You could call your lender (American Honda Finance Corp, or other), and they will tell you that you do not need their permission to put an aftermarket radio in the car....

I can assure you that it's stadard verbage that they print on the back of all of their contracts. It would not mean that you are in default if you put in an aftermarket sound system.

Once you are 30 days late on a payment, that's a different story, they will likely not do anything @ 30 days (usually at least 60 days before they do). However, they do have the right to, and may begin reposession actions on the 31st day of being past due on a payment, if they do not believe that they are going to get their money....

Wow thanks everyone for all your replies. This has helped me alot, and I am going to the dealership today to ask about all the warranty information. i really don't want to void the warranty becasue my dad paid for the extended one so he would be pissed.

gumby, nice system

pyro, it does really come down to what you are looking for. For the most part my stock HCH I system is enough for me, I would like a little more though. Maybe they might have a HCH II with the Honda bass system installed, take a listen and see if you like it. It might be enough. I believe the stock speakers are 5 1/4", so if you want to replace them, find some nice ones. I personally avoid custom shops because of overpricing. You can change the front ones even if you get the bass system for the back, it should be hard to find 5 1/4 bass speakers unless they are midbass from a component system (midbass and tweeter usually comes with a crossover), so the Honda system is probably the best bet. I reccommend a capacitor (which you would not need with a stock system, even with the Honda bass system upgrade) simply because I would not want you to draw excessively from the Hybrid system. I have run an 18, 2 10s, and 2 8s off a mono sub amp @ 2 ohms without a capacitor. But the amp only put out 300W RMS @ 2 ohms (still very loud, and could compete in a beginner SPL class).

Describe what you don't like with the stock system. Maybe one of us could help you better if we understood exactly what you are looking for.

Gumby is right, you really don't need a bunch of 'boom', sound quality is much more important. Having high sound quality gives you a full sound including clear highs and accurate bass. I do admit though, a subwoofer (like JL quality) is going to give you the deeper tones than the Honda bass system could ever dare to produce, but look at the speakers output first. MTX subs come with a chart that shows the output across the sound range (Hz vs SPL). Usually for a given speaker, the greater the size, the lower the note it can it. My 18" can reproduce sub-sonic frequencies (down to about 10 Hz). That is something most people don't care about though. Human hearing can (on average) on hear down to about 20-25 Hz, I can hear a bit lower honestly, but what you get at the lower frequencies is the vibration, you would be shocked to know there are quite a few songs that have sub-sonic resonances. It also comes done to what your stereo can reproduce as well. CD players usually do 5 Hz -25,000 Hz FM 20 - 18,000 (I may be a bit outdated, especially with the new HD radios).

Do some research, talking, etc as gumby suggested. Even if you don't plan on buying from Crutchfield, they have a TON of information to get you up to speed on a lot of things.

Oh, and I am sure it would be best not to run a big upgraded system without the car running for very long, the 12V is rather small in the HCHs

Best of luck to you!

Thanks, Shaun!

No kidding - the 12V battery is small!

I always thought the FM freq was 30-15,000 Hz.

Pyro, at any rate, don't get TOO carried away until you know more. Especially in a hybrid, as you may be taxing the hybrid's EXPENSIVE IMA battery system for all the current you draw. Make sure folks know what they're doing before adding a lot of high-powered amps to your hybrid.
That's why Shaun is insistant on considering a capacitor if you go high-power. I concur.

Remember that better speakers should usually be the first step taken for better sound.

I also, DO want to check out that Honda BASS system. It might get me by for that little extra "kick" - and is designed with the Hybrid's slightly more delicate nature in mind.

Good look!

Steve

STOP terrorism - Drive a HYBRID

Vehicles:
350 miles a week ------------ 2006 HCH II, Magnetic Pearl, w/NAVI (born on May 25, 2006)
350 miles a month ---------- 2003 Mazda Tribute ES-V6
350 miles a year (for now) - 1986 Mercedes 560SL

You all know that a cap is not going to lower the average power draw, only smooth out the peaks correct?

yes.
Seems to me, that would be a desireable thing in general, and especially with the IMA system.

