Kicker hideaway- final upgrade to the $250(+) 3rd gen premium upgrade (+Kicker Key 180.4 amp)

I had a local stereo shop tell me the 8" Hideaway would not fit under my seat. I have a 2020 TRD sport, with the JBL. May be different than the 16-19's because of the power drivers seat?

I also spent 20 minutes on the phone with a Crutchfield tech about upgrading all the speakers. He said unless I was willing to spend more $$ on a more complete system, it didn't make much sense to just swap out the speakers. Thoughts?

 

I have a 2020 OR and am interested in what you come up with. Also in the JBL boat. I don't really WANT to do anything but better speakers, and relocate the Sub to get some space back

 

He told you correctly. JBL system pretty much needs a full gut to be worth doing. New speakers won’t get you better performance because now the JBL amp isn’t pushing enough power.

 

Thanks Destin_Meeks. Afraid I'm stuck at the moment. Not interested in dumping $2-$3k into a system right now.

 

You could do it for $1500 pretty easy and get good product and a huge improvement. Still not a cheap project by any means so I would push it farther down the list if that’s too steep.

 

I just went to a local shop today and was told we can start with an amp and processor for $1500-2000 installed. I’m so glad I got the jbl upgrade, not.

Maybe I just need to find another shop?

 

Did they give you an itemized list? Would love to see their pricing breakdown. I won’t call it crazy because I could blow 1500-2000 doing the work myself

 

No breakdown just a verbal ballpark. Memphis amp and the processor if I’m calling it the right thing. He talked about adjusting the crossovers. Power was gonna be 75 watt per channel and 500 for the sub.

Seemed like a lot for basically just the amp. I know labor is not cheap but wow.

 

Yeah that’s a good chunk of change for an amp and DSP. I’d ask for an itemized list for you to review and tell him you’ll get back with him

 

If your going to drop that kind of dough just buy it off of crutchfield and save the install money. They give you all the instructions and also free speaker adapters and install dash kits. First place I always look to buy the expensive stuff. They also have killer black Fri deals

 

I know your right. Been looking that route but the technology is intimidating now days. Plus that means I’m taking my old (55) ass out there doing the work. I know if I self install I could upgrade better for the same money. Wife already said if I knew this truck was gonna cost so much I would have said no. Lol

Its my first Toyota and my first Tacoma ever but also my last new truck as I am planning to retire in 8 years so I know this will last me forever. So I kinda do want to do it up right. Eight more years as a daily driver is a long time. I’ve always enjoyed quality audio systems in the house so it’s time for the road. Within reason of course.

Still kills me to pull out the “upgraded” system and start over.

 

If they’re installing and tuning a DSP, and they know what they’re doing, that time costs money. Installing an amp isn’t rocket science and adjusting crossovers and gains isn’t that hard, but DSP adds a lot of potential complexity.

I know on older Toyota’s Metra made a harness to bypass the factory amp. If that’s still an option I’d say do a head unit, speakers, and skip the amp and DSP for now.

 

It's actually not that bad taking all the panels off. If it's cold out I would say definitely don't do it as you will more than likely snap something plastic but doing this yourself is a good learning experience of how your truck works and is put together. A little me time with the truck is always a good thing. Lol

 

I know this is really old, but for anyone that may come across this (as I did, not even a Tacoma owner):

a bit of definition: TRS = tip ring sleeve (you'll notice three separate metal conductive sections on the connector) TS = tip sleeve (you'll notice two separate sections)

The 1/8" plug is TRS (stereo), the splitter would need to be TRS male to dual TRS female (or dual stereo female). Most splitters of this sort are 1/8" TRS to 1/8" TS.

I believe what is needed here is this:

$14 D'Addario Accessories 1/8" Male Stereo to Dual 1/8" Female Stereo Adaptor

https://www.amazon.com/Planet-Waves...ld=1&keywords=PW-P047ZZ&qid=1623085507&sr=8-5

I'll be testing this out to confirm this week. I'm 99.99% certain this will work, with the only caveat being whether or not splitting the signal degrades the voltage too much

 

I know this is an old post - but I was also not sure if the hideaway would fit in my truck .. which is not a Tacoma.. so I went to Best Buy and bought one - took it out to the parking lot and did a fitment test. They have a 15 day return policy on them.

 

I'm really tearing up this old thread, eh?

For anyone researching this and coming across this thread... per Kicker - do not use a LOC converter to convert their line level inputs to RCA:

c. The input wires, white and gray and white with black strip and gray with black stripe will connect to the optional KISL speaker wire to RCA adaptor. The white and white with black stripe are the left input and the gray and gray with black stripe are the right input wires. Connect those accordingly to the KISL connect RCA cable. Route the RCA cable safely out of the way of moving components in your vehicle such as brake, steering, and seat mechanisms. YOU CANNOT CONNECT A LOC OR LINE OUTPUT CONVERTOR BEWEEN THE HIDEAWAY AND THE AFTERMARKET HEAD UNIT! Line output convertors are designed to convert speaker level to RCA level. They will not convert the RCA output of an aftermarket head unit to the speaker level for the input of the Hideaway.

https://www.kicker.com/app/products/caraudio/powered_subs/p11hs8/files/HowToConnectTheHideaway.pdf


They do sell an adapter (of course...smh) https://www.kicker.com/2-channel-speaker-rca-converter.

I wish these things just had RCA on the panel, crap design money grab.

 

Those running the Keys on their 4 door speakers. Are you guys getting louder sound from the rear speakers? When I fade to the back speakers I'm barely getting any sound unless I crank it up to 30+

 

Mine was roughly equal. Are you sure you had your gains set correctly for each set of channels? There is an independent gain for front and rear on the 180.4, probably the 200.4 as well.

 

Probably not. But when I turn the gain up for the rears I hear buzzing coming from them when the volume is off.

 

Turn everything on, turn volume up to your normal listening level, pause track, adjust gain till you can’t hear it. I had to live with a little hiss when I had mine installed before.

Did you run an independent ground and power, or tapped the radio harness for both?