[quote:d502601545="katchwreck"]maybe i'm wrong, and correct me if I am, but isnt it usually not a good thing to mix and match components? i.e. if you have jl speakers in the front, you should have them in the back as well.
I could have sworn that I had heard that somewhere before. maybe i'm wrong, feel free to correct me.[/quote:d502601545]
It's extremely common to mix and match components. The reason many people have the idea that it's bad is because all of the competition vehicles they see generally have components from the same vendor. This is usually because they are sponsored (read: paid) to use a specific brand.
I try hard to choose the best sounding product for each application in my vehicles and as with anything "the best" products are always consistently changing. New manufacturers displace old ones and sometimes old manufacturers return to greatness.
3 years ago I was using Eclipse head units, MB Quart for fronts & rears, PPI amps, & JL Audio Subs. I would have never in my wildest dreams have thought I'd use MTX for amps (MTX was considered junk for a long time), drop MB Quart components (they got too bright sounding - quality went downhill), and I never, ever thought I'd start using Eclipse subs over JL audio. IMO - Focal now has the most natural sounding mid/high component set I've ever heard for under $400 - and I've listened to a LOT of component sets. To me, the Eclipse subs have the smoothest, most musical response of any sub - ever. :shock:
So the only thing that I remained brand-loyal to over the past 3 years is the Eclipse head unit!
Anyway - based on
my sound prefs, this combination gets me to my favorite audio sound sweet spot - silky smooth highs, crisp mids, and tight warm musical bass. (I oughta be in product marketing - huh?:lol
I'd certainly agree in theory that it sounds like a good idea to stick with the same brand but FWIW I've never come across a single manufacturer that could do everything really well.
(and believe me - I'm such an Eclipse fanatic I only WISH that someday they can do it all well)
P.S. I chose the JL's for the rear doors because they are a warm sounding coaxial with very respectable (not harsh) tweets. The reality is that in any good system, you fade down the back speakers quite a bit anyway though so they don't compete with the front soundstage - rather they just supplement it for the back seat listeners. Most people looking for sound quality just use them for filler.
