most people go with the brands they see in the big box stores and think those are the best brands. truth is there are better brands but you have probally never heard of them. im going to show you some brands you can get dirt cheap on ebay and are still top quality. also im going to give you some system ideas in a certain price range.

lets start with the head. the head unit is the base of your entire system. look for one with at least one preout if you want amplifiers. three preouts is optimum. choose a brand your getting peace of mind with. also look for ipod controls, auxillary inputs, usb hubs in the front or back, satellite radio ready, hd radio ready, bluetooth ready, and mp3/wma playback. choose the features you will use the most and narrow them down then pick and choose your head.

if you are looking for good sound while not dropping a load of cash here are some suggestions. pick some good speakers for cheap. audiopipe speakers look great and have good bass responce and typically come with free tweeters so you are basically making a component set in a way. a bazooka tube with an amp built in will give you the taste of bass you need. if you want more bass go with some ma audio or soundstorm subwoofers. these have the best value on ebay. for amplifiers i suggest sony or bazooka amps, they are good for the price and are great starter amps. get a sealed box for sound quality, a ported box for more bass responce while still retaining some sound quality, and a bandpass box for the most boom for the buck, just expect to loose sound quality in a bandpass box

a good mid level system is one with nice highs and reinforcing bass. a good choice is a good four channel amp such as a soundstream or cadence. both of these companies under rate their stuff considerably. for speakers i would suggest some good coaxial speakers such as soundstream, kicker, infinity, kenwood and pioneer. for the low bass sanction i would suggest a crunch, autotek, soundstream, cadence, powerbass, or infinity amplifier. good subs would be the soundstream t5s, refurbished kicker L5s or L7s, cadence, or hifonics.

and finally for a system with rediculus bass to beat the block down and win competitions. use the same mid level speakers and 4 channel amps. buy a high for amps i suggest hifonics, autotek, clif designs, audiobahn 5000spl, ma audio, mmats, and us amps. i suggest building your own box for maximum slam. for the subwoofers i suggest, jl audio w7s, cerwin vega stroker, cadence daytona, soundstream splx, soundstream xxx, kicker l7s or kicker solo x, re audio, mmats juggernaut, rockford fosgate t2s, ma audio hard kore, hifonics, alpine type x, or kicker cvx's. lots to choose from but very loud.

just a few last tips, invest in good wires, use the correct wire gauges, always use proper fuses, and finally install it right.

remember your car audio system is only as good as your weakest link.