911rox

Slightly off topic but do the standard cd or nav units in the current crop of gt3s have RCA (or other) outputs for adding amplification and upgrading speakers???

mooty

contraire...
the ML2 is 25watts only!
but it flows enough current to do arc welding. can drive.0001ohm stuff ;-) they dont make amps like that anymore.

Bergamasco

Sorry guys that I just picked up this thread but I am wondering if you could comment on a dilema that I am facing but have not quite yet resolved. I have a '98 993 C4S with a silver faceplate Alpine CDA 9827 from the previous owner. It doesn't sound completely terrible but certainly isn't great. Cosmetically it is a disaster because like most it looks like a flippin video console. I don't want to spend the money nor change the look of the car to add an amplifier but I do want reasonable sound quality and something which looks classic to compliment the looks of the dash. I have decided that my budget is up to $600. Nakamichi has the CD 500 and the MB-X which seem quite good but I am concerned that since they are no longer in North America it may be difficult to get service if I am to need it. Becker seems to be the only solution but it seems that the Nak has a definite sound quality advantage. I have seen the new Clarion 506 which might perhaps be the simplest of the modern decks but I am thinking that the build and sound quality could be fair at best. Any comments? Thanks in advance.

J.PELLEGRINO

I too am a hardcore audiophile and I must disagree. I know some of the people that have developed the Bose systems for Porsche and as much as Bose is not all that well regarded (gross understatement) in the home audio world, they are one of the very few companies with the engineering chops to do a good job in a car application....Jerry

Bill_C4S

And weighing in the red corner at 240 lbs each...is this little gem...for a little over $80k per pair

http://www.boulderamp.com/index_flash.html

The Boulder 2050 Monoblocks...

SPECIFICATIONS
OUTPUT POWER 1000W / 8,4,2 Ohms; PEAK POWER 2000W / 4 Ohms, 4000W / 2 Ohms ;
POWER 120 VAC, 50 - 60 Hz, 5000 W Max

Heavy enough?

J.PELLEGRINO

Bill, are you a boulder guy?....nice amps....I have heard them and they are wonderful...I have to make due with a 1060..Jerry

Bill_C4S

Spectral monoblocks are my persuasion...but saw the Boulder 2050's at Goodwin's couple of weeks back....impressive amps.

"Making do?" with a 1060....lol Tough life ;-)

Bergamasco

They look to be a bit on the large size to tuck under the front seats. LOL (I'll have to stick with my Primare I30 for now with Kef 107/2)

ltc

Correct
Yes

ltc

Not true.
I know a few of the folks behind the design....quite talented and experienced in OEM automotive audio design
And besides, it may also be a bit of a 'branding' exercise...name recognition, marketing, etc.

ltc

No names

mooty

bose in porsche is not bad, however, it's FAR from being audiophile quality.

boulder is a nice neutral brute house, but lacks passion. of course i am biased as i am still partial to things like sonus fabor, kiseki, koetsu, benz micro, CJ premier 7 and 8, marantz 8 , 9 and 10... does caramel means anything ;-)

spectral, i spoke with keith johnson long ago (is here still around?), though not my cup of tea, its neutrality and ability to control driver movement with the DMC series is just incredible.

OldGuy

THe GT3 is the worst auto stereo platform in the history of cars. The music is ALWAYS competing with the
symphony coming out of the back.

Bill_C4S

Mooty - Keith Johnson is very much around and active at Spectral, also has his hands in at Reference Recordings and some association with Berkeley Audio Design.

Indulge your caramel, can appreciate its seduction. My ears take me in a different direction but well respect your choices. How is the ML2 holding up? That is an amp I envied many a time...

mooty

nice, as you can see, i am bankrupt from the automobile disease and haven't followed audio in years. and home theater absolute drives me nuts. i just want TWO speakers, no more.

i have a lot of ref recording, on vinyl, but that's also a while back. now $ goes to track tires, pads, oil and such.

ML 2 is great. i have it paired with ML6B (eat your heart out ;-). but that system sits in my folks house in LA. i dont have space for dedicated sound room now.

so are you in the martin-logan/Quad quick and transparent camp, or AE/WATT-Puppy revealing and make 90% of the current recording sounds like pigs squealing camp, or neutral but still on the caramel side of avalon, thiel camp or the bigger than life B&W and dynaudio stuff?