the sound of a Reus system in a similar car. I wish I lived near you and we could get together, I would love to hear your feedback on my sound(good/bad) and I would love to hear yours. I live in NJ.
As far as head units go, I heard that the Naks are not dependable but sound great, and the Mc also. I had no access to those. Believe me Rick would put any head unit in there I wanted, he suggested eclipse and others did so I went with them. The cheapest part of the system. I do not like the ergonomics of the unit but I thought the sound is great. I felt that if in the future a better sounding and more user friendly unit becomes available I could switch.
#47
07-21-2005, 09:43 AM
Originally posted by neil.schneider
I asked Rick about the head units, when I discovered the problems with my eclipse. I asked him to rate the head units on a 1 to 10 scale with eclipse being 10. He said pioneer is a 7. Then I asked about alpine and he said a "6".
I asked Rick about the head units, when I discovered the problems with my eclipse. I asked him to rate the head units on a 1 to 10 scale with eclipse being 10. He said pioneer is a 7. Then I asked about alpine and he said a "6".
What about Kenwood?
#48
07-21-2005, 09:54 AM
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Originally posted by acs-3
So, Eclipse > Pioneer > Alpine
What about Kenwood?
So, Eclipse > Pioneer > Alpine
What about Kenwood?
I just wish someone would make a great sounding double din unit with a rotary volume ****. I can wait.
#49
07-21-2005, 10:13 AM
Originally posted by 2thfixr
I agree with Nick. It's obvious that you know what you are talking about as sometimes trial and error is the only means of finding out what is good and bad. In fact, I am beginning to think that you are either in the car audio business with all of that equipment or have money growing on trees that allows you to try expensive car audio equipment and throw it on the shelf if it does not meet your standards. Regardless, I will preface this by saying that I am by no means an expert but I have heard some award winning sound systems. By award winning, I mean seriously recognized IASCA sound off competing vehicles. Not one show wonders. Yes, I do know that just because it is an IASCA winner, it does not mean that it is the ultimate. IASCA is now like the SEMA show, all about the bling and not about the sound anymore. I am referring to IASCA winners that were recognized for their sound quality not their presentation. There are few factors that you have to consider here. If you are talking about assembling the best of the best components and doing some super trick one off installations then the sky is the limit.
The only car that I can think of that will blow away any vehicle out there is Earl Zausmer's BMW 540. The guy spent $50k and had 2000 man hours of labor in it. Yes it won 90% of the shows that it entered and was featured in something like 275 magazines but it also took 2000 hours of installation and has over 1000 lbs of equipment and materials in it. He put in two 30 watt Milbert tube amps ($5,000) and tore apart $13,000 worth of B&K Matrix 801 and Silver Signature speakers for parts. He also spent $7,000 on interconnects and speaker wires and $2,000 in dynamat. The Dynamat alone weighed in at 400 lbs. He also cut out the floorboards to make room for subwoofers and had to modify the car's fenders but the end result was that he had the ultimate car audio system. The kicker is that the system was designed as a sound off vehicle not for daily use. The speakers are all located in the front of the car and the listener would position his head with a laser alignment guide because the system used precise time alignment for ultra precise imaging.
Now let's compare that to the Reus system.
1. Expensive but nowhere close to what you have spent on your TT.
2. Installed in one day by one technician that will fly out to you and do the installation in your office parking lot or garage.
3. Totally stealth installation. No holes drilled and no modifications to the vehicle. If you look in the car you would never know there was an aftermarket sound system.
4. Completely reversible installation. In fact, for a flat predetermined fee, Reus will remove the system and install it in your next vehicle and if your next vehicle is not a Porsche they will do what is necessary to make adapt it to your next vehicle. 5. Lifetime warranty - They sent a technician to my office 2 and 1/2 hours from their facility to diagnose and take care of a rattle.
6. The speakers can not be localized no matter how hard you try.
7. The sound quality is outstanding. We are not talking about good or great. We are talking about precise 3-d spatial imaging that is at least equal to my $4,000 Energy Veritas 2.8 speakers with Adcom amplification and $500 MIT bi-wire speaker cables or my $6,000 KEF Reference III speakers with McIntosh amplification and $500 MIT Terminator bi-wire speaker cables.
