Help!! The Car Audio Guy is trying to bend me over!

[Ameesh]

Ok, with my New Armada coming in soon I am pricing out stero equipment. I want to put in a navi and a nice aftermarket speaker and msuic system.

I went to magnolia hifi and i think they are taking me for a ride! here is the quote they gave me.

Description Price your Price
KENWOOD DVD/SCREEN KVT915DVD $2,299.98 $1,975.00
KENWOOD NAVIGATION KNADV4100 $1,299.98 $1,140.00
KENWOOD HARDDRIVE 20 GIG KHDCX910Z $549.98 $525.00
MBQUART 6 1/2 SPEAKERS QSD216 $1,199.98 $875.00
MBQUART 6 1/2 SPEAKERS RCE216 $299.98 $235.00
ROCKFORD 2CH AMP T500.2 $499.98 $400.00
ROCKFORD 4CH AMP T800.4 $749.98 $645.00
ROCKFORD 12" SUBWOOFER P312D2 $249.98 $196.00

CABLES- ROUGH ESTIMATE $400.00 SAME
BASIC LABOR?NO CENTER CHANNEL SPEAKER
OR CUSTOM SUB ENCLOSURE INCLUDED $763.00

SUBTOTAL $8,312.84 $7,154.00

GRAND TOTAL WITH TAX $9,044.37 $7,783.55

wtf? I dont want to spend $8K on a car stereo.

I do want navi and the ability to play wmas/mp3s . for the car my size i dont even think he has enough speakers listed, only 4 speakers and a sub, the car has at least 5 speaker holes (center channel on the dash) and there is proabbly a set in the rear for the 3rd row but im not sure


what are these components and how can i get the price into a more reasopnable range. $1K just for amps seems ridiculous.


thanks!

 

[RagingBITCH]

Why didn't you get Navi to begin with in your Armada? That would (save) you some money depending on how much it costs from the dealer. And that guy is raping you on the 6.5" MB Quartz - $900? WTF? You're going to need to tell us exactly how much your budget is or what you think is a "good price"

 

[Shelly21]

Wow, that's expensive. You need to start dealing drugs to pay for that kind of lifestyle.

 

[nan0bug]

Hes not taking you for a ride. Thats how much a 'nice' aftermarket stereo with a screen and navigation will cost you. Some of the stuff is more expensive than what you'll pay elsewhere, but after you tack on shipping from getting stuff from other places it would equal out or be pretty damn close.

 

[Ameesh]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH
Why didn't you get Navi to begin with in your Armada? That would (save) you some money depending on how much it costs from the dealer. And that guy is raping you on the 6.5" MB Quartz - $900? WTF? You're going to need to tell us exactly how much your budget is or what you think is a "good price"

if i wanted the navi in the armada to begin with, i would have to get a bunch of other options i didnt want as they bundle a bunch of crap together, plus the unit wouldnt be able to play dvds or wmas/mp3s, so i figure why pay that money and not get exactly what i want.


I am looking to spend $5K out the door, that means installed and tax (and warrenty if i get it in that price).

 

[Ameesh]

Originally posted by: nan0bug
Hes not taking you for a ride. Thats how much a 'nice' aftermarket stereo with a screen and navigation will cost you. Some of the stuff is more expensive than what you'll pay elsewhere, but after you tack on shipping from getting stuff from other places it would equal out or be pretty damn close.

ok, well i did audtion the mb quatz speakers and they didn't sound soo good i'd be willing to pay $1K for 4 speakers, can you suggest other speakers and amp that have a better bang for your buck ratio?

 

[Ns1]

everything on there is about 10-20% more than you'd be paying online

the dvd/navi stuff is priced just about right

and i definately woult not pay that much for rockford stuff

labor seems about right

cabling is a litlte on the high side


do some research online, buy your components, and then get it installed professionally, better results that way

 

[Viper0329]

Do what I did. I haven't posted a thread yet, I'm trying to finish it up.

Buy a lilliput 7" touchscreen monitor. Check digitalww.com for info. ($300 shipped)
Build a carputer from spare parts or buy a nice Mini-ITX board.
Buy a USB GPS mouse and Routis 2005 or iGuidance 2.0.
DC-DC PSU.
If you can fit 6.5" components, buy the CDT Audio 6.5" CL-61a's components from thezeb.com for $150. (Sound amazing).
A nice amp for the components and maybe a sub/amp combo.

This is what I did. Spent about $1000 total, and my car does MP3, Radio, CD/DVD, DVD Movies, DiVX, GPS w/ voice navigation, Wireless Web. I've got a very nice SQ system that sounds great, but will play loud if I want.

Send me a PM and I'll give you details. I'll try and post a thread about my entire project soon.

