Need FACTUAL info on possible stereo upgrade

You are correct on all they above. To each their own. This worked perfectly for me I did an add a fuse, then connected my factory jbl amp that runs my speakers to my rockford fosgate amp then installed a shallow pioneer 10" and mounted factory amp and fosgate to sub box platform. Looks very clean. Also bed line sprayed my sub box. Hits too hard have it turned down 50% with a control knob i put between driver seat and door.

 

I also maintained the stock H/U while significantly upgrading sound quality and output with the following...
- AudioControl LC2i Line Out Converter (under the passenger seat)
- JL Audio XD200/2v2 Amp (under the passenger seat)
- Focal PS165V1 Speakers
- Sound Ordnance B-8PTD Sub (under the driver seat)
-

$237 10501 Bulk Kit - (30) 12" x 23" Silver ULTRA Sheets - 58 Square Feet

Hushmat &

NOICO Liner 157 Mil 37.5 Sqft Car Heat Insulation Pad, Foam Self-Adhesive Sound Deadening and Automotive Dampening Mat for Cars (1/6'' Sound Deadener)

Noico Liner Sound Insulation



Unless money is burning a hole in your pocket, comparison shop! I got all my stuff for an average of 40% off MSRP.

 

As I posted originally, the whole point of keeping the OEM HU is the features are there, I LIKE the layout and how it works.
I also have a short asian wife who I have to "educate" on how to drive a truck......the back up camera will hopefully keep her from whacking the tail.

I am with you on the aftermarket HU, for power and tuning it is better, but, unless someone makes a direct 100% OEM replacement.......I aint doin an HU

I am probably going with OEM audio plus on this....I like what I saw on the install vid with the EXCEPTION of the battery lead......the butt connectors are good ones with the solder/seal tech.....but is is still a joined connection under the hood and not isolated from the elements.......

 

I like the clean look of oem stereo. I fully understand why you want to keep it. I have never regretted keeping mine and have all my speakers powered by an amp and a 10" sub. My trucks sound rocks. You will be very happy with what your looking at. As for wires i just went on ebay and selected a generic upgraded wire pack. If your not doing compititions this doesnt need to be overthought

 

@Aw9d

 

Anyone updated their stereo amplifier in 2016? If so what type?
I have DC JBL and wondering where it's located to upgrade.

 

Isnt it behind rear passenger seat? You need to remove the plastic molding to expose it and the factory sub. Why do you want to upgrade it?

 

Did the same with components up front and a 5 channel Alpine amp. Added an 8" type R Alpine amp in a ported box behind the rear seats. Sound is plenty loud with a good balance of bass.

 

Nothing wrong with keeping the stock HU. I am a big fan of swapping out everything stock and going nuts with systems but I fully understand why people want to keep it as stock as possible.

OEM Audio setups are great for:

Keeping it stock looking
Very easy install
Good sound
Decent price tag


The only thing I have noticed is you were looking at a JL Stealth box. The OEM 8" sub isn't going to be anywhere near a JL stealth box with an amp pushing it hard. So if a ground pounder setup is what you are looking for the OEM Audio sub isn't it. Since you have young kids I'd say that the 8" sub in the OEM is going to be more than enough. You can always upgrade later.

It looks like you have sound deadening figured out. I like Raamaudio's products personally. I've done 3 of my own cars/trucks with their stuff and have no issues.

Just my .2 cents.

 

I've only replaced the front Speakers/Tweeters in my Honda's. I find, if I have rear passengers, we aren't listening to music anyway's, so I never bother with replacing rear speakers.

Biggest bang for the buck, if your not changing out your HU

As far as my OEM Subwoofer, it's "just adequate", I haven't bothered with it.

 

Thanks. Was thinking of upgrading to more subwoofers.

