|   off topic: I just got my new car!!!! Wooohoooo!!!!! | tugmcmartin
Jun 18, 2003 10:08 AM | | Just took delivery of my brand new Mazda6. I'm all giddy :-). The thing kicks some booty. Got the six cylinder, with leather interior and a sunroof. First car i've owned that has both features. Best handling car i've driven aside from my pop's Audi A8. Not as cushy a ride as some of the others in its class, but i'm not a cushy kinda guy. I like to feel the road.
Now that i got that off my chest, you may now go back to whatever it was you were doing. :-)
Tug |
| So, what kind of sound system is in it? (nt) | PwrPopGuy
Jun 18, 2003 10:18 AM | | |
| Whatever's factory... | tugmcmartin
Jun 18, 2003 10:32 AM | | I could've gotten a Bose package, but i ain't putting any of my money towards that company. So its whatever is factory installed. Doesn't sound bad, but not great either. I'm not one to get into car stereos. To me its pointless cuz the interior dynamics and outside noise make it almost impossible to acheive any remote sense of perfect acoustics inside the vehicle. It does have an in dash 6CD changer, which i'm pretty ambivalent about. |
| You think you can't get good sound in a car interior? Hmmm. | Swish
Jun 18, 2003 2:13 PM | | I'd like you to hear my new JVC that I had installed in my "beater". I bought a '94 Accura Legend coupe as a second car. It's hardly a beater, but I don't like putting a lot of miles on my other car, especially since I plan to trade it in when the new model comes out this fall :-). But I digress. I took out the crappy Bose stereo that was in it (low power and dull, lifeless sound) and put this kick-ass JVC in it. What a difference! I only paid $220 for it and got free installation at Best Buy. The conversion kit and harness were another $30 or so, but it was well worth it. The Bose speakers are ok with it, but I may replace those as well if they start to annoy me.
I drive an awful lot for my job. If I'm not flying, I'm driving. I take plenty of tunes with me and I play them LOUD. The great sound makes such a huge difference in my enjoyment of the music. If you could just do a quick comparison I'm sure you'd agree. If you don't drive much, I guess it won't matter though. Still set for New Orleans next year? I haven't done much with it lately since I've been away so much, but I'll be jumping into it soon.
Regards,
Swish |
| Not quite what i meant... | tugmcmartin
Jun 18, 2003 2:37 PM | | I know its possible to get good sound in a car. I've put out some money on replacing factory stuff and yeah... it can and often does make a difference. I just can't justify spending hundreds upon hundreds of dollars on something that i don't believe will ever sound "ideal" inside a car interior environment. I'd happily plunk down a couple hundred bucks for a more powerful stereo and maybe some better speakers, but if i'm looking at more than say $500, i'm more than likely not gonna spend it on a car stereo. More often than not, i find the factory stuff to be good enough for me. I do a lot of driving too (I had 54000 miles on a two and a half year old truck), but i like to drive with the windows down if possible, so all a stereo needs to be for me is loud enough to hear over the wind. Clarity isn't a huge issue since the wind is gonna drown it out most likely anyway. That said, i wouldn't mind having the Mark Levinson stuff my dad's got in his Lexus in my car. That stuff sounds pretty freaking good. I just wouldn't spend the money on it.
We're still set for N.Orleans. Looking forward to it. :-). |
| What - no pictures? C'mon, it's a new baby! (nt) | JDaniel
Jun 18, 2003 10:23 AM | | |
| here ya go | Jar
Jun 18, 2003 10:30 AM | | Zoom Zoom!! :-) |
| Yep... but mines silver. | tugmcmartin
Jun 18, 2003 10:33 AM | | I'll have to take our office digital camera hostage this PM and take a few shots. I can't gaurantee that i'll figure out how to post them though... |
| Lets try this.... | tugmcmartin
Jun 18, 2003 1:41 PM | | Hope there's a pic attached here... |
| Hey, this is fun, lets try another (hopefully smaller) | tugmcmartin
Jun 18, 2003 1:47 PM | | |
| Is that the new Ford Pixillate? | Finch Platte
Jun 18, 2003 8:23 PM | | :oD
fp |
| NICE | Jar
Jun 19, 2003 6:19 AM | | actually it reminds me a little of the Contour SE SVT.
Have fun with it, I'll have to live vicariously through you since a new car for us is way off in the horizon.. actually, farther than that...lol.
