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re: Best brands for car speaker systems
Posted on 5/2/25 at 11:28 am to Chad504boy
Posted on 5/2/25 at 11:28 am to Chad504boy
I've always leaned Infinity. I'm in my mid 40s and never had a vehicle I didn't DIY upgrade the audio. It is criminal how bad factory stereos still sound. Even the premium 14 speaker upgraded-name systems are underwhelming
0
Posted on 5/2/25 at 11:59 am to Chad504boy
quote:
they do, still leaves me w a shite ton of options and i don't understand all the watt math and the channel stuff etc.
If you're not running amps and shite, I would just go with the Kenwood speakers that fit your vehicle. When the speakers blew in my old Frontier, that's what I went with. Plus Crutchfield provided wiring harnesses and mounting brackets for free with my order
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:04 pm to salty1
do exactly what salty said. will sound awesome
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:09 pm to Chad504boy
Can't go wrong with Pioneer. Always use them in my cars.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:14 pm to Chad504boy
quote:
what's difference between car amplifier and a sound processor for factory radio? looking at crutchfield's site for reference. I would be using the same factory headunit etc on this build.
A sound processor refines the signals coming from the factory radio and sends them to an amp.
You can power the speakers solely with a head unit (most economy cars have the audio system set up this way), but the power output will be very limited, usually to under 25 watts/channel. A factory or aftermarket radio can't power a sub.
If you are going to go all out with amps, subs, and aftermarket speakers, I'd highly recommend a new head unit as well - and you have the ability to get one with CarPlay if you go that route. You can run RCA cables for each channel from the back of your aftermarket head unit straight to your amp.
You'll likely need another separate mono amp to power a sub.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:23 pm to Chad504boy
Focal baw.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:24 pm to Chad504boy
I bought an old '92 Cadillac with 71,000 miles on it a few years ago from a friend who's parents had passed away in the early 2000's and it just sat in their garage.
I had a Sony deck, Skar mids and a kicker comp 12. 4 channel amp for the mids and 300 watt mono block for the sub. I installed it all myself.
I used it as a back up vehicle, and something to embarrass the kids with when I picked them up from school.
After the audio and tinting the windows I sold it a year and a half later to a colored fellow for damn near what I had in it. I basically leased it for 18 months and I was out about $1000 for insurance, gas, etc.
It was a fun project. I'd do it again if the right car fell in my lap.
I had a Sony deck, Skar mids and a kicker comp 12. 4 channel amp for the mids and 300 watt mono block for the sub. I installed it all myself.
I used it as a back up vehicle, and something to embarrass the kids with when I picked them up from school.
After the audio and tinting the windows I sold it a year and a half later to a colored fellow for damn near what I had in it. I basically leased it for 18 months and I was out about $1000 for insurance, gas, etc.
It was a fun project. I'd do it again if the right car fell in my lap.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:26 pm to Chad504boy
Old school Jensen 6x9 coaxials from New Generation, brah.
This post was edited on 5/2/25 at 12:53 pm
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:27 pm to salty1
quote:
I’ve been waiting for this thread forever…I compete in car audio sound quality.
Alright help me out.
2023 Tundra. Preferably replace the dash and all 4 doors speakers. Sound quality is severely lacking. Would like a 10" sub in there but it's the hybrid version so the battery takes up all under seat storage. Just want better sound quality but if I could get some base out of it that'd be ideal.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:32 pm to salty1
RentToOwn mentioned sound deadening earlier. The benefit of the use of this material, strategically, can’t be overstated. It will make a very noticeable improvement on the overall system. My truck has around $3,000 just in sound deadening. That doesn’t include the additional labor to install the deadening. I’m chasing perfection, so an investment like this would make no sense for 99% of builds. I also do a lot of my own labor. If you could invest about $350 or so in extra material/labor for basic sound deadening in the doors and rear hatch, it’ll make a world of difference.
Everyone starts with a system similar to the one you’re building. Some of us get addicted chasing perfection, and the next thing you know you’ve got $30,000 or more invested. My truck is a 2025 Ram crew cab 4x4 and the system with labor costs is close to the cost of the truck. I promise you though, my truck will give you freaking chill bumps on top of chill bumps when listening to any kind of music. It’s my only hobby, and yes I know it’s freaking crazy. Try not to fall down the rabbit hole! Good luck and enjoy!
Everyone starts with a system similar to the one you’re building. Some of us get addicted chasing perfection, and the next thing you know you’ve got $30,000 or more invested. My truck is a 2025 Ram crew cab 4x4 and the system with labor costs is close to the cost of the truck. I promise you though, my truck will give you freaking chill bumps on top of chill bumps when listening to any kind of music. It’s my only hobby, and yes I know it’s freaking crazy. Try not to fall down the rabbit hole! Good luck and enjoy!
