Subwoofer add-in

[Juicybaka]

Im sure this has been beat to death, so apologies. On the high and mid end of the stock sysystem, I think these speakers sound very good; bass is horrible. Has anyone thought or tried mounting subs in rear armrest area similar to a Nissan GTR? I’d prefer a clean look without box in trunk. Thank you

 

[SHOinVa]

I have not, I replace most of my speakers already an it made a big difference, BUT as with all things I have now gotten used to it and want to do more. I like the clean look also, so I was thinking of a powered sub, I don't think they will fit under the seat, but it might be a pretty clean look in the trunk. Only problem I hear the mini- subs don't work as well in the trunk as they do under the seats. That being said if I find one I like on sale, I'm going to pull the trigger an see what happens.
Charlie/

 

[Juicybaka]

I have not, I replace most of my speakers already an it made a big difference, BUT as with all things I have now gotten used to it and want to do more. I like the clean look also, so I was thinking of a powered sub, I don't think they will fit under the seat, but it might be a pretty clean look in the trunk. Only problem I have hear the mini- subs don't work as well in the trunk as they do under the seats. That being said if I find one I like on sale, I'm going to pull the trigger an see what happens.
Charlie/

What did you replace speakers in the power shade area with? Thank you

 

[SHOinVa]

In the thread "Replace Stock Speakers" I go into detail and review but here is the equipment highlights.

Equipment
Front doors and A-Peller
Focal Integration ISS 570---------------$179.99
Rear Doors
Focal Integration ISC 570---------------$129.99
Rear Deck
Infinity Reference REF-9620cx --------$124.99 *Did not use the tweeters, Just used 6x9's on sale an fit*
Instillation
Best Buy ----------------------------------$236.28
-------------------------------------------------------
Total------------------------------------- $ 671.25

Hope this helps.
C/

 

[SHOinVa]

What did you replace speakers in the power shade area with? Thank you

Make sure you get speakers with the right impedance, otherwise you may not get the performance you want out of them. If you don't know what your doing (I don't have a clue) I recommend order from Cruchfields an vetting all your choices through them. Talk to Buzz he's awesome know's his stuff and absolutely will not let you go off into left field.
C/

 

[Raging Bull]

I would replace the factory speakers with 2 ohm impedance aftermarket ones if you do 4 ohms It doesn’t have the power u get like half the power of the 2 ohm. I’m no stereo wizard but I think that is right. The factory ones are 2 ohms.

 

[Lostneye]

I would replace the factory speakers with 2 ohm impedance aftermarket ones if you do 4 ohms It doesn’t have the power u get like half the power of the 2 ohm. I’m no stereo wizard but I think that is right. The factory ones are 2 ohms.

Correct, it's not always exact by in theory the power would half if the impedance doubles.

I have heard the factory amp distorts early on the sub channels but have not tested. I would still suggest using the rear door speakers if you are tapping high level signal to go to a new sub amp. With the same power and cone area I wouldn't expect a big difference in output changing the factory "subs". It may sound clearer if the speakers are the issue not the amp but don't set your expectations too high.

I am running two 12s on a baffle closing off the pass through from the trunk into the car, this give similar output to a sealed box with taking much less space and is similar to what you are talking about without cutting/taking the seat apart. You can also have a ported box built with the port running into the cabin either through the rear deck or center armrest. It's definitely possible to have an enclosure build like you say but you would have to cut the seat up and those subs couldn't be that much larger that the factory subs to fit that area. Cone area is king as far as output is concerned all other factors being equal.

 

[Juicybaka]

Correct, it's not always exact by in theory the power would half if the impedance doubles.

I have heard the factory amp distorts early on the sub channels but have not tested. I would still suggest using the rear door speakers if you are tapping high level signal to go to a new sub amp. With the same power and cone area I wouldn't expect a big difference in output changing the factory "subs". It may sound clearer if the speakers are the issue not the amp but don't set your expectations too high.

I am running two 12s on a baffle closing off the pass through from the trunk into the car, this give similar output to a sealed box with taking much less space and is similar to what you are talking about without cutting/taking the seat apart. You can also have a ported box built with the port running into the cabin either through the rear deck or center armrest. It's definitely possible to have an enclosure build like you say but you would have to cut the seat up and those subs couldn't be that much larger that the factory subs to fit that area. Cone area is king as far as output is concerned all other factors being equal.

