I’ve always been a big fan of Pioneer headunits. I know that is one thing they make very well. Speakers…no.
Keep in mind, if you are going for the best sound…regular headunits give the best quality where as DD’s/flip out dvd style, do not. The quality is a little down graded when it comes to clarity. You may not notice it enough.
MB Quart is another one to consider if you can find them; they’ve kept their quality levels relatively high. Their mid/lower brand is damn good for amps too (They re-package last years new design amps into a new package for their mid/low end brand… HiFonics) I run a HIFonics Brutus 1500.1 and beat the shit out of it and it’s never missed a beat, works awesome and puts out what it’s rated for.
Speakers, check out CDT as well, I’ve heard quite a few good things about them.
Truth, though it’s a small enough difference that it would most likely go unnoticed unless he amplified his speakers. If he really wanted best sound quality possible thats a whole nother story. He’d want a deck with 5volt pre-outs, component speakers all around and a 4 channel amp. But that kind of job would be at least ~$750 for the parts alone, plus another couple hundred for installation unless he’s lucky enough to have a friend who know’s what they’re doing, and half a day to kill doing it.
Half a day if you don’t need to make kickpods, custom mtg bezels, nor re-wire the entire stereo system from scratch.
Eh, most component speakers come with the equipment to mount them so all you have to do is use a hole saw on the door panel, or wherever you’re putting it. As far as rewiring, using a multiwire makes it a 20 minute job to get the wires to the amp. And if it’s a vehicle where the rear speakers are on the rear deck, you can just jump the front speakers to the back by connecting them directly to the rear speakers, connecting those wires into the amp and then connecting new wires from the amp to the rears. Either way 20 minutes max. As far as kickpods I’m not sure what you’re talking about. Do you mean where the speakers themselves get mounted?
And to me, this is a complete hack, cut all corners possible way to do it. But that’s just my opinion.
I know when I do complete stereo installs, I normally run all new power, signal, and speaker wires; about the only factory wiring I use is a few wires behind the dash to the HU (So the key still controls the radio, dimmer control works, etc). But I’m extremely anal about the details and doing it “right” (Soldered connections, Proper crimp terminal terminations, proper wire loom/wire control, etc).
You know how I do it and how I feel. lol I definitely know how you do it since we did my 6
True! Too bad we didn’t have the strippers and tons of coke there though… like we told you ex we did! Oh wait, maybe we should’ve asked her to come give us a show instead! Damn 20/20 vision. LMAO
Wait, so are you saying you run all new wires to the factory speakers when you put an aftermarket head unit in? Or when you change both head unit and speakers? While running new speaker wires to the doors is the best option, it’s a giant PITA when you have to run it through the boot, and damn near impossible when there’s a molex plug in the way. Factory wiring is usually more than sufficient, and unless someone pays extra to have new speaker wire run, 98% of shops aren’t going to do it. It’s quite a bit of added labor that just isn’t given out for free.
When I’m putting in a whole system, not just a HU (Just a HU swap just gets a std plug-ing adapter, and maybe a power wire run to the battery depending on the power needs of the HU).
That’s one reason I don’t have my work done at a shop… because most shops will do what is necessary for 95% of the population. I’m not 95% of the population; thus why I do all the work I can up to my stds.
Also, factory wiring isn’t really sufficient for properly powered components/co-axials. Most factory speaker wires are only 18 gauge (some are 20); a good aftermarket amp/speaker combo is going to run in the 75-100Wrms, which per AWG tables 18 gauge isn’t rated for over the normal distance from the trunk to the front doors in most vehicles (at least without measurable loss in signal due to wire resistance).
For me, it’s cheap piece of mind that things are done to my standards.
LOL, if only he knew what we did to the 6. 11+ hour install with 3 people. Fuck Bose! also hate that all 4 speakers were in the doors. Made running new wires a bitch. lol
Fair enough. If time isn’t a factor then it’s definitely worth doing it as far as just the cost of the wire. Basically when you’re on someone elses time you can’t afford to do everything to immaculate standards. When working on personal projects though, have at it. That being said if you ever have to work on a car with a molex plug, you may change your mind about that. Holy hell, I still have nightmares about those things.
That’s all you have to say, I feel your pain lol.
I worked with Luke_L for 5 years in the Aerospace Electronics Industry… I’ve dealt with just about every type of connector there is out there. Molex aren’t bad at all if you have the right tools 
Haha, good point on the right tool for the job. Unfortunately I had a pretty limited amount of space to keep my tools at work. And I wasn’t exactly making a killing there, so I wasn’t exactly able to buy every tool I wanted/needed. Sometimes you just gotta improvise with what ya got.
Thanks for the advice guys…
I have an Alpine M850 and I forgot what model the Alpine 4 channel amp I have is… It was somewhere around 80w RMS x 4 if I recall. But I’m not particularly interested in using them, just wanted to wire it up to the HU and call it done. I’d end up spending forever wiring it up. I played with audio goodies once before, I missed the trunk space too much 
I may change my mind, but I doubt it. I’d rather just plug in/install the new speakers + HU and call it done. Switching the 4x6 to 6.5" in the door panel is enough work for me 