Granted, these two systems are by no means the ultimate by true audiophile standards but honestly it is about my limit as far as ability to tell a difference. Truly esoteric stuff like Krell, Mark Levinson or Audio Research maybe better but to me it's about the same as what I have. Some people in England claim to be able to tell the difference between a stereo system plugged into a house wired with silver wire as opposed to copper wire. That's nonsense and a bit extreme to me.
Besides we are talking about sound quality in a car. So references to home audio equipment are moot. In fact we are talking about imaging in a convertible Porsche with completely stock speaker locations. 2 pointed at the front window, 2 pointed at your calves and 2 pointed towards each other in the back seat. Achieving any kind of imaging using those restrictions is quite a feat in itself. Even my 2003 745Li has a 13 or 15 speaker logic 7 system that has the worst imaging that I have ever heard. Not only can you localize the speakers, the vocals seem to come from the footwells or directly behind your ears depending on how far back your seat is. My point is that you could assemble equipment that is individually the best of the best but if it doesn’t work in the 996 environment then it’s a moot point. The Reus system is designed for the acoustics of the car and works harmoniously so it doesn’t matter to me what class amp they use all I know is that it sounds better than any system that I have heard from any local installer or even installers out of my area. The closest competitor that I can imagine is Paris Audio. They have a very nice system for the 996 but they require several days for the install and it is not completely stock looking. They will do a footwell sub that cuts into passenger compartment legroom or put subs behind the seats. Although sound quality is fantastic, imaging is not like the Reus system.
I agree with you about the head unit issue. The head unit is key to a good system and I think the Nakamichi CD-700 is a great head unit but it is also $1200 and not very reliable. It’s design is almost perfect for the interior of a Porsche but the Eclipse is a good compromise. I personally feel that Sony head units sound terribly bright and have never heard a Clarion Pro head unit. I do not have an Eclipse in my car. I have an Alpine head unit and I chose it for it’s MP3 playback ability and built in XM radio. I wanted to switch to the Eclipse but the day that I was down at Reus, they were unable to get one for me and I haven’t had a chance to go down there since. Yes, the choice to use an Alpine may be a compromise but again, my system sounds terrific and it fits my needs. I don’t think I would be able to tell that much of a difference anyways @ 120mph, with the top down and my Fabspeed exhaust screaming in the background. The Reus system sounds loud, clear and sweet. That’s all I require of my sound system.
Again, I don’t doubt that your system sounds great. In fact, I would love to hear it as I would like to know what a $14k TT system sounds like but the Reus system is pretty damn good. I can’t imagine any system outperforming it. Seriously… give Rick a call and ask him to hook you up with a customer car in your area. I am sure that there is someone in your area with a Reus system as he does installs all across the country.
I agree with Nick. It's obvious that you know what you are talking about as sometimes trial and error is the only means of finding out what is good and bad. In fact, I am beginning to think that you are either in the car audio business with all of that equipment or have money growing on trees that allows you to try expensive car audio equipment and throw it on the shelf if it does not meet your standards. Regardless, I will preface this by saying that I am by no means an expert but I have heard some award winning sound systems. By award winning, I mean seriously recognized IASCA sound off competing vehicles. Not one show wonders. Yes, I do know that just because it is an IASCA winner, it does not mean that it is the ultimate. IASCA is now like the SEMA show, all about the bling and not about the sound anymore. I am referring to IASCA winners that were recognized for their sound quality not their presentation. There are few factors that you have to consider here. If you are talking about assembling the best of the best components and doing some super trick one off installations then the sky is the limit.
The only car that I can think of that will blow away any vehicle out there is Earl Zausmer's BMW 540. The guy spent $50k and had 2000 man hours of labor in it. Yes it won 90% of the shows that it entered and was featured in something like 275 magazines but it also took 2000 hours of installation and has over 1000 lbs of equipment and materials in it. He put in two 30 watt Milbert tube amps ($5,000) and tore apart $13,000 worth of B&K Matrix 801 and Silver Signature speakers for parts. He also spent $7,000 on interconnects and speaker wires and $2,000 in dynamat. The Dynamat alone weighed in at 400 lbs. He also cut out the floorboards to make room for subwoofers and had to modify the car's fenders but the end result was that he had the ultimate car audio system. The kicker is that the system was designed as a sound off vehicle not for daily use. The speakers are all located in the front of the car and the listener would position his head with a laser alignment guide because the system used precise time alignment for ultra precise imaging.