Steve

STOP terrorism - Drive a HYBRID

Vehicles:
350 miles a week ------------ 2006 HCH II, Magnetic Pearl, w/NAVI (born on May 25, 2006)
350 miles a month ---------- 2003 Mazda Tribute ES-V6
350 miles a year (for now) - 1986 Mercedes 560SL

yes, but I am worried about the musical peaks. They can kill an altenator, so I am sure the IMA regulators and such are not impervious to the same thing. I also think about draw, but with a smaller class D amp, it won't be huge, around the same or less than the cool or heat seat ( www.coolorheat.com ).

I just want him to be satisfied and trouble free.

I really think changing the stock radio is completely unecessary. Better speakers that have a higher sensitivity, and a wider frequency range will make a much bigger improvement. Sony makes a set of 5 1/4" 4-ways that should really bring out the highs and mids (and at a decent price), add that with the Honda bass system, it should be quite full sound without adding any load that wasn't intended for the car.

I think a viable alternative if that is not enough would be the bass shakers that go under the seats, it would add a little bit more of the low end but add the 'feel' of the big system.

I know my mirrors shake with the stock system, and it sounds reasonably good. I haven't changed anything for I do believe I will be upgrading to a HCH II within the next year or less, unless something really special jumps out at me before then. I just hope they keep making the Magnetic Pearl with blue interior, or I get the money up I need to before the 06 model is completely gone.

Gumby, on the money! the Sony CD reciever I like the most, that is its exact range. I do remember different numbers in the past, but I think the specs have become better in respect to quality and real power output at the ranges than before. This same reciever has 10 Hz as its CD low range ... but I recall 5 Hz for all Sonys about 10 years ago. I happen to be partial to Sony head units and home products.

WOW! you guys are great! All the ifo ahs really helped. Ok i know you need more information to help me though. Ok, I listen to mostly rap and some rock. So i really wanted tump, and i listened to the honda bass kit becasue my friend has it and it is not nearly enough for me. I have around $800 to spend on this project, not including installation because i have a couple contacts that can do all the installation for me. I was thinking an alpine headunit, and replacing the front speakers with new, higher quality ones. i was looking arund, and i was faced with a problem, here are component and coaxial and i dont know the difference. The componentns look like they have some kind of card or something. And they both come with tweeters which i dont know where i would put those. Now, I don't want to sacrifice trunk space so a big bozx is out of the question. Now i went to a steroeo shop and i saw that they had stealth boxes from JL audio and this was looking very good for me. Until I found out they were only for coupes!!! So I was thinking to replace my rear deck speakers with 2 subs, instead of my original plan of just one sub. And I'm still condfused about this whole IMA thing so Why don't i just get a bigger more powerful battery so the steroe guys dont even **** with the IMA system thing becasue i'm sure they've never worked on a hybrid. And i guess i'll get a capicotr too, where would this go anyway/ because ive noticed it has some kind of display thing. Thanks guys!!! As you can see i know nothing

get a good pair of coaxials ... unless you want to cut into your interior to install the tweeters, those are not cards, they are crossovers that will put certain sound frequencies to each speaker so the play in their intended range. Coaxials have all that built-in, and the more drivers (2,3,4-way) the more dedicated the individual driver is to a particular sound range, which in general will get you better sound. There are three different brands offering 4-ways on Crutchfield that fit the Hybrid front, one brand for the rear (front can fit 6 1/2", rear only 5 1/4").

You really don't need a big box or speaker for a decent amount of 'thump'. You may be able to use a 5 channel amplifier, 4ch to run the highs and 1 for a sub. A 12" rated for a small box (usually less than 2 cu. ft.) would take up minimal trunk space, and beats cutting into your rear deck (which you would HAVE to do to put subs in it ... those are only 5 1/4" openings). If you have a good sub, with ample power, it will KICK.

