What else is new?

[Coaxial]

I have been out of car audio for a few years now. As I am getting interested in it again and looking at some of the current products, I see they are now making class D amps capable of full range output, which was not possible the last time I did any reading on the subject.

I see several manufacturers are making smaller amps now too. There are several with outputs in the 30-40 rms per channel range. Why has this came into being? When I left the audio world a few years ago, 50 rms per channel was about as low as most amps were made. The power went up from there. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to see it. For myself, I plan to keep my stock deck and just add new speakers, but an amp might be necessary for them to have enough power. I drive a midsized truck with limited space, and also I don't need 100 rms per speaker anyway. A small 4 channel will be great.

Also, it seems that head units have become nearly as smart as my smart phone itself, capable of interacting with it, playing stored music, running apps, backup cameras, and more. I have to say I'll be the odd man out where that is concerned. My only interest is to put in a CD and listen to the songs on it, then switch to another one for something different. Maybe, just maybe, I'd be into a bluetooth connectivity for hands free calling while driving, since my factory system has this and I wouldn't want to lose it after having had the experience.

I see pricing has come down some as well. There are $70 decks now with more and better features than the $200 decks from just a few years ago. Speaker pricing seems to be close to the same dollar amounts but some of the speakers seem improved design wise. I see more of them have anti-resonate baskets now. I never had problems with the tried and true steel baskets, that I knew of, but it's still interesting to see the thought that goes into development of the products.

What else is new in the audio world, development wise, in the last 6-7 years?

Click to read more...

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

I have been out of car audio for a few years now. As I am getting interested in it again and looking at some of the current products, I see they are now making class D amps capable of full range output, which was not possible the last time I did any reading on the subject.
I see several manufacturers are making smaller amps now too. There are several with outputs in the 30-40 rms per channel range. Why has this came into being? When I left the audio world a few years ago, 50 rms per channel was about as low as most amps were made. The power went up from there. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to see it. For myself, I plan to keep my stock deck and just add new speakers, but an amp might be necessary for them to have enough power. I drive a midsized truck with limited space, and also I don't need 100 rms per speaker anyway. A small 4 channel will be great.

Also, it seems that head units have become nearly as smart as my smart phone itself, capable of interacting with it, playing stored music, running apps, backup cameras, and more. I have to say I'll be the odd man out where that is concerned. My only interest is to put in a CD and listen to the songs on it, then switch to another one for something different. Maybe, just maybe, I'd be into a bluetooth connectivity for hands free calling while driving, since my factory system has this and I wouldn't want to lose it after having had the experience.

I see pricing has come down some as well. There are $70 decks now with more and better features than the $200 decks from just a few years ago. Speaker pricing seems to be close to the same dollar amounts but some of the speakers seem improved design wise. I see more of them have anti-resonate baskets now. I never had problems with the tried and true steel baskets, that I knew of, but it's still interesting to see the thought that goes into development of the products.

What else is new in the audio world, development wise, in the last 6-7 years?

Full range class D has been a thing for around 20 years now, but only in the last 6-7 has anything been made in the 12V arena that's worth using.

There have always been small (as far as output) amps. Most lower end or entry level components or coaxials won't really handle more than 50W anyway and the difference between 40 and 50 is less than one click on your volume knob. The difference between 50 and 100W is probably 2 clicks on your head unit. I doubt people realize this, but there's always those that don't want to go crazy for space or power. There have definitely been some innovations in "micro" sized amps. Think 300W mono block or 75X4 full range amps that are the size of an old school half-din EQ.

Head units have a lot of features these days but IMO they're not built to last like they were in the old days. Then again, they're priced to be disposable. You might have to get one with a lot of fancy features to get something that'll perform well and have 4V or higher pre-amp outs. Don't be intimidated though, most of the bells and whistles you'll never need or want to touch, but they're there because they're cheap to add for the manufacturer and add to the sticker price and allow for multiple price tiers.

Otherwise, there's not much "new" stuff really. Conventional loudspeakers have changed little if any, the latest really big innovations (XBL^2, LMS, split gap) have been around more than a decade, and the lion's share of inexpensive amps are still using cookie cutter copies of 20+ year old circuits.

 

[Coaxial]

Full range class D has been a thing for around 20 years now, but only in the last 6-7 has anything been made in the 12V arena that's worth using.
There have always been small (as far as output) amps. Most lower end or entry level components or coaxials won't really handle more than 50W anyway and the difference between 40 and 50 is less than one click on your volume knob. The difference between 50 and 100W is probably 2 clicks on your head unit. I doubt people realize this, but there's always those that don't want to go crazy for space or power. There have definitely been some innovations in "micro" sized amps. Think 300W mono block or 75X4 full range amps that are the size of an old school half-din EQ.