Agreed, thanks for the info. I used to be a stereo nut back in the day, and my ‘08 suburban which I sold for the SHO was my 6 month project dynomatting and putting middle of the road system in....never again!
I don’t want to go that route again; rather just a simple swap. I plan to swap rear deck speakers only. Can’t line signal be pulled here for amp? A 10” sub is all I’d need to get “correct” bass. Maybe a powered JL sub?
As far as ohm’s, I’m a little familiar and ran 2 ohms to sub in suburban for loudness. 4 ohms more clear for components? What did you replace rear deck speakers with, and do you remember how many rms watts they were rated for? Couldn’t be much I’d imagine...
Thank you

 

[SHOinVa]

rather just a simple swap

I don't want to re-create it here but if you have some time go read the "Replace Stock Speakers" thread its pretty lengthy but there is a lot of great information there. I'm sure there are other threads but I am very familiar with that one. For what its worth I highly recommend doing the door/tweeters also, it made a world of difference. As noted above for $671.00 it's not cheap but its well worth the money and if you know someone who can install it cheaper its even better. Anyway that's my two cents, keep us posted.
C/

 

[Raging Bull]

Yes the Sony system rolls the bass off after certain volume level. I happen to like the factory stereo, so I just added an amp used the signal from the rear deck speakers and put 2-8 inch sub tubes in the trunk with a lc2i 2 channel converter box. I have to much bass , I can adjust it however I want it. I’m happy with that and still have more than 3/4 of trunk.

 

[glockcoma]

Correct, it's not always exact by in theory the power would half if the impedance doubles.

I have heard the factory amp distorts early on the sub channels but have not tested. I would still suggest using the rear door speakers if you are tapping high level signal to go to a new sub amp. With the same power and cone area I wouldn't expect a big difference in output changing the factory "subs". It may sound clearer if the speakers are the issue not the amp but don't set your expectations too high.

I am running two 12s on a baffle closing off the pass through from the trunk into the car, this give similar output to a sealed box with taking much less space and is similar to what you are talking about without cutting/taking the seat apart. You can also have a ported box built with the port running into the cabin either through the rear deck or center armrest. It's definitely possible to have an enclosure build like you say but you would have to cut the seat up and those subs couldn't be that much larger that the factory subs to fit that area. Cone area is king as far as output is concerned all other factors being equal.

I’d love to see a pic if you have one of your setup. I’m running “ib” also and haven’t seen many other people doing it in the Taurus.
The 20 cuft trunk is perfect for it.

 

[tech10002]

Agreed, thanks for the info. I used to be a stereo nut back in the day, and my ‘08 suburban which I sold for the SHO was my 6 month project dynomatting and putting middle of the road system in....never again!
I don’t want to go that route again; rather just a simple swap. I plan to swap rear deck speakers only. Can’t line signal be pulled here for amp? A 10” sub is all I’d need to get “correct” bass. Maybe a powered JL sub?
As far as ohm’s, I’m a little familiar and ran 2 ohms to sub in suburban for loudness. 4 ohms more clear for components? What did you replace rear deck speakers with, and do you remember how many rms watts they were rated for? Couldn’t be much I’d imagine...
Thank you

The impedance has nothing to do with clarity. You just have to match the speaker impedance to the amp. The Sony amp uses low impedance speakers from the start and is not very powerful, so you need to use high efficiency low impedance speakers if you want any volume out of it. High quality components are usually 4 ohm and they typically need an aftermarket amp to sound decent. With a quality amp, you’ll get good power into 4 ohm, so you’re not so worried about max output per watt and low impedance. There are other technical reasons they use 4 ohms that involves inductor and capacitor values in passive crossovers and also dynamic headroom, amp power rail stiffness, voltages, etc. It gets really complex, and it really doesn’t matter for what you’re doing, anyway.

Before I built a full system, I just replaced the door speakers with 4 Infinity Kappa 86-cfx , and it made a huge difference with that alone. Replace the door speakers, and go with a good quality 10” amplified sub if you want some real bass, and it will sound worlds better. I’d highly recommend using foam baffles to seal against the door panel too. Try the doors first and see if you’re satisfied. You’ll get quite a bit of bass from the door speakers and you might not even need to mess with the deck subs.

