Does anything beat CDT?

[jifisher]

I'm about to upgrade the speakers in my 2002 Acura RL and am on the fence as to which speaker manufacturer to go with. The choices make my head spin. I'm just doing a factory rip-and-replace, so I'm going with 6x9s on the rear deck, 6.5s in front door, and 5 1/4s in rear door.

CDT seems to be pretty popular these days, but I've never actually heard of them. I was originally going with Alpine, Pioneer, or Infinity, since you can get them readily at Best Buy. Cost really isn't that much of a factor, but I'm not spending more than a few hundred bucks on the replacement.

So after all this jabbering, here's the question: CDT vs Alpine vs Infinity vs Pioneer vs others. Who's the best in this application? Not looking for mind numbing bass or anything, just ample bass, crisp highs, and full range.

Once I get everything installed, I'll post a review. Thanks for the help.

Click to read more...

 

[inkfx 10+ year member]

It really comes down to personal preference. Go to a local shop and see if you can listen to any of the speakers you are interested in. I know places most likely wont carry CDT, so someone with experience will need to chime in on those. Remember, you wont be getting any bass like a subwoofer can produce out of door speakers. You could consider just replacing your front stage and adding a small sub for that bit of bass you are looking for.

 

[dragnix 5,000+ posts]

I'm sure there are plenty that can beat CDT, but nothing is better than hearing it yourself. Like inkfx mentioned. Some brands that come to mind are Rainbow, Focal, ID, Diamond...

 

[supermaxx123 10+ year member]

everyone wants decent sound, i've never heard anyone that said, i want it to distort like crazy and be loud. the only thing to do is listen to a bunch of speakers. I've tried speakers that i've read reviews for where people swear they are the best they have heard but when i listen to them i tend prefer others. I've tried so many i cant really remember what i liked best. i ould suggest adire audio koda set if you can find them, dont listen to me though. Price of speakers also tends to make them higher quality which in turn means louder/better.

I would expect to pay about $500 maybe more, you can't get good speakers and not power them with an amp.

 

[Haunz 10+ year member]

For the effort you are putting in you might as well throw names in a hat and pick one....

 

[mossberg385t 10+ year member]

lol get some brax

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

i've never heard anyone that said, i want it to distort like crazy and be loud

I read this every time I log into this board, so I'm not exactly sure where you're looking...

 

[Bumpin' Goalie 10+ year member]

I read this every time I log into this board, so I'm not exactly sure where you're looking...

Bahaha...Yeah...

 

[gunz4me2 10+ year member]

I'd rather DIY a component set out of raw Vifa drivers from Madisound than purchase a set of high end CDT speakers. Guess who CDT's build house is...

 

[jifisher]

Haunz, Mossberg, JimJ, Bumpin Goalie - you're all absolutely worthless.

Thanks to the other posters who provided relevant information. I decided to go with Alpine Type-R all around.

 

[infamous_e46 5,000+ posts]

lol get some brax

cool story brax

 

[gunz4me2 10+ year member]

Actually, the Type R speakers are one of the few that drop into Honda/Acura with relative ease. I am unsure about your Acura, but I know my 97 Civic doesn't have jack for mounting space in the factory locations without extensive modification.

 

[headless 10+ year member]

Haunz, Mossberg, JimJ, Bumpin Goalie - you're all absolutely worthless.
Thanks to the other posters who provided relevant information. I decided to go with Alpine Type-R all around.

Actually, haunz & jimJ were the only people who were being truthful with you.

With the amount of effort you are putting into your install, it's not worth bothering paying for good hardware. If you read some about car audio and comprehended it you'd realise that the hardware is considerably less important than a decent installation. If you're just going to shove some **** into the same unprepared spots that your car manufacturer provided with no effort towards improving the sound, then don't bother asking what's better than CDT, because it won't make any ****ing difference if it's better than CDT in your shitty install.

So go ahead, just go up to bestbuy and buy whatever you feel like is your favorite brand. They will all sound like ass equally in your shitty install. So would the set that I run, and they cost probably 6 - 8 times what you're going to be paying (and you're purchasing 3 times as many speakers). It'd be a complete waste to buy these speakers and mount them without any actual effort for their installation.

Understand now?

 

[350zspl 10+ year member]

i use cdt gold es

they cost to much

they sound just a bit better than average

i would never recomend them

what is your budget

 

[Tone415 10+ year member]

I think its more about the tuning rather than which speakers. of course you're not going to buy some POS 6.5's and 6x9's.. just make sure you tune them right and you should be satisfied with most speakers.