08 Access Cab simple upgrade

I just installed a CDE-125BT. It sounds a lot better than the factory unit did but I can already see the limitations of the factory speakers. I've been poking around here seeing other builds where folks are pulling out the rear storage areas to put in amps and subs. The issue there for me is I have kids who often sit back there and we use that storage.

Still, I would like subs. I'm still learning the various ways to implement car audio. Would it be reasonable here to upgrade the rears and use the head unit's software to turn them into subs? It seems like this unit has built in soft crossover ability. Or would I be better suited to stick crossovers in line with those rears?

I figure in such a small space a good pair of fronts should work while dedicating the rears to bass. I'm not looking for show quality audio, nor to damage anyone's eardrums, and I'm trying to avoid losing any cab space. Any advice would be highly appreciated.

 

to get a notable amount of bass even comparable to most subs put in cars, you are definitely going to want to run them off an amp. the rear speaker subs that you are considering might not be a bad idea for you. like you said, your not looking for huge bass. The JL Audio 6W3 woofers would fit nicely in your rear doors with a 3/4" thick mounting ring. you would want to make sure you had a fairly deadened/sealed area within the mounting area of the door for best results. Find yourself an amp that can put 150-200W to each of those and im sure you'll be happy with it.

 

That's what I wanted to know, thanks. I am thinking of dropping this in as the amp for space reasons. Any opinion on that?

 

i would steer clear of that. you want a REAL amplifier. something that will give you control over your sound as well as a notable increase in power. if you're worried about space, maybe explore some digital amplifier options. the smallest ones i've seen so far are the new JL XD series amps which can pack some serious punch in a tiny package.