If you want to add a sub amp, though, like lostneye said, if you tap the speaker outputs at the deck subs with a line converter, you’re gonna lose quite a bit of bass because the Sony amp rolls off bass the louder you crank it. There is still rolloff in the door speakers, but it’s not as bad. You don’t actually have to tap inside the door. The amp is behind the left trunk carpet and all the speaker wires go to there. I’ll attach a wiring diagram with the pins and colors.

The factory deck subs are 24.5 watts rated by the way and 2.3 ohms nominal impedance. The center connector is the one the speakers are hooked to, except the deck subs which hook to the blue one. This diagram is for the center connector.

 

[Juicybaka]

The impedance has nothing to do with clarity. You just have to match the speaker impedance to the amp. The Sony amp uses low impedance speakers from the start and is not very powerful, so you need to use high efficiency low impedance speakers if you want any volume out of it. High quality components are usually 4 ohm and they typically need an aftermarket amp to sound decent. With a quality amp, you’ll get good power into 4 ohm, so you’re not so worried about max output per watt and low impedance. There are other technical reasons they use 4 ohms that involves inductor and capacitor values in passive crossovers and also dynamic headroom, amp power rail stiffness, voltages, etc. It gets really complex, and it really doesn’t matter for what you’re doing, anyway.

Before I built a full system, I just replaced the door speakers with 4 Infinity Kappa 86-cfx , and it made a huge difference with that alone. Replace the door speakers, and go with a good quality 10” amplified sub if you want some real bass, and it will sound worlds better. I’d highly recommend using foam baffles to seal against the door panel too. Try the doors first and see if you’re satisfied. You’ll get quite a bit of bass from the door speakers and you might not even need to mess with the deck subs.

If you want to add a sub amp, though, like lostneye said, if you tap the speaker outputs at the deck subs with a line converter, you’re gonna lose quite a bit of bass because the Sony amp rolls off bass the louder you crank it. There is still rolloff in the door speakers, but it’s not as bad. You don’t actually have to tap inside the door. The amp is behind the left trunk carpet and all the speaker wires go to there. I’ll attach a wiring diagram with the pins and colors.

The factory deck subs are 24.5 watts rated by the way and 2.3 ohms nominal impedance. The center connector is the one the speakers are hooked to, except the deck subs which hook to the blue one. This diagram is for the center connector.View attachment 7414View attachment 7415

Thanks so much for this info! I’ll start with the doors then. Are the deck subs 6x9 too? Would these same infinity’s work there? Thanks again!

 

[Juicybaka]

The impedance has nothing to do with clarity. You just have to match the speaker impedance to the amp. The Sony amp uses low impedance speakers from the start and is not very powerful, so you need to use high efficiency low impedance speakers if you want any volume out of it. High quality components are usually 4 ohm and they typically need an aftermarket amp to sound decent. With a quality amp, you’ll get good power into 4 ohm, so you’re not so worried about max output per watt and low impedance. There are other technical reasons they use 4 ohms that involves inductor and capacitor values in passive crossovers and also dynamic headroom, amp power rail stiffness, voltages, etc. It gets really complex, and it really doesn’t matter for what you’re doing, anyway.

Before I built a full system, I just replaced the door speakers with 4 Infinity Kappa 86-cfx , and it made a huge difference with that alone. Replace the door speakers, and go with a good quality 10” amplified sub if you want some real bass, and it will sound worlds better. I’d highly recommend using foam baffles to seal against the door panel too. Try the doors first and see if you’re satisfied. You’ll get quite a bit of bass from the door speakers and you might not even need to mess with the deck subs.

If you want to add a sub amp, though, like lostneye said, if you tap the speaker outputs at the deck subs with a line converter, you’re gonna lose quite a bit of bass because the Sony amp rolls off bass the louder you crank it. There is still rolloff in the door speakers, but it’s not as bad. You don’t actually have to tap inside the door. The amp is behind the left trunk carpet and all the speaker wires go to there. I’ll attach a wiring diagram with the pins and colors.

