I want to upgrade the stereo in my 99.5 A4. It does not have the bose speakers. I also don't want to spend a ton of money on the stereo as the majority of my money is going into my S4.

So here is what I was thinking:
Keep the stock head unit and wire up an ipod adapter.
Add Sub using line level converter

Now for the main Question. What should I do for the remaining speakers? Keep in mind I don't want to spend a ton of money. The only reason I am adding a sub and amp is because I had a spare one laying around. I really don't want to buy another one to run the other speakers off of if I don't have to.

Any suggestions?

 

If you are going to use a line level converter your sub with have a lot of distortion in it! They are not great for sound quality at all! Remember Power will not kill a sub distortion will.

If you want to stay cheapI would go with the Infinity Reference series! You can get them on the web for around 50 bucks a set and sound quality is decent. I think they are by far the best bang for the buck! Remember even if you get the size thatthey call foryou will still need to build a bracket so they will fit. Simple to do just want to give ya the heads up and run a new amp to power the speakers they will sound much better then using your factory amp/head unit. [/align]

 

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If you are going to use a line level converter your sub with have a lot of distortion in it!

True the sound quality will not be the best with a line level converter but they are more than sufficient. If you are not an audiphile you are not going to truly notice the distorion, especially through leather seats.

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If you want to stay cheapI would go with the Infinity Reference series!

Thanks! I will look into the reference series.

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Simple to do just want to give ya the heads up and run a new amp to power the speakers they will sound much better then using your factory amp/head unit.

I really don't want to run another amp as that means I would have to buy one.(trying to save money for a coilover system for my S4)Is it even worth it to replace the factory speakers if I am not going to run an amp? Will the factory head unit even supply enough power?

 

You're going to have to unless you want a shitty sound system. Your subs will be unreliable and distorted as ****; the stock deck DOES have an amp, but I'd suggest upgrading your mids/highs using that, and running another amp to the subs. You can get a decent setup for $600-700, but don't think that you can go much cheaper than that without sacrificing quality. If you're going to spend a couple hundred dollars, might as well save up a bit longer so you can get a much cleaner, more reliable system, right? I'm not saying go for a competition-grade system, just don't go cheap.

 

Sorry I should clarify, my first post might have been misleading.

I already have a sub and amp which I will hook up using the line level converter.

I just don't want to buy another amp for the fronts and back speakers. So... Is it worth it to replace the factory speakers if I don't run an amp to them?

 

I actually got some cheapass Bazooka speakers to replace the blown ones in my rear deck and they don't sound half bad. Better than the ones that I pulled out.

 

Dont use a line level converter, they are junk. Slide your head unit out (you need speacial keys, dealer might do it for free) and splice some female RCA's into your RR and RL speaker wires going into the HU, hook up male RCA's to themand run them along the interiror bottom trim to the trunk/amp.

 

Alright I get it, you guys are not fans of a line level converter. However, I have used one ina previous audi and in all honesty I could not tell the difference between running a line level converter vs. using RCA's. I guess my ears are not as sensitive to the bass in the trunk.

Isn't splicing into the head unit pretty much the same as using a line level converter? Either way you are splicing to get the signal.

I think I will replace the fronts first and see how those sound running of the HU. I guess if all else fails I can get another amp. It would just be awhile because I have to save up some cash for coilovers.

 

Yes it is amost the same! But most new high end amps dont have a place for you to use a line level converter! The RCA can just carry a better signal then what the line level can.

What kind of anp and subs are you using?

 

A line level converter just grabs the signal from your speakers and outputs it into rca jacks which inturn plugs into the amp. So there would be some signal loss but I don't think it would be any worse than tapping into the stock head unit. Especially since I am only using it for a sub.

Kenwood Amp and Subs - not sure of the model # but they are about two years old (excelon series?)