Now let's compare that to the Reus system.
1. Expensive but nowhere close to what you have spent on your TT.
2. Installed in one day by one technician that will fly out to you and do the installation in your office parking lot or garage.
3. Totally stealth installation. No holes drilled and no modifications to the vehicle. If you look in the car you would never know there was an aftermarket sound system.
4. Completely reversible installation. In fact, for a flat predetermined fee, Reus will remove the system and install it in your next vehicle and if your next vehicle is not a Porsche they will do what is necessary to make adapt it to your next vehicle. 5. Lifetime warranty - They sent a technician to my office 2 and 1/2 hours from their facility to diagnose and take care of a rattle.
6. The speakers can not be localized no matter how hard you try.
7. The sound quality is outstanding. We are not talking about good or great. We are talking about precise 3-d spatial imaging that is at least equal to my $4,000 Energy Veritas 2.8 speakers with Adcom amplification and $500 MIT bi-wire speaker cables or my $6,000 KEF Reference III speakers with McIntosh amplification and $500 MIT Terminator bi-wire speaker cables.
Granted, these two systems are by no means the ultimate by true audiophile standards but honestly it is about my limit as far as ability to tell a difference. Truly esoteric stuff like Krell, Mark Levinson or Audio Research maybe better but to me it's about the same as what I have. Some people in England claim to be able to tell the difference between a stereo system plugged into a house wired with silver wire as opposed to copper wire. That's nonsense and a bit extreme to me.
Besides we are talking about sound quality in a car. So references to home audio equipment are moot. In fact we are talking about imaging in a convertible Porsche with completely stock speaker locations. 2 pointed at the front window, 2 pointed at your calves and 2 pointed towards each other in the back seat. Achieving any kind of imaging using those restrictions is quite a feat in itself. Even my 2003 745Li has a 13 or 15 speaker logic 7 system that has the worst imaging that I have ever heard. Not only can you localize the speakers, the vocals seem to come from the footwells or directly behind your ears depending on how far back your seat is. My point is that you could assemble equipment that is individually the best of the best but if it doesn’t work in the 996 environment then it’s a moot point. The Reus system is designed for the acoustics of the car and works harmoniously so it doesn’t matter to me what class amp they use all I know is that it sounds better than any system that I have heard from any local installer or even installers out of my area. The closest competitor that I can imagine is Paris Audio. They have a very nice system for the 996 but they require several days for the install and it is not completely stock looking. They will do a footwell sub that cuts into passenger compartment legroom or put subs behind the seats. Although sound quality is fantastic, imaging is not like the Reus system.
I agree with you about the head unit issue. The head unit is key to a good system and I think the Nakamichi CD-700 is a great head unit but it is also $1200 and not very reliable. It’s design is almost perfect for the interior of a Porsche but the Eclipse is a good compromise. I personally feel that Sony head units sound terribly bright and have never heard a Clarion Pro head unit. I do not have an Eclipse in my car. I have an Alpine head unit and I chose it for it’s MP3 playback ability and built in XM radio. I wanted to switch to the Eclipse but the day that I was down at Reus, they were unable to get one for me and I haven’t had a chance to go down there since. Yes, the choice to use an Alpine may be a compromise but again, my system sounds terrific and it fits my needs. I don’t think I would be able to tell that much of a difference anyways @ 120mph, with the top down and my Fabspeed exhaust screaming in the background. The Reus system sounds loud, clear and sweet. That’s all I require of my sound system.
Again, I don’t doubt that your system sounds great. In fact, I would love to hear it as I would like to know what a $14k TT system sounds like but the Reus system is pretty damn good. I can’t imagine any system outperforming it. Seriously… give Rick a call and ask him to hook you up with a customer car in your area. I am sure that there is someone in your area with a Reus system as he does installs all across the country.
Best part of my convertible is that with stock speaker placements I get imaging wherein soundstage and voice is between the seats, forward and above the dash. If you close your eyes, it sounds like the lead singer is at a mic in front of you. The key is just using speakers that work well off axis and amps and electronics that have depth and much clarity don't hurt. I will confess to using some digitial processing in the convertible, but sometimes I bypass it. That system is actually removable inabout 5 minutes. The sub box, amps, and porcessors all can be remved in about 5 minutes as it adds about 100 punds to basically a track car with RS seats.
