Time for stereo upgrade..

D

defjamz

Member
Location
Bothell, WA
Well, the upgrade bug has bitten me again! I'm now looking at doing a stereo upgrade since I've never been that happy with the stock Bose system. I swore when I bought my car new a few years ago that I wouldn't make any modications/upgrades, but getting new wheels last month has got me on a bit of tear.. So, here's what i'm planning;

- add an Alpine 5-channel amp
- add a JL 10W3 sub in small sealed box
- upgrade to FOCAL component speakers up front, FOCAL coaxials in the rear doors
- route this via an AudioControl LC8i line-out-converter/processor

I read several threads on infinitifx.org with guys who did similar upgrades on thier 2nd gen FX's with good results. Curious if anyone here has done something similar, or are thinking about it. I'm open to any suggestions and feedback. As of now, i'm planning on doing this possibly by this weekend. My daily commutes (~2 hrs) would certainly appreciate a sound upgrade. Any thoughts?
 
I went ahead with the upgrade, and had everything installed. Just finished tweaking with the crossovers, and I'm very happy with the sound. FOCAL speakers sound absolutely amazing! The music detail and accuracy is unreal, so much so that it is painfully obvious when you listen to a lower bitrate mp3, or a poorly recorded track. High resolution/quality files are extremely lifelike and detailed. The JL sub blends in nicely with deep, rich bass that the Bose subs could never really provide. I know that its not a fair comparison, especially given how much coin I dropped on this setup, but this really makes the Bose system sound mediocre at best.
If anyone ever plans to upgrade thier sound in thier cars, I couldn't recommend Focals enough. They're worth the cost!
 
Very nice equipment you got there. Glad you're happy with it. I recently upgraded my sub and sub amp. Just trying to decide which components and what amp i want to run them. I just got rid of Hertz mlk 65's and a Audison amp that was putting 200 rms a side to the Hertz. So i want something comparable if not better
 
Just out of curiosity, why did you get rid of your Hertz/Audison setup? That setup sounds killer, and I've heard nothing but good things about Hertz.
 
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All kinds really. I listen to R&B, Hip Hop, Jazz, 80's, Electronic, Rock, etc. Not a big country fan, but I have some Faith Hill and Garth Brooks tracks.
This week I've been listening to Sara Bareilles and Stevie Wonder, sprinkled with a little 2pac. Last week was Lil' Wayne and Sade. Random I know, but I love music.
What do you guys rock out on?
 
I mostly listen to electronic music(drum'n'bass, electro and tech house), but sometimes prefer classic rock and reggae.


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defjamz said:
Just out of curiosity, why did you get rid of your Hertz/Audison setup? That setup sounds killer, and I've heard nothing but good things about Hertz.
Click to expand...

It was a great set up, sounded loud and clean with amazing mid bass. Whenever i get a new vehicle i like to change my stereo equipment, although i did keep one of the subwoofers i had in my last vehicle. I've ran kicker components, Focal components and Hertz components in the past.

I listed to reggae, r&b, hip hop and anything else that sounds good. I like all kinds of music. Probably listen to reggae the most though
 
Price doesn't sound too bad... Can you post up the model numbers on all the components that you put in if you remember? I am thinking of copying your set up!!
 
info from defjamz garage:

Amp - Alpine MRX-V70 (4ch + sub)
Front - FOCAL P165 V15 components
Rear - FOCAL IC165 coaxials
Sub - JL Audio 10W3V3-4 (in sealed box)
LOC - AudioControl LC8i
 
Ok another question then... According to the internet our vehicles have:

3 front dash 4" speakers

one speaker per door @ 6 1/2"

two rear side panel speakers @ 4"

plus the sub...

I count 10 speakers in total... Some ads say 11 (I couldn't find #11 if there is one)...

I'm assuming you replaced the door speakers only and left the dash and rear quarter panel speakers alone?

With the aftermarket amp are these speakers disconnected or did you leave them wired in?

I apologize for my lack of audio knowledge... its seems difficult to find info on this veh!!!

The reason I'm asking is I'm tempted to replace the speakers in the vehicle and remove the sub and then see where I'm at. Obviously there won't be bass like a dedicated subwoofer but I think if the right 6 1/2" speaker is chosen it might fill it in enough for me... I want to try that first anyway and then add the sub if necessary.

I also notice that you went component on the front... any additional work involved in that or is there a spot for the tweeters built in already?
 
a56kuser said:
How much trunk space did the sub take ? Looking to do similar setup but don't know if I even want/need a sub
Click to expand...

I have the sub in a relatively small sealed box, so it doesn't take up too much space in the trunk. But it is in the trunk, not under the floor board, so you will lose some trunk space if you go this route. I still have enough room for my golf clubs and other gear, so not too bad in my opinion.

---------- Post added at 09:45 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:30 AM ----------
jimi g said:
Ok another question then... According to the internet our vehicles have:

3 front dash 4" speakers
one speaker per door @ 6 1/2"
two rear side panel speakers @ 4"
plus the sub...
I count 10 speakers in total... Some ads say 11 (I couldn't find #11 if there is one)...
I'm assuming you replaced the door speakers only and left the dash and rear quarter panel speakers alone?
With the aftermarket amp are these speakers disconnected or did you leave them wired in?
I apologize for my lack of audio knowledge... its seems difficult to find info on this veh!!!
The reason I'm asking is I'm tempted to replace the speakers in the vehicle and remove the sub and then see where I'm at. Obviously there won't be bass like a dedicated subwoofer but I think if the right 6 1/2" speaker is chosen it might fill it in enough for me... I want to try that first anyway and then add the sub if necessary.
I also notice that you went component on the front... any additional work involved in that or is there a spot for the tweeters built in already?
Click to expand...

If you're not replacing the stock Bose sub with another sub, i highly recommend leaving the Bose sub in. There's no reason not to have it if you're not replacing it. The Bose sub actually has 2 drivers in the enclosure, and is technically 2 speakers (that's where they get 11 speakers from; 3 dash 3.5", 4 door 6.5", 2 rear side panel 3.5", 2 sub speakers). The Bose sub has its own amp, so you can still use it if you replace the other speakers.
I replaced the left and right dash speakers with the Focal tweeters, and replaced the front doors with Focal mids. I recommend using a shallow slope on the crossover for best results. For the rear doors, I used Focal coaxials. so the rear side panel speakers are left in place, but not 'on'. The center dash speaker is also left in place so I can still use the Nav and bluetooth functions, but the gain is turned down low so it doesn't really add anything to music listening.
Hope that all helps. Based on what you said, I recommend going to a audio shop to discuss what you're trying to get done. The FX is not as straightforward as most vehicles in terms of upgrading the sound, and you have to spend a little dough to get good results.
 
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