 

So thats what i did. You can either tap into that amps out put and into a new amp using a line in converter or hi level outputs or upgrade to a single amp to run soeakers and the sub. I bought a rockford fosgate 250watt amp for like 150$ and just added it to the factory amp and left factory amp running the jbl speakers. Was an easy solution for me and works greatZ i mounted both amps side by side on sub box for a clean install

 

Nice! Any pics of the install?
Did you have to add another battery for the additional amp? I got feedback from another TW member who said that he had a tough time working with the head unit for proper power distribution.
Thoughts?

 

Ill pm you pics maybe tomorrow car seat mounted and cant fold down seat.

As far as power on head unit no issues and you dont have to remove it or even touch it for install unless your adding a new head unit. The second added amp has its own power cord going directly to battery

This is how i did mine. Some people will not like this install and chose to use a different setup which is fine bit 3 years now and it works great! System rocks.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/replace-factory-sub-jbl-system.348725/#post-9326838

 

My vote is OEM Audio Plus...installed in my 15 and it is great and wasn't bad to install.

 

Thats is very cool! Great solution.

 

There is the pic for reference if you want to keep fsctory jbl amp on excisting door speakers and just add a sub amp. Or you could switch to one amp for all. I chose this way.

 

Can I ask a general question here about the different sound deadening products?

It’s going to be a little while before I can do anything with my stereo but I’m really wanting to try some sound deadening stuff. I’ve never used it before.

Is there a “Best for the money” item that seems to have the most bang for your buck?

I see references to HushMat, Some new Noico stuff or whatever, and most are doing some type of thermo insulation also. I’m not sure I need that but want the sound deadening.

I do remember when DynoMat came out and was super impressed but never really got int it.

What makes one better than the other? Are they all made in China except for a few I believe that are made in the US, “HushMat is US right?

Some have foil backing some don’t, why is that? Is the foil the temperature factor to the sound deadening mat itself?

I’ll be installing it myself and probably doing the back of my Access Cab first as I have the Utility Package and it’s super easy to get to the back metal.

Is it really as easy as prep the metal with alcohol and then peel and stick and roll into place? Looks like having a heat gun helps “mold” it into corners and shapes...

Then rear doors, and roof, lastly would be the floor as I’m hoping to add the FJ style factory vinyl flooring too.

I’m no hipster, I’m 42, I’ll admit tried searching on YouTube for good stereo shop comparisons because I figured if a shop can trust some brand over another, I wanna know why. Can they use one product and apply and forget about it or is there a difference in how well one holds up over time and temp changes.

Sorry for the rant of questions, This is a project I really want to complete before the summer is over!

 

I used noico and i am happy with it. I think noico is generally considered a good value.

Ive heard the foil backing is more for manufacturing the product than performance. Its just a surface for black stuff to stick on. Some products measure thickness including the foil. An 80 mil product with foil backing may have less than 80 mil of sound deadening material.

I did not prep the metal before applying the deadener. I havent had any issues. Im sure it wouldnt hurt to prep it.

Its pretty flexible. I dont think you would need a heat gun to form anything. I didnt use one

 

As a "hobby" I've been a sound reinforcement engineer for over 25 years and have toured with rock bands and run a venue plus run sound for bi weekly public gigs off and on since 1982.

I Just finished doing a complete Roadkill sound deadening material install and swapping out my crappy stock speakers for nice upgraded ones. It's WAAAAAAAY better. Very quiet now and great sound. Stock radio, no additional speakers, just replacement with higher quality components and sound matting. Complete cab: Thin metal backed adhesive rubber/vynil dampener, rolled on tight. Then thick Roadkill matt also adhesive backed. taped all holes and added speaker mounting isolator brackets specific to the speaker and which match the truck factory mounting holes.

I'll find my receipts and get you the amount and exact name of the products but it's for a 15 access cab so it wont help you too much with ordering.

It's a fantastic upgrade. Probably 20 db reduction in ambient noise all around. No, .....I didn't do a db level check before or after but I'm conservatively estimating the noise level reduction at 20db. It could be more in some situations. I think the rain and road noise may be reduced more than 20.

These guys did the install: https://www.pinnacleautosound.com/