I think the head unit your son picked will do well. I also think you're right in that he picked it because of the graphics too. He could have saved probably $100 or more by not getting it, but it's his car.

As for the speakers, do what Oaf says and try to listen to them at places. Talk to the people there about what they might recommend too. Make sure that the speakers will fit in the car! Drilling a couple extra holes is not too big of a deal, but when you have to start adding mounting boards, be careful as the price can quickly go up. $400 should get you a pretty good set of speakers for the front and back. I think this this is about the price/performance cutoff where you start having to pay a lot more to get a little better performance.

With the speaker types, I think you are trying to say 5 1/4" or 6 1/2" coaxials up front (you called them "rounds"). These have the 5 1/4" or 6 1/2" speaker with a tweeter mounted at the center. Two way will have one tweeter there, three way will have two tweeters. I don't know if there's that much of a quality difference and three way tends to cost just a little more. Also available are component speakers which will have the tweeter and midrange separate. These generally cost more than coaxials. The rear speakers are usually 5x7, or the more common 6x9 (you called them "ovals"). These come in two or three way also.

The subwoofer will be a very interesting debate when that comes around. In a car it's incredibly complex how many ways there are to fit them in.

I haven't heard of Rockford Fosgate speakers, but I have heard of their amps and subs. They seem to be pretty popular, definitely something to look into.

I know this because I have recently done some things to my car. I have a '98 Intrepid with an Alpine 7892 receiver with stock Infinity speakers (I think these are the reference series actully). 6 1/2" components up front and 6x9s in the back. I currently have an Infinity Kappa Perfect 12.1d sub in a sealed box with a 600 watt JBL amp. I'm currently building a dual vented box to put in though. Be interesting to see how this works out.


[This message has been edited by BenjaminRigby (edited October 02, 2002).]