Posted this in the electronics forum but thought I'd see what response I'd get on here.

Understandably, I got fed up with the crappy stock stereo and have now upgraded.

I have:

HU Alpine CDA-9831R
Fronts: Velocity 6.5 components
Rears: Rockford Fosgate T152C

this is a vast improvement over the stock system, but I am still not entirely satisfied. I find that when I turn the volume up above 23 (out of a max of 35) the sound starts to distort.

The HU is 4x50 watts so the speakers should cope alright with this.

Will the distortion be cured by the addition of an amplifier? What difference will this make?

thanks.

 

It is probably the V drive internal amp distorting I would look for a compact 4 channel amp and try that! Works for me!

 

 

four speakers off of a head unit amp

an amp will make the world of difference, however needs some proper cabling and plumbing in.

 

An amp will always be an improvement over using the HU to power the speakers. Also you will be able to turn off the internal amp on the 9831 which will improve sound quality.

However the Blaupunkt velocity speakers aren't the best, so if you are looking for an dramatic improvement in sound quality you may be better replacing these as well.

 

BTW, I found external amps are a lot louder than their numbers suggest and the opposite applies to the HU amps. i.e. they say they can do 50 per channel but not without distorting.