I thought I would share my setup because I'm pretty pleased with the way it worked out. I wanted better sound quality than the stock premium sound and the ability to connect an auxiliary input with out sacrificing that sound quality. I also wanted to keep the stock equipment in place and not hack ANYTHING.
Phase 1 was aftermarket speakers. My premium sound speakers were actually in pretty good condition because the car was so well taken care of but they still aren't of high quality by today's standards. So I purchased a set of Infinity Kappa 6832cf 5x7's. I was actually aiming for a set of speakers that were good quality but on the lower end of power handling. The infinity's can handle 60W RMS power. My thinking was it would be better to match the power handling of the speakers to power out put of the premium sound amp.... well this was as close as I could get on a reputable brand. I read in an old thread the stock amp was about 15W RMS per channel. I hooked them up using Metra 72-5512 connectors - plug and play, no cutting or splicing. 2 sets.
When I turned the radio back on the sound quality was marginally better but not really much louder. I have a bluetooth FM modulator that I could use to stream from my iphone but the sound quality wasn't great through that either. I decided the stock head unit and amp just weren't going to cut it.
Phase 2 was replacing the factory amp with something more powerful with auxiliary input. There were a couple off-brand items and a few ways to pick an amp of your choosing and mickey mouse an aux input but in the end I went with the Kenwood 1824BT. This is a bluetooth capable (which is what I really wanted) 4 channel amp with a remote control and puts out 400W max / 180W RMS. It's designed for recreational vehicles (boats, atvs, etc...). When it arrived I inspected the provided wiring harness which includes, power, remote on, ground and 4 speakers all in the same plug. The power and ground were the exact same size as the stock power and ground wires (about 12 gauge) so I figured reusing these was a safe bet. Now the plug out to the speakers from the stock amp also has the power in, remote on and ground in it, which conveniently were all the same connections the Kenwood harness needs. I knew if I could find the stock amp jumper harness I could cut and modify it to suit my needs. I couldn't find just the jumper so I bought a kit which included it - Metra 70-5514. I spliced one end of this directly to the Kenwood harness. I had to borrow some pins from the end of the harness that was not being used. Plug and play now. Again, no factory wires have been disturbed, just unplugged.
Now I simply zip tied the new amp where the original amp was. Now for the remote control, which needs to be plugged in because this is what carries the bluetooth signal. The remote fit perfectly where the ash-tray went and is nicely hidden. I might still make a bezel to go around it but it's really not necessary. It basically clips right into the space with a little coercion. Getting the wire down through the center console and under the carpet running over the tunnel was a chore but can be done with a coat hanger. Then run it under the seat, into the trunk and up to the rear package tray to the amp. Completely hidden, you would never see any of it.
Now, as long as my factory head unit is turned on the Kenwood amp turns on, automatically connects to my iphone and I'm ready to listen. I can stream from one of the many fm radio apps, pandora, spotify, youtube or what ever is resident on my phone. The Infinity's scream with 180W going to them. Great high and mid range with a very flat response. There is pretty good lows but you wouldn't mistake it for a sub. All in all - day and night difference from the premium sound.
A few cons; Volume control is a little fickle. The bluetooth controller only controls amp gain, not iphone volume. Not a big deal, play with it a little and youll find something that works for you. Equalizer - this is a beef with apple, not kenwood. There is no way to adjust the equalizer on streaming audio feeds. You can only do this for music in your own library. Again, not a big deal, it sounds damn good on most all genres I lsitened to anyhow. BIG pro is I have expandability. The kenwood has pre-amp outs so I can add a subwoofer at a later date. I would have to run more power to a second amp but at least the signal is available right there. I'd look at some of the powered "underseat" sub-boxes because they would fit nicely where the stock JBL box would've gone. But for now, I don't need anymore. This thing kicks ~~~ over stock and I can easily swap right back as nothing was cut or broken and I am retaining all the original components. Total spent was $275.
Phase 1 was aftermarket speakers. My premium sound speakers were actually in pretty good condition because the car was so well taken care of but they still aren't of high quality by today's standards. So I purchased a set of Infinity Kappa 6832cf 5x7's. I was actually aiming for a set of speakers that were good quality but on the lower end of power handling. The infinity's can handle 60W RMS power. My thinking was it would be better to match the power handling of the speakers to power out put of the premium sound amp.... well this was as close as I could get on a reputable brand. I read in an old thread the stock amp was about 15W RMS per channel. I hooked them up using Metra 72-5512 connectors - plug and play, no cutting or splicing. 2 sets.
When I turned the radio back on the sound quality was marginally better but not really much louder. I have a bluetooth FM modulator that I could use to stream from my iphone but the sound quality wasn't great through that either. I decided the stock head unit and amp just weren't going to cut it.
Phase 2 was replacing the factory amp with something more powerful with auxiliary input. There were a couple off-brand items and a few ways to pick an amp of your choosing and mickey mouse an aux input but in the end I went with the Kenwood 1824BT. This is a bluetooth capable (which is what I really wanted) 4 channel amp with a remote control and puts out 400W max / 180W RMS. It's designed for recreational vehicles (boats, atvs, etc...). When it arrived I inspected the provided wiring harness which includes, power, remote on, ground and 4 speakers all in the same plug. The power and ground were the exact same size as the stock power and ground wires (about 12 gauge) so I figured reusing these was a safe bet. Now the plug out to the speakers from the stock amp also has the power in, remote on and ground in it, which conveniently were all the same connections the Kenwood harness needs. I knew if I could find the stock amp jumper harness I could cut and modify it to suit my needs. I couldn't find just the jumper so I bought a kit which included it - Metra 70-5514. I spliced one end of this directly to the Kenwood harness. I had to borrow some pins from the end of the harness that was not being used. Plug and play now. Again, no factory wires have been disturbed, just unplugged.
Now I simply zip tied the new amp where the original amp was. Now for the remote control, which needs to be plugged in because this is what carries the bluetooth signal. The remote fit perfectly where the ash-tray went and is nicely hidden. I might still make a bezel to go around it but it's really not necessary. It basically clips right into the space with a little coercion. Getting the wire down through the center console and under the carpet running over the tunnel was a chore but can be done with a coat hanger. Then run it under the seat, into the trunk and up to the rear package tray to the amp. Completely hidden, you would never see any of it.
Now, as long as my factory head unit is turned on the Kenwood amp turns on, automatically connects to my iphone and I'm ready to listen. I can stream from one of the many fm radio apps, pandora, spotify, youtube or what ever is resident on my phone. The Infinity's scream with 180W going to them. Great high and mid range with a very flat response. There is pretty good lows but you wouldn't mistake it for a sub. All in all - day and night difference from the premium sound.
A few cons; Volume control is a little fickle. The bluetooth controller only controls amp gain, not iphone volume. Not a big deal, play with it a little and youll find something that works for you. Equalizer - this is a beef with apple, not kenwood. There is no way to adjust the equalizer on streaming audio feeds. You can only do this for music in your own library. Again, not a big deal, it sounds damn good on most all genres I lsitened to anyhow. BIG pro is I have expandability. The kenwood has pre-amp outs so I can add a subwoofer at a later date. I would have to run more power to a second amp but at least the signal is available right there. I'd look at some of the powered "underseat" sub-boxes because they would fit nicely where the stock JBL box would've gone. But for now, I don't need anymore. This thing kicks ~~~ over stock and I can easily swap right back as nothing was cut or broken and I am retaining all the original components. Total spent was $275.
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