Rockford Fosgate Sound
I am a bit of an audiophile myself. All I can say is the car is one of the worst acoustic chambers you can have. I would LOVE to have great quality music from my car, but since that is not possible, I just listen to the radio on the stock stereo, and listen to my home setup for my music kicks. It beats most if not all high-end car stereo system, simply because of the environment.
Drem,
With the Navigation unit you can add amps and other aftermarket products to the unit. You will have to have the factory amp rewired around either way to get close to the sound you are looking for. But the navigation unit has many more options for expandability. The rear camera is plugged into the navigation unit with a standard composite video connector.
With the Navigation unit you can add amps and other aftermarket products to the unit. You will have to have the factory amp rewired around either way to get close to the sound you are looking for. But the navigation unit has many more options for expandability. The rear camera is plugged into the navigation unit with a standard composite video connector.
I have an IASCA World Finals podium place to my name, and totally disagree. While, yes, the car doesn't image worth a damn, the tonal balance is actually amazingly good. The bass has really great extension for an open air sub.Drem wrote:My previous car I built for car audio competition. We're not talking a stereo to blow out windows (though it is capable of high volume). We are talking a stereo so musically intense that it makes you feel like you are part of the music... or that your music is being played live, right in front of you. People say it's more like an experience than simply listening to music.
When I listen to a stereo, that is what I expect. It's like expecting this car to speed like a Ferrari when I don't have a Ferrari engine or pay Ferrari prices. Expecting more from this stereo was my own fault. I guess I was simply trying to say that while you may think you are listening to a "Ferrari" of a sound system in this car, you aren't. You are listening to a souped up lawnmower by comparison to what an aftermarket car stereo is capable of.
I don't mean for this post to sound negative; I apologize if it is. This really is a bad stereo though guys. If you think it sounds good though, that's great. Enjoy it and don't dig for better (because you will find better, much better, and it's not cheap).
Love my Kizashi so far though.
I have to run the fader almost all the way front to get the image in front, and even then the image is not really focused, wandering all over the place.
2011 Sport SLS with nav Black Pearl Metallic
I have been extremely pleased with how the Rockford Fosgate system has performed. For a factory system in a vehicle at this price point, I don't think I have heard much better. I especially like the ability to have USB compatibility and be able to use the ipod. Really couldn't be happier.
I don't know what to say to this.~tc~ wrote:I have an IASCA World Finals podium place to my name, and totally disagree. While, yes, the car doesn't image worth a damn, the tonal balance is actually amazingly good. The bass has really great extension for an open air sub.
I have to run the fader almost all the way front to get the image in front, and even then the image is not really focused, wandering all over the place.
Good for a stock system I might let you have, but if you are trying sell me on this stereo being good in some way beyond an entry level, I'm just going to shake my head and walk away.
I can place in an IASCA without knowing anything too, that just takes money to pay someone who does.
2011 - Sport SLS AWD - Platinum Silver
I'll let the somewhat personal attack slide. Suffice it to say i was fresh out of college at the time, and definitely couldnt afford to just drop the truck off at the shop for months/years and then tow it from competition to competition. I was definitely the poor guy in a rich person's sport with my little '89 reg cab 2WD Toyota pickup competing against cars that were 5-10 years newer, and many not daily driven as my car was.
So back On topic - what specific issue do you have with the stock system? Saying it is "bad" or "entry level" can easily be interpreted as "I don't really know what I'm talking about, but everyone says factory systems are bad, so this one must be too".
For those reading this, here's a rundown of how car audio competition works and the terminology. First is tonal accuracy and balance - pretty simple, do the instruments and voices sound realistic and is the amount of treble/mid/bass well balanced, are there frequency ranges that are too prominent, or missing? Next is soundstaging, basically the overall presentation of width, height, and breadth of the stage itself, ideally you want it to seem wider than the car. Lastly is imaging which defines the placement of the particular people on that stage. They should be spaced appropriately from left to right, and front to back. Obtaining a wide, 3D soundstage with precisely placed images is an extreme challenge.
