# Out with the really old, in with the less-old while shopping for new



## SUX 2BU (Oct 27, 2008)

I have a system in my C10 that uses a lot of old gear because I like the equipment from the 'golden age' when I was first getting interested in car audio in the late 80s/early 90s: 
Alpine CDA-117 (2010)
Alpine 3656 x-over (1989)
Alpine 3523 amp (1989)
Alpine 3539 amp x 2 (1989)
Kicker C10-4 "gold letter" but I recently replaced that with a Dayton DCS255-4 because I was curious
B&W 7" midbass/midrange (1999)
TangBand 1" soft-dome tweeters (Dynaudio D25 rip-offs) (2004)

For 30+ year old equipment, the Alpine gear has worked like a champ. But my 3656 is showing signs of it's old age. The RCA connections on the old Alpine stuff gets brittle and loses connection intermittently. I've had to replace the RCA's on multiple Alpine amps with new RCA pigtails soldered to the board due to fatigue. Same thing happened to the 3401 parametric eq I also have but I haven't replaced the RCA's yet. The 3656 is the latest victim.

So I replaced it with an AltoMobile Drive30 from 2005 I've had in the box for years  I tried using it once and it has the dreaded alternator whine that seemed to afflict the vast majority of AM products. When the engine is off, its great considering its age. Consider it like an ancestor to the modern DSP. So when the engine is on I have to turn it up quite a bit to cover the whine and buzz it creates. Oh well, at least it's not cutting in and out like the 3656.

This is all while I research a modern DSP. I'm liking the price vs features of the JL Twk-88. Helix look great too but quite a bit pricier. Others just don't seem to have the features to match the price of the JL, like those from AudioControl, Audison or MiniDSP. Anyway, that's a discussion for another forum.

Just thought I'd share.


----------

