[Vantastic]

I have a EX arriving soon and was thinking about adding the subwoofer but I
have a few questions for those who have it installed.

1.What is the standard price Honda charges to purchase and install the
subwoofer?

2.What is the best price you have negotiated with the dealer for purchase
and install?

3.Would an aftermarket brand have better sound and be a less expensive buy?

4.I have seen Handa's sub and they recommend a professional install it. How would I have it installed if I buy through Handa?

Sorry about all the questions, I did a search for subs and came up empty. Any other information you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

 

[shindog]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Vantastic:

1.What is the standard price Honda charges to purchase and install the
subwoofer?
</font>

It really varies dealer to dealer, and depends on how crooked they are in how much they wanna gouge you. List price is $299.
In terms of installation, again it varies, but you should calibrate yourself by asking what the dealer's hourly labor rate for service is, and then use an approximation of 1-2 hours MAX to install the thing.

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">
3.Would an aftermarket brand have better sound and be a less expensive buy?
</font>

Aftermarket is a double edged sword. If you are looking for something nicely integrated and compact, the Kelton is hard to beat because it was designed specifically for the Ody. There are other "better" options out there on a sound quality perspective, but again, you trade off the integration.

I have not personally heard the Kelton, but from what I've read here, it fills in the low end nicely, but will be boomy for the purist's ear. If you are willing to sacrifice some space in back, you could get cleaner, louder sound for ~$200

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">
4.I have seen Handa's sub and they recommend a professional install it. How would I have it installed if I buy through Handa?
</font>

If you buy it from HandA, you should be able to get a local dealer install it. Many people have done this. Again, just shop around. If you get a dealer to install it, they should warrant the installation since it is a factory accessory. The other option is find an experienced mobile electronics installer who guarantees his/her work... This would be a piece of cake for that type, provide you print the instructions for them.

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">
Sorry about all the questions, I did a search for subs and came up empty. Any other information you could give me would be greatly appreciated.</font>

The search isn't working well because Jim is working on migrating the site over to new software...

Please feel free to ask more questions regarding this or anything else; that's what this board is for!

I'm sure many others will chime in, esp. those who have this piece installed.. (adam?)

In terms of advice, well, prioritize your wants, shop around, and audition if you can.
If you are planning on keeping your stock head unit and are looking to improving system sound quality overall, look at upgrading, at a minimum, your front door speakers. Then evaluate and see what's missing. If its bass, then a sub is a good option.

Otherwise, if you have greater plans/more budget, let us know!

If you


------------------
-Shin John
'01 DEP EX, and I'm workin' on it! (slowly)

 

[trapro]

My dealership knocked down the price from $399 to $305 installed. I think it is worthwhile to have the dealarship do it, especially after reading the installation manual for the sub at Hand A.

 

[stoneman]

I purchased the Kelton SW and the 6-disc changer from Handa for less than $600 total. Installation of the changer is trivial; the SW took ~2 hrs. Even though the install intructions are several pages, the install was pretty straightforward. Drilling the dash trim for the SW switch was not my idea of fun, so I located the switch next to the temp sensor under the sterring wheel (still a hole to drill, but more out of sight).

I also installed Infinity Kappa 63.3 speakers in the front doors (easy to do, just cut the water shields out with a utility knife to make room), and JL Audio 6" 2-ways in the rear locations (harder to mount, but still just a few mintues of work). I used harnesses to mate with the stock speaker plugs to avoid wire cutting in the car.

Overall sound is pretty good - not as good as a quality aftermarket head unit driving dedicated amps and a separate SW, but given the zero footprint of the Kelton, still not bad at all. The bass lacks the deep foundation I get with my 4th order box with 2-10" Bostons in my Accord, but waddya expect for a 10x2x12" package?

Bottom line: if you are really into the best possible sound, plan on dedicating your wallet and some floor space for amps and an aftermarket SW - otherwise, upgrade the speakers, add the Kelton, and enjoy the cargo room.

 

[Vantastic]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by trapro:
My dealership knocked down the price from $399 to $305 installed. I think it is worthwhile to have the dealarship do it, especially after reading the installation manual for the sub at Hand A. </font>

My Ex came in today( no not my EXwife) and I followed your advise and talked the dealer from $471 to $300 installed. I too agree that by having the dealer install the sub all my electronics are under one warranty and I don't have to worry about damaging a $27,000 van. I will eventually upgrade the speakers which I can install my self. Thanks for your response you gave me a good price to throw at the dealer.