The factory deck subs are 24.5 watts rated by the way and 2.3 ohms nominal impedance. The center connector is the one the speakers are hooked to, except the deck subs which hook to the blue one. This diagram is for the center connector.View attachment 7414View attachment 7415

Let me know if you think these might be good match for doors and deck when you have some time. Thank you!

-JBL GX862 6" x 8" 2-Way GX Series
-JBL GX502 5-1/4" Coaxial GX Series
-JL Audio ACS110LG-TW1 10" 10TW1-0.25 Amplified Loaded Subwoofer Enclosure

 

[SHOinVa]

Try the doors first and see if you’re satisfied. You’ll get quite a bit of bass from the door speakers and you might not even need to mess with the deck subs.

- I agree with everything that guy said, I only understood a very small part of it, but I agree with it.
- I hate to sound like a broken record but every question you have, I had before you and is covered in "Replace Stock Speakers" I just took a quick look at your choices I can tell you in at least one case "NO" you can not do two ways in the front door. Because the front two ways have the tweeters in the A pillars. I mean, you could do it but what you need is a split two way. The reason I know this, I wanted to put two ways in the front door and new tweeters, the forum stereo folks out here set me straight.
- LMAO I hate to sound like a grumpy old man, but I spent a lot of time on this an the first advice I got is what I returned to after a whole lot of wasted time an questions, "Find some good door speakers that are on sale from Crutchfield's and have them installed" LOL Now get off my lawn.
C/

 

[Juicybaka]

- I agree with everything that guy said, I only understood a very small part of it, but I agree with it.
- I hate to sound like a broken record but every question you have, I had before you and is covered in "Replace Stock Speakers" I just took a quick look at your choices I can tell you in at least one case "NO" you can not do two ways in the front door. Because the front two ways have the tweeters in the A pillars. I mean, you could do it but what you need is a split two way. The reason I know this, I wanted to put two ways in the front door and new tweeters, the forum stereo folks out here set me straight.
- LMAO I hate to sound like a grumpy old man, but I spent a lot of time on this an the first advice I got is what I returned to after a whole lot of wasted time an questions, "Find some good door speakers that are on sale from Crutchfield's and have them installed" LOL Now get off my lawn.
C/

Ok, but I’m seeing a suggestion for the infinity kappa for door speakers which are 2-way speakers. Is this just the back doors, or fronts too “tech10002”?

 

[Juicybaka]

Ok, so I’ve had time to revisit threads, including yours Charlie with your Focal build. I’ve ordered the JBL subs and Infinity Primus PR8613CF 6x8 instead of the JBLs because from what I’ve collected, the rear doors are 4ohms. I’ll leave the fronts alone as now I understand this would need to be a component setup.
So for 200.00, I hope to eliminate bass distortion with little better clarity, and in a couple weeks order JL powered sub. Thanks for all your help!

 

[Raging Bull]

Your lawn has weeds in it ! If you don’t want to repeat your knowledge don’t respond on the thread. Man a lot of yous get real touchy on here. Loosen up ! Everybody doesn’t know everything.

 

[SHOinVa]

Your lawn has weeds in it

My lawn is nothing BUT weeds, at least there green weeds.

If you don’t want to repeat your knowledge don’t respond on the thread.

I'm actually not that smart, Its not my knowledge, I had exactly the same questions and some really smart people out here answered them much better then I could. I have always found the closer to the source you can get the better.

Man a lot of yous get real touchy on here. Loosen up ! Everybody doesn’t know everything.

I'm pretty loose, seems to me your the one who is a little spun up.

OK Raging -I get your point BUT If you look around you will see I'm more then happy to share what little bit I know with anyone, and help people however I can. I have also been know to ask questions that were already answered somewhere else. MY ONLY POINT was there was no need to completely replicate another thread here when a little bit of reading would tell someone almost everything they wanted to know. After that if they had more questions based on there reading this would be a perfect place to ask follow ups. But to respect your request, if in the future I know where YOU can find the answer to a question I will just keep it to myself.
C/

 

[Raging Bull]

YOU don’t have to answer any of my questions man it’s no problem , I will find answers to questions out here somewhere. Lol I’m as easy going as they come. The forum name has nothing to do with my character as a man ! Blah blah blah blah. Charlie nice talking with ya !