I have used tweets on the dash, on the A pillars, concealed around the visor areas and all of that. After much trial and error I finally found stuff that sounded good off axis in stock locations. Tweets worth using are the McIntosh fabric or textile dome, MB 100 (but they ar eso big you have to do some modifications), Scan Speak has several, Rainbow Rerence and Morell Esotars.
#50
07-21-2005, 10:17 AM
Originally posted by acs-3
So, Eclipse > Pioneer > Alpine
What about Kenwood?
So, Eclipse > Pioneer > Alpine
What about Kenwood?
For head units, I would scan ebay and wait patiently for a used Mcintosh head unit. Make sure it is the head units with the old analog **** and not their cheap digital push button unit they had for a year or two. You will never regret it and it looks the coolest also.
#51
07-21-2005, 12:02 PM
I'm currently looking for a headunit with widescreen and DVD-capable (either single or double DIN unit).
But I'm having a hard time choosing which one has the BEST SOUND QUALITY.
Anyone has any input?
Clarion ProAudio VRX755VD:
http://www.clarion.com/usa/products/.../VRX755VD.html
Eclipse AVN5435 or the new HDD-based AVN5495:
http://www.eclipse-web.com/avn/avn5435.html
Pioneer AVH-P7600DVD or AVIC-N2:
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...487217,00.html
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...089333,00.html
Kenwood Excelon XXV-05V:
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/PDF/Car_Excelon_2005.pdf
But I'm having a hard time choosing which one has the BEST SOUND QUALITY.
Anyone has any input?
Clarion ProAudio VRX755VD:
http://www.clarion.com/usa/products/.../VRX755VD.html
Eclipse AVN5435 or the new HDD-based AVN5495:
http://www.eclipse-web.com/avn/avn5435.html
Pioneer AVH-P7600DVD or AVIC-N2:
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...487217,00.html
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...089333,00.html
Kenwood Excelon XXV-05V:
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/PDF/Car_Excelon_2005.pdf
#52
07-21-2005, 01:54 PM
Originally posted by Doug H
Lawyer, not car audio business. Have also used Milbert and Butler tubes amps. Like tubes amps also.
Best part of my convertible is that with stock speaker placements I get imaging wherein soundstage and voice is between the seats, forward and above the dash. If you close your eyes, it sounds like the lead singer is at a mic in front of you. The key is just using speakers that work well off axis and amps and electronics that have depth and much clarity don't hurt. I will confess to using some digitial processing in the convertible, but sometimes I bypass it. That system is actually removable inabout 5 minutes. The sub box, amps, and porcessors all can be remved in about 5 minutes as it adds about 100 punds to basically a track car with RS seats.
I have used tweets on the dash, on the A pillars, concealed around the visor areas and all of that. After much trial and error I finally found stuff that sounded good off axis in stock locations. Tweets worth using are the McIntosh fabric or textile dome, MB 100 (but they ar eso big you have to do some modifications), Scan Speak has several, Rainbow Rerence and Morell Esotars.
Lawyer, not car audio business. Have also used Milbert and Butler tubes amps. Like tubes amps also.
Best part of my convertible is that with stock speaker placements I get imaging wherein soundstage and voice is between the seats, forward and above the dash. If you close your eyes, it sounds like the lead singer is at a mic in front of you. The key is just using speakers that work well off axis and amps and electronics that have depth and much clarity don't hurt. I will confess to using some digitial processing in the convertible, but sometimes I bypass it. That system is actually removable inabout 5 minutes. The sub box, amps, and porcessors all can be remved in about 5 minutes as it adds about 100 punds to basically a track car with RS seats.
I have used tweets on the dash, on the A pillars, concealed around the visor areas and all of that. After much trial and error I finally found stuff that sounded good off axis in stock locations. Tweets worth using are the McIntosh fabric or textile dome, MB 100 (but they ar eso big you have to do some modifications), Scan Speak has several, Rainbow Rerence and Morell Esotars.
Again though.... that one set of $6,000 speakers is roughly the cost of the Reus system. Therein lies my point. The Reus system sounds that good. It has imaging that is equivalent to your $6000 set of speakers. That is exactly why the system sounds so amazing. Seriously... listen to one and let us know what you think. Now I am really curious to know how it compares to your system.
