ON A SIDE NOTE: I would like to point out a fact that I never thought of when I built my system, but which is a serious issue (in a mid-high end system), although most people tend to ignore it until they experience it them selves.
When I built my system, I did similar researches as you and thought I knew it all (from al the info that I got from others), but no body mentioned one thing:
I spent almost $3,000.- on my car audio, which you would consider as a respectable amount for a serious car system. Mostly top of the line stuff: Sub: Cervin-Wega (800W RMS) I believe is one of the best choices. Speakers: Polkaudio (also very good, their lowest graded / cheapest speakers cost almost $300 a pair, I repeat that the lowest end that they have.) Head: Kenwood 9080 (their top of the line for the year 2000), If I had to do it again I'd go for Alpine cause the Kenwood is generally good, but lack a bit of kick over ~10KHz. The Amps: Kenwood: one monorual (real kick a$$: 600W RMS) and a 4*channel amp for the speakers.
Also, don't forget about the condenser (which at this level is, I believe important)
So...Excellent system...good installation....what could go wrong....
POWER SUPPLY! Yes power supply. I own an Opel Calibra. This has an Alt that produces 120Amps (max) (a Subaru has 100Amps (max) I think). The biggest battery I could install in my coupe was a 75 Amp cell.
Bottom line my system to run at its highest possible (about 1500Watts) would need about 157~200amps to run smoothly.
Never thought this could be a bottleneck.
Results: system sounds good at mid range, but the max is not perfect, due to insufficient power. Had to replace my rather expensive Cell twice in 6 months (because the system burnt them out) same goes for the voltage regulator and diodes (also not the cheapest parts of the car). The generator also gave-in once. Also if I listen to music with the engine turned-off for over 3 mins then the battery is dead and wound not start the car.
Solutions: After further research I realized the following: For my system to work correctly I would need (1) a customized Alt (with 200Amp rating) ~$600. (2)about 3 or 4 low internal resistance (Optima) Cells that are specially designed for car audio, which can deliver high current at sudden intervals which the regular cells are not really able to provide smoothly (due to their high internal resistance). So I would be looking at an extra $1200 for my system to be optimized.
This was just some food for thought. Keep it in mind. My suggestion is to keep the whole system below 800W RMS then you'll probably not have many problems. But if you budget is over $5000 then go for a real kick-a$$ system with a custom amp and extra cells.
When I built my system, I did similar researches as you and thought I knew it all (from al the info that I got from others), but no body mentioned one thing:
I spent almost $3,000.- on my car audio, which you would consider as a respectable amount for a serious car system. Mostly top of the line stuff: Sub: Cervin-Wega (800W RMS) I believe is one of the best choices. Speakers: Polkaudio (also very good, their lowest graded / cheapest speakers cost almost $300 a pair, I repeat that the lowest end that they have.) Head: Kenwood 9080 (their top of the line for the year 2000), If I had to do it again I'd go for Alpine cause the Kenwood is generally good, but lack a bit of kick over ~10KHz. The Amps: Kenwood: one monorual (real kick a$$: 600W RMS) and a 4*channel amp for the speakers.
Also, don't forget about the condenser (which at this level is, I believe important)
So...Excellent system...good installation....what could go wrong....
POWER SUPPLY! Yes power supply. I own an Opel Calibra. This has an Alt that produces 120Amps (max) (a Subaru has 100Amps (max) I think). The biggest battery I could install in my coupe was a 75 Amp cell.
Bottom line my system to run at its highest possible (about 1500Watts) would need about 157~200amps to run smoothly.
Never thought this could be a bottleneck.
Results: system sounds good at mid range, but the max is not perfect, due to insufficient power. Had to replace my rather expensive Cell twice in 6 months (because the system burnt them out) same goes for the voltage regulator and diodes (also not the cheapest parts of the car). The generator also gave-in once. Also if I listen to music with the engine turned-off for over 3 mins then the battery is dead and wound not start the car.
Solutions: After further research I realized the following: For my system to work correctly I would need (1) a customized Alt (with 200Amp rating) ~$600. (2)about 3 or 4 low internal resistance (Optima) Cells that are specially designed for car audio, which can deliver high current at sudden intervals which the regular cells are not really able to provide smoothly (due to their high internal resistance). So I would be looking at an extra $1200 for my system to be optimized.
This was just some food for thought. Keep it in mind. My suggestion is to keep the whole system below 800W RMS then you'll probably not have many problems. But if you budget is over $5000 then go for a real kick-a$$ system with a custom amp and extra cells.