I still think the capacitor is a good idea, it goes in-between the battery and the amplifier. Look at one of my prior post for a longer description.

I don't know if a bigger battery will fit, and that really isn't going to make as large of a difference, but coupled with a low draw amp and a capacitor, I think you will be in good shape. A battery is mainly used for a) turning the starter to crank up your car (in ours only if the IMA is dead), or b) run accessories when the car is off (otherwise the altenator/IMA is providing power). If you were going to replace it, go with an Optima deep cycle battery (expensive though), it works well at long periods of engine off power drains, but I still don't reccommend it doing that too often.

I still don't think you need to replace the head unit!!!!!! Try some new front speakers on an amp that is rated for the speakers. $800 isn't much for all of the components you want, you will end up getting sub-par somewhere.

Here is what I think would work in your price range. (part info copied from crutchfield)

Sony XS-V1642A
6-1/2"/6-3/4" 4-way speakers

H.O.P. woofer • cloth surround • paper balanced-dome midrange • paper dome tweeter • film dome supertweeter • power range 2-55 watts RMS

$69.99




Sony XS-V1342A
5-1/4" 4-way

H.O.P. woofer • paper balanced-dome midrange • paper dome tweeter • film dome supertweeter • power range 2-45W RMS

$64.99


Alpine Type-S SWS-1022D
10" Dual 2-ohm Component

Kevlar® reinforced pulp cone with aluminum finish • Santoprene rubber surround • dual 2-ohm voice coils • 50-300W RMS power range • 30-1,000 Hz frequency response

$129.99


JBL GTO755.6 II
60W X 4 + 107W X 2

160 watts RMS x 2 + 300 watts RMS x1 in bridged mode • optional internal neon lighting (tubes not included) • variable high-/low-pass filters • speaker-level inputs • preamp outputs • bass boost

$399.99


Q-Logic QLH-.6510SS
Single 10" Hatch/Trunk Box-Vol=.65 cubic


Type 1 sealed enclosure • gray carpet • width: 13-1/4" • height: 14-3/8" • bottom depth: 14" • top depth: 8-3/4"

$84.99


Tsunami Lite Wave Capacitor
1.2-farad with Blue LCD Meter

1.2-farad cap • 24-volt surge • digital LCD readout

$99.99


This setup gives you four new 4-way speakers, a 10" sub capable of 300W RMS (LOUD), a box suitible for the sub and VERY small, so doesn't take up much space. The amp you would run normally to your 4-way coaxials, and the two sub channels would run one each to each voice coil (which will pull 300W RMS, so the sub and the amp output is matched). You might want to keep your gained turned down a bit to not overpower the coaxials, but I think your head would hurt if you had it turned up loud enough to do that any length of time. Set up the crossover on the sub channels to 80 Hz or lower ... the other channels 60 Hz or higher.

The cost of these parts is approx. $750. This does not include, 1) power cables (positive and negative), fuse misc. items 2) speaker wire/RCA cables to/from amp 3) s&h/tax/etc.

If you order from crutchfield, they give you 90% of the time factory connectors so you don't have to splice any wires.

This will not be the best system money can buy, but it will be very close to the best $800 can get you.

Gumby, if you want to check that out and see if it gets your ok, or if you can suggest something better, I am open

You should only consider this capacitor business if you're really building a super-thumper. If you're upgrading the dash unit and using a normal subwoofer and just want a decent upgrade, you're not going to need a capacitor. They're for bass-freaks who want to wake up the whole neighborhood.

My personal bias is that nobody needs a capacitor because there's no need to use that much power creating seismic events with your car. It's unnecessary and it annoys people. I suppose I show my age with that comment, but you really can get a great sounding car stereo, that you can play quite loud, without the need for a capacitor or even a subwoofer if you get good speakers.