Last edited by 2thfixr; 07-21-2005 at 02:04 PM.
#53
07-21-2005, 01:59 PM
Originally posted by neil.schneider
Robert,
I asked Rick about the head units, when I discovered the problems with my eclipse. I asked him to rate the head units on a 1 to 10 scale with eclipse being 10. He said pioneer is a 7. Then I asked about alpine and he said a "6". He said I should stay with the becker unit before switching to an alpine. Right before my system was done a client with a cab and Rick's system(but the older becker head unit) came in to visit. I got to hear it and this was the first exposure I had to hearing one of Rick's system. It sounded great, but in my opinion something was lacking. Rick said that my system would sound 25% better due to the head unit difference. He was right.
Over the last month of ownership I have come to love my system even more. If you have the $300 or so I would highly recommend the change.....if you can live with the (IMO) poor ergonomics.
Robert,
I asked Rick about the head units, when I discovered the problems with my eclipse. I asked him to rate the head units on a 1 to 10 scale with eclipse being 10. He said pioneer is a 7. Then I asked about alpine and he said a "6". He said I should stay with the becker unit before switching to an alpine. Right before my system was done a client with a cab and Rick's system(but the older becker head unit) came in to visit. I got to hear it and this was the first exposure I had to hearing one of Rick's system. It sounded great, but in my opinion something was lacking. Rick said that my system would sound 25% better due to the head unit difference. He was right.
Over the last month of ownership I have come to love my system even more. If you have the $300 or so I would highly recommend the change.....if you can live with the (IMO) poor ergonomics.
#54
07-21-2005, 02:40 PM
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Originally posted by 2thfixr
Actually, the one I wanted was around $500. I believe they only offer Sirius sat radio integration. I am very happy with XM on my Alpine and most importantly plan on getting a Turbo cab or 997s cab within a few months so an upgrade at this time would be pointless. I'm just waiting for more finalized info on the 997 turbo. Still tossing the coupe TT vs cab TT issue also.
Actually, the one I wanted was around $500. I believe they only offer Sirius sat radio integration. I am very happy with XM on my Alpine and most importantly plan on getting a Turbo cab or 997s cab within a few months so an upgrade at this time would be pointless. I'm just waiting for more finalized info on the 997 turbo. Still tossing the coupe TT vs cab TT issue also.
That is the one I have. The CD8445. Just be prepaired to be unable to see it in the day. I agree if you are getting a new car than wait. You better take the system out of your car before you show it, or you will never get a potential buyer to give it up. Also another thought, I asked Rick about a system for the 997 and I don' t believe he has one yet. I would talk to him. Maybe a lot of the stuff would not be re used.
#55
07-21-2005, 02:54 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: New Jersey(outside Phila)
Age: 63
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Originally posted by acs-3
I'm currently looking for a headunit with widescreen and DVD-capable (either single or double DIN unit).
But I'm having a hard time choosing which one has the BEST SOUND QUALITY.
Anyone has any input?
Clarion ProAudio VRX755VD:
http://www.clarion.com/usa/products/.../VRX755VD.html
Eclipse AVN5435 or the new HDD-based AVN5495:
http://www.eclipse-web.com/avn/avn5435.html
Pioneer AVH-P7600DVD or AVIC-N2:
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...487217,00.html
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...089333,00.html
Kenwood Excelon XXV-05V:
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/PDF/Car_Excelon_2005.pdf
I'm currently looking for a headunit with widescreen and DVD-capable (either single or double DIN unit).
But I'm having a hard time choosing which one has the BEST SOUND QUALITY.
Anyone has any input?
Clarion ProAudio VRX755VD:
http://www.clarion.com/usa/products/.../VRX755VD.html
Eclipse AVN5435 or the new HDD-based AVN5495:
http://www.eclipse-web.com/avn/avn5435.html
Pioneer AVH-P7600DVD or AVIC-N2:
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...487217,00.html
http://www.pioneer-america.com/pna/p...089333,00.html
Kenwood Excelon XXV-05V:
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/PDF/Car_Excelon_2005.pdf
Everyone has their own taste. I was at best buy and the guy there said Alpine is better sounding than eclipse. To each his own. Maybe what it is, is that Rick, through 3 decades of experimenting, has found eclipse is the best sounding and most reliable in combination with his speakers and amps. Maybe a kenwood or pioneer or clarion would sound better with other amps and speakers.