Head to Mp3Car.com and start reading in the forums. It's a great place to learn alot.

 

[Ameesh]

Originally posted by: NeuroSynapsis
everything on there is about 10-20% more than you'd be paying online

the dvd/navi stuff is priced just about right

and i definately woult not pay that much for rockford stuff

labor seems about right

cabling is a litlte on the high side


do some research online, buy your components, and then get it installed professionally, better results that way

what brands are good? what should i be looking for? i am totally out of my element here.

 

[Juno]

The car stereo stores in downtown NYC are great. You can negotiate with dealers to reduce the price. That's how my friend did. He got the best dual 800w 12 inches speakers for just $300 instead $400. He also got a Rockford Fosgate P5002 1500w 2 channel amp for $275 instead $360.

 

[Vic]

IME, Magnolia is on the high end. Good stuff, but you pay for it.

And just FYI, they have a couple of stores down here in the Portland area. It would probably be well-worth the drive to come down here for a weekend to get it done and avoid that $600+ sales tax.

 

[CRXican]

If I were you I'd look for a shop that specialized in just car audio.

 

[NutBucket]

If I was gonna pay that much for amps it'd be something like PPI or similar. The speakers are definitley overpriced IMHO. You'd probably be happy with Inifinity Kappas or something similar (about $200 a pair retail). And for the about $500 you can get a 5 or 6 channel amp to handle everything (tho not top of the line, probably more then enough for your ears).

EDIT: The price of that Kenwood Music Keg is ridiculous. I'd get it somewhere else if you even want it. Personally MP3 cd's would be plenty for me and/or a CD changer.

 

[95SS]

I don't know about the DVD/NAV HU's, but in terms of speakers, I would go with Adire Audio Kodas front and rear, and a single Adire Brahmna 12 for a sub. Kodas are equal to or better than the Quart Q's, for almost 1/3 less. Hell, for the price of the Quart Q's, you could put two sets of Kodas in your front doors, or another set in the hatch area for less. The Brahma 12 is more expensive than the Rockford, but is a FAR better sub. I have a similar system in my Caprice, and I love it. For amps, any reputable brand should do, those Rockfords are overpriced. 75-100 watts per channel for the mains, minimum 400-600 for the sub. The install will be the tricky part, a lot of chain shops that I've talked to won't do installs on gear that they don't sell. Sometimes you need to find the independent shops for this. Just do your homework, look at previous installs (actual vehicles if possible, pictures can lie and they don't show durability), and you'll be fine. Good luck.:beer:

BTW, Adire is located in Seattle, I've been there myself. Dan Wiggins (CEO) is a great guy, and will help you with any questions about his products you have.

 

[isekii]

Originally posted by: NutBucket
If I was gonna pay that much for amps it'd be something like PPI or similar. The speakers are definitley overpriced IMHO. You'd probably be happy with Inifinity Kappas or something similar (about $200 a pair retail). And for the about $500 you can get a 5 or 6 channel amp to handle everything (tho not top of the line, probably more then enough for your ears).

Yep that's what I suggest.
You can get Kappas for like 150-160 per pair depending on the size.
Plus you can pick up a 6 channel Alpine V12 amp for pretty decent price.

 

[isekii]

Originally posted by: NutBucket
If I was gonna pay that much for amps it'd be something like PPI or similar. The speakers are definitley overpriced IMHO. You'd probably be happy with Inifinity Kappas or something similar (about $200 a pair retail). And for the about $500 you can get a 5 or 6 channel amp to handle everything (tho not top of the line, probably more then enough for your ears).

EDIT: The price of that Kenwood Music Keg is ridiculous. I'd get it somewhere else if you even want it. Personally MP3 cd's would be plenty for me and/or a CD changer.

His car comes with a stock 6 disc indash changer, that's more than he'll most likely needs.
Hell I listen to 3 disc max on my indash 6 disc changer.

 

[BooGiMaN]

i would want to see at least pics of their work..the armadas are pretty new have they ever worked on one..or is your gonna be the guinea pig?

 

[Eli]

JEEBUS!

Talk about being bent over.. lol

 

[flot]

Sorry, dp.

 

[flot]

You are getting totally raped.

But then again, why would anyone pay $5000 for a car stereo system?

That's retarded.

Back in the day (when I cared about that stuff) I had a buddy hook me up with some gear. He worked at a midrange hifi shop and could get all the normal promotional deals from the big manufacturers.

What I went with? Sony ES. What I paid ** 75% ** off of list price. So the head unit I went with listed for $700, I paid $200. Amps - $1000 worth, I paid $250. When all was said and done, I paid about $800 for "$3000" worth of gear. Of course with online vendors etc I probably could have picked it up for about $1500.

