Premium Sound? Not impressed

What up guys, i went to the dealership today to fix an issue on my uncle's RAV4 and i end up getting a 2020 Premium Sport Tacoma as a loaner, i have to be honest, i am not impress with the sound, i didn't notice that much of a different between my base 2019 OR. I did a factory order last week and i am having second thoughs about if the Premium worth it.. i don't know anymore, that's kinda like a deal breaker for me.. i'd rather upgrade audio by myself and go with Clazzio, Dual climate and Moonroof i can live without.. i was driving a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee and that sound was amazing compare to this 2020 JBL premium sound.. i am dissapointed, about to call the dealership to see if i can update my factore order..

 

The sound system, had little to with my decision to get the Premium package. However, having said that I find the Premium sound system adequate.

 

Adjust eq: leave bass and treble at middle position. Turn Mid’s down to where just 2 bars are showing.

This is where I have mine set and it works for me. And sound systems are my day job.

 

The difference between premium and standard is only as big as you’re imagining it to be.

Moms don’t know the difference, and don’t care. Call it premium and it sounds better nonetheless.

 

My wife had a Grand Cherokee and the sound was really good. The stereo can always be changed, the added value of dual climate control and a moon roof when reselling may make up for having to replace the stereo. I understand that just changing door speakers to some Rockford Fosgate plug and play really helps too. Your choice obviously but I’d take the moon roof and dual climate. Sound is not terrible but agreed not like the Jeep.

 

I don't know now man, again i was driving a 2012 Grand Cherokee and that audio is way better than this "Premium Sound", i was expecting something similar at least.. as of right now i want to cancel the Premium and stick with Tech and Led.

 

It is well known the JBL system is not very good. If I could have gotten all the other premium package goodies without JBL I definitely would have opted for that. I wanted the sunroof, heated leather seats, and the dual climate control. JBL is garbage.

 

I mean i do like the Moon rood roof and the dual climate control, but is just that it doesn't feel premium at all. At least i am not the only one thinking the same.. but for real i am just impressed on how bad it is..

 

That’s a Grand Cherokee though. An SUV.

Tacoma is still a car with a bed, it isn’t as refined or as featured as an SUV, especially not one that is higher in price.

 

Don’t forget about the heated leather seats and auto high beams...lol. The seats are comfortable for sure. I am just putting up with the sound issue for now and will change the stereo later. I think I will try different speakers for now too.

 

~$250 and a little time in this thread is all you need to make the stereo in these trucks freaking rock. Note, this is for premium but non JBL trucks.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/premium-audio-upgrade-for-less-than-250.510424/

 

Really? Mine sounds pretty damn good to me. Don't know what kind of music you listen to but I listen mainly to 90s and 2010s rock and I love it. Sounds a HELL of a lot better than the standard sound in my Lexus RX.

 

Upgrade your front speakers with the Subie upgrade (search for it) and it makes a big difference. I think the sound system is great with just that upgrade. Of course, a good clean signal helps alot (Spotify premium).

 

4+ years and the jbl sounds fine. better than the standard. Is it up to par with high end stereos from different makes? Probably not. But for commuting around and long distance, it's great. Pretty decent bass to if you have the right song.

 

I should have added 2 things:

1. If I did it again I would forgo the tweeters in the 6x9's. There is wayyyyy too much treble in the cab with the extra tweeters and you have to adjust the treble setting almost all the way down. If I catch a killer deal on new 6x9's I may just swap them out.

2. I should also throw this other thread out there as I might get to it myself one day. The Kicker Key amp would probably help with the too much tweeter problem in point 1.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-premium-upgrade-kicker-key-180-4-amp.541375/

And I guess #3, if you want a plug and play upgrade with the added $$$ of it being plug and play instead of researching, sourcing, and installing yourself:

https://tacomabeast.com/collections...double-cab-sound-system?variant=8017976623134

 

I think the sound is okay for something that comes from the factory in a truck, but the bass from the subwoofer seems a bit lower than my 2017. There's another thread about that on here. Anyone just swapped in a shallow mount aftermarket sub? Or maybe it's the JBL amp that's the problem?

 

Depends on the music genre. The JBL setup is a definite improvement over standard once the settings are tweaked but it has weaknesses and if you listen to a low quality source or some genres it isn't going to sound great (imo) because of those small midrange dash speakers and no tweeter. It's leaps and bounds better than standard if you listen to bass heavy music. My problem with the setup is it should have woofers and midrange speakers as separate speakers in the doors and actual tweeters in the A-pillars. I find the midrange speakers in the dash too small for actual midrange which makes can make them sound harsh and at the same time they are too large to sound good as tweeters. That said if we had control over the crossover point between the door and the dash speakers you could probably make them sound much better as is.

Coming from a Mustang with the 12 speaker Shaker Pro it was a giant step down, but it's still above average.

ALL that said...no one gets the premium package for the JBL speakers...it's a minor thing that's thrown in. I care about the 'leather' heated seats, moon roof and auto climate/headlight (as well as everything that's part of the tech package). I even care about the built in nav personally. JBL branded speakers and the sub not so much.

 

Does lexus not use jbl? Cause I was in a gx the other day and that sound system bumped hard.

 

You can always do the Subaru tweeters for $100. A lot of guys on here have done that and are pretty happy with the result.

I haven’t done that since I’m pretty content with my premium audio but if the rest of the features don’t sell you moonroof, climate control, etc.
Then upgrading the audio yourself isn’t a bad idea, save a couple thousand.

 

It is not premium or even close to decent "quality", however, some don't care or know what quality/premium sound is. Those that are happy with it, awesome, the rest have a lot of options. Cheap upgrades help but the sky is the limit.