This post was edited on 5/2/25 at 12:33 pm
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:35 pm to Chad504boy
quote:
i have a rear cargo space that i'm trying not to have a space consuming woofer, sleak would be better.
Check out this Houma baw as far as nice enclosures for a sub, I have one for my 10 in my F150. Fits perfect and sounds great.
Fox Box
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:36 pm to salty1
quote:
I’ve been waiting for this thread forever…I compete in car audio sound quality.
2020 RAM 3500 tradesman, I've already replaced all the doors and tweeters with kicker cs a couple years ago and put in the noise cancelation jumper. I desperately need bass and to fix my head unit, anything above 26 on the volume you can still hear it cut down the volume
Itself
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:44 pm to OnePercent
quote:
2020 RAM 3500 tradesman, I've already replaced all the doors and tweeters with kicker cs a couple years ago and put in the noise cancelation jumper. I desperately need bass and to fix my head unit, anything above 26 on the volume you can still hear it cut down the volume
Itself
You’re in luck. For that year Ram, get a PACAmp Pro CH-41 and you’ll be able to bypass the factory amp and ANC. You can add a toslink adapter and run optical to your DSP or Amps. PAC makes the best integration devices for Ram/Chrysler and most other brands. Just put in your exact truck info at the below link.
LINK
To get any kind of decent performance, you’ve got to bypass the factory eq and get a good, clean, flat signal to start with. This is the biggest challenge to upgrading any modern vehicle.
Rams make a great foundation to build from. Use factory dash locations for midranges, tweeters in the a-pillars, and door locations for midbass. Plenty of room under rear seat for subwoofer and amp rack. Your back seats will fold forward with a one inch or higher seat lift, making the back wall accessible for amps also. You’ll want to sound deaden the hell out of the doors.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 12:50 pm to Soul Gleaux
quote:
Check out this Houma baw as far as nice enclosures for a sub, I have one for my 10 in my F150. Fits perfect and sounds great.
Fox Box
Fox builds quality enclosures. I’ve used them in the past in a truck and in an install for my daughter. No complaints. For the above build, a Fox enclosure would cost about $175 and he’d still need to purchase the sub. It would undoubtedly perform better than the prefab JL with the W0 sub though. Drop a W3 in the Fox box and it’ll sound good. All in he’d be out about $525 for that option, more than twice the cost of the JL prefab with W0. I don’t believe it would be worth the investment to put a W0 in the fox enclosure.
This post was edited on 5/2/25 at 12:53 pm
Posted on 5/2/25 at 1:16 pm to salty1
Salty, what are your thoughts on 2v or 5v preouts? I have a Sony XAV4000 head unit in my Tundra feeding Tacotunes amp and 10 inch JL Sub. It's ok but was expecting a little more. Still don't understand how to tune EQ on head unit.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 1:25 pm to tigerlife36
Your amp puts out its stated wattage at 2 ohms. How is your sub wired (4 ohm maybe, which means it’s only getting about half the stated 450 watts). That would impact output. I can’t find the specs on the amp that would state the input voltage requirements, but 5v should be okay. 2v is very low. The lower voltage would impact all amp channels
This post was edited on 5/2/25 at 1:26 pm
Posted on 5/2/25 at 1:27 pm to RentToOwn
quote:
Sound deadening mats/material on the doors and floors.
Especially in older vehicles, this stuff is worth it’s weight in gold. I did the entire cab and doors of my old single cab Ford, no longer feel like your riding inside a tin can.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 1:40 pm to Soul Gleaux
Quality work. Adding some Resonix fibermat on roof, floors, and doors makes it even better. CLD plus fibermat works awesome. Add mass to the doors with black hole tiles. They work good for blocking back waves too.
Posted on 5/2/25 at 1:58 pm to salty1
Salty1-
How big of a pain in the arse is it to upgrade the Bose systems in GM vehicles, specifically a ‘25 Tahoe with Bose Centerpoint (which has a small subwoofer hidden somewhere in the dash/console).
How big of a pain in the arse is it to upgrade the Bose systems in GM vehicles, specifically a ‘25 Tahoe with Bose Centerpoint (which has a small subwoofer hidden somewhere in the dash/console).
Posted on 5/2/25 at 2:00 pm to Tyga Woods
quote:
Alpine deck and Kicker 12's with a Punch 40
I had a Punch 45 in 10th grade, then upgraded to an Orion 225 Red. Man I miss the 90s.
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