Was the stuff worth the original price? Not by a mile. Was the stuff worth 75% off? Yes, but would I do it again? no.

You totally should have gotten the stock nav system. I've never seen an aftermarket nav I *honestly* think is just as good as most of the built in ones. As for MP3s, get an ipod and just make sure whatever system you get has an easily accessible line in input.

But all of that crap you listed.. just absurd. You could get 100% of the quality for 40% of the price if you did it yourself, or at least 80% of the quality for half the price if you found a store that wasn't screwing you. (Although good luck not getting screwed if you walk into a place and tell them you have $5000 to spend on a stereo system.)

Edit: For a "normal" setup of 4 speakers, a sub, and decent amplification - you should be able to get away with spending around $800-$1200. That won't be anything outstandingly amazing, but will be good solid gear. Add a nav system head unit for $1200-1400 and you should be done.

Edit 2: The more I read this the more absurd it is, I can't imagine anyone actually spending $5000 on a car stereo unless they were totally hardcore into it. Just thinking about all the other "truck accessories" you could buy with that $5k is ridiculous. Like, oh, I dunno, a jetski?? A snowmobile?? A home theater system complete with plasma TV? Another car???

Edit 3: I'd like to point out that I've thrown money at some pretty dumb things before, and not necessarily small amounts either, but this is ridiculous

 

[blahblah99]

I would say those prices are about 10% over what you can get if you bargained, and 30% over how much it costs on ebay.

If you want Nagivation and DVD, that's going to cost you a pretty penny, especially aftermarket nagivation.

Also, those MB quartz are expensive. Why do most car audio peeps like MB Quartz? Their stuff is WAY OVERPRICED, and their tweeters sound horrible. Their midwoofers have MIDBASS, and their crossover just sucks.

 

[sillymofo]

I would never spend money on a car stereo system. I put together a cheap system myself, just to over come road noise. Everything else is just money down the drain, unless you're one of those ignorant pompous fools that like to show off their blinged out rides; driving down the streets bleeding everybody's ears with your mega woooofas; having all your fcuking LCDs on driving around by yourself because you think it's cool.

Now, I would spend some serious money on my home theater system.

 

[95SS]

Originally posted by: blahblah99
I would say those prices are about 10% over what you can get if you bargained, and 30% over how much it costs on ebay.

If you want Nagivation and DVD, that's going to cost you a pretty penny, especially aftermarket nagivation.

Also, those MB quartz are expensive. Why do most car audio peeps like MB Quartz? Their stuff is WAY OVERPRICED, and their tweeters sound horrible. Their midwoofers have MIDBASS, and their crossover just sucks.

I couldn't agree more. Give me a good soft dome over those titanium pieces of crap anyday.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: cr4zymofo
I would never spend money on a car stereo system. I put together a cheap system myself, just to over come road noise. Everything else is just money down the drain, unless you're one of those ignorant pompous fools that like to show off their blinged out rides; driving down the streets bleeding everybody's ears with your mega woooofas; having all your fcuking LCDs on driving around by yourself because you think it's cool.

Now, I would spend some serious money on my home theater system.

when you spend enough time in your car driving in a day, it's kinda nice to have

 

[sillymofo]

Originally posted by: NeuroSynapsis

Originally posted by: cr4zymofo
I would never spend money on a car stereo system. I put together a cheap system myself, just to over come road noise. Everything else is just money down the drain, unless you're one of those ignorant pompous fools that like to show off their blinged out rides; driving down the streets bleeding everybody's ears with your mega woooofas; having all your fcuking LCDs on driving around by yourself because you think it's cool.

Now, I would spend some serious money on my home theater system.

when you spend enough time in your car driving in a day, it's kinda nice to have

I spend 2 hrs driving to and from work everyday, not counting the time in between. I find that what I have in my car is more than sufficient. I currently have a pair of factory tweeters (dash) 6 1/2 (fronts) and 6X9 Pioneer (rears), some craptacular speakers, and they're loud and clear enough with a Kenwood deck pushing them (~42 watts rms, able to play mp3 and wmas that I paid ~$200 for). I also have a 10 W-2 pushed with a bridged cheapo Sony amp (for the sub only). Been running this rig for 2 years now and I have no problems listening to music in my car. I also have Sirius hooked up to this, which I did myself, that didn't cost me a dime, except for my labor, and monthly subscription.

I have no intention of playing my music for other drivers to hear, nor can I really "enjoy" music while driving. They serve more of an engine noise replacement, if you will, for lack of better entertaining noises (unless you're driving a Ferrari or a Porsche, or similar caliber cars).

If you think that you need more than that, then it's to show off land you go.