I am sure Doug's system is fantastic, but who has the time, skill, money, interest, patience, ability, etc to do what he did to get to the final product?.......
Rick Reus. And I get the benefit from that. It sounds great, was resonably priced and went in in a day.
#56
07-21-2005, 04:21 PM
Originally posted by neil.schneider
I am not familiar with the sound on all the above. I was told by Rick that the best sounding was the eclipse. If the Clarion pro line are that good I am sorry I did not get one, as some of their pro line are rather inexpensive. That being said maybe Doug could comment.
Everyone has their own taste. I was at best buy and the guy there said Alpine is better sounding than eclipse. To each his own. Maybe what it is, is that Rick, through 3 decades of experimenting, has found eclipse is the best sounding and most reliable in combination with his speakers and amps. Maybe a kenwood or pioneer or clarion would sound better with other amps and speakers.
I am sure Doug's system is fantastic, but who has the time, skill, money, interest, patience, ability, etc to do what he did to get to the final product?.......
Rick Reus. And I get the benefit from that. It sounds great, was resonably priced and went in in a day.
I am not familiar with the sound on all the above. I was told by Rick that the best sounding was the eclipse. If the Clarion pro line are that good I am sorry I did not get one, as some of their pro line are rather inexpensive. That being said maybe Doug could comment.
Everyone has their own taste. I was at best buy and the guy there said Alpine is better sounding than eclipse. To each his own. Maybe what it is, is that Rick, through 3 decades of experimenting, has found eclipse is the best sounding and most reliable in combination with his speakers and amps. Maybe a kenwood or pioneer or clarion would sound better with other amps and speakers.
I am sure Doug's system is fantastic, but who has the time, skill, money, interest, patience, ability, etc to do what he did to get to the final product?.......
Rick Reus. And I get the benefit from that. It sounds great, was resonably priced and went in in a day.
I actually had a guy that does installs and runs a shop come out to my house and we were benching the new Eclispe line and others in my boat which is trully unbelieveable. It is a small 21 foot ski boat with 30 speakers and 5,500 watts or something stupid crazy at ohm running, not max amp rated power. It has custom alternator with halon system just in case.
My boat we were using to benchtest has 4 12 inch subs with 800 watts to each sub at 2 ohms, 2 3 way sets and one two way inside the boat cockpit (each at 110 watts per channel at 4 ohms) and 3 sets of 6.5 components on the wake board towers all at 200 watts per channel at 4 ohms. Anyway, we tried various amps including McIntosh, PPI, Orion, Pheonix Gold Titanium series, My Human Reign, Brax, and Zapco. We were plugging stuff in left and right and the mids and high quality was a little too bright for me on the Eclipse line. Pioneer was a little below Eclipse to me. Kenwood Excellon I guess it is I have heard, but I have not "benched it" so to speak so I really cannot comment on it.
BTW, CDs will levitate and spin when sitting on the vynil seats in my boat when the stereo is cranked. It is literally more than a human can handle, but we can hear the music playing while wakeboarding so we accomplsihed our goal.
I wanted to like the Eclipse more than the other stuff because I am partial to Eclipse. I just think signal wise, the Clarion has a nice clean, smooth mid range signal. The guy that was bencing with me was more surprised than I. I had a $ 400.00 Clarion unit with dual 24 bit processing that was sounding better than the $ 1,000 Eclipse. I bought it already and he actually sent the first one I installed and the we bench tested back to Eclipse to be checked out because he could not believe what he was hearing either. It came back okay.
If you gotta have the screen, maybe go with Clarion or Eclipse. If you want good sound, go with a used McIntosh and buy a pop out screen that is lower end for just the DVD or navigation functions but not for sound. I think the decicated SQ receivers without screens maybe more focused on just sound, but maybe wrong here. Manufacturers may or may not use their best receiver electronics with their screen set up.
#57
07-21-2005, 04:30 PM
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I think Doug is right. The units with the nav and all do not sound as good. At least that is what Rick said also. There is another nice thing about the eclipse unit I have... it has midrange adjustment. Rick is pretty spacific, in that he doesn't want you to mess with anything but the bass, midrange and treble. No dig EQ.