Tonally, this system does very well, at least mine with the nav head does, perhaps the "stock" system is different. It has good extension both high and low, smooth frequency response (I admit I haven't thrown an RTA on it) and well balanced highs/mid/lows.
The system produces a suitably wide soundstage. Certainly not outside the pillars, but believable.
I will fully agree that this system doesn't image for $4!+, but, in my experience, imaging hits diminishing returns very quickly. To really evaluate truly fine imaging, you have to concentrate quite hard, and can't really do that while you're driving, especially with the spirited driving this chassis encourages.
So, where does your evaluation differ from mine? Or are you just another of the sheeple, along with the web wheelers, thinking because it is stock, it must be entry level ...
So back On topic - what specific issue do you have with the stock system? Saying it is "bad" or "entry level" can easily be interpreted as "I don't really know what I'm talking about, but everyone says factory systems are bad, so this one must be too".
For those reading this, here's a rundown of how car audio competition works and the terminology. First is tonal accuracy and balance - pretty simple, do the instruments and voices sound realistic and is the amount of treble/mid/bass well balanced, are there frequency ranges that are too prominent, or missing? Next is soundstaging, basically the overall presentation of width, height, and breadth of the stage itself, ideally you want it to seem wider than the car. Lastly is imaging which defines the placement of the particular people on that stage. They should be spaced appropriately from left to right, and front to back. Obtaining a wide, 3D soundstage with precisely placed images is an extreme challenge.
Tonally, this system does very well, at least mine with the nav head does, perhaps the "stock" system is different. It has good extension both high and low, smooth frequency response (I admit I haven't thrown an RTA on it) and well balanced highs/mid/lows.
The system produces a suitably wide soundstage. Certainly not outside the pillars, but believable.
I will fully agree that this system doesn't image for $4!+, but, in my experience, imaging hits diminishing returns very quickly. To really evaluate truly fine imaging, you have to concentrate quite hard, and can't really do that while you're driving, especially with the spirited driving this chassis encourages.
So, where does your evaluation differ from mine? Or are you just another of the sheeple, along with the web wheelers, thinking because it is stock, it must be entry level ...
2011 Sport SLS with nav Black Pearl Metallic
I agree there. With the fader/balance at center, I get too much of the left rear. I set it toward the front right - a little to the right of the handbrake.~tc~ wrote: I have to run the fader almost all the way front to get the image in front, and even then the image is not really focused, wandering all over the place.
Former driver of a 2011 SLS AWD Platinum
I think the nav uses a pioneer system and not the Rockford Fosgate. However I have heard great things about the RF, maybe more than the Pioneer. I would love to hear your opinion on the RF though. Maybe when you get a chance you can drop by a dealership and try out the RF stereo?~tc~ wrote: Tonally, this system does very well, at least mine with the nav head does, perhaps the "stock" system is different. It has good extension both high and low, smooth frequency response (I admit I haven't thrown an RTA on it) and well balanced highs/mid/lows.
The nav is sourced from Kenwood, to my knowledge, the rest of it is the same.
That could be a big problem as NOBODY has any Kizashi in stock here in Houston. Mine had to be ordered from California.
That could be a big problem as NOBODY has any Kizashi in stock here in Houston. Mine had to be ordered from California.
2011 Sport SLS with nav Black Pearl Metallic
First, don't be surprised if the amp is bad... from what I can figure about 10% of them have failed. I had mine tested... failed. Got it replaced, and after tooling around with the sound settings I am happy. I found it makes a HUGE difference in bass response as far as what you have your settings at. If you keep your mid down to +1 and crank your bass, you will get it thumping so hard you literally can't see out the rear view mirror. I will see what I have mine set at exactly and report back, but believe me, it makes a huge difference. If you have your mid too high it seems like it totally sucks the punch out of the bass for some weird reason.
All things considered, I'm happy with my RF system. It doesn't feel like 425 watts, but it's plenty for me and shakes the mirrors enough.
All things considered, I'm happy with my RF system. It doesn't feel like 425 watts, but it's plenty for me and shakes the mirrors enough.
Kizashi SLS CVT Azure Gray Metallic