Head units have a lot of features these days but IMO they're not built to last like they were in the old days. Then again, they're priced to be disposable. You might have to get one with a lot of fancy features to get something that'll perform well and have 4V or higher pre-amp outs. Don't be intimidated though, most of the bells and whistles you'll never need or want to touch, but they're there because they're cheap to add for the manufacturer and add to the sticker price and allow for multiple price tiers.

Otherwise, there's not much "new" stuff really. Conventional loudspeakers have changed little if any, the latest really big innovations (XBL^2, LMS, split gap) have been around more than a decade, and the lion's share of inexpensive amps are still using cookie cutter copies of 20+ year old circuits.

Class D in full range for 20 years? I never knew. Wow. I guess it was just coming around to the 12v world as I was leaving. I've never been much into home audio or other than just car audio. Even my home system I had in a game room at one time was made using a 12v deck, speakers, and an amp and sub, just for the fun of it.

Yes, I noticed the definite size decrease in amps. My last 50x4 rms was 18" long and way over a foot across. Now they have some I could tuck in my hip pocket. I wondered about the quality of these as soon as I saw them but now your posts has made me think they might be ok. Also, I knew of smaller output amps when I was into audio before, but it had been a while since I had ran across any and I thought with deck powers increasing into the 25 rms category, that maybe a small amp was now a thing of the past. Maybe I jumped too soon on my comment though. I had just been to three different manufacturer websites looking at amps and all three now offered 30-40 rms amps, whereas the last time I had ever looked, none of them did.

I might hsve known it would be that way with decks, having tons of cheap to add feature options to create price tiers, and then have them not last so they can sell you a new one. It's that way with everything anymore. I don't know how far back you consider old school and built to last, but my last Pioneer deck came from Walmart (of all places) and lasted 14 years, never failed, and still worked like new when I sold the vehicle it was installed in. Even the remote still worked and had the original battery in it. I had used it in 4 different vehicles over the years and just finally tired of it. I probably won't get that kind of service from another one.

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

Class D in full range for 20 years? I never knew. Wow. I guess it was just coming around to the 12v world as I was leaving. I've never been much into home audio or other than just car audio. Even my home system I had in a game room at one time was made using a 12v deck, speakers, and an amp and sub, just for the fun of it.
Yes, I noticed the definite size decrease in amps. My last 50x4 rms was 18" long and way over a foot across. Now they have some I could tuck in my hip pocket. I wondered about the quality of these as soon as I saw them but now your posts has made me think they might be ok. Also, I knew of smaller output amps when I was into audio before, but it had been a while since I had ran across any and I thought with deck powers increasing into the 25 rms category, that maybe a small amp was now a thing of the past. Maybe I jumped too soon on my comment though. I had just been to three different manufacturer websites looking at amps and all three now offered 30-40 rms amps, whereas the last time I had ever looked, none of them did.

I might hsve known it would be that way with decks, having tons of cheap to add feature options to create price tiers, and then have them not last so they can sell you a new one. It's that way with everything anymore. I don't know how far back you consider old school and built to last, but my last Pioneer deck came from Walmart (of all places) and lasted 14 years, never failed, and still worked like new when I sold the vehicle it was installed in. Even the remote still worked and had the original battery in it. I had used it in 4 different vehicles over the years and just finally tired of it. I probably won't get that kind of service from another one.

For the "mini" amps and full range class D you'll get what you pay for. The better ones will cost. That said, right around the time you "got out" Alpine had just about ironed out the bugs (noise issues) in their full range class D's.

I don't put much stock in the big power output numbers claimed by head unit manufacturers. That's largely ******** IMO. The last head units I've seen that really go 20 years (if you drive a lot) are the ones from the 90's. IMO you got lucky with that Pioneer. I don't buy cheap and I haven't had one last more than 3 years since the Rockford CD players which were made in the USA.

 

[kcr357 10+ year member]

For the "mini" amps and full range class D you'll get what you pay for. The better ones will cost. That said, right around the time you "got out" Alpine had just about ironed out the bugs (noise issues) in their full range class D's.
I don't put much stock in the big power output numbers claimed by head unit manufacturers. That's largely ******** IMO. The last head units I've seen that really go 20 years (if you drive a lot) are the ones from the 90's. IMO you got lucky with that Pioneer. I don't buy cheap and I haven't had one last more than 3 years since the Rockford CD players which were made in the USA.

I've bought two new pioneer 2700bts decks in the last month, and neither worked. I'd be thrilled to find a head unit that lasts two years.