#58
07-21-2005, 04:33 PM
Here is what the McIntosh looks like in a home made Ruf race car. I think it an oxymoron to have such a system in a stripped out car with a race prepped 3.8.
I hope you guys also don't think I am knocking Reus. I really want to hear one. I know they must sound great because I have never heard someone say there were not happy with them. I am just curious about the electronic aspect because I know electronics and installation issues and am curius if they are unique more in the installation side or electronics side.
A poorly installed $ 10,000 system may sound worse then a perfectly installed $ 1,000 system. Sounds like they are a blend of both and most people would probably consider the differences between my Rainbow References and their stuff to be too negligible to be worth it. I appreciate SQ so I am just interested in their stuff.
I hope you guys also don't think I am knocking Reus. I really want to hear one. I know they must sound great because I have never heard someone say there were not happy with them. I am just curious about the electronic aspect because I know electronics and installation issues and am curius if they are unique more in the installation side or electronics side.
A poorly installed $ 10,000 system may sound worse then a perfectly installed $ 1,000 system. Sounds like they are a blend of both and most people would probably consider the differences between my Rainbow References and their stuff to be too negligible to be worth it. I appreciate SQ so I am just interested in their stuff.
#59
07-21-2005, 04:36 PM
Originally posted by neil.schneider
I think Doug is right. The units with the nav and all do not sound as good. At least that is what Rick said also. There is another nice thing about the eclipse unit I have... it has midrange adjustment. Rick is pretty spacific, in that he doesn't want you to mess with anything but the bass, midrange and treble. No dig EQ.
I think Doug is right. The units with the nav and all do not sound as good. At least that is what Rick said also. There is another nice thing about the eclipse unit I have... it has midrange adjustment. Rick is pretty spacific, in that he doesn't want you to mess with anything but the bass, midrange and treble. No dig EQ.
#60
07-21-2005, 05:44 PM
Originally posted by neil.schneider
I am not familiar with the sound on all the above. I was told by Rick that the best sounding was the eclipse. If the Clarion pro line are that good I am sorry I did not get one, as some of their pro line are rather inexpensive. That being said maybe Doug could comment.
Everyone has their own taste. I was at best buy and the guy there said Alpine is better sounding than eclipse. To each his own. Maybe what it is, is that Rick, through 3 decades of experimenting, has found eclipse is the best sounding and most reliable in combination with his speakers and amps. Maybe a kenwood or pioneer or clarion would sound better with other amps and speakers.
I am sure Doug's system is fantastic, but who has the time, skill, money, interest, patience, ability, etc to do what he did to get to the final product?.......
Rick Reus. And I get the benefit from that. It sounds great, was resonably priced and went in in a day.
I am not familiar with the sound on all the above. I was told by Rick that the best sounding was the eclipse. If the Clarion pro line are that good I am sorry I did not get one, as some of their pro line are rather inexpensive. That being said maybe Doug could comment.
Everyone has their own taste. I was at best buy and the guy there said Alpine is better sounding than eclipse. To each his own. Maybe what it is, is that Rick, through 3 decades of experimenting, has found eclipse is the best sounding and most reliable in combination with his speakers and amps. Maybe a kenwood or pioneer or clarion would sound better with other amps and speakers.
I am sure Doug's system is fantastic, but who has the time, skill, money, interest, patience, ability, etc to do what he did to get to the final product?.......
Rick Reus. And I get the benefit from that. It sounds great, was resonably priced and went in in a day.
The problem with most head units especially Alpine, Sony and Pioneer is that they have too much processing going on. What is nice about the Eclipse and Nakamichi head units is that there is a bass and treble control. Their higher end models take it one step further and include a mid control which I think is the shiznit. Pioneer used to have a mid control with their Premier line of headunits but have since gone the direction that Alpine went.
My alpine does not even have a treble or bass control. It has an eq and then there is the bass eq, dsp eq, dsp controls for spatial positioning etc etc. It absolutely sucks! The Nak CD-700 is a killer unit but it's just so damn pricey. I love the way it looks and i love it's simplicity. Unfortunately because it is a all business no frills head unit, there is no sat radio and no MP3 ability.
http://www.carsound.com/review_archi...its/cd700.html
I have heard good things about the Clarion pro line but I have just never heard one. The best way to compare headunits is definitely the way that Doug did. That must be one badass boat.