:-)
-jar |
| you must listen to a good SQ car system... | jsujo1
Jun 18, 2003 4:08 PM | | I have heard car systems that sound better than many audiophile's home systems....I work out of my car, and so sold my home system and installed some great gear in my car, and the sound is stunning. Its all in how you manage the limitations and the compromises you make...
I have ScanSpeak tweeters and midbasses, a Lambda Acoustics sub, a tubed driven crossover and McIntosh amps...plus an Alpine processor with quad BurrBrown DAC chips, and time correction...incredible soundstage and imaging... |
| McIntosh for your car?! That's so over the top. | Swish
Jun 18, 2003 6:38 PM | | I'd love to hear that sucker! If you ever pass through South Central PA during one of your drives, give me a holler. I'll meet you on the highway for a sound check. |
| Just bought a Mazda Tribute WITH the Bose system | DLD
Jun 20, 2003 3:26 PM | | Really didn't have a choice if I wanted the factory installed towing option. Decent, no, good sound, but only a hair better than the stock unit in my 626. Higher end being a hair more detailed is the only difference. Calling the rear "Sub" a sub is a bit of a stretch. Like you, I'm ambivalent about the indash changer. By the time it cycles to the next CD, you darn near coulda popped one out a single player and inserted another.
Love that 6. I was all over them in the showroom, but needed something that could tow our boat.... |
| nice!!! | rufus
Jun 20, 2003 7:17 PM | | not that i could afford one right now, but i've been thinking about that for my next car. the only thing i don't like about it is the fancy console that makes putting in an aftermarket stereo more difficult. so i may go for another GTI instead.
is that the full sport package, with red guages and the 17" wheels, or just the appearance package? |
| Appearance package... | tugmcmartin
Jun 21, 2003 3:46 PM | | They have a zero percent financing special right now for non-sports package cars, so i couldn't justify going that route if i could get the zero percent. Though i would've preferred the sports. The ground efx are better looking on the sports. But i'm extremely happy with what i have. Just an unbelievable ride. And the car feels much more expensive than it is. I'm gonna get some 17" wheels when i can afford it... |
| i just can't go for the red guages | rufus
Jun 21, 2003 4:01 PM | | so if i was getting one, i'd go for the appearance package rather than the full sports package as well. plus, i think there's all sorts of fake chrome interior pieces as well, which to me are just tacky looking. |
| Nice car, on my short list | Daigoro
Jun 22, 2003 11:39 AM | | Ultimately I passed on it for 2 reasons. #1 being that the dealer was pushy and obnoxious and wouldn't bargain $1 on the price. #2, I didn't feel the V6 was matched well to the manual transmission. The engine gave me little feedback and it immediately went well into the red line without much fun or fanfare. I was looking for more low-end grunt and wasn't getting it. This car is designed for high speed cruising more than acceleration. But if you're not a speed freak like me and wouldn't mind an automatic transmission, the Mazda6 is an excellent car. Awesome interior to boot!
Ultimately, I've decided to grab a Nissan Altima when the 2004 models come out. The 4 cylinder is actually more fun to drive in my opinion (although the suspension doesn't grip quite as well as the Mazda). I compared specs and found out why. The Nissan 4 makes 180 pounds of torque at 4000rpm vs. the Mazda V6 which only made 192 pounds of torque at 5000rpm! Plus, even though the Altima has a bigger interior and longer wheel base, it is a lighter car. The Nissan 4 loves to rev but stays south of the redline even under hard driving. It is also about $5,000 cheaper at present and probably even more so when the 2004's come out. Too big a gap for me, of meager means, to ignore.
Best of both worlds, put the Nissan 3.5 V6 in the Mazda6 body and suspension. |
| That would be a sweet combo... | tugmcmartin
Jun 23, 2003 6:45 AM | | I checked out the Altima. I didn't go for it for two reasons. First, while it has some incredible get up and go, i really found the way it drove to be pretty bland. It has a sports car engine in a family sedan. The handling was boring. Second, like the Accord, Camry, and Passat, everyone has one nowadays.
Hopefully, in the next 4 years or so the Mazda6 will be equipped with a bigger more powerful engine. I'd like to see the Altima and Mazda6 get into a shameless HP war.
As an aside, its a shame the salesperson wouldn't budge on the price. I ended up going through a leasing/sales consultancy and got an excellent $500 over invoice price. The consultant did all the legwork... the price haggling, financing research, etc. Was a great experience and one i'd recommend to anyone with those services available to them. |
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