Not sure how this got so far off point but seems most of the comments to me at least are addressing the fact that I am bragging about a medoicre system which I am not. The fact is the wife borrowed the Z to take to work the other day and was listening to ABBA < i know lol> I heard the thump thump from a solid two blocks off. Now its not shaking the houses or anything I just said I could hear it lol.

The main question I was orignally trying to get at was that to me my systems sounds great and its much louder than I can tolerate at full volume. I do not have the gains set even close to full,its clean ,clear and rich. I just do not understand how people can sit in a car with dbl,triple or more power...someone was beside me the other day in a suburban,they were vibrating my car pretty severely...his windows up,mine up with A/C on full blast. I do not understand how people could enjoy listening to anything at that level,of course they wont for long because the will be deaf in a few years. Anyway was just trying to clarify my post,now sure if I did but was attempting to do so. Btw had a friend tune in my system who is a professional certified installer.

 

the fact that you don't understand it, sorta shows that you don't understand it

It sounds like your idea of "double or triple the power" is someone's '86 Cherokee with a wall of subs and a roof full of batteries, blasting some bass so hard that body panels rattle. I assure you, that is not the system that any of us here are talking about. You are talking about 2 totally different types of setups, but lumping them all together as if they have anything in common

If you're happy with it, more power to ya

 

Generally you can spend money on 2 things: SQL or SPL. Just because you have a $10,000 system doesn't mean it's going to kill any SPL records. Although I'm a newb so whatever :P

But anyway to answer your question, car audio is a hobby for a lot of people and fanatics are particular about what they like... which usually comes at a premium. It doesn't always mean the extra expenditure is going to make the stereo louder.

 

I hear what your saying but with every setup Ive put together Ive upgraded power levels. Spl or sq is something one gets used to after awhile and just like chasing hp it becomes unsatisfying after awhile. I've had 3 setups in my z since i bought in 04 1. single 12w3 2.
2 10w6 3. 2 RE sx10d4 ported throwing 2200 watts at it. My current setup is completely different from the others but after time you need something different and remember it is also subjective and based on preference.