FTO Drivers Club, Western Australia

RichardH · Joined: 27 Jan 2003 Posts: 804

Hi chaps.

I'm thinking seriously about "optimising" my ICE setup, which I've had in there for a couple of years now. The FTO seems to be turning into a hobby motorkhana-oriented car these days, and that means I'm lugging two amps and a 12-stacker up, down and around the traffic cones every MC practice day.

So I was thinking...

- Sell the Japanese Clarion head unit and 12-stacker.
- Buy just a good quality standalone head unit.

Are those MP3 players good enough quality? Or is the CD still king? I'm not fussed with listening to one disc at a time... sorta what I do anyway! Smile

I was tossing up selling both 2 channel amps and getting one 4-channel, but I can probably just make the sub amp removable along with the sub. So I'll still have one amp in the car to keep me amused as I drive to/from MC days, hehe.

I'm also thinking about selling the pair of Kenwood 6x9 in the rear shelf, as I fade the sound forward by 7/9 anyway. They don't do much!

So the question is...

How much can I reasonably expect to sell a Clarion ("Addzest" in Japan, stupid name) 12-stacker and head unit for? Because that's basically how much I'll have to spend on a new standalone head unit.

The other question is...

Do I bother with chasing an MP3 player, or just go single CD? They seem to be priced a fair whack higher. Is the quality there, or is this more a 'quantity' thing? Coz I'm not fussed about quantity... one great album on at full bore and I'm a happy guy, hehe.

- Rich

marke · Posted: Sun Sep 07, 2003 12:52 pm Post subject:

as a general rule of thumb when working with MP3, the higher the bitrate in which you encode, the better the sound quality. So if you encoded at 168kbps then you will probably notice the difference, but if you encoded at 320kbps then I could almost guarantee that you wouldn't notice a different in quality.

Also, as a general rule of thumb, when you double the bit rate encoding, you double the file size, so a 3 minute song might compress to 6mb@320kbps, instead of 3mb @ 168kbps.

Still a lot of compression, and a lot more songs than a standard CD. I guess if you want to hear it though you need to get a demo from someone. I think branko had an mp3 head unit, but he has now sold his FTO and bought a '94 prelude vti-r (ugh)

wildfaye29 · Joined: 13 Jun 2003 Posts: 69

well...if u go tracking often, i would suggest leaving out e amps an subs becos they really weigh a ton! Shocked

and since u setup ur fader as 7/9 in front, dump those 6x9s! Surprised

e driver needs e music not e rear passengers(if u do hav any...haha)

hmm...mp3s...been thinking bout dat for awhile...prices hav dropped, so its a good time to invest in one...

quality wise, a 128kbps would really suffice as most downloads on the web are these and i can almost guarantee U CANT HEAR E DIFF! seriously!
e higher e bitrate e bigger e filesize...

a 4min song at 128kps is onli 4mb, so a 700mb cd will have 700mins of music! OMG! dats roughly 15times an audio cd!

mp3 head units are able to read normal audio cds so no worries bout dat.

well, at e end of the day its still ur choice... Smile

i'm waiting for those head units that are are able to read DVDs and these discs are 4.3GB! hell lotsa music in 1 disc! and if a get a 10 stacker..... Very Happy

cheers!
Sam

RichardH · Joined: 27 Jan 2003 Posts: 804

> well...if u go tracking often, i would suggest
> leaving out e amps an subs becos they really
> weigh a ton!

Yeah, that's the plan! Currently for such days, I remove:

- Sub
- Boot Floor
- Space-saver tyre & jack (though why Jack keeps climbing in the boot I don't know!!! Sorry...)

I'd like to rework it so I also remove:

- 12-stacker (permanently!)
- 6x9 (permanently)
- Sub amp - along with sub, floor, etc.

I suppose I could just reposition the stacker in the boot and make that easily removable. It's going to be a pretty big effort each month to yank stuff out though! Shocked

Simple really... I just need a pit crew!

- Rich

elmo · Guest

Just personally I think the car handles better with some weight in the boot, but i guess acceleration is more important than corner speed?
Guess I would need to test it...
Dunno, hopefully will be fixed in time for next MC track day?????

RichardH · Joined: 27 Jan 2003 Posts: 804

If and when I remove something and then get slower times, I'll be sure and put it back!! Smile

I suppose I could start chucking underbonnet stuff like the battery in the boot, hehe. For now, though, I'll just do it the simple way!

- Rich

Guest · Posted: Tue Sep 16, 2003 2:31 pm Post subject:

To install subs into cars which also function as a track car you can remove the rear side panels, build a brace to hold you sub to sit flush behind the side panel (just MDF), cut the rear panel (so you can hear the sub), fill behind the inside panel with no more gaps to form a sealed box effect.

Once you done all that just make a grill that you push into place from the back to cover up the speaker.

This way you dont add the extra kilos from the sub box, and if done properly look real good, and sounds just as good as a boxed speaker without the need to drag the box in and out. The speakers Laughing

(10inch) themselves only weigh about 7 kilos, so if you start dieting now you might be able to compensate for this by the time youve finished.

So dont be scared, grab the jigsaw and start cutting up your car , shell be right mate....

Fred · Joined: 29 Jan 2003 Posts: 61 Location: Perth

Hey Rich

You should check out www.strathfield.com.au they have a sale going at the moment. You might pick